Women and girls rugby in the Bay of Plenty is growing fast, but behind the progress are real challenges, and a community working hard to bridge the gaps.

UNO catches up with local film director James Ashcroft in New York to discuss his new thriller, the demons driving his films, working with Robert De Niro and Stephen King, and how he achieved all of this from the shores of Mount Maunganui.

The Bay of Plenty is home to some incredible examples of entrepreneurs who have backed themselves and taken a concept or product to global scale. We talk to three local businesses at different stages of their life cycle – one that has been established for nearly 19 years, one nine and one three.
All prove without a doubt that the best way to do it is ‘to do it’.

As the dust settles on her Paris triumph, Ōhope’s Dame Lisa Carrington contemplates her next chapter. The kayaking legend shares her post-Olympic reflections and the unexpected joys of an unscheduled life.

He’s exposed hypocrites, taken on bullies, released a Netflix series and topped the box office with his two feature-length documentaries. Tauranga’s David Farrier reveals to Karl Puschmann the secret to his success, his one regret, his philosophy on life and how breaking his brain was the best thing he ever did.

Two years ago kayaker Luuka Jones could barely walk down the street without wheezing. In July she’ll represent New Zealand in K1 and the extreme new Kayak Cross at the Olympic Games and hope to fulfil a long-held dream.

He’s one of Aotearoa’s biggest music stars and she’s working hard to make a difference in our community. Together Rachel Axis Taane Tinorau and Tiki Taane are one of the Bay’s most recognisable couples. Here they talk about their unusual love story, overcoming addiction and ghosts.

Enter the surreal world of actor, writer and musician Richard O’Brien. Residing in Katikati, the Rocky Horror Picture Show creator takes us on a journey through the history of the world-shaking musical he wrote exactly 50 years ago.

When it comes to recent research around menopause, it’s become apparent that we don’t really have to go with the flow. UNO talks to two local experts, Dr Stacy Sims and Dr Linda Dear, about how women can take charge.

This pregnancy-focussed natural product range transforms skincare into an act of self-care.

Olympic kayaker Mike Dawson's spirit of adventure continues to drive him toward epic expeditions, traversing remote landscapes and pushing himself to the limit

New Zealand windfoiling champion Veerle ten Have is a naturally talented sportswoman with a passion for bringing her sport to the mainstream.

Stan Walker is all grown up – and learning to find the balance between his music and his expanding whānau.

With her emotional, original songs and powerful te reo Māori waiata, singer-songwriter Georgia Lines is conquering the New Zealand music industry.

In the eight years since sisters Kārena and Kasey Bird wowed the Masterchef kitchen with their home-grown culinary flair, they’ve collected more awards and travelled around the globe showcasing their kai. Now Kasey has an exciting new food critic on board to taste test all their fresh ideas.

In a world where so much is wrong, BOP legend Denise Arnold makes the right kind of difference – bringing purpose and hope to the abandoned generations of Cambodia.

The unstoppable Bryce Dinneen from Wish4Fish proves there are no limits to sharing his adventurous dreams.

To reach the standard required to represent your country as an Olympic and Commonwealth Games athlete is extraordinary. To reach that standard across multiple disciplines is, in my view, verging on superhuman.

Entrepreneur and disability advocate Charmeyne employs over 200 people to support people with disabilities, like her husband, Peter who suffered a brain injury in a boxing match. What Ever It Takes is a fitting name for her business, and the way Charmeyne approaches life.

"I respect the portraits that Goldie and Lindauer painted, but what I have that they didn't is direct hononga to the culture, so I feel that puts me in the best possible place to be Māori portrait artist of the future. My plan is to do more portraits of Māori, sourcing materials where they are from, and telling stories of hononga to their whakapapa and homeland."

I was three hours into trekking across the Greenland ice cap, and all I wanted to do was quit. I’d spent the past six months imagining myself as a strong warrior gliding over smooth snow under bright blue, never-ending skies, the sun warming my bronzed face. The reality, however, couldn’t have been further from the truth.

You can take the boy out of the Bay of Plenty, but you can’t take the Bay out of the boy. Maria Hoyle talks to the local influencer about going back for his future.

Virtually every Kiwi in the country has heard of My Food Bag and recognises its public face, Nadia Lim. In the past five years, the company has produced 45 million meals; it’s New Zealand’s third-largest food retailer, and has changed the way many of us shop for and prepare our meals.

His face is already pretty much etched into the national psyche, and that easy smile and cool, calm demeanor have become known around the world, but in person, Peter Burling could not be more humble, more unassuming, or any more relaxed.

Jenny Rudd meets two of the world’s top junior surfers, brother and sister, Elin (15) and Jonas (17) Tawharu. They have grown up surfing on their doorstep, here in The Mount.