Queen’s Birthday is celebrated in New Zealand each year on the first Monday in June. This Spotlight collection shines a light on all things queenly on NZ On Screen, from Auckland’s main drag, to drag queens, beauty queens and movie River Queen; to the reginas themselves — Queen Salote of Tonga an...

In 2006, TVNZ’s long running children’s show celebrated 25 years on air — and Christmas — with a “Merry Birthday” special. In these excerpts, current presenters (including Tamati Coffey) are joined by a cavalcade of former hosts including Jason Fa’afoi, Carolyn Taylor, Props Boy, Shavaughn Ruakere and original anchor Steve Parr (with the same moustache a quarter of a century later). The emphasis is firmly on studio ordeal with guests gunked, foamed and asked to drink the undrinkable; and then there’s the raw fish — a step too far for at least one of them.

NZ telly's longest running children's show turns 30 with a two hour, live extravaganza — far removed from its modest beginnings as a half hour pre-record in 1981. Current hosts Charlie, Johnson and Gem are joined by a parade of past presenters who reminisce, and compete to find the show's best decade. Masterchef finalist Jax Hamilton provides snacks, celebrities send greetings; and — in amongst the cupcakes, gunge, fart jokes and mayhem — the programme enters its fourth decade as an institution, watched by the children of its original audience.

Open House revolved around the ups and downs of a drop-in house run by Tony Van Der Berg (Frank Whitten, later Outrageous Fortune's Grandpa Ted). In this first episode there's money trouble, court trouble, domestics, a pregnant teenager and an abandoned baby ... but there's community spirit aplenty as the house's whānau prepares for its first birthday celebration, complete with Scottish brass band and Samoan drums. Tony's first lines to a raving old man on Petone Beach? "Good onya mate!". Features author Emily Perkins as Tony's idealistic stepdaughter.

It's now been more than 40 years since pioneering soap opera Close to Home first beamed into Kiwi living rooms. For just over eight years, the life and times of Wellington’s Hearte clan screened each Monday and Tuesday night. Toast the Heartes with the first and final episodes, plus a special com...

Sir Howard Morrison (1935 - 2009) was a Kiwi show business icon. This collection is a celebration of 'Ol' Brown Eyes' on screen. From classic concerts and performances of 'Whakaaria Mai', to riffing with with Billy T James; from hosting Top Town, to starring in 60s feature film Don't Let it Get You, to a This is Your Life tribute. Ray Columbus: "He was a master entertainer".

November 2014 marks 25 years since New Zealand TV’s third channel began broadcasting. This 25th birthday sampler pack looks back at iconic drama (Outrageous Fortune), upstart news shows (Nightline), fresh youth programming (Ice TV, Being Eve) and comedy high watermarks (bro’Town, Jaquie Brown, 7 Days). As the launch slogan said "come home to the feeling!"

This short film follows 14-year-old George (Norissa Taia) who has to find her own way to celebrate her birthday when everyone else forgets it. But solace comes from an unexpected place. The film marked director Reina Webster’s thesis project for her Master of Fine Arts degree at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (the Fulbright scholar was the first Kiwi to study film directing there). Little Things won a Special Mention at the 2005 Berlin Film Festival, while young actor Norissa Taia was nominated for an NZ Screen Award. The casting is by Whale Rider's Diana Rowan.

“After the trouble at Miss Howick I realised that life with Vanessa was going to be a roller coaster.” These immortal lines from flatmate and cameraman Chris Wright open the fourth episode of the 1997 ‘docu-soap’. Sexual strife is in the house: Craig is having doubts about whether his relationship with Vanessa is monogamous; Christian gets a rejection letter from Finland; Natasha appears to have a tiff with Nick; and too much drinking at Ceilla’s 21st results in conflict. Elsewhere, the flatties face up to vomit, cleaning, freeloading boyfriends and a game of hacky sack.

From Jake the Muss to Jango Fett to a stint as talk show host, Temuera Morrison has played them all. In 2013 he played himself in this seven-part reality series, with cameras following over six months as he tried to revive his career. This excerpt from the first episode finds the easy-going actor having a birthday with his children in hometown Rotorua, chatting to his Hollywood agent about job possibilities from the rebirth of Starwars, and facing up to learning an American accent. Later episodes saw him publicising hit film Mt Zion, and fielding an offer to direct.