Giovanni Tiso, Kim Hill, and NZ's National Radio

I recently had the pleasure of spending time with Giovanni as he passed through Genova.  He was on his way back to New Zealand and I happened to be in Italy.  I wrote of spending a few hours with him, photographed him, and was generally delighted to have spent time with this lovely man.

Back home in New Zealand, radio personality - Kim Hill, has long been my most admired and respected interviewer ever.  She's highly intelligent, wickedly fast, takes no prisoners when it comes to liars and those who would prefer not to give a straight answer, and so genuinely curious. Her interviews are pure delight.

So, you can imagine ... put Giovanni and Kim together in the studio on her Saturday Morning show and it's inevitable that you have something rather divine.  But you can decide for yourself ...

Eleanor Catton talks with Kim Hill

I must share ... my favourite New Zealand radio personality, Kim Hill from NZ National Radio, interviewed the Man Booker Prize winner, Eleanor Catton.

I knew Kim would have done this thing ... a 41 minute interview, that really explores Eleanor's life and work.  Thank goodness for Radio New Zealand's archives.  So many treasures found there - Sam Hunt is another special NZ love of mine.

Radio New Zealand wrote: Catton, 28, is only the second New Zealander, and the youngest author ever, to

win the presitigious literary award. She is also the youngest short-listed writer in the competition's 45-year history.

The prize, announced at a ceremony in London, carries a cheque for £50,000. The Luminaries is a murder mystery set on the West Coast during the 1860s gold rush that relies on an astrological narrative. It follows in the footsteps of Mr Pip by Lloyd Jones, which was shortlisted in 2007, and The Bone People by Keri Hulme, which won in 1985.

Here's a collection of Radio New Zealand's interviews with Eleanor Catton from recent years.