9 December 2004
New Series will Lift the Roof off New Zealand’s Wicked Weather
Was the weather better when we were kids? Is summer getting later every year? And what’s with this global warming? It’s
freezing in here! A constant source of fascination for many, the weather affects what we do, our state of mind, even
where we live. But what actually is weather? Dunedin-based NHNZ will go head-to-head with New Zealand’s wildest weather
to answer all these questions in Wicked Weather, a three hour series commissioned by Television New Zealand.
Scheduled to air in 2005, Wicked Weather will use a combination of elaborate demonstrations, fast factoids, hard
science and interviews with people who have lived through the wickedest weather, to take viewers beyond the nightly TV
bulletins and into the world of extreme weather – what it is, how it works and just how bad it can get. Producer of
Wicked Weather, John Hyde, says New Zealand’s unique geography means that it is affected by a wide variety of unusual
climatic conditions. This, combined with the traditional Kiwi outdoor lifestyle, makes us a nation of “weather
watchers”.
“New Zealand’s a small country, but it’s got some big weather. As a people we love to get out in it: skiing, sailing,
tramping, swimming; summer holidays by the beach. But the weather can also turn on us. Floods, droughts and intense
weather events have all taken their toll on people around New Zealand and this series will explain why these things
happen.”
The series will be hosted by weather enthusiast, Gus Roxburgh. Gus will be put through an array of stunts to help
demonstrate the effects of the weather: from facing high speed cricket balls that represent the power of hailstones; to
paragliding over the glorious Southern Alps to demonstrate New Zealand’s wildly unpredictable wind patterns.
Film maker, adventurer and extreme ski guide, Gus is most at home when engaging with New Zealand’s wonderful and wild
elements. If there’s one thing he knows – it’s weather. Wicked Weather will be as dramatic, exhilarating and as
constantly surprising as the New Zealand climate itself. NHNZ is one of the world’s leading producers of factual
programming embracing the genres of nature, health, science, adventure, and people.
With over 60 programmes currently in production, its crews work in locations around the world to produce a diversity of
films for international broadcasters including Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, TLC, Discovery Health, National
Geographic Channel, France 5, NHK in Japan and NDR in Germany. Based in Dunedin, New Zealand, the company is wholly
owned by Fox Television Studios.
ENDS