Richard Burton was a global icon best remembered for his memorable film roles and his passionate - and drama-filled - romance with Elizabeth Taylor, but a new release reveals where it all began.

The new biopic Mr Burton will be out in theatres next week and it tells the story of Richard Burton's tumultuous early life - and the school teacher who helped propel him to global stardom.

Kate Burton, daughter of Richard Burton and actress in her own right, says many didn't know about her father's early life beyond being born in Wales.

"I think it's an amazing achievement - I think they tell the story of my father beautifully, I think a lot of people don't realise where my father came from. The know that he came from Wales, but they didn't know how poverty-stricken his life was as a young person."

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Kiwi musician and comedian Bret McKenzie, best known for his work with Flight of the Conchords, is set to release his second album next week.

Freak Out City is a follow-up to his 2022 solo project Songs Without Jokes.

The lead off single is All I Need, and Bret McKenzie says it's inspired by his long-term relationship with his wife, Hannah.

"It's funny, when you've been in a relationship that long, there are some days where you love each other more than other days... and on one of those days where things were going great, I sat down at the piano and wrote this song."

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Summer Island by Kristin Hannah: Kristin Hannah is the author of several extremely popular books, including The Nightingale and The Women. They’re historical fiction, but this one is contemporary - about a broken mother and daughter relationship. Nora Bridge is a nationally syndicated talk show host who dispenses moral and spiritual advice to her legion of listeners, and whose daughter Ruby is a wannabe stand up comedienne, using her mother as the butt of a lot of her jokes. When Nora is publicly shamed and the two of them are thrown together, family secrets emerge which bring about a reconciliation, and a show of courage that neither knew they had.

The Surrogate Mother by Freida McFadden: Abby is desperate for a baby but has been unable to conceive, so when Monica, her new work assistant, offers to act as a surrogate she and her husband are thrilled. Things, though, don’t go quite as they’d planned - Abby becomes increasingly sure that Monica’s up to no good, but who can she tell and who will listen?

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Japan is making significant changes to its tourism landscape, with new measures taking effect by late 2026.

Japan will end tax-free shopping benefits for foreign visitors, estabish dual pricing and establish visitor caps at popular tourist spots.

BloggerAtLarge's Megan Singleton explains further - and reveals whether these will make a dent in Japan's tourism figures.

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This week on the Sunday Panel, broadcaster and journalist Wilhelmina Shrimpton and director at Capital NZ, Ben Thomas, joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!

Labour's Chris Hipkins has admitted his education spokesperson should have replied to the Minister over NCEA changes before the Government moved to scrap the qualification. What do we make of this! And what do we think of Labour at the moment?

The boot camp data is in, with new reports revealing seven participants re-offended seriously enough to warrant returning from the community to residence. Can the Government make changes to the programme?

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Consuming more fibre can be good for your health, but is TikTok's new FibreMaxxing trend the safest way to go about it?

FibreMaxxing encourages people to load their diets up with extra fibre, but experts have voiced concerns that consuming too much could lead to harmful effects.

Naturopath and wellness expert Erin O'Hara explains further.

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On the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin Full Show Podcast for Sunday 10th August 2025, Flight of the Conchords star Bret McKenzie speaks ahead of the release of his new solo album Freak Out City. He talks about writing for movies and inheriting 50 race horses.

Actress Kate Burton is the daughter of global screen star Richard Burton, she tells Francesca why the latest biopic of her father is the first she's endorsed.

Labour leader Chris Hipkins talks about whether his party is doing a good job in opposition and whether they are doing enough to win New Zealanders back while Francesca slams their education spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime for a seemingly lazy and arrogant reaction to an invitation to meet over education reform.

And fibremaxxing is trending - wellness contributor Erin O'Hara has been looking into whether the evidence behind the trend stacks up.

Get the Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin Full Show Podcast every Sunday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Cook time: 60 minutes

Prep time: 10 minutes

Serves: 6

1 smoked pork hock

1 carrot, peeled and quartered

1 onion, peeled and quartered

2 bay leaves

1 ltr chicken stock

1 ltr water

2 cup green lentils

½ tsp Salt

¼ tsp white pepper

Gruyere toast

8 slices ciabatta

4 tbsp Dijon mustard

100g tasty cheese, grated

Place all the ingredients in a large pot with a lid. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour. Top up with more liquid if it becomes too dry.

Remove the bay leaves and discard.

Remove pork hock and set aside. Blitz the soup until smooth.

Pick the meat from pork hock and add into the soup.

Serve soup hot with tasty cheese toasts.

For the toast Spread Dijon mustard over ciabatta slices then top with grated tasty cheese. Place under a hot grill until cheese is golden and bubbling.

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