Between Two Beers Podcast

The Graham Norton Debrief, World Cup Conspiracies & Why New Dads Are a Spare Part 15.07.2026 42min

We debrief on Seamus' dream guest, Graham Norton - with Sammy and Char on the mics to break down how it went, and how dusty Steve was at the 5.30am start.Then the boys dig into whether there's anything to the Argentina World Cup conspiracy doing the rounds, before Steve gets Che’s take on surviving the school holidays and the "spare part" phase of early parenting (plus the questions kids fire at you when you least expect it - did you know Baby Shark has 17 billion views?).There's also a quieter moment as Seamus opens up about presiding over a close friend's dad's funeral, and what a room full of people saying goodbye teaches you about what actually matters. Plus the week's TAB bet and Che’s TVNZ punditry debut, Dr Evil jumper and all. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Graham Norton: The Hidden Psychology of the World's Biggest Chat Show & What Success Really Means 12.07.2026 1h 5min

He's spent nearly 30 years getting the world's biggest stars to open up - but Graham Norton rarely sits on the other side of the mic.The most famous chat show host on the planet pulls back the curtain on his craft: the psychology of who sits where on that famous sofa, why the guests always outrank him, and the research ritual that's funnier than the show itself.He also goes somewhere he almost never does - the San Francisco hippie commune that set him on his path, nearly dying in his twenties, becoming a debut novelist at 52, and how a chance love of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc became millions of bottles with his name on it.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The World Cup Debrief: What Went Well, What Didn’t & What We'd Do Again 08.07.2026 38min

You can pour everything into the biggest thing you'll ever build - and still find the part you remember has nothing to do with the work.Fresh off three weeks at the FIFA World Cup in North America, Steven and Seamus sit down with their business coach Di Foster for a proper mid-year debrief: the enormity of what they pulled off (19 daily shows, four partners, a whole TV operation), the studio they spent tens of thousands building and then didn't need, and the honest look at what they'd do differently.Along the way: how you actually measure whether a big bet worked, the hire that changed everything, and the case for building rest into growth instead of chasing momentum forever.Plus a listener question - how do you keep the core things humming while you're on the road? - brought to you by Odoo. Try Odoo free, no credit card required: http://odoo.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Golden State Warriors Psychologist Scott Goldman: The Science of Winning 05.07.2026 1h 42min

He's got a championship ring his own kids have never seen - it lives in a closet.Scott Goldman is a high-performance psychologist who's spent 30 years inside some of the biggest teams in world sport, including the Golden State Warriors, and works across five professional franchises at once.His whole philosophy flips how you think about success: you're not your talent, you're your talent times your environment. Get the environment wrong and the most gifted person in the room fails.Recorded in a hotel room at the Football World Cup - this is Between Two Beers' first-ever episode made overseas - Steve and Seamus go deep with Scott on what actually separates the best teams from the rest, the science of intelligence in sport, why he keeps his trophies hidden, the luxury of choosing your own hardship, and how he stays a present dad while doing "cool shit with cool people" on the other side of the world.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our Chaotic World Cup Tour, A 6am Graham Norton Podcast & Catching up with Steven Adams 01.07.2026 38min

The boys are back on home soil to unpack the most chaotic three weeks of the show's life.They relive the Radio & Podcast Awards and unpack the World Cup experience: 19 daily shows in a row for Between Two Goals, the flying Kiwis march to the Egypt game, Finn Surman's header, and 45 minutes of the best football either of them has ever watched - before the Belgium reality check.Along the way: a 6am video call with bucket-list guest Graham Norton (glass of wine and all), Steven Adams bounding up the stairs to find them at the Belgium game, Eli Just rounding out the tournament as the breakout star, a $666 game of credit card roulette, and one very hard-won premium economy upgrade.Plus a look ahead to Monday's Between Two Beers with Golden State Warriors performance psychologist Dr Scott Goldman - recorded in San Diego. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason Gunn: What a Heart Attack Taught Him About Success, Family & Grief (Re-Release) 28.06.2026 1h 49min

Jason Gunn is one of New Zealand's most beloved entertainers - but behind the energy, the warmth, and the laugh, is a man who has faced some of life's hardest moments.In this episode, Jase opens up about suffering a heart attack at 47, and the moment lying in a hospital bed when his life's priorities became crystal clear. He talks about his son Louis - then a teenager - ripping up his radio contract and telling him "that's not what success looks like, Dad." And he shares the story of losing his mum Janice, the world's greatest storyteller, and what it means to carry someone with you after they're gone.We also get into the rise of the Son of a Gunn show, the magic behind Jason and Thingy, hosting Dancing with the Stars, and why the most confident man in any room still gets incredibly nervous.One of our favourite episodes we've ever done, recorded in 2024 and re-released this week for all our new listeners.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“What Are You Actually Building This For?” Seamus & Di’s Emotional 1:1 24.06.2026 32min

Seamus arrives feeling it: New baby at home. A World Cup project about to go live. A calendar that was built before either of those things was certain, now collapsing on top of each other.He's saying yes to everything - commentary gigs, MC slots, the lot. And somewhere underneath all of it, he's saying no to the people who matter most without realising that's what he's doing.This one covers the procrastination spiral that kicks in when everything feels urgent and equally important, why knowing the problem isn't enough to change the behaviour, and the question every business owner eventually lands on - what is this thing actually a vehicle for?Turns out the answer sometimes involves goats. Thanks Di! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rob Cope: What Parents Don't Know About Keeping Kids Safe in 2026 21.06.2026 1h 35min

Rob Cope has spoken to over 40,000 New Zealand parents about the dangers hiding in their children's online world.In this episode, he delivers the talk every parent needs to hear - and pulls no punches doing it.They cover the reality of what kids are accessing online, why good kids in good homes aren't protected, the neuroscience of screen addiction, what the government is getting wrong, practical tools to keep your kids safe, and Rob's Wild Dad movement getting fathers off their phones and back into their kids' lives.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

All Whites vs Iran: Watching History from Inside the World Cup 17.06.2026 52min

New Zealand drew 2-2 with Iran in one of the great All Whites performances - scoring twice, leading twice, and finishing top of Group G on goal difference. Eli Just became the first All White to score twice at a World Cup.Steve and Seamus were inside SoFi Stadium in LA when it happened. This episode, recorded the morning after, is their unfiltered reaction from the ground - what the game felt like in the stadium, what Eli Just's night means for NZ football, and what the rest of the tournament looks like from the top of the group.Watch Between Two Goals, streaming on TVNZ+ daily throughout the All Whites' World Cup campaign. Thank you to Ford for supporting Between Two Goals, and to Stark for supporting Hambassadors! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Inside the Polkinghorne Case & the Mind of NZ's Greatest Writer - Steve Braunias 14.06.2026 1h 59min

Steve Braunias sat through every day of the Polkinghorne trial - the society murder that gripped New Zealand - and wrote the bestselling book on it. He liked the accused. He chatted with him every morning. And he more than entertains the possibility that Phil Polkinghorne is an innocent man.In this episode, Steve takes us inside the eight weeks that felt like "a carnival": the forensic evidence that won and lost the case, the missing star witness Madison Ashton, the moment the prosecution's case fell apart, and why the national feeling that "he got away with it" collides with everything the facts say.But this is also the story of one of New Zealand's greatest living writers. The Motley Crüe interview that ended with him thrown against a wall. The letter that got him sacked from the Sunday magazine. Failing out of journalism school, learning to type by copying out Sylvia Plath, and 46 years of skewering phonies and squares - plus the surprisingly tender stuff: his late brother Mark, his daughter Minka, and why his dream is to one day stop writing altogether.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our Business Coach Quits On-Air? Why Fun Is the Strategy Right Now 10.06.2026 24min

Di Foster arrived ready to coach. Then she realised the smartest coaching move was to stop coaching.In this episode she explains why: Between Two Beers is in ‘execution season’, and what sport understands about seasons and rhythms is something most businesses never name.We get into why Steve and Seamus are slightly misaligned on what they really want, the delegation trap of "it takes 2 minutes to do but 15 minutes to explain," how to hand things over without interrupting the week, why the team can't keep running through the founders, and the one job Di's given the boys before the World Cup: be present, have fun, and produce a bloody good product.Thanks to our partner Odoo - the all-in-one business management software that keeps you from drowning in admin. Everything you need on one platform, for one subscription. Start your free 15-day trial at http://odoo.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Futurist Frances Valintine: NZ's Looming Demographic Crisis & the Future of Work 07.06.2026 2h 34min

Futurist Frances Valintine (founder of Academy X and Tech Futures Lab) joins the show to map what New Zealand actually looks like in twenty years, and it's a sobering picture.We're one of the fastest-changing populations on earth: ageing fast, with a birth rate well below replacement and a workforce shrinking from four people per retiree toward just two. Her warning is that we're already late to plan for it.From there the conversation turns to AI and the future of work, where Frances is blunt - every job ahead will have an AI component, and the longer you wait to understand it, the harder it gets.She unpacks how the technology is already changing the way we search, shop and make decisions, why New Zealand's greatest advantage in a chaotic world is trust, and how a small country might carve out a future by being the "slow but really good" partner the rest of the world relies on.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Exclusive Access to Tim Payne? Our Football World Cup Trip Shapes Up 03.06.2026 47min

The boys are back behind the scenes, and the World Cup is almost here.Seamus and Steve break down the wild Tim Payne phenomenon - how an All Whites right-back with 4,000 followers became bigger than the All Blacks in 48 hours after an Argentinian content creator made him the face of the tournament.Seamus has known Tim since he was 16, and with Between Two Goals heading into the exact camp that's now the most talked-about in world football, the dream scenario of exclusive access starts to take shape.Then it's all systems go for the trip: the daily Between Two Goals TV show following the All Whites across America and Canada, the mobile studio, walk-and-talk intros, and the small matter of Steve not knowing which city he's flying to.Plus reflections on two cracking recent episodes - former All Blacks manager Darren Shand on 20 years inside the machine, and futurist Frances Valentine - and a well-earned shout-out to the newly honoured Dame Susan Hassall. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Matthew Ridge Tells All: Wrongful Conviction, Addiction & Working with Marc Ellis (Re-Release) 31.05.2026 1h 52min

Matthew Ridge is one of New Zealand's most recognisable sporting figures - All Blacks captain, NRL star, television personality. But behind the swagger and the highlights reel is a story most people have never heard.Originally released in 2024 and one of our most popular episodes, we're bringing this one back because it deserves to be heard again.Ridgey sits down with Steve and Seamus to tell it all. At 16, he was wrongfully convicted of aggravated robbery - three High Court trials, a 14-year sentence hanging over his head, and a sports career that nearly never happened.He talks about growing up without his father, finding mental toughness through tennis, and the moment he got a voicemail from Graham Lowe asking if he wanted to play rugby league for Manly.He opens up about the NRL years, the TV relationship with Marc Ellis - and he talks honestly about his meth use, functioning as an addict while the cameras rolled, and the moment he looked at a photo of himself and saw no light in his eyes.This is Matthew Ridge like you've never heard him before.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“Don’t Believe You Own BS!” - Behind the Scenes of the World Cup, TVNZ Deal & Steven Adams 27.05.2026 41min

It’s been our biggest six months ever - landing on TVNZ+, heading to the World Cup, and sitting down with Steven Adams.Steve and Seamus sit down with business and mindset coach Di Foster to pull back the curtain on how it all actually came together, the chaos behind the scenes, and what it really takes to turn a podcast into a mainstream media brand.They break down the TVNZ deal, how they landed four World Cup sponsors at 100% conversion rate (and why that's actually a red flag), and the Steven Adams episode that had Seamus too nervous to speak for the first five minutes.Plus - the mindset that keeps it all in check. Because the most dangerous thing you can do when things are going this well is start believing your own BS. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Darren Shand: 20 Years Inside the All Blacks' Golden Era 24.05.2026 2h 45min

For 20 years, Darren Shand was the most powerful person in All Blacks rugby that nobody knew about.As Team Manager across four Rugby World Cups - including the back-to-back title wins of 2011 and 2015 - Shand sat above the coaches, managed the operation, and helped build the cultural architecture of the most successful international rugby team in history.He worked alongside Sir Graham Henry, Sir Steve Hansen, Sir Wayne Smith, Richie McCaw, Dan Carter, and some of the greatest players to ever pull on the black jersey.He talks about the 2004 wake-up call that forced the entire culture to change. The private battles with depression. The end of his marriage. The moment a former Crusaders teammate came to his house to tell him he was fired.He shares stories that have never been made public - including a stunning incident before the 2015 Rugby World Cup final that nearly ended his campaign entirely. And he gives his most honest assessment yet of what happened to the All Blacks after he left - and why Ian Foster never really had a chance.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're Going to the Football World Cup with the All Whites! 20.05.2026 35min

This week on Hambassadors, Steve and Seamus reveal their biggest project yet: a dedicated All Whites fan show heading to Vancouver for the FIFA World Cup.They're going in camp with the team, bringing the families, and building something that hasn't been done before in New Zealand sports media.Also this week: a behind-the-scenes look at the Joseph Parker x Barkers event (with some Chatham House rules intel that stays in the room), gut health is officially on the agenda, and the guys reflect on the overwhelming response to the Nate Alley episode. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stacey Morrison: The Te Reo Journey She Almost Quit, Losing Her Mum & 30 Years of NZ Media Unfiltered 17.05.2026 2h 19min

Stacey Morrison has been a fixture of New Zealand television and radio for thirty years - but this is the story behind the story.In this episode she opens up about growing up embarrassed by her Māori identity, a gruelling fifteen year journey to te reo fluency, the heartbreaking loss of her mum Sue, and finding the love she never thought she'd have with Scotty Morrison.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is Being a 'Good Bugger' Enough? Values, Identity & the Team Behind the Vision 13.05.2026 38min

Steve sits down with our business and mindset coach Di Foster for a candid 1:1 coaching session.They get into what it really means to be a 'good bugger' in business, whether values alone are enough to build something lasting, and the identity shift that happens when your business starts moving faster than you expected.They also tackle the team question - why having the right people around you isn't just a nice to have, and what it actually takes to stop being the bottleneck in your own business.Plus Di and Steve dig into the difference between identity and habits - and why getting clear on who you are might matter more than any morning routine.This episode is proudly supported by Odoo, the all-in-one business management platform. Thanks to Odoo for supporting the show.Got a listener question? DM us on social media and it could be answered on the next episode. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nate Alley: Growing Up Without a Dad, Driving $200M in Construction & Why He Nearly Lost It All 10.05.2026 2h 6min

Nate Alley grew up in Tokoroa without a father, got kicked out of school at 16, and spent the better part of a decade angry, lost, and making decisions he's not proud of.Today he runs his own Sentinel Homes franchise in the Waikato, with nearly 200 million dollars in construction work completed over the last decade.In this episode Nate speaks publicly for the first time about his upbringing, a failed first business, burnout, and divorce - and the moment holding his newborn daughter that forced him to confront who he was really becoming.Between Two Beers is proudly brought to you by One New Zealand. We believe that One NZ connects New Zealand, while Between Two Beers connects New Zealanders. And together, we are NZ's most trusted connection platform.Steve and Seamus are proud to be dressed by Barkers Clothing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.