Putting such stationary, non-bouncy arts venues as the Sydney Opera House to shame, Ark Nova is the world’s first-ever inflatable concert hall. The striking travelling structure, designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki and British artist Anish Kapoor, was created to act as a kind of morale boost for regions affected by the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami, where it is currently touring. Capable of seating 500 people, the structure is 18 metres tall and externally resembles a large, shiny eggplant (or a giant jelly donut, depending on your perspective). Spreading out across 720 square-metres, the hall features benches made from tsunami-damaged cypress trees and a large white helium balloon above the stage that acts as both a sound and light reflector. The venue is not the easiest structure to manage. It was difficult to get the acoustics right. Air needs to be constantly sent in through an external vent. There’s no temperature control and it’s pretty sensitive to wild wind and weather conditions. But its designers believe the challenge to keep it up and running is worth it. In a statement about the project, Kapoor said, “Music can give solace and bring community together and in so doing can help us to see we are not alone.” Via Spoon & Tamago.
Empty streets. Long lines of cars at COVID-19 testing sites. Six-foot buffers between people. Doomscrolling. Rampant online misinformation about the pandemic. Five years ago, these were all a reality — and that's when Ari Aster has set his fourth feature. Eddington is also the acclaimed writer/director's fourth film in seven years, following Hereditary in 2018, Midsommar in 2019 and Beau Is Afraid in 2023. Two years after stressing out Joaquin Phoenix in the latter flick, the filmmaker has more tension and chaos in store for the Oscar-winning actor, all in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Eddington ventures into a New Mexico town of the same name, and into the locale's attempts to cope with the abrupt change to life as its citizens know it. Phoenix (Joker: Folie à Deux) portrays the spot's sheriff Joe Cross, who decides to run for mayor against incumbent Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal, The Last of Us). Both the first teaser trailer earlier in 2025 and the just-dropped full sneak peek at the A24 release — which premiered at Cannes in May — paints an unsettling picture, not just for the feuding Joe and Ted, but also for Joe's wife Louise (Emma Stone, Kinds of Kindness). Offering a calmer vibe is Vernon Jefferson Peak (Austin Butler, The Bikeriders), whether he's meeting Joe or popping up preaching on the internet. The storyline: putting Joe and the mayor on a collision course that leads to arguments and slaps in the new trailer. Their conflict unsurprisingly causes ripples throughout Eddington, in a tale that's set to see townsfolk clash in a period that we all know couldn't have been more heightened and stressful. Aster is back cultivating unease, then, as he did so expertly in his initial three features. Alongside Phoenix, Butler, Stone and Pascal, the filmmaker has enlisted Luke Grimes (Yellowstone), Deirdre O'Connell (The Penguin) and Micheal Ward (Empire of Light) to help among his cast. Eddington releases Down Under on Thursday, August 21, 2025. If you're in Sydney or heading to the Harbour City for the 2025 Sydney Film Festival, it's also screening there until Sunday, June 15, as well as at the fest's SFF 2025 Back By Popular Demand sessions until Friday, June 20. Check out the full trailer for Eddington below: Eddington releases in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, August 21, 2025 — and is also screening at the 2025 Sydney Film Festival until Sunday, June 15, and at its SFF 2025 Back By Popular Demand sessions until Friday, June 20.
Next time you sip a G&T, or whichever other gin cocktail takes your fancy, you could be drinking a new Australian label that puts homegrown ingredients to great use. That'd be Taka Gin, a brand that's just hit the market thanks to Melbourne's Niyoka Bundle — who has branched out into the world of spirits from her Indigenous-fusion catering company Pawa Catering. Like plenty of recent new businesses, the idea behind Taka Gin came about in lockdown, with Indigenous woman Bundle and her husband Vincent Manning inspired to take on a new project — and to continue to highlight First Nations people's native foods in the process. That's why their tipple heroes lemon-scented gum leaf and native lemongrass, two plants that the duo consider underutilised. They're paired with a base of seven other botanicals: juniper, coriander, angelica root, cassia chips, finger lime, orris root and desert lime. Taka Gin's key ingredients have been foraged from around Melbourne, and sourced from Indigenous wild harvesters, including via Natif Super Foods and Warndu. The gin is then distilled by Gypsy Hub at Collingwood's Craft & Co, and sold online via the brand's website, with a 700-millilitre bottle costing $90. In terms of taste, this is a smooth gin. Expect soft citrus flavours, as well as a fragrance that helps bring out the tipple's flavour. The brand takes its name from the Gunditjmara language, which hails from southwest Victoria, with 'taka' meaning taste. And, its eye-catching labels are designed by Bundle's mother and Gunditjmara Keerray Woorroong artist Vicki Couzens. Against a white background, the minimalistic images represent the phytochemical molecular components that comprise Taka Gin's flavours. Handily, Taka Gin is doing free shipping Australia-wide, too, if you need another reason to expand your gin shelf. For more information about Taka Gin, or to buy a bottle, head to the brand's website. Images: Marcie Raw Studio.
Nowadays there are subscription services for just about anything. Board Games? Check. Booze? Check. Legos? Check. Organic period products? You betcha. Meet Juuni, a subscription that delivers a customisable box of organic tampons, pads and liners to your doorstep each month. If you're anything like us, every 28 days, you'll find yourself digging around the bottom of your bag or making a desperate run to the convenience store. To help save you from the stress of being caught out — because, face it, periods are stressful and annoying enough as they are — founder Eri Stewart (who's also behind Hard to Find) created a line of organic products that look and feel more like a gift set than a necessity. Unlike your typical tampons, Juuni's products are bleach-free, pesticide-free and 100-percent biodegradable. The certified organic cotton is hypoallergenic and contains no synthetic dyes or fibres. The pads and liners also have an organic top sheet and the plastic wrappers are biodegradable, too. Apart from the necessities, the well-designed boxes also include surprise gifts each month to help brighten up your week. And you can choose to include one of Juuni's face mask to boot, which contains aloe leaf, cucumber, pomegranate and green tea — all of which help soothe and brighten skin and combat hormonal skin break outs. So, how does it work? You build your custom box with the likes of tampons ($3.99 for a ten-pack), pads ($3.20 for a five-pack) or liners ($3.20 for ten-pack) and choose if you want to receive deliveries every month or every three months (the latter works to be slightly better value and includes free shipping). All new customers get their first box free, too, and you can cancel whenever you want. To sign up for Juuni and get your first box free, head over to the website. FYI, this story includes some affiliate links. These don't influence any of our recommendations or content, but they may make us a small commission. For more info, see Concrete Playground's editorial policy.
Step aside wine. One of the most exciting movements in the Australian booze scene is the wealth of locally-produced spirits that combine world-class product and craft with indelible branding. Melbourne distillery The Gospel was recently anointed the second best rye whisky in the world, and the Yarra Valley's Four Pillars Gin has repeatedly been awarded in international competitions and rankings since its inception in 2013. Now there's a new Australian-made and -owned gin entrant in the mix that's quietly launching into the local market courtesy of a group of gin-loving founders. It's called Papa Salt Coastal Gin and the founders behind the drop are Tom Ackerley Charlie Maas, Josey McNamara, Regan Riskas and Margot Robbie. Yes, that Margot Robbie. We caught up with the group to discuss the origin story of Papa Salt, their collaboration with Lord Byron Distillery to create the product, and being a collective of gin lords. Firstly: tell us a bit about the relationship between the five of you and how you decided to start a business together? "Regan and Margot worked on a film together in 2015, and we all became friends as we bounced back and forth between LA and London in the years since. Sometime around 2018, Josey, Tom, and Margot started to consider creating a gin brand, and they knew that Charlie and his family were in the spirits industry. The five of us had a few very loose discussions about what it might look like to work together, and a lot of very detailed conversations about our favourite gins. It was clear very early on that we all had a passion for the category; that passion really defines our entire business strategy. We spent five years creating a gin that we wanted to drink; and only now are we trying to turn that into a business." Secondly: why gin? "The simple answer is that we all love to drink gin. Digging deeper, that's probably a credit to the category itself; there's so much variety in gin now that there's always something new to try, or an exciting new cocktail or taste profile for a specific use case. As a consumer, the versatility of gin is so exciting. As a brand producer, that means you can really experiment and try to create something unique to your taste. We love the idyllic notion of a perfect beach day, and when we conveyed that to our distiller he suggested that we try using oyster shell in the botanical mix. Not only did that provide a minerality that we really love in the taste, it's also something that's only possible in a gin." How did you end up working with Lord Byron Distillery to create the gin? "We reached out to just about every distillery you could imagine in Australia, and created a short list of options. Lord Byron Distillery stood out for their sustainability mission: they're a zero waste, entirely renewably powered facility." How involved were each of you with the development of the product and the brand? Is there one of you who is the true gin lord of the group? "Who is the true gin lord?! What an amazing question. We've been wondering what titles we should put on our business cards, and I think you just answered it. There is no one true gin lord in the group — we are all gin lords. We've gone through every single step in the development together. In fact, over five full years of development, we've only had two meetings that didn't include all five of the Founders (and one of those Tom attended via Zoom)." What's your preferred way to drink it? Individual answers please! Josey: "This may sound crazy, but Papa Salt makes a tremendous paloma." Margot: "Salt and soda with an orange rind and a crack of black pepper." Tom: "Dry martini straight up with an olive." Charlie: "Papa Salt and Fever Tree Sparkling Lime and Yuzu. Yuzu is the best citrus, it's not even close, and it pairs perfectly with Papa Salt." Regan: "Papa Salt & Soda with a juicy slice of blood orange and lots of ice." Explain the inspiration behind 'Papa Salt' as the name? I'm getting 'coastal daddy' vibes but I assume there's something more significant to it? "We wanted to name the product Salty Sea Dog Gin, but ran into some trademark issues there. But that was always the idea behind the brand – to celebrate those luxuriously aimless days in the sun. A few months later, on one of those exact sort of days, Tom, Margot, and Josey ended up at a beach bar in Sri Lanka with a salty sea dog who went by the name Papa Salt. He was originally from the Gold Coast, but after circumnavigating the globe a few times, he wound up on this particular beach on this particular day. It's our hope that Papa Salt Coastal Gin, born on the Eastern Australian coast, might travel just as far and create just as many memories." Current stockists for Papa Salt Coastal Gin are Rick Shores at Burleigh Beach, Raes on Wategos in Byron Bay, Icebergs Dining Room & Bar in Sydney and Stokehouse in Melbourne.
Take an everyday pastime, then add drinks — so far, that's been Funlab's kidulting way. It worked with bowling, as Strike has shown. It proved a smash at the chain's Holey Moley mini golf bars. With arcade and carnival games, it's been a hit at Archie Brothers Cirque Electriq and B Lucky and Sons as well. And, when the brand opened its first Hijinx Hotel in Sydney this winter, the same idea met escape rooms — or challenge rooms, as is Funlab's spin. This summer, Queenslanders will also get to experience the latter, with Hijinx launching its first Sunshine State location. Setting up shop on the Gold Coast from Friday, December 9, Hijinx will reside at Piazza on the Boulevard, underneath Cali Beach on Elkhorn Ave in Surfers Paradise. Also set to settle in, in what'll be a 3279-square-metre precinct with a capacity for 410 guests: fellow Funlab brands Holey Moley and Archie Brothers, for tapping around 18 pop culture-themed greens and getting a sideshow experience. The big drawcard is Hijinx Hotel, of course. If you're new to the concept, it's basically an OTT nostalgia bomb. Willy Wonka would've been proud to dream it up, if the fictional character branched out beyond making chocolate and candy — and the Gold Coast site will come with ten game rooms filled with challenges. When is a hotel not really a hotel? When it's this hotel-themed bar that decks out its interiors like somewhere you can stay — taking a few cues from Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel and The Shining's Overlook Hotel, in fact — but doesn't actually include slumbering in its rooms. And when is an escape room bar not at all an escape room bar? When it takes the escape room concept of theming different spaces — those aforementioned hotel-style rooms — and decks them out with challenges instead. Yes, the premise behind Hijinx Hotel needs a bit of explaining. It also gleans inspiration from all those supremely Instagrammable pop-up installations that include ball pits, but this one is sticking around southeast Queensland permanently. Plus, it'll jam in bars for cocktail-sipping opportunities, nod to New York hotels in its facade, and overflow with homages to movies and board games from the 80s and 90s. Escapism is clearly the name of the game here, and partying like you would've before you were old enough to drink alcohol — but with the hard stuff definitely on offer. Wondering what that entails? If Surfers Paradise's Hijinx Hotel mimics its Sydney counterpart, you'll enter via the faux hotel lobby bar that's full of colour and surrealist touches. Instead of merely checking in, though, you'll down cocktails in a neon-lit space and hang out in booths. As for the not-quite-hotel rooms themselves, you'll gain access by heading to reception t0 pick up a swipe card. And if you're wondering about the theming, a few Sydney faves will be heading north, including the Adore-a-ball, Scrambled, Threenicorn and candy ball pit rooms. Yes, the Big-style piano room with a giant keyboard across the floor is included. There'll also be a ball toss room, one dedicated to television, another that's all about basketball and yet another that's devoted to Rubik's cubes. In total, the entire space — encompassing Hijinx Hotel, Holey Moley and Archie Brothers — will feature 72 arcade machines, six bowling lanes, ten game rooms and 18 holes of golf. Also a highlight: those three bars serving up creative cocktails, and breaking up all that kidulting. Find Hijinx Hotel — and Archie Brothers and Holey Moley — at 21a Elkhorn Ave, Surfers Paradise, from Friday, December 9. For further information in the interim, keep an eye on the Hijinx Hotel website. Images: Hijinx Hotel Sydney.
Fresh from starring in page-to-screen Australian series Invisible Boys, Aussie actor Joseph Zada is headed to the arena. Hunger Games fans, meet young Haymitch. When the franchise's latest book Sunrise on the Reaping becomes its next movie — with the latter due to hit cinemas in 2026 — Zada will be in its key role. Two crucial pieces of casting have been announced for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping: Zada following in Woody Harrelson's (Fly Me to the Moon) footsteps as Haymitch Abernathy, plus Whitney Peak (Gossip Girl) as the character's girlfriend Lenore Dove Baird. Together, they'll be helping take the saga back to 24 years before Abernathy met Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence, No Hard Feelings) in the first The Hunger Games novel. The new film couldn't be in the works if Suzanne Collins hadn't entered the arena again, of course, stepping back into Panem and The Hunger Games' past — and into the tale of a well-known character from her initial three books in the dystopian franchise — with the saga's second prequel. After the author first went down that route with 2020's The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, her next jump backwards hit bookstores in March 2025. When the novel was announced, naturally a film was as well. It might've taken three years for The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes to become a movie, but Sunrise on the Reaping is hitting the big screen just a year after the book made its way shelves. This time, the focus is on the Second Quarter Quell, with Haymitch winning those games — and Sunrise on the Reaping's narrative kicking off on the morning of the reaping for the 50th Hunger Games. Harrelson portrayed Haymitch in 2012–15 movies The Hunger Games, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part I and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part II, with filmmaker Francis Lawrence helming every one of them since Catching Fire — and also doing the same on The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. He'll be back in the director's chair on Sunrise on the Reaping. For Zada, this isn't his only big post-Invisible Boys project. He's also treading where James Dean once did, playing the same character as the late, great icon in a new version of East of Eden opposite Florence Pugh (We Live in Time), Mike Faist (Challengers) and Christopher Abbott (Wolf Man) — and he has the page-to-screen adaptation of We Were Liars also on the way, hitting streaming in June 2025. There's obviously no trailer yet for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, but you can check out the trailer for all of the past Hunger Games movies below: The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping will reach cinemas on Friday, November 20, 2026 in the US — which will likely mean Thursday, November 19, 2026 Down Under. We'll update you with more details when they're announced. Via Variety. Top image: David Dare Parker, Invisible Boys. Hunger Games images: Murray Close.
With international travel still limited, jetting off to wherever you'd like around the globe isn't currently on anyone's agenda. But if you'd like to while away a few days or weeks at the best beach in the world, you can — because it's right here in Australia. In Tripadvisor's just-announced 2021 lineup of the planet's best beaches, which ranks 25 idyllic locations, two Aussie spots made the cut. In news that will come as no surprise to anyone, the Whitsundays' Whitehaven Beach took first place. It's the latest accolade for the picturesque Queensland favourite, which has placed second twice in Flight Network's list on the same topic, and was also named Tripadvisor's best Australian beach for travellers back in 2017. Turquoise Bay in Exmouth, Western Australia made the list as well, coming in at number six. And if you're wondering which overseas spots you should think about visiting when global travel begins to return to normal, Cuba's Santa Maria Beach placed second, Brazil's Baia do Sancho came in third, Grace Bay Beach in the Turks and Caicos Islands placed fourth, and Florida's Saint Pete Beach in the US was named the fifth best beach. Also in the top ten: Eagle Beach, Aruba; Spiaggia dei Conigli in Lampedusa, Italy; Ka'anapali Beach in Hawaii; and Baía dos Golfinhos in Brazil. Alongside the best beaches in the world, Tripadvisor also released a list of the ten best beaches in the South Pacific — with Whitehaven and Turquoise Bay in first and second spots. Places three, four and five all went to WA locations, with Cape Le Grand National Park in Esperance sitting at third, Greens Pool in the town of Denmark at fourth and Cable Beach in Broome coming fifth. After sweeping up the top half of the list, Australia gave way to Bora Bora's Matira Beach, Piscine Naturelle in New Caledonia, and Ohope Beach, Kaiteriteri Beach and Mt Maunganui Main Beach in New Zealand for spots six through to ten. [caption id="attachment_648438" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Damien Dempsey via Wikimedia Commons[/caption] The winners were chosen as part of Tripadvisor's Traveller's Choice awards, which is based on reviews and ratings left on the online platform — as well as the number of saves (where users bookmark places they like, or they'd like to visit) — across 2020. To check out the full list of top beaches for 2021, head to Tripadvisor. Thinking about taking your own trip to Whitehaven Beach? Check out our Outside Guide to the Whitsundays.
Now, you can't talk about the top hotels in Brisbane without fawning over the Emporium Hotel South Bank. Up until a few years ago, if you were looking for the Emporium, you'd need to head to Fortitude Valley. But, after a bout of musical chairs among the city's accommodation providers, the hotel can now be found at South Bank. And this spot is pure opulence. Starting from the top – you've got their much-loved and often photographed 23m rooftop infinity pool with insane views over the city. You can even book a poolside cabana suite for extra easy access to the pool life. Moving on down the Emporium Hotel South Bank, the rooms are larger than you'd expect, and each comes with all the best amenities including marble and bronze finishings, mirrored TVs and in-suite wine fridges (they even have a pyjama menu for those who forgot to bring their own). Then move from the Piano Bar (where you get great live jazz throughout the year), to the main dining room or The Terrace before visiting the Belle Époque where you just have to try the afternoon tea experience. This contemporary hotel aims to stand out – boldly showing off all its luxury features.
Let's change things up this Easter break. Instead of spending the weekend feeding on store-bought chocolates and lamb roast at home, why not go on a little adventure? You can escape the city (and, perhaps, your family) by running away to South Australian wineries to sample the latest vintage or to a Tasmanian farm to delight in world class produce. You can even join the world's first helicopter gin tour around Queenstown to marry your love of epic views with your fondness for gin. The world is your oyster — and you can either have it freshly shucked, served Kilpatrick or battered and fried down in Hobart. Read on to find four exclusive food and wine-filled travel packages that you'll only find on Concrete Playground Trips — each of which will have you spending the Easter break with a full belly and a glass in hand. A WINE LOVERS' LONG WEEKEND IN BAROSSA VALLEY AND MCLAREN VALE Wine tours can be such a hassle to organise. You've got to find a driver, pick the wineries and cellar doors, book lunch and find the best place to stay. That's why we teamed up with some of the best wineries and food producers in the Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale to create one mighty indulgent food and wine trip. We've done the research, all you have to do is rock up and enjoy this ever-thriving wine region. During this four-day trip, you'll have the opportunity to explore Adelaide's city centre before spending two big days out in wine country. During your big afternoon out in the Barossa Valley, we've organised guided tours and cellar door experiences at a few of our favourite wineries as well as a special tasting at Maggie Beer's Farm Shop and lunch with wine pairings at another vineyard. This will be followed up by an entire day of wine, beer and gin tastings in McLaren Vale — with morning tea and lunch included. It's a packed itinerary made for true wine enthusiasts. BOOK IT NOW. FIVE-DAY FOOD AND WINE ADVENTURE IN HOBART AND ITS SURROUNDS Tassie's culinary scene is booming. Whether you're road tripping around the north or south of the state, you're set to find some of Australia's most brilliant food and drink producers making all sorts of delicious things to eat and drink. To celebrate this, we've created a sensational Hobart travel package that will take you to local farms, wineries, breweries and distilleries — with exclusive tastings and tours at each spot. The package also includes car hire for all five days, so you can explore each of these spots at your own leisure. And lastly, we're putting up guests in the Vibe Hotel Hobart's Harbour View Room. Wake up to stunning water views before going out to explore this amazing part of Australia. BOOK IT NOW. [caption id="attachment_869501" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism Australia[/caption] THE ULTIMATE VINEYARD GLAMPING GETAWAY Sanctuary By Sirromet is a sprawling vineyard located in the bucolic hills of Queensland's Mount Cotton and boasts a collection of luxury glamping tents overlooking a lagoon and a bushland home to wallabies and birdlife. It's an idyllic slice of wine country just 40 minutes south of the Brisbane CBD. That's why we teamed up with the Sirromet team on this one-of-a-kind wine-filled weekend getaway package. Guests will be treated to a behind-the-scenes winery tour and tasting, a picnic in its beloved lavender fields (with wine and a packed food hamper included), a three-course dinner with paired wines, and daily breakfast delivered to the door of your glamping tent. The Sanctuary by Sirromet team is throwing in a complimentary bottle of Le Sauvage 'The Wild' to be enjoyed on the tent's private balcony or taken home. Go on, spoil yourself. BOOK IT NOW. THE MOST EPIC QUEENSTOWN ROAD TRIP We've created the ultimate Queenstown holiday, combining the area's famous adventure experiences with its famed culinary scene. You'll go on the world's first heli gin tour — riding from distillery to distillery via helicopter — and visit a series of local wineries during your self-led road-trip around the region. We've even added a scenic flight up to the dramatic mountain ranges, pairing it with a speed boat ride back to your hotel. You're not gonna find a trip like this anywhere else. BOOK IT NOW. Feeling inspired to book a truly unique getaway? Head to Concrete Playground Trips to explore a range of holidays curated by our editorial team. We've teamed up with all the best providers of flights, stays and experiences to bring you a series of unforgettable trips in destinations all over the world.
An indisputable local icon, the Brisbane Powerhouse is home to theatre, music, comedy and restaurants Watt and Bar Alto. Bar Alto opens out from the main bar and performance area, with seating areas perched outside on the upper deck as well as inside the Powerhouse building. The outlook from the deck, which takes in the Brisbane River and the constant relay of CityCats, is beautiful regardless of whether you're visiting during the day or night. Bar Alto was the 2009 winner of a Best Italian Restaurant Award at the Restaurant & Catering Queensland HostPlus State Awards for Excellence, so this place knows how to do pasta. The risotto with gorgonzola, radicchio and balsamic is cheesy indulgence, while the roasted duck and mascarpone ravioli with mushroom ragout is rich and flavoursome with pine nuts adding texture. The homemade pappardelle with goat ragu also comes highly recommended by the restaurant staff. A wide range of entrees, main courses, shared dishes, sides (try the zucchini fritters) and desserts are also available. Whether you've made the journey specifically for the food or are looking for a bite to eat after seeing a show or sunning yourself in New Farm Park, Bar Alto is a great choice for a relaxing lunch or dinner by the river.
A resurrected Tupac stunned Coachella audiences at the conclusion of the music festival's first weekend. Holographically appearing on stage alongside Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, the murdered rapper greeted fans with a "What up, Coachella?" before beginning his classic single 'Hail Mary'. Digitally generated, Tupac's holographic double is the brainchild of longtime friend Dr. Dre. Dre sought the permission of the late rapper's mother before pursuing his vision, which was brought to 'life' by San Diego-based AV Concepts and James Cameron's Oscar-winning digital production company Digital Domain. The project is estimated to have dipped deep into commissioners' pockets, and took around four months to create. The likeness was eerie, successfully replicating everything from the rapper's bared abs, to his Timberlands, to his tattoos. The hologram performed classics '2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted', 'Come With Me', and 'Gangsta Party' before slipping back into the otherworld. Audiences and fans received the performance with mixed emotions. Some were thrilled to witness Tupac 'live' after his 1996 murder, and others found the hologram morbid and exploitative. Twitter was ablaze with fans on either side of the issue, causing 'Tupac' to continue trending in Australia through this morning. Opinions aside, the digital stunt may mark the beginning of a new era for on-stage performance. AV Concepts has already dabbled in holographic concert performances; the company was behind the 2005 Grammys performance featuring Madonna and the holographic members of the Gorillaz, as well as digital apparitions used in concert by Celine Dion and the Black Eyed Peas. It was the dead that stole the show at the live music festival this weekend. No one can keep Tupac down. https://youtube.com/watch?v=pRLUAVs4sR4
Humans spend roughly a third of their life sleeping. Aside from the occasional drunken night or camping trip, most of this sleeping is done in a bed. So why, then, are such important objects in our lives often so commonplace and dull? Beds can be used to express our inner self, to represent our deepest loves or simply help us wake up and get going in the morning. Here are 20 of the most creative and eccentric designs that are sure to put a smile on your face. 1. The Stand Up Bed Thanks to this novel bed, which resembles a large vertical bean bag, sleeping while standing is apparently very possible. 2. The Floating Bed This magnetically charged floating bed by Janjaap Ruijssenaars not only looks incredibly chic and contemporary, but also would make it very hard for any monsters to hide underneath it. 3. The Rocking Bed The 'Private Cloud' is a a patented rocking frame designed by Manuel Kloker, which will be sure to lull you into a serene sleep every night. 4. The Sonic Bed Kaffe Matthew's Sonic bed probably isn't exactly designed to provide a good night's sleep, created with 12-channel surround sound speakers encased around the edges to cover every cell of your body with musical beats. 5. The Forest Bed For those who want to have a sense of being out in the wild whilst remaining in the comfort of their own bed, this exotic wooden bed would be the one for you. 6. The Safe Bed This 'Quantum Sleeper' is the ultimate in protection for those paranoid about the threat of natural disasters, terrorist attacks, kidnappers or any variation therein. 7. The Starfish Bed Known as the 'Hold Me Bed', this structure will ensure that you overcome those restless nights of tossing and turning because, well, you won't be able to move a muscle. 8. The Hay Bed Some people have such an affinity for hay they simply want to be surrounded by it when awake and asleep. 9. The Yin and Yang Bed If you believe you've found your absolute soulmate but can't handle sleeping next to them for whatever reason, perhaps this next bed will provide the solution to your problems. 10. The Sandwich Bed You are what you eat, right? 11. The Hammock Bed Everybody loves the tranquil and relaxing sensation induced by the gentle swinging and folding of a hammock. 12. The Pull-Down Bed If you are crammed for space due to a small apartment or want another handy spare bed that doesn't waste the space of a whole room, then this innovative and nifty pull-down bed is the way to go. 13. The Molecular Bed Scientists, sportspeople or ball-lovers will be sure to enjoy this bed made of 120 soft and pleasant balls. 14. The Cinderella Bed Perfectly suited to little princesses with large imaginations and a love for fairytales. 15. The Foetal Position Bed This bed doesn't leave much margin for movement - that is unless you want to end up snuggling up with the floorboards. 16. The Bird Nest Bed This large pit of soft pillows encased in a brown, nest-like structure is a novel way to help kids nod off to sleep. 17. The Geometric Bed If you want to keep the brain cells flowing even when getting some shut-eye, perhaps this bed with a modern geometric structure attached to it is the perfect way to achieve just that. 18. The Brush Bed This bed looks like it would be jabbing uncomfortable protrusions from every angle. 19. The Book Bed Let imaginations soar with this creative life-sized book that also doubles as a bed. 20. The Napping Pod Cure that threethirtyitis by grabbing a quick nap in one of these high-tech napping pods.
They're the masters of immersive thrills, such as smash-hit shipping container installations Seance, Coma and Flight — also known as the Darkfield series. But not even the folks at Realscape Productions are immune to the realities of pandemic life. They're currently locked down with the rest of Melbourne, putting their nerve-jangling real-life projects on hiatus until later in the year. Luckily, in the meantime, Realscape and Darkfield (UK creators) have teamed up for a brand-new audio experience fans can enjoy from the comfort of home. They did just that a couple of months back with Double, and now they're doing so again with Visitors — which, although delivered remotely once again, is still geared to be every bit as creepy and unsettling as its IRL predecessors. Launching on Tuesday, October 6, Visitors will be presented via the producers' new digital project Darkfield Radio. Like its siblings, it plunges participants deep into an immersive experience by perplexing the senses — this time, with the use of a 360-degree binaural sound, played through your own headphones. Visitors is aimed at groups of two, and starts with another two folks as well — a dead couple who invite themselves into the your home. They're eager to escape their current state, even if only temporarily. "We didn't know where else to go," they'll tell you — and then you'll each hear two different sides of the story. To listen along, you'll need a $22 two-person ticket, and to book a spot at 8pm, 9pm and 11pm AEDT on a Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. While this is clearly a great thing to add to your October must-do list — 'tis the spookiest time of year, after all — Visitors will run until the end of December. Visitors runs at 8pm, 9pm and 11pm AEDT on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from Tuesday, October 6 until the end of December.
Arming oneself against a global pandemic and helping to protect your community are already pretty strong incentives to get a COVID-19 vaccination. But thanks to a new initiative by legendary Aussie label Nobody Denim, that jab could also now score you some free threads. The fashion brand has announced the launch of its Nobody Gives A Jab campaign, which will see a free personalised pair of jeans sent out to the first 100 people who share proof of their initial COVID-19 vaccination on Instagram. As the country struggles to contain the spread of the Delta variant — with Melbourne currently in the midst of its sixth lockdown and Sydney now almost two months into its latest outbreak — the campaign is just one of many encouraging locals to roll up their sleeve and get vaccinated as soon as possible. To be in with a shot at nabbing some free denim, you'll need to get your first dose of the vaccination, then post a photo of your freshly-jabbed arm, tagging both @nobodydenim and #NobodyGivesAJab on socials. If you're one of the first 100 people to do so, Nobody will be sliding into your DM's with details on how to collect your prize. Just note that you'll also need to be able to supply proof of your jab. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Nobody Denim (@nobodydenim) As a family-owned business, Nobody says it wants to see the community come together and do their bit to help make Australia's vaccine rollout a success and limit future lockdowns. "We would like to continue to contribute to our Australian family and community far and wide in any way we can," explained the label's co-founder and chairman John Condilis. "We want to keep the fashion and retail industry alive, we want to keep our wholesalers stocked, we want to see them thrive. We want to see our neighbouring brands' doors open and trading." Last month, Melbourne's Prince Alfred Hotel put out a similar call-to-arms, offering free pints to punters who'd been vaccinated. And more recently, Sydney craft brewery Hawke's Brewing Co announced its new Jab & Slab program will offer free slabs of beer in return for proof of a jab. Follow Nobody Denim on Instagram for more details on the Nobody Gives A Jab program.
All of the taste, none of the after effects: it's a cocktail lover's dream, and it's the reason that we have mocktails. Everyone has been in a situation where they're eager for a tasty beverage, but need to keep a clear, booze-free head — and the next solution to this predicament comes from the virtual realm. London may boast a bar that sells virtual reality cocktails (real drinks, but with a virtual reality preamble experienced by strapping on a headset), and Vienna might have a VR bar dedicated to having a bev while hanging out in an intangible space, but the Vocktail makes the tipple, not the experience, virtual. A project stemming from the National University of Singapore under researcher Nimesha Ranasinghe's guidance, it involves a special glass that connects to an app to alter your perception of what you're drinking. Here's how it works: once liquid splashes into the glass, users can customise its colour, smell and taste. The first arrives via LED lights, which sounds straightforward enough. The second comes from bursts of scent that are emitted from the vessel in your hand. And the third? It uses digital taste simulation — or electrical pulses on the tip of the tongue that simulate saltiness, sourness and bitterness. Yep, even though there's no alcohol involved, you'll still be getting a buzz. Basically, if you're sipping on water but want your senses to think that you're consuming something boozy — or if you have a hankering for a sugary beverage but don't want to put your body through the real thing — the Vocktail has the answer. It was just unveiled at the Association for Computing Machinery Multimedia Conference, so don't expect to put one to your lips just yet; however, add drinking to the list of things (booking holidays, reading the news, travelling, touring landmarks, shopping, going to gigs) that are going virtual. Via New Scientist.
Thirteen months after Australia's borders closed and international travel was banned due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Aussies can finally enjoy an overseas holiday again. The destination: New Zealand, with the long-awaited trans-Tasman travel bubble now up and running as at 11.59pm on Sunday, April 18. A quarantine-free travel bubble between Australia and NZ has been floated and discussed plenty of times over the past year. A one-way arrangement has actually been in effect since mid-October 2020, with New Zealanders able to visit some Australian states. But it has taken quite some time for a reciprocal plan to kick into gear, so if you feel like you've been hearing about the bubble for months and months (and months), that's definitely accurate. Here's how it works: Australians can hop on a flight, which have been dubbed 'green zone flights', and soar across the ditch as they would've pre-pandemic. To avoid quarantine, you'll need to have spent 14 days in either Australia or New Zealand before you travel — and you'll only be onboard with folks who fall into the same category. The crew on those flights won't have flown on any high-risk routes for a set period of time, too. To qualify to enter NZ, you'll need to also meet the usual meet immigration requirements, not have had a positive COVID-19 test result in the past 14 days and not be waiting for the results of a COVID-19 test taken in the last fortnight. And, you'll have to complete a travel declaration and a pre-departure health declaration; however, getting tested for COVID-19 before departure is not a requirement. At the airport and on the plane, you'll need to wear a face covering. That'll remain the case when you land in NZ, too. Travellers from green zone flights will then be taken to their own arrival area, away from folks landing from other parts of the world that are going into managed isolation and quarantine facilities. Random temperature checks and health assessments are part of the on-ground process as well. Then, once you're out of the airport, you're asked to download and use the NZ COVID Tracer app to keep track of your whereabouts, to abide by the usual social distancing and hygiene measures that've become commonplace in Australia, and to keep an eye on NZ's COVID-19 alert levels. You'll also need to be prepared in case the travel bubble arrangement is disrupted due to new COVID-19 cases in either NZ in Australia. If an outbreak arises in an Aussie state, there'll be three options. Firstly, if the case is clearly linked to a border worker in a quarantine facility and is well contained, travel will likely continue. If a case isn't linked to the border and the relevant state went into lockdown, NZ will likely pause flights from that state. And, if there are multiple cases of unknown origin in a state, NZ will probably suspend flights for a set period of time. Australia's international border still remains shut to most global travel, although a similar travel bubble with Singapore is currently under discussion for a potential July start. If you're keen to start planning your NZ jaunt, we've rounded up some of our favourite glamping sites, wineries, sights and restaurants in NZ. To learn more about the trans-Tasman bubble, head to the NZ Government website. To find out more about the status of COVID-19 in Australia, head to the Australian Government Department of Health's website. To find out more about the virus and travel restrictions in New Zealand, head over to the NZ Government's COVID-19 hub.
Since 2016, the cinema-loving world has had a Studio Ghibli-shaped hole in its heart. That's when the acclaimed Japanese animation house released its most recent film, the gorgeous French co-production The Red Turtle. Its last solo production actually came two years earlier, courtesy of 2014's When Marnie Was There. Still, much has happened in Studio Ghibli's world over the past decade. Hayao Miyazaki announced his retirement, then changed his mind. In 2018, fellow co-founder and acclaimed director Isao Takahata sadly passed away. And, over the past few years, the company has been busying itself with its very own theme park. The latter is due to open in 2022 and become quite the tourist attraction — but that doesn't mean that fans aren't keen for more Ghibli movies. Thankfully, the studio has announced that it's working on just that, with two new films on its slate for 2020. In the company's New Year's Greeting and just-released news update, it revealed that it'll be focusing on the pair of flicks and the theme park this year. And yes, one of those movies will be helmed by My Neighbour Totoro, Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle icon Miyazaki. How Do You Live? was actually first announced a few years back, along with Miyazaki's return from retirement. Few details have been unveiled since, although in an interview on Japanese TV late last year, the filmmaker's producer Toshio Suzuki advised that it was 15-percent finished at the end of October 2019. Initially hoped to hit screens around the time of this year's Tokyo Olympics, it hasn't been given a release date as yet. Details of Studio Ghibli's second film in production are even more scarce, including its name, director, plot and timing. But the company's creative stocks run deep — Miyazaki's son Goro Miyazaki directed Tales from Earthsea and From Up On Poppy Hill, for example — and it hasn't made a bad movie yet. Get excited about the two new films by revisiting the trailer for Miyazaki's last feature, 2013's The Wind Rises: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzSpDgiF5y8 Via Studio Ghibli.
Watching television can't solve many problems, but some woes can be temporarily soothed by spending your evenings enjoying cartoons from three decades ago. Had a terrible day at work? Feeling overstretched and underappreciated? Stuck hovering under a cloud of meh? You can now feast your eyeballs on Australia's new free-to-air Nickelodeon channel and its retro lineup each weeknight for a pick-me-up. Switching to channel 13 from Tuesday, August 1 Down Under now means being greeted by Nickelodeon's wares. It's the first-ever premium free-to-air Nickelodeon channel in Australia, and it's catering for all ages. That includes adults via the Nick@Nite lineup, which also makes its Aussie debut on free-to-air, and will feature Ren & Stimpy, Angry Beavers, Rocko's Modern Life, Aaahh!!! Real Monsters and Catdog. It was true when you were a kid — whether you grew up in the 90s or discovered it later — and it's true now: watching a perennially angry chihuahua and a good-natured cat fight and pal around is cathartic viewing. Nickelodeon will also screen late-night movies, digging into the brand's catalogue. Here's hoping that the SpongeBob films get a run — they're as much of a delight for adults as they are for kids, as any big-screen franchise that features What We Do in the Shadows' Matt Berry as a talking dolphin and John Wick's Keanu Reeves as a sage is meant to be. During the day, the new channel will focus on Nick Jr preschool fare such as PAW Patrol, Blue's Clues & You!, Baby Shark's Big Show! and Santiago of the Seas. In the afternoons, it'll air season 12 of SpongeBob SquarePants, plus everything from The Smurfs and Double Dare to iCarly and The Thundermans. Indeed, if you have children or sometimes babysit nieces and nephews, you might want to take note of the daylight programming, too. Watching SpongeBob will always be for everyone, though. Find Australia's new free-to-air Nickelodeon channel at channel 13 from Tuesday, August 1.
Fanda Group has made a name for its eye-catching venues, from the award-winning subterranean CBD dumpling den Central to the breezy brutalism of Gold Coast rooftop bar Sueño. For these venues, the hospo outfit partnered with J.AR OFFICE — and it's tapped the Fortitude Valley studio once again for its latest showstopper. Marlowe is perhaps Fanda Group's most serious offer to date, and it stands to reason that this is in no small part down to its setting. Spread across two floors and nine rooms of a heritage-listed 1938 apartment building on Fish Lane once known as Merivale Flats, Marlowe presents a considered and elegant take on a Modern Australian bistro backed by seasonal, hyperlocal produce and inspired by vintage Australian cookbooks. [caption id="attachment_1027793" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jessie Prince[/caption] And while Head Chef and Co-Owner Ollie Hansford's menu might take its cues from Margaret Fulton and her contemporaries, there's a thoroughly modern edge to the offer. The ever-evolving selection might include prawn cocktail tartlet in crisp pastry with marie rose sauce, braised duck pie with radicchio jam and jus poured tableside, a yabby-topped surf and turf and a standout coral trout wellington finished with a rich caviar butter sauce. A custom-built woodfire hearth by Sam Fraraccio (The Brick Chef) anchors the grill offering, while a raw bar serves oysters and seafood sliced to order. Desserts, like a trifle layered with rhubarb jelly, macadamia sponge and custard, also straddle the line between playful and polished. Drinks also celebrate local makers and ingredients. Group Beverage Director Peter Marchant has curated a 200-strong Australian wine list, balancing legacy labels with new-wave producers alongside verticals from icons like Henschke and Grosset. Thirty-five wines are available by the glass via the venue's Coravin program, while French champagne is the sole non-local feature. Cocktails showcase native ingredients and nostalgic twists, like a lemon myrtle and eucalyptus highball topped with house-made mandarin creaming soda and a house martini starring Tasmanian gin and macadamia-infused oloroso. As for that design, Marlowe retains much of the building's art deco character, including the original layout of the four apartments it occupies. Nooks and crannies abound across the nine distinct dining and bar areas, including a verdant terrace and four enclosed sunrooms. The deliberately pared-back space sets rich walnut timber and polished chrome accents against a palette of sky blue, buttercream and deep crimson, bringing a thoughtful contemporary edge to the venue's heritage bones. [caption id="attachment_1027797" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jessie Prince[/caption] Top images: Jessie Prince.
Vacationing closer to home shouldn't mean settling for unimaginative getaways. Australia has its own collection of holiday paradises, stunning sights and supreme vacation vibes without the long-haul flight — including the lush hinterland region of Queensland's Sunshine Coast, sitting around 90 minutes north of Brisbane. Here, you'll find cosy couples' cabins, treehouse hideaways and stunning rural retreats, all perfectly located to the area's famed nature walks, hinterland villages and sandy beaches. We've done the hard work for you and pulled together a list of the most stunning Sunshine Coast hinterland stays you can book right now. Pick a winner, pack your bags and get ready to recharge those batteries with a blissed-out rainforest retreat. Recommended reads: The Best Dog-Friendly-Stays in Queensland The Best Places to Go Glamping in Queensland The Best Hotels in Brisbane The Best Island Stays in Queensland 629 Balmoral Ridge, Balmoral Ridge Stay on top of the world at this stunning ridgetop retreat, complete with epic views and a roomy deck from which to soak it all in. From $690 a night, sleeps four. Blue Summit Cottages Luxury Escape, Witta Boasting a fireplace, living room spa and sweeping views across the treetops, this self-contained cottage makes for an idyllic couples' escape. From $414 a night, sleeps two. Pencil Creek Cottage, Mapleton Break from reality at this charming couples' cottage, set among the leafy surrounds of Mapleton. Log fire, four-poster bed and peaceful deck, all included. From $297 a night, sleeps two. Cuddle Cottage, Montville This picture-perfect cottage for two comes kitted out with a romantic loft bedroom, plus a sunny terrace for afternoon cocktails with a view. From $195 a night, sleeps two. The Farm on Razorback Ridge, Montville A lofty retreat set on ten hectares of farmland and rainforest. Enjoy sunny days splashing in the pool and nights unwinding by the fire. From $1146 a night, sleeps ten. Bird Song Valley, Montville Experience your own slice of hinterland paradise at this breezy revamped Queenslander, complete with crisp styling, wraparound verandahs and a luxurious master tub. From $375 a night, sleeps six. Couples Spa Suite Retreat, Montville Unwind and reconnect in this luxury honeymoon suite. The balcony spa bath, bio-fuel fireplace and treetop views are getaway goals. From $350 a night, sleeps four. Treetops Seaview, Montville With its breathtaking outlook, this private treetop hideaway feels worlds away from reality. Lounge on the sun-drenched deck, or soak up epic views in the spa. From $512 a night, sleeps two. Cobhearthome, Maleny Tread lightly with a stay at this award-winning Mediterranean-style eco-cottage, decked out with colourful murals and boasting views across lush green rainforest. How much? From $230 a night, sleeps four. The Wilds Container Home, Dulong This converted shipping container home is an architectural delight, enveloped by nature. Enjoy a stylish hideaway, with luxe features and a private, leafy setting. From $330 a night, sleeps two. Treehaus, Valdora Tranquility meets style at this breezy nature retreat. Unwind with the help of luxurious linens, a blissful courtyard garden and a toasty fire pit. From $180 a night, sleeps four. The Bower Couples' Cabin, Wootha Surrounded by rainforest, this charming timber cabin makes for a romantic hideout year-round. Snuggle fireside, unwind in the claw-foot tub, or laze by the shared pool. From $165 a night, sleeps two. All images courtesy of Airbnb. FYI, this story includes some affiliate links. These don't influence any of our recommendations or content, but they may make us a small commission. For more info, see Concrete Playground's editorial policy.
It's that time again, film fans. Cannes time. The red carpet has been rolled out on the French Riviera, everyone from famed Spanish auteur Pedro Almodovar to famed fresh prince Will Smith are sitting on the jury, and one of the biggest film festivals of the world is officially underway. That means one of two things between May 17 and 28: if you're actually there, lines, more lines, even more lines, star-spotting and seeing a heap of eagerly anticipated movies. If you're not, you're crossing your fingers and toes, and praying to whichever filmmaker you consider your own personal cinema deity, hoping that all of the flicks showing will make it to Australian screens sooner rather than later. Some are already headed our way — thank the Sydney Film Festival for bringing us Happy End, Sofia Coppola's anticipated remake of The Beguiled, Okja, Wind River, Napalm, In the Fade and Sea Sorrow in June, for example. One, in the form of documentary David Stratton: A Cinematic Life, has already released in cinemas here. As for the rest, here's our wishlist of the movies we can't wait to see on our screens as soon as possible. THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER Whether you loved The Lobster or didn't, one thing is certain: the absurdist, dystopian look at romance and coupling isn't the kind of movie that the likes of Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz and John C. Reilly star in every day. Actually, scratch that for Farrell, as he's in director Yorgos Lanthimos' next effort too, and this time he has Nicole Kidman and Alicia Silverstone for company. The Killing of a Sacred Deer tells of a charismatic surgeon, a teenage boy and sacrifices — and if that sounds mysterious, that's because most of Lanthimos' films do. Come for the cast. Come for the concept. Come for a director riding the Greek New Wave to make movies (and soon, TV shows) like no one else. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYzSXWukOWA WONDERSTRUCK The last time Todd Haynes made a film, he directed a love story for the ages in the form of Carol. The last time one of Brian Selznick's books was adapted to the screen, the cinematic love letter that was Hugo was the end result. Combine the two, and you get Wonderstruck, a tale of two children longing for different lives that sounds like a match made in movie heaven. Pete's Dragon's Oakes Fegley and first-timer Millicent Simmonds play the kids, while the adult cast includes Julianne Moore and Michelle Williams. YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE Did We Need to Talk About Kevin unnerve you? It has been six years since director Lynne Ramsay made everyone think twice about procreating, and now the Scottish filmmaker is back with something completely different, subject-wise, in You Were Never Really Here. Joining forces with acting powerhouse Joaquin Phoenix, the film dives into the weighty subject of sex trafficking. It's Ramsay's fourth feature, and also her fourth film to premiere at Cannes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVyGCxHZ_Ko GOOD TIME He has played a quidditch captain, a sparkly vampire, Salvador Dali, a snapper of James Dean and someone who might've played a hand in the fictionalised rise of fascism. Next up, Robert Pattinson turns bank robber in Good Time, and is forced to flee dangerous criminals on the streets of New York. RPatz isn't the only attraction though, with the film also starring Jennifer Jason Leigh and Captain Phillips' Barkhad Abdi, and marking the latest effort from brothers Benny and Josh Safdie. The latter were responsible for festival hit Heaven Knows What back in 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04U_qUJkZG0 THE DAY AFTER AND CLAIRE'S CAMERA It's safe to say that no filmmaker today works harder than Hong Sang-soo. In the past year, the South Korean director has premiered four — yep, four — new features, with Cannes boasting two. With that in mind, we're not cheating by including both in our list. We just can't separate them. Competing for the Palme d'Or, The Day After follows a woman starting work for a publishing company, while the Isabelle Huppert-starring Claire's Camera is set at Cannes itself. Expect amusing slices of life filled with plenty of booze, as is Hong's custom. And as for the other two flicks we mentioned, Yourself and Yours popped up at the Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival last year, and On the Beach at Night Alone screened at the Berlinale. Image: Honourable mention — The Beguiled.
When it takes three years for one of the world's favourite shows to make a comeback — on one of the planet's most-popular streaming platforms, too — everyone can be forgiven for getting a little excited. Netflix itself has about the return of Stranger Things for season four, setting up a huge Upside Down rift on Bondi Beach, albeit only for a few hours. But, if a burger is on your menu in the near future, that's not the only way to show your love. Grill'd is getting into the Stranger Things spirit in two ways — one that you'll need to be in Sydney to enjoy IRL, and one that's available all around the country. First, for Sydneysiders, making the trip to Grill'd at The Galeries means eating your burg in an otherworldly dimension. The CBD burger joint has been decked out like somewhere that'd creep out Eleven, Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas and Max. Think: a cavernous rift-style entryway, because they're popping up everywhere (see above), floating spores, creeping vines and other touches from the show. It all looks suitably on-theme, and it's likely the most dramatic place you'll ever eat a burg. That interactive experience is only taking over Grill'd at The Galeries for a limited time, so getting in quickly is recommended — as it is when it comes to binging Stranger Things' new season. Also only available temporarily, until June 16 at all Grill'd locations except Melbourne Airport: a demogorgon burger. No, it isn't made using eggos. Yes, it's monster-sized (well, huge enough). It comes filled with a grass-fed Australian beef patty, roasted peppers, cos lettuce and dill pickles (because of course a demogorgon would like pickles). You'll also find burger sauce and sour cream inside, and you can dip it in buffalo dipping sauce as well — if you want make it look like something a giant creature has just thrown at you, or just like the taste, whatever fits. Costing $15.90 a pop, that burg can be munched on in-store, or ordered for delivery via Grill'd Delivery and Uber Eats. Find Grill'd's Upside Down-themed eatery at Grill'd Galeries, 500 George Street, Sydney — or grab a demogorgon burg from Grill'd stores nationwide (except Melbourne Airport) until June 16.
A lot can happen in seven years — and, since sketch-comedy series Key and Peele aired its last episode back in 2015, plenty has. Forget all the chaos that's occurred in the world in general; just for Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, life has been hectic. Key has filled his resume with everything from Archer, Veep and Schmiggadoon! to The Predator, The Lion King and The Prom, while Jordan Peele just went and made three instant horror classics called Get Out, Us and Nope (oh, and won an Oscar). The next thing on the pair's agenda: a reunion, with the two voicing scheming demons in new Netflix movie Wendell & Wild. And if that wasn't enough exciting news for just one film, the stop-motion animated flick is directed by Henry Selick, who'll always have a place in every cinephile's heart thanks to The Nightmare Before Christmas and Coraline. In fact, this marks his first feature since the latter, which arrived back in 2009. Unsurprisingly, gorgeously creepy sights fill Wendell & Wild's just-dropped first teaser trailer, because that's exactly what Selick usually serves up. In a picture that he not only directs, but co-wrote with Peele — who also co-produces — the filmmaker focuses on two demon brothers, the titular pair, who want to be summoned into the Land of the Living. To achieve that feat, Wendell (Key) and Wilde (Peele) need the help of teenager Kat Elliot (voiced by Lyric Ross, This Is Us). But, as the movie's first sneak peek shows, that bargain comes with consequences — because Kat isn't just willing to assist without asking for something in return. Wendell & Wild's voice cast also includes other well-known names, such as Angela Bassett (Gunpowder Milkshake), James Hong (Everything Everywhere All At Once) and Ving Rhames (Mission: Impossible — Fallout). And, because it's almost that time of year, of course the film is dropping in time for Halloween — hitting streaming on October 28, in fact. Check out the trailer for Wendell & Wild below: Wendell & Wild will be available to stream via Netflix on October 28. Images: Netflix © 2022.
It's been 17 years since Hae Min Lee was tragically killed. And 16 since Adnan Syed went to jail for her murder. But now, almost two decades later, a Baltimore judge has granted Syed a re-trial. His lawyer, Justin Brown, tweeted the news earlier this morning, which was around 4.30pm on Thursday, June 30, Baltimore time. WE WON A NEW TRIAL FOR ADNAN SYED!!! #FreeAdnan — Justin Brown (@CJBrownLaw) June 30, 2016 Syed was, of course, the subject of Sarah Koenig's true crime podcast Serial, which had every man and his dog weighing in on complex legal evidence when it aired back in late 2014. Since the podcast's circulation, Syed — who has always maintained his innocence — has been able to push his case for post-conviction relief. In February he was granted a post-conviction hearing, in which it was argued that his original defence lawyer, Cristina Gutierrez, was negligent in the way she conducted the case. And on Thursday, Judge Martin Welch granted Syed a new trial on his defence counsel's failure to cross-examine a cell tower expert about the reliability of the data that placed him near the burial site. Anyone who's listened to the podcast knows that the cell tower data was one of the most complicated (and bloody confusing) pieces of evidence in the trial. This is Judge Welch's order, as posted by Serial about an hour ago: So what does this mean? Well, it means Syed's defence counsel have a lot of evidence to gather before an undoubtedly lengthy trial, which hasn't been given a date yet. And, surely, it means another season of Serial? Via The New York Times.
Future Totoros and Ponyos may not eventuate; Studio Ghibli have announced a hiatus to their animation feature film department. Surrounded by rumours of an outright closure, Studio Ghibli's general manager, Toshio Suzuki, announced the movements on Japanese television today as a "brief pause". Responsible for the likes of Spirited Away, Grave of the Fireflies, Howl's Moving Castle, Princess Mononoke, Ponyo and My Neighbour Totoro among many, many other beloved tales, the animation studio is reassessing its filmic future. The news comes just under a year after legendary, Oscar-winning director Hayao Miyazaki announced his retirement in September 2013 and released his final film The Wind Rises in February this year. Differing translations of Suzuki's announcement caused minor havoc online (notably fuelled by so-called Ghibli insiders at Japanese website News Cafe and subsequently quashed by Kotaku). Although most thought the studio was closing its doors for good, newer, more accurate translations cleared things up. "On what to do with Studio Ghibli’s future, it is by no means impossible to keep producing [movies] forever," said Suzuki on the TBS program Jonetsu Tairiku. "However, we will take a brief pause to consider where to go from here." Producer and co-founder Suzuki stepped into Miyazaki's shoes and became general manager when the director retired from Ghibli last year, joining forces with other Studio half, director Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies). So why is Ghibli shutting up shop? It seems to be a matter of money, a fair reason to reassess in a Michael Bay-peppered, box office landscape. According to Anime News Network, Studio Ghibli's latest film,When Marnie Was There opened at number three over the first weekend (July 19 - 20) with 378,790,697 yen (US$3,721,297) on 461 screens. That seems like a whole bunch, but the international market isn't so kind to arthouse-designated Ghibli. Marnie is set to hit US cinemas some time next year, with Australian release dates still TBC. Ghibli haven't covered up their financial struggle, most notably considering 2013's The Tale of Princess Kaguya a flop with tiny box office numbers (a huge step down from 2002's Acadamy Award-winning hit Spirited Away, which took US$274,925,095 worldwide). Suzuki said the studio is considering "housecleaning" or restructuring internally. While this doesn't entirely rule out a future shutdown, it seems the pause is centred around rebuilding the studio, managing copyrights and trademarks and possibly freelancing out projects — a good sign for Ghibli fans. But Kotaku has assured fans that Studio Ghibli is not dead yet, so we'll keep those good vibes delivered via Kiki and keep fingers crossed. Via Anime News Network, Kotaku and Hypable.
When Betty's Burgers and Concrete Co started dishing up burgs, fries and shakes, it gave hungry (and grateful) Australian tastebuds a Shake Shack-style burger experience. The chain has done well with that approach, unsurprisingly, expanding from its Noosa beginnings to now boast joints in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth — and a trio of ex-staff members are aiming for the same success with new venture Slim's Quality Burger. There's plenty that's familiar about Slim's template, in fact. Swap out the Shake Shack nods, substitute in a 50s and 60s-inspired setup that takes its cues from American diner culture, and that's the concept. Once again, the focus is on classic-style burgs rather than OTT numbers in this new spot from Michael Tripp, Nik Rollison and Betty's founder David Hales; however, the burgers here are paired with old-school ice cream sundaes instead of Betty's frozen custard 'concretes'. Now open in Marrickville in Sydney, with other stores set to come around the country — details of which haven't yet been revealed — Slim's is all about a lean menu of options made with simple but quality ingredients. Burger-wise, customers can choose between original, cheeseburger, deluxe cheeseburger and 'the works' burgs all made with angus beef, plus five different chicken varieties — including with crispy fried or grilled chook — and a veggie option using a plant-based patty. Sides focus on fries either with sea salt, loaded with cheese and grilled onion, or also featuring maple-smoked bacon. As for those sundaes, they come in hot fudge, salted caramel and strawberry flavours. And to wash it all down, there are spiders — because plonking a scoop of ice cream in some soft drink never gets old — plus post-mix from the fountain, and chocolate, vanilla and strawberry thickshakes. And with its vibrant red bench seating, the same hue beaming up from the chequerboard-tiled floor and a curved order counter — in the Marrickville setup at least — the decor clearly takes Slim's chosen retro aesthetic seriously. Also a feature in Sydney: outdoor dining, plus a blast from the past-meets-modern overall feel. Slim's Quality Burger has opened its first store at 20 Smidmore Street, Marrickville, with more locations to come across Australia — we'll update you when new sites are announced.
When Death and Taxes started slinging whisky in Burnett Lane, it set up shop in a heritage-listed building that dates back to the 19th century. So, when the team behind it decided to open another CBD spot, they followed a tried-and-tested pattern. Dr Gimlette sits on the opposite side of the mall, and goes heavy on cocktails and spirits in general, but it too has nestled into a location with a significant past. That address: 109 Edward Street, which was home to Metro Arts before it made the move over to West Village in West End. In the arts centre's former base — a building that also dates back to the 19th century, and is considered one of Brisbane's oldest — Dr Gimlette has turned the ground floor into a luxe and cosy cocktail bar with a big focus on table service. Here, Martin Lange, Wiebke Lange, Blake Ward and Belle Ward want you to take a seat, get comfortable and enjoy having your drinks brought to you. The team has taken inspiration from top bars elsewhere, such as The Savoy in London, The Dead Rabbit in New York and Black Pearl in Melbourne, to bring Brissie a sit-down drinking experience. Opt for a martini, and it'll be made right in front of you, too — shaken, stirred, thrown or nitro frozen, and with your choice of garnishes and gin — all thanks to the venue's two martini carts. The 30-beverage cocktail menu covers all the classics, and favours ingredients from local suppliers. Or, you can opt for a spritz on tap, which'll rotate its selection. And, as you'll notice upon walking in, Dr Gimlette isn't short on spirits if you'd prefer the hard stuff by itself. Its eye-catching bar boasts more than 800 bottles, or you can pick from the beer and wine range as well. Decked out with a nine-metre-long marble bar, leather booths, timber aplenty and dim lighting, the venue takes its old-school feel and its sense of cosiness seriously. At the time of writing, due to pandemic restrictions, it caters to 50 patrons — but will only double that number to 100 when there's no COVID-19 rules in place. And if you're wondering about the name, it harks back to surgeon Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Gimlette, who is credited with being the first to add lime cordial to gin, creating a combination that'd go on to become the gimlet. Images: Grace Elizabeth Images.
Family feuds are a deadly business in Bad Sisters, Apple TV+'s latest must-see. Just don't believe the first word in its title for a second. Starring, co-written and co-developed by Sharon Horgan, as Catastrophe was before it, this ten-part streaming series focuses on the Garvey girls, a quintet of Irish siblings who became bonded by more than blood when they were orphaned years earlier. Horgan's Eva took on the matriarch role and has doted on her siblings Grace (Anne-Marie Duff, Sex Education), Ursula (Eva Birthistle, The Last Kingdom), Bibi (Sarah Greene, Normal People) and Becka (Eve Hewson, Behind Her Eyes) ever since, even now that they range from their late twenties through to their forties. Used to doing whatever they must for each other, there's nothing bad about their sisterly devotion — but it just might include killing Grace's husband. A pitch-black comedy, a murder-mystery and a family drama all in one — an Irish riff on Big Little Lies, too, although it's actually adapted from Belgian TV's Clan from back in 2012 — Bad Sisters ponders two questions. Firstly, it wonders what lengths loyal siblings would truly go to to protect one of their own. Secondly, it contemplates what comeuppance women pushed to their limits will exact upon the source of their misery. Indeed, it's a darkly funny revenge fantasy as well, and a puzzle to compulsively sleuth along with. Do the Garveys get their wish? How will they try to make their dream a reality? Will their various murder plots work? What'll go wrong next? These queries also keep coming, and unfurling the answers makes for equally riveting, entertaining, empathetic and amusing viewing. Bad Sisters begins on the day of a funeral, farewelling John Paul Williams (Claes Bang, The Northman) after Grace makes sure that his erection won't be noticed first. Her dead husband has long been nicknamed 'The Prick' anyway, with his four sisters-in-law all thoroughly unimpressed, to say the least, about the toxic way he openly treated his dutiful wife. They're all sick of the underhanded abuse he also directed towards each of them, as well as anyone he didn't like, and the unearned air of superiority that always came with it. Calling him manipulative, callous, misogynistic, racist, narcissistic, spiteful, vicious, pitiless, ruthless, flat-out intolerable — they all fit. When a guest offers condolences at JP's wake, Eva's response is: "I'm just glad the suffering's over". When she's then asked if he was ill, she replies with a blunt and loaded "no". Relief lingers during JP's sendoff, but so does tension. Eva, Ursula, Bibi and Becka long wanted The Prick dead and, as flashbacks show, had been planning to bring about that very end. Complicating matters: two insurance agents, aka half-brothers Thomas (Brian Gleeson, Death of a Ladies' Man) and Matthew Claffin (Daryl McCormack, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande), who start nosing around as John Paul is being laid to rest. Their family-run outfit is meant to pay out on his life insurance policy, but it's a hefty amount of cash and will bankrupt the firm. And with Thomas' wife Theresa (Seána Kerslake, My Salinger Year) heavily pregnant and on bed rest, the Claffins already have their own share of family stresses. As brought to Apple TV+ by Horgan with United States of Tara, New Girl and 30 Rock's Brett Baer and Dave Finkel, Bad Sisters uses that insurance investigation to justify its jumps backwards — and it's a savvy tactic. In its weekly instalments, the series works through JP's awfulness and the Garveys' campaign of vengeance in two directions, contrasting the sisters' motivations in the months leading up to their brother-in-law's death with the aftermath. That said, exactly how Grace ends up a widow, who's responsible and which of the siblings knows what all drive the show's whodunnit angle, sharply and entertainingly so. Bad Sisters teases out the precise reasons that Eva, Ursula, Bibi and Becka can't stand JP, too, because The Prick's abysmal behaviour made enemies out of everyone around him over and over. Boasting a devilish setup is just one of Bad Sisters' drawcards. What a premise it is, though. The whole 'offing your arsehole brother-in-law' idea may seem obvious at the outset, but this is a series with both bite and warmth as it unpacks what happens when women don't have any other options but potentially breaking bad — and sticking together. The pervasive feeling: wish fulfilment and catharsis, as Grace's siblings attempt to make everyone's lives better, even if it requires one of the most drastic moves there is. Just as Horgan inhabits her part with fierce affection, as characters played by the This Way Up star tend to sport, the entire ten-episode run bubbles with unfailing determination. It's dedicated to seeing the horrors of coercive control and the harrowing ordeal that is life with someone like JP, but it's as devoted to maintaining hope in the Garveys' sense of sorority. Bad Sisters is also unflinching about perfecting the right balance between twisted, heartfelt, weighty, amusing, sincere and audacious — as resolute as it is about filling its frames with scenic Irish sights. The show's roster of writers and directors, which includes Dearbhla Walsh (Tales From the Loop), Rebecca Gatward (The Spanish Princess) and Josephine Bornebusch (Love Me) behind the lens, ensure four outcomes: lapping up every twist and turn; wishing you're a Garvey yourself; planning a getaway to Ireland; and feeling seen if you've ever been treated terribly by someone you love or even someone you know, be it a relative, friend, neighbour, boss, colleague or acquaintance of an acquaintance. There's no doubting the impact of Bad Sisters' on-screen talents in making it such an instantly addictive Irish delight, however. It isn't merely the central murder-mystery that lures viewers in — and the comic way the series cycles through the Garveys' schemes — but also the show's wonderful leading ladies. From Horgan through to Hewson, the eponymous sisters are exceptionally well-cast, with all five actors conveying the clan's strengths, flaws, differences, fights and camaraderie, including at an individual level and together. Duff is especially heartbreaking as the spouse who has convinced herself that her husband's exploitation and cruelty is normal, while the Bang ensures that the potently odious, easily despised JP is abhorrent on every level but never cartoonish. They're all ably supported by the charmingly bumbling Gleeson and just charmingly charming McCormack, who help reinforce that every family has its ups and downs — including when no one is contemplating homicide. Check out the trailer for Bad Sisters below: Bad Sisters streams via Apple TV+.
First, hobbits tuck into breakfast. Then, they enjoy second breakfast. In fact, in both JRR Tolkien's books and the movie adaptations that've brought them to the screen so far, they like their meals frequently and with the smallest of gaps between them. That seems to be an approach that Prime Video is taking to The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, its upcoming Middle-earth series, too — at least when it comes to dropping sneak peeks at the long-awaited show. The Rings of Power seems like it has been in the works forever, because it's now been 21 years since the first of The Lord of the Rings movies had everyone rushing to cinemas, obsessing over hobbits and elves, and saying "precious" too many times — and, it's also been five years since it was initially revealed that a TV series was in the works. The show will drop in September, starting on Friday, September 2, but early glimpses have been as rare as a pacifist orc until this month. Now, in the space of just a fortnight, Prime Video has dropped not just one, not two, but three new trailers. The latest arrived during San Diego Comic-Con, aka the reason that other big fantasy titles such as Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon and game-to-screen adaptation Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves have also released trailers this week — and it's the longest look at The Rings of Power yet. It also provides the most complete overview of the show's storyline, which jumps back into Middle-earth's Second Age, bringing that era from the LOTR realm to the screen for the first time. In past trailers — including the initial sneak peek back in February — gorgeous settings, elves, dwarves, harfoots (aka hobbit ancestors), stormy seas, strange skies, cave trolls, raging fires and orc battles have all popped up. This new trailer pieces together more of the plot around them. The focus: the rise of Sauron, how that gave rise to the rings and the impact across Middle-earth. Also seen in the new sneak peek: more orcs, and even a balrog. The Rings of Power features a young Galadriel (Morfydd Clark, Saint Maud) and a young Elrond (Robert Aramayo, The King's Man), too — and, this time, New Zealand's natural splendours stand in for the Elven realms of Lindon and Eregion, the Dwarven realm Khazad-dûm, the Southlands, the Northernmost Wastes, the Sundering Seas and the island kingdom of Númenór. Amazon first announced the show back in 2017, gave it the official go-ahead in mid-2018 and set its premiere date back in 2021. In-between, it confirmed that it wouldn't just remake Peter Jackson's movies. Rather, as per the show's official synopsis, it follows "the heroic legends of the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth's history," with the action set thousands of years before the novels and movies we've all read and watched. If you're a little rusty on your LOTR lore, the Second Age lasted for 3441 years, and saw the initial rise and fall of Sauron, as well as a spate of wars over the coveted rings. Elves feature prominently, and there's plenty to cover, even if Tolkien's works didn't spend that much time on the period — largely outlining the main events in an appendix to the popular trilogy. The series will "take viewers back to an era in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and the greatest villain that ever flowed from Tolkien's pen threatened to cover all the world in darkness," the synopsis continues. "Beginning in a time of relative peace, the series follows an ensemble cast of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of the elf-capital of Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will carve out legacies that live on long after they are gone," it also advises. That's a hefty tale to tell, and The Rings of Power has amassed a hefty cast to tell it — and some impressive talent behind the scenes. Among the other actors traversing Middle-earth are Ismael Cruz Córdova (The Undoing) as Arondir, Nazanin Boniadi (Bombshell) as Bronwyn, Owain Arthur (A Confession) as Prince Durin IV, Charlie Vickers (Palm Beach) as Halbrand and Sophia Nomvete (The Tempest) as Princess Disa. There's also Tom Budge (Judy & Punch), Joseph Mawle (Game of Thrones), Cynthia Addai-Robinson (The Accountant), Maxim Baldry (Years and Years), Peter Mullan (Westworld), Benjamin Walker (The Underground Railroad) and comedian Lenny Henry. And, the series is being overseen by showrunners and executive producers JD Payne and Patrick McKay, while filmmaker JA Bayona (A Monster Calls, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom) directs the first two episodes. Check out the latest The Rings of Power trailer below: The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will be available to stream via Prime Video from Friday, September 2, 2022. Images: Matt Grace / Ben Rothstein.
Long before Photoshop became widely available photo hoaxes were much more noteworthy and had larger repercussions for contriving fake events. Today we are accustomed to seeing completely unrealistic and out-of-this-world scenes on photographic prints, but in bygone days society was a little more innocent. Whether used as propaganda in war times, t0 invent or perpetuate superstitions, to improve appearances, or to make ordinary events appear extraordinary, photo hoaxes have historically changed our perceptions, beliefs and even our actions. Here are ten of the most famous photo hoaxes (appropriately from The Museum of Hoaxes) throughout history. Portrait of a Photographer as a Drowned Man Hippolyte Bayard was angered by the lack of attention and recognition given to his independently developed process of direct positive printing, which was instead focused on his rival Louis Daguerre. In the 1830s during the race to perfect the printing process, Bayard was not remembered as the first to invent photography, yet he is known as the first to fake a photograph. To demonstrate his frustration, Bayard took a faux photo of himself as a suicide victim alongside a note reprimanding those who supported Daguerre as the discoverer of photography rather than himself. President Lincoln Due to Abraham Lincoln's lack of 'heroic-style' portraits, an amateur entrepreneur created the photo of Lincoln on the left by combining two other photographs. By cutting out Lincoln's head from a picture by Matthew Brady and pasting it onto an image of southern leader John Calhoun, this widespread image of a bold President Lincoln was created. The Cottingley Fairies Cousins Frances Griffith and Elsie Wright were playing in the garden of Elsie's Cottingley village home when a group of frolicking fairies seemingly decided to join in on their fun. The series of photos taken by the young girls captured the world's attention, providing 'proof' to many spiritualists that supernatural creatures really did exist. Little did the world know (until 1980) that the fairies were in fact only cardboard cutouts drawn by Elsie inspired by the book Princess Mary's Gift Book. Trotsky Vanishes Leon Trotsky, the second in command to Lenin in Soviet Russia during the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, was deported and eventually assassinated in later years after demonstrating open dissent towards Stalin's policies. This photo was taken in 1920, with the original depicting Vladimir Lenin atop a platform speaking to troops at Sverdlov Square and both Trotsky and Kamenev standing beside him on his left side. This picture is one of the most famous images in the many falsified photos using paint, razor and airbrushes as part of Stalin's attempt to eliminate all traces of the 'traitor' Trotsky. Baby Hitler In the 1930s, a photo supposedly showing a baby Adolf Hitler circulated throughout England and America. The menacing scowl upon the baby's face and greasy mop of hair covering its head was distributed by Acme Newspictures Inc. and appeared in a large number of newspapers and magazines. The photo actually portrayed a young american boy, John May Warren, whose cute and and bubbly features had been manipulated to make him look more sinister. The origin of the hoax picture has been traced back to Austria, Hitler's home country, yet the identity of the forger remains unknown. Lung-powered Flying Machine One of the most successful and widespread April Fools jokes in history, this photo was run in the Berliner Illustrierte Zeitung on April 1, 1934 presenting a flying machine run by the breath from a man's lung. Many immediately thought the image to be true and International News Photo distributed the image of this 'new invention' to its American subscribers. This caused the image to go viral, with it even making it into the New York Times. The Surgeon's Photo A few months after the initial media hype following a sighting of an 'enormous monster' by a couple in the Loch Ness, a highly respected British surgeon, Colonel Robert Wilson, came forward with a picture showing a serpent rising out of the water. By far the most famous image of the 'Loch Ness Monster', this photo, named 'The Surgeon's Photo' (due to Wilson's wish to remain anonymous) was debunked in 1994, 60 years after the photo's initial release. 90 year-old Christian Spurling, on the eve of his death, revealed his role in the hoax. At his stepfather's wishes he had created a toy submarine with a sea-serpent head to appear in a photograph, which Colonel Wilson would be the frontman for. The Brown Lady of Raynham By far one of the most famous ghost pictures, the Brown Lady supposedly haunted the walls of Raynham Hall in Norfolk, England. The image was taken by two photographers for Country Life magazine, who had been setting up their cameras and apparently saw an unearthly figure floating down the stairs and subsequently snapped a photo. The appearance of the ghost has later been attributed to camera vibration, light entering the lens from the window or double exposure, yet it is unknown whether the result was produced on purpose or was accidental. The Bluff Creek Bigfoot This image represents frame 352 of Patterson and Gimlin's infamous short film about Bigfoot set in Northern California. The pair set out out to make a documentary on horseback about the beast and conveniently managed to capture footage of a female 'Bigfoot' strolling along the river bank. Skeptics argue that this image is obviously just a figure in an ape suit, yet believers counter that costumes and effects were not sophisticated enough in 1967 to create such a believable image. The quality of the film is not good enough to conclusively prove or deny the existence of the beast, so feel free to make up your own mind on the authenticity of the image. The Foetal Footprint One of the more recent photo hoaxes, this image showing the outline of the foot of a baby in utero pressing against a pregnant mother's belly has gained widespread prominence on the internet and elsewhere. Many have been fooled by this miracle photo, but in actual fact, the abdominal wall is too thick and muscular for a foetal foot to be seen so clearly, and the foot itself is also unusually large.
For the first time in the award's 98-year history, a portrait of an Asian Australian has taken out the coveted Archibald Prize. The winner of the 2019 prize, announced today, is a painting of contemporary artist Lindy Lee by Sydney painter Tony Costa. Costa's oil painting, titled Lindy Lee, was chosen from 51 finalists, which include Tessa MacKay's Packing Room Prize-winning hyperreal portrait of actor David Wenham. In the portrait, Costa attempts to capture the energy of Lee — a practising Zen Buddhist and Taoist, who explores her Chinese ancestry and spirituality through her paintings and sculptures — through his use of minimal colour. "I have kept the colour minimal to avoid any visual noise," said Costa in a statement. "The challenge for me was to capture the energy of Lindy — the emotional over and above the physical. Costa said it was this energy — as well as her "wisdom, humility, courage, humour" — which attracted him to Lee, who was herself a Archibald finalist in 2002, and sat for portraits in 06 and 12. Costa's works are known for their distortion of form and colour, which he employs in this most-recent work. [caption id="attachment_721079" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Lindy Lee by Tony Costa.[/caption] In more good news, the winners of the Wynne and Sir John Sulman prizes were also revealed today. Sylvia Ken took out the former — which awards the best landscape painting of Australian scenery or figure sculpture — for her depiction of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands (Ken's homeland) and skies where the Seven Sisters story takes place. This is the fourth year in a row that an Indigenous Australian artist has been awarded the prize. [caption id="attachment_721082" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Seven Sisters by Sylvia a Ken. Photo by Jenni Carter.[/caption] The Sir John Sulman Prize goes to the best mural, subject or genre painting, and was this year awarded to McLean Edwards' work entitled The first girl that knocked on his door, depicting a young man looking for love. [caption id="attachment_721081" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The first girl that knocked on his door by McLean Edwards. Photo by Mim Stirling.[/caption] The winning portraits and finalists will be on display at Sydney's Art Gallery of NSW from tomorrow — Saturday, May 11 — up until September 9. If you do't agree with the judges, you can cast your own vote for People's Choice. ARCHIBALD PRIZE 2019 DATES Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney — May 11–September 9 TarraWarra Museum of Art, Victoria — September 14–November 5 Gosford Regional Gallery and Arts Centre, NSW — November 15–January 12, 2020 Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre, NSW — January 24, 2020–March 8 Bank Art Museum Moree, NSW — March 20, 2020–May 3 Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, NSW — May 15, 2020–June 28 Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery, NSW — July 3, 2020–August 16 If you can't make it to any of the above dates, you can check out the award winners and finalists of the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes on the Art Gallery of NSW website.
While those clever kids at Apple may one day run out of ideas, that doesn't look like it's happening anytime soon. The world's first trillion dollar company is clearly putting all that money to good use, unveiling its latest iPhone creations in California overnight. As always, it has upped the ante, dropping three new phones with a stack of bells and whistles that render your old iPhone X instantly uncool. As well as producing its biggest iPhone screen yet, Apple's ramped up the facial ID tech, unveiled an all-new Liquid Retina display and even engineered a fancy-pants dual camera system. Here are eight details about the new iPhone XS (pronounced 'ten ess') in dot point form that you can use for prime water cooler convo at work today. IT HAS THE LARGEST DISPLAY OF ANY IPHONE, EVER While the iPhone XS' screen clocks in at a pretty healthy 5.8 inches, the XS Max takes the cake with a 6.5-inch display — the biggest ever on an iPhone model. Basically, it makes your iPhone 8 look tiny by comparison. Team that with the highest pixel density of any Apple device and colour density to rival all other brands, and you've got yourself some pretty good on-phone video viewing. THERE'S A SWAG OF NEW COLOURS TO CHOOSE FROM That's right, folks — things are getting extra colourful in Apple town. Alongside the usual black and white, the XR (more on what this is later) is also available in bright blue, yellow, red and coral. The iPhone XS and XS Max keep things a little tamer, in space grey, silver and Apple's first plain gold-hued edition. IT'S SERIOUSLY TOUGH , WITH THE MOST DURABLE GLASS EVER DEVELOPED FOR A SMARTPHONE If broken phone screens are the bane of your existence, then the new iPhone XR was pretty much made for you. Boasting the most durable front glass display ever seen in any smartphone, it's precision-fitted, water-resistant up to one metre for 30 minutes, and laughs in the face of those coffee spills. IT HAS PORTRAIT MODE ON THE BACK AND FRONT CAMERAS Get ready to take your selfie game to a whole new level, with the iPhone XS' super high-tech dual camera system. This beauty has portrait mode on both the back camera and the front true-depth camera, with both enabling facial detection and landmarking. What's more, new technology means you can now adjust your snap's depth of field after the photo's taken. FACE ID IS HEAPS FASTER Now that we've all gotten used to the idea of unlocking our phones with only our eyeballs, Apple's honed its original Face ID technology, apparently making it faster and easier to use. A swag of new tech has made it even more secure, too, while advanced machine learning means it's smart enough to recognise changes to your appearance. IT TAKES LONGER TO DIE In excellent news for those fed up with lugging a charger everywhere they go, the iPhone XS Max is kitted out with iPhone's biggest battery ever, offering up to 90 minutes more battery life than any other phone you've had. IT'S REALLY REALLY PRICEY While the points above all sound great, they do, the whiz-bang new XS is gonna set you back a few dollaroos — 1629 dollaroos to be exact. Well, that's the starting price. The cool $1629 will get you a phone with 64GB, but f you want 512GB, you'll need to drop $2199. [caption id="attachment_688269" align="alignnone" width="1920"] iPhone XR[/caption] BUT APPLE HAS ALSO RELEASED A NEW AND CHEAPER OPTION It's called the iPhone XR, and in terms of size, it's in between the X and XS, but it's cheaper — $1229 — because it has a single rear camera, an aluminium frame and LCD screen. As mentioned above, it's also available in a heap more colours: white, black, blue, yellow, coral and red. If you this one, though, you'll need to wait a tad longer — it won't be available until October 26. The iPhone XS will be available from September 21, and keen beans can pre-order from September 14 here.
Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols should never be far from anyone's ears — but there's listening to the iconic 1977 punk album, the only studio record from Sex Pistols, and then there's hearing it played live in full. Down Under in 2025, Australian and New Zealand music lovers will be treated to that very experience, with the group locking in a tour. Band members Paul Cook, Steve Jones and Glen Matlock are heading this way in April, as part of a project dubbed Sex Pistols Featuring Frank Carter. As the band's moniker makes plain, this is a case of punk figures joining punk figures, as first happened back in August 2024 for fundraiser gigs in London. Clearly the setup worked. This will be Sex Pistols' first trip this way in almost 30 years, since 1996 — this time pairing drummer Cook, guitarist Jones and bassist Matlock with Gallows, Pure Love and Frank Carter and the Rattlesnakes alum Carter on vocals. The group have announced seven stops, starting in Auckland in Christchurch in Aotearoa, before playing Aussie gigs in Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle. John Lydon, aka Johnny Rotten, the band's well-known former lead vocalist, was last part of their lineup in 2008 — which is when Sex Pistols last toured before 2024. Hearing Never Mind the Bollocks live and in full almost five decades since its original release means hearing 'Anarchy in the UK', 'God Save the Queen', 'Pretty Vacant', 'Bodies', 'Holidays in the Sun' and more. If this feels like an incredibly rare chance to experience a slice of music greatness, that's because it is — and if you need any more motivation, Sex Pistols Featuring Frank Carter's UK gigs earned rave reviews. [caption id="attachment_986909" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Henry Ruggeri[/caption] Sex Pistols Featuring Frank Carter 2025 Australia and New Zealand Tour Wednesday, April 2 — Town Hall, Auckland Thursday, April 3 — Town Hall, Christchurch Saturday, April 5 — Festival Hall, Melbourne Sunday, April 6 — Hindley Street Music Hall, Adelaide Tuesday, April 8 — Hordern Pavilion, Sydney Wednesday, April 9 — Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane Friday, April 11 — Fremantle Prison, Fremantle Sex Pistols Featuring Frank Carter are touring Australia and New Zealand in April 2025, with ticket presales from 11am on Tuesday, January 21 and general sales from 12pm on Thursday, January 23. Head to the Australia and New Zealand tour websites for more details.
First, murder-mysteries kept filling streaming queues. Now, while that's still happening, everyone second whodunnit is a comedy as well. It worked for Only Murders in the Building, which will drop its third season this year. It's a treat in new Australian series Deadloch. And it also went down smoothly in the first season of Apple TV+'s The Afterparty, which is also about to release new episodes. Back when The Afterparty was picked up for another run in 2022, it was announced that season two would focus on Detective Danner (Tiffany Haddish, The Card Counter), given that the first season already wrapped up its self-contained stint of sleuthing. But she isn't the only character making a comeback with Aniq (Sam Richardson, I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson) and Zoe (Zoe Chao, Party Down) also returning. As the just-dropped trailer shows, the couple attend a wedding, the groom Edgar (Zach Woods, Avenue 5) ends up dead, and questions start being asked — including of the bride Grace (Poppy Liu, Dead Ringers), who is Zoe's sister. While season one also featured Ben Schwartz (Space Force), Zoe Chao (Love Life), Ilana Glazer (Broad City), Ike Barinholtz (The Mindy Project), Dave Franco (If Beale Street Could Talk), Jamie Demetriou (The Great) and John Early (Search Party), this new case will bring in Elizabeth Perkins (Barry), Paul Walter Hauser (Bupkis), Anna Konkle (PEN15), Jack Whitehall (Jungle Cruise), Vivian Wu (Irma Vep), John Cho (Cowboy Bebop) and Ken Jeong (Community) when it starts streaming from Wednesday, July 12. To get to the bottom of the case, Danner and Aniq team up to interrogate all the guests, which sees the show cycle through a range of film genres as it tells each person's tale. "Hit me with that Aniq rom-com sequel," demands Danner — and, with season two spanning ten episodes, that'll only be the beginning. Wes Anderson flicks, period romances and black-and-white gumshoe noirs all get a look-in in the sneak peek. Of course, while the settings change, and the motley crew of figures involved as well, plenty of whodunnits share the same premise. Take a ragtag group of folks, pop them all in the same spot, kill one off and then start asking questions — that's it, that's the formula. It works for board game Cluedo, it worked for Agatha Christie and her lengthy list of Hercule Poirot novels and stories, and it's also been behind everything from the Knives Out movies and The Translators to See How They Run and more in the past few years. So, letting The Afterparty have another run at it should be easy for creators Chris Miller and Phil Lord (The Lego Movie). Indeed, if season two lives up to the first season, viewers can look forward to another batch of episodes that twist in its their own directions, tell their tale with flair and approach the show's overall idea with a savvy sense of humour. Check out the trailer for season two of The Afterparty below: Season two of The Afterparty will stream via Apple TV+ from Wednesday, July 12. Read our full review of season one.
Maybe you love croissants. Perhaps you can't go past a pain au chocolat. If it's a pastry and it has a French history, it could just get your tastebuds melting. If any of these apply and you've been in the vicinity of Sanctuary Cove since 2022, then you might've enjoyed Rise Bakery's wares. Now, Brisbanites can tuck in without the trip to the Gold Coast. Next stop: Portside Wharf. After Rise's pastries quickly proved a hit on the coast, French-born chef pâtissier Adrien Marcinowski and fellow chef Maxime Bournazel have now done what plenty of popular eateries on the Glitter Strip did in the past: capitalised upon that success by expanding up to Brisbane. This is the first Brissie outpost for the company, with customers able to pick up artisanal bread as well. At the moment, however, Rise's Portside venue is doing takeaways and serving just a limited in-store menu as it gears up for a full official opening in August. Both now and in the future, the chain is serving up its bites in a space spanning across 75 square meters indoors, plus an extra 80 square metres over an al fresco terrace — to make the most of the waterfront location. Even better: Rise Bakery's Portside venue features a champagne bar for sips over croissants and cakes. Marcinowski and Bournazel were drawn to Portside because it reminded them of the French Riviera, with the design and decor of Rise's new white- and pink-hued location nodding in the same direction. Drinks-wise, as well as champagne, Portside visitors can sip Tavalon's tea, as well as locally roasted caffeinated brews from Bear Bones Coffee.
When you've been sipping on blue milk, how ready will you be to battle the Galactic Empire? Will tucking into green burgers and dessert space stations get you fuelled to rebel against oppression? There's only one way to find out the answers to these questions: by visiting the brand-new Star Wars Galactic Cafe, an Australian-first eatery that's now open at Melbourne Museum. After the Victorian venue became the top spot right now, in this very galaxy, to see Star Wars come to life via Lego courtesy of the world-premiering Lego Star Wars: The Exhibition — and the only place to check out life-sized recreations of the space saga's locations, characters, duels and moments as made out of eight-million-plus plastic bricks, in fact — the same site has welcomed another Aussie debut. As first announced back in May, never before has an official Star Wars cafe popped up Down Under. This one is only here for a limited season. Yes, blue milk is definitely on offer, because it wouldn't be a Star Wars-themed spot for a snack and a sip without it. You can enjoy it chilled or as part of a slushie. And the source of that all-important hue? Butterfly pea flower powder. The cafe's full food and drink range features other dishes and selections inspired by the franchise — and while there's no green milk or fish eggs, green-hued burgs and a Death Star by chocolate sweet treat are ready to tempt your tastebuds. Fittingly, the bites and drinks have names like Canto Bight Burger, Naboo Garden Vermicelli, Outer Rim Chicken Katsu and Tatooine Sunset. Also on offer: a Chewie gingerbread cookie that adorably resembles its namesake. A range of kids meal packs are available, too, with monikers such as Endo Explorer (featuring chicken nuggets) and Padawan Power (with a hummus and salad sandwich). Open since Saturday, June 7, 2025, the Star Wars Galactic Cafe is the result of Australian-first collaboration between Museums Victoria, Disney and Lucasfilm. The decor matches the menu, with the pop-up delivering an immersive eating and drinking experience beyond what you're consuming by taking you to a Corellian Star Cruiser to get feasting. If this sounds like the kind of spot that'll be popular, that's because it already is — so bookings are encouraged, with walk-in availability limited. As for the Aussie-exclusive exhibition that goes with it and opened back in May, it's the largest collection of life-sized Lego Star Wars models ever assembled and the biggest touring Lego showcase ever. The Millennium Falcon, Emperor Palpatine's throne flanked by two Royal Guards, a stormtrooper helmet, Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader facing off, and the Mandalorian and Moff Gideon: they're all featured in Lego Star Wars: The Exhibition, which hails from Ryan McNaught aka Brickman. Find the Star Wars Galactic Cafe at Melbourne Museum, 11 Nicholson Street, Carlton, operating from 10.30am–3.30pm daily for a limited season. Head to the museum's website for bookings and more details. Lego Star Wars: The Exhibition runs until Monday, January 26, 2026 at Melbourne Museum, 11 Nicholson Street, Carlton. Head to the exhibition's website for tickets and more details. Images: Carmen Zammit, courtesy of Museums Victoria.
It's been a busy 12 months or so for the folks at Montrachet, one of Brisbane's favourite French fine diners. Under the ownership of Shannon and Clare Kellam, the restaurant moved across town to Bowen Hills' King Street, then opened its own boulangerie — and now it's given the latter a makeover. King Street Bakery is the end result, with the multi-purpose spot open from Monday to Friday for both breakfast and lunch, and on Saturdays for a long, lazy brekkie. You can drop by to pick up freshly made brioche, baguettes, pastries, and sweet and savoury tarts to take home with you, or enjoy them in-store with a coffee. Or, you can settle in for a meal, with chefs Tara Bain and Jamie Pearce whipping up a small but significant menu. Early morning options include Granny Smith apple and caramel baked with brioche, rainbow trout fillet with poached eggs and marinated feta, and sautéed mushrooms with aged sheep's milk cheese and tarragon — plus takes on good ol' bacon and eggs, avocado on sourdough, and eggs benedict. Unsurprisingly, bread features heavily among the range of breakfast dishes. For lunch, diners can choose from seven options, including a seared black Angus onglet with French fries and French salad, and a Dutch cream potatoes with creme fraiche, gremolata, salmon roe and chives. With the bakery licensed, customers can also wash it all down with one of 14 wines or three beers.
Those lucky Parisians with their high-speed metros and regular services! They have so much infrastructure, it seems, they might get to party down in repurposed metro stations that no longer serve the network. Lucky. Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, a candidate for mayor of Paris, has proposed to reclaim abandoned "ghost stations" by repurposing them into pools, restaurants, auditoriums, theatres and clubs. Some of those metro stations — including Haxo, Porte-des-Lilas, Champ-de-Mars and more — were either never opened or closed during the 1930s and '40s. Parisian architect Manal Rachdi, along with urban planner Nicolas Laisné, have begun imagining how these might look; but the prospective mayor has opened the floor to the public with a co-creative platform whereby locals can access plans and pitch new ones for the stations. It might mean a spot of trouble for the squatters currently inhabiting them, but both locals and tourists should be able to enjoy these new sporting, cultural and festive venues. Not that this is an entirely unprecedented idea. Swedish design studio Visiondivision has plans to repurpose space beneath Stockholm's Tranebergsbron Bridge into a promenade, outdoor cinema and art gallery. And abandoned subway stations have long been home to underground parties in New York City. Regardless, none have stretched as far as Kosciusko-Morizet's proposal. Manal Rachdi and Nicolas Laisné reimagine Parisian ghost stations Proposed changes to Stockholm's Tranebergbron bridge. Via Gizmodo and Dezeen.
Not once, not twice, but nine times now across 46 years, cinema audiences have stepped into the world of xenomorphs, facehuggers and chestbursters — and of cats onboard spaceships, androids resembling humans and screams not heard in the universe's vast expanse. When Ridley Scott (Gladiator II) directed the initial Alien film, he helped start a sci-fi phenomenon. 2025's Alien: Earth is a first, however, given that it's the franchise's debut TV series. One of the show's twists is right there in its title, with the pale blue dot that humanity calls home giving Alien: Earth its setting. As the just-dropped full trailer for the series advises, there's another fresh element to its setup: "five different life forms from the darkest corners of the universe". In the works for a few years now, executive produced by Scott and due to debut via Disney+ on Wednesday, August 13, 2025 Down Under, this is Noah Hawley's addition to the saga — and another of his projects, after Fargo, where he's expanding upon the realm of a beloved film on the small screen. Set in 2120, his Alien entry follows the fallout of deep-space research vessel USCSS Maginot crashing onto earth, then the discoveries made as a result by a crew of soldiers that includes human-robot hybrid Wendy (Sydney Chandler, Sugar). As it peers just under a century into the future, Alien: Earth sees its namesake planet under the control of five companies: Weyland-Yutani, of course, because this is the Alien franchise, plus Prodigy, Lynch, Dynamic and Threshold. It also witnesses a society where hybrids like Wendy — the first of her kind, with human consciousness inside a robot body — live side by side with humans, cyborgs and AI-driven synthetics. Hawley's cast not only includes Chandler, but also Fargo alums Timothy Olyphant (Havoc) and David Rysdahl (The Luckiest Man in America), plus Alex Lawther (Andor), Essie Davis (The Narrow Road to the Deep North), Adrian Edmondson (Kidnapped), Samuel Blenkin (Mickey 17), Babou Ceesay (Killer Heat), Lily Newmark (A Gentleman in Moscow) and more. Alien: Earth expands a saga that began with one of the best sci-fi/horror movies ever back in 1979, and has since spanned 1986's Aliens, 1992's Alien 3, 1997's Alien Resurrection, 2012's Prometheus, 2017's Alien: Covenant and 2024's Alien: Romulus — as well as the 2004 Alien vs Predator and 2007 Aliens vs Predator: Requiem crossover flicks with the Predator franchise. The Predator world is also expanding in 2025 courtesy of the animated Predator: Killer of Killers and live-action Predator: Badlands, both directed by Dan Trachtenberg, who helmed 2022's excellent Prey. Check out the full trailer for Alien: Earth below: Alien: Earth starts streaming Down Under via Disney+ from Wednesday, August 13, 2025.
If you like your spirits dark and your booze collection could use a top-up, then we know an excellent Aussie choice to add to that shopping list. Melbourne distiller The Gospel just cleaned up in the 2023 International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) earlier this week. The Brunswick-based producer took out a gold medal in the prestigious awards, earning a score of 96 points from the judges for its signature Straight Rye Whiskey. That impressive effort resulted in the sip being the highest-awarded Aussie whiskey in the entire competition. But wait, there's more. The Gospel's score also saw it become the equal second highest ranked rye whisky in the world. Not too shabby for a small distillery located in the backstreets of Melbourne's inner north. Judges described the drop as being "decadent and complex", noting: "the palate is harmonious and well-balanced, leading to a memorable finish." And it wasn't the only Gospel creation that impressed, with the team's Solera Rye Whiskey nabbing its own silver medal at the awards. This year's IWSC pulled more than 4100 entries from across the world, with more than 250 expert judges tasked with sipping, critiquing and awarding them. Thought to be Australia's only dedicated rye whiskey distillery, The Gospel crafts its booze using unmalted rye from just one farmer, who's located in South Australia's Murray Mallee region. It's helmed by Ian Thorn, the first maker in Australia to score Master Distiller accreditation. If you're keen to sample more of the distillery's work, The Gospel's also just dropped a new limited-edition cacao husk liqueur for Easter, made in collaboration with the chocolate masters at Mork. The Gospel Straight Rye Whiskey is available to buy from the website, as well as at select bottle shops across Australia.
Did Hollywood have a disagreement with its past, get a fortune cookie predicting the future, feel an earthquake shudder, then wake up back in the 80s and 00s? Based on two new flicks heading to cinemas, yes, it must've. Because everything old is always new again in Tinseltown — a trend that's bringing Cruel Intentions, Twilight and Harry Potter back, too — both Freaky Friday and Beetlejuice are scoring sequels. Unlike those big-screen sagas and their upcoming TV versions, this pair of films is getting movie follow-ups — and they're set to feature members of their original casts as well. For Freaky Friday 2: Freak Harder (which won't be its actual name), that means reuniting Everything Everywhere All At Once Oscar-winner Jamie Lee Curtis with Lindsay Lohan (Falling for Christmas) two decades later. With Beetlejuice 2: Electric Boogaloo (again, not its actual name), Michael Keaton (Morbius) and Winona Ryder (Stranger Things) are back with the poltergeists. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed the Freaky Friday news, noting that Elyse Hollander will pen the script. Story details haven't been revealed, but body-swapping is bound to feature given that's what Freaky Friday has always been about. Drinking, dancing, getting angry that your mum won't let you go to your band's big audition, eating those enchanted cookies — perhaps that'll all get worked in as well. For this franchise, it all started with 1972 book by Mary Rodgers, then the 1976 Jodie Foster (The Mauritanian)-starring first movie adaptation, and also a 1995 remake with Gaby Hoffman (C'mon C'mon). After 2003's beloved Curtis- and Lohan-led take, horror flick Freaky gave the idea a spin in 2020. Freaky Friday 2 doesn't have a release date yet, but Beetlejuice 2 does: September 6, 2024 in the US. It'll continue the story started in Tim Burton's 1988 hit Beetlejuice, with Wednesday favourite Jenna Ortega playing the daughter of Ryder's Lydia Deetz. As Variety reports, Justin Theroux (White House Plumbers) is also among the cast. You don't need a Handbook for the Recently Deceased in your ghostly hands to get excited, but you might spend time with folks with one, which is what happened with the original flick's Barbara and Adam Maitland (GLOW's Geena Davis and Dr Death's Alec Baldwin). In the first film, viewers also saw what happened when that pair started to suspect that they're no longer alive, a new family moved into their house (including Schitt's Creek's Catherine O'Hara) and they decided they needed a 'bio-exorcist'. The Freaky Friday sequel doesn't yet have a release date, while Beetlejuice 2 will release in September 2024 — we'll keep you updated as more details are announced. Via The Hollywood Reporter / Variety.
The Australian winners for the Airbnb Host Awards for 2022 have just been announced. As well as operating impressive places to stay, these Hosts have been recognised for providing extra special hospitality, going the extra mile to provide things like breakfast hampers, welcome gifts sourced from local boutiques and other stand-out experiences. It's far beyond the 'find your key in the lock box hidden in the carport, mind the rusty nails and spiderwebs' kind of hospitality. These Hosts truly go all out. The coveted Host of the Year award went to Alstonvale's Carla Dawes (pictured below), whose Olinda Cottage in the NSW Northern Rivers welcomes guests with a mix of personal touches, unexpected features and warm and welcoming experiences. Dawes cooks up homemade meals, gathers fresh flowers for each guest, buys local sourdough for brekkie and has even lent a hand with a proposal. (We just hope the couple left a five-star review.) Tasmanians Peter and Charlie were named Best New Host for the luxury self-contained studio they run on their bush property in the Huon Valley. One of the biggest perks of this stay is the in-studio dining — the hosts cook up a restaurant-quality dinner made from produce grown in their very own permaculture food garden. Meanwhile, The Winged House (pictured below), which is designed to look like a plane on a cliffside in Tasmania's Table Cape, has picked up the Most Unique Stay award. We'd also put it up for best room with a view — the panoramic sea views here are next-level stunning. The sole Victorian property on the list took out the title of Best Designed Stay. Coombs Hill Barn (pictured below), located in Merrijig in Victoria's High Country, was a true labour of love for owners Katherine and Wade Harris — they spent three years dismantling, re-erecting and designing a 160-year-old barn that they had shipped over from the USA. The result is a truly breathtaking property that blends traditional, rustic and industrial accents with a natural palette inspired by the surrounding mountains. The Best Nature Stay award, recognising Hosts who showcase the best of Australia's stunning natural landscape, went to The Container. Susie and Gordon (pictured below) have been Hosts for over 12 years, and wanted to ensure their Airbnb encompassed nature from the outside in while showcasing the possibilities of sustainable travel. Everything here is eco-friendly, from the repurposed shipping container which makes up the shell of the accommodation to the solar- and hydro-powered electricity that the property runs on and chooks laying eggs for guests. Plus, this rural paradise is located just 20 minutes from Launceston, making it an easy choice for holidaymakers looking to reduce their travel footprint. Of course, Airbnb isn't just about accommodation — it's also a platform for experience providers. Paul Quincey won the award for Most Magical Experience for his guided kayak tours along a secluded part of Noosa's Lake Weyba — and on-water experience that gives visitors the chance to see sea eagles and stingrays in their native habitats. For the full list of this year's winners and runners-up in each category (and to plan your next stay), head to the Airbnb website. FYI, this story includes some affiliate links. These don't influence any of our recommendations or content, but they may make us a small commission. For more info, see Concrete Playground's editorial policy.
UPDATE: OCTOBER 6, 2020 — Due to worldwide cinema closures and other concerns around COVID-19, Dune will no longer release in December 2020. Instead, it will now release on Thursday, September 30, 2021. This article has been updated to reflect that change. To find out more about the status of COVID-19 in Australia and how to protect yourself, head to the Australian Government Department of Health's website. A beloved science fiction title. A star-studded cast. A Hans Zimmer score. Combining all three worked rather spectacularly in Blade Runner 2049, and now filmmaker Denis Villeneuve is hoping that it'll just turn out just as swimmingly with his Timothée Chalamet, Oscar Isaac and Zendaya-led version of Dune. In the latest adaptation of Frank Herbert's 1965 novel, Chalamet plays Paul Atreides — son of Duke Leto Atreides (Isaac), who has just been given stewardship of the planet Arrakis. In this futuristic tale, Arrakis is the source of 'the spice', the most valuable substance in the universe. It's also home to a population of people known as the Fremen, as well as to giant sandworms, and it's known for being dangerous partly due to the latter. And, once Paul, Leto and Paul's mother Lady Jessica (Doctor Sleep's Rebecca Ferguson) move to the planet, it's the subject of a bitter battle with malicious forces over the spice trade. If all of the above sounds more than a bit familiar, that's because David Lynch brought Dune to the screen back in 1984, with his Kyle MacLachlan-starring movie becoming one one of the most unfairly maligned sci-fi films ever made. Fellow director Alejandro Jodorowsky also tried to make his own version — a feat that wasn't successful, sadly, but was explored in the excellent documentary Jodorowsky's Dune. Just how Villeneuve's take will fare is still yet to be seen, obviously, with the film initially due to hit cinemas Down Under on Boxing Day 2020, but now slated to release on September 30, 2021. But the French Canadian director has an impressive resume — see: Arrival, Sicario, Enemy, Prisoners and Incendies, just to name a few titles on his resume — and with Dune, he's clearly reaching for epic territory. The long-awaited, just-dropped first trailer makes that case quite heartily. As well as serving up plenty of Call Me By Your Name and Little Women's Chalamet as the film's brooding hero, the sneak peek features sandy expanses aplenty, a scream-inducing box of pain, and many a confrontation. And, a stellar cast that also includes Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, Charlotte Rampling, Jason Momoa and Javier Bardem, all getting caught up in a spice war. Check out the trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9xhJrPXop4 Dune was originally scheduled to release in Australian cinemas on December 26, 2020, but will now hit screens on September 30, 2021. Top image: Chiabella James. Copyright: © 2020 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Things just got a whole lot easier for cyclists. At long last, you can now carry your two-wheelers on peak hour trains and long-haul flights without enraging fellow commuters, paying excess baggage fees and (most importantly) compromising on dimensions. A 30-year-old Italian designer by the name of Gianluca Sada has come up with a bicycle that folds down to the size of an umbrella yet boasts full-size 26-inch hubless, spokeless wheels. So, not only does it go faster than your average foldable, it’s also more stable. And it looks significantly sexier. Sada has been cooking up the eponymous bike for six years. He registered the patent on March 5, 2010 and by December 2011 had developed an aluminum alloy prototype with the help of precision engineering company Palmec SNC. Right now, he’s looking for investors. "The project may pave the way for a new system of mobility outside the classical schemes, widely accessible and easily transportable," he says. "Personal style and extreme versatility give dynamism to the traditional bicycle... increasingly required in this environmentally friendly age." Sada studied at the Politecnico di Torino, completing a degree in Automotive Engineering in 2010. His thesis, which focused on the development of the foldable bicycle, was awarded First Prize in IDEA-TO’s “most innovative thesis of 2010”, conducted by the Order of Engineers of Turin. In November 2010, Italian Minister for Youth, Giorgia Meloni, listed Sada among the "200 Top Talents of Italy". Via Gizmag.
When lunar new year arrived earlier in February, the year of the tiger kicked into swing — but 2022 just might be the year of the red panda, too. Pixar's next animated flick about a girl who turns into a red panda, called Turning Red, hits streaming in March, and Taronga Zoo has just announced that it's now home to a couple more of the IRL critters. And if you'd like to spend your time checking out the latter right now, no matter the weather or where you live, the Sydney spot has also launched a red panda cub cam. The word you're looking for? Or the sound, to be more accurate? Yes, it's "awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww". The two cubs were born back on December 8 to mum Amala and dad Pabu, and don't yet have names, but you can now watch them from home whenever you like. Taronga's red panda cub cam is free, too, and features videos of the little cuties being born, plus weekly highlights showcasing what they've been up to. So, you can't live-stream them all day every day, but you can still get a huge dose of adorableness. The camera is currently trained on the cubs' purpose-built, soundproof nest box, where they've been living with Amala since birth. Expect to see plenty of mum as well, with Taronga's Carnivore Keeper Rebecca Baldwin advising that she's usually on hand looking after her little ones. "Amala is very attentive and nurturing. Through the monitoring of our CCTV cameras, we can see that she is constantly grooming and cleaning the cubs and is encouraging them to take their first wobbly steps within the security of their nest box," said Baldwin. "Whilst they are still small and weighing only a couple of hundred grams, the cubs are spending their time within the security of their nest box which makes for great viewing. They won't start to venture out under the cover of darkness until they're about 12 weeks old," said Baldwin. Taronga already lets you fill your time staring at capybaras, seals, meerkats, otters, sumatran tigers, lions and elephants, all without leaving your home, thanks to its online TV channel — but if it keeps adding cameras, we'll keep watching. Taronga Zoo Sydney and Taronga Western Plains Zoo Dubbo started their online streams in 2020 for obvious reasons, and also releases regular videos across its Facebook, Instagram and YouTube channels — and makes keeper talks and other clips available online as well. To watch Taronga Zoo's red panda cub cam, head to the zoo's website. To check out Taronga TV, head to the channel's website — or keep an eye on its videos on its Facebook, Instagram and YouTube pages.
If you believe that bigger is better, then it has been more than a decade since Melbourne boasted one of the most important claims to fame in the country. From 1991 to 2005, the city was the home of Australia's tallest building — but soon, after temporarily losing the crown to the Gold Coast, everyone will be looking up again in the Victorian capital. Thank a just-approved 323-metre, 90-storey tower for thrusting Melbourne back to great heights, with the giant structure destined to change the skyline at Southbank. Called One Queensbridge, it'll form part of the Crown precinct, and will feature a six-star hotel with 388 rooms, 708 residential apartments and the kind of other reasons to drop by (most likely shops and restaurants) that have been dubbed "visitor attractions". The development will also see Queensbridge Square get an upgrade that includes landscaping and new cafes, a new bike strip installed on Southbank Boulevard, and street furniture and additional trees placed along Queensbridge Street. And as for the building itself, it has been designed by WilkinsonEyre, who got the gig by winning an international design competition. Don't expect to see the massive complex towering over the city just yet, though, with construction not expected to start until 2018 — or finish for five or six years after that. Until then, Queensland's Q1 will keep winning in the big building stakes, with Melbourne's Eureka Tower in second spot.
