👋🏼 Hello Hamilton

Happy Thursday to all 10,000 of you! That’s right - we’ve hit a huge milestone!

Fortunately, I’m not that guy on the stage. But that is what 10,000 of us would look like in one room! Thank you for being here.

Welcome to those who joined us since last week. I’m Ben from Hamilton East 👋🏼 and today we’re covering the best things happening in Hamilton and local news headlines you can’t miss. Not yet subscribed? Join over 10,000 Hamiltonians here.

🎟️ What’s on in the Tron?

Bang Bang Bingo Bonanza | Thu 10th 7:00pm at Biddy Mulligans. Join the sensational Kita Mean, winner of RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under and Rita Menu RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under season 3 Miss Congeniality, for a night of drag bingo like no other! Tickets.  

Contemporary Tukutuku for Beginners | Fri 11th 3:30pm at St Andrews Library. Come and learn the art of beautiful tukutuku weaving – a traditional Maaori craft used to tell stories through patterns and design. Register.  

New Order Youth International Film Festival Screening | Fri 11th 4:00pm at Gallagher Academy of Performing Arts. New Order Youth International Film Festival (NOYIFF) is bringing 9 award-winning short films and documentaries to Waikato University for a one-night-only free screening! Register.  

Sigma (UK) + Dynamite MC | Fri 11th 10:00pm at The Factory. Sigma (UK) and Dynamite MC are performing with special guest Sub Zero (UK). Tickets. 

Fair Share Market | Sat 12th 9:00am - 12:00pm at Western Community Centre. Crop and Craft Swap and Repair Co Op. Join in and have fun! Info.  

Peppa Pig's Fun Day Out Live | Sat 12th 10:00am at Globox Arena. Based on the much-loved animated series, this new live show is packed with fun, games and amazing puppets will delight audiences. Tickets.  

Plantathon at Tauhara Park | Sat 12th 11:00am-1:00pm at Tauhara Park. Get ready to come along to the city’s free event- the Nature in the City Plantathon! Hamilton City Council set a goal to increase Hamilton's less than 2% native vegetation to 10% by 2050. Info. 

University of Waikato Community Open Day | Sat 12th 11:00am - 2:00pm. Whether you are attending university for the first time, considering a postgraduate qualification to upskill or change careers, or are supporting a family member interested in tertiary study, come and talk to the friendly staff and get your questions answered. Info.  

Roundnet (Spikeball): Give it a go | Sat 12th 1:00 - 4:00pm at Gate 2b, Waikato Uni. Whether you're a complete beginner or have played before, this free community event is the perfect way to get active, meet new people, and learn a fun, fast-growing sport. RSVP.  

You're Not Pretty,... But I Love You!! | Sat 12th 8:00pm at Nivara Lounge. Sandra’s debut solo stand up show is about living in two cultures, changing relationships, finding yourself and surviving a Mediterranean mother with no filter. Tickets.  

Lake South - Album Release Tour | Sat 12th 8:00pm at Last Place. After a 4-year hiatus, ElectricUTOPIA band Lake South return with their best yet, the soaring epic 'We lived our lives on top of this'. Tickets.  

Back to the 80s | Sat 12th 9:00pm at SkyCity. Frisky Business are coming to the SkyCity Hamilton to party 80s style! Join the party as it flashbacks to the 80s with its neon lights, big hair styles, crazy outfits and the most iconic hits of the 80s played live and loud. Info.

10CC: Ultimate Greatest Hits Tour | Sun 13th 7:00pm at Clarence St Theatre. Get ready for a huge night of solid gold hits in one show: I’m Not In Love, The Things We Do For Love, Rubber Bullets, Donna, The Wall Street Shuffle, and more. Tickets.

➡️ Next week:

Little Morning for Your Little Ones | Tue 15th 10:00am - 12:00pm at Chartwell Shopping Centre. Join for a relaxed and creative morning designed especially for pre-schoolers. This month’s theme, Playdough Fun, will allow little ones to explore colour, texture and creativity. Info. 

From Seed To Sprout | Wed 16th 10:30am at St Andrews Library. Join as everyone shares their planting and growing experiences over a cup of tea and crackers topped with homemade relish made from last summer's harvest. Info.  

Karaoke Fun | Wed 16th 1:30 - 4:30pm at Hamilton Cosmopolitan Club. Join for a fun-filled afternoon and sing your heart out! Come prepared with a song or two that you would like to sing. Info.  

Chill & Chat: Books Galore | Thu 17th 10:00am at Glenview Library. From thrillers to romance and everything in between, your literary fix is covered. Bring your friends, make new ones, and chat up a storm about everyone’s latest book obsessions over a cuppa. Info.  

Quiz Night | Thu 17th 6:00pm at Biddy Mulligans. Put your thinking caps on and get ready for a one-time-only quiz night event packed with brain-testing challenges. This is a fundraising quiz night to help keep our creative community spaces strong. Info.  

Standup Comedy Show | Fri 18th 7:30pm at Lido Cinema. Join for a night of laughs! Come and see some of the best up and coming comics from around NZ! Tickets.  

Vegetable.machine.animal Guest National Tour | Fri 18th 9:00pm at Last Place. A live conversation between plants, fungi, machines, and human musicians. Info.  

🕺 Next weekend:

Waikato Baby Expo 2025 | Sat 19th and Sun 20th 9:00am at Claudelands. Discover all you need to know for you, your pregnancy or young child. Gain expert, up-to-date advice from a diverse range of exhibitors and experiment with products and services to find what best suits your needs. Tickets.  

French Storytime | Sat 19th 10:30am at Rototuna Library. Join for Histoires et Chansons (stories and songs), a bilingual storytime session for children aged 5 and under and their caregivers. Info. 

Paradiso Pride Flash Day | Sat 19th 11:00am at Paradiso Pride. Come celebrate pride and individuality at the Paradiso tattoo flash day. Tattoos from $80. Info.  

Clothes Swap | Sat 19th 11:00am - 1:00pm at Pukete Neighbourhood House. Want to trade your old clothes for some sweet new threads, but don't want to contribute to fast fashion? Bring your good-quality used clothes and choose from a selection of clothes others have donated. Tickets.  

Rolled Ice Cream Charity Day | Sat 19th 12:00 - 5:00pm at Copper and Cream. Come to the dessert bar to enjoy $2 rolled ice cream! Info.  

All Blacks v France | Sat 19th 7:05pm at FMG Stadium. Tickets. 

Diva Fever | Sat 19th 8:00pm at Biddy Mulligans. Dolly, Cher & ABBA – The Ultimate Tribute Show! Get ready for a dazzling night of iconic music and unforgettable performances in this epic 3-hour tribute spectacular! Tickets.  

Golden Oldies After Party | Sat 19th 10:00pm at The Bank. Party in town after the French test this July, there’ll be DJs inside, a live band outside, and a great crowd enjoying all the old school songs from the 80s and 90s that you know and love. Tickets.

Your Author Showcase | Sun 20th 1:30 - 3:00pm at Trust Waikato Building. Stop hiding your writing or book at home - come and share your story, flash fiction, poetry or book. Info.  

Ring Making Workshop | Sun 20th 4:00- 7:00pm at Arts for Health. Create a unique piece of jewellery using wax and set with gemstones. After the session, each participant's wax piece will be cast in silver, meticulously filed, polished, and mailed to them in a gift box. Tickets.  

Event organiser? Submit your event to Hello Hamilton.

Always double-check event details haven’t changed since you received this email. Did I forget anything? Flick me an email.

👀 Local news you may have missed

House prices in Hamilton are rising faster than in most parts of the country, and the region’s strong rural economy may be playing a big role in that growth. New figures show house values in Hamilton rose 2% over the year to June, outpacing the national average and most other main centres. Read.

While most of New Zealand’s public libraries generally tend to avoid buying AI-written books, it appears only Hamilton has introduced a specific policy banning them. Hamilton City Libraries recently-reviewed collection management policy now states the city’s libraries “will not acquire or include material that is substantially generated by artificial intelligence (AI)”. Read.

Thousands of foodies crammed into the Claudelands Event Centre over the weekend for the Waikato Food show to sample some food and drinks as well as learn new cooking techniques. Erika Langenhoven’s stall selling long-length sweet and sour candy as well as liquorice was a huge hit, especially with children. Read.

Local mayors have hit back at suggestions of “rates capping” to control council spending, saying capping their main source of income could be a recipe for disaster. Hamilton Mayor Paula Southgate says ‘less spending means less doing’, and different ways to fund local government needed to be looked into. Read.

Waikato Regional Council is proposing a shake-up of Hamilton’s bus network that would see more frequent buses on fewer routes, in a shift aimed at boosting public transport use across the city. Under the plan, three key routes, Orbiter, Comet and Meteor, along with a new Rototuna line, would operate as high-frequency services with buses running every 15 minutes from 7am to 10pm, and every 30 minutes outside those hours, from 6am to midnight, seven days a week including public holidays. Read.

Winter ailments have Hamilton GPs working at capacity as one of the city’s leading urgent care facilities opens a new general practice clinic amid concerns over the number of patients without a regular doctor. The Anglesea Clinic GP service, located next to its long-standing Urgent Care Centre on Anglesea Street, opened its doors on Monday and already has a clear mission. Read.

Hamilton travel agents are busier than ever driving a remarkable resurgence for an industry once brought to its knees by the pandemic. Richard Brewer, owner of Team Brewer Travel in Hamilton says this post-pandemic surge is unlike anything he’s experienced - and he’s calling it a golden age for travel agents. Read.

Passenger numbers at Hamilton airport have surged about 20%, buoyed by “thousands” of passengers on new international Jetstar flights from Australia and school holiday traffic. The rise has been since mid-June, when Jetstar’s flights to Hamilton started. Read.

The 74th Hamilton Cat Club show at Tamahere on Sunday attracted over 160 cats. More than 20 breeds from Maine Coon to orientals, ragdolls, domestic and companion cat were judged by national and international judges. Read.

Thanks for reading Hello Hamilton today. If you found something useful, please share it with someone who should come along to my Roundnet event this weekend. 😉

As always, please direct reply to this email ([email protected]) if you have any feedback or suggestions for what you would like to see in future editions of Hello Hamilton.

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See you next week!

— Ben