Police did not coerce Joyce Conwell to confess to the shotgun murder of Alec Rodgers in Christchurch in 1999, the Independent Police Conduct Authority has ruled.

Aviation website privatefly.com has named its top 10 scenic airports at which to land. Our very own winter wonderland Queenstown gets a mention.

Police had to be called after an Ashmore presented its owner with a 5g bag of cannabis.

A ''feral'' student party in Stafford St in Dunedin yesterday was shut down by police, amid concerns for the safety of intoxicated people climbing on the outside of a three-storey flat.

No matter what the weather's doing, Pamela Wade finds entertainment in Southland and Central Otago.

Miners and farmers have made way for curling, writes Elisabeth Easther.

The parents of the German teenagers presumed drowned in Foveaux Strait are returning home and say they know they are leaving their daughters behind.

An Australian film crew believes it captured two UFOs on film near Queenstown, and have posted the video online.

Pellets laced with 1080 poison will be fed to trout to assess potential risks from the planned massive dump of the pesticide in native forests.

Three Otago Correction Facility officers were assaulted by an inmate yesterday morning.

What do you do when forced to spend the night in the freezing cold on an Otago mountain? Snuggle up to your smelly - but warm -sheep dogs of course.

Flood-ravaged Christchurch is under deluge again today, with 50mm falling in the past 24 hours, heavier than was forecasted.

Corstorphine House's history of accommodating royals and Hollywood actors may help attract global "A-listers" when the Dunedin property goes on the market for $3.8m.

Two shocked teenagers are being helped by victim support following the launch of two homicide investigations in North Otago today.

Links with the past are strong in this town built on gold, writes Elisabeth Easther.

A Wanaka police officer was left bloodied and bruised after being attacked inside his patrol car yesterday - six years after being seriously injured in a similar drink-drive stop.

A yoga retreat in Queenstown with laughs and wine, suits Rebecca Barry Hill just fine.

Meeting a royal has meant a few extra lessons for a group of young students in Central Otago.

A transgender Oamaru woman sentenced on Wednesday to nine months' imprisonment in a men's jail could apply to be moved to a women's prison.

The tragic deaths of two children shot by their father could have been prevented if NZ and Australian police shared information on earlier criminal convictions.

A transgender Oamaru woman has been ordered to serve a jail sentence in a men's prison, despite a request for home detention.

A man injured in a fall at Speight's Brewery earlier this week has died.

There were tears at a Dunedin private school yesterday as principal Melissa Bell, who last year recovered from aggressive breast cancer, announced her resignation.

Cyclists burn gourmet calories on a pedal into heavenly countryside, writes Pamela Wade.

The South Island's first gold rush town is resplendent with colourful characters, writes Paul Rush.

Former children's television presenter Olly Ohlson lost his cool over the Government's handling of his red-zoned house in Christchurch and moved to Dunedin.