The Wellington airport just got a lot more precious. What's next, New Zealand? Peter Jackson for Prime Minister?

Starting November 1, New Zealand will be putting The Hobbit on their stamps and money. Ian McKellen is delighted by the concept, saying "to put Gandalf on these splendiferous coins is a wizard idea."

We see what you did there, Sir Ian. The coins are not only highly collectible, they're also legal tender. It's all about the Bagginses, baby.

At one point, Doctor Who's Matt Smith expressed the desire to do a Peter Jackson-directed, New Zealand-shot episode of the show. It turns out that Jackson is a big DW fan, and would love to do it.

Well, now it's up to the producers to make it a reality, and they're prepared to do just that. Executive producer Caroline Skinner is fully on board, and ready to negotiate the hard part: paying Peter Jackson's salary.

Fingers crossed.

Clever ad designer John Koay of Saatchi & Saatchi slapped some Bat-Signal stickers onto the ground lighting on the streets of Auckland, NZ, creating a string of real-life Bat-Signals.

The bat-vertising campaign was a promotion for the TV premiere of Batman Begins in New Zealand.

[superpunch.]

Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom may be about to have some of his seized assets returned by New Zealand authorities due to a paperwork error surrounding the raid of Dotcom Mansion.

Police applied for the wrong type of restraining order before raiding Dotcom's home back in January. Instead of an interim restraining order, they used a foreign restraining order, which prevented Dotcom from mounting a defense.

Police did eventually file the right paperwork after the fact, but a New Zealand High Court Justice has ruled that the initial order should never have been filed, and is now "null and void."

It remains to be seen whether the mistake will result in the return of the Megaupload chief's property. New Zealand law does allow for such mistakes, but if Dotcom's lawyers can prove the wrong order was filed with "a lack of good faith," authorities will have to give back the seized assets.

[ars]