Ardern holds own with Late Show host
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has continued her charm offensive in the United States after appearing on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
During the show, Ardern talks about being stopped for a chat while shopping for maternity bras, and the moment partner Clarke Gayford tripped over at a meeting with United States President Donald Trump.
Ardern was an invited guest on the show, which was seen by 4 million viewers when it screened in the US.
She was introduced by Colbert – a Hobbit fan – as the biggest thing to hit New Zealand since ‘‘Frodo dropped the ring into Mt Doom’’.
Gayford was in the studio audience and baby Neve was backstage.
Colbert introduced her as the youngest female world leader and second elected leader in history to have a baby.
And there were big awww’s from the crowd when he showed the picture of Ardern holding Neve on her knee during a session of the UN. Ardern joked that everyone was admiring her partner Clarke and not Neve.
Colbert raised the moment when world leaders laughed at Trump during his speech to the UN and noted that Trump seemed surprised. ‘‘What did you experience?’’
Ardern replied: ‘‘Are you trying to create a diplomatic incident? There was a little laugh and he said I didn’t expect that response and there was a bigger laugh then people laughed with him.’’
‘‘So no war between the US and NZ,’’ Colbert responded.
He also asked her about steel and aluminium tariffs imposed on New Zealand by the US, and Ardern told him about raising that with Trump.
But it was at that moment that Gayford knocked over a flagpole, she admitted. ‘‘I raised it; then the flag went down . . . as I turned around he was holding a long metal prong . . . I’m surprised noone leapt on it at that point because it looked like a weapon.’’
Colbert asked her about her handshake strategy and Ardern said she went for the natural shake. ‘‘I have quite a firm shake . . . it’s the way we shake in New Zealand.’’
When Colbert suggested that Kiwis were ‘‘very vital and seem vigorous’’, Ardern said she’d never heard of us being described like that. ‘‘It makes us sound like a health product.’’
Colbert also asked her about growing up near Hobbiton and Ardern said she found it ‘‘slightly offensive’’ that people think every New Zealander starred in The
Lord Of The Rings or The Hobbit.
But when he asked if she had, she said: ‘‘Some of us auditioned but weren’t successful, OK?’’
Before the show, Ardern posted a Facebook live video from the green room to tell New Zealand about her day – she attended a trade meeting with Canada and Chile, and two speaking gigs.
Afterwards, Ardern said she would head back to her hotel to work on today’s speech for the UN General Assembly.