In this Jam TV series, comedian Te Radar ditches 21st Century consumer luxuries and the city rat race to see if he can live sustainably for 10 months on a remote patch of land west of Auckland. His back-to-basics mission requires him to exist on only what he can hunt, grow and fish himself — putting delights like goat salami and home-made feta on the menu. He also explores topical green issues like the viability of solar power and whether simple steps such as composting and starting a worm bin can reduce landfill. The series also bred a book and a live show.

The iconic all-things-rural show is the longest running programme on New Zealand television. With its typical patient observational style (that allows stories of people and the land to gently unfold) it’s an unlikely broadcasting star, but New Zealanders continue, after 50 plus years, to tune in. Amongst the bucolic tales of farming, fishing and forestry, there are high country musters, floods, organic brewing, falconry, tobacco farming, as well as a fencing wire-playing farmer-musician, a radio-controlled dog, and Fred Dagg and the Trevs.

In this series about living sustainably, comedian Te Radar swaps the farm for town to transform a quarter acre overgrown lawn into a lush garden. Using recycled materials and organic methods, Te Radar faces a mission to clear the jungle that is his property and make a profit selling his produce. Throughout the series he visits eco-friendly businesses, including a firm that converts waste cooking oil into biodiesel, and turns to locals to help with his challenge. The series followed on from Off the Radar, in which Te Radar aimed to live solely off produce from his farm.