Hamish McNeilly

Dunedin could be flush with royals during the Rugby World Cup, after revelations officials have been scouting for luxury accommodation in the city.

Dunedin will be under even more pressure to accommodate the thousands of rugby fans expected to visit for the Rugby World Cup as organisers confirmed the city will now play host to four matches.

A Portobello firefighter is warning "someone will be taken away in a box" after a male cyclist suffered suspected head injuries after plunging 6m down an Otago Peninsula bank last night.

Embattled Labour leader Phil Goff will meet his shadow cabinet in Dunedin today, when his handling of the Darren Hughes incident is expected to be on the agenda.

Budding adventurer David Daniels has pulled the pin on his quest to circumnavigate the South Island, after encountering difficult conditions at Taieri Mouth on Saturday.

Is George Bush running the Southern District Health Board? That was a question posed by Ian Powell after a row erupted over proposed staffing cuts at Queenstown's Lakes District Hospital.

Amanda Tritschler can't help but see the irony.

Do not store chemicals in soft drink bottles, do not leave nicotine chewing gum near children, and do not give your child ant-killer if they have just eaten ants.

Cash-strapped New Zealand churches face a hike in insurance premiums after last month's earthquake caused an estimated $200 million worth of damage to Christchurch churches.

A precarious high-rise building in the Christchurch central business district is preventing progress on the Otago Harbour mataitai application.

The days of less than $2-a-litre petrol have run dry.

It's not a bird, it's not a star, and it's certainly not an unidentified flying object.

Is it a plane, a star, or an unidentified flying object?

Otago criminals have paid more than $82,000 since a $50 levy for each convicted offender was introduced last year.

Work has begun on converting the former Dunedin chief post office into a luxury hotel, with the multimillion-dollar project set to rejuvenate the area, its owner says.

Yuko Jowsey was looking forward to flying to Sendai in June, but now the Dunedin woman is left wondering what remains of her Japanese hometown, and the friends she has been unable to contact.