Latest news with #OddCouple
Otago Daily Times
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
The ‘Odd Couple's' new era
Queenstown's 'Odd Couple' are back at it. Longtime local broadcasters Craig 'Ferg' Ferguson and Grant Stewart tomorrow launch their new podcast, 'Ferg and Grant, Rated FnG'. Ferguson admits he'd never contemplated a podcast before, and hasn't spent a huge amount of time listening to them, but when things changed for him last year many people encouraged him to have a crack at it. "I realised Grant ... needed to be a part of it, but I didn't think we could create what we did with The Odd Couple, because we'd be cancelled straight away," he laughs. The pair's long-running breakfast show on Q92FM was the brainchild of the late Chas Drader. "It was madness — it was radio, I think, like no one else could do. "I was the married man with two young kids, and he was the reprobate who was, and still is to this day, a teenager with incredible wit and creative skills." Ferguson and Stewart actually met "way back in the early days ... pouring grog at Skyline". "We used to do things behind the bar with broomsticks, and out on the dancefloor with [the late] Kevin Lynch when he was entertaining. "We just seemed to have those natural synergies that I thought was good for a breakfast show ... since then, we've remained really good mates. "We had a conversation [about a podcast], and as you can expect, he was dead keen. "We've just slowly put the pieces together and got ourselves to the point of having our first episode coming out [tomorrow]." It's new territory for both of them, particularly given they're recording from separate studios, Ferguson based in Queenstown and Stewart at his Pisa Moorings pad, and beaming in their guests. They're indebted to SB Technologies, a former Queenstown company now based in Dunedin, and their "very young producer", Charlotte. "We'll explain more about her as time marches on, but she's done an amazing job taking us old geriatrics into the modern technology world ... and she's got a role to play in each episode as well." Ferguson says their content will be king, with an overall aim of supporting the wider Central Otago communities, "in a modern world podcast". General feedback's inspired the direction of the podcast — "no clickbait", and positive stories. And while he reckons it'll take a little bit for the pair to get into their groove, just like The Odd Couple, they'll build as they go. "Who knows where it'll lead — it might be a fizzer," he quips. Or, it could be award-winning, though, as a promo on the website states, "we've won no awards". Ferguson's expecting to drop a new episode every week — people can stay informed via the Facebook page 'Rated FnG' or the Instagram page @rated-fng. The free podcast's available to listen to via Introducing The Yack Shack Two of Queenstown's verbal virtuosos are about to teach their tricks of the trade. Mic magician Craig 'Ferg' Ferguson, a longtime local broadcaster and Queenstown councillor, and chatter champion Brendan 'Quilly' Quill, a Colliers realtor and auctioneer, have spent years fronting various events all across the country. They're now combining forces for 'The Yack Shack', a six-week course designed to boost confidence in public speaking. Starting July 24, at Te Atamira, the course promises to help participants find their flow and learn how to run the show. Ferguson says the idea was sparked by a work colleague, who lacked confidence in public speaking. "I knew this one [to work with me] had to be Quilly. "We just feel we've got a lot to offer in making people feel comfortable about public speaking, and that can range from kids to school teachers, to real estate agents, to corporates, to people who want to stand up at their friend's wedding. "Yes, we do a lot together, but we attack our roles differently ... so it's sharing and trying to encourage people to have confidence." The total cost is $330, plus booking fee — to find out more, or book, see
Indian Express
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Trump-Musk bromance is over. What does it tell about male friendships?
Jai and Veeru they are not. Donald Trump and Elon Musk's BFF act has turned out to be more star-crossed than Starlinked. Like the Sholay duo, Trump and Musk had once thumbed their noses at the world and said 'Tere liye le lenge sab se dushmani (I'll take on the world for you),' as they took on their liberal foes everywhere. Their fallout should have been a clash of titans. Instead, as they trade insults on social media, it feels like we are watching petulant teenage Ninja Turtles. 'Such ingratitude,' complained Musk, who had spent almost $300 million on the US election that brought Trump back to the White House. 'Very disappointed in Elon,' retorted Trump. The mother of one of Musk's children offered Trump breakup advice. So is it all about money? Trump thinks Musk is upset because he cut EV subsidies that affect Musk's bottom line. Musk says Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill is a 'disgusting abomination' that would add billions to the federal deficit, making a mockery of DOGE or the Department of Government Efficiency's attempts to slash spending. Either way, the Big Beautiful Bromance seems over. The X-factor in the Trump presidency is now an ex-factor jokes one meme. But they might patch up overnight as well. Trump seems to have neither permanent friends nor enemies. He befriends, unfriends and re-friends at will. But then again, we live in a world of social media where the word 'friend' itself has been rendered meaningless. While the implications of the Odd Couple fallout are being analysed in detail, it is fascinating what this says about what has happened to our idea of friendship. Especially male friendships. True friendship requires vulnerability, something men are never encouraged to show. In the landmark Hindi film Dosti (1964) about the friendship between two physically handicapped boys, the vulnerability is visible. But mostly it's hidden. Our greatest films about male friendship are about tough guys with soft centres like Veeru and Jai. True friendship is supposed to stand the test of time, whether it's 3 Idiots (2009) or Dil Chahta Hai (2001). These are friends who are thrown together by circumstance, bond over ideals, drift apart and come back together. But the litmus test of true friendship is betrayal and forgiveness because, to paraphrase another Hindi film, zindagi na milegi dobara. 'Think of me at my best,' James Steerforth tells David Copperfield in Charles Dickens' novel right before he runs off with Copperfield's childhood sweetheart. At the heart of these great friendship stories lie weighty questions like E M Forster wondering, 'If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country.' Dante, he says, placed Brutus and Cassius in the lowest rungs of Hell because they betrayed their friend Julius Caesar rather than Rome. So et tu, Elon? Not really, because Trump and Musk's model of friendship is reflective of the times we live in. They MAGA-ed it up for the cameras, even sharing AI-generated videos of themselves grooving to Stayin' Alive. We all know Instagram couples who need to 'perform' their relationships in the public eye to show how they are made-for-each-other. Then they break up, delete their old posts, and begin anew with someone else as if the past never existed. Jai and Veeru friendship was for the long haul. The Trump-Musk friendship is for a generation with a short attention span. Many had probably forgotten that in 2016, Musk had said Trump didn't 'have the sort of character that reflects well on the United States.' In January 2022, Trump called Musk one of the world's 'great geniuses' comparable to Thomas Edison. By July, he called him a 'bulls*** artist'. But none of that mattered when, in February this year, Musk tweeted 'I love @realDonaldTrump as much as a straight man can love another man.' The BBC said Trump sounded like a 'spurned lover' as he talked about the fallout. Musk responded on X with one word: Whatever. Even a Balaji soap opera relationship does not have so many twists and turns. When the richest person in the world and the most powerful person break up publicly and messily, the internet brings out the popcorn. One meme had Narendra Modi offering to mediate just as Trump claimed he mediated between India and Pakistan. It would all be funnier if both their coming together and breaking apart didn't have consequences for the rest of the world. But was this ever really friendship or just a relationship of convenience, more dostana than dosti? Roy is a novelist and the author of Don't Let Him Know
The Age
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
Adults rocks: This share-house comedy is one for the age(s)
Adults ★★★★ At its most basic, Adults is a share-house comedy. But like the best of this admittedly niche genre, it uses that basic premise to say something much more sweeping about the time in which it emerges. The Odd Couple had something to say about the divorce epidemic of the 1960s, and the sometimes comical efforts of grown men suddenly having to find their way in the world without women to prop them up. The Young Ones captured the post-punk anger and early '80s austerity that was the flipside of class mobility in Thatcher's Britain. Friends had much to say about being young, single and aspirational in 1990s New York. And Girls was about the near-impossibility of making a go of life in Manhattan without the aid of a trust fund (though, really, it was about sex, drugs, career, gender, mental health, self-esteem … there was a lot of meat on them thar sitcom bones). Loading Which brings us to Adults, which has distinct echoes of the above – Girls and Friends, especially – but with a huge dollop of identity politics and cancel culture tossed into the mix. It doesn't skewer its twenty-something characters, but it does poke fun at their foibles and performative posturing even as it empathises with them. It throws down a marker in its first moments, as Issa (Amita Rao) responds to the affront of a creepy middle-aged guy masturbating on the subway by doing it right back at him. Her friends are appalled, but outwardly supportive. 'She's doing this for your daughters,' one of them yells to shocked onlookers. 'I think.' Later in the same episode, Samir (Malik Elassal) begins to fret he might be one of those men who doesn't even realise he's crossed a line in terms of unwanted sexual behaviour. So he starts checking in with exes, revelling in their reassurance he did nothing wrong, and then recoiling in horror as they remember that, actually, they were really too drunk that one time to consent, so on second thoughts maybe he is a predator after all… Again, though, the friends are there for comfort.
Sydney Morning Herald
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Adults rocks: This share-house comedy is one for the age(s)
Adults ★★★★ At its most basic, Adults is a share-house comedy. But like the best of this admittedly niche genre, it uses that basic premise to say something much more sweeping about the time in which it emerges. The Odd Couple had something to say about the divorce epidemic of the 1960s, and the sometimes comical efforts of grown men suddenly having to find their way in the world without women to prop them up. The Young Ones captured the post-punk anger and early '80s austerity that was the flipside of class mobility in Thatcher's Britain. Friends had much to say about being young, single and aspirational in 1990s New York. And Girls was about the near-impossibility of making a go of life in Manhattan without the aid of a trust fund (though, really, it was about sex, drugs, career, gender, mental health, self-esteem … there was a lot of meat on them thar sitcom bones). Loading Which brings us to Adults, which has distinct echoes of the above – Girls and Friends, especially – but with a huge dollop of identity politics and cancel culture tossed into the mix. It doesn't skewer its twenty-something characters, but it does poke fun at their foibles and performative posturing even as it empathises with them. It throws down a marker in its first moments, as Issa (Amita Rao) responds to the affront of a creepy middle-aged guy masturbating on the subway by doing it right back at him. Her friends are appalled, but outwardly supportive. 'She's doing this for your daughters,' one of them yells to shocked onlookers. 'I think.' Later in the same episode, Samir (Malik Elassal) begins to fret he might be one of those men who doesn't even realise he's crossed a line in terms of unwanted sexual behaviour. So he starts checking in with exes, revelling in their reassurance he did nothing wrong, and then recoiling in horror as they remember that, actually, they were really too drunk that one time to consent, so on second thoughts maybe he is a predator after all… Again, though, the friends are there for comfort.
CBC
05-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
SULU offers Asian-style tapas, with food fired on an authentic Japanese grill
Social Sharing Where in Saskatoon can you enjoy bao buns made from scratch, a cocktail featuring rum from the Philippines and skewers grilled to perfection on an authentic Japanese grill? The answer is SULU, now open at 226 Second Ave S. Local foodies will be familiar with the location. Previously home to both Sticks & Stones and Food & Beverage YXE — owned by Grassroots Restaurant Group — the space is no stranger to incredible eats. SULU is no exception. It's the second Saskatoon restaurant opened by Andy Yuen and Rachel Kong, the couple behind the beloved Odd Couple restaurant in Riversdale. "We always loved the layout of this space," Yuen said of the Second Avenue spot. "Rachel and I actually used to come here after our shifts at Odd Couple. So we spent enough time here as customers already." Yuen is excited to offer a menu at SULU that combines Vietnamese, Cantonese, Japanese and North American flavours to deliver an Asian-style tapas menu. From 1 restaurant to 2 Yuen and Kong opened Odd Couple in 2014, alongside Yuen's parents. Yuen grew up in Hong Kong and immigrated to Canada with his parents in the 1990s, while Kong first came to Saskatchewan from Guangzhou to study at the University of Regina. Although Yuen's parents had operated Chinese restaurants in Saskatchewan for years, Yuen wasn't initially interested in opening his own restaurant; he trained as an engineer. But when the opportunity to open a restaurant presented itself nearly 11 years ago, he decided to take the plunge with Odd Couple. The road to opening SULU began after the couple welcomed their first son in 2024. They decided to stay in Saskatoon and continue to build on their network and relationships here with another restaurant. They got the keys to the Second Avenue location in October 2024 and began renovating. They kept the original layout, including an expansive wood bar in the back of the restaurant, but added new upholstery and decor, including stunning red lanterns that hang throughout the restaurant. SULU's doors opened in February 2025. The couple chose the name to signify new beginnings. "Every sound in Chinese can be a written character. 'SU' can mean many things, but one of them is 'revive' or 'reborn,' and then 'LU' for us means dragon," Yuen said. "So we were reviving this space in the Year of the Dragon, and then our son was born in 2024 as well." WATCH | Come with me to SULU restaurant: Come with me to SULU restaurant 19 minutes ago Duration 0:26 An evening spot with a menu to match Yuen said that when he was planning SULU's menu, there were two things on his mind. The first was creating an Asian-style tapas menu that would be perfect for light dinners, after work drinks or late nights. The second thing on his mind was a meal that he and Rachel ate in Osaka, Japan, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, at a restaurant that featured an authentic Japanese grill. "It was the last meal we ate out before COVID-19," Yuen said. "I just kept coming back to it." Yuen decided to put one of these Japanese grills in SULU. He said there is only one other grill like it in Saskatchewan. The grill cooks skewers to a perfect tenderness using charcoal and infrared heat. SULU offers several skewers, including chicken, tofu and prosciutto-wrapped grapes, which are a customer favourite. The skewers are a must-try at SULU, given the unique grill, and a perfect option to start with. Other popular items include their bao buns and dumplings — both of which are made in-house — and their Korean fried chicken, which is the original recipe from Sticks and Stones. Be sure to also try one of their hand-crafted cocktails or mocktails, which are a perfect menu accompaniment. The Lucky Rabbit cocktail, for example, incorporates White Rabbit candies that have been melted down into a syrup, alongside local vodka from Lucky Bastard, to create a sweet and citrusy drink. Yuen said the menus at SULU and Odd Couple are very different, but both restaurants have strong focuses on curated selections of delicious eats in a setting that's modern, warm and inviting. "It's about the food and the drinks, but the world is crazy right now so we want people to be able to come in and find an escape — both at Odd Couple and SULU," Yuen said. "I'm grateful, and people so far walk out of here happy, and that's what we wanted."
