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Lives Less Ordinary

The couple who foiled New Zealand’s biggest drugs plot

Lives Less Ordinary

BBC

Personal Journals, Society & Culture, Documentary

4.7885 Ratings

🗓️ 16 February 2026

⏱️ 40 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

An ordinary couple foiled the country's biggest drugs deal, all by doing a good deed. It involves a boat, a fake funeral at sea and the criminal underworld's least able seamen.

That ordinary couple of 35 years, Ed and Heather we're calling them to protect their identities, lived a quiet life in the far north of New Zealand. Ed is Māori and a well-respected mechanic and fisherman; Heather's the sort of person who offers help without thinking twice. So when a group of men turned up close by at 90 Mile Beach in 2016 asking for their help to launch their boat to spread their brother's ashes at sea, Ed and Heather did the neighbourly thing and mucked in. They had no idea what they were stepping into.

What followed over the next five days felt almost like a farce. This motley crew's boat and their skipper weren't cut out for sea-faring at all and after many failed attempts, engines blown, and flared tempers, Ed and Heather were left wondering if the story the men had told them was a little fishy.

Whilst they saw the funny side of it, something much darker lay behind the men's actions and when Ed makes a discovery, he and Heather have to stay outwardly calm or risk the men finding out.

Presenter: Asya Fouks Producer: Edgar Maddicott

Lives Less Ordinary is a podcast from the BBC World Service that brings you the most incredible true stories from around the world. Each episode a guest shares their most dramatic, moving, personal story. Listen for unbelievable twists, mysteries uncovered, and inspiring journeys - spanning the entire human experience. Step into someone else’s life and expect the unexpected.   Got a story to tell? Send an email to liveslessordinary@bbc.co.uk or message us via WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784   You can read our privacy notice here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5YD3hBqmw26B8WMHt6GkQxG/lives-less-ordinary-privacy-notice

Transcript

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0:00.0

BBC Sounds, Music, Radio Podcasts.

0:05.6

Oh, hello. You have chosen a BBC podcast, but before you listen to it, we thought you might like our podcast too.

0:12.1

You might. You might. It is called Sightraught with me Nick Grimshaw.

0:15.2

And me, Annie Mack. And we talk about the week in music.

0:18.2

All the news, all the cultural happenings in the UK and beyond.

0:22.2

And great guests.

0:23.3

And it's on BBC Sounds.

0:24.7

Yes, where you can also enjoy lots of playlists, music mixes and live radio.

0:29.9

Everything from my six music breakfast show to Radio 3 Unwind.

0:34.5

But obviously start with our podcast, sidetrack.

0:36.3

Obviously.

0:36.7

Obviously.

0:37.9

So if you like music, listen on BBC Sans.

0:43.9

I opened the lid and tipped it out and I, oh my goodness.

0:49.1

Screwed it back on.

0:50.2

Not saying anything.

0:51.6

Put it back where it was.

0:53.7

So what was in that, Arnd? What did you see?

0:57.4

It wasn't ashes, but this was sand. It was gritty.

1:03.1

And bits of seaweed, bits of stick.

1:05.8

Hmm.

1:07.2

Yeah, and I knew then how something's up.

...

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