Kelly Tarlton: NZ's great treasure hunter
When you hear the name Kelly Tarlton, you probably picture the famous aquarium in Auckland - with its glass tunnels and circling sharks. But he was also New Zealand's most successful treasure hunter. Kelly Tarlton recovered millions in sunken gold, silver and jewels. He pioneered new methods of underwater excavation, and was on the brink of a brand new adventure when he died suddenly, just months after his aquarium opened - leaving behind one final, unfinished quest. In his new RNZ podcast, Kelly Tarlton's Final Treasure Hunt, journalist and storyteller Hamish Williams set out to complete that quest - to find a lost anchor dropped 250 years ago by one of the first European ships to reach Aotearoa. Along the way, Hamish uncovers an incredible story of obsession, risk, innovation, and the cost of chasing a dream. Hamish Williams talks to Kathryn about the astonishing story of Kelly Tarlton, and what he hopes to find at the bottom of Northland's Doubtless Bay.
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Morgan said the festival certainly had an impact of the local economy in Taranaki - especially for hotels and camp grounds - but the impact was relative to what you were selling. Cafe's and restaurants in the city center might not have seen the same return on their investment, he said. "I don't think that the cafe's really benefited from it, but if you were at Te Matatini and you were a vendor or stall holder you would have seen good margins, that's the consensus that the town was kind of saying. "A lot of the businesses here were ready for the influx but they didn't quite see a return on their investment in terms of people out wining and dining." As well as their stall at Te Matatini Proof & Stock also has a coffee shop in New Plymouth, which Morgan said was quieter than during the festival. But Morgan said his team had an amazing time at the festival. His staff included included some local students learning on the job. "They walked out with a pocket full of cash and all this confidence they can use into the future," he said. Kiri Erb said this catering gig is the biggest undertaking of her career. Photo: RNZ / Emma Andrews Hāwera-based Kiri Erb owns and operates Tika Cafe and Catering and worked providing kai for the festival and for the competitors who were based out of Hāwera. She told RNZ being awarded a kai stall was both a privilege and a challenge. The scale of the event meant she had to boost the her staffing numbers from 32 to 50 so the business could accommodate the masses at the Bowl of Brooklands in New Plymouth and the restaurant in Hāwera. Erb said it was an experience her and the team will never forget. "This is an experience that will live in memory banks forever. We've taken videos of us working during that week, we had rōpu that would come in and they would perform for us... and we'd go back an look at those. Our hearts still really sing." "We all just feel incredibly lucky." Erb said. Te Matatini chief executive Carl Ross said the iwi of Taranaki had done a fantastic job catering for a growing festival. "The Matatini brand internationally has just got so big now, [its] becoming an economic powerhouse for our country, how do we actually utilise what we have now to be able to provide the Matatini festival in the best condition that we can do." There has also been an increased interest in kapa haka among non-Māori, 44 percent of attendees in 2025 were Pākehā up from an average of 27 percent over the last decade of festivals. Ross said over the years he has noticed more and more people from diverse communities wanting to share the Matatini experience. Of the $24m brought into the region more than $2m came from teams traveling to Taranaki to compete and another $17.4m was spent by their supporters. It's getting more and more expensive to send a team to Te Matatini and some regions don't have that kind of money to spend, Ross said. "We could have up to $160,000 to move a single team into a rohe and that's with just three supporters per kaihaka (performer)." Te Matatini now is looking to the future and ensure the festival can be enjoyed by everybody, he said. "Te Matatini and our Board are still in discussion's on how we can also ensure that we can meet the needs of our smaller rohe, because that's a question that was burning straight after the festival. Did we have our infrastructure in place to be able to try and do this in the next two years?" Te Matatini announced in May that the next festival in 2027 would not be hosted in Te Tauihu o te Waka-a-Māui/Nelson as had been expected and that they were looking for expressions of interest to host. Ross was hopeful that there will be an update on where Te Matatini goes next by the end of June. "[Te Matatini] supports the economy, the local economy and that's what is really cool about being able to travel to different rohe, being able to do that it's getting harder at the moment for sponsorships, we only got half the sponsorship that we usually get and it goes to show the economic environment [we're] currently working in, so I know it's hard out there and it's hard for our people."
