Real Lives Less Ordinary

Helena McAlpine has long lived her life in the fast lane. Being diagnosed with terminal breast cancer hasn't slowed her down any. Relentlessly upbeat, Helena is determined to face her illness with courage, honesty and remarkable positivity.

Sir Edmund Hillary was the first to summit Mt Everest, but another New Zealander lays claim to an equally enormous feat. In 1988, Lydia Bradey was the first woman to summit Everest without oxygen. Some disputed her climb, but her story shows how getting to the top takes a fight.

When Harley Thompson faced scales that told him he was 240 kilograms and friends who said they didn't want to come to his funeral, he went for a walk, then a swim. It led to a small triathlon. Now he is training for an Iron Man competition but will the hard work have paid off?

In September 2010 and February 2011, the New Zealand city of Christchurch was hit by devastating earthquakes; the second took the lives of 185 people. Soon after the first quake hit, University student Sam Johnson hit Facebook and went on to create and lead the now internationally acclaimed Student Volunteer Army.

In the early '70s, when 33-year-old European journalist Sue McCauley began a relationship with troubled Maori teen Pat Hammond, many conservative eyebrows were raised. The original "Toy Boy" and "Cougar" have stood the test of time. We find out what has kept them together for 37 years.

Pene and Amitai Pati grew up in the Samoan version of the Von Trapp family, singing at a rest home throughout their teens. At the same time, their cousin, Moses Mackay, was making a difference in the lives of dementia patients with his music. Through singing to others, these three young men found their voices and each other and are now pursuing the same dream: to make it on the world opera stage.

In the late eighties, Mark Staufer seemed to have it all, but in 1990, he'd lost it all and later headed offshore to reinvent himself. After great success in Sydney and London, and encouraged by his childhood friend Russell Crowe, he risked everything again when he relocated to L.A. to follow his dream of becoming a screenwriter.

Many of us are shocked when confronted by images of the harsh reality of life in the developing world, yet few of us act to change it. When Denise Arnold saw images of Cambodian children and heard stories of child trafficking, it disturbed her so much that she knew she had to do something. She travelled to Cambodia without political or religious affiliations, and what a difference she has made.

Chloe Phillips-Harris has been horse-mad since she was a small child. At 25 and running her riding schools, she works full-time breaking and training horses, many of whom rescued wild horses. But it doesn't end there. Her passion also sees her spend her time and money travelling the world with a charity that seeks to prevent cruelty by educating people on how to care for horses and donkeys.

Parris Goebel knew at 11 years old that she would have a career in hip-hop dance. Luckily, her Dad, Brett, knew that too. With his support, at 15, she started her own dance studio and, with her dance crews, began to break records on the world stage of competitive hip-hop dance. However, she began to get attention after she posted her choreography on YouTube.