Region stars in TV show

It was an early start for the people of Ranfurly and surrounding districts on Sunday morning as families gathered at Kieran and Lisa O'Neill's woolshed for a live filming for the children's TV programme What Now.

The crew had been in the area since Thursday and had gathered footage from around the region, including ice sports in Naseby and general shots of the town and the scenery.

Included in the live part of the show was presenter Tumehe Rongonui shearing a sheep and the usual TV antics, with a couple of the children getting "grunged" amid squeals of delight from the onlookers.

About 70 children and an assortment of parents, teachers and caregivers were on the scene before 8am to take part in the popular children's show.

Participants braved the cold and mud to play their part, and the children did not take long to become an integral part of the proceedings.

While some of the younger children seemed to be overwhelmed by what was going on, the older ones took it in their stride, with some saying they were having the show taped so they could see themselves on TV when they went home.

Maniototo Area School played a big part in the show, with senior pupils Holly and Bill Heron, Sam and Willy Miller, Jaffe Santos and Stephanie Millar, assisted by Shannon Tapatu from Ranfurly, receiving some valuable lessons in working behind the scenes of a fast-moving and professional TV production.