“It happened to me, there I’ve said it. I learnt my genealogy to replace my hurt and I pat myself on the back for surviving. For the cycle of abuse to end we have to speak up; we need to put the child first, before the family name. If I want to be what I want to be, I have to face the demons,” Whirimako Black says. See the preview here

In this THE NUTTERS CLUB special episode, Whirimako breaks her silence as she begins the process of healing herself and to help others who have endured a similar fate.
“I don’t want them to live in fear or have feelings of shame,” she says.

According to series director Marcus Clayton, Whirimako Black’s show is one of the most challenging we have had the privilege to tell.

“Her bravery and honesty are intensely moving. Without courage and kindness, these issues will continue to remain behind closed doors. If there’s one thing THE NUTTERS CLUB has taught me, it’s that secrets keep you sick.”This programme is dedicated to those, who like Whirimako Black have suffered in silence for too long, you know who you are.“We want you to know the whakama is not yours; it lies with the perpetrators, not you, our nation’s innocent children.”

Coming from a Catholic background and subjected to bullying at high school, Chris spent his twenties trying to come to terms with his identity. Only when he was diagnosed as bipolar was he able to understand the depression he had grappled with throughout his life. Today he uses his creativity as a way to share his insight on social issues and sexual identify through documentaries and short films. View replay here

“When I made my first short film, I didn’t realise until later that I had written all these things into it and it was this weird form of unconscious therapy.” says Chris.

Chris Banks is a guy with natural story-telling ability, says series director Marcus Clayton. “He’s able to express the highs and lows of his journey in a really involving way, in a way that  draws the viewer into his private dilemmas and concerns.  We hope this episode uncovers some truths to a wider public about labels and attitudes that can’t be picked-up from a short soundbite or interview grab.”

Chris Banks’ blog Bipolar Bear can be found at http://bipolarbear.co.nz/

Preview clips from this week’s episode can be found at http://www.youtube.com/topshelfnz1#p/a/u/0/dR0D0I425nc

The Nutters Club with Mike King is a weekly radio show on RadioLIVE, Sundays at 8pm filmed and produced by Top Shelf Productions for Maori Television where it screens Fridays at 10:30pm. The Nutters Club Facebook page provides a forum for those with mental health issues and the book, The Nutters Club with Mike King is in all good bookstores now.

Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thenuttersclub
Twitter: @thenuttersclub
Web: http://www.thenuttersclub.co.nz

For more information:
Publicist: Adrienne Kohler      mob: 021 669 424, email: akohler@squarepegs.co

“JK is big in every sense: the legendary player, the physical size of the guy, says series director Marcus Clayton. “We knew that interviewing JK would be magic for the series, and he brought it all: every idea, notion and inspiring word that has shaped his journey
back to wellness. There was a genuine buzz in the studio that day, I think viewers
will pick on that when they watch the Nutters Club ‘patron’ sharing from
the heart.”

View the preview here

View the replay here

Mike King asked Vic to join them at The Nutters Club RadioLIVE studio after hearing him speak at a men’s health clinic in Rawene. “I was blown away by the unique way that Vic was able to engage men and get them to take ownership of their problems,” Mike says.

But Vic’s story is a hard one to listen to and tell, as he recounts bashing his youngest daughter when she was eight – and how she became the one to turn his life around after his wife took the children and fled his violence.

“She said ‘it’s because of me, daddy, everyone is crying, that is why we are at this funny house, it’s cos of me’… My eight-year old daughter is not supposed to say that, she took for the blame for me…and I cracked. The next morning I said to my wife, I’ve got to do something.”

Vic entered a stopping violence program soon after.

“Vic was a guest who really opened our eyes as to how men can turn back from violent relationships in ways we never imagined” says series director Marcus Clayton.

“He tells his story with a brokenness that is completely riveting and deserves to be seen by an open-minded audience willing to hear how one man changed his life – for good.”

Producer Brian Holland believes that Vic’s episode is one of the best of the series. “Vic Tamati is an incredibly brave man. For him to relive the horrors of his past over and over again in order to help others makes him a genuine hero in my books. His honesty and emotion that shines through in the episode making compelling television with a real message of redemption and hope” he says.

The Nutters Club with Mike King is a weekly radio show on RadioLIVE, Sundays at 8pm filmed and produced by Top Shelf Productions for Maori Television where it screens Fridays at 10:30pm. The Nutters Club Facebook page provides a forum for those with mental health issues and the book, The Nutters Club with Mike King is in all good bookstores now.

Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thenuttersclub
Twitter: @thenuttersclub
Web: http://www.thenuttersclub.co.nz

For more information:
Publicist: Adrienne Kohler      mob: 021 669 424, email: akohler@squarepegs.co

Stand-up comedian and stage producer Jim Stanton seems bright and bubbly but ongoing depression almost brought the show to end for this lovely young woman.

Coming from a rural background, Jim says she was always a natural performer but after moving away from home, struggled to find her feet without her supportive family close by.

“I just felt so alone and so abandoned…I found myself in the middle of this city where I didn’t know what to do with myself, she says.  View the replay here

She shares with Mike King and Dr David Codyre how it took a major crisis for her to seek the help from family and friends that she needed but wouldn’t ask for.

“The studio at Radio Live – the mics, TV cameras and cables everywhere – can be kind of intimidating for some guests. Jim wasn’t fazed however, says series director Marcus Clayton. “She has this quiet poise and tells her story in an easy, matter-of-fact manner, but she learned the hard way that life is worth believing in. “I think that events in her life and will resonate with certain viewers and hopefully they will be motivated to seek the right help as a response.”

“When Chris came in for the recording, we weren’t sure what story he was bringing in,
he seemed to have it all together – the confident, successful, entrepreneurial type”, says series director Marcus Clayton. But then Chris opened up about a very serious, low period that nearly cost him his life. This was someone right on the edge.  He was talking about coming undone. It was raw stuff, heart stuff. Indeed, the telling of his spiritual journey out was pretty unexpected.”

View the replay here

It runs successful campaigns, fronted by high profile New Zealanders, which set mental health issues in their social context and explore such challenging areas as depression, schizophrenia and suicide prevention.

This episode of Media7 examines mental health in the media by looking at the extraordinary success, on Radio Live and the Maori Television Service, of  The Nutters’ Club 

Both the radio and television programme have received vital sponsorship funding from the Foundation.

The Nutters’ Club was an implausible project when it was first conceived… the idea of teaming a comedian with mental health issues and a psychiatrist and then giving them access to a radio talk-back audience seemed bizarre.

But it has proved to be remarkably successful and has pushed the boundaries hard – particularly as it has dealt with often suicidal people discussing their dilemmas ‘live’.

View replay here

Melissa Cole faces life full on now, but as a young teen a series of heartaches and tragedy made her seek solace in food. Emotionally scarred and terrified of facing life on her own terms, Melissa’s life became a constant struggle with relationships, motherhood and food as she sought to hide away from life to avoid the pain.

But deep down, this big-hearted woman knew she had it in her to find a way through. She shares with Mike King and Dr David Codyre how she learnt to embrace life and love her uniqueness.

“You just have to grab happiness, life is so short, the one person you can never run away from in life is yourself, so for goodness sake, love it,” she says.

“Melissa Cole is one our guests who seemed to light up the room,” says series director Marcus Clayton. “In her interview, I think she was able to touch on her own struggles as a young woman that will ring true for others. Here is someone with a big heart, bruised by circumstance, but who is choosing to rewrite h

Farmer Ken Ballantyne talks frankly about coming to terms with caring for himself on the Nutters Club 

Farmers don’t get sick or sad, or overworked – do they? A winner of four categories for excellence in the 2010 Horizons Ballance Farm Environment Awards, King Country Farmer Ken Ballantyne never dreamt depression could be the cause of his physical problems until he found himself sectioned to the mental health ward at Rotorua Hospital. Ken and his wife Sue talk to Mike King about depression, managing bi-polar and life on the farm.  View replay

“Shooting the episode with Ken and Sue in the studio had lighter moments as well as some hard truths,” says director Marcus Clayton. “We knew it was a brave move by both of them to appear on camera to share this story of bearing this condition together – and that took some guts. Farmers can be a stoical bunch, but by speaking out about the isolation and despair he felt, and the way through it, Ken and Sue can be a help to many who find themselves in similar situations.