Latest news with #MikeShepherd
Daily Mirror
02-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Midsomer Murders fans told to binge 'absolutely brilliant' detective drama they've probably never heard of
The Brokenwood Mysteries follows a crime-solving duo in a small town, just like Midsomer Murders - and the detective series has been dubbed as "the New Zealand Midsomer Murders" ITV Midsomer Murders fans are being encouraged to discover another "absolutely brilliant" detective series featuring a crime-solving partnership they've likely never encountered - but will undoubtedly find themselves binge-watching. The New Zealand-based crime drama, The Brokenwood Mysteries, centres on Detective Senior Sergeant Mike Shepherd and rule-following Detective Kristin Sims as they probe offences in the tranquil, small-town environment of Brokenwood. Much like the popular ITV drama Midsomer Murders, which features Neil Dudgeon - who recently discussed the 'far-fetched' storylines - The Brokenwood Mysteries presents an experienced DI partnering with a younger detective as they handle peculiar cases in a compact and apparently perfect town. Branded as "the New Zealand Midsomer Murders" it chronicles DI Mike Shepherd and his colleague, DC Kristin Sims, as they address baffling cases in the quiet town of Brokenwood, reports Hello! The ensemble is headed by Neill Rea (Go Girls, Auckward Love), portraying Shepherd, and Fern Sutherland (The Almighty Johnsons) as Sims, reports the Manchester Evening News. The programme's synopsis reveals that DI Mike Shepherd arrives in the ostensibly serene town of Brokenwood "with a classic car, a country music collection, and an indeterminate number of ex-wives". It adds: "His assistant, DC Kristin Sims, is a by-the-book investigator 15 years younger than her boss's car. Shepherd soon discovers that Brokenwood is full of secrets and suspicions." In the newest instalment, Shepherd and his colleagues find themselves entangled in a "web of deception, greed and dark secrets" whilst tackling their most baffling investigations in the picturesque village of Brokenwood, ranging from "mysterious murders" to "seemingly supernatural incidents". The programme, which proudly holds an 86 per cent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, has earned acclaim from audiences who've branded it "excellent" and a "must-watch" across social media platforms. One viewer gushed: "The Brokenwood Mysteries. An absolutely BRILLIANT detective mystery from New Zealand. Quirky, well acted, great stories." Another fan characterised the programme as a "lighter New Zealand mystery series set in modern times in quirky small town.," praising its "plenty of humour among dark deeds, good writing, acting, and strange deaths." A third enthusiast urged fellow viewers to give it a go, declaring: "If you want a really excellent programme to watch, have a look at The Brokenwood Mysteries on Drama. The best thing I've watched in years." The Brokenwood Mysteries is available to binge-watch on the streaming service U. The 11th season arrives on U and U&Drama on Monday, August 18
BBC News
01-08-2025
- Automotive
- BBC News
Family pays tribute to motorcyclist killed in crash near Swyre
A motorcyclist who died in a three-vehicle crash on a coastal road in Dorset was "a truly wonderful human being", his family has Police said Mike Shepherd, 50, died at the scene of the crash, which took place on the B3157 near Swyre shortly before 11:00 BST on 27 was riding a Kawasaki motorbike, and a grey Audi A7 and a blue Ford Mondeo were also involved. Police said the drivers of the other vehicles were not Shepherd's family said he was "a loving son, phenomenal brother, caring and thoughtful, father, uncle and grandfather". They said: "His love of bikes and cars has been with him from his teenage years and followed him through his journeys and travels."He will be greatly missed by so many and died doing what he loved best."Police have asked anyone with information about the incident to contact them. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
CBC
28-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
Pedestrian Sunday is back in Kensington this weekend, but future of festival remains unclear
Kensington Market's popular Pedestrian Sunday festival is back this month, but its future for the rest of the season remains unclear as organizers look for solutions on safety concerns and the problem of illegal vendors. The festival has been running for more than two decades on the last Sunday of each month from May to October, when much of the market is closed to vehicles while pedestrians, vendors, and street artists fill the streets. It was halted last-minute in May after concerns over the influx of outside vendors and "unregulated food sales and unauthorized substances," the Kensington Market Business Improvement Area (KMBIA) said when announcing the cancellation. KMBIA chair Mike Shepherd says he feels comfortable holding the June 29 event because he believes outside vendors will be spread out across the city due to Pride Festival events and won't necessarily converge on Kensington. And as for July onward, "We'll see how it goes," he said. Kensington considers hiring outside help For now, the KMBIA is exploring options to help the event run more smoothly in the future. Among them is finding new organizers to run it for them. Shepherd says KMBIA is currently in talks with the team behind Do West Fest, adding it has had "really good success at dealing with these same problems." "[The] biggest thing…is what their cost is going to be to us," he said, referring to Uma Nota Culture, the not-for-profit that produced the festival for the Little Portugal Toronto BIA. The organization confirmed to CBC Toronto they had a conversation about potentially producing the event and are thrilled about the opportunity. The KMBIA increased its events and festival budget by 18 per cent this year, city records show. Each Pedestrian Sunday costs about $10,000 and May's unused budget will go into reserves, Shepherd says. The KMBIA also released a community survey on Monday asking residents and businesses for their thoughts on possible solutions such as having police on the streets, more security, or changing the festival's frequency. The results are still trickling in — and while some businesses told CBC Toronto the festival is a financial lifeline, others welcomed last month's pause. Jessica Silva of CrazyLoko Vintage says she loses roughly half her customers to illegal vendors who set up shop in front of her business selling other vintage clothes during the festival. "They're taking away from our business [while] we're here the entire year trying to make ends meet," she said. 'Only so many officers trying to do too big a job' Though there will be four extra security guards at Sunday's event, Shepherd says it's been a challenge to bring in more bylaw officers to crack down on illegal vendors. He says attempts to hire the officers through the city have been unsuccessful — something the city couldn't comment on without more specifics from the KMBIA. Illegal vendors selling things like unregulated food or art can be fined by bylaw officers, according to the city's communications coordinator, Shane Gerard. But if they sell drugs, he says the issue becomes a police matter. The most common violation related to sidewalk vendors is vending without a permit, which carries a $615 fine, Gerard says. This year, Shepherd hopes June's Pedestrian Sunday will give him the chance to have conversations with the illegal vendors and deal with them "in a nice way," before escalating things further. WATCH | Why was Pedestrian Sunday paused in the first place?: Toronto's Kensington market pauses 'Pedestrian Sundays' amid vendor battle 1 month ago Duration 2:28 'Pedestrian Sundays,' a popular tradition at Toronto's Kensington Market, has been put on pause for the first time in twenty years. As CBC's Britnei Bilhete reports, organizers say there's been growing concerns about the event. Local councillor Dianne Saxe says she's repeatedly asked the mayor's office for help with drug use and sales in the area and helped connect Shepherd with city staff to request more bylaw officers. "There's only so many officers trying to do too big a job," Saxe said. CBC Toronto has reached out to the mayor's office but did not hear back before deadline. The entire ward of University-Rosedale currently has two bylaw officers assigned.
Otago Daily Times
12-06-2025
- Health
- Otago Daily Times
Hospital patients wrongly told they had sexually transmitted infections
The mistake was uncovered, after "clinical questioning" of one result led staff to investigate. Photo: RNZ Twenty-five Auckland City Hospital patients have been wrongly told they have a sexually transmitted infection in the past three weeks - and six of them still do not know it was a mistake. Health NZ/Te Whatu Ora said the false positive results were from tests carried out in its internal lab from 23 May-4 June. At least some of those affected were patients in the obstetrics and gynaecology service. Hospital operations director Mike Shepherd said the mistake was uncovered, after "clinical questioning" of one result led staff to investigate. That first false positive was identified on 4 June. A total of four faulty batches was then discovered. "We began contacting all affected patients by phone from 4 June and, to date, we have been able to contact directly all but six patients," Shepherd said. "We continue to try and contact the remaining patients." The mistake was apparently due to potential contamination in the lab processing workflow. Only one type of test was affected. "We are undertaking further investigation to identify the root cause and we have moved the test to different equipment until, our investigation is complete," he said. Shepherd acknowledged the distress that had been caused to some patients and said the hospital apologised to them. No patients were wrongly told they did not have a sexually transmitted infection (STI).
RNZ News
03-06-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Nursing union members hold stop work meetings over stalled pay talks
File photo. The Nurses Organisation and Health NZ have been in bargaining since late last year. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon Nurses are looking for better pay and higher staff-to-patient ratios after rejecting the latest Health NZ offer, a Nurses' Organisation delegate says. A series of stop-work meetings take place this week to discuss the next steps following a vote by members to turn down the offer. Wellington Hospital delegate Hilary Gardner said a commitment to improving staff-to-patient ratios was needed, and the pay increase was essentially a pay cut. "It's what's not in the offer that's the big concern for us. There's not a lot that commitment for health and safety and safe staffing." She said nothing was off the table, including strike action. Health NZ said it wanted nurses to return to the bargaining table to resolve the issue. Gardener said the rejected offer came after many days of bargaining already since their contract expired late last year. Health NZ regional deputy chief executive Dr Mike Shepherd said it believed the offer was fair. "The employment relations authority agrees with that view, we're really keen that our nursing colleagues return to the negotiation table, so we can continue this conversation, so we can continue delivering the care our community needs. "We really respect our nursing colleagues, we do need to be fiscally prudent, and we've made this offer. "We think nursing pay rates have had a number of uplifts over recent years and of course we're keen to continue to that conversation," he said. He said there was a system in place, set up in conjunction with the nursing union, that matches demand on the wards with the nurses available.
