IT JUST KEEPS GOING. TIME NOW FOR SEVEN SHARP, SPRING IS COMING. AND YOU'RE CELEBRATING SOME UNSUNG LOCKDOWN HEROES. YES, THERE ARE CALLING THIS PERSON THE BEACHLANDS BANKSY ` THE UNKNOWN ARTIST WHO'S BRINGING JOY WITH BEAUTIFUL PUBLIC ART. MORE ON THAT SHORTLY, BUT FIRST, WE'VE ALL BEEN HERE BEFORE, BUT THIS COVID JOURNEY IS LOOKING A BIT DIFFERENT. SO WITH CASE NUMBERS STILL RISING AND A DECISION ON LEVELS DUE TOMORROW, HOW DO WE NAVIGATE IT FROM HERE? AND CAN WE EXPECT MORE BUMPS IN THE ROAD? LEVEL 4 IS A BIT OF A DOWNER. SO HOW MUCH LONGER ARE WE GOING TO DO THIS? WELL, THINK OF IT A BIT LIKE A ROAD TRIP. WE'RE HERE, AND WE WANT TO GET THERE. (BRIGHT MUSIC RIFF) BUT WE HAVE TO PASS A COUPLE OF LANDMARKS FIRST. THE BIGGEST IS THE PEAK, THE POINT AT WHICH THE NUMBER OF NEW CASES EVERY DAY STOPS GOING UP. THE OTHER ONE IS THE CONTAINMENT ZONE. THAT'S THE POINT AT WHICH WE'RE PRETTY SURE ` LIKE, 90% SURE ` NEW CLUSTERS AREN'T GOING TO POP UP. NOW, IF YOU'RE ALREADY THINKING, 'ARE WE THERE YET?' WELL, SORRY TO SAY NOT QUITE. REMEMBER THE BIG LOCKDOWN AT THE START OF 2020? WE HIT BOTH THOSE LANDMARKS, BUT IT WAS STILL THREE MORE WEEKS BEFORE WE MOVED DOWN TO LEVEL 3, TWO MORE WEEKS AGAIN TO HIT LEVEL TWO. SO TRY TO BE PATIENT, AND FINGERS CROSSED DELTA DOESN'T TAKE US DOWN ANOTHER DETOUR. AND FOR MORE ON THIS, WE'RE JOINED BY DR DAVID WELCH, A COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGIST WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND. GREAT TO TALK TO YOU, DAVID. EVERYONE WANTS TO KNOW ` WHERE DO THE NUMBERS NEED TO SIT FOR US TO START CONSIDERING GOING DOWN ALERT LEVELS? WELL, IT'S REALLY HARD TO GIVE AN EXACT NUMBER, YOU KNOW. WHAT WE'RE REALLY LOOKING FOR IS WHERE THE CASES ARE APPEARING. SO WE'RE LOOKING TO SEE THAT WHEN PEOPLE ARE FOUND TO BE INFECTIOUS, THAT THEY HAVEN'T REALLY BEEN EXPOSED TO THE COMMUNITY. SO WE EXPECT TO SEE QUITE A FEW CASES OCCURRING BASICALLY WITHIN BUBBLES OF PEOPLE WHO'VE BEEN INFECTED. BUT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE HOPING WE'LL SEE FEWER AND FEWER CASES OUT IN THE COMMUNITY, SO FEWER LOCATIONS OF INTEREST. AND, DAVID, HOW'S DELTA CHANGED OUR TACK IN COMING DOWN THE LEVELS, IN COMPARISON TO THE STRAINS WE HAD WHEN WE EASED OUT OF LOCKDOWNS LAST YEAR? SO LAST YEAR, WE SAW THAT ALERT LEVEL 4 WAS INCREDIBLY EFFECTIVE AT STAMPING OUT THE DISEASE, SO WITH DELTA, IT'S APPROXIMATELY TWICE AS INFECTIOUS OR EVEN A LITTLE MORE THAN THE STRAINS WE HAD LAST YEAR. IT MIGHT TAKE LONGER FOR THOSE NUMBERS TO TRACK DOWN. SOME PEOPLE ARE PUSHING THE MESSAGING THAT WE'VE GOT TO LEARN TO LIVE WITH THE VIRUS. ARE THERE ANY OTHER COUNTRIES WHO HAVE RUN A SUCCESSFUL ELIMINATION POLICY TO DATE? SO WE'VE SEEN OVER IN AUSTRALIA THAT SEVERAL OF THE STATES ARE STILL DOING A REALLY GOOD JOB OVER THERE. THEY'VE HAD OUTBREAKS OF DELTA THAT HAVE BEEN SEEDED FROM NEW SOUTH WALES, BUT THEY SEEM TO BE ON TOP OF` THOSE NUMBERS AREN'T GOING UP RAPIDLY, AND THEY'RE COMING DOWN. IF WE LOOK AT SOMEWHERE LIKE TAIWAN, THEY'VE JUST HAD JUST HAD THEIR FIRST DAY IN A LONG TIME WITH ZERO CASES AFTER THEY HAD SEVERAL THOUSAND CASES AND MANY, MANY HUNDREDS OF DEATHS. SO, YOU KNOW, WE'VE SEEN AROUND THE WORLD OVER THE LAST 18 MONTHS THAT COUNTRIES WHO REALLY PUT THEIR MIND TO IT, THAT TAKE AN ELIMINATION APPROACH HAVE SUCCEEDED. AND, YOU KNOW, NEW ZEALAND HAS BEEN AT THE FOREFRONT OF THAT, AND I'M PRETTY CONFIDENT THAT WHAT WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW ` YOU KNOW, RESTRICTING OURSELVES TO OUR BUBBLES; YOU KNOW, NOT GIVING THE VIRUS OPPORTUNITIES TO SPREAD ` WE'LL GET TO ELIMINATION AGAIN. VERY INTERESTING. THANKS FOR YOUR TIME, DAVID. BEST OF LUCK. GREAT. THANK YOU. CAPTIONS BY FAITH HAMBLYN, SOPHIE PEARCE AND SHRUTIKA GUNANAYAGAM. CAPTIONS WERE MADE WITH THE SUPPORT OF NZ ON AIR. WWW.ABLE.CO.NZ COPYRIGHT ABLE 2021. YOU GOTTA WAIT AND SEE IF ANY PARTS OF THE COUNTRY ARE GOING TO OPEN UP, BUT ONE PLACE THAT'S DEFINITELY OPENING UP IS CASA BARRY. UNDER HOUSE ARREST FOR A WEEK, WHAT HAVE YOU TAKEN FOR GRANTED? I'M SO EXCITED. I HAD A NEGATIVE DAY 12 COVID TEST MY 14 DAYS EXPIRES TONIGHT AND I WILL BE BACK AT THE OFFICE TOMORROW. WHAT HAVE YOU TAKEN FOR GRANTED? IT'S A GREAT QUESTION. WE ALL KNEW WHAT LEVEL 4 LOCKDOWN WAS LIKE ` I HAD THAT TO REFERENCE. BUT IT WAS SOMETHING QUITE DIFFERENT TO BE ONLY IN YOUR OWN HOME AND NOT EVEN ABLE TO WALK DOWN THE ROAD, SO THE FIRST THING I WILL BE DOING IN THE MORNING WILL BE GOING FOR A WALK, WITH MY FACEMASK, ENJOYING THE FRESH AIR. IT CERTAINLY MADE ME AWARE OF THE THINGS THAT I TAKE FOR GRANTED, LIKE GOING FOR WALKS. I'M REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO IT. AND OF COURSE SEEING YOU. I'VE REALLY MISSED YOU. I'VE MISSED DUE TO. IT'S NOT THE SAME PLACE WITHOUT YOU. MAYBE YOU COULD CLEAN IT BEFORE I GET BACK. OH. I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THAT. OK, YOU STAY THERE, HILARY. MAKE YOURSELF A CUPPA, AND WE'LL COME BACK TO YOU IN A FEW MINUTES. HOPES ARE HIGH TODAY THAT WE ARE NEAR THE PEAK OF THIS OUTBREAK AND NUMBERS MIGHT SOON START TO FALL. PART OF THE CREDIT FOR THAT NEEDS TO GO TO A CHURCH IN AUCKLAND. ON HEARING THEY WERE A LOCATION OF INTEREST, THEY ROSE UP, TOGETHER. (CHOIR SINGS) THE ASSEMBLY OF GOD CHURCH IN AUCKLAND MANGERE. WHEN NOT IN LOCKDOWN, THEY HAVE A DEDICATED AND LOYAL CONGREGATION. ON AUGUST 15, THEY'D GATHERED, AS USUAL. BUT AMONGST THE 500-PLUS PARISHIONERS, THERE WAS ONE UNWANTED PRESENCE ` DELTA. THE CHURCH MOVED SWIFTLY, ENSURING WORSHIPPERS WERE ISOLATING AND GETTING TESTED, EARNING THEM A SHOUT-OUT FROM DR BLOOMFIELD. TO THEIR COMMUNITY LEADERS FOR STEPPING UP TO SUPPORT THE CONTACT TRACING, IDENTIFICATION, ISOLATION, TESTING AND VACCINATION EFFORTS IN THE LOCAL COMMUNITY. FA'AFETAI. THANK YOU. IN FACT, OUR PACIFIC COMMUNITY HAS NEW ZEALAND'S HIGHEST TESTING RATES SO FAR. SO, IF WE DO BEAT DELTA, SOME OF THE THANKS SHOULD GO TO THE ASSEMBLY OF GOD WORSHIPPERS. THEY DID A DIVINE JOB OF MOBILISING. A BIG AMENE TO THAT. AND JEROME MIKE FROM 'THE CAUSE COLLECTIVE' IS WITH US NOW. NICE TO SEE YOU, JEROME. YOU'RE IN CONSTANT CONTACT WITH THIS CHURCH COMMUNITY. HOW IS EVERYONE DOING? YEAH, PEOPLE ARE REALLY, UM,... JUST REALLY STRONG AND RESILIENT AFTER THE LAST WEEK AND HALF. IT'S BEEN A BIT OF A TOUGH TIME FOR THE CHURCH COMMUNITY, BUT THEY'VE STAYED UNITED AND THEY'VE STAYED REALLY STRONG, BUT ALSO BE REALLY FULLY SUPPORTIVE OF JUST TRYING TO GET EVERYONE TESTED. AND TODAY WAS A BUSY DAY ` WE HAD TESTING FOR A LOT OF THE CHURCH MEMBERS, AND IN TOMORROW AND SATURDAY, WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE THAT. AND HOW MUCH WORK HAVE PASIFIKA CHURCH LEADERS PUT INTO TRACKING EVERYONE DOWN? YEAH, IT'S BEEN A HUGE TASK. THERE'S ABOUT 1200 IN THE REGIONAL CONGREGATIONS, BUT THERE WAS ONLY 500 IN THAT CHURCH SERVICE. AND SO THE COMPLEXITY OF IT IS YOU'VE GOT 27 CHURCHES AND YOU DON'T KNOW WHO ATTENDED. SO ONE OF THE CHURCH LEADERS DID RAISE THAT, AT LEAST I'LL KNOW NOW WHO ATTENDED CHURCH AND WHO DIDN'T. AND I KNOW, JEROME, THERE'S BEEN A BIG PUSH BY THE GOVERNMENT FOR PASIFIKA TO GET VACCINATED. WHAT'S THE UPTAKE BEEN HERE? YEAH, WITH THIS CHURCH, THEY'RE REALLY KEEN ONCE THEY ARE IN THE CLEAR FOR ALL THE COVID TESTING? WHAT THEY'VE SAID TO US IS, 'I'D LIKE TO DO THE VACCINATION AS A CHURCH AND DO IT TOGETHER.' THERE'S ALSO BEEN A LOT OF INTEREST IN OUR PACIFIC COMMUNITIES. I KNOW A LOT OF OUR PACIFIC PROVIDERS, LIKE SOUTH SEAS AND 'THE CAUSE COLLECTIVE' THROUGH THEIR 'PREPARE PACIFIC' HAVE REALLY TRIED TO RAISE THE AWARENESS AND EVEN DO ETHNIC-SPECIFIC LANGUAGES LIKE SALMON, TONGAN, COOK ISLAND, AND A LOT OF IT IS JUST TO REACH OUR ELDERLY FOLK AND BEING ABLE TO ENCOURAGE THEM TO GET VACCINATED. AND WHAT ARE THE MAIN CHALLENGES FACING PACIFIC COMMUNITIES AROUND VACCINATION? I THINK, IN TERMS OF GETTING VACCINATED, IT'S JUST BEING ABLE TO JUST GET ACCESS AND INFORMATION ON WHERE TO GO. LIKE, WE'VE GOT A BIG VACCINATION CENTRE HERE IN OTARA RUN BY SOUTH SEAS, AND IT'S ONE WE JUST NEED TO RAISE THE AWARENESS. I KNOW THAT PREPARE PACIFIC HAVE DONE JUST SOME NOTIFICATIONS, BUT IT'S ALSO JUST SOME OF OUR CHURCH LEADERS, WHICH WE'RE FINDING REALLY ENCOURAGING ` THEY'RE STARTING TO SHOW LEADERSHIP. WE'VE GOT A REVEREND SAM WHO HOLDS A BIG SORT OF REVEREND MINISTRY, WITH ABOUT 12 TO 20 MINISTERS, AND THEY'VE BEEN JUST TRYING TO RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT THE COVID VACCINATION AND THE IMPORTANCE OF JUST GETTING THE VACCINATION AS WELL. THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME TONIGHT, JEROME, AND BEST OF LUCK IN THE FUTURE. HEY, REALLY APPRECIATE THE TIME. THANK YOU. THE LOCKDOWN HAS LEFT US PLENTY OF TIME TO KNOCK THINGS OFF OUR TO-DO LISTS, LIKE PUMICING YOUR FEET AND REARRANGING THE CUPBOARDS. BUT A LOT OF KIWIS ARE INVESTING THEIR DOWNTIME IN EDUCATIONAL PURSUITS TOO. HERE'S TE RAUHIRINGA BROWN. (HAPPY TE REO MAORI POP MUSIC) IN THE BEGINNING STAGES OF LEARNING TE REO MAORI, MOST OF US LEARN HOW TO USE A... HERE'S HOW TO ASK 'HOW MANY?' IN DIFFERENT WAYS. IT'S TE REO MAORI AT THE TIP OF YOUR FINGERS. 'HOW ARE YOU GETTING HERE?' 'SEASON'S GREETINGS.' AND PEOPLE ARE TAKING UP THE CHALLENGE. WE'RE STARTING TO SEE A RISE IN TE REO MAORI BEING SHARED, BEING TAUGHT THROUGH DIFFERENT WAYS. DURING THE FIRST LEVEL-4 LOCKDOWN LAST YEAR, HEMI KELLY STARTED A COMMUNITY GROUP ON FACEBOOK, 'A MAORI PHRASE A DAY', BASED ON A BOOK HE RELEASED EARLIER THAT YEAR. ONLY FOR MY STUDENTS IN THE FIRST INSTANCE TO CREATE MORE ACCESS FOR THEM TO TE REO, BUT IT TOOK OFF. SINCE THEN, MORE THAN 92,000 PEOPLE HAVE JUMPED ON THE WAKA, AND IT'S BECOME EASIER, WITH MORE LEARNING RESOURCES AVAILABLE THAN EVER BEFORE. PEOPLE ARE KEEN TO LEARN ` TO LEARN ` AS LONG AS IT'S EASY TO ACCESS. SO HE DECIDED TO CREATE A PODCAST AND AN INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT, 'EVERYDAY MAORI', WHICH NOW HAS OVER 20,000 FOLLOWERS. WE'RE JUST TRYIN' TO NAVIGATE THIS NEW SPACE AND CREATE NEW PLATFORMS FOR PEOPLE TO CONTINUE LEARNING TE REO MAORI. (FEEL-GOOD MUSIC) HUSBAND AND WIFE DUO SCOTTY AND STACEY MORRISON ARE EDUCATORS AND CHAMPIONS OF TE REO MAORI. YOU THINK, 'OH, I'VE GOT TIME TO DO SOMETHING. WHAT SHALL I DO?' AND WHAT BETTER THING TO DO THAN START TO LEARN THE REO AND UTILISE ALL OF THE BENEFITS THAT THE REO HAS FOR YOU ON OFFER AT THIS TIME, DURIN' LOCKDOWN? WHAT I DO FIND IS THAT TE REO MAORI'S REALLY GOOD FOR SOOTHING. LIKE, WE PUT OUT KARAKIA TO HELP PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, FEEL CALMER AT THE END OF THE NIGHT ` THOSE KINDA THINGS. BUT IT'S NOT JUST LOCKDOWN THAT'S ATTRACTING PEOPLE TO TE REO. THESE EDUCATORS HAVE SEEN AN INCREASING UPTAKE IN TE REO MAORI OVERALL. AT AUT, WE'VE SEEN A HUGE INCREASE IN PEOPLE ENROLLING INTO TE REO, TO THE POINT WHERE WE CAN'T ACTUALLY CATER TO THE DEMAND, THE AMOUNT OF PEOPLE WANTING TO LEARN, AND THAT'S ACROSS THE MOTU. WE'VE IN WITH TORO MAI IN PARTICULAR ` BECAUSE IT'S ONLINE AND IT'S FREE, THEN WE'VE HAD 45,000 REGISTRATIONS. AND AS EVERYDAY USE OF TE REO MAORI INCREASES, SO DOES EVERYDAY LEARNING. WE'RE SEEING THIS INCREASE IN TE REO MAORI BEING USED. IT'S NO LONGER CONFINED TO A CERTAIN AREA OR A CERTAIN GROUP OF PEOPLE. MAORI, NON-MAORI EVERYWHERE ARE USING MORE AND MORE TE REO. IT'S LITTLE THINGS LIKE, YOU KNOW, UNDERSTANDING WHEN DR BLOOMFIELD SAYS, 'TENA KOUTOU KATOA,' AND YOU GO, 'OOH, HE'S SAYING HELLO TO A LOT OF PEOPLE, 'NOT JUST THEMSELF.' AND HE GOES, 'RIGHT ACROSS THE MOTU' ` OOH. YES, HE LOVES TO SAY THAT. OOH, KA PAI. KA PAI, MATUA BLOOMFIELD. 'ACROSS THE MOTU' ` YOU GO, 'WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?' IT'S LIKE, 'RIGHT ACROSS THE COUNTRY.' SO IT'S ABOUT BEING IN ON ALL OF THESE, I GUESS, PERSPECTIVES AND BEAUTIFUL WAYS OF LOOKING AT THINGS. THIS WHANAU LOVE PUZZLES AND GAMES AS A FUN WAY TO LEARN. IT'S JUST A MATTER OF YOU COMING INTO THAT AREA AND EXPLORING AND FIND OUT WHAT WORKS FOR YOU AND WHAT RESONATES WITH YOU IN TERMS OF THE RESOURCES THAT ARE OUT THERE. A SMALL STEP TOWARDS THE GOVERNMENT'S GOAL TO HAVE ONE MILLION NEW ZEALANDERS ABLE TO SPEAK BASIC TE REO MAORI BY 2040. I JUST ENCOURAGE ANYONE WHO IS LEARNING USING TECHNOLOGY OR SOCIAL MEDIA TO... PUT INTO PRACTISE WHAT THEY'RE LEARNING, AND NEXT TIME THEY SAY HELLO, SAY, 'KIA ORA,' INSTEAD. (HAPPY TE REO MAORI POP MUSIC) THAT IS A WONDERFUL THING. E WHAI AKE NEI, COMING UP ON SEVEN SHARP ` REMEMBER THE DAYS OF THE OLD SCHOOLYARD, BEFORE LOCKDOWN? WE MEET SOME KIWI KIDS WHO ARE GEARING UP, THANKS TO YOUR GENEROSITY. NAU MAI, HOKI MAI. WELCOME BACK. NICE TO HAVE YOU WITH US. SEVEN SHARP HAS BEEN WORKING WITH CADBURY AND KIDSCAN ON THEIR 'DONATE YOUR KIT' PROGRAMME, GETTING SPORTS EQUIPMENT TO THE ONE IN EIGHT KIDS WHO WOULD OTHERWISE GO WITHOUT. INCREDIBLY, SOME 70,000 PIECES OF KIT HAVE BEEN COLLECTED AND DISTRIBUTED ALREADY. HILARY AND I WERE LUCKY ENOUGH TO BE INVITED TO ONE OF THE SCHOOLS BENEFITING FROM YOUR GENEROSITY. AND JUST A NOTE ` THIS WAS FILMED BEFORE THE LOCKDOWN. (WARM PIANO MUSIC) IT'S A CAMPAIGN THAT'S WON THE SUPPORT OF SOME OF OUR MOST HIGH-PROFILE SPORTSPEOPLE, AND TODAY WE'RE DELIVERING SOME OF THAT KIT TO MIDDLE SCHOOL WEST AUCKLAND. NOTE WHO'S ACTUALLY DOING THE HEAVY LIFTING HERE. WELL, YOU WANTED TO PLAY CRICKET WITH THE KIDS, AND I'VE GOTTA TALK TO THE GROWN-UPS. MAYBE IT'S TIME TO PUT ON YOUR BIG-BOY PANTS AND STOP MOANING. HEY, WHO WANTS TO PLAY A GAME OF CRICKET? ANYONE? ANYONE? ME. ME. YES. ALL RIGHT, LET'S GO OVER THERE, EH? I GOT THE ORANGES. WHAT HAVE YOU GOT? ORANGES. YEAH. IT'S CRICKET. SO ARE WE'RE PLAYING TIPPITY ` HIT AND RUN? JEREMY, THEY'RE LIKE MY ORANGES. WELL, WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE ONE IN EIGHT CHILDREN WHO MISS OUT SIMPLY BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO SPORTING EQUIPMENT. BEIN' ABLE TO HAVE 'DONATE YOUR KIT' ON BOARD WITH KIDSCAN, IT MEANS WE CAN DELIVER TO THOUSANDS OF KIDS ACROSS AOTEAROA. SO, TELL ME A BIT ABOUT HOW MUCH AN INITIATIVE LIKE THIS WILL MEAN FOR KIDS, HAVING THIS SPORTS EQUIPMENT AVAILABLE. IT'S HUGE, LIKE, BRINGING SPORTS EQUIPMENT IN TO SCHOOLS WHO HAVE TIGHT BUDGETS AND GIVING THEM SPORTS EQUIPMENT THAT THEY NEED, AND THEY ALSO GIVE US THE OPPORTUNITY TO SAY, 'OH, WE DON'T ACTUALLY DO THIS SPORT, 'SO YOU CAN GIVE THIS TO ANOTHER SCHOOL.' AND WHAT SORT OF DIFFERENCE DOES SPORT MAKE IN KIDS' LIVES? LOTS ` IT'S SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT. SOME CHILDREN WHO MAY NOT BE GREAT AT ACADEMIC ARE AMAZING AT SPORT. IT'S UPLIFTING, AND IT'S JUST FUN. (CHEERING, CLAPPING) DIDN'T BOUNCE. (CHUCKLES) WARREN: YEAH, WE ALL WANT TO GET THEM OUTSIDE. WE WANT TO GET THEM AWAY FROM THE GAMING CONSOLES, YOU KNOW, GET THE SCREEN TIME DOWN, YOU KNOW, AND, OF COURSE, FITNESS AND MINGLING WITH OTHER PEOPLE, SOCIALISING. ORANGES? WHILE HILARY FAFFS ABOUT WITH CITRUS, I'M ABOUT TO TEACH THIS HEADMASTER A LESSON HE'LL NEVER FORGET. THERE'S QUITE A LOT OF FIELDERS HERE. OK, HERE WE GO. YEAH-YAH. (CLATTERING) OHHHHH! (LAUGHS) THANKS FOR BOWLING US OVER, NEW ZEALAND, BY MAKING 'DONATE YOUR KIT' SUCH A SMASHING SUCCESS. ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR NEW FEATURES OF LOCKDOWN NEWS IS THE LIVE UNMASKING OF REPORTERS PRE-CROSS. IT'S A GROUNDBREAKING SKILL SO GREEN, IT'S NOT TAUGHT AT JOURNALISM SCHOOL YET. WE CHARGED RHYS MATHEWSON WITH FINDING THE BEST AND THE WORST OF THESE FACIAL REVELATIONS. MASKS ` THEY STOP THE SPREAD OF COVID-19 AND TELL YOU HOW BAD YOUR OWN BREATH IS, AND THE ONLY THING MORE IMPORTANT THAN PUTTING THEM ON IS HOW YOU TAKE THEM OFF. FOR THE LAST FIVE DAYS, REPORTERS AROUND THE COUNTRY HAVE BEEN TAKING THEIR MASKS OFF AT THE START OF NEWS REPORTS. NOW THEY'RE FACING OFF TO SEE WHO'S THE TOP DOG OF DE-MASKING. THIS IS THE FIRST AND ONLY MASK-REMOVAL GAMES. (ROCK MUSIC) AND WE KIND OF LIVE FROM THE ONLY BACKYARD I'M ALLOWED TO FILM IN. THE JUDGES ARE GETTING READY, EXPECTIN' TO BE FAIRLY CRITICAL TODAY, AND FIRST OUT THE GATE ` NICOLE BREMNER. GREAT COLOUR COORDINATION HERE. OOH, SHE'S GO... ALMOST EARLY. THE TOUCH-PAUSE WILL COST HER POINTS, BUT THAT'S A GREAT TALK THROUGH THE MASK. KNOWN AS THE 'SIMON MERCEP SOLDIER ON' ` STRONG, SMOOTH. LET'S SEE HOW THE JUDGES FEEL. RESPECTABLE SHOWING ` YOU'VE GOTTA SAY THAT'S EXPERIENCE IN THE GAME. A NUMBER OF REPORTERS LEAVING QUITE AN AWKWARD PAUSE BETWEEN MASK AND TALKING. MADDY LLOYD JOINS US NOW WITH DETAILS. WHAT DO WE KNOW, MADDY? (CRICKETS CHIRP) GOOD EVENING, SIMON. BUT THE PAUSE WORKS FOR LAURA JAMES HERE, WAITING FOR THE UNMASKED MAN BEHIND HER TO PASS, BUT WHEN SHE'S IN THE CLEAR, BANG ` A 'CHRIS CHANG SLINGSHOT'. YOU KNOW WHAT'S WEIRD? NONE OF THEM JUST DO THAT. 'HI, WENDY.' 'HI, SIMON.' 'HI, WENDY.' SO EASY. AND NEXT UP ` POLITICAL EDITOR JESSICA MUTCH MCKAY. CERTAINLY A SNAZZY MASK THERE. THE MASK FIGHTS BACK! THERE'S A STRAND OF HAIR! BUT IT'S NO MATCH FOR MUTCH MCKAY. SORRY, I'M JUST GETTING A WORD FROM OUR REPLAY TEAM. LET'S HAVE A LOOK AT A CROSS FROM LATER IN THE WEEK. (VELCRO RIPS) CAN YOU HEAR THAT? (VELCRO RIPS) (VELCRO RIPS IN SLO-MO) THAT SOUND WAS VELCRO. A VELCRO MASK, YA HATE TO SEE. UNFORTUNATELY, MUTCH MCKAY HAS BEEN DISQUALIFIED. YOU CAN SEE WHY SOME REPORTERS ARE MOVING AWAY FROM ELASTIC. KATIE STEVENSON'S MASK ALMOST MIKE-TYSON'D HER EAR OFF. SHE SHOWED REAL RESILIENCE. SAME CAN'T BE SAID FOR KIM BAKER WILSON, WHO SEEMED TO ENCOURAGE THIS ABSOLUTE DANGLER. (DRAMATIC MUSIC) NOT THE WORST OFFENDER, THOUGH, WHICH IS QUEENSTOWN'S JARED MCCULLOCH. HIS MASK GETS CAUGHT IN THE BEANIE, AND HE LEAVES IT THERE FOR A FULL MINUTE WHILE WE'RE TRYIN' TO EAT BREAKFAST. (INHALES SHARPLY) THE JUDGES AREN'T HAPPY. BUT WHAT'S THIS? MEI HERON WITH INCREDIBLE MANOEUVRES! CAN WE SEE A REPLAY OF THAT? (DRAMATIC MUSIC CONTINUES) CLIPBOARD, PHONE ` SHE CAN DO IT ALL. NO NEED FOR JUDGES ` THAT IS A WINNER. AND THAT'S ALL SHE WROTE. CONGRATULATIONS, MEI HERON, REIGNING CHAMPION ` IMPOSSIBLE TO TOP. THAT HAS BEEN THE MASK REMOVAL GAMES 2021. WILL WE SEE YOU NEXT YEAR? (CHUCKLES) OH, I HOPE NOT. OI. GET OUTTA MY BACKYARD. HOW GOOD WAS HERON! IT'S QUITE HARD, BECAUSE YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO SAY. IF IT GETS CAUGHT ON YOUR EAR, ON YOUR GLASSES, ON YOUR EARPIECE. IT IS SO TRUE. HOLD YOUR MICROPHONE, NOTES ON ONE HAND, TRYING TO TALK, TRYING TO COMPOSE THEMSELVES. ANYONE WHO DOESN'T HAVE TO HOLD A NOTEBOOK, DOESN'T HAVE TO HOLD A MICROPHONE, I HAVE BEEN WATCHING THE WHO VIDEO. THIS IS THE WAY TO TAKE UP YOUR MASK. WHEN YOU DO HAVE TO TAKE UP YOUR MASK, GET YOUR LITTLE PINKIES, GET AROUND THERE, TAKE IT OFF LIKE THAT. YOU WANT AS FEW FINGERS ON YOUR MASK AS POSSIBLE, AND THEN GO SANITISE YOUR HANDS. GOOD LUCK DOING THAT IN A LIVE CROSS WITH A MICROPHONE. YOU WILL END UP WITH YOUR THING AROUND HERE. IT IS NOT EASY. THAT IS FOR SURE. I'M GLAD WE DON'T HAVE TO DO IT. THANK GOODNESS WE DON'T HAVE TO DO IT. WE'LL BE BACK IN JUST A MOMENT. WELCOME BACK. THE GREAT KIWI TAKE-OFF COMPETITION IMPERSONATING HILARY AND I HAS CLOSED, AND WE'VE BEEN SO IMPRESSED WITH EFFORT AND CREATIVITY. SOME MAY SAY THE CREATIVE JUICES FLOWED IN HILARY'S FAVOUR, IF YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SAYING. TOMORROW NIGHT ` IT'S THE BIG REVEAL. JUST WHO WILL WIN THAT AMAZING $10,000 WORTH OF GOODIES, THANKS TO OUR FRIENDS AT PANASONIC? IT'S A GREAT PRIZE. WHILE WE'RE ALL CONFINED TO OUR NEIGHBOURHOODS, WE THOUGHT IT'S ONLY RIGHT WE SHOWCASE SOME OF THE GOOD HAPPENING AROUND THE COUNTRY EACH DAY. STARTING WITH THE BEACHLANDS BANKSY, WHO, INSPIRED BY THE UK ARTIST, IS ANONYMOUSLY LEAVING CHALK DRAWINGS ON THE SUBURB'S STREETS. HERE'S THE PICTURE THEY LEFT FOR LIBBY BASTIN WHO TURNED 9 TODAY ` ONE OF MANY BIRTHDAY DRAWINGS COMPLETED UNDER THE COVER OF DARKNESS THIS WEEK. AND WHILE THEIR IDENTITY REMAINS A SECRET, THEIR WORK IS DEFINITELY WORTH SHARING. SO IF THERE'S SOMEONE DOING SOME SOCIALLY DISTANCED GOOD IN YOUR NEIGHBOURHOOD, FLICK US AN EMAIL. OH MY GOODNESS, AREN'T SOME PEOPLE DOING SOME LOVELY THINGS. THAT WAS DELIGHTFUL. IT WILL BE GOOD SEEING YOU TOMORROW HILARIE. I CAN'T WAIT. THOSE WERE OUR PEOPLE TODAY. THAT WAS SEVEN SHARP TONIGHT. 'YOUR HOME MADE PERFECT' IS UP NEXT. TREAT YOURSELF, AND WE'LL SEE YOU TOMORROW. CAPTIONS BY FAITH HAMBLYN, SOPHIE PEARCE AND SHRUTIKA GUNANAYAGAM. CAPTIONS WERE MADE WITH THE SUPPORT OF NZ ON AIR. WWW.ABLE.CO.NZ COPYRIGHT ABLE 2021.