Phil Smith: The Man Behind NZ’s Most Iconic TV Shows

Phil Smith is one of the most influential figures in New Zealand television.

You may not know the name, but you most definitely know some of his shows: The Casketeers, The Lion Man, One Lane Bridge, and the Jeremy Wells show Eating Media Lunch. Content that’s not just popular, but culturally iconic.

I’ve known Phil socially for a number of years now, and I just thought he was a cool guy who’d had a solid behind-the-scenes career in TV. What I didn’t realise is just how wild his story actually is:

Like working in Africa as a journalist and being caught in gunfire.

Getting arrested and locked up in Africa for a week, then pretty much dumped at the border with nowhere to go.

Living with THE Jane Goodall for a month and getting life advice from her over glasses of scotch.

We also get into how he went from all of that to working with Sir Paul Holmes at his peak, building and selling a company in his early 30s and creating some of New Zealand’s most successful TV shows.

This episode goes everywhere. It’s part war story, part business lesson, part creative deep dive… and somehow still just feels like a chat with a really intriguing Kiwi.

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