Sam Stevens

Otago Girls High School pupils stood up for their rights when they took to the school's playing field yesterday.

Mitchell Will has "never been backwards about coming forwards" says mother Charmaine.

The word "caring" has several layers of meaning for Bill and Iris Watts, who will celebrate their 65th wedding anniversary today.

A mad scramble for toys at a Dunedin retail outlet yesterday may mean Christmas comes early for three Balclutha children.

Carriages owned by a Dunedin-based rail excursion company were again targeted by vandals at the weekend.

The bizarre world of "Wacko Jacko" has taken another twist. Michael Jackson has taken the work of 18th-century Scottish poet Robert Burns and set it to music, but the result is unlikely to be a thriller for fans.

Residents enjoy living in the Whare Flat-Flagstaff Rd area because it has all the benefits of a rural setting but is close to the city.

Ngai Tahu and other iwi-based business groups will continue to grow if they stand alone but will prosper through sharing information, networks and partnerships, Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu kaiwhakahaere (chairman) Mark Solomon told delegates at the Maori Business Symposium in Dunedin yesterday.

Catching a school bus can be time consuming and "a hassle", but for pupils with no access to Ministry of Education funded services it can also be costly - ask the Anderson brothers.

The organisation behind truck protests which gridlocked inner-city areas around New Zealand in July is welcoming an announcement by Government this week of board members who will review controversial increases to road user charges.

The Ministry of Transport is suggesting further restrictions which could send a loud and clear message to motorists using noisy modified exhausts and "blow-off" turbo valves.

Otago schools say that despite a revamped funding model, many schools will not opt for the Ministry of Education's directly resourced school transport assistance package because it could tie them to higher labour, fuel and administrative costs.

Reserve force personnel from around the South Island battled wet conditions and cold weather during the aptly named Twin Peaks Battle Tab, near Dunedin, on Saturday.

The hard work of dozens of Dunedin service club members certainly bore fruit on Saturday as they delivered nine tonnes of fresh produce to foodbanks, charitable societies and pensioner accommodation around the city.

The Dunedin City Council appears likely to oppose a New Zealand Historic Places Trust proposal to register Carisbrook Stadium and the Athenaeum and Mechanics Institute building in Dunedin's Octagon as category one historic places.

Firefighters rushed to a fire at a guest house on Morven Ferry Rd, 8km from Arrowtown, last night.