Your winter art itinerary just got a little fuller, with regional Victoria's famed Silo Art Trail unveiling its latest creative addition — a large-scale work titled Yangga Dyata ('Walking on Country'), by photo realism artist Smug AKA Sam Bates. Gracing a silo and flour mill in Horsham, the newcomer marks the 13th mural for the cultural attraction, which winds over 200 kilometres through the state's northwest to form Australia's largest outdoor gallery. Commissioned by Horsham Rural City Council via international street art agency Juddy Roller, Smug's new work is a two-part celebration of historic Wotjobaluk warrior Yanggendyinanyuk. The tracker, cricketer and cultural icon is depicted in a colourful realist portrait wrapped across the silo, while the adjacent flour mill bears the likeness of Yanggendyinanyuk's totem, the black cockatoo. The new addition is actually Smug's third work to feature in the Silo Art Trail — you'll spy the artist's painting of a flannel-clad farmer and his work dog on a concrete silo in Nullawil, and in Arkona, his tennis-themed tribute to local legend Roley Klinge. First dreamt up back in 2016, evolving from a small community art project, the now famed Silo Art Trail features a growing lineup of mural portraits, painted by a collective of artists in conjunction with Juddy Roller. They aim to capture the spirit and history of this unique corner of the world, with each work offering a snapshot of its host town and residents. If you're visiting the art trail from Melbourne, the first silo mural you'll hit is Julia Volchkova's artwork in Rupanyup, around 3.5 hours' drive from the CBD. Yangga Dyata sits about 30 minutes west of this. Find 'Yangga Dyata' at 35 Wawunna Road, Horsham. For more details on the Silo Art Trail and to plan your visit, see the website.
Brazilian beer company Antarctica Beer has created one of the most innovative products to ever come out of a brewery, the Beer Turnstile. Created for the Rio de Janeiro Carnival, one of the world's biggest parties, of which Antarctica Beer is the official sponsor, it was designed to inspire partygoers to catch public transport to and from the festival. When they arrived at the subway station to head home, they did not have to buy a ticket; all the drinkers had to do was pop their empty beer can into the turnstile and, once it was recognised by the reader in the machine, they gained access to their ride home. Whilst the turnstile was an excellent business move — if people do not have to drive they can of course drink more Antarctica Beer throughout the evening — it likely contributed to the 43 percent decrease in drink driving recorded at this year's event and lowered the impact of the festival on the environment, as every can submitted was recycled and the turnstile averaged more than 1000 patrons an hour. It also created less mess for the city to clean, music to the ears of some happy Brazilian workers. Via PSFK.
Want to keep your building cool in summer but are self-conscious of the impact it may have on the environment? Well, those worries could soon be a thing of the past, thanks to the environmentally friendly wooden skin erected by French architect Stephane Malka on student housing in Paris. The wooden skin is constructed on the exterior of buildings and consists of a host of pallets of varying dimensions that can be mechanically expanded or contracted, via horizontal hinges, to let in more or less ventilation and daylight as required. Stephane constructed The AME-LOT project, named after the rue Amelot the housing resides on, in response to ecological strategies that "often generate an over-production of materials". By building on top of pre-existing structures, Malka hopes to showcase a sustainable and ecological alternative that does not require new construction by 'energyvores'. As well as its environmental benefits, it would certainly look incredible on the body of a skyscraper. [Via PSFK]
Ever since floundering onto Australian screens in Race Around the World, John Safran's established a reputation for daring and provocative comedy. He's been (literally) crucified, gone through Ray Martin's rubbish, set himself on fire in St Kilda (to protest the suspension of Spida Everitt), and got a radical Islamic cleric to put a fatwa on Rove McManus. But Safran's brand of confrontation has been tempered throughout by a documentarian's eye for the issues, with satire as the framework for serious investigations of religion, race, and social identity. In his talk at the Wheeler Centre, he'll be discussing his newly-launched book, Murder in Mississippi, a hefty tale of true crime in the tradition of In Cold Blood. The book was spawned from Safran meeting an avowed racist while filming in America's Deep South. After returning to Australia and hearing of the man's death, he began to unravel the rich contradictions at the heart of this character. Guiding us through the making of his book, Safran might just give away his secret — how did he document a story in such a powerful and effective way without sacrificing any part of his own deeply distinctive voice?
You'll find big things in small packages at the St Kilda Film Festival this year. That's true every year, of course, even when Melbourne has been under lockdown. But in these pandemic-adjusted times, you'll also find bite-sized flicks gracing screens both big and small — because while Australia's oldest short film festival is very much happening in-person in 2022, physically descending upon St Kilda venues, there's also still an online option that screens to movie buffs at home and nationally. This hybrid version of the fest — the event's 39th outing, in fact — places the emphasis on the in-cinema experience, though. And, it's just as devoted as ever to showcasing works by some of the best up-and-coming filmmakers in the country. So, across ten days between Friday, May 27–Sunday, June 5, 13 out-of-the-house sessions will pop up all around St Kilda, kicking off with opening night at The Astor Theatre. As always, the backbone of the festival is Australia's Top Short Films, featuring filmmakers from every corner of the country competing for prizes. Also on the bill at ticketed screenings: programs dedicated to queer, documentary, student, horror-themed, family-friendly animation, Aussie animation, homegrown in general, Australian drama, female-directed, First Peoples' and Victorian-made shorts. And, for those playing along from their couches, online sessions include a couple of programs curated by the Scottish Documentary Institute, highlights from the Obu Short Film Festival in Japan (aka the City of Port Phillip's sister city) and the closing night awards. Plus, there's also a look at acclaimed Aussie filmmaker Warwick Thornton's (Sweet Country) early works as a cinematography student, and then cinematographer and director. [caption id="attachment_572561" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Jim Lee[/caption]
Whether you're a summer lover or someone who spends the season beneath the air-con, sometimes the only cure for beating the January heat is a sweet scoop of ice cream. Mercifully, Pidapipo is back with another month of limited-edition flavours designed to make the hot weather a little more bearable. While the likes of chocolate and vanilla basically never go out of style, Pidapipo is turning its attention to gelato and sorbet over the next four weeks. That means fruity goodness, from mangoes and strawberries to peaches and passionfruit, that'll bring some much-needed refreshment to a sweltering day or night. Best of all, there's no shortage of options, with a dozen short-run flavours to explore. Think inventive creations like mascarpone and peach swirl, strawberry rose and cream, mango lassi, and nectarine cream with nectarine and amaretti crumb swirl. Of course, the full range of Pidapipo's signature house flavours is also ready for scooping at all stores. So, double down alongside a limited-edition flavour or opt for a single classic Italian-style delight, such as Nutella swirl, salted caramel or vanilla and honeycomb. Either way, the heat won't seem so bad, at least for a few moments.
You know when you're travelling and you receive a red-hot tip from a local? They point you in the direction of the best fried chicken joint, a secret underground bar or an offbeat gallery — something that transforms your trip and lets you see the real city as you would've never seen it. It can really make a trip. So to help you uncover some local gems on your next Sydney visit, we've partnered with the City of Sydney to create a local's guide to the city. We've honed in on ten inner-city suburbs and pulled out experiences to take you past the Opera House and Harbour Bridget and deeper into the local's locales. [caption id="attachment_696573" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Continental CBD by Kitti Smallbone.[/caption] SMALL BARS IN THE CBD There was a time when after the hustle and bustle of Sydney CBD's nine-to-five crowd subsided, the streets turned tumbleweed quiet. But thankfully, that time has passed. Over the last ten years or so, the CBD has acquired several top-notch venues. While you may have visited some of the small bar stalwarts — The Baxter Inn, The Barber Shop, SILY, Bulletin Place (just to name a few) — there are several newcomers to discover, too. Be sure to stop by Old Mate's Place rooftop bar with a warm and welcoming library-esque aesthetic, head to Continental Deli, Bar and Bistro CBD to enjoy a mar-tinny (a martini in a can) with a plate of charcuterie and cheese at the luxe marble-top bar or seek out 1950s-inspired Maybe Sammy where cocktails come in tubes or matched with passionfruit-scented hand cream. [caption id="attachment_660514" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Paramount House Hotel by Tom Ross.[/caption] A HUB OF COOL IN SURRY HILLS The effortlessly cool Surry Hills is bursting at the super-stylish seams with must-visit bars and eateries — a few of which conveniently reside together in Paramount House. The heritage-listed building on Commonwealth Street is home to Golden Age Cinema and Bar, new natural-wine-plenty restaurant Poly, a lush boutique hotel, rooftop fitness centre complete with on-call massage therapists and a cafe which serves arguably the best coffee in Sydney. Start your day with a cup of joe at Paramount Coffee Project in the lobby of the building, then make your way up to the Paramount Recreation Centre. Even if you aren't a guest at the Paramount House Hotel, you can still grab a day pass to the gym and attend one of the classes on offer. Come evening, park yourself at Poly for pre-cinema seasonal share plates and excellent wine before making your way to a showing at the in-house cinema's petit theatre — the former Paramount Pictures screening room. [caption id="attachment_705398" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Social Outfit by Luisa Brimble.[/caption] SUSTAINABLE SHOPPING IN NEWTOWN Newtown is known for its abundance of street art, eccentric residents and overall buzzing vibe. To really do the suburb like a local, we suggest spending a day sustainably shopping along main drag King Street — before checking out one of the best bars in the area. From the top of King down, you'll come across the likes of U-Turn, Cream on King and SWOP Clothing Exchange where you'll find well-curated, secondhand fashions to dig into, plus Good Times Vintage, Vintage 585, Faster Pussycat and Retrospec'd, which house fashion, homewares, decor and plenty more from decades past. If that isn't quite enough, you can exercise your gem-finding prowess at the Red Cross and Vinnies shops, too. And if you're really after something new, check out The Social Outfit. While you won't find any vintage, the store is an ethical enterprise that supports people from refugee and migrant communities by providing training and employment in the fashion industry. You can pick up a unique piece that tells an amazing human story all while financially empowering people. It's a win-win. [caption id="attachment_652447" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Ellery by Kitti Gould.[/caption] AUSTRALIAN FASHION AND DESIGN IN PADDINGTON If vintage and op shopping is not your forte (we get it, not everyone has the eye and/or patience), head for a shop in Paddington. This Australian fashion hub has a host of homeware shops and fashion boutiques to browse. If you're keen to get up close and personal with our best and brightest designers, The Intersection should be your starting point. Flagship after Australian designer flagship line the street here and pull you deeper into the suburbs via the likes of Alice McCall, Camila and Marc, Dion Lee, Ellery, Manning Cartell, Scanlan Theodore and Zimmermann (to name but a few). As for homewares and decor, independent design shop Opus will sort you out with vintage board games, quirky gadgets and retro video consoles; Dinosaur Designs will help you find some statement resin jewellery and free-form wares for your home; and Jardan will indulge any design addict with a shop full of gorgeous furnishings — you'll wish the space itself was your actual home. [caption id="attachment_664457" align="alignnone" width="1920"] White Rabbit.[/caption] ART GALLERIES IN CHIPPENDALE The suburb with more independent galleries than you can poke a paintbrush at, Chippendale is a must-visit for any art lover. Start by checking out Galerie Pompom on Abercrombie Street — a space dedicated to developing and nurturing mid-career artists from Melbourne and Sydney — and White Rabbit, a four-storey gallery showcasing a beautifully curated, impressive private collection of contemporary Chinese art. Other art spaces championing Australian (and some international) artists in the area include Wellington St Projects, Nanda/Hobbs, Harrington Street Gallery and Verge Gallery. And for an even deeper dive into the arty precinct, you can join the Chippendale and Redfern walking tour by Culture Scouts, who'll take you beyond the galleries to discover the local public artworks, architecture and street art. [caption id="attachment_705409" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Frenchies Bistro and Brewery.[/caption] A HUB OF FOOD, DRINK AND SHOPPING IN ROSEBERY If you've visited Sydney before, you've almost certainly been to The Grounds. A cafe, bakery, florist, restaurant, farm and mini market all in one, the place is a mecca for highly likeable Instagram posts. It's also a brunch mecca, with locals and visitors alike making the pilgrimage to Alexandria each weekend. If you're after something a bit more subdued, set your sites on The Cannery in the neighbouring Rosebery. Similar to The Grounds in how its helped transform this former industrial area into a food lover's haven, The Cannery is home to an even larger variety of food, drink and shopping options. It's here where you'll find Archie Rose, Sydney's first distillery to open in over 160 years Archie Rose; Frenchies Bistro and Brewery (with an on-site brewing facility); and boutique bottleshop Drink Hive, which slings natural wines, independent brews and local spirits. There are also several eateries in the precinct including the Aussie-Japanese-serving Stanton and Co, purveyors of watermelon cakes (and other sweets) Black Star Pastry and Argentinian grill masters Three Blue Ducks, to name but a few. Visit on an empty stomach, guys. [caption id="attachment_635940" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Bearded Tit by Katje Ford.[/caption] LOCAL CREATIVES IN REDFERN When a place is called the Bearded Tit, you know it's going to be good. This brazen art bar on Regent Street is just one of many left-of-centre venues in Redfern and, beyond the crocheted penises and taxidermy boar, it highlights what the suburb does best: intersect art and culture with a good drink. 107 Projects is another creative space where you can experience regular art shows, gigs and performances by local artists, musicians, comedians and theatre groups, all while enjoying a tipple or two. You can even channel your own creative energy with some locals at one of the weekly Wednesday Night Creative Hangouts or Life Drawing Socials. While in the area, make sure to pop into Indigenous-owned cafe The Tin Humpy. Run by Bundjalung woman Yvette Lever and her family, the cafe slings homemade pastries alongside coffee from The Grounds and presents a stunning Indigenous art collection to boot. [caption id="attachment_653243" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dae Jang Kum by Kitti Gould.[/caption] A CULINARY JOURNEY THROUGH ASIA VIA HAYMARKET Running adjacent to the CBD, Haymarket is a melting pot of different Asian cultures and cuisines. Whichever eats you're craving, you'll find them here (along with muchos bubble tea to wash it all down with). Keen for Chinese? Hit up yum cha favourite Marigold for a morning feast of dim sim, pork buns, rice noodles and creamy mango pancakes, or stop by the noodle and dumpling haven at the Prince Centre for some of Sydney's favourite cheap eats — there are at least four dumpling eateries to choose from but many Sydneysiders are quite partial to the spot lovingly known as 'grapes on the roof'. In the mood for Korean? Make tracks to Koreatown for barbecued sizzling meats at 678 Korean BBQ, steamy spicy hotpots at Dae Jang Kum or some finger-lickin' Seoul-style fried chicken at Arisun (a favourite spot for many Sydney chefs). Have a hankering for Japanese? Pop by Menya Noodle Bar and take your pick from 17 different types of ramen (the black garlic ramen is a go). We could continue with Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian… but it's best you just check it out yourself. [caption id="attachment_524715" align="alignnone" width="1280"] The Old Fitzroy Hotel.[/caption] DINNER AND A SHOW IN KINGS CROSS The Cross has undergone a pretty drastic transformation. The days of teapots at World Bar and rowdy all-nighters may be gone, however, excellent restaurants and independent theatres have helped keep the neighbourhood alive. Step into the 1930s at Dulcie's basement bar and enjoy a punchy espresso martini with a side of nostalgia. The bar is a homage to the Cross's past with an art deco aesthetic and stage that hosts theatre, dance and cabaret shows after midnight. There are also several small theatres in the area conveniently located within a few blocks of each other (and some of Sydney's top restaurants), including the Griffin, Hayes Theatre Co and The Old Fitz. At the Griffin, you'll find brand new works and Australian stories; cabaret and musical theatre are the go at Hayes Theatre Co (the Monty Python's Spamalot will run from Wednesday, March 6 to Saturday, April 6 this year); and The Old Fitz, run by Red Line Productions and located inside a pub, offers quality independent productions for as little as $20 a ticket. LOCAL SOUVENIRS IN GLEBE For boho vibes, a throng of neighbourhood eateries and some of Sydney's most chill humans, head to Glebe. Before heading for this incredible burnt butter hummus at Middle Eastern eatery Thievery, pay a visit to The Works. At this three-storey space on Glebe Point Road, local creatives design, make and exhibit their work. It functions as a cafe and coworking spot, as well as a pop-up shop where local designers can showcase their wares. This is the spot to hit for some truly local souvenirs with everything from jewellery, shoes and environmentally conscious activewear to prints, greeting cards and screen-printed totes to vegan soaps and hand-poured soy candles. With an ever-changing roster of local artisans, each visit will bring something new to the table (and probably your home). Forgo the tourist traps and instead traverse the great City of Sydney like a local. Discover more around the city here. Top image: Continental CBD by Kitti Gould.
If all you want for Christmas is a trip to a part of Australia like no other, then there's no need to ask Santa for tickets in your stocking. You can, of course, but for five days from Thursday, December 8—Monday, December 12, discounted fares to the Northern Territory are on offer as part of Jetstar's big pre-Christmas flight sale. Treat yo'self to an early festive holiday booking and get a jump on your 2023 vacation planning all at once, with $89 flights to Uluru up for grabs. That's how much it'll cost to get to the Red Centre from Melbourne, but you'll also only pay $109 one-way from either Sydney or Brisbane. [caption id="attachment_840264" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism NT[/caption] For NT visitors keen on scoping out Darwin instead, all fares are under $150, with prices varying depending on the departure point. For Brisbanites, the starting price is $109, while Adelaide residents can get $129 fares, and Sydneysiders and Melburnians can book $149 flights. If it feels like these kinds of sales pop up often, that's because they have been lately. 'Tis the season after Black Friday and Cyber Monday, after all. That said, no travel aficionado will ever complain about too many opportunities to nab cheap flights. The usual Jetstar caveats apply: all sale fares are one-way, and they don't include checked baggage — so you'll need to travel super light or pay extra to take a suitcase. [caption id="attachment_813586" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Darwin Festival, Elise Derwin[/caption] And if you're wondering what to do when you're there, fares are on sale for trips between May and September 2023, which means checking out Darwin's BASSINTHEGRASS music festival headlined by Tones and I, Baker Boy, Amy Shark and Ocean Alley — or enjoying the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair, Country to Couture, the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Awards, the National Indigenous Music Awards and Darwin Festival. Or, obviously, there's Uluru itself, all of the tours and experiences around the sacred spot, and Bruce Munro's dazzling Field of Light. [caption id="attachment_847444" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism Central Australia[/caption] Jetstar's 'post-Chrissy recovery' sale runs from 12am AEDT on Thursday, December 8 till 11.59pm AEDT on Monday, December 12 — or until sold out, if snapped up earlier. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
"Kidnapping, cults, death. Your friendships are a little more complicated than most." So says Elijah Wood in the new trailer for one of 2023's most-anticipated TV returns: Yellowjackets, which'll finally be back for season two from late March. Fans of the show would expect nothing less than Wood's concise summary, given this instantly intriguing (and excellent) series follows a New Jersey high school's girls soccer team in the 90s after they crash in the forest and possibly turn to cannibalism — plus the aftermath among the survivors 25 years later. Indeed, already in season one, life and friendship have proven complex for Yellowjackets' core quartet of Shauna (Don't Look Up's Melanie Lynskey as an adult, and also The Kid Detective's Sophie Nélisse as a teenager), Natalie (Welcome to Chippendales' Juliette Lewis, plus The Book of Boba Fett's Sophie Thatcher), Taissa (Billions' Tawny Cypress, and also Scream's Jasmin Savoy Brown) and Misty (Wednesday's Christina Ricci, as well as Shameless' Samantha Hanratty). Also in the works in the show's second season, as based on the just-dropped sneak peek: Natalie been guided through her memories, snowy climes aplenty, the eerie symbol that's always been at the heart of the series, frantic dances, long treks, guns and axes, and a new connection between Misty and newcomer Walter (Wood), a citizen detective. Ominous words abound, too, such as "darkness, we brought it back with us", "it's happening again, isn't it", "we weren't alone out there" and "this isn't where we're supposed to be". The setup, for Yellowjackets first timers: back in 1996, en route to a big match in Seattle on a private plane, Shauna, Natalie, Taissa, Misty and the rest of their teammates entered Lost survivalist territory. The accident saw everyone who walked away stranded in the wilderness — and those who then made it through that ordeal stuck out there for 19 months, living their worst Alive-meets-Lord of the Flies lives. After proving one of 2021's best new series and quickly getting picked up for a second season, Yellowjackets will start unfurling its next batch of episodes from Friday, March 24 via Paramount+ in Australia and Neon in New Zealand, as announced in late 2022. Season two will pick up after a heap of chaos in both timeframes, and with new faces among the cast. Introducing more of the team in their adult guise is very much on the agenda, including Simone Kessell (Muru) playing the older Lottie and Lauren Ambrose (Servant) as the older Van. In their younger years, both characters are played by Australian actors, with Courtney Eaton (Mad Max: Fury Road) as Lottie and and Liv Hewson (Santa Clarita Diet) as Van. Also, this won't be the end of the story, with the show already renewed for season three before its second season even airs. Check out the new teaser for Yellowjackets season two below: Season two of Yellowjackets will start streaming from Friday, March 24 via Paramount+ in Australia and Neon in New Zealand. Read our review of season one.
Take a nod to one of Melbourne's first public houses, add hospitality legend Andrew McConnell and the team behind Gimlet, shake well over ice and serve — that's the recipe behind Apollo Inn, the CBD's newest cocktail bar. Apollo Inn occupies the ground floor of McDonald House at 165 Flinders Lane: a neo-Renaissance-style building that dates all the way back to 1924. Just the sort of heritage you want for a classic, moody European cocktail lounge. The name 'Apollo' is a nod to one of Melbourne's first public houses, located on the corner of Flinders Lane and Russell Street, where Gimlet now sits. This place is technically Gimlet's little sister, and you can see the team's fingerprints all over it. For example, ACME, the Sydney-based design firm that handled Gimlet's dining room, were called back to help with Apollo Inn. Still, the two venues aren't quite the same. Gimlet often feels light and airy, like a brasserie. Apollo Inn is going more for that underground, triple-distilled, wood-panelled, High Society vibe. The bar seats just 28 patrons, which keeps everything feeling intimate, and Gimlet's bar manager, Cameron Parish, is moving across the oversee the transition. As you'd expect from the latest venue in McConnell's Trader House portfolio, the attention to detail is bang-on, from the leather-studded front doors to the paper-topped table lamps. "We're excited to dedicate such a beautiful, intimate space to the refinement of great spirits," says McConnell. "It's a singular focus at Apollo Inn; to ensure that what's in the glass and on the plate are delicious and benchmark." Drinks-wise, you can expect wines by the glass and bottle, curated by Trader House beverage director Leanne Altmann, plus signature cocktails like the Lucien Gaudin, which combines gin, Campari, dry vermouth and Grand Marnier. Martinis come in four speeds: dry, dirty, Gibson (with the obligatory pickled onion), and café. Apollo Inn is more about booze than food, but there will be a stripped-back menu featuring snacks and small plates, designed to match whatever's in your glass. Expect prawn and spanner crab club sandwiches, raw tuna with cured sobrasada, or old-school classics like beef carpaccio. The menu is designed for snacking rather than feasting. Everything bite-sized, spiked with big flavours like anchovy and truffle. The perfect nightcap before calling an Uber. Following the success of other old-world Melbourne venues like Trinket and Bar Margaux, Apollo Inn looks like it's been time-warped straight out of 1956. And that's just fine by us. Lock it in for your next date night. Apollo Inn is now open at 165 Flinders Lane, every day from 5pm to 1am. Bookings can be made via the Apollo Inn website but walk-ins are encouraged. Images: Earl Carter
As first announced back in 2018, Melbourne's Australian Centre for the Moving Image will soon look rather different, with the screen culture-focused Federation Square site currently undergoing extensive $40 million renovations. When it reopens in 2021, visitors can expect revamped exhibition spaces, new immersive experiences and added interactive activations, including a permanent ode to Mad Max. Also part of the huge makeover: increasing the ways that everyone can engage with ACMI digitally, both when heading by in-person and from home. As revealed back in October, ACMI will usher in a heap of new ways for folks to interact with its exhibitions. That includes giving visitors a handheld device made out of compressed cardboard, which they'll be able to while they're wandering around the place — and when they go home as well. ACMI's fresh additions also span online exhibition space Gallery 5, which is up and running already, and its own video-on-demand service called Cinema 3. Of course, 2020 has already seen a very lengthy list of new streaming and VOD options hit the market, all competing for film and TV fans' eyeballs in a year that's seen us all spend more time on the couch — such as horror streamer Shudder, architecture and design-focused platform Shelter, short-form platform Quibi (which'll actually call it quits in December), female-focused service Femflix, and platforms from cinemas such as Palace and Golden Age, plus the team behind Sydney's Ritz and Melbourne's Lido, Classic and Cameo venues. Accordingly, ACMI joins a very busy space, but it's doing so with a tightly curated range of classics and new movies that's selected by its Director of Film Programs Kristy Matheson, and is updated fortnightly. Available since Thursday, November 19, Cinema 3 currently features a digital restoration of Claire Denis' 1999 standout Beau Travail, plus 2019's acclaimed Romanian flick The Whistlers — neither of which you can currently watch in Australian cinemas. In the classic camp, it has grouped a number of movies into themes. So, you can check out 'fine films for grown-up tastes' such as The Two Faces of January, Our Little Sister, The Deep Blue Sea and The Third Wife, or opt to delve into cinema history via Berberian Sound Studio, Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché, Last Man in Aleppo and Parasite. Cinema 3 also presently features an Aussie-focused section as well, showing Noise, The Darkside, and documentaries Jill Billcock: Dancing the Invisible and Defiant Lives. The idea is that each area of the service acts as a shelf — for you to peruse and pick from at your leisure, depending on what piques your interest. Films are available on a pay-per-view rental basis, with the current titles ranging from $4.99 to $14. To check out ACMI's Cinema 3 video-on-demand service, head to the platform's website.
Do your summer plans involve hanging by the beach? Splashing around in several pools? Enjoying a few games of volleyball on the sand? Watching a movie under the stars? Would you also like to spend your sunny days and starry nights kicking back in a cabana, hopping between multiple restaurants and bars, dancing to DJs and gathering the gang on a rooftop with a view? Sometime early in 2021, Surfers Paradise will welcome a brand new attraction — and it'll feature all of the above in one spot. It's called Cali Beach Club and, yes, it's going to be more than a little jam-packed with things to do. Although an exact opening date hasn't yet been revealed, the new precinct will open on the corner of Surfers Paradise Boulevard and Elkhorn Avenue in the coming months — perched four levels about the street, sprawling across more than 5000 square metres, and boasting vantages over both the ocean and the Surfers' skyline. The Gold Coast might be known for its theme parks, but this is shaping up to be the boozy adult alternative, as run by Australian hospitality group Artesian Hospitality. Whether you're a Brisbanite heading down the highway, a Sydney or Melbourne resident enjoying the new lack of border restrictions, or hail from elsewhere in the country, you'll find quite the spread awaiting once you step inside. That includes four pools to swim in, and plenty of daybeds, sun lounges and cabanas where you can while away the hours. There'll also be exercise areas and sports facilities, such as the aforementioned beach volleyball court, and a dance floor as well. In terms of food and drink, you'll have options, thanks to two restaurants and four bars. Exact details of what they'll be serving, and what'll make them different from each other, haven't yet been revealed — but one eatery will sit right by the ocean. Come evening, a moonlit cinema will screen flicks by the water — again, though, no other details have been revealed. Showing Jaws and Point Break seems like a must, however, because everyone like catching movies about the sea while they're literally right next to it. [caption id="attachment_793063" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Map of Cali Beach Club[/caption] All the other questions you're currently pondering — such as opening hours, cost, capacity and social distancing measures — haven't been answered yet either. But, while it looks set to open during summer, Cali Beach Club plans to operate year-round. The Gold Coast does have the weather for it, after all. Cali Beach Club will open on the corner of Surfers Paradise Boulevard and Elkhorn Avenue, Surfers Paradise, sometime early in 2021 — we'll update you when an exact date is announced.
A sleepy small town. A body on a beach. A local detective trying to solve the case, plus an outsider dropping in to lend their expertise. Viewers have seen this scenario plenty of times before, complete with secrets swirling, a killer lurking among a close-knit community and ample friction between the new arrival and the town's inhabitants — but until now, we've never seen Kate McCartney and Kate McLennan's take on the situation. Anything that The Katering Show and Get Krack!n's duo make is an instant must-see — see: those two very shows — and Deadloch, their newest effort, is clearly no different. Announced in 2022 and set to hit Prime Video from Friday, June 2, this mystery-comedy series is created, written and executive produced by the comic duo, with McCartney and McLennan acting as showrunners as well. They're not listed among the cast, sadly, but The Kates are still back. Another Kate — Kate Box (Stateless) — stars as local senior sergeant Dulcie Collins. When a local man turns up dead on the beach, her life and Deadloch's titular seaside spot are thrown into chaos, as the just-dropped first trailer for the show illustrates. And no, it isn't by accident that the series subverts the usual dead-girl trope that's such an engrained part of these kinds of TV setups, even when they're at their best as in Twin Peaks. Enter Darwin-based senior investigator Eddie Redcliffe (Madeleine Sami, The Breaker Upperers), too, who isn't afraid to make a splash as she teams up with Dulcie to get to the bottom of the case. There's also junior constable Abby (Nina Oyama, Koala Man), who couldn't be more eager to join in, all while Deadloch is busy getting ready to launch its annual Winter Feastival — an arts, food, and culture festival. "We are both so thrilled to share the dark, strange little town of Deadloch with the world. We're particularly excited for everyone to meet Dulcie and Eddie, performed by the powerhouses Kate Box and Madeleine Sami, who are far better actors than we'll ever be," said The Kates. "The supporting cast is sublime, the crew are a delight, and the experience of making this story with Prime Video globally on the incredible land of lutruwita (Tasmania) is one we'll never forget." As well as Box, Sami and Oyama, Deadloch's cast spans a heap of recognisable faces, including comedian Tom Ballard, Alicia Gardiner (Wakefield), Susie Youssef (Rosehaven), Pamela Rabe (Wentworth), Kris McQuade (Irreverent), Duncan Fellows (The Letdown), Harvey Zielinski (Love Me) and Shaun Martindale (Sissy). Shot in and around Hobart, Deadloch's eight-episode run also sports a stacked roster of directors: Ben Chessell (The Great), Gracie Otto (Seriously Red) and Beck Cole (Black Comedy). Check out the trailer for Deadloch below: Deadloch streams via Prime Video from Friday, June 2, 2023.
'Tis the season for buying prezzies. And if you like your gifts green, we've found a one-stop shop for all your Christmas shopping needs. Online store Garner Plants has launched a bricks-and-mortar pop-up shop in Richmond, where it'll be slinging a huge array of leafy goodies from now until Thursday, December 23. In a win for those who love a package deal, every plant in the store comes with its own cute ceramic pot, which means no mucking about trying to choose something nice for your purchase to sit in. You'll find a diverse collection of leafy varieties for the green thumb or Secret Santa recipient in your life, from ficus to fiddle leaf figs, with prices starting from an easy $45. Also on offer is a range of plant accessories — think, foliage spray, clippers and plant food — and a bunch of other gift options. And if you can't get there in person, simply jump online to shop a hefty range of Garner goodies, which can be shipped speedily to your door. The Garner Pop-Up Plant Store is open from 9am–5pm weekdays, and from 10am–2pm Saturdays.
Icy poles and booze — they're the two staples of a long, hot Aussie summer. Back in October, we told you that the two had finally come together as one. Now, those Calippo-style Champagne icy poles we've all been hankering for since are finally on sale in Australia. The genius creation from POPS, a UK brand that has been keeping folks stylishly cool since 2014, have started popping up around Melbourne. Head to online alcohol delivery service tipple.com.au to order one of four flavours: the Champagne pop (called The Classic) contains half a glass of Champers (wahee!), while the Bellini blends hibiscus flowers, blood orange juice, peach Schnapps, and half a glass of Prosecco. Plus, there are a couple of all-ages products too, which see the alcohol swapped out for real fruit combinations (apple and elderflower, plus strawberry and mint). The timing couldn't be better, with the frozen delights arriving in our eskies just in time to be eaten in front of the fan (or, y'know, in the sun) this summer. As part of the Melbourne-first launch, they'll also be available at Arbory Bar and Eatery — and showering festival attendees with lickable icy alcohol goodness, including at The Pleasure Garden, Let Them Eat Cake and the Inverloch Sound of Summer. The POPS website also teases POPScycle bikes, so keep your eyes peeled. When POPS launched its first frozen Champagne treat, supermodels like Kate Moss and Bella Hadid were apparently quick to jump on board, if that's something to sway you. No word yet if you'll be able to buy a box for the freezer, but let's hope. For more information about POPS in Australia, visit wearepops.com. By Libby Curran and Sarah Ward. Via Food Mag.
Fill your mid-week with cosy vibes, as the Winter Night Market returns to QVM for another 13-week run. Kicking off at 5pm every Wednesday from Wednesday, June 4–Wednesday, August 27, expect another fascinating program brimming with tantalising street food, hot drinks, retail experiences, live music and free entertainment. Taking up residence in the Queen Victoria Market's sprawling laneways and sheds, the event has a host of foodie newcomers ready to serve up comfy cuisine that ensures your chilly evening is a snug one. Think Cannoleria's Sicilian-style treats, La Trafila's artisan pasta and The Little Paris's raclette and garlic butter snails. There's also plenty of returning favourites from past editions of the Winter Night Market, with the likes of Churro Kitchen, Smashville and the Soup Factory serving everything from chocolate-drizzled desserts to king crab chowder spooned into bread rolls. Plus, there's mulled wine, alongside spiced Milo cocktails and warm butter beer, to enhance the rugged-up ambience. Beyond the extensive food and drink selection, the Winter Night Market is home to stellar shopping and entertainment. Stock up on vintage clothing and handmade jewellery, or see what awaits in your future with tarot card reading. Meanwhile, the Guru Dudu Silent Disco returns, taking groups on a 20-minute dance tour through the market.
Pastels and poop. Step inside Unko Museum: The Kawaii Poop Experience and that's what will await. The colour scheme is soft and soothing, but the point of focus is literal crap (well, fake versions). If you've ever called something "cute shit" before, those words have never applied quite as they will here. This Japanese-style installation takes its cues from not only Japan's kawaii poop trend, but from the Unko Museum's sites across the nation, including in Tokyo, Hiroshima and Shizuoka. Now, Unko Museum will make its Australian debut in Melbourne, launching on Wednesday, December 20 to add some adorable crap to the silly season and summer. The focus: "max unko kawaii", aka "the maximum cuteness of poop". Also one of the mains attractions: getting everyone taking snaps and filling their social-media feeds, so expect a heap of pastel emoji-esque shit to fill Instagram. Unko Museum: The Kawaii Poop Experience will be split into zones and areas, spanning displays to take pictures of and other inclusions that are more immersive. Think: images of poop projected around the place, snapping selfies with poop props and flying poop, and retro-style games with a poop theme in a space called the Crappy Game Corner. Pastel-hued toilets are also a feature, lined up along a wall under a sign calling them "my unko maker". So are neon poop signs, giant poops, a ball pit where the balls are shaped like poops, poop hats, walls filled with toilet seats, glowing poop lights and a towering toilet-shaped doorway. Plus, exiting through the gift shop here means picking up kawaii poop merchandise and souvenirs. In Japan, as at October 2023, 1.4-million people had flushed the interactive experience into their itineraries. In Australia, Melburnians and tourists who now want to add some poo to their next Victorian visit can expect to spend 30–60 minutes revelling in endearing crap, in a family-friendly experience — because poop is for everyone. There's no word yet if Unko Museum: The Kawaii Poop Experience will make its way to other Australian cities, but cross your fingers if you can't make it to Melbourne this summer. Unko Museum: The Kawaii Poop Experience will open on Wednesday, December 20 at 360 Bourke Street, Melbourne — head to the pop-up's website to join the waitlist for tickets, which go on sale on Tuesday, November 28.
There are lots of ways to spot a bad film while you're watching it. The audience laughing during the intended scary bits, for example, is a strong indication of a directorial misstep. So, too, is the moment you find yourself checking your watch and discover it's only 15 minutes in. Perhaps the most telling sign is when you realise that you've already picked everything that's going to happen on screen, and you start re-writing the script in your head in an attempt to make it more interesting. When all of these indicators make themselves known to you so early on, however, the only real question becomes: why are you bothering at all? That same question could well be asked of the phenomenal cast assembled for Life – a space-based horror film that only succeeds in being based in space. Jake Gyllenhaal, Ryan Reynolds, Rebecca Ferguson and Japanese A-lister Hiroyuki Sanada all lend their star power to a film that falls well short of deserving it, especially in light of such a generic screenplay. To be fair, both the premise and opening scenes offer promise. The crew of the International Space Station retrieve a Mars Rover carrying soil samples from the Red Planet that contain a microscopic living organism, the first indisputable proof of life beyond Earth. Rather than explore the inevitable and fascinating religious implications such a discovery would have back on earth, however, Life immediately turns its tiny sentient blob into an ingenious killing...blob. What follows is a by-the-numbers affair that's far closer to Gravity than it is Alien. Moreover, from go to woe, Life suffers from a collection of bizarrely muted performances operating within a remarkably limited emotional range. The differences, for example, between the celebrations over a crew member becoming a father, and the horror of witnessing a different crew member torn apart from the inside out are almost impossible to spot. There are innumerable unpredictabilities in filmmaking, but one surefire rule is that when a cast doesn't seem engaged in its own project, the audience's concomitant apathy is assured. Here the cast looks more bored than terrified. All in all, there's little to like about Life – and even less hope for the sequel it so blatantly attempts to set up in its final stages. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeLsJfGmY_Y
Sometimes, time doesn't fly. If you're a Melburnian who has been waiting for a local El Jannah outpost, the past 14 months have probably felt like a drag, in fact. The Sydney-favourite Lebanese-style charcoal chook joint announced back in February 2021 that it was finally expanding into Victoria; however, it has taken a while for that poultry dream to become a reality. Come Saturday, April 30, your tastebuds will finally officially get what they've been clucking for — or, if you're new to the chain, you'll find out why it has become one of the Harbour City's beloved chook go-tos. First, there's the chicken, of course. But there's also the chips and garlic sauce that've similarly been earning Sydney fans since 1998. The place to head to: 600 High Street in Preston, with the chook chain taking over the old Hungry Jacks site. Originally, it was hoped it'd be up and running late in 2021 — but we all know how last year turned out. El Jannah's charcoal chicken comes in halves or quarters, on rolls and burgers, as part of a platter, on skewers and in salads. It also does fried chicken, too — in mixed pieces, tenders and wings, and also in boxes and on burgs. You'll also find shawarma on the menu, falafel rolls as well, plus tabouli and fattoush salad. And, among the sauces, the chain's own chilli version, hummus and baba ganoush sit alongside its coveted garlic option. Thanks to the new Preston digs, El Jannah now boasts 14 stores to its name, including 13 in New South Wales. When it revealed its plans to head south, the chain advised that it was planning to expand to include 30-plus venues in total across both Melbourne and Sydney, with at least five Melbourne stores operating over the next five years. Fingers crossed that all comes to fruition. And yes, if you're a Sydneysider already enamoured with the brand's dishes, you can now rest safe knowing you've got somewhere to get your fix on your next Melbourne trip. Find El Jannah's first Melbourne store at 600 High Street, Preston — open from 19am–11pm daily. For further details, head to the El Jannah website.
Sydney's ever-luxurious and all-inclusive floating villa, Lilypad, has finally reopened almost two years after a fire destroyed the original build. Situated in the tranquil waters of Palm Beach in the Northern Beaches, the second iteration of Lilypad boasts plenty of additional lavish features including an onboard sauna, cosy fireplace and dreamy Mediterranean-inspired terracotta accents. After facing flooding, wild weather and COVID-induced delays, it's safe to say that Lilypad II was worth the wait. "You couldn't have picked a harder time to undertake something like this, both the weather we had in Sydney for the build period and COVID — because workforces were getting wiped out left, right and centre. Everything was hard," Founder and Owner Chuck Anderson says. Not just a pretty face, the resort-style villa runs completely off solar power energy and has been engineered to remain stable, while still embracing the natural movements and rhythms of the ocean below. An outdoor, roman-tiled shower, linen bedding by Cultiver and furniture by McMullin & Co completes the tonal, overwater escape. "What's incredible now as technology has advanced in solar and battery technology, you're not compromising on luxuries. Once upon a time, maybe ten years ago, if you were to try to attack what we've created you would have had to make some concessions in terms of what's onboard," Anderson says. Bookings include a private concierge, private tender transfers, a self-drive luxury personal vessel for exploring the surrounds, paddleboards, floating daybeds, chef-prepared meals and full access to the onboard wine cellar. But the luxuries don't come cheap, with prices starting at $1,950 per night in low season. The designer floating villa can also host events for up to 18, if you're looking for a unique space for your next special function. On the creation of both Lilypads, Anderson explains, "The intention for both Lilypad and Lilypad II was to combine innovative design with traditional craftsmanship and modern luxuries to build a unique and exceptional space. I wanted to pay homage to the unspoiled environment in which Lilypad resides and allow guests to feel totally immersed in this awe-inspiring space." Anderson also hinted at other Lilypads popping up around Australia in the future, so if you're looking for an elevated holiday in your backyard, keep an eye on this space. One-night stays are available until September, excluding weekends. Two-night stays are available from September to April and across weekends. You can book via the Lilypad website.
If you didn't see The Fall Guy, Twisters, The Substance, Kneecap or It Ends with Us on the big screen already in 2024, here's the perfect way to catch up with them: under the stars, while sprawled out on a picnic blanket or sat on a bean bed, at the latest season of Moonlight Cinema. And if watching Christmas films is one of your festive traditions, here's a scenic way to do that, too, with this annual opportunity to enjoy a movie outside packing its just-dropped first lineup for this year with seasonal flicks. As it does every summer, Moonlight Cinema is returning for another run of films in the open air, including at Melbourne's Royal Botanic Gardens from Friday, November 29, 2024–Sunday, March 30, 2025. Among the brand-new titles, Gladiator II and Wicked are also on the bill — and when an advanced screening of Paddington in Peru graces the screen, you'll want marmalade sandwiches in your picnic basket. The OG version of Mean Girls will grace Moonlight Cinema's screens, too. For a merry time at the movies — a jolly one as well — the roster of Christmas fare spans the new Red One, as well as classics Elf, Love Actually, The Holiday, The Muppet Christmas Carol, Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. Come January, A Complete Unknown has your Timothée Chalamet (Dune: Part Two) fix covered and the OG Freaky Friday will give you a blast from the past before the sequel arrives later in 2025. Plus, We Live in Time, Heretic and Mufasa: The Lion King will also play under the stars. Other highlights include Gladiator II, Moana 2, Paddington in Peru and Sonic the Hedgehog 3, giving franchises plenty of love; Better Man joining the music-fuelled picks; the Jesse Eisenberg (Sasquatch Sunset)-starring, -written and -directed A Real Pain; and Conclave's tension in the Vatican. Among the retro fare, Bridget Jones's Diary, Shrek and The Princess Diaries will get you looking backwards. As always, the films and the setting are just two parts of the cinema's experience. Also on offer: the returning Aperol spritz bar. Nosh-wise, the event will again let you BYO movie snacks and drinks, but the unorganised can enjoy a plethora of bites to eat onsite while reclining on bean beds. There'll also be two VIP sections for an extra-luxe openair movie experience, a platinum package with waiter service and a beauty cart handing out samples. Plus, dogs are welcome — there's even special doggo bean beds. Updated: December 12, 2024.
Corporate cats of Docklands, unite! There's a now a healthy refuge for you during lunch hour. Located on the bridge between Southern Cross and Etihad Stadium, Home Juice is a bit out of place in its big building surroundings — which in turn, makes it the perfect place to set up shop. As the name suggests, Home is all about juice, and their organic cold pressed juices and alkaline waters come in custom tall glass bottles, which can be reused or repurposed. Rushing to the office in the morning? Grab a bowl of raw cacao pops or chocolate chia pudding. Ducking out for lunch? There are a mound of raw salads and some amazing raw desserts too — we recommend the raw black forest cake.
Almost three decades ago, in a movie that's still as beloved now as it was then — and keeps throwing new franchise instalments at the big screen, too — Richard Attenborough uttered four iconic words. "Welcome to Jurassic Park," the actor said in-character as the dinosaur-filled theme park's owner John Hammond. That phrase has been repeated countless times since, and will always be linked to the Attenborough name. Of course, Richard Attenborough isn't the only famous figure in his family. The now-late actor and filmmaker's younger brother happens to be none other than David Attenborough — and now he's showing dinosaurs some love, too. No, you won't find him in the new Jurassic World flick; however, he will be lending his voice to a five-part natural history series about the prehistoric creatures right before Jurassic World Dominion reaches cinemas. If you'd listen to David Attenborough narrate anything and you're always fascinated by dinos — and yes, both of those apply to pretty much everyone — then Apple TV+'s Prehistoric Planet will be a must-see. With a name that falls in line with the broadcaster, biologist and natural historian's past shows The Living Planet, State of the Planet, The Blue Planet, Frozen Planet, Blue Planet II, Our Planet, Seven Worlds, One Planet, A Perfect Planet and Green Planet (as well as Planet Earth and Planet Earth II, plus documentary David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet), it'll look backwards at what the earth was like 66 million years ago. Obviously, CGI will feature heavily, but combined with wildlife filmmaking and paleontology learnings. Accordingly, get ready to discover little-known and surprising facts of dinosaur life, step through the environments of Cretaceous times, see how the Tyrannosaurus rex parented, and explore the ancient creatures of both the sea and sky. That's what Prehistoric Planet will cover across five episodes, which'll drop daily on Apple TV+ across Monday, May 23–Friday, May 27. While David Attenborough's voice is always music to anyone's ears, Hans Zimmer will be adding rousing score to the show — fresh from winning his latest Oscar for Dune. And if you're wondering about the photorealistic imagery that's bringing dinosaurs to life, filmmaker Jon Favreau is one of the Prehistoric Planet's executive producers, and the effects company behind his versions of The Jungle Book and The Lion King is doing the CGI honours. Check out Prehistoric Planet's first teaser trailer and a sneak peek video below: Prehistoric Planet will hit Apple TV+ across Monday, May 23–Friday, May 27, with a new episode available to stream each day.
It's free, it's a summer staple, and it's a reason to spend two days partying at the St Kilda Foreshore and its surroundings. The event: St Kilda Festival, the bayside fest that notches up 43 years in 2024. As always, it knows how to celebrate — and it's enlisting help from Mallrat, Mo'Ju, Bag Raiders, Budjerah, Mark Seymour and the Undertow, and Northeast Party House. 2024's music lineup isn't short on big names, clearly, as split across two days. On Saturday, February 17, the festival is bringing back the First Peoples First program that heroes Indigenous music and culture, which it launched in 2023. Mo'Ju will be joined by Ziggy Ramo, Richard J Frankland, Wildfire Manwurrk, The Merindas and more on the main stage, while the day's garden stage lineup starts with Charlie Needs Braces, Canisha and Sedriece. Saturday's event will span a sunset ceremony as well. Just like last year again, Sunday, February 18 has been dubbed the Big Festival Sunday, which is where Bag Raiders, Mallrat, Budjerah, Thandi Phoenix, 1300, Mark Seymour and The Undertow, and others come in. There'll be a six-stage setup, with Telenova, RVG, Big Words, Jewel Owusu and The New Monos among the other talents featured. Alongside more than 60 acts hitting the stage across the entire festival, St Kilda Festival's lineup includes dance, sports demonstrations and workshops, plus roving entertainment, markets and stalls for grabbing a bite — so, enough to keep 400,000-plus attendees mighty busy and loving it over a big weekend. St Kilda Festival 2024 Lineup: First Peoples First — Saturday, February 17: Main Stage: Mo'Ju Ziggy Ramo Richard J Frankland Wildfire Manwurrk The Merindas Eleanor Jawurlngali Triad Birren Singing Our Futures presented by the Archie Roach Foundation O'Donnell Garden Stage: Charlie Needs Braces Canisha Sedriece Katie Aspel Pirritu Liv & The Dream Birren Big Festival Sunday — Sunday, February 18 : Main Stage Bag Raiders Mallrat Budjerah Thandi Phoenix 1300 Mark Seymour & The Undertow Singing Our Futures presented by the Archie Roach Foundation Cointreau Summer Stage: Northeast Party House Forest Claudette Gut Health Sunfruits Kinder J-Milla Chela Maya Vice O'Donnell Garden Stage: Telenova Adam Noviello CD Titration Hard No The Heights Lotte Gallagher Goodbye Butterfly For families: NV Dance Studio Riot Baby Woody's World Whistle & Trick Team Dream Triangle Stage: RVG Big Words Wildfire Manwurrk The Slingers Chikchika Cool Sounds Platonic Sex New Music Stage: Jewel Owusu Mudrat Tab Family Lewis Coleman Romanie Mulga Bore Hard Rock Brekky Boy Mathilde Anne Good Pash Winten Locals Stage: The New Monos The Miffs Bernadette Novembre John Wayne Parsons Tanya George Bailey Judd KP Hydes JHM Tristan Heath Louis
When you're trying to avoid laser beams, watching a sea adventure unfurl around you, stepping into a room filled with blacklight art and being surrounded by a floral wonderland, real life can wait. Enter Dreamskape, then, and no one will be thinking about what lurks beyond the new Melbourne entertainment complex's doors. Escapism via multi-sensory experiences has been proving big business around Australia in recent years, whether via pop-up dessert museums or sunflower-filled celebrations of Vincent van Gogh. A key difference with this one: this latest series of installations is not only sticking around permanently, but also heralds the beginning of of a new chain. Dreamskape President Joanna Chen and General Manager Fraser Bell are planning to roll out the concept around both Australia and New Zealand, with 20 complexes in their sights within the next five-to-eight years. Their niche is augmented reality, but without the user needing any wearable tech or even to whip out their phone — and with their debut Melbourne location, the pair has started with six activity zones across 770 square metres, featuring 100-plus games and 50 immersive experiences. "We have seen a lot of VR and 3D entertainment emerge over the last decade, but now it's evolving. You don't need a headset or anything like that to engage in experiences like we have at Dreamskape. This makes it so much more accessible to a wide range of people," said Chen. "It's an exciting time for entertainment technology, and we can't wait to see what the future holds as Dreamskape continues to grow nationally," added Bell. Opening at The District Docklands in the Victorian capital from Friday, June 28, 2024, the first Dreamskape is the brand's flagship, with 2.5 kilometres of light and data cabling helping bring it to fruition. All of those wires connect spaces such as Dream Game, where you play through four different ten-minute games; Dream Verse, the site's version of an immersive cinematic experience; and Dream Coaster, an augmented-reality rollercoaster where you sit in a coaster carriage, then get blasted with IRL wind and mist, all amid 270-degree visuals. Hitting up Dreamskape also involves being greeted by QB, the venue's host robot, then seeing the aforementioned blacklight art by Melbourne talents at Dream Light, and also getting immersed in shapes and emojis — and scenery and animals as well — at Dream Immersion. Plus, for folks attending with little ones in tow, Little Dream will get kids turning their drawings into AR art and playing AR soccer. Find Dreamskape Melbourne at Level 1, The District Docklands, 37 Star Crescent, Docklands, Melbourne, from Friday, June 28 — open from 11am–7pm Monday–Wednesday, 11am–10pm Thursday–Friday, and 10am–10pm on weekends and public holidays (except Christmas Day and Good Friday). Head to the venue's website for more details.
Spring has officially sprung, and Entrecôte is celebrating with its new long boozy lunch special Stop and Smell the Rosé. The renowned French restaurant has teamed up with Miraval Côtes de Provence (from Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's infamous vineyard), Sieur D'Arques, Lyv, and Domaine De La Croix to bring together the ultimate partnership of French wine and cuisine. From Monday, October 21–Friday, November 15, you can enjoy an elegant four-course lunch — curated by Entrecôte's Head Chef Timothy Menger — with each dish paired with a glass of French rosé. The menu begins with bouchée de concombre canapés served alongside the Sieur d'Arques sparkling rosé. This is followed by either the asparagus with mayonnaise mousseline and lemon and macadamia pistou, or the saffron king prawns — both are paired with a delicate and aromatic Lyv rosé. [caption id="attachment_837205" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Lillie Thompson[/caption] For the mains, guests can choose between petit poulet à la sauce bocuse (a chicken dish with corn puree and mustard and tarragon sauce) or the grilled fish of the day, served with sauce gribiche and pomme frites. Elevate the rich flavours of each main with the aid of a versatile Miraval Côtes de Provence rosé. And to complement the fraise et rosé (a berry-filled rosé ice cream dessert), the Entrecote crew is serving the Domaine de la Croix le cap. Guests can choose between lunch with half-pour (75ml) wine pairings for $90 and $110 for a full pour (150ml). This limited-time offer will be held in the new conservatoire, an ode to glamorous Parisian courtyards and indoor gardens. This luxe partnership offers Melbournians the chance to experience the essence of France right in their own city — sans plane fare to Paris.
Mary Eats Cake celebrates the timeless tradition of pairing a nice cuppa with some delicious small bites, calling it a "high tea" and making you feel just that little bit fancy. With two teahouses — one in Brunswick and one in Montrose — Mary has hosted countless high teas, and now she's upping the ante by bringing them to your home while in lockdown. Available to pick up from either store from 9am–1pm Wednesday–Sunday (if you live within five kilometres) or via delivery within 35 kilometres (for $15–30), the to-go high teas include The Queen's High Tea ($75), with a bottle of bubbles, scones, macarons and house-blended teas; and the High Tea Experience ($49 per person), which comes with four savoury snacks, two scones, three sweets and house-blended teas. Mary also caters to dietaries and offers a range of tea paraphernalia — such as teapots and infusers — for takeaway, as well as pies, cakes, antipasto boxes, jams and even flowers. To order your fancy selection of savoury and sweet snacks, head on over to the website.
When Wes Anderson's The French Dispatch flickered across the silver screen, a visit to Cinema Nova in Carlton came with a bonus: seeing art by Moses Rosenthaler, the character played by Benicio del Toro (Reptile), gracing the picture palace's walls among other odes to the feature. Jump forward four years and the movie haven is again paying tribute to a collaboration between Anderson and del Toro. The writer/director and the Oscar-winning actor have reteamed on The Phoenician Scheme, and this Melbourne cinema has also made the flick the focus of its latest bar makeover. Cinema Nova hasn't just revamped its watering hole for The French Dispatch and The Phoenician Scheme's respective releases. Asteroid City, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Isle of Dogs: they all earned the same treatment. Consider it a Melbourne-only gift to the filmmaker's fans from one of the city's go-to spots to catch a movie — and one that keeps coming back in new guises. Of course, Anderson's meticulous aesthetic already immerses his audiences. Cinema Nova is just taking the Academy Award-recipient's (for The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar) lead, then. Decor-wise, the venue's bar has scored a Levantine-meets-post-modern temporary revamp, complete with nods to Marseille Bob's (Mathieu Almaric, A Private Life) nightclub and Zsa-zsa Korda's (del Toro) bathroom. The glow-up's references will obviously make more sense once you've seen the film, but stepping into Anderson's vibe works both before and after viewing. Other touches include posters for the flick, news clippings about about Korda, movie stills, a basketball hoop on the back of a train and literally hopping into the tub. For refreshments, the menu spans cocktails, wine, beer, coffee, tea and snacks, with the booze on offer from midday and happy hour running from 4–6pm Monday–Thursday. If you're heading to catch the movie, which follows a wealthy businessman's attempt to reunite with his estranged daughter (Mia Threapleton, The Buccaneers) and enact a scheme that'll ensure his fortune, this is clearly the perfect accompaniment. That said, dropping by just because from 10am–9pm daily is also an option. An end date for this The Phoenician Scheme wonderland hasn't yet been announced; however, it'll be here for a good time, not a long time, so take that into account for your next Anderson IRL fix. Find Cinema Nova's latest bar takeover at 380 Lygon Street, Carlton — open from 10am–9pm daily. The Phoenician Scheme opened in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, May 29, 2025. Read our interview with Benicio del Toro and Michael Cera. Images: Fiona Hamilton.
Mörk Chocolate has been one of the top choices in Melbourne for a stellar hot chocolate since it opened its doors to its first store in 2012. Fast forward to 2025, and the independently owned business now boasts four locations in and around the CBD — but its next move might be its most ambitious yet, in the form of a permanent residency in Chadstone's Market Pavilion. Launched by local couple Josefin Zernall and Kiril Shaginov, Mörk made a name for itself by taking a similar approach to chocolate to single-origin coffee roasters. That means being mindful of traceability and quality while sourcing ingredients from ethically minded suppliers. The result is a clean and minimally processed product that showcases the flavour of the bean while being naturally lower in sugar. For their new Chadstone store, Zernall and Shaginov teamed up with Anna Drummond from CoLab Studio. Together, they've created a concept that stands out from the brand's existing locations, where clever details like variegated terracotta and ceramic tiles reference and celebrate chocolate. The centrepiece is a cascading rope installation inspired by chocolate fountains. "I wanted to tap into the memory bank and explore how chocolate made us feel as children," says Zernell. "The excitement of opening a chocolate wrapper, the sound and scent, the colours and shapes and flavours. All of those sensory elements that make chocolate so universally loved...that's the sense of nostalgia we're hoping to trigger at our new store." Alongside Mörk's flagship range, the Chadstone store will serve its much-loved classic hot chocolates from a custom-build island, a selection of new signature drinks, as well as cocktails like whiskey-spiked hot chocolate and chocolate negronis. New highlights include the Campfire Hot Chocolate — a limited-time creation where silky dark chocolate, charcoal salt and toasted marshmallow are served with an optional wood-smoked caramel praline. Meanwhile, buns, cakes and pastries baked fresh daily at Mörk's North Melbourne kitchen are available to complement your drink. The new concept store is also fitted with a retail display, featuring small-batch chocolate bars created by Zernell in collaboration with ex-Fat Duck and French Laundry chef Ayelet Har Paz. Plus, there are chocolate spreads, freshly turned vanilla marshmallows, seasonal chocolate bites and kitchen accessories such as hand-carved chocolate scoops and ceramics from a host of top-notch local designers. Mörk Chocolate's Chadstone store is now open in the centre's Market Pavilion. It's open Monday–Wednesday from 7.30am–5.30pm, Thursday–Saturday from 7.30am–9pm and Sunday from 8.30am–7pm. Head to the brand's website for more information. Images: Kristoffer Paulsen
New financial year, new excuse to book a holiday? It's as good a reason as any. It isn't just airlines that want us to be making getaway plans all of the time — we all want to be in that camp, too, because who doesn't constantly want to be thinking about, preparing for and locking in vacations? Via Virgin Australia, here comes your latest chance to give your suitcases a workout. The Aussie carrier is beginning July 2024 with a week-long sale that's starting prices cheap — at $49 — and slinging over one million fares. This round of specials covers both domestic and international trips, so you're covered whether you want to hit up Tokyo, Bali, Fiji, Vanuatu or Queenstown, or also Hamilton Island, Byron Bay, Cairns, Hobart, Darwin, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast and more. By now, everyone knows that the Sydney–Byron Bay route always has the lowest cost, which is $49 one-way this time around. From there, other discounts include Melbourne–Launceston from $59, Sydney to either the Sunshine or Gold coasts from $69, Melbourne–Hobart from $75, Brisbane–Proserpine (aka The Whitsundays) from $75, Melbourne–Adelaide from $79, Sydney–Hamilton Island from $115, either Melbourne or Brisbane to Uluru from $119, and Sydney–Perth from $215. For those eager to travel further afield, cheap international flights span a heap of return legs, such as Melbourne–Queenstown from $405, Gold Coast–Denpasar from $449, Sydney–Nadi from $499, Brisbane–Port Vila from $565, Brisbane–Apia from $609 and Cairns–Haneda from $679. This sale kicks off on Monday, July 1, running until midnight AEST on Monday, July 8 unless sold out earlier. And the cheap fares, which cover both directions between each point in the discounted route, start with Virgin's Economy Lite option. If you're wondering when you'll need to travel, these deals cover periods between Tuesday, July 30, 2024–Tuesday, June 3, 2025, with all dates varying per route. Inclusions also differ depending on your ticket and, as usual when it comes to flight sales, you'll need to get in quick if you're keen to spend some, part or even most of the next year anywhere but home. Virgin's 'I can't go without a holiday this year' sale runs until midnight AEST on Monday, July 8, 2024 — unless sold out earlier. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
No matter who's starring in them, when and where they're set, and whether they're showing on the big or small screen, romantic comedies love telling tales about trying to hold onto a good thing. Two people meet, fall for each other — whether immediately or eventually — and do whatever it takes to enjoy their romantic bliss: that's it, that's the familiar rom-com formula. It's a setup that TV series Starstruck has been both adhering to and unpacking over the past two years, too, thanks to its glorious first season in 2021 and just-as-wonderful second run in 2022. And, because HBO knows that it should also hold onto a good thing, the Rose Matafeo-starring show has just been renewed for a third season. Instantly one of the best of new shows of last year — and already one of the best returning series of this year — Starstruck will continue its take on a trusty rom-com storyline over a third batch of episodes. That premise: falling for a stranger who happens to be a famous actor, then trying to make that fairy tale relationship work. And yes, Matafeo — who stars, writes and created the series — well and truly knows that Notting Hill got there first. She plays Jessie, a New Zealander in her lates twenties who's living in London and, when the show begins, is splitting her time between working in a cinema and nannying. Jessie (Matafeo, Baby Done) also isn't expecting much when her best friend and roommate Kate (Emma Sidi, Pls Like) drags her out to a bar on New Year's Eve. For most of the evening, that lack of enthusiasm proves accurate — but then she meets Tom (Nikesh Patel, Four Weddings and a Funeral). That night, she ends up back at his sprawling flat, only to realise the next morning that he's one of the world's biggest movie stars. In what's proven a wonderful showcase for Matafeo — and a savvily smart exploration of rom-com tropes as well, embracing and subverting them as needed — both Starstruck's first and second seasons have followed what happens next for Jessie and Tom. Obviously, their attempts to hold onto a good thing haven't flowed smoothly. Nodding to romantic comedies such as The Graduate, Love Actually and Bridget Jones' Diary has also come with the territory, amusingly, affectionately and astutely so. Announcing the renewal, Matafeo said "a third? Sure. Fine. I'm truly thrilled to bring this incredibly talented cast back for a third instalment, and equally excited to clamber into the director's seat alongside my nice friend Alice Snedden, who I cannot seem to get rid of." Matafeo co-writes Starstruck with fellow comedians Alice Snedden and Nic Sampson — and, yes, Matafeo and Snedden will also direct the third season. Exactly when the new episodes will arrive hasn't yet been revealed, but the turnaround between season one and two was quick. When they do drop, expect to see them Down Under via ABC iView in Australia and TVNZ OnDemand in New Zealand. In the interim, check out the trailer for Starstruck's second season below: Starstruck will return for a third season, with a release date yet to be announced. Starstruck's first and second seasons are available to stream in Australia via ABC iView and in New Zealand via TVNZ OnDemand. Read our full review of Starstruck's first season — and our full review of its second season, too. Images: Mark Johnson/HBO Max.
After launching its eco-friendly picnic boats in cities all over Europe, Danish company GoBoat made the leap to Australia, giving punters a fun way to cruise the Yarra. If you're keen for a day on the river, you can grab a GoBoat from Banana Alley near Flinders Street Station. GoBoat has secured a ten-year berthing arrangement with Parks Victoria, which means that it won't be shifting anytime soon, either. Aimed at making the whole boating caper more accessible for everyday folk, the outfit's Scandinavian-designed vessels are slow-moving, a breeze to operate and don't require a boating licence, making for fuss-free sailing sessions. In a win for the planet, they also run on silent, pollution-free, electric engines, and are crafted from a mix of reclaimed timber and recycled PET bottles. Each of the contemporary GoBoats clocks in at 18-feet long, boasting a central picnic table with room for eight people (and all the necessary snacks and booze). And despite what you might be thinking, they're even affordable enough to fit your post-holiday budget — simply BYO food and drinks, find enough eager sailors to jump aboard and a GoBoat session will cost you less than $15 per person, per hour. That's $109 hourly in total, or $189 for two hours, $269 for three hours, $349 for four hours, $429 for five hours and $509 for six hours. Yes, you can really make a whole day of it. You can book a few months in advance or make the most of a surprise afternoon off with a last minute picnic, with timeslots available in 15-minute increments from 11am. The boats are required to be returned by sunset, with the specific time obviously changing with the seasons. Oh, and did we mention they're pet-friendly? Surely you've got a very good boy who deserves a river jaunt. Images: Lean Timms.
This article is sponsored by our partners, Wotif.com. Shakespeare once said wine is a 'good familiar creature' and it's hard to imagine many would disagree. While most of us are familiar with the bottom of the bottle (no judgement here, even Shakespeare was accustomed to drinking wine by the bowl), South Australia's McLaren Vale and its winemakers are not only familiar with the a good drop, they are synonymous with the stuff. Sound like your kind of deal? The McLaren Vale Sea & Vines Festival, held on the first weekend of June, is probably your cup of vino. Giving your average wine-drinking punter (ie. you and me) a chance to experience the region and taste more wine than you can probably handle, the weekend-long festival runs from Friday, June 6, to Monday, June 9, and showcases McLaren Vale's best wineries, food suppliers, music and sommeliers in one easy-to-unwrap culinary package. There's everything from degustations to Daryl Braithwaite (enjoyed simultaneously or separately), shiraz to street food and just about every edible and drinkable thing in-between. The weekend works like this: dinners, tastings, degustations, masterclasses and entertainment will run throughout the weekend, while Sunday becomes a ticketed event. Designed to allow you to explore the region, $25 will allow you entry to three wineries to taste their featured wine and signature dishes. Monday is more family friendly (jumping castles, ahoy!), with venues open for the day and food and wine for purchase. Shiraz is the main game here (it makes up over 50 percent of wine varieties in the region), so expect a lot of the red stuff as well as some Cab Sav, Chardonnay and Grenache. Best of all, it's an easy trip from the Adelaide CBD — it only takes around 40 minutes by car. Making a weekend of it? Have a look at our ultimate Adelaide itinerary and you're set for a wine of a time. Shakespeare would approve. See more of McLaren Vale in our Winter Weekender series.
Low-fi. Wild ferment. Skin contact. Sounds like different incarnations of your mate's high school band, but actually this is just the lingo of the world of minimal intervention winemaking. It's a movement that's been gaining popularity in Australia and New Zealand for a while now, and the wines produced as a result of it have been floating around restaurants and bars for the better part of a decade. For some, seeing 'skin contact' on a wine list is like a guiding light — but, often, it can be confusing as to what that actually means. So what is minimal intervention winemaking exactly? In its purest form, minimal intervention means winemaking that doesn't add or remove anything at the cellar — it's about turning grapes into wine with as little interference from the winemaker as possible. Unlike your typical drop made with more traditional methods, there are less sulfites and commercial yeast added throughout the process. Instead, yeast that was already on the grapes when they were picked is left to ferment and make it into wine. So, how can you tell when you're sipping one? What flavours should you expect in the glass? And how long can you keep a bottle in your fridge before it ends up down the sink? To help you wade through the winemaker speak, we've teamed up with Stoneleigh to deliver the ultimate untraditional wine cheat-sheet. With this, you won't have to fumble your way through weighty wine lists (and, after that, chicken out and order the house red anyway). We'll have you picking the most interesting wine on the menu in no time. HOW IT'S MADE Let's start at the vineyard. In the case of minimal intervention wine this is, arguably, the genesis of every great bottle. The process begins with fruit picked at optimum ripeness, which is then harvested and crushed. From here, juices are drained and pressed from the skins, then poured into a fermentation vessel and left at room temperature. This is where things really kick into gear. The fermentation of the natural yeast usually begins within a few days and continues for up to a month. It's similar to the style of fermentation that happens in kombucha, kimchi and sourdough. In the case of Stoneleigh's Wild Valley Sauvignon Blanc, 70 percent of the wine is aged in French barrels, while the other 30 percent goes into stainless steel tanks. Once fermentation is complete, the two are blended to produce a balanced and ripe wine that has more texture and depth. The key difference here from conventional winemaking is there's no chemicals, herbicides, and pesticides, added yeast, sugar or machinery in sight. The result? Keep reading to find out. [caption id="attachment_644048" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Brook James[/caption] HOW IT TASTES As minimal intervention winemaking adopts a hands-off approach, it's often said these wines are the ultimate representation of the land from which the grapes are sourced. Each vineyard will have its own unique environment that produces naturally occurring micro-flora (the stuff that makes wild fermentation happen) and, as such, its own distinct taste. Without the typical stabilisers and filtering process of conventional wines, the flavour profiles of this wine vary wildly from cellar to cellar. It's a spectrum that shifts from wild and crisp to cloudy and funky. Oh, and expect there to be plenty of sediment in the bottom of your glass. Unlike conventional wines, there are no agents (typically egg white or gelatin) added or filtering prior to bottling — so there will be floaties. But don't worry, these are completely harmless and 100 percent fine for ingestion. Think of it like the pulp in a freshly squeezed OJ. Grown in New Zealand's Rapaura valley, Stoneleigh's Wild Valley Sauvignon Blanc is a wine as very distinct. If you track down a glass, you'll smell stone fruit and lemon curd, and maybe even taste some paw paw. HOW TO STORE IT These wines, unlike their conventional counterparts, are best enjoyed young. Without stabilisers and additives, they prove more unstable and harder to age than a traditional drop. So Stoneleigh recommends consuming its Wild Valley Sauvignon Blanc within two years of purchasing to drink it at its peak. The same rules around typical wine storage still apply for low-intervention wines. Store horizontally away from sunlight in a cool, dry place and keep sealed and corked until you're ready to drink. Once open, the wine's flavour will be at its for the next two or three days — don't leave it any longer. [caption id="attachment_644050" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Brook James[/caption] HOW TO PAIR IT Being region-specific wines, many wild fermented wines are a perfect match for vegetable dishes. Look for savoury low-fi drops that play on the earthiness of root vegetables like carrots, parsnips and beetroot. Next time you're hosting a barbecue, skip the six-pack and nab a chilled glass of natural vino instead. Grab bottles with light, bright acidity that work well alongside charred seafood dishes like prawns and scallops or grilled barramundi. Stoneleigh's Wild Valley Sauvignon Blanc is suited to a range of dishes. The winemakers recommend pairing it with an oily fish such as salmon, topped with parmesan herb crust drizzled with fresh lemon or perfect with a range of cow's and goat's milk cheeses. Start your journey through minimal intervention wine with Stoneleigh Wild Valley, whose 2017 sauvignon blanc recently won gold at the New York International Wine Competition 2019. Top image: Brook James.
Britain's two Queen Elizabeths have enjoyed their fair share of film and TV depictions, aided by Cate Blanchett, Judi Dench, Margot Robbie, Helen Mirren, Claire Foy, Olivia Colman, Imelda Staunton and more — to name just a few — but they're not the only royals of that first name to grace the screen. While the spelling differs slightly and she's played as more of a Diana-style people's princess in her latest stint in cinemas, Empress Elisabeth of Austria (also Queen of Hungary) has received several celluloid and pixel resurrections of her own. Corsage ranks among the best of them, as famed as Austria's Sissi films from the 50s are and as recently as Netflix's The Empress hit streaming, in no small part due to two other outstanding women. One is Luxembourgish actor Vicky Krieps (Bergman Island), who is shrewd, wry and wily as the Bavarian-born wife to Emperor Franz Joseph I. The other is Austrian writer/director Marie Kreutzer (The Ground Beneath My Feet), whose handsomely staged and smartly anachronistic feature is no mere dutiful biopic. Corsage's lead casting is the dream it instantly seems on paper; if you're wondering why, see: Krieps' scene-stealing work opposite Daniel Day-Lewis in 2017's Phantom Thread. Here, she's been earning deserved awards — the Best Performance prize in the 2022 Cannes Film Festival's Un Certain Regard section among them — for a portrayal that never feels like she's stepping into someone else's shoes or jumping back to the past for a part. Krieps is, naturally. Also, given that Sissi lived between 1837–1898, viewers have no way of knowing how close this characterisation is. But Krieps' fierce, dynamic and layered performance goes far further than easy impersonation, or providing a period-appropriate rendering of the Empress based on how history dictates that women of the era behaved (or what flicks set then or focusing on regal women back then have served up before). Corsage is a portrait of a lady, after all, and not of a time. There's nothing old-fashioned about Sissi in Krieps and Kreutzer's hands, although the predicament she's in when Corsage kicks off wouldn't have been new in her day: approaching a big midlife milestone birthday and feeling agitated about it. "At the age of 40, a person begins to disperse and fade," the Empress herself offers. It's 1877, her then 23-year marriage to Franz Josef (Florian Teichtmeister, Vienna Blood) is no longer lit by sparks, her young daughter Valerie (first-timer Rosa Hajjaj) disapproves of her every move, and much attention — her own and beyond — is upon her appearance. So, she flits restlessly. She can travel, circling around Europe. She can ride, exercise, pal around with friends and reconnect with old lovers. She can enjoy the company of men such as Louis Le Prince (Finnegan Oldfield, Final Cut), who directs his motion-picture camera her way, and horseman Bay Middleton (Colin Morgan, Belfast). She can play the starlet part, but also seethe with frustration about the largely decorative nature of her position. Some of the above genuinely happened. Some of it didn't. The same applies to other aspects of Kreutzer's narrative from start to finish. Fidelity to facts isn't Corsage's primary or even secondary concern, refreshingly so. Also, the film doesn't bother itself with the notorious end to her son's story, with Crown Prince Rudolf taking his own life in a suicide pact. He's still in the movie (as portrayed by Aaron Friesz, Freud), but his tale isn't his mother's. Endeavouring to set a historical figure free from their corset — which is what corsage means in French, not flowers for a formal occasion as the term refers to in English — this flick isn't bound by accuracy or the lives of others. Sissi was bound enough anyway and not just by bodices cinching in her waist down to 19.5-inches and less, as Corsage finds ample ways to make plain. In too many situations and for far too long, to be a woman is to be the subject of scrutiny — and doesn't Corsage know it. Sissi's roles as a wife, mother, Empress and representative of her countries are the source of constant fixation from all and sundry, with nothing ever pleasing everyone or even anyone much. Her exterior earns the same public obsession. The fact that she shares it is both an indictment of the ridiculous pressure she's subjected to and, in the complicated way of disordered eating, a bid for control. Corsage isn't here to simply spin woe, however. It's too playful and subversive for that. What it recognises again and again is how little agency Sissi had, how she was constantly defined by how she looked, and how one might process, cope with and rally against that truth. A haircut isn't just a haircut here, for instance, but an act of release and rebellion that also inspires tears among her attendants. Against restrained period fare and reverent on-screen biographies, Corsage is an act of rebellion, too. It isn't quite Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette nor Pablo Larraín's Spencer, but belongs in the middle of the pair. Accordingly, cue the flouting of 19th-century-only sights and sounds, plus a firm focus on conveying Sissi's inner state with every tool at the picture's disposal. Visually, Kreutzer and cinematographer Judith Kaufmann (The Audition) let modern details remain among the movie's settings — doors, lights, powerpoints, mops and more. On the soundtrack, French singer Camille of 'Ta Douleur' fame gets poppy, and covers of Kris Kristofferson's 'Help Me Make It Through the Night' and The Rolling Stones' 'As Tears Go By' get a workout. This tale is timeless, Kreutzer emphasises. The Empress' stresses, sadness, struggles and spirit are as well, her film continues. Corsage's point of interest is Kreutzer's familiar point of interest: women just wanting to be who they are but constrained by society's rules and expectations. 2019's The Ground Beneath My Feet and 2016's Krieps-starring We Used to Be Cool before that don't toy with real-life figures, but they unpack the same idea. That's an age-old reality, Corsage also reinforces, whether it's sticking close to its star's face, sometimes beneath striking face veils; surveying the punishing act of dressing as an Empress again and again; or stepping back to take in her lavish attire and surroundings, seeing what the world around her sees. Then, when this perceptive treasure comes to its inventive end, it's with an utterly unforgettable reimagining — which, yes, is this feature from the get-go.
After closing down its Daylesford location earlier this year and replacing it with the more casual Sakana, Kazuki's is opening the doors to its new restaurant — and bringing its Japanese fine dining from regional Victoria to Melbourne. Come Tuesday, November 20, Japanese born chef-patron Kazuki Tsuya and his wife and business partner Saori will launch Kazuki's in Carlton. It's a case of new surroundings, same approach for the flagship eatery, in a split-level site that'll seat 30 downstairs and 18 on the second floor. "Although the new restaurant will look very different, our team is focused on bringing the same soul of the original Kazuki's to its new home," says Kazuki. "The kitchen will be guided by the same philosophies and the same warm Japanese hospitality will be at the heart of everything that our guests experience when they visit." Design-wise, with a calm, serene feeling all part of the eatery's vibe, the interiors will feature timber screening, rich carpets and naturalistic lighting — and an overall colour palette that heroes grey with accents of Japanese elm, granite and leather. As for the menu, it continues the fusion of Japanese and European flavours that Kazuki's is known for, paying tribute to the chef's heritage as well as his French training. Kazuki himself steps into the role of executive chef, while Anthony Hammel (ex-Pei Modern, and a Daylesford Kazuki's alum) takes the position of the restaurant's head chef. Diners can expect dishes such as kingfish sashimi with buttermilk, finger lime, white soy and ginger, plus sea urchin with russet potato chips, beluga caviar and cultured cream. The Sher wagyu flank is cooked over coals, and comes with a smoked eel and port wine reduction — while desserts include a dark chocolate tart with gianduja ganache, hazelnuts and miso caramel, as well as yoghurt sorbet with yuzu and verbena curd, and Anzac biscuit crumbing. Five and seven course tasting menus with matched beverages are also available, as well as a four-course lunch on Sundays — and if you're heading by on a Friday and Saturday evenings, you won't be able to order a la carte. Japanese sake, whiskey and spirits feature on the drinks list, as does wine from Japan and Australia among a hefty international selection. Find Kazuki's at 121 Lygon Street, Carlton from Tuesday, November 20. It'll open for lunch from Friday–Sunday from 12pm and for dinner from Tuesday–Saturday from 6pm. Images: Peter Tarasiuk
UPDATE: MAY 6, 2020 — You can now watch celebrities narrate Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone thanks to Harry Potter at Home's new weekly recordings. First up is Potter himself — Daniel Radcliffe — reading the first chapter, 'The Boy Who Lived'. Then, it'll be the likes of Stephen Fry, Claudia Kim, Eddie Redmayne, David Beckham, Dakota Fanning and Noma Dumezweni. You can watch via the website or listen on Spotify. If Hogwarts was a real place, no one would be able to visit it at present. But if you're still dreaming about all things magical despite the current state of the world, you can accio up a slice of the fictional school while cooped up in your own house. You've probably already watched and rewatched all the Harry Potter films, and the Fantastic Beasts flicks. Maybe you've started reading your way through the books again as well. Now, if you're looking for an added dose of wizarding fun, you can also head to new online hub Harry Potter at Home. A fresh addition to Warner Brothers and Pottermore's Wizarding World website, Harry Potter at Home aims to become a one-stop shop for Boy Who Lived-related activities during these self-isolating times. And while it's primarily aimed at kids (and their parents, teachers and carers), so were JK Rowling's books — and that hasn't stopped fans of all ages obsessing over Harry, Ron, Hermione and the gang by heading to HP-themed boozy potions classes, kitting themselves out in Hogwarts-inspired attire, sleuthing their way through escape room challenges, participating in scavenger hunts, shopping at dedicated stores, playing Pokémon Go-style games on their phones, and getting excited about a potential new Harry Potter theme park. Visitors to Harry Potter at Home will find articles, quizzes and puzzles, including Harry Potter-themed crosswords. You can also find out your Hogwarts house via virtual sorting hat, too. And, you can spend some time watching crafting videos that'll teach you how to knit a Weasley family-inspired scarf and bust out Marauder's Map-worthy calligraphy skills — which are also available via Wizarding World's YouTube channel. You can also watch celebrities narrate Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone thanks to Harry Potter at Home's weekly recordings. First up is Potter himself — Daniel Radcliffe — reading the first chapter, 'The Boy Who Lived'. Then, it'll be the likes of Stephen Fry, Claudia Kim, Eddie Redmayne, David Beckham, Dakota Fanning and Noma Dumezweni. You can watch via the website or listen on Spotify. New activities, videos, puzzles and articles will be added regularly, with Potter diehards able to access Harry Potter at Home for free — and sign up for a weekly newsletter. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp21Xijewlg If you're a muggle who's somehow new to all things Harry Potter — or you're eager to go back to the beginning again but haven't yet done so — Pottermore Publishing is also making Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone available for free via eBook or audiobook until the end of April. For further details, visit the Harry Potter at Home website. Top image: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Warner Bros. Pictures.
Wellington is heaven for gourmands, combining all the ingredients that make for a brilliant culinary getaway. There are laneways crammed with cool, little artisanal producers; clandestine cocktail bars behind unmarked doorways; quiet suburbs hiding excellent, casual and international restaurants; centre-city breweries in abundance and a pack of wineries just over the hills. And then there's the fact that the city is wedged between a picturesque harbour and sprawling farmland, so the produce scene is very, very local. Wellington is a physically small city, so it's best explored on foot. This not only helps mitigate some of the effects of a food-filled holiday, but means there's also no stress about arranging transport or planning too far in advance. Just follow your nose and tastebuds. It's often said that Wellington has more bars and restaurants per capita than New York City. Whether or not there's any truth in this, it'll surely feel like it as you explore the many beaut spots, tasting your way through the city's unique culinary ethos. SHEPHERD Tucked away down Hannahs Laneway, Shepherd features framed botanical posters, taxidermy draped with fairy lights and jars of preserves used as decoration. And this unexpected and playful, yet refined decor is mirrored in its food. This is fine dining-quality fare in a wonderfully fun atmosphere where the staff know the origins of every ingredient. Expect plenty of local seafood, Asian condiments, fermented and pickled ingredients and some of the most creative desserts you'll ever taste. The pumpkin cardamom doughnut with peanut butter popcorn and whiskey anglaise is a favourite, but the menu is seasonal and changes almost daily so expect to find a new favourite each time you stop in. [caption id="attachment_635862" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Facebook / Fix & Fogg.[/caption] FIX & FOGG What started as a hobby for then-lawyers Roman and Andrea Jewell has turned into a bit of a peanut butter empire. Fix & Fogg was born from the couple's desire to learn new skills, and it quickly became one of the most delicious products coming out of Wellington. Swing by Hannahs Laneway, and if the peanut butter flag is out — you'll know it when you see it — then the PB will be flowing. The adorable shop window is literally tucked under a staircase and offers tastings, gourmet toast and the occasional peanut butter donut. [caption id="attachment_635860" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Facebook / Husk.[/caption] HUSK Another spot hidden down an alley, another spot that's the result of a collaboration between Wellington hospo stalwarts — HUSK is a lot of things: a cafe, a bar, a brewery, a coffee roastery and a restaurant. With true dedication, the coffee and beer venture is open from 8 or 9am till late every day. Swing by for a breakfast of sardines on toast and a Karamu Coffee flat white (with beans roasted onsite), lunch featuring pork shoulder tacos and a pint of Reet Petite, a stem ginger red IPA by Choice Bros (brewed onsite) and for cheeseburger spring rolls and a barrel-aged negroni for dinner. LAMASON BREW BAR Wellington runs on strong coffee, and Lamason is where you can try the best of it in a safe environment. You won't be mocked here if you're not really sure what the difference is between V60 and Swiss Gold. Lamason does do traditional espresso and they do serve a small selection of food, but what you really want to visit for is the specialty coffee. If you're a newbie, don't be afraid to ask the staff what they recommend. Their single origin beans each have their own unique flavour profiles, and they're beautifully profiled by siphon brewing — which is basically vacuum coffee extraction, otherwise known as magic. [caption id="attachment_635861" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Facebook / Harbourside Market.[/caption] HARBOURSIDE MARKET In Wellington, you bend the knee and swear allegiance to one of the weekend produce markets. There are a handful to choose from, but Harbourside Market is the true ruler of this realm. Every Sunday from sunrise to early arvo, locals and visitors flock to the market to get their week's fruit and veg, as well as bread, cheese, meat, fish, tofu, honey, eggs, peanut butter and so on. The markets also feature a bunch of food trucks and buskers. The roti wraps and cold brew coffee are a perfect cure to a foggy Sunday head, the waterfront vista is stunning and the people watching is excellent. Maybe you've been to Auckland, maybe you've gone to the snow in Queensland, but now it's time to set your sights on Wellington. The harbourside city may be compact, but that only makes for excellent walkability from its excellent restaurants, cafes and bars to its cultural hot spots and around the great outdoors. Use our planning guide to book your trip, then sort out your Wellington hit list with our food and drink, culture and outdoor guides.
When you've just won one of the international film world's most-prestigious prizes, where do you head next? For Iranian writer/director Jafar Panahi, who took home the Palme d'Or at 2025's Cannes Film Festival for his new feature It Was Just an Accident, this is the answer: a trip to Australia to attend Sydney Film Festival. His latest picture was already on the Harbour City event's program. The fest is also celebrating his entire body of work with its featured retrospective Jafar Panahi: Cinema in Rebellion. What better special guest, then, than the man himself? "From Cannes to Australia" has been an ongoing theme of Sydney Film Festival's 2025 program announcements. See: its main lineup drop, adding Eddington to the bill, closing-night pick Splitsville, and a late round of newcomers primarily comprised of Cannes award-winners and hits that was revealed just two days in advance of the event raising its curtains. Panahi's surprise trip to Australia is the stuff of Festival Director and cinephile dreams, however. The filmmaker is already in Sydney, as SFF's Nashen Moodley announced to the opening-night crowd at the State Theatre on Wednesday, June 4. There's launching with a bang, as every major film festival aims to — and then there's kicking things off with not just a highly anticipated opening-night pick (body-horror flick Together) but with this kind of news. Panahi attending fests around the world or even having any freedom at all has not been assured across his time as a filmmaker. Throughout his career, Iran's ruling regime has banned him from making movies, forbidden him from leaving his homeland, and placed him both under arrest and imprisonment. Accordingly, the significance of Panahi being present at Sydney Film Festival cannot be understated. As he's made the reality of life in Iran today under censorship and oppression the focus of his pictures, persevering with his acts of resistance through cinema regardless of the repercussions that've come his way, the importance of Panahi's work has been clear to moviegoing audiences for decades. His films have a long association with SFF, including across the fest's program whenever his new pictures drop and in a 2011 retrospective that also highlighted his compatriot Mohammad Rasoulof (The Seed of the Sacred Fig). That said, every single one of Panahi's features is playing at Sydney Film Festival in 2025, with the filmmaker set to introduce a number of retrospective sessions and also get chatting at a free talk at the event's Festival Hub. It Was Just an Accident is part of SFF's official competition, and therefore in the running to collect another huge film festival prize. Indeed, Panahi's filmography is filled with award-winners, a term that applies to every feature that he's ever crafted. The White Balloon gave Panahi his first Cannes accolade, for best first film. Then 1997's The Mirror took home the Locarno International Film Festival's Golden Leopard, 2000's The Circle nabbed Venice's Golden Lion, 2003's Crimson Gold earned an Un Certain Regard prize back at Cannes and 2006's Offside collected a Silver Bear in Berlin. More Cannes love came for 2011's This Is Not a Film (the Carrosse d'Or at the Director's Fortnight) and 2018's Three Faces (for best screenplay), plus more Berlin recognition for 2013's Closed Curtain (another Silver Bear) and 2015's Tehran Taxi (the Golden Bear), and more again from Venice for No Bears (a Special Jury Prize). Sydney Film Festival 2025 takes place from Wednesday, June 4–Sunday, June 15 at various cinemas and venues around Sydney. For more information and tickets, head to the festival's website.
Can a fourth wall be smashed if it's barely even a gauze curtain? For audiences, Deadpool & Wolverine plays out on sturdy IRL surfaces that can be shattered — cinema screens first, then home entertainment's TVs and computers and phones forever afterward — but the film's to-camera asides, self-reflective jabs, in-gags, sarcasm, meta references upon meta references and all-round superhero satire aren't breaking, busting through or saying bye, bye, bye to anything. There's nothing to destroy when the idea that movies are their own worlds separate to the reality that they're viewed in simply doesn't exist in the third picture with Deadpool in its title, 11th X-Men feature and 34th entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This is still a flick spinning make-believe as it makes fun, but one that acknowledges how everyone interacts with pop culture: by knowing personal and industry goings-on tangential to the in-film action, such as that Ryan Reynolds (IF) is married to Gossip Girl's Blake Lively, Hugh Jackman (Faraway Downs) is Australian and newly divorced, Disney bought Fox in the battle of Hollywood studios and the MCU hasn't had the strongest of times of late. Deadpool & Wolverine may spend a fair portion of its duration in a wasteland-like place called The Void; however, viewers don't watch anything in a vacuum. This isn't the only feature to recognise that truth, nor the lone Deadpool movie to do so. That said, there's leaning into the fact that no one can completely split any art from their contextual awareness around it, and then there's this level of commitment. Comparing one of its major settings to the Mad Max realm within seconds of arriving there — and within months of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga releasing — is merely one further example. Nods, shoutouts and wisecracks go everywhere, including deep into the Marvel comics, their prior leaps to the screen, gripes about the latter, Tinseltown manoeuvrings, box-office fortunes, abandoned projects, stalled future flicks and actors' romantic lives. Reteaming after Free Guy and The Adam Project, Reynolds and director Shawn Levy co-penned the screenplay with Zeb Wells (She-Hulk: Attorney at Law), plus Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese (who return from 2016's Deadpool and 2018's Deadpool 2), but the internet may as well have earned a scripting credit. For those less head over heels with Deadpool's merc-with-a-mouth schtick than Reynolds visibly has been for the eight years and running, consider this the only-way-out-is-through approach: there's more stacked on top of more, then huge piles of more again, then more and more sprinklings as well, especially when it comes to jokes that can't occur without referring to details well beyond Deadpool & Wolverine's frames. Reynolds, Levy and company own the onslaught with the transparency of the film's absent barrier — and while that isn't the same as ensuring that the bit always works or avoids getting repetitive (on both, it doesn't), it firmly helps establish part of the feature's vibe. This probably should be named Deadpool with Wolverine, but adding James 'Logan' Howlett to Wade Winston Wilson isn't just about superheroes teaming up, then the bickering banter and frenemy frays that result. Deadpool & Wolverine also gains energy from the scowling, growling, unhappy-to-be there mutant with the adamantium skeleton, giving it what past Deadpool jaunts have deeply missed: some tonal balance. Spirit first, story second: that's also Deadpool & Wolverine's gambit. As it cracks the boundaries between Disney and Fox's respective Marvel domains, and endeavours to win over the naysaying Wolverine — two tasks with glaring parallels between what's happening in its narrative and for viewers — it spins a straightforward tale given stock-standard sprawling franchise complications. The world is in peril. Masses will die. Multiple villains have schemes. The ill-fated sphere needs a hero, and that hero needs aid from another. Or: told by the Time Variance Authority's Mr Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen, Succession) that his timeline needs pruning following the events of 2017's Logan, Deadpool can only save everyone that he loves from being snuffed out by finding a new Wolverine from across the multiverse. But, they'll also have to flee The Void where unwanted intellectual property is dumped, and where Charles Xavier's maniacal twin Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin, A Murder at the End of the World) controls and manipulates everything. Although the plot doesn't lack specifics, be it Wade's eagerness to join the Avengers to impress his ex-fiancee Vanessa (Morena Baccarin, The Flash), Logan grappling with trauma and mistakes, Paradox's machine that's due to eradicate Earth-10005 or Cassandra messing with minds, the tale itself never feels like the point. While the minutiae is engaging enough, when Deadpool mentions more than once that he's now Marvel Jesus, believe the intent behind those words. After Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania was a flop, with the MCU's route towards the fifth and sixth Avengers flicks requiring reworking after off-screen developments, and as 2024's only film in the series, there's some world-saving needed for this saga, too. Deadpool & Wolverine's method of going about it is crashing well-known pieces together for fun — not just its titular characters, but also via more surprises than at a Kinder factory, with one reveal particularly wittily done. There's that favouring atmosphere above all else again; refreshingly, despite teasing several times that Jackman will likely keep playing his role till he's 90, no one can accuse this movie of solely or mainly trying to lay groundwork for the franchise's 35th entries onwards. There's no missing where Deadpool & Wolverine's strengths reside, though: in Jackman, Corrin and Macfadyen. That Reynolds can irreverently and acerbically snark the hell out of Deadpool and sell the meta-ness of it all has been plain for almost a decade now, and he rides Wade's emotional journey here effectively as well, yet his co-stars couldn't be more pivotal. Sometimes slicing and stabbing at each other's regenerative flesh in a Honda Odyssey, sometimes trading barbs for glares, sometimes dispensing with foes in a side-scrolling frenzy, the odd-couple act with Jackman gleams and wipes the dull clash that 2009's X-Men Origins: Wolverine flatly served up from memories. In addition to donning his character's yellow suit, Jackman himself wears weariness, anger, disappointment and regret like it too is fused to his framework, getting more and more moving the longer that he dons the claws. It's been 24 years now since the debut X-Men and if there's a potential Marvel messiah here for his Real Steel helmer, it's him. Also, memorable bad-guy alert not once but twice: Corrin is an unnerving delight as Cassandra gets into peoples' heads — not just figuratively — and Macfadyen hams it up superbly. Layered within the nudging and parodying, stream of inside-baseball shots, shiny display of Disney's new IP wares, OTT violence and retro-leaning tunes — Goo Goo Dolls, Avril Lavigne, the Grease soundtrack and Madonna all echo prominently — is a takeaway that life isn't a mystery, but rather is all about acceptance. It's worth fighting for. It deserves you giving a shit, not coasting. Nonetheless, learning to come to terms with missteps and mourning, and faded dreams and paths not taken, is inescapable no matter if you have adversaries to vanquish, universes to rescue, lost loves to woo, identities to reconfigure, reputations to salvage and caped-crusader squads to wow. Cue another instance of mirroring. Levy mightn't be actively aiming to tell viewers that looking past Deadpool & Wolverine's tussles with itself is also part of this package, yet it still sticks when some of the film's scenes struggle with blandness visually and in their effects, the corporate-synergy angle is laid on thick and, regardless of what Reynolds quips, there's also a sense of holding back now that Disney is pulling the strings. Looking for a devilishly self-aware Deadpool and Wolverine romp, though? Just like a prayer, this'll take you there.
As this season likes to constantly remind us, wandering through thousands of twinkling lights is always a magical time. And you'll have the chance to do just that once again when smash-hit after-dark light celebration Lightscape returns to the Royal Botanic Gardens next winter. After making its dazzling Aussie debut earlier this year — and proving a sell-out success — the event is back bigger and better for 2023. It'll transform the grounds into a nightly fiesta of colour and light from Friday, June 16–Sunday, August 6. Creating a luminous 2.1-kilometre trail winding through the gardens from 5.15pm each night, the festival's next instalment is set to showcase more than 100,000 glittering lights, with glowing large-scale sculptures, shimmering reflections and colour-changing installations peppered along the extended route. While next year's full Lightscape program is being kept under wraps for now, the debut event was a doozy — highlights included sparkling trees blazing in bold hues, firework-inspired pops of colour and the majestic walk-through installation known as Winter Cathedral. Grab tickets to 'Lightscape' 2023 online from 10am on Friday, December 10, 2022.
All good bars should come with good secrets — cocktail recipes, ghosts, tip jar protocols. But not every bar comes with a secret bar, like Matthew Bax's brand new teeny, tiny 14-seater watering hole, Bar Exuberante — a secret, windowless cubby hole at the back of his rustic Richmond rum joint, Bar Economico. The brand new bar is apparently based on a made-up, colonial-era Latino hotel bar, the extravagant Imperial Exuberante Palace Hotel — which straight-up sounds like a Wes Anderson invention. Think the grand hotels of Old Havana in the 1960s, where businesspeople attended fancy gala dinners in the hotel ballroom, where wealthy cruise ship passengers shook off their sea legs with champagne crustas. All out the back of Economico. Bax's renowned cocktail skills have leaked into this brand new little gem, with modern, nitrogen-fuelled spins on rum cocktails, and hot/cold pina coladas. Nibbles include 'Senor Bax's Famous Cocktail Savoury Snacks'. You can't book a table, you just have to turn up and be lucky enough to nab one of the 14 seats. Find Bar Exuberante out the back of Bar Economico at 438 Church Street, Richmond. Open Tue-Thu 6pm-midnight; Fri-Sat 6pm-1am. Via Good Food.
The Sunshine State might soon need to upgrade its nickname, even if 'the walking trail state' doesn't quite have the same ring to it. Still, the suggested moniker fits. New hiking tracks have been popping up around Queensland quite frequently of late, including the country's longest continuous walking, cycling and horse-riding path, a 55-kilometre walk through the Scenic Rim in the state's southeast and plans for a 76-kilometre coastal walk in the far north. Now, add a mountain bushwalk trail on North Stradbroke Island, or Minjerribah, to the list. Straddie's addition to the fold is a rather reasonable length, compared to other just-completed and upcoming treks, coming in at just over two kilometres. But the Mount Vane walking track boasts plenty of highlights, including 360-degree views of Moreton Bay and Quandamooka country. It also links into two existing walks within Naree Budjong Djara National Park, making a to ten-kilometre network of trails. Crucially, the track was designed and constructed by the Quandamooka people, the island's traditional owners, with more than 20 rangers involved. Alongside Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, they help care for the national park — which covers around half of the island. [caption id="attachment_702560" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] The Gorge, North Stradbroke Island, via Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] Along the interconnected trails, walkers can now nab a view from the top of one of Straddie's highest peaks, trek half a day down to Karboora (the Deep Silent Pool, which is also known as Blue Lake) and find other high spots with scenic vantages — including sweeping over 18 Mile Swamp and over to the Gold Coast. The Mount Vane walking track is part of a series of upgrades designed to boost tourism, giving Straddie a suite of "upgraded campgrounds and recreational trails, unique cultural experiences, and land-based whale watching," as Tourism Industry Development Minister Kate Jones explained in a statement. [caption id="attachment_640463" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Minjerribah Camping[/caption] In good news for anyone keen not just to wander through Straddie, but stay for a night or several, new beachside cabins, eco-tents, glamping and safari tents are coming to the scenic spot. The island already boasts permanent beachfront glamping grounds at Adder Rock and Amity Point, as run by Minjerribah Camping (formerly Straddie Camping); however the existing caravan park site at Adams Beach adding "environmentally and culturally sensitive beachside accommodation". With specially designed containers transforming into cabins, the new accommodation is due to be open in June. Top image: Tobias Lange via Flickr.
There's no shortage of museums in Germany. Berlin has a whole area dedicated to them, serious and important centres exploring the events of Second World War can be found all around the country, and separate spaces celebrate everything from currywurst and Easter eggs to lipstick and David Hasselhoff. The European nation's newest addition just might be its cutest, however — and a reason to make a dash to the Bavarian town of Passau, particularly if you're a dog lover. With a name like Dackelmuseum, there's only one four-legged critter that could be in the spotlight: the daschund. Also known as the Dachshund Small Residence, it boasts the world's largest collection of dachshund-related items. Inside, you'll find more than 4500 objects, and here's guessing that they're all as adorable as dachshund themselves. Drawing upon a collection compiled by florists Seppi Küblbeck and Oliver Stor over the course of 25 years, the museum steps through the history and impact of the sausage-shaped pooch in 21 display cases, with types, cultural references, music, toys and their connection to nobility all covered. Other topics include the dachshund as a muse — which is something anyone who has spent too long looking at the elongated doggos can relate to — plus dachshunds and beer, famous dachshunds, sleeping dachshunds and the 1972 Olympic mascot (who, you've guessed it, was a dachshund called Waldi when the event was held in Munich). Next time you're in Germany, you'd be barking mad to miss it. Images: Dackelmuseum
For one morning, on what might be the only occasion that Sydneysiders can use this phrase and mean it literally, the Vengabus is coming. Getting everybody jumping is the Uber Pride Ride, a party bus that's hitting the Harbour City for Sydney WorldPride, and running across three weekends — but only one special trip will feature Vengaboys. The Dutch pop group are in Australia for the latest So Pop tour, which plays Sydney on Thursday, February 16. That morning, the band will take a tour of the city with a lucky busload of folks, in a VIP experience that you'll have to keep an eye on Uber's Instagram account to win tickets to. If you want to call the Uber Pride Ride the Vengabus for the rest of its run — from Friday, February 17–Sunday, February 19, Friday, February 24–Sunday, February 26 and Friday, March 3–Sunday, March 5, operating from 6.30–10pm daily — then that's up to you. But, whether you're a Sydney local or a visitor hitting the city just for WorldPride's first-ever stint Down Under, you'll have company in the form of a heap of drag queen stars. Each night's trips will feature different talents busting out onboard activities — so you might be in for a ride filled with drag bingo, karaoke or an inner-city disco on wheels with Jojo Zaho, Carla From Bankstown, Coco Jumbo, Cassandra Queen, Karen From Finance, Annie Mation and more. The Uber Pride Ride is also hosting educational talks from First Nations LGBQTIA+SB advocacy organisation Black Rainbow. Like to party on the way to the party? This is the hop-on-hop-off — and free — bus for you. It'll take an hour-long City Circle loop, departing at 6.30pm, 7.45pm and 9pm each evening, starting at Australian Museum on William Street. From there, it'll head to St James Station, Powerhouse Museum, Central Station, Albion Street in Surry Hills, Flinders Street in Darlinghurst, Oxford Street in Paddington, then via Craigend and William streets back to the beginning. Like free Uber Pool trips as well? On one weekend, from 12–10pm Friday, February 24–Sunday, February 26, the rideshare company is also doing $100 off trips. The Uber Pride Ride will take to the Sydney CBD's streets from Friday, February 17–Sunday, February 19, Friday, February 24–Sunday, February 26 and Friday, March 3–Sunday, March 5, running from 6.30–10pm daily, with a special one-off Vengaboys-hosted ride on the morning of Thursday, February 16. The Uber Pool Pride Offer runs from 12–10pm Friday, February 24–Sunday, February 26, offering $100 off trip. For more information, head to the Uber website.
What'll start at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, then spread plenty of sports around Victoria? Every year, the AFL season does just that — but soon, the Commonwealth Games will as well. Just four years out from the event, and mere months away from 2022's games in Birmingham, England, regional Victoria has been named as the event's 2026 host. While the opening ceremony will take over the MCG — where else? — the games themselves will play out in Geelong, Bendigo, Ballarat and Gippsland. Each spot will operate as regional hub, scoring their own athletes' village and sports programs, and spreading the event around the state in the process. [caption id="attachment_831273" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Robert Blackburn, Visit Victoria[/caption] And, because the 2026 Commonwealth Games really are set to take advantage of as much of Victoria as they can, Shepparton will also host sporting and cultural events, too. If you're wondering exactly what'll be hosted where, it's been proposed that all of the aquatics events happen in Geelong, as well as hockey, gymnastics, table tennis, beach volleyball and the triathlon. Gippsland could host badminton and rugby, athletics and boxing has been earmarked for Ballarat, and Bendigo looks set to welcome weightlifting, lawn bowls and squash. The cycling program will likely take place from Gippsland to Bendigo, while Geelong, Bendigo, Ballarat and Gippsland would all host cricket. And, there'll be a para sport program as well, with para athletics, para swimming, para lawn bowls, para table tennis, para triathlon and para powerlifting already locked in. It's official: the 2026 Commonwealth Games will be the Regional Victoria games. — Dan Andrews (@DanielAndrewsMP) April 12, 2022 Announcing the news, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said that "it's a great honour to have Victoria chosen as the host venue for the 2026 Commonwealth Games — we can't wait to welcome the world to all of our state." It's estimated the 2026 games will give the Victorian economy a$3 billion boost, creating more than 600 full-time jobs before the event, as well as 3900 jobs while they're on and another 3000 afterwards. The Commonwealth Games will also feature cultural events spread across the state, and the Queen's Baton Relay will race through Victoria's various regions in the weeks leading up to the opening ceremony. And yes, Australia only recently held the games, back in 2018 on the Gold Coast. Also, this means that Australia will host two huge sporting events in the next decade, given that Brisbane has already been locked in as the site for the 2032 Olympic Games. The 2026 Commonwealth Games will take place in regional Victoria in 2026, with exact dates to be announced. For more information, head to the Commonwealth Games website and Victorian Government website. Top image: StephenK1997 via Flickr.
At Sydney's Don't Tell Aunty and Melbourne's Daughter in Law, chef Jessi Singh serves up Indian cuisine his way. He isn't flouting tradition; rather, he doesn't think there's any such thing as 'authentic' Indian food. "There are no recipes, and everything is passed on through the generations in the kitchen verbally," he explains about his rule-breaking dishes — which'll also be available in Byron Bay in mid-June. Singh is expanding the Daughter in Law brand to the beachside town, with the new 65-seat eatery setting up shop on Fletcher Street. Both locals and visitors to the scenic spot can expect to tuck into a seafood-heavy menu, which'll also place an emphasis on both vegan and gluten free fare. Ingredients from the Northern Rivers region will feature, too, with Singh calling his dishes "global food with an Indian twist". In Melbourne, the culinary lineup spans Indian fried chicken, tandoori tikka sliders and papadum platters — if you're wondering what kind of meals Singh classes as 'unauthentic'. The food menu will be paired with an extensive wine list curated by sommelier Bhatia Dheeraj, self-serve fridges full of beer and cider, and a range of cocktails. Sip the Indian spiced sangria, and you'll be tasting red wine, sweet vermouth and orange. Opt for the restaurant's namesake tipple, and you'll be enjoying Brookie's gin, a tandoori-fired pineapple and cardamom lime. Vibe-wise, the new Daughter in Law will take its cues from its location — think playful, vibrant and also relaxed. Patrons will get comfortable on green and blue velvet seating, drink from handmade glasses covered in rainbow peacocks, and sit amidst gold flourishes and under a pink neon sign. Scenes from Bollywood films will brighten up the walls, while DJs will spin 80s and 90s tracks daily. Daughter in Law's Byron Bay restaurant will mark the chain's third, after setting up shop in Adelaide earlier in 2021. Before launching Don't Tell Aunty in Sydney in 2018 — and going on to start its growing no-frills Australian-Indian bar and grill sibling — Singh spent a lengthy stint in the US running his two Babu Ji outposts. Daughter in Law will open at 22 Fletcher Street, Byron Bay, in mid-June — trading from 5pm–late seven days a week.
"The grid. A digital frontier. I tried to picture clusters of information as they moved through the computer. What did they look like? Ships? Motorcycles? Were the circuits like freeways? I kept dreaming of a world I thought I'd never see. And then one day, I got in." If you've watched 1982's TRON and its 28-years-later sequel TRON: Legacy in 2010, or listened to the latter's sublime Daft Punk-scored soundtrack, then you've heard those words. But what if everything that Jeff Bridges (The Old Man) describes as Kevin Flynn wasn't relegated to the virtual realm? In TRON: Ares, viewers will watch what happens when the program that shares the movie's moniker makes the jump from the digital space to the real world, giving humanity its first encounter with AI beings. Indeed, amid its heavy lashings of laser-red hues, the just-dropped first trailer for the feature has a monster-movie vibe when worlds start to collide. Flesh-and-blood folks such as Greta Lee (The Studio) stare up, then start fleeing. While things happen quickly in the digital realm, films about it clearly don't always earn the same description, given that it has now been over four decades since the first TRON film made its way to cinemas, and 15 years since its first sequel. A third movie was announced the very same year that TRON: Legacy released, in fact, but TRON: Ares has taken time to return cinemagoers to the grid. For much of the past decade and a half, it's been one of those pictures in the "I'll believe it when I'm actually sitting in a theatre watching it with my own eyes" category, until Disney not only announced that the feature had a date with picture palaces in 2025, but also dropped a first image from it. The date that you can see the next TRON on the big screen: Thursday, October 9, 2025 Down Under. Cast-wise, Jared Leto (Haunted Mansion) plays Ares, aka the threatening face of AI. Bridges is also back as the software-company employee who first found himself in the digital world in the initial flick. Evan Peters (Agatha All Along), Hasan Minhaj (It Ends with Us), Jodie Turner-Smith (The Agency), Arturo Castro (The Vince Staples Show), Cameron Monaghan (Shameless) and Gillian Anderson (Sex Education) co-star in TRON: Ares, while Joachim Rønning (Young Woman and the Sea) directs. Following on from Daft Punk's masterpiece of a score for TRON: Legacy was always going to be a tough feat, but TRON: Ares isn't skimping on musical talent. Doing the honours, as heard in the feature's first trailer: Nine Inch Nails, adding to Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross' run of film work (see also: Soul, Mank, Bones and All, Empire of Light, The Killer, Challengers, Queer and The Franchise just in the 2020s alone). Check out the first trailer for TRON: Ares below: TRON: Ares releases in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, October 9, 2025. Images: courtesy of DIsney. © 2025 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
If Luca Guadagnino wants to keep making movies with Timothée Chalamet after the swooning, moving delight that was Call Me By Your Name, film lovers and Chalamet stans everywhere will be more than happy. And with Bones and All, that's exactly what he's doing again next. The Italian filmmaker is also giving fans of his 2017 queer romance — a flick that nabbed Chalamet a Best Actor Oscar nomination — another repeat gift, too. Who doesn't want to see that picture's Michael Stuhlbarg give Timothée life advice again? This time, though, it's in far bloodier circumstances. Arriving five years after Call Me By Your Name, and set to hit cinemas Down Under in November, Bones and All also sees Chalamet and Guadagnino collaborate on a love story — but with an extra bite. Forget peaches, as both the first sneak peek and the newly dropped full trailer make plain. Here, Chalamet plays one half of a cannibal couple. As Lee, the Dune, The French Dispatch and Don't Look Up actor gets gory — including with Taylor Russell's (Waves) Maren. The hybrid horror, romance and coming-of-age tale follows the pair of cannibal lovers as they road trip across America, chasing and satisfying their desires, and also grappling with what's brought them to this juncture. In both trailers so far, the vibe is yearning, swooning again, but also unsettling. It skews darker and more violent this time around, sinking its teeth into its biting premise. And when Mark Rylance (The Phantom of the Open) pops up in the two sneak peeks, he has his finger to his lips in a telling gesture of warning. Bones and All marks Guadagnino's first feature since 2018's Suspiria remake — after a detour to television with HBO series We Are Who We Are — and sees the director bring Camille DeAngelis' novel of the same name to the screen. Also featured in the film: We Are Who We Are alums Chloë Sevigny and Francesca Scorsese (yes, the daughter of filmmaker Martin Scorsese), plus André Holland (Passing), Jake Horowitz (The Vast of Night), filmmaker David Gordon Green (Halloween Kills), and Jessica Harper from both the original Suspiria and Guadagnino's version. Check out the full trailer for Bones and All below: Bones and All releases in cinemas Down Under on November 24.
