Laughs and learns

Take a good look in the mirror, New Zealand... then have a crack-up.

Laughs and learns series and films

A half light purple and half yellow background with host, Josh Thomson, in the centre. Behind him are black and white images of six historical figures from various time periods. They have been superimposed so that they appear in a staggered star burst sort of pattern. Yellow text reads, "My Favourite Dead Person".

My Favourite Dead Person

A sketch show for kids that honours NZ history by telling some of our stories.
2 seasons/16 episodes
9m
An adult person is holding a young child in their arms and hugging them. Text reads, "Blind Bitter Happiness".

Blind Bitter Happiness

The Faheys are a flawed but lovable suburban family facing life’s challenges.
4 episodes
14m
A woman siting on a two person sized couch, she is lying on it with her feet up on the opposite arm rest. She's looking at the camera. Text reads, "I Got You".

I Got You

Mac dishes out dating advice despite having no relationship experience.
2 seasons/20 episodes
4mvertical
A man is wearing a suit and tie and smiling at the camera with his head slightly tilted to the left. He has a thick moustache, behind him the room is dark but seems to be an office. Text reads, "The Citizen's Handbook" in light pink.

The Citizen's Handbook

A comedy video-and-podcast civics series that tackles NZ history and issues.
3 seasons/19 episodes
11m
A woman sitting on a chair next to a desk and coffee table. She's smiling at the camera. Text reads, "Aotearoa's Most Bizarre Conspiracies".

ConspiraSeries

Tongue-in-cheek investigations into some of NZ's most outrageous conspiracies.
6 episodes
9m
Alice Snedden looking into the camera and holding a megaphone up to her mouth in her left hand. In her right hand she holds up a stack of paper, on the first page is a simple drawing of the beehive with a text bubble that says, "No voting for you!!!". Text reads, "Alice Snedden's Bad News". Both the text and Alice Snedden are on a bright blue background.

Alice Snedden's Bad News

Docu-comedy about political & social issues confronting 2020 Aotearoa.
8 episodes
13m
The indoor netball team of six are all grouped together, two people are kneeling on the floor and the other have their arms around each other. The background is green and there is yellow text that reads, "Here If You Need".

Here If You Need

After her brother's death, Kate forms a netball team of his acquaintances.
6 episodes
9m
Three ovals with images from the short films inside. One oval has two young children, another has a woman holding melting ice creams, the third is a man looking out of a window. Text reads, "Day One Shorts".

Day One Shorts

A series of eight short films made by young, emerging filmmakers.
8 episodes
10m
a truck with road cones and fences on the back is parked. There's someone in the drivers seat who is leaning out of the window and looking at the five other people who are leaning, sitting and standing on the bed of the truck. Orange text reads, "Hi-Vis".

Hi-Vis

Legacy and road chaos are navigated during the largest Waitangi Day ever.
8 episodes
6m

More to watch

If you are interested in Laughs and learns you might also want to check out some of our other series and films.
The back of someone looking up at a big red firework exploding in the night sky. Text reads, "Giants Giants Giants". The last "Giants" fades into the background.
Side profile of a persons face, silhouetted against a setting sun out of frame. Text reads, "Imposter".
A large mountain capped with snow. Text reads, "Land of the Long White Cloud".
Woman looking into the camera, standing side on. She has a staunch expression and Is wearing a bright pink blouse. Text reads, "Breaking Silence". Text and woman stand against a dark, almost black background.
A man with their back towards the camera, they're looking on onto an ocean. The image is in grey scale. Text reads, "The Art of War".
Two people holding microphones and singing into them, another person stands behind playing a keyboard piano. The scene is lit with a purple hued light. Text reads, "The Barber Shop Sessions".
Troy Kingi wearing a traditional red poncho sits in the rocky Californian desert beneath a light blue sky. The text reads "Troy Kingi's Desert Hīkoi"
An archival picture of a group of Pacific Islanders posing for a group picture. The text reads "Untold Pacific History"
A man looking into the camera with his mouth slightly open. His left eye is bugged out in a comically over the top way. Text reads, "A Place Called Te Awamutu".
A sharp yellow pencil is placed in the center of a tile with a light grey background. The title 'Recovering' is above the pencil, with an underscore after 'Re'.
A sand dune with the ocean behind it in a cove, everything shadowy and violet in the twilight. The text reads "Whitiki! Whītī! Whītī! E!"
A transparent figure of the back of a man, overlayed with another transparent image of the same figure but just his shoulders and back of his head. Text reads, "Duality". it's written in transparent white block letters and yellow cursive overlapped.
A close up of a video game controller, the lighting makes it look slightly pink and blue. Text reads, "Game Change".
A person sitting on a stool, they're looking down. The image has been edited so that there's a strong orange toned light covering the image, obscuring the figures face. The text reads, "The Outliers".
A birds'-eye view of some military items sitting scattered on a desk, including a map, a hat, playing cards, and a couple of coins. The text in the middle reads "Back to Timor."
An adult person is holding a young child in their arms and hugging them. Text reads, "Blind Bitter Happiness".
In India, a group of people walk down a path in front of a historic building. Above the building in orange reads: "1984"
Text reads, "Mata Reports". It sits on a dark grey background. Along the top of the image is a kōwhaiwhai pattern.
A sepia toned image of a family photograph depicting a woman holding the hands of two young children. The photo is deteriorating and the child on the left is almost obscured by the damage. The text reads, "Farewell Guangdong" there are also four Chinese characters, or 'Hanzi', above the text.
An older woman with grey hair is holding a ceramic bowl up and looking at it intently as she sits at a dining table. In front of her are plates, and a bowl of green apples. Text reads "Crown Lynn: A Māori Story". Above the text is a white line illustration of a tiki with an illustration of a star on either side of it.
People standing in a forest clearing, backlit by the sun. They are all wearing traditional Māori dress. Text reads, "NZ Wars: Stories of Tainui".
A large group of people protesting, they're all holding signs. Text reads, "Hīkoi, Speaking Our Truth".
A yellow baroque style wallpaper. A white line drawing of a house is in the bottom right corner. White handwritten text reads, "Kāinga".
Person on purple background resting their head in their hand. Only their head and chest is visible. Purple text along bottom of image reads, "AMPLIFIED".