James “Jimmy” Marshall is a man of many talents, with an unreal work ethic. After an epic rugby career that included winning a super rugby title with the Hurricanes then captaining Taranaki to an ITM cup title. He has turned to coaching and last year joined the Crusaders coaching crew after being shoulder tapped by Razor Robertson. Off the field, he has built the incredible “What A Lad” podcast.  This conversation covers some of the very rich Jimmy Marshall story. Hope you like it. Shout out...

TIM ROSS (AKA Rosso): A lot of New Zealanders won’t know who Rosso is and that’s exciting- because it means you about to get to know a cool person. In the early 2000s when Rosso and I became mates, he was part of Australia’s number 1 radio show, “The Merrick and Rosso show.” In 2009, Rosso quit radio and since then has successfully combined his passion for comedy and architecture by doing hundreds of standup comedy shows at some of the most architecturally acclaimed houses around the...

Lewis Clareburt is the golden boy of NZ swimming.  He won 2 golds and a bronze at the last Commonwealth games and recently became a world champion at Doha. Lots of good stuff in this conversation- going viral on Tik Tok for his Olympics behind the scenes content, his insane training schedule and the sacrifices involved, the recent drama that saw him break up with his coach and move cities, coping with pressure and much, much more. This was a chance to tap into the brain of one of New...

FREDDIE BENNETT: Freddie, an Englishman who now calls New Zealand home, shares his remarkable pivot from life in one fast lane to life in another fast lane.  In his old life he was chasing cheap dopamine with copious amounts of alcohol and cocaine. Now he’s leaning into the search for a quality dopamine hit by pushing his body to the limit physically and doing epic s**t.  And in the process, becoming a better person and making himself and his family and friends proud which is cool. At the...

Simon is the former leader of the National party, and the first ever Māori to lead a major party in New Zealand.  We cover a lot of ground here- the good, the bad and the ugly. And there is plenty of each! We chat about his very recent serious fall off a Lime scooter, his early acting role on Hercules, his law career including his time as a crown prosecutor and the toll that takes on a person’s mental health.  Then we get into politics- including his regular TV appearances with Jacinda Arden...

JON NABBS I caught up with Jon the day after he landed back in New Zealand after completing an absurd personal running challenge in Canada. Dressed in a superman suit and pushing a stroller containing all his supplies- tent, sleeping bag, food, electronics, everything- he spent 305 days running from one side of Canada to the other- 7351km- solo and unsupported. In the process he raised over $100,000 for child cancer research. His why could not be any more significant either- during the...

Jon Toogood is a New Zealand rock god. As a teenager in Wellington, he swapped his cricket bat for a guitar, formed a band called Shihad and never looked back. Since then, he has been named NZ vocalist of the year 3 times and has even been inducted into the NZ music hall of fame.  It’s not very often you get this sort of unfiltered access and time with a rock star who has been to hell and back so this was a real treat. Thanks to the legends at Radix and Generate for making this episode...

Janet Redmond calls herself a possibility manager. That title is basically her reworking of the word therapist. She was previously a trauma specialist, training psychotherapists and counsellors. I reached out to Janet immediately after watching the Israel Adesanya documentary movie, “Stylebender.”  I thought this grandmother from Nelson in the campervan the surprise star of the film. This is a podcast of two halves. We chat about her relationship with Izzy and a little bit about who she is...

DAME SUSAN DEVOY: As a teenager from Rotorua, Susan became the world’s greatest female squash player in the 1980s and 90s and is still considered to be one of the GOATS of the sport. She won ALL the World Open Titles between 1985 and 1992.  She won the British Open eight times.                                               Then in 1992, at the peak of her powers, she shocked the world by retiring on top. And that’s just the sporting chapter of this remarkable woman’s life.  Since then, she...

Sam Wood became a household name in Australia back in 2015 as a reality TV star on The Bachelor where he met and fell in love with Snezana. They are now married and have 4 kids. Since the Bachelor, Sam started up an online fitness business called “28 by Sam Wood” which he recently sold for 70 million dollars. In this conversation we discuss the BTS of a reality TV show like the Bachelor. Sam's back story, including his very ambitious business idea that failed and left him with a mountain of...

Ric Salizzo is New Zealand sports broadcasting royalty.  His CV is too long to list in full but a few highlights: He became the All Blacks' first ever media liaison officer in the early 90s and was part of the ABs set up during the chaos of Jonah-mania in 1995. He created, and hosted the cult TV show Sports Café which ran for 11 years. Then launched The Crowd Goes Wild. We cover a lot of ground in this conversation- Ric is a world class storyteller with stories that are truly world class. I...

Olivia McTaggart is 24 years old and is one of the greatest pole-vaulters NZ has ever produced. Her highest jump, so far, is 4 meters 71cm (for comparison, the height of a double decker bus is 4 meters 40 centimeters). At 18 she fulfilled her childhood dream of going to the Commonwealth Games and finished in the top 10. Then at her 2nd Commonwealth Games she finished 4th. This year, she is hoping to raise the bar- excuse the pun- and go to the Olympics in Paris. If, like me, you know nothing...

DAVID NYIKA The boxer with the nick name “The Nice Guy.” He has had the honor of being the flag bearer alongside Sarah Hirini at the 2020 Olympics.  He has also won 2 commonwealth games golds and 1 Olympic bronze medal. And he is just getting started! We discuss his struggle with cultural identity, being a Ugandan growing up in NZ. Being mentored by Joseph Parker, training alongside Tyson Fury, Tommy Fury and Sonny Bill Williams.. The awesome back story of meeting and getting together with...

Aesha Scott is one of the stars of the Bravo show “Below Deck.” Some of you will be massive fans of the woman crowned NZ TV personality of the year.  But I guess some of you would have no idea who she is.  Either way, you are in for a treat! I’ve done over 100 podcast episodes so far and this might be the wildest episode yet. This true-blue kiwi chick is amazing- relentlessly positive and just naturally likeable and hilarious. But also, so authentic. I think this may be Aesha Scott as you...

ALEX PLEDGER Alex is officially the tallest podcast guest ever. He is also the guest with the biggest feet…and maybe the biggest heart as well.    This was the first time we had ever met; I knew very little about Alex but the two hours just flew by. There are lots of lessons in here….the most important one being the importance of early detection for bowel cancer. This episode could literally save lives! We cover a lot of ground here- the highs of his epic basketball career including 5 NBL...

IZZY WHITLEY: This mate of mine is an absolute force of nature and has a story that will hopefully motivate you to get more out of your own life. At 21 Izzy he started his own business with $500. He is now 29 and owns two businesses that are worth millions. And he is just getting started. The secret to his success? Hard work and a relentless drive to be better.  In this chat we get to the bottom on where his work ethic, drive and ambition stems from. I hope this chat inspires you to get a...

MARK RICHARDSON: Just before we pad up and get to the crease, thanks to my sponsors at Generate and Radix. Generate is my personal KiwiSaver scheme, and I’d love it if you would consider making it yours too.   I recently moved over to Generates Kiwi saver scheme after meeting up with one of their awesome advisors. And the bottom line is, if I’d done this sooner, my KiwiSaver savings would probably be worth more than they are now. If you want to make sure you’re making the most of your...

MERE BAKER You may not know the name. But please don’t let that put you off- you are about to be introduced to a hilarious, inspiring, infectious and talented wahine who has one hell of a story. Mere has by her own admission done a lot of dumb shit…but she has also done a lot of work to become the woman she is today and it’s a privilege to share her story. Mere is a former sports star. She won the world cup with the Kiwi ferns in 2003 and was an Aotearoa Sevens international.  These days she...

Steve Williams- the worlds greatest golf caddy of all time! This was such an honor. Steve is by design a pretty reclusive guy. This is the first long form podcast about his life that he has ever done so it’s a true honor he agreed to do it. As you would expect, there is a lot of Tiger Wood chat ahead- they were, after all, best friends and had an incredible working relationship for 12 very successful years. Tiger has won a total of 15 majors…and Steve was his caddy for 13 of them. We talk...

Simone Maier- most of you probably won’t know the name, but you are in for a treat! Simone is, plain and simply a multisport savage. She has won the Coast to Coast four times, after moving to NZ from Germany at 20 unable to speak any English.  She was also teammates in a Godzone event with Richie McCaw and was a contestant on the reality TV show “Tracked.” But what makes Simone's story is the adversity. Before she came here and experienced the highest or highs, she had to endure very low lows...

Andrew Webster, or “Webby” as he is known to his players had a phenomenal season in 2023 coaching the NZ Warriors to their first NRL semifinal in years. And winning the hearts of the entire nation in the process. We chat about the strategies used to build a winning team spirit, including a thing called “extreme ownership.” How he balances his full-noise job and family life with a newborn son, the up the wahs movement, the bunker ref, the revival of Shaun Johnson, his viral winning speech...

MARTIN HENDERSON I’m so excited to share this with you guys.  To have this sort of conversation in terms of both length and content with an actor of Martins level was truly a pinch myself moment and I cannot thank him enough for his generosity. We cover A lot of ground in this one- the early years of Shortland Street, moving to Aussie and becoming best mates with the late Heath Ledger, the Britney Spears Toxic music video, Greys Anatomy, Virgin River and that’s just the career stuff! Lots of...

Welcome to the Generate KiwiSaver scheme Summer Series. Volume 3! Coming up on this episode, excerpts from a heap of different guests who appeared on the podcast in final few months of 2023 (the hope is that if some of the snippets ahead of you pique your interest, you’ll make a note and go back to listen to the full episode sometime). Cheers to the legends at Generate for sponsoring this episode. Generate is an award-winning KiwiSaver provider, with at rack record of chart topping long term...

Thanks for checking out the Generate KiwiSaver scheme Summer Series. Volume 2! Coming up on this episode, excerpts from a heap of different guests who appeared on the podcast in the middle part of 2023 (the hope is that if some of the snippets ahead of you pique your interest, you’ll make a note and go back to listen to the full episode sometime). Thanks to my pals at Generate for bringing you this episode.  Generate is an award-winning KiwiSaver provider, with at rack record of chart-topping...