Sweet like chocolate: Sarah Adams of Queen Anne
In 2025, Christchurch company Queen Anne Chocolates is celebrating its 100th birthday. Owned by the granddaughter of one of New Zealand’s most iconic bakers, Ernest Adams, Sarah Adams tells Metropol deputy editor Tamara Pitelen about this hard-won milestone. The year is 1921, and a bright-eyed, young Ernest Adams is striding up Tuam Street […]
Meet the Fullers
If there’s any pair who know how to host, it’s Marty and Naomi Fuller, and it’s not all they can do. The trophy cabinet of one of Christchurch’s best hospitality duos holds more than a few shiny awards – it’s home to something you can only win after running all seven of the […]
Catching up with Lianne Dalziel
On the fifth anniversary of her husband Rob’s death, former Christchurch mayor Lianne Dalziel was back by the tree where she married him for another milestone moment. She tells Metropol deputy editor Tamara Pitelen about life at the golden age. She might be eligible for her bus pass, but former Christchurch mayor Lianne […]
Sonja De Mari: Fashion for a cure
What if you could travel the country celebrating New Zealand’s best in fashion, to save lives? Metropol editor Nina Tucker caught up with Sonja de Mari, the woman behind charitable trust Breast Cancer Cure, who has spent a decade striving to reduce our one-in-nine breast cancer statistic. Sonja de Mari has spent the […]
Jill’s journey with the Christchurch Methodist Mission
“How do we help people who may be struggling to flourish?” That one question has guided Jill Hawkey long into her tenure as Christchurch Methodist Mission’s executive director, writes Metropol editor Nina Tucker. “Who are the people missing out in society? Who are the most disadvantaged or the most marginalised? What actually needs […]
The making of the South Island’s top hairdresser: Sarah McGuigan
What does it take to become the South Island’s top hairdresser? Metropol editor Nina Tucker asks Sarah McGuigan, who was recently crowned with the title at the Australian and New Zealand hair industry’s biggest celebration of creativity and excellence, the 2025 AHIA Creative Awards. Sarah McGuigan’s day will always begin at 5am. That […]







