Alwyn Owen
The rural dunny - a good place to do your business
A trip to the archives with a nostalgic tribute to that most humble and human New Zealand institution, the dunny, from a feature produced in 1975 by the team from long-running RNZ show Spectrum. Audio
The rural dunny - a good place to do your business
A trip to the archives with a nostalgic tribute to that most humble and human New Zealand institution, the dunny, from a feature produced in 1975 by the team from long-running RNZ show Spectrum.
AudioFrom the Archives - The Country Vet
This 1975 Spectrum documentary follows a day in the life of rural Gisborne veterinarian, Mac Wallace. His day begins with a cow having trouble calving and ends at Turehau station, where a group of… Audio
From the Archives - The Country Vet
This 1975 Spectrum documentary follows a day in the life of rural Gisborne veterinarian, Mac Wallace. His day begins with a cow having trouble calving and ends at Turehau station, where a group of…
AudioHe Tāonga Kōrero - a tribute to Spectrum
Former Spectrum producer Alwyn Owen remembers a few stories he produced for the long-running series that ends on July 24. He recalls spending time with the late Dame Whina Cooper where she talked… Audio
He Tāonga kōrero - Spectrum in Te Araroa 1989
The producers pf documentary series Spectrum covered a range of stories that captured the essence of the country over 44 years. Te Ahi Kaa digs into the Spectrum vaults and features stories from Alwyn… Audio
Broadcaster Jack Perkins on his 56 years in radio
Jack Perkins began the iconic Radio NZ show Spectrum, with Alwyn Owen, in 1972, and whether or not by design it has become one of NZs most valuable libraries of oral history. Audio
Spectrum for 11 January 2015
The Catapult Cowboy, Messenger Mick, Simple Simon Green, The Skycop, all were heroes in comic books with names like 'Young Men of Great Britain', 'Beano' and 'Dandy'. From the late 19 century till… Audio
Spectrum for 17 August 2014
Alwyn Owen explores the lighter side of New Zealand's poetry of patriotism which was fashionable during the latter half of the 19 century and the early 20th. Our patriotic versifiers were eclectic… Audio
Our Glorious Heritage: New Zealand Verse
Spectrum's Alwyn Owen pays tribute to some of our worst - and funniest - New Zealand verse. Audio
The Vault - Rudolf Steiner
Austrian born Rudolf Steiner lived from 1861 to 1925. His first school was established in 1919. The Nazis opposed his ideas but his schools and kindergartens spread rapidly around the world after… Audio
Spectrum for 20 January 2013
In 1913, 23-year-old Florence Harsant rode on horseback through the gumfields and isolated settlements of New Zealand's far north. Florence was working on behalf of the Women's Temperance Movement… Audio
Spectrum for 18 March 2012
Forty years ago to the day, 18 March 1972, the first Spectrum documentary was broadcast. Jack Perkins helped Alwyn Owen launch a human interest series which was designed as a counterbalance to the… Audio
Public vs Private: The broad picture 1970 - 1996
Free enterprise and deregulation see the expansion of private radio and public radio is threatened. Audio
The Golden Years: The broad picture 1949 -1970
Technical and programme innovation along with a broadening cultural role for radio mark the post-war years. Audio
Politics, War and Progress: The broad picture 1935-1949
The Labour government's take-over of radio in 1936 sets an agenda of expansion interrupted only by war. Audio
A Stirring Thrills the Air: The broad picture 1921-1935
We quickly embrace the first electronic mass-medium. A few hundred wire-fiddling enthusiasts in the early 1920s grow, even through the depression years, to 152,000 licence holders by 1935. Audio
From the Hot Lakes District
Rotorua's thermal areas seen through the eyes of diarists around the turn of the century. Produced by Alwyn Owen from diaries and travel guides held in the Turnbull Library. Audio
A Song for all Seasons (1982)
Elsa Davis was Melbourne's unofficial Poet Laureate, and composer extraordinary. With enthusiasm and devotion, she chronicles events in song. She talks to Alwyn Owen, and demonstrates her talent… Audio
How to Record your Grandfather
History is not only a written record of events, it also resides in people's memories. Through the audio recorder, this resource of memory can be preserved for today's and future generations. Over a… Audio
