

Afternoons
RNZ
Jesse Mulligan presents an upbeat mix of the curious and the compelling, ranging from the stories of the day to the great questions of our time.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 4, 2025 • 9min
What's on the box? The Survivors and Andor
The Survivors is a six-part adaptation of Jane Harper's bestselling Australian crime novel of the same name. The drama stars our very own Robyn Malcolm. Our TV critic Caitlin Cherry reviews The Survivors (Netflix) and finds out what all the fuss is about with Andor (Disney Plus), the show that is part of the Star Wars franchise.

Aug 4, 2025 • 8min
How do you make sure you give your child the best start
This week is World Breastfeeding Week - the goal is to the highlight the importance of breastfeeding and to encourage families, health professionals and communities to all work together to promote it Plunket's Chief Nurse Zoe Tipa & Plunket line's Clinical Lead and lactation consultant Hannah Cook spoke to Emile.

Aug 4, 2025 • 12min
Find out what's behind our obsession with black clothing
Last Friday on the show, Jesse was discussing New Zealand fashion trends with Fashion Quarterly's Editor in Chief and unsurprisingly our national love affair with the colour black came up. One of our listeners got in touch, Doris de Pont curated the 'Black in Fashion' exhibition at the New Zealand Fashion Museum back in 2011 The exhibition explored why we loved this dark and colourless hue ... and more than a decade later...it seems not much has changed Doris De Pont joins Emile.

Aug 4, 2025 • 13min
NCEA Changes: A student's perspective
This morning the Government proposed big changes to secondary school qualifications, namely, scrapping NCEA. They said the new system would still retain standards-based assessments and be underpinned by a new national curriculum. We wanted to ask a student how they're feeling about this, Kapiti College Head of Kura, Aroa Al Masri spoke to Emile.

Aug 1, 2025 • 18min
Critter of the Week: Mokopiriakau granulatus - the forest gecko
This week's critter of the week is the moko piriakau, also known as the forest gecko. They are renowned for their ability to easily camouflage to their surroundings and their incredible climbing skills. Nicola Toki joins Jesse to rate this endangered critter.

Aug 1, 2025 • 7min
Weekend Stuff: Living mulches
Emma Sage joins Jesse Mulligan to get down and dirty on living mulch.

Aug 1, 2025 • 7min
Food: Sticky Date Cake with Coffee Buttercream
How good would a slice of sticky date cake with coffee buttercream be right now? Well, it can be yours, all you have to do is make it! Gretchen Lowe shares the recipe with Jesse. It's from her new book My Weekend Table.

Aug 1, 2025 • 11min
Film Review: Blue Moon, The Life of Chuck & more
The New Zealand International Film Festival opened in Auckland last night, and that means busy days and nights for film fans and film critics. Like Kate Rodger! She joins Jesse to talk about her top picks this week; Blue Moon, It Was Just an Accident and The Life of Chuck.

Aug 1, 2025 • 7min
Freaky Friday
This time each week we turn to Freaky Friday, the space for all your weird, spooky, and strange experiences. If you have one you'd like to share please reach out via text - 2101 - or you can email us, afternoons@rnz.co.nz. This week, Jesse is joined by Pleasance from Riverton at the bottom of the South Island.

Aug 1, 2025 • 14min
Highlighting one of Aotearoa's most significant heritage sites
Hidden among the bustle of modern day of Tauranga lies one of Aotearoa's most significant heritage sites, The Elms Te Papa Tauranga The site has borne witness to more than 600 years of our often-turbulent history. A new book 'The Spirit of a Place' traces this legacy starting with the arrival of the first Polynesian voyaging canoes, the arrival of Pakeha, to the complex interactions that followed. Author Sarah Ell joins Jesse in studio.