Ringside date despite drug attack Director defends quakes TV series
BOXING MANAGER John Glozier says he will be ringside at Saturday’s Fight for Life despite gunmen bursting into his home last week, only days after he had been released from hospital after being knee-capped.
In what has been described as a drugs-related incident, Glozier said two men shot open the glass door to his house in the Auckland suburb of Three Kings, prompting neighbours to call police. The men held guns to his head.
Police came, and later arrested Glozier on charges of metham- phetamine him.
Glozier, who comes from a prominent boxing family, is a wellknown matchmaker and the World Boxing Organisation’s New Zealand supervisor, says he will be at Waitakere’s Trusts Stadium to work the corner of his fighter, Richard Tutaki, who takes on rising star Joseph Parker in the headline bout of Saturday’s bill.
He said he didn’t fear for his life. ‘‘They wanted to rob me, but I didn’t have anything to rob. They were just desperate young guys. I will be all right.’’
Glozier, formerly
supply,
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as David John Blaikie, has a history of drugs convictions. He is also due to appear next year on other charges of unlawful possession of a pistol, receiving stolen goods and possession of methamphetamine.
Asked if he owed money to someone, he said: ‘‘It has just been blown up out of proportion. It started small and has got bigger and bigger.’’
Fight promoter David Higgins said security would be tight and whether Glozier attends or not was ‘‘ not really relevant’’. Fighters include rugby’s Carlos Spencer and Troy Flavell and league’s Manu Vatuvei and Willie Mason. A TELEVISION drama about the Canterbury earthquakes has started pre-production in Christchurch with the director defending her local credentials and saying she feels a ‘‘huge responsibility’’ to tell the stories of ordinary people caught up in the disaster.
The six-part TV3 series Hope & Wire, funded by a $5 million grant from NZ On Air, will start shooting in Christchurch in February.
Celebrated director Gaylene Preston emphasised her roots in Christchurch, saying she has spent about half the last year in the city talking to people about their experiences.
Preston studied fine arts in Ilam when she was 18, but has not lived in Christchurch since. ‘‘ People panic and think some woman is coming from somewhere else to tell this story, but actually I have roots in Christchurch,’’ she said.
‘‘I was born in Greymouth and the main place we went to in the 1950s was Christchurch. I have spent many holidays Governor’s Bay.’’
The series would ‘‘ honour’’ those who have lived through the Canterbury earthquakes.
‘‘It is about paying tribute to true stories of ordinary people living through the quakes.
‘‘There were people taking bets on who was going to play Gerry Brownlee. We are not doing that. We are a bottom-up story. It is about people wading through liquefaction and insurance forms.
‘‘It’s a huge responsibility. The work must carry a huge responsibility in order for it to be worthwhile.’’
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‘‘We are not making a disaster movie. We are not talking about the inner city and the stories of people really really most affected because it is far too early for that and far too raw. The last thing they need is cameras around their experience.’’
The award-winning film director’s earlier work has included a feature film about her father’s war experiences and a TV documentary on the 1931 Hawke’s Bay earthquake. ‘‘Being able to do social history close to the time is a fantastic opportunity,’’ she said.
The drama will shoot in Christchurch until mid-April.