An observational short story which features a gay couple has won the 2008 Katherine Mansfield Premier Award.Written by Melbourne-based writer Julian Novitz, Three Couples looks at three relationships, which are between people interconnected through family or work. Set in Wellington, the story is dripping with hilariously dark humour and irony, with characters who are entirely original, while also surprisingly real. It begins its look at a gay couple with “Peni is thirty-two, Chris is twenty-three. They have been a couple for seven months, though Chris still sleeps with other people.” Novitz then writes that Peni, a lawyer, wants Chris to move in with him, but ...

Peaches, The Powerstation, Auckland, September 24 There is only one word that can aptly describe a Peaches show.  Hot.  The woman just oozes sex.  The first lady of bisexuality, born in Canada with the unlikely name Merrill Nisker, started the show by demanding complete darkness.  When the lights hit she was revealed balancing on the drumkit wearing what looked like a giant pink puffy pumpkin and shouting “Guess Who?!” Peaches out belted out a bevvy of new electro-pumped songs, with the highlight being a gorgeous 80s’ tastic ballad.  Someone at the front must have told her the tune was civilised, as she ...