Archive

International Film Festival Comes to Dunners

Posted 10:54pm Saturday 10th August 2024 by Adam Stitely

The New Zealand International Film Festival (NZIFF) is coming down to dirty Dunners from the 15th to the 25th of August. This means it’s time to grab your least conspicuous trench-coat (the snacks won’t sneak themselves in) and try to remember something from your year 10 French class (je Read more...

Catacombs Wets The Bed

Posted 10:49pm Saturday 10th August 2024 by Nina Brown

Moshtix sent disappointed ticket-holders for the ‘Pink Pony Club: Pop Party’ an email last Wednesday announcing that the event had to be postponed – not because Chappell Roan would never willingly set foot in the dank den of DnB (Catacombs ofc), but because of Read more...

Inside Out? More Like Dance Your Heart Out

Posted 10:40pm Saturday 10th August 2024 by Molly Smith-Soppet

The Otago Dance Association’s annual showcase is fast-approaching, scheduled for September 28 in the College Auditorium. This year, the ODA’s exec have chosen to base the showcase on Pixar’s Inside Out, the 2015 cartoon movie applauded for its colourful depiction of the inner Read more...

Students Protest University’s Silence on Palestine

Posted 3:41pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Iris Hehir

A crowd of 100 student protesters marched from Union Lawn to the Clocktower on Tuesday, 30 July, to protest the University of Otago's continued silence on Palestine. Otago Students for Justice in Palestine (OSJP) are demanding the University declare Palestine an “independent and sovereign Read more...

Youths Get Crafty For Palestine

Posted 3:31pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Gryffin Blockley

Crochet and fundraising are quite possibly the two most wholesome things you could pair together. Luckily for Aotearoa, the Crochet for Palestine raffle means you can experience just this in the next few weeks. For just five bucks a pop, you can enter the raffle, closing August 11th. Critic Te Read more...

Big Red May Become Just ‘Big’

Posted 3:01pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Hugh Askerud

A makeover is on the cards for the iconic Big Red Castle Street flat. In a recent Trade Me listing which put the flat up for rent in 2025, DNA Property Management described big plans to make the dingy den “into a nice place to call home [...] rather than how it looks now.” To Read more...

Dunedin Sound Icon Martin Phillipps Dies at 61

Posted 2:59pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Jordan Irvine

Martin Phillipps, lead singer and songwriter of legendary Dunedin band The Chills, died unexpectedly on Sunday, July 29th. Revered as an icon for crafting the legendary New Zealand anthem ‘Pink Frost’, the singer was a beloved local figure. At age 15, Phillipps began his music career Read more...

Look After Your Mates: A Broader Reminder

Posted 2:56pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Hanna Varrs

During OUSA Student Support’s recent Winter Wellbeing Week, students may have noticed ‘Look After Your Mates’ campaign posters on campus from the OUSA Student Exec. Critic Te Ārohi spoke to OUSA Welfare and Equity Rep Tara Shepherd, who spearheaded the campaign and explained Read more...

Hayward’s Dryer Fiasco “Anarchy”

Posted 2:50pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Hugh Askerud

What’s that smell? Hayward College, according to its residents. In a letter to the editor, one student tipped Critic Te Ārohi that the hall has been left with just one functioning dryer for two months and no hot water showers for its 176 residents, welcoming a “barf-inducing B.O. Read more...

Auckland Beats Otago in Football Quarterfinals

Posted 2:47pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Robbie Heller

Chatham Cup fever struck Dunedin on Saturday, July 27, as the University Football Club took on New Zealand football powerhouse Auckland City in the quarterfinals. Held at Logan Park, it was a true David vs Goliath battle, with Auckland claiming a 5-1 win in front of a (slightly sloshed) student army Read more...

Residential Rep Resigns

Posted 2:45pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Nina Brown

The Student Exec’s Residential Rep has resigned from the position for “personal reasons.” This comes mere weeks after the former Finance and Strategy Officer also resigned from her post, with the by-election last week electing a replacement for the position. At their weekly meeting Read more...

Breatha Lands FSO Position at By-Election

Posted 2:43pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Hugh Askerud

Second-year Daniel Leamy would have had one hell of a Wednesday night after winning last week’s OUSA Finance and Strategy Officer by-election by a razor-thin five vote margin. Copping 50.74% of the votes, Daniel beat out his opponent, none other than Critic Te Arohi Bachelor Joel Tebbs, 172 Read more...

Otago Skiers Win Big at Canterbury Campus Comp

Posted 2:40pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Nina Brown

The Otago Uni Snow Sports Club (OUSSC) “brought the energy” at the annual CUBA JIB in Christchurch on Wednesday, July 24th. The Red Bull-sponsored Re-Ori event is a ski and snowboarding competition run by the Canterbury Uni Boardriders Association, held right on campus. They welcomed Read more...

U-Bar Renos Chop Green Room

Posted 2:09pm Sunday 4th August 2024 by Hugh Askerud

U-Bar’s green room (where bands and their mates hang out during gigs) is no longer available for use, leaving musos and ardent Pint Night goers in despair. This comes after the bar’s recent renovations, which saw Pint Night temporarily shifted to Auahi Ora for the last handful of first Read more...

‘The Dairy’ Back on the Market

Posted 8:42pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Gryffin Blockley

Grab your dehumidifiers and dustiest mates, notorious Castle Street flat The Dairy is available to rent in 2025. After a year or two of sitting unoccupied, the infamous six-bedroom flat is up for grabs for $150 a week, a price that’s been labelled “expensive” by a previous tenant Read more...

Rob Roy Dairy Sold To New Owners

Posted 8:40pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Angus Rees

Rob Roy has been officially sold to a new owner as of July 17th. The iconic Dunedin dairy, famous for its hefty amounts of ice cream and massive cones (wheyyyy), had been up for sale since March 2nd before being purchased by new owners the Wednesday before last.  As the old guard looks to Read more...

Finance and Strategy Officer By-Election

Posted 8:35pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Critic

Following the resignation of the Finance and Strategy Officer on the OUSA student exec, there is a by-election happening to fill the position. OUSA accepted the nominations of two candidates last week: Daniel Leamy and Joel Tebbs.  Voting is open this week from Monday to Wednesday, July 31st Read more...

Vic Uni Staff & Students Call for Divestment from Israel

Posted 7:56pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Monty O’Rielly

Pressure continues to mount for universities across the motu to express solidarity with Palestine. Pōneke Wellington has seen successive protests, the most recent involving Massey students calling for their university to divest from investments in Israeli Government Bonds. Now, Victoria Read more...

Poker-Playing Students Invite Buy-Ins

Posted 7:54pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Hugh Askerud

Students have flocked to Cosy Dell after two open-invite poker games were advertised to the student body last week. Posted on Castle 24 (before being removed by organisers), the games were advertised as a $50-100 buy-in event, inviting students to rock up for an evening of good old-fashioned poker Read more...

DCC Proposes Time Limits to North D Parks

Posted 7:49pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Hanna Varrs

The Dunedin District Council (DCC) is proposing changes to 60 parks on the student-riddled street of Harbour Terrace. According to the DCC, these changes will occur in two places: “the block between Union Street and St David Street; and the block between St David Street and Dundas Read more...

Icy Plunge Secures $3k for Mental Health Support

Posted 7:45pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Hugh Askerud

A second-year battler has raised $3k for mental health support after swimming in the recent New Zealand Ice Swimming Championships at Alexandra Pool on July 10-13th. Now that’s Dunedin-core. Maddy spoke to Critic Te Ārohi about the struggles of the race and her motivations for taking Read more...

‘Flipper Fest’ For Feathered Friends

Posted 7:42pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Sam Smith-Soppet

A genre-diverse festival called Flipper Fest has been scheduled for August 9-10th, all in the name of the Yellow Eyed Penguin Trust. Platforming local musos of the current Dunedin Sound, the festival promises to merge surf rock with punk and indie-adjacent sounds to make for a rip-roaring Read more...

Exec Propose to Pay Themselves More

Posted 7:40pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Nina Brown

An emergency meeting was held between the OUSA Exec last week to discuss the proposal of paying themselves more. Given they’re currently paid $20.50 per hour pre-tax (minimum wage in NZ is $23.15) you can see their reasoning. They plan to present proposed remuneration changes to the student Read more...

Shrexy U-Bar Kicks off Re-Ori

Posted 4:17pm Saturday 20th July 2024 by Gryffin Blockley

After U-Bar was SWAMPED with closure for much of the second half of first semester (cue wails from Pint Night loyalists), its semester two debut was OUSA’s very own Shrek rave – presented by yours truly.  Boasting free entry and complimentary glow sticks – potentially in a Read more...

Closed Caption Lectures (Hopefully) A Step Closer

Posted 4:15pm Saturday 20th July 2024 by Gryffin Blockley

In a win for accessibility and people who swear they can’t hear without subtitles, closed-captions in lectures appear to be getting closer to reality for Otago tauira. Last week, all students were emailed a link for surveys inviting them to give feedback on a policy proposed by the OUSA Exec Read more...

Students Pressure Unis for Stance on Palestine

Posted 3:38pm Saturday 20th July 2024 by Nina Brown

Students for Justice in Palestine across the motu are continuing to pressure their universities to take political stances on the war on Palestine. Universities continue to defend their positions of “institutional neutrality” – a position students might have been willing to accept Read more...

Capping Show Claims Edinburgh Ripped Off ‘Beezie’ Theme

Posted 3:36pm Saturday 20th July 2024 by Molly Smith-Soppet

A recent Edinburgh Realty ad campaign has raised eyebrows after students noticed it looked somewhat similar to the Capping Show’s Barbie-esque theme. Edinburgh? More like Edinbruh. With similarities in colour palette, characters, and terminology, Capping Show members have voiced their Read more...

Free Brekky Attracts Porridge Pinchers

Posted 3:32pm Saturday 20th July 2024 by Robbie Heller

Rumours of a porridge thief swept the free brekky community last week after successive mornings saw the porridge stock depleted quicker than you can say “oatmeal.” Breakfast runs from the OUSA Clubs and Socs building from 8:30am every morning, but claims say that the porridge has been Read more...

Exec Member’s Ghosting Prompts By-Election

Posted 3:24pm Saturday 20th July 2024 by Hugh Askerud

A by-election for the Finance and Strategy Officer role on the OUSA Student Exec has been called. Abby Clayton, who occupied the role last semester, bowed out of her Exec position last Monday, July 15th. Her formal resignation followed a month of radio silence, with repeated attempts to reach the Read more...

OUSA Referendum Results Are In

Posted 8:42pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Nina Brown

The OUSA referendum was at the end of last semester. All enrolled Otago Uni students were emailed a link to an online survey to have their say on what OUSA should focus their efforts on. Questions were able to be submitted by students prior to being put to vote, and after some to and fro (with many Read more...

Daddy Grant Graces the Vice Chancellor’s Throne

Posted 8:36pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Nina Brown

July 1st marked Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka’s freshly minted Vice Chancellor Grant Robertson’s first day on the job. The former OUSA President and Deputy Prime Minister has had a busy first couple weeks of welcomes, meetings, and media attention, telling the Uni Council at his first Read more...

OUSA Student Support Has New Digs

Posted 8:32pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Gryffin Blockley

OUSA Student Support shifted locations early last week, vacating its building on Ethel Benjamin (behind Clubs and Socs) and moving into the old National Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies – a casualty of the University’s financial strain.  For those unfamiliar, OUSA Student Read more...

All Aboard the Contiki School Bus

Posted 8:30pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Gryffin Blockley

If seeing one more TikTok of Euro summer will send you over the edge, travel company Contiki has revealed they’re now offering ‘Contiki University’ branded trips, offering eight ‘courses’, each fit with a major and minor subject. Pretty sure this isn’t why Read more...

SPCA Investigates Claims of Expo Animal Abuse

Posted 6:59pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Hanna Varrs

A recent ‘Exotic Pet Expo’ in the North East Valley has caused community uproar as allegations of false advertising and animal abuse pour in from community members. Organiser Amelia Seales, who has run the event twice before, has firmly denied any wrong-doing.  The expo, held on Read more...

OUSA Criticises Residential Tenancies Amendment Act

Posted 6:56pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Hugh Askerud

The OUSA Student Exec recently submitted on the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill in opposition to its proposed introduction of no-cause evictions. It’s exactly what it sounds like: the bill would allow landlords to evict tenants without needing to give a reason. Critic Te Ārohi spoke Read more...

Student Exec Turn In Second Quarterly Reports

Posted 6:53pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Hugh Askerud

Is it that time already? OUSA second quarterly reports are in (most of them), and we’re here to give you an insight into what our student dictators have been doing/not doing in the time you’ve been pilfering snacks from your parents' pantry. Buckle up for a rootin’ Read more...

Otago Uni Releases Statement on Free Speech

Posted 6:47pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Hugh Askerud

In a flying start at his first Uni Council meeting last Tuesday, new Vice-Chancellor Grant Robertson (GRob for short) approved the ‘University of Otago Statement on Free Speech’. Free speech advocates have since come out calling it the “gold standard” of policies. The Read more...

Grant Robertson Begins Appointment as New VC

Posted 3:20pm Monday 1st July 2024 by Nina Brown

Today marks Grant Robertson’s official first day as the incoming Vice Chancellor for Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka.  Mana whenua hosted a pōwhiri for Grant at Ōtākou Marae this morning on Otago Peninsula, an event that OUSA President Keegan Wells noted saw some Read more...

Streaker Carnage Causes Nose Break

Posted 8:20pm Sunday 26th May 2024 by Gryffin Blockley

Sources are keeping quiet in the wake of an ongoing legal proceeding involving an alleged broken nose at the hands of a streaker during the Highlanders vs Crusaders game on May 11th. Cracker of a Zoo turn-out, by the way.  At the game in question, 11 streakers took to the field, two of whom Read more...

Gone Rogue! Host Flat of Ball Wrecked

Posted 8:18pm Sunday 26th May 2024 by Harriette Boucher

A renowned Castle Street flat (let’s call them ‘The Elephant’*) were in shock after finding 14 smashed windows, pieces of their walls, heaters, and their fire alarm ripped out, in the wake of their annual ball.  The annual ball that has reportedly been running since 2015 Read more...

Otago Joins Nationwide Tertiary Palestine Protest

Posted 7:35pm Sunday 26th May 2024 by Hanna Varrs

Muslim Student Associations across Aotearoa New Zealand banded together last Thursday, May 23rd, to rally for Palestine. The rally is the brain-child of a meeting that took place in Wellington on the 12th of May, in which the presidents of Muslim Student Associations collectively decided on a Read more...

Night at the Museum: Hoedown After Dark

Posted 7:34pm Sunday 26th May 2024 by Hanna Varrs

On a cold, breezy night, Critic Te Ārohi strapped on RM Williams boots and Harry Styles-esque cowgirl hats and wandered on over to the biggest event the country folk of Dunedin have ever seen: the Hoedown After Dark, held by the Tūhura Otago Museum and OUSA.  Hosted from 7-10pm on Read more...

EXCLUSIVE! Salacious OUSA Exec Quotes

Posted 7:32pm Sunday 26th May 2024 by Hugh Askerud

It’s difficult to know what else lies behind the big green door of our OUSA overlords (exec). Love? Gossip? Rivalry? Sex? Murder? Armed with a pen, a notepad, and explicit orders from the editor to source a tabloid-worthy insider scoop, Critic Te Ārohi’s News Editor went to find out Read more...

Eggspiracy Afoot!

Posted 7:28pm Sunday 26th May 2024 by Jonathan McCabe

Students are concerned an eggspiracy is afoot after Farmer Brown launched a campaign selling eight packs of eggs in LEGO block shaped cartons. Concerns have also been raised about the environmental impact of the cartons, with student murmurs protesting the lack of environmental impetus the egg Read more...

Junior Doc Strikes Have Med Students “Concerned”

Posted 7:27pm Sunday 26th May 2024 by Hugh Askerud

Junior doctors across the country have been protesting harsh working conditions and pay cuts, much to the concern of med students about to enter the health sector. Lamenting government changes and the already brutally challenging circumstances, one student Emily* said she was “not sure how Read more...

Pending: Closed Captioned Lecture Recordings Policy

Posted 7:24pm Sunday 26th May 2024 by Nina Brown

Academic Rep Stella Lynch is rolling up her sleeves to advocate for a University of Otago policy that would make recordings with closed captions mandatory for all lectures, with exceptions in cases of privacy concerns. Her plan includes an impending consultation process for staff and students, and Read more...

Pint Night Cancelled to Student Uproar!

Posted 10:34pm Sunday 19th May 2024 by Gryffin Blockley

The fiercely loyal Pint Night community were in shock last week after U-Bar staff announced that Pint Night would be cancelled. The announcement comes after U-Bar was closed on Wednesday the 8th of May, for “maintenance work and improvements.” U-Bar management have reported that they Read more...

Criminology Society Publish Petition Protesting Youth Bootcamps

Posted 10:32pm Sunday 19th May 2024 by Angus Rees

The Criminological Society of Otago (CSOO) has published a petition to the House of Representatives against the impending reintroduction of youth offender boot camps. CSOO is asking the government not to implement them, and “instead address the issues of inequality and deprivation that create Read more...

Ex-Critic Food Columnist Releases Cookbook

Posted 10:26pm Sunday 19th May 2024 by Harriette Boucher

Fuck, Alice Taylor can cook. The former Otago Uni student and Critic Te Ārohi food columnist turned chef released a baking book ‘Alice in Cakeland’ last month. This has come after Alice took a whirlwind journey from University, to Masterchef stardom, to cooking in some of the Read more...

Rip Scares Prompt Water Safety Advice

Posted 10:06pm Sunday 19th May 2024 by Sam Smith-Soppet

Dunedin is host to a swathe of beautiful swimming and surfing beaches. However, two recent stories of beach-going students’ near misses with rips have prompted local surf clubs to warn students to stay safe when swimming in the ocean.  Cam, a second-year Physio student, told Critic of Read more...