Ten things you may have missed in the Christopher Luxon v Chris Hipkins leaders’ debate
Leaders’ debates are nothing if not a heated affair.
The squabbling, talking over one another and the inevitable rows over policies that could change how we live our lives over the next three years.
But between the seriousness, name-calling and actual debate, they also give us micro-learnings, fun facts, grocery lists and some moments of genuine hilarity that if you blink you’ll miss.
Last night’s NZ Herald leaders’ debate, where National leader Christopher Luxon and Labour leader Chris Hipkins went head to head, gave us that in droves.
From the secret Luxon is keeping from his wife to a jump scare from host Ryan Bridge, here are 10 moments you may have missed.
The go-to takeaway
A win for a first-date question, and a win for the Kiwi public, as Bridge asked the politicians what their go-to takeaway meal was.
Hipkins lived up to his nickname “Chippy”, admitting he simply can’t go past a fish and chippy shop.
Meanwhile, Luxon confessed to a “sneaky” Maccas run. And sneaky it was. The leader admitted he’s prone to a McDonald’s pitstop where he orders a Quarter Pounder, fries and a chocolate shake. But wife Amanda Luxon and her sculpted biceps don’t know he does it, and we, the Kiwi public, are not allowed to tell her. He adds with a twinkle in his eye that he’s committed the transgression as recently as this week.
Sheep beats worm
Explaining the graphic that would appear on the screen through the night, host Bridge told us: “There’s even a worm for people who like worms,” but the host failed to remember that we as a nation only have love for one animated critter: the green Kiwibank sheep named Buck.
Christopher Luxon is not a raver
“I’m not a screamer, ranter, raver, shouter”, Luxon declared early in the debate when asked about his leadership style. Guess we won’t be seeing him at R&V this year.
An undecided voter feels awkward
An undecided voter called Chris Barrett, from Steelworks, sat in the audience and looked about as awkward as Hide the Pain Harold as host Bridge told the other two Chrises that Barrett called them “dumb and dumber” right as the camera zoomed in on his face.
Rinky-dink is back
Luxon brought a host of fun words and sayings we’d forgotten existed last night, but a highlight came with his use of “rinky-dink”. “Chris believes in rinky-dink ideas”, Luxon declared, and I reached for the Oxford dictionary to see if the phrase was still in modern circulation.
Spaghetti bolognese goes designer
“Spag-bol” is now a luxury item," said Bridge, revealing that beef mince is now $24 a kilo and asking the politicians if that’s a good or bad thing. They were undecided, but given Luxon’s $60 a week grocery budget (up $10 from last election), we can assume that he won’t be adding it to his cart, unless he ditches his weekly staple, Frujus, into the drinks fridge by the checkouts.
No friend for phone a friend
Bridge asked the two men to name some friends from high school; neither would, or maybe could. Bridge asked if they had any friends, considering they couldn’t name any. “When you join political parties, half your friends disappear,” confessed Luxon. “That’s a bit sad,” said Bridge with a laugh. And honestly, it was.
These are a few of their favourite things
When asked about their favourite things, country music for Luxon and DIY for Hipkins, the two men gave us some genuine fun facts.
Hipkins can clear a toilet’s S-bend by himself, provided he has a bucket. He prefers Mitre 10 to Bunnings, and his favourite power tool is some form of battery-powered saw.
Luxon doesn’t know what comes next after “working 9-5″ in Dolly Parton’s hit 9 to 5, with Hipkins finishing the lyric for him. Luxon doesn’t own cowboy boots, but does own a Stetson cowboy hat which he wears when he watches Yellowstone.
Hipkins responded by telling Luxon he bets there are a few members of his cabinet he’d like to take to the train station (a reference to the place killed characters in the show are tossed off a cliff), and Luxon simply laughed.
‘Shag, marry, kill?’
The viewers’ and the politicians’ souls momentarily left their bodies when Bridge revealed his next question was a “Shag, marry, kill” decider. Thankfully, it was a joke, and we didn’t have to hear which celeb our future leader hoped to shag.
Book reviews
Asked about the last book they read, Luxon revealed he’s just finished Reagan, a biography about former US President Ronald Reagan. He likes books about American leaders, so this gets 4 stars.
Hipkins, however, revealed he had been reading The Road by Cormac McCarthy, which he was quick to say was a bit sad and that he might not recommend.
The book is a grim tale of a father and son surviving in a post-apocalyptic world, where nearly everyone is dead and those who aren’t have taken to cannibalism. So yeah, 2 stars.
You can watch highlights from the NZ Herald Leaders’ Debate hosted by Ryan Bridge and post analysis with Katie Bradford at nzherald.co.nz/video, and watch the full debate on Three Now