Rnz: Afternoons With Jesse Mulligan

Drink, quit, relapse. For nearly 20 years, that was the exhausting cycle that ruled Katie Herzog's life. A journalist and podcaster, she tried everything: quitting cold turkey, 12-step programs, sheer willpower. Nothing stuck. Then she discovered a science-backed approach that didn't demand total abstinence from alcohol but used medication to quiet cravings and restore control. Her new book explores how this unconventional path helped her finally make peace with drinking. It's called Drink Your Way Sober: The Science-Based Method to Break Free from Alcohol.

We all know the saying, you can't choose your family, but you can choose your friends. Well workplaces are much the same, you can choose your job but you can't choose who you work with. Which can mean conflicts can arise. But how do you deal with those conflicts in a positive way? Our expert today is here to help answer that question and more. Lisa Oakley has more than 20 years' experience in human resources and HSE [Health, Safety and Environment], and she's the founder and lead consultants at People Associates.

Peta Mathias might be best known for presenting food TV shows, but she's also written 19 books. Nineteen! Her latest "It's been six weeks since My Last Confession" was released yesterday. Peta joins Jesse in studio.

Traditionally most of us think of NZ as having a strong screen production industry. And that was certainly the case 4 or 5 years ago with seemingly jobs aplenty and heaps of international productions being shot here. But that no longer appears to be the case, so far this financial year only seven international productions have registered with the film commission. So what's going on, and how can we get the sector moving again? South Pacific Pictures is the production company behind films like Whale Rider and TV shows Shortland Street & The Traitors. CEO Kelly Martin talks to Jesse.

Cashpoints is a new customer loyalty programme that has launched today. Its' co-founder Ian Sutcliffe - who was also behind the popular AA Smartfuel loyalty programme - promises that Cashpoints is simple for shoppers to understand. Some retailers have already signed up, with more planning to do so in the next few months. We've asked Christopher Walsh from Moneyhub to give his verdict and whether loyalty schemes are actually good for consumers.

The critter for this week is the Astelia Lacebug - Tanybyrsa cumberi. This pretty little critter is the only one of its family endemic to New Zealand. They have beautiful delicate wings which resemble lace (think your grandma's favourite doily) and gives them their common name. These tiny critters are common throughout Aotearoa, living only on Astelia plants. Forest and Bird Chief Executive Nicola Toki rates this critter with Jesse.

One of life's biggest and most stressful events is moving house ... putting your world into boxes can take a toll ... and that's before you take into account the job of decluttering and cleaning. Rachael Quin from The Housekeeper has just gone through it all .. she joins Jesse now to share her tips and tricks to surviving it all.

Time to talk food now, and we've got Dish magazine Editor Sarah Tuck here to share some recipes .. she's got a new cookbook out with Dish Food Editor Claire Aldous .. it's called FAST Two and is packed with more than a hundred recipes. Sarah joins Jesse in studio. Here are her recipes: chicken satay meatballs and red curry soup and dumplings

Kate Rodger shares her must watch films: Went Up the Hill in cinemas now House of Dynamite (Kathryn Bigelow) in cinemas and on Netflix from October 24

Time for Freaky Friday .. our chance to dive into the supernatural .. the odd .. the unusual. Today we chat to Harmony from Motuek about their unsettling experience in 1970s Portland.

This weekend the third Whangarei Maritime festival takes place at the town basin. There will be boats - obviously - but also live music, a maritime careers fair, food and all the rest. This year, not all the action is on the sea, there is also a series of talks at the Hundertwasser Arts Centre. Including a talk from friend of the show Nick Atkinson - on an ocean voyage that began in a Ponsonby bakery and ended at Shakleton's grave. Nick chats to Jesse.

Tomorrow is national bookshop day and given that a number of bookshops have had to close their doors this year, we think bookshops need some celebrating. Independent booksellers around the country are hosting events, fancy dress parties, give aways, sales and in at least one shop book themed tattoos.

Freedom camping is a classic Kiwi pastime, but restrictions are getting tighter and tighter. Queenstown Lakes District Council has voted in a new bylaw that will restrict freedom campers to 15 designated areas with a total of 141 carparks. The council says a steady increase in the number of freedom campers visiting Queenstown has forced them to set a bylaw so they can control it. They recieved public submissions when a draft was put forward in June, with the vast majority of respondants saying it was too permissive. So, if you're a regular freedom camper, what do you need to know? Where can you pitch a tent these days? James Imlach is the national manager of property and policy for the NZ Motor Caravan Association and talks to Jesse.

On average we breathe in around 20,000 times a day, but for the most part, it happens automatically. We don't think about it. Despite that our breath and the way we breathe can have a huge impact on our mental and physical wellbeing. Think about it, if you're dealing with a difficult situation what do you do? Stop and take breath. But there's soo much more to it than that. Art of Living is a global leader in meditation and breathwork. It teaches the skills across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific. National co-ordinator Andrew Melville breathes with Jesse.

It's time to talk money with Mary Holm now, which is something Mary and Jesse have been doing for ten years this month. To mark that anniversary Mary asked you to send in the tips and tricks that have seen you change your financial habits. She joins Jesse to share the results.

Time for our next instalment of A-Z of Aotearoa, we've covered Inventions, Fish & Chips, Charles Upham, Dairies, the Great Walks, Billy T James and today we're looking at the career of the first true global superstar of rugby Jonah Lomu. It will be ten years next month since he died, and while he needs no introduction, it's good to reflect. At just 20 years old Jonah exploded onto the world stage at the 1995 World Cup in South Africa running over Mike Catt for that famous try and any other defender that stood in his way. He became a global phenomenon almost overnight going on to play 63 matches for the All Blacks and scoring 37 tries Sky Sport rugby commentator Tony Johnson joins Jesse in the Auckland studio to remember Jonah

Right, it's time now for Group Chat, our chance to talk about all the conversations filling up your chats, the topics discussed at the school gate or in the office kitchen. Today Jesse is joined by Kate Rodger and Afternoons Senior Producer Olivia Wilson, and they're chatting about Taylor Swift's new album and the mixed reviews and Jimmy Fallon's decision to "not be political".

Jesse speaks with geopolitical analyst Geoffrey Miller about the Gaza deal announced today. 

Here on Afternoons, we're big proponents of conservation efforts so we're thrilled to chat to our next guest. Cally Whitman is the author and photographer of a new book that is an historical exploration of the impact of introduced species. The book is called "The Long Shadow: How Introduced Species Changed the Fauna of Aotearoa"

We're talking about firefighters now, but less about them fighting fires, and more about them promoting mental health. Bevin James is with me, he's a former firefighter now turned flower farmer, but he hasn't left his old job totally behind, he's the man responsible for the Kiwi Firefighters calendar The 2026 edition - released earlier this week - aims to raise ten, maybe even 100's of thousands for Movember's Whanaungatanga project