Paul Holmes CNZM (born April 29, 1950) is a radio and television broadcaster in New Zealand. He is the breakfast host on radio talkback station Newstalk ZB, hosting New Zealand's number one rating breakfast show. He also hosts a weekly show on Prime Television. He is widely reputed to be New Zealand's highest-paid broadcasting personality (reportedly earning over NZ$700,000 while at Television New Zealand and rumoured to be earning NZ$1,000,000 after moving to competitor Prime Television). In March 2007, he announced that he would step down as the weekday Newstalk ZB breakfast host in December 2008. Companions Badge of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of chivalry established on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions, in order of seniority: Principal Companion (PCNZM) (formerly Knight or Dame... April 29 is the 119th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (120th in leap years). ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Newstalk ZB is a nationwide New Zealand talkback radio network operated by The Radio Network of New Zealand (TRN). ... Need to add that it is available on cable via Saturn TV, and that Holmes has been relaunced aain by SKY! Prime Television New Zealand is the sixth national free-to-air television station in New Zealand. ... Television New Zealand (TVNZ) is the main and state broadcaster of television in New Zealand. ... Need to add that it is available on cable via Saturn TV, and that Holmes has been relaunced aain by SKY! Prime Television New Zealand is the sixth national free-to-air television station in New Zealand. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... Newstalk ZB is a nationwide New Zealand talkback radio network operated by The Radio Network of New Zealand (TRN). ... 2008 (MMVIII) will be a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Career

Paul Holmes hosts Holmes

Holmes began his career on radio in Christchurch in the 1970s before working in Australia, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. Afterwards, he returned to New Zealand to take up a morning slot on Wellington station 2ZB. Image File history File links Entertainment-tvnz-holmes. ... Image File history File links Entertainment-tvnz-holmes. ... For other uses, see Christchurch (disambiguation). ... Newstalk ZB is a nationwide New Zealand talkback radio network operated by The Radio Network of New Zealand (TRN). ...

In March 1987, Holmes took over from long-running 1ZB host Merv Smith. Following the change in format for the station from community radio (middle of the road music, news, community notices etc) to newstalk, and the replacement of Merv Smith with Paul Holmes, 1ZB fell to seventh position in the ratings. The change was controversial, as many long standing listeners to Merv Smith (who had been breakfast host for many years) did not like Holmes or the news, interview, talkback based format which had no music. It took over a year before Holmes' show eventually rose to number one in the ratings for the programme's time slot. 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Newstalk ZB is a nationwide New Zealand talkback radio network operated by The Radio Network of New Zealand (TRN). ...

In 1989, Holmes became part of the younger, new-look revamp of Television New Zealand's prime-time news. His 7pm network programme (simply titled Holmes), analysing news items in greater depth, ran until 2004. 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Holmes's first TV segment featured guest Dennis Conner, the America’s Cup skipper. After being provoked, Conner walked off the show, providing Holmes with headlines the next day. Dennis Walter Conner (born December 16, 1942) is an American yachtsman who has participated in the Americas Cup nine times. ... The Americas Cup trophy The Americas Cup is the most famous and most prestigious regatta in the sport of sailing, and the oldest active trophy in international sport, predating the FA Cup by two decades and the Modern Olympics by 45 years. ...

Paul Holmes published his autobiography in 1999. A year later, in 2000, Holmes released an album on CD, simply titled Paul Holmes. 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... An album is a collection of related audio tracks distributed to the public. ... A Compact Disc or CD is an optical disc used to store digital data, originally developed for storing digital audio. ... In 2000, New Zealand broadcaster Paul Holmes released a CD containing thirteen cover versions of songs both famous and obscure. ...

On 2 November, 2004, he resigned from his TV show after failed contract negotiations. It was reported by TV3 that TVNZ would not renew his contract for more than a year. Shortly after this, he moved to a rival TV company, Prime Television, which had offered a three-year contract. The new show, Paul Holmes, on Prime was launched on 7 February 2005. November 2 is the 306th day of the year (307th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 59 days remaining. ... TV3 is a commercial television station in New Zealand. ... Television New Zealand (TVNZ) is the main and state broadcaster of television in New Zealand. ... Need to add that it is available on cable via Saturn TV, and that Holmes has been relaunced aain by SKY! Prime Television New Zealand is the sixth national free-to-air television station in New Zealand. ... February 7 is the 38th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In February 2005, Holmes' new show was rating 7.1% for its timeslot. His former programme on TV One held a 31% share. In March 2005, following the launch of a rival show on TV3 Campbell Live, Nielsen Media Ratings listed Holmes' show at 4%. Poor ratings forced a timeslot change after only four months, to 6 pm. By this time, the show had been retitled Holmes. Campbell Live is a half hour current affairs programme weeknights at 7pm, following 3 News on TV3 hosted by New Zealand TV personality John Campbell. ...

However, these small changes were not enough to save the show. The timeslot change proved fatal. On August 8, 2005, almost six months to the day after the show launched, it was axed by Prime Television, with Prime chief executive Chris Taylor citing poor ratings and inability to attract viewers from the traditional primetime news strongholds of TV One and TV3. The show returned in a weekly format in late 2005 and in 2006 was revamped into an hour long chat show similar to the popular UK show hosted by Michael Parkinson. August 8 is the 220th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (221st in leap years), with 145 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Michael Parkinson CBE (born 28 March 1935) is an English journalist and television presenter. ...

In 2005, Holmes was dropped from the New Zealand Listener’s 50 most powerful people list largely because of his TV show's poor ratings and influence.

He appeared on Māori Television's Waitangi Day coverage on February 6, 2007. In March, TV One, Holmes's former network, announced that he would be among the "stars" on the third season of the New Zealand version of Dancing with the Stars. Māori television is a New Zealand TV station broadcasting programmes that make a significant contribution to the revitalisation of te reo and tikanga Māori. ... Waitangi Day is a public holiday in New Zealand held each year on February 6 to celebrate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, New Zealands founding document, on that date in 1840. ... Countries with their own version Dancing with the Stars is the name for a number of international television series based on the format of the British series Strictly Come Dancing. ...

On March 16, 2007, on his 20th anniversary Newstalk ZB breakfast show, Holmes announced that he would step down at the end of 2008, though he would host its Saturday morning show.^[1] March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (76th in leap years). ...

Paul Holmes has survived multiple aircraft crashes, including a helicopter crash which killed a cameraman. Holmes' latest crash was on 31 December 2004, when he made an error while landing his vintage Boeing Stearman biplane. He has reputedly given up flying. December 31 is the 365th day of the year (366th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA, TYO: 7661 ) is an aerospace and defense corporation headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. ... Boeing Stearman PT-17 Stearman Aircraft Corporation was an aircraft manufacturer established by Lloyd Stearman at Wichita, Kansas in 1927. ...

Controversy

Holmes has on several occasions gained media attention for a range of scurrilous remarks on prominent individuals and issues, including a comment made in 2003 about wahi tapu (Māori sacred areas). 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Tapu (or tabu) is a concept existing in many Polynesian societies, including traditional Hawaiian, Tongan, and Maori cultures. ...

In September 2003, Holmes repeatedly referred to United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan as a "cheeky darkie" during a rant on his radio show. Aswell as using "darkie" to refer to black people.^[2] There was an international outcry following the comments, but Holmes kept his job after making several emotional apologies, claiming he had been "tired". However the major sponsor of his TV show, Mitsubishi Motors, withdrew its support. The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ... A number of international organizations and other bodies use the title secretary general or secretary-general for their chief administrative officer. ... Kofi Atta Annan (born April 8, 1938) is a Ghanaian born diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1, 1997 to December 31, 2006, serving two five-year terms. ... Mitsubishi Motors Corporation ) is the fifth largest automaker in Japan and the thirteenth largest in the world by unit sales. ...

In March 2004, he called the Israeli Prime Minister the "butcher Sharon." Later that year he described Tariana Turia as a "confused bag of lard", a bully who folded under pressure and who did not have the "guts to vote", as being "all mouth and no trousers, all talk and no walk” and a "complete fool".   (Hebrew: , also known by his diminutive Arik אָרִיק) (born February 27, 1928) is a former Israeli politician and general. ... Tariana Turia (born 8 April 1944) is a New Zealand politician. ... A slice of bread spread with lard was a typical staple in traditional rural cuisine of many countries. ...

Holmes said on his breakfast show on June 2006 that the Green Party was the party of "the hippies, the Morris dancers, the square dancers, the anti-Americans, the nuclear ships fanatics, the fascists of greenness, the far-left, the remnants of the Alliance, anti-free traders, apologists for Mao, communist sympathisers, the enemies of science and the rabid, irrational anti-GM movement". An Auckland square dancer put a complaint forward to the Broadcasting Standards Authority following this comment. The Authority ruled that it was "delivered in a humorous, sometimes satirical fashion", and thus the comment did not breach good taste and decency and was not degrading.[1] Square dance is often used as a general term for modern Western square dance. ... The Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA) is a New Zealand Crown Entity created by the Broadcasting Act 1989 to develop and uphold standards of brodcasting for radio, free-to-air and pay television. ...

References

1. ^ "Holmes to quit Newstalk ZB breakfast in Dec 2008", Newstalk ZB, 2007-03-16. Retrieved on 2007-03-17.
2. ^ Excerpt from Paul Holmes News Talk ZB radio programme. <http://dteam.orcon.net.nz/Paul%20Holmes%20-%20That%20Cheeky%20Darky%20Long.mp3>