Tales of early explorers in Aotearoa based on Phillip Temple's New Zealand Explorers (1985) and Gerda Bell’s biography of Ernst Dieffenbach.

Thomas Brunner the Surveyor 
In 1846 the unexplored gorges of the Buller River promised to be the link between Nelson and the West Coast. Previous attempts had failed but a young geographer from Nelson set out on what was to become one of the greatest stories of exploration in the European history of New Zealand.
This episode looks at Thomas Brunner’s exploration of the area and his forging of new paths to the West Coast.
Brunner: John Mann
Kehu: Rāwiri Paratene
Pike: Nicholas Rogers
Meri: Arihia Bristowe
Ana: Karlite Rangihau
Heaphy: Peter Baldock
Frazer: David Telford
Narrator: Stuart Devine
Researcher: Philip Temple
Maori Consultant: Rāwiri Paratene
Production Manager: Annette Hodgson
Film Editor: Norm McPherson
Director Of Photography: Mike Lemmon
Executive Producer: Michael Scott-smith
Producer: David Harry Baldock

Ernst Dieffenbach The Scientist
In 1839, a German naturalist called Ernst Dieffenbach arrived in New Zealand to assess the agricultural and mineral resources of proposed new colonies. In his time he was also to reach the summit of Mount Taranaki. He was also an exiled political revolutionary and as interested in the fate of the Māori people as the wealth of their land. This programme tells of what might have been had early EuropMatthew ean colonial settlement been guided by the principles of such as Dieffenbach.
Dieffenbach: William Brandt
W.Wakefield: Geoffrey Heath
T.Wakefield: Tim Raby
Te Rauparaha: Te Whatanui Skipwith
Heberley: Jon Brazier
Tangutu: Robin Kora
Tane: Temuera Morrison
Hobson: Noel Trevarthen
Narrator: Stuart Devenie
Researcher: Philip Temple
Script Editor: Brian Lennane
Maori Translator: Rameka Cope
German Translator: Karen Lepper-scherer
Associate Producer: Bronwen Stewart
Production Manager: Katherine Curtis
Maori Consultant: Rangimoana Taylor
Film Editor: Geoff Conway
Dop: Mike Lemmon
Producer: David Harry Baldock

William Colenso the Missionary
William Colenso sought to bring Christianity to New Zealand and to Māori, even in the remotest areas. He was New Zealand’s first printer and produced the first bible in Māori and the printed version of the Treaty of Waitangi. His other passion was the study of New Zealand’s natural history. He became the greatest of New Zealand’s missionary-explorers.
Colenso: Jeff Boyd
Moananui: Apirana Taylor
Elizabeth Colenso: Jane Irwin
Selwyn: Stuart Devenie
Ripeka: Mere Boynton
Paora: Tobias Mills
Narrator: Jeffrey Thomas
Researcher: Philip Temple
Script Editor: Brian Lennane
Script Editor: Tama Poata
Maori Translator: Rameka Cope
Associate Producer: Bronwen Stewart
Production Manager: Katherine Curtis
Maori Consultant: Rangimoana Taylor
Film Editor: Geoff Conway
Director Of Photography: Mike Lemmon
Art Director: Matt Murphy
Producer: David Harry Baldock

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