Barry Soper on Jacinda Ardern, Duncan Garner & 50 Years Inside NZ Politics

Barry Soper has been around New Zealand politics for so long that Rob Muldoon was Prime Minister back in the 1970s when Barry first started his life as a political reporter.

Since then he has covered all 12 Prime Ministers of New Zealand. He’s seen the boozing, the backstabbing, the egos, the feuds, the big personalities, the little moments, and all the stuff that never makes it into the official version of history.

And now, after 50 years in the press gallery, he’s put a lot of those stories into a new book called One Last Question, Prime Minister.

Barry is 74 now and still incredibly sharp, funny and totally unapologetic for his opinions.

Outside of the political stuff, some of the stuff we talk about includes:

+ His marriage with Heather Duplessis Allen, being a dad later in life and what he wants his younger kids to know about him when they grow up.

+ His feud with Duncan Garner.

+ Meeting Nelson Mandela, Yoko Ono and others.

+ His recent brush with death, grief, aging,

This was a really fun conversation. Barry is one of those great old-school New Zealand characters. A proper raconteur. And whether you agree with him or not, I think you will find this conversation incredibly entertaining.

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