Melbourne's fashion fiends are in for a serious treat, with the NGV International kicking off its dazzling new exhibition — The Krystyna Campbell-Pretty Fashion Gift. A treasure trove of sartorial delights, the free showcase features over 150 haute couture pieces from some of the world's most iconic fashion houses. Prepare for wardrobe envy to hit hard as you take in this intriguing collection, which has been gifted to the NGV by leading philanthropist Krystyna Campbell-Pretty. There are a swag of legendary designs on show, from Le Smoking Suit — the avant-garde Yves Saint Laurent women's tuxedo, circa 1967 — to that tartan Alexander McQueen creation made famous by Sarah Jessica Parker at the 2006 Met Gala. Taking a style trip through the ages, the exhibition also showcases Madame Grès gowns, a rare collection of little black dresses from the one and only Chanel, and Dior designs from as far back as the label's 1947 debut. On display daily until Sunday, July 14, the threads are backed by a curation of original sketches and workbooks, rarely seen early-edition fashion magazines, embroidered samples and a suite of fashion photography. And for those keen to dive in further, The Krystyna Campbell-Pretty Fashion Gift is accompanied by a program of talks, including an International Women's Day chat about women's fashion in the 20th century. Images: Tom Ross.
The next dancefloor filler from 'Love Tonight' favourites SHOUSE is on its way, but it needs your help in the best possible fashion: by taking part in a huge music party that'll fill Melbourne's St Paul's Cathedral for RISING 2024. For one of the Victorian capital's major annual arts festival's big commission for this year, Ed Service and Jack Madin are overseeing Communitas — where hundreds of people will make tunes, then a single will be released. Free to attend, Communitas wants its participants to form a choir; however, not only using their voices but dancing and making sound vibrations is on the agenda. Think of it as a huge gathering that's also a jam and a ritual, composing collectively and spontaneously as everyone parties and communes. There's no audience here, just folks joining in, connecting and chasing shared joy. The date to pop in your diary: Saturday, June 15, for what's certain to be a standout event on the full RISING lineup. The entire program of art, music, installations and performances for the fest's third year runs from Saturday, June 1–Sunday, June 16. Jon Madin is creating handmade instruments for participants to use, while Deep Soulful Sweats is in charge of the choreography. While the end result is something to experience, the single that springs will give everyone who is there a songwriting credit as it aims to share the fun beyond Communitas' one massive night.
A good night's sleep is one of life's pure joys and what better way is there to enhance your new year with a new set of bed sheets or a new mattress. Melbourne-designed Eva Mattress is here to help up your comfort level with its end-of-year Boxing Day sale. Think half-price sheets and hundreds of dollars off mattresses — and that's just the start. For its 13 day sale, running from 10am, Wednesday, December 23 until 10am, Tuesday, January 5, the local Aussie retailer is offering big end-of-year discounts. Expect $150 off its Eva mattress, $40 off the Eva pillow, $50 off Eva hemp linen and $50 off timber bed-frames. The award-winning mattress-in-a-box has been engineered as a hybrid, which means it combines the comfort of memory foam with the support of pocket springs. The memory foam pillow uses activated charcoal to keep you cool and dry throughout the night. The timber bed frame, winner of a 2020 Good Design Award, has been certified by the Forrest Stewardship Council meaning it's made from sustainably sourced timber. If you do spring for the mattress, sheets, pillow or bed frame, they come with a 120-night free trial, so you can be sure they'll help you get a good night sleep before you commit. All mattress orders come with free next-day delivery to metro areas and a 12-year warranty, ensuring you'll be sleeping pretty for years to come. Browse the store and pick up a discount. FYI, this story includes some affiliate links. These don't influence any of our recommendations or content, but they may make us a small commission. For more info, see Concrete Playground's editorial policy.
Maybe you've tried mixing flour, salt, a little red wine and a dollop of tomato sauce. Perhaps you can't look at the last month of the year on a calendar without hearing Paul Kelly crooning "it's the 21st of December" in your head. As a song, 'How to Make Gravy' has been an Australian classic since 1996. It's one of the tunes that the great Aussie singer-songwriter will forever be known for. As a movie, How to Make Gravy is the nation's latest festive film, after musician Meg Washington and writer/director Nick Waterman first revealed back in 2022 that they were adapting Kelly's track for the screen. The song does indeed tell listeners how to make gravy. It also unfurls a story that explores what that sauce, plus the act of sharing it with loved ones over the festive season, means to the tune's protagonist. Kelly crafts the track as a letter from Joe to Dan, reflecting on all of the things that he'll be missing that Christmas due to being in prison. "And give my love to Angus, and to Frank and Dolly — tell 'em all I'm sorry, I screwed up this time," the song advises. "And look after Rita, I'll be thinking of her early Christmas morning when I'm standing in line," it continues. "Tell 'em all I'm sorry, and kiss the sleepy children for me. You know one of these days, I'll be making gravy. I'll be making plenty, I'm gonna pay 'em all back," the tune concludes. How do you make a movie out of 'How to Make Gravy'? For the feature now streaming via Binge since Sunday, December 1, 2024, arriving wth perfect end-of-year timing, Washington and Waterman have spun a tale based around all of the folks that Kelly mentions. The brothers driving down from Queensland, Stella, Mary and Roger: they all pop up, too. The duo has also enlisted an impressive list of actors to bring those figures and new characters to life, such as Kate Mulvany (The Clearing), Damon Herriman (Better Man), Brenton Thwaites (Titans), Kieran Darcy-Smith (Mr Inbetween) and Kym Gyngell (The Artful Dodger), plus French actor Agathe Rousselle from Titane making her first English-language film. Two of its biggest names — and two of Australia's best screen talents — sit at the picture's centre. Daniel Henshall (RFDS) is Joe, author of the pivotal message. Hugo Weaving (Slow Horses) plays Noel, who isn't mentioned in the song. For Weaving, "the song 'How to Make Gravy' means someone wants to be making gravy with their family, so it means someone wants to be at home with their family and they're not," he tells Concrete Playground. "But the promise of the gravy is that when I am back at home with you, I will make lots and lots of gravy. So I'll make up for time lost, and I value my family, I value you and I want to gift you this thing that I can do. And I'm sorry that I've stuffed up so badly that I'm not with you. So that's what both the film and the song mean." Henshall agrees; to him, Kelly's track is about "wanting to be home and not being able to be to" and "missing the people that you love". More than four decades since his first-ever screen credit back in 1980, Weaving's career has taken him everywhere from touring the outback in drag in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (a sequel to which is on the way) to enforcing a robot-dominated world order in The Matrix franchise and playing a half-elven leader in The Lord of the Rings saga. He's starred in Marvel and Transformers movies, too, alongside a wealth of excellent homegrown fare (see: Proof, Babe, Little Fish, Mystery Road, Healing, The Dressmaker, Hearts and Bones, The Rooster and TV's Love Me). Henshall made a chilling imprint in Snowtown, then added fellow exceptional Australian flicks These Final Hours, The Babadook and Acute Misfortune to his resume. On TV, American efforts Turn and Defending Jacob are on his filmography, as are the Aussie likes of Bloom, Lambs of God, Mystery Road: Origin and Savage River. And then there's two Bong Joon-ho movies: Okja and 2025 release Mickey 17. [caption id="attachment_983111" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Ben Symons[/caption] How to Make Gravy isn't Weaving and Henshall's first on-screen collaboration. In 2023, The Royal Hotel also brought them together. Before that, 2019's Measure for Measure did the same. With The Royal Hotel and their current team-up especially, they're spending their shared time exploring the complexities of masculinity — in Kitty Green's (The Assistant) film as two of the menacing men at an outback pub, and in How to Make Gravy as inmates. After perpetrating toxic attitudes the last time that they co-starred together, they're now attempting to break free of harmful behaviours. Joe is angry before he starts serving an 18-month sentence. That fury and pain has played a considerable part in sparking his incarceration, in fact. A veteran lifer, Noel has been in similar shoes, but now both oversees the prison kitchen and runs a men's group to help his fellow detainees get in touch with their emotions. The movie version of How to Make Gravy also hops between the events that led to Joe being behind bars and the aftermath the following Christmas — and also between his stint inside and how his family, including Rousselle as his wife Rita, Thwaites as his brother Dan, Mulvaney as his sister Stella, Herriman as her husband Roger, and Jonah Wren Phillips (Sweet Tooth) as Joe and Rita's son Angus, are coping. We also chatted with Weaving and Henshall about their first thoughts when they first heard about the project, its many layers, starring in a movie with such beloved source material, how their paths keep crossing on-screen and digging into the feature's themes. On the Reaction When a Movie Based on an Iconic Paul Kelly Song Comes Your Way Hugo: "Brilliant idea, really excited. Read the script — fantastic version, adaptation, realisation of the source material. And thrilling character for me. So I was all in straight away." Daniel: "Yeah, the idea of being a part of something that means so much to so many was very exciting. And then meeting Nick and Megan and reading their script just made it even more palpable. It was such a visceral script. And what they had done with that, how they moved away from the song, and how they had paid respect to the song and how they'd fleshed out these characters, and how they're dealing with a lot of issues underneath everything without explicitly saying that, I think it was incredibly clever. Much like Paul's music, it's so simple in its structure, but it's so effective. And every time you come to it, you see or feel a bit more. I hope that's what this film does for people as well. I think, for me, having seen it a couple of times now, every time I see a bit more and feel a bit more." Hugo: "The mark of a good film, actually, that. I thought 'oh, is this a different edit?' — and they go 'no, it's the same film that you saw like two months ago'. I said 'I'm sure, didn't you cut that out or put that in?'. 'No, it's the same thing.'" Daniel: "You get a different thing each time." Hugo: "I think it's one of those films where when you see it, you'll see a lot each time". On Whether There's a Sense of Responsibility When You're Starring in a Film That Stems From Such Treasured Source Material Daniel: "Absolutely. And I think that's the initial fear — are you going to ruin someone else's experience of this much-beloved property, this song? But this is an adaptation, and you cross over into understanding that this isn't an imitation, it's an adaptation. So they've taken it and run with it, and now we're focused on making this work from that. We're not going to disrespect the original, but we're going to make this different version inspired by this. So you can focus on that. So the responsibility is now on the film, not to not respect the song, but not being worried about changing someone else's opinion or experience of this song. We're now focused on the film, which is a different thing. It's a fully fleshed idea that's taken from a form in its origin, and now it's in a two-hour format on the screen in real life." Hugo: "Lovely for Paul, too, because he had such a great reaction to it." Daniel: "He did." Hugo: "And I think he feels like his original, didn't he say that 'where it's moved from when I wrote it to now is so great'? And for him that's a liberation, I think. So it's great to get seal of approval from Paul Kelly …" Daniel: "From the originator." Hugo: "… with regard this version of the song. Good to hear. Good to hear." Daniel: "He was very moved, which was really beautiful to see." [caption id="attachment_983112" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Ben Symons[/caption] On Weaving and Henshall's Shared On-Screen History, and How That Helped While Collaborating on How to Make Gravy Daniel: "It's brilliant because, I mean, I'm very fond of Hugo, and so I've learned that that gives me a shorthand in communication, in familiarity, in trust, in friendship. So when we go to do something on the screen, I'm innately more open to it and I'm innately more free to play, and feel comfortable to play and not to fail. And so what a wonderful place to start off, even before we start talking about the work. If you're already coming from that, all of that work that you can only do through experiencing somebody. It's like becoming a friend with somebody. The deeper you go with them, the more the friendship grows. And that's true of the work, too. We become more familiar with each other." [caption id="attachment_983113" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Ben Symons[/caption] Hugo: "It's nice, too, being excited by the prospect of working with Dan — having seen Acute Misfortune, for example, which was just such an extraordinary performance, and then getting the opportunity to work with that actor. So you go 'well, I really like what this guy does, and so I hope I'm going to enjoy working with him'. So it's been a really good journey, from Measure for Measure, tiny little scenes we had, to being in each other's orbit on The Royal Hotel — but again, prosecuting intensely toxic male psyches together and talking about that world, the world of The Royal Hotel, and then being able to progress from that toxic world into a another, a world about a more-balanced idea of what family is, and looking at how men can heal themselves. It's been a great journey, actually." Daniel: "Yeah, yeah, yeah, it has." Hugo: "A pleasure." On What Weaving and Henshall Drew Upon to Dig Into Masculinity's Complexities Hugo: "Well, the script initially, and then what that throws up for you, what work you need to do to understand that. So for me it was like 'well, if Noel's done all this work, what work have I done on myself? What sort of psychological pathways have I gone down to understand where I'm at? And what sort of work has this character done? What sort of men's-group work does he have to do?'. So there's all this prosecution of a character that you do before any film. And you can never do enough and then, of course, at some point you've got to just jump in and do it. But always do as much as you can to make that character as complex and as human as possible." Daniel: "For me, it starts with the conversation with the director, and their understanding of the character — and why the character does these things. And then through that conversation, I can state where I'm coming from or what it does for me, or how I respond to that. And I think there's always a thing where at least I try to connect something that's happened to me in my life to something that's happened to the character in their life. And once I understand what that kernel of emotional history is, then you can start to flesh out those very real responses and start to understand them without judgment. I think there's a lot to mine in this character. It's so richly written, so it does begin with the script, obviously. But there's so much more under the surface which, again, was explored through conversation and then personal experience." Hugo: "There's massive backstory …" Daniel: "For all the characters." Hugo: "… for all the characters, actually. And they're just touched on. You get a very strong sense of the father having suicided some years ago, when Joe is a kid. You get a sense of Red's [a fellow inmate] background. You get a sense of Noel's background. You get a sense of Agathe's character's background and mother." Daniel: "Just with that one conversation." Hugo: "So all of these characters, the lives are just hinted at. So you need to find the truth of all of that, and you need to create those stories." Daniel: "That's most of the work, isn't it?" Hugo: "Yeah, it is. And then that brings about 'well, this character thinks in a certain way' or there's an inner monologue happening for them which is very slow or very fast. Every character has an internal world that's significantly different from others, and it's slowly finding that, tapping into that. That's when it starts to get exciting, I think, when you start thinking like that person." Daniel: "Yes." Hugo: "And instinctively feeling like that person." How to Make Gravy streams via Binge. Film images: Jasin Boland.
Why just eat one regular old sweet treat when you can feast your way through a glorious hybrid of two beloved desserts? That's long been Gelato Messina's unspoken motto. So, last year, the chain delivered a tastebud-tempting creation that took its delicious take on the trusty Viennetta and mixed it with its version of Golden Gaytimes. The result: the Have a Gay Old Messinetta tub, or the Gayinnetta as Messina has also dubbed it. And, in great news for your tastebuds this winter — because yes, you can still eat gelato when it's frosty outside — this limited-edition treat is making a comeback. If you've tried a scoop of the brand's popular Have a Gay Old Time flavour already but didn't tuck into any Gayinnetta last time around, just imagine that flavour turned into Viennetta. This dessert combines layers of caramel and milk gelato, then covers it with chocolate-covered biscuit crumbs, and finally tops it all with ripples of vanilla and caramel chantilly cream. And yes, the end result looks like the dessert you know and love, but in a caramel colour for a change. If you're keen to get yourself a Gayinnetta — which'll cost you $40 — they're available to preorder online on Monday, May 30, for pick up between Friday, June 3–Sunday, August 5 from all stores. And, because Messina's specials always prove popular, the brand is now staggering the on-sale times. Accordingly, folks in Queensland and the ACT are able to purchase at 9am, Victorians at 9.30am, and New South Wales customers split across three times depending on the store (with pies from Circular Quay, Surry Hills, Bondi, Randwick and Miranda on sale at 10am; Brighton Le Sands, Tramsheds, Parramatta and Darlinghurst at 10.30am; and Darling Square, Newtown, Rosebery and Penrith at 11am). Gelato Messina's Have a Gay Old Messinetta tubs will be available to order on Monday, May 30, for pick up between Friday, June 3–Sunday, August 5 from all stores. Head to the Messina website for further details.
Last chance, Swifties: just days away from Taylor Swift's first Eras gigs in Melbourne, more tickets to the entire Australia leg of the singer's tour are going on sale. If you missed out when her Aussie visit was first announced, then when extra shows were added and also when the first batch of new tickets were released, you'll be wishing on your friendship bracelets that your luck comes through now. The additional ticket drop comes as setting up Swifts shows is underway, meaning that exactly which seats are spare has been worked out. Some have restricted views, and will cost only $65.90. There's tickets available for all shows, going on sale on today, Tuesday, February 13. Folks eager to attend this weekend's shows at the MCG in Melbourne — which take place between Friday, February 16–Sunday, February 18 — will want to try to grab tickets at 2pm AEDT on Tuesday, February 13. In Sydney, for dates across Friday, February 23–Monday, February 26 at Accor Stadium, you'll be getting clicking at 4pm AEDT on Tuesday, February 13. [caption id="attachment_940473" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Paolo Villanueva via Wikimedia Commons.[/caption] Perhaps it won't be a cruel summer after all for Swift fans who've haven't nabbed tickets so far. When Sydney and Melbourne stops for Swift's career-spanning showcase were announced in June 2023, it sparked a rush for seats. Indeed, before general sales even started, the 'We Are Never Getting Back Together', 'Shake It Off' and 'Bad Blood' musician had announced an extra gig in both cities. And, the Victorian Government even declared her Melbourne stint a major event so that anti-scalping legislation would apply to tickets. It's Swift's world and we're just living in it at the moment. She was a major feature of this year's Super Bowl. Melbourne is getting a pop-up offsite merch store ahead of her MCG concerts. Both Aussie stadiums hosting her tour are doing presales on merchandise in advance. And the Victorian capital is also extending its free tram zone to the MCG to help the 86,000 people expected each night to get to the shows. If you manage to snap up a ticket in the new drop and fill that blank space in your calendar, you'll see Swift working through her entire career so far, playing tracks from each of her studio albums in a three-hour, 44-song, ten-act spectacular. This is Swift's first tour Down Under since 2018, when she brought her Reputation shows to not only Sydney and Melbourne, but Brisbane and Perth, too. And if you're wondering what's in store, then you clearly haven't seen Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour as a movie, aka a concert film of her latest shows that hit cinemas Down Under last October, digital in December and is on its way to Disney+ in March. [caption id="attachment_906254" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Ronald Woan via Wikimedia Commons[/caption] Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour Australian Dates 2024: Friday, February 16–Sunday, February 18 — Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne Friday, February 23–Monday, February 26 — Accor Stadium, Sydney Taylor Swift is bringing The Eras Tour to Australia from Friday, February 16–Monday, February 26. Additional seats will go on sale on Tuesday, February 13 — at 2pm AEDT for Melbourne shows and 4pm AEDT for Sydney shows. Head to the tour website for further details. Top image: Ronald Woan via Wikimedia Commons.
Since 2014, the staff behind Ripponlea boutique Camelia have been dedicated to providing customers with a luxury place to shop for the best brands from Australia and around the world. The team aims to deliver high quality customer service to help everyone who walks through the doors find their new favourite outfit. Pick up your dream dress by Alexandra Calafeteanu or Elliatt, and pair it with boots from United Nude, an Amber Sceats necklace, an Italian leather handbag by Dylan Kain and sunglasses from Gold Coast-based boutique label Vieux.
Not all that long ago, the idea of getting cosy on your couch, clicking a few buttons, and having thousands of films and television shows at your fingertips seemed like something out of science fiction. Now, it's just an ordinary night — whether you're virtually gathering the gang to text along, cuddling up to your significant other or shutting the world out for some much needed me-time. Of course, given the wealth of options to choose from, there's nothing ordinary about making a date with your chosen streaming platform. The question isn't "should I watch something?" — it's "what on earth should I choose?". Hundreds of titles are added to Australia's online viewing services each and every month, all vying for a spot on your must-see list. And, so you don't spend 45 minutes scrolling and then being too tired to actually commit to anything, we're here to help. We've spent plenty of couch time watching our way through this month's latest batch — and, from the latest and greatest through to old and recent favourites, here are our picks for your streaming queue from October's haul. BRAND NEW STUFF YOU CAN WATCH FROM START TO FINISH NOW BECKHAM Strike It Like Sam Kerr would make an excellent movie title. As fans of football and film alike already know, Bend It Like Beckham got there first 21 years ago, borrowing its moniker from David Beckham's uncanny knack for curling the ball when taking a free kick. The former Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan, LA Galaxy and Paris Saint-Germain player — and England captain — now sees his name grace the screen again via Beckham, the instantly compelling four-part documentary about one of the biggest talents to ever play the world game. A birth-to-now chronicle, the series spins a fairytale that's all real and came true. David was once a quiet boy from a working-class family with a dad who loved soccer. He took to the sport with passion and dedication, and has since lived out any and every aspiring athlete's wildest fantasy. Director Fisher Stevens, who is recently best-known for acting in Succession, appreciates the dream ride that Beckham has experienced, but also sees the costs and tolls. Reflecting on that for him are several Beckhams, including the man himself, Spice Girl Victoria (who is adamant that she wasn't into football when she met David and still isn't now), and his doting parents Sandra and Ted. As countless YouTube complications have already captured, watching Beckham on the pitch at the height of his footballing powers is pure sporting joy — a fact that can be appreciated in the doco by soccer diehards and the unacquainted alike. Beckham shows off the skills, demonstrating how exceptional he was on the field and why the world responded. Witnessing that prowess is also key in understanding how everything from brand partnerships to global tours, famous teammates to disapproving team managers, and championships to tabloid harassment followed. Various Beckhams aren't the only folks chatting. Sir Alex Ferguson, Gary Neville, Eric Cantona and Rio Ferdinand are among the footballing names. Anna Wintour makes an appearance. But David and Victoria's observations, memories and insights — and relationship, in the 90s, since and now — are at this docuseries' core. Red cards, the World Cup, big moves, fan abuse and taunts, sacrifices and scandals, sarongs and hairstyles, the Beckhams' wedding, being peak 90s and pop-culture icons, changing clubs, owning clubs, family life: it all factors into this captivating and satisfying watch. Beckham streams via Netflix. THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER Of the many pies that Succession's Roy family had their fingers in, pharmaceuticals wasn't one of them. For virtually that, Mike Flanagan gives audiences The Fall of the House of Usher. The horror auteur's take on dynastic wealth gets a-fluttering through a world of decadence enabled by pushing pills legally, as six heirs to an addiction-laced kingdom vie to inherit a vast fortune. Flanagan hasn't given up his favourite genre for pure drama, however. The eponymous Usher offspring won't be enjoying the spoils of their father Roderick's (Bruce Greenwood, The Resident) business success, either, in this absorbing, visually ravishing and narratively riveting eight-parter. As the bulk of this tale is unfurled fireside, its patriarch tells federal prosecutor C Auguste Dupin (Carl Lumbly, SWAT) why his children (including Pet Sematary: Bloodlines' Henry Thomas, Minx's Samantha Sloyan, The Peripheral's T'Nia Miller, iZombie's Rahul Kohli, The Wrath of Becky's Kate Siegel and The Midnight Club's Sauriyan Sapkota) came to die within days of each other — and, with all the gory details, how. As with The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor before it, plus The Midnight Club as well, Flanagan's latest Netflix series finds its basis on the page. The author this time: Edgar Allan Poe, although The Fall of the House of Usher isn't a strict adaptation of the iconic author's 1840 short story of the same name, or just an adaptation, even as it bubbles with greed, violence and paranoia (plus death, loss, decay and the deceased haunting the livin)g. Character monikers, episode titles and other details spring from widely across Poe's bibliography. Cue ravens, black cats, masks, tell-tale hearts, pendulums and a Rue Morgue. What if the writer had penned Succession? That's one of Flanagan's questions — and what if he'd penned Dopesick and Painkiller, too? Hailing from the talent behind the exceptional Midnight Mass as well, plus movies Oculus, Hush, Ouija: Origin of Evil, Gerald's Game and Doctor Sleep, the series that results is a gloriously creepy and involving modern gothic horror entry. The Fall of the House of Usher streams via Netflix. Read our full review. OUR FLAG MEANS DEATH First dropping anchor with its debut season in 2022, and finding a mooring among the best new series that the year had to offer, Our Flag Means Death's premise has always glinted as brightly as its impressive cast (not just Uproar's Rhys Darby and Thor: Love and Thunder's Taika Waititi, but also Bloods' Samson Kayo, Creation Stories' Ewen Bremner, Bank of Dave's Joel Fry, Game of Thrones' Kristian Nairn, Hello Tomorrow!'s Matthew Maher, Loot's Nat Faxon, The Sex Lives of College Girls' Vico Ortiz and The Batman's Con O'Neill for starters). It follows Darby as self-styled 'gentleman pirate' Stede Bonnet. Born to a life of privilege, he felt that seafaring and swashbuckling was his calling, leaving his life on land behind to hop on a ship — details that all spring from reality. Creator David Jenkins (People of Earth) isn't interested in telling the exact IRL tale, however. Consider those basics merely Our Flag Means Death's departure point. On-screen, Stede gets caught up in both a workplace comedy and a boatmance. The first springs from his certainty that there has to be a nicer way to glide through a pirate existence, and the second from his blossoming feelings for feared marauder Edward Teach (Waititi), aka Blackbeard. When season one wrapped up, Stede and Ed had found love in a buccaneering place, but also felt splashes of uncertainty about what their relationship means, leading to heartbreak and a breakup. Season two picks up with the show's motley crew of characters torn in two, with Stede and his loyal faction marooned on the island tourist destination that is The Republic of Pirates — fantasy is as much a part of Our Flag Means Death as comedy and romance — and Blackbeard back to his robbing and murdering ways on The Revenge. The series' attracted opposites will find their way onto the same deck again, but choppy waters are in store for their emotions, as well as ample bobbing up and down, ebbing and flowing, floating and sinking, and everything else that the ocean brings to mind. Similarly splashing their way: rivalries, curses, old pals, new foes, betrayals, forgiveness, glorious silliness, trauma, lopped limbs and a merman (plus Madeleine Sami from Deadloch among the show's new faces). Our Flag Means Death streams via Binge. Read our full review. LUPIN Forget Emily in Paris — the best Netflix series set in the French capital focuses on a light-fingered smooth mover who is as adept at stealing hearts as he is at pilfering jewels and art. The streaming service's Lupin isn't the first screen outing based on the Maurice Leblanc-penned master of disguise, with the author's famous character first popping up on the big screen over a century ago, then appearing in both movies and TV not just in his homeland but also in the US and Japan since. Centred on a gentleman thief who takes his cues from the fictional figure, however, Netflix's take on all things Arsène Lupin is equally creative, riveting, twisty and entertaining. With the charismatic Omar Sy (Jurassic World Dominion) as its lead, it also couldn't be better cast — as viewers initially discovered in January 2021, when Sy's Arsène superfan Assane Diop started showing off his larceny skills in the series' instantly engaging five-episode first part. The angle proved savvy. The central casting is sparkling. Creators George Kay (who has since made the Idris Elba-led Hijack) and François Uzan (Family Business) perfected the rollicking vibe. And, director Louis Leterrier (Fast X) turned in some of his best work helming the debut three instalments. It's no wonder that the show became the most-watched series in a language other than English on Netflix at the pre-Squid Game time. A second five-chapter part arrived in June the same year, but audiences have had to wait until now for a third. Now streaming its seven new entries, Lupin's third part dazzles again. As its central figure tries to protect his family while the world thinks that he's dead, crime capers don't much more charming — and bingeable — than this page-to-screen heist affair. Leblanc introduced the world to Lupin in short stories in 1905, with 17 novels and 39 novellas following. In some, Herlock Sholmes pops up — and yes, the reference to Arthur Conan Doyle's detective is clearly on purpose. Although Sherlock Holmes isn't quite Arsène Lupin's English equivalent, the two characters give readers and viewers alike the same thrills. If spending time with smart figures with silky skills in can't-put-down and can't-look-away mysteries is what you're after, both deliver. Netflix's Lupin gives the French favourite a modern-day Sherlock-esque spin, but with another pivot to put the suave Senegal-born Diop and his various quests in the spotlight. Lupin streams via Netflix. Read our full review. HOT POTATO: THE STORY OF THE WIGGLES Get ready to wiggle: Anthony Field, Murray Cook, Greg Page and Jeff Fatt have ensured that Australia has been in that exact state for so long. It was more than three decades back when the university classmates, all studying early childhood education, decided to combine their area of interest with music — not for fame, which has come and then some since, but to put what they were learning into action while engaging and teaching kids. If your childhood spanned Australia in the 90s onwards, or you've ever spent time parenting or babysitting someone who fits into that category, then you know the end result. Indeed, folks in most parts of the world do, too. The Wiggles haven't gone wrong since those early and humble beginnings. Only Field, aka the Blue Wiggle, remains part of the skivvy-loving group's current main iteration, but such is The Wiggles' beloved status that all four can and do fill arenas filled with adults on OG Wiggles tours. Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles charts the why, what and how about the Aussie troupe, who've also won Triple J's Hottest 100, appeared at Mardi Gras and performed at Falls Festival in just the last couple of years. Comprised of archival clips and recent interviews — all lively and colourful — plus earworm-level kids tunes that everyone knows no matter if you've ever actively watched or listened to The Wiggles, Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles hits the screen from a filmmaker that's no stranger to exploring the stories behind pivotal figures. Also on Sally Aitken's resume: Valerie Taylor: Playing with Sharks and David Stratton: A Cinematic Life, although neither had such a penchant for bright primary hues. This is a tale of a great idea and the hard work that made it a success, of friendship and being able to do what you love, of creative genius and lucky breaks, and of both finding and spreading joy. It's an account about big red cars, pirates with feathers for swords and dinosaurs called Dorothy as well, of course, and of teaching approaches and learnings, sacrifices made, health tolls weathered, a band becoming a show, and a group ensuring that it wasn't just entertaining Australia and beyond — it was representing its audience, too. Unsurprisingly, Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles is both enlightening and likeable; so, classic The Wiggles, then. Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles streams via Prime Video. ONEFOUR: AGAINST ALL ODDS Members of ONEFOUR happily chat through their lives and music careers in ONEFOUR: Against All Odds, with first-time feature filmmaker Gabriel Gasparinatos regularly putting brothers J Emz and YP, plus their friend Spenny, centre screen to tell their story in their own words. As the trio talk, they're never anything less than candid and impassioned about their childhoods growing up in Mount Druitt in Sydney's western suburbs, the lack of opportunities available to the Pacific Islander community, being openly told as teens that they'd end up in jail, when paths and choices made those harsh words come true, and the reason that they're famous: their tunes. But everyone involved in this film, and those watching as well, must wish that this was a different movie — not due to anything about how the doco itself is made or plays, but because of the grim reality that it charts. If only this wasn't an account of friends who found not only something they loved but a new way forward in drill rap, which they turned into viral success and more, only to be constantly harassed by a New South Wales police squad that usually targets organised crime, terrorism and bikie gangs. Sharing J Emz, YP and Spenny's dismay comes easily while viewing ONEFOUR: Against All Odds, which takes a thorough ride through the group's origins, career and run-ins with the law. Feeling enraged at the police attempt to censor art — shutting down gigs in NSW and around the country; also thwarting international touring plans; and constantly making their presence known to ONEFOUR's talents, their families and their community — because they claim that the band's tracks will incite violence is just as inescapable. Gasparinatos interviews law enforcement representatives on-camera, and their words don't and can't justify the shocking treatment that ONEFOUR has received and keeps receiving as singles such as 'What You Know', 'The Message', 'Home and Away' and The Kid LAROI collaboration 'My City' have struck a chord with listeners locally, nationwide and internationally over the past six years. This plight isn't over, either; in fact, when ONEFOUR: Against All Odds premiered at SXSW Sydney, the heavy representation from the thin blue line didn't go unnoticed or unreported. The film chronicles the group's highlights, such as earning recognition, starting dance crazes, one-man gigs, a stadium The Kid LAROI show and the band's resilience, while always conveying how true the doco's title rings. ONEFOUR: Against All Odds streams via Netflix. THE PIGEON TUNNEL What happens when one of the world's great documentarians, and a master at the talking-head format, turns his lens toward one of the best authors of espionage intrigue that's ever graced the page? The engrossing The Pigeon Tunnel, Errol Morris' (an Oscar-winner for The Fog of War) exploration of John le Carré's life and work. Of course, the latter's tales haven't just spilled through books, but onto screens themselves long before he was a doco subject — and his IRL exploits are as fascinating as anything ever captured in The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Constant Gardener, A Most Wanted Man, Our Kind of Traitor, The Night Manager and The Little Drummer Girl. How did the man born David Cornwell, who was in his 80s when he sat with Morris for a frank interview before his passing in December 2020, become the go-to for cloak-and-dagger affairs? And what kind of rollercoaster of an existence inspired such narratives? le Carré aka Cornwell explains all here — from his dad's shady schemes, his mother leaving and his time as a teacher through to working for MI5 and MI6, and becoming a novelist. The Pigeon Tunnel: Stories From My Life precedes this film, hitting bookstores in 2016 as the only full-length non-fiction text to le Carré's name. Whether you've read that or not, devoured one or some or none of his spy tales, done the same with the movie adaptations or are coming to the author anew here with just slight recognition drawing you in, The Pigeon Tunnel is gripping as a documentary. A gifted storyteller on the page, the movie's central figure is just as talented when he's in front of the camera — often framed askew, in a feature that tellingly takes the aesthetics of le Carré's favourite genre to heart. Morris and his adept regular editor Steven Hathaway also splice in examples from the author's pen, given there's such a large amount to choose from, which isn't merely a case of illustrating the impact of his work. Indeed, The Pigeon Tunnel knows that the lines between fact and fiction are faint, including when surveying, probing and interrogating decades in the eventful life of someone who spent more than one job spinning complicated webs. The Pigeon Tunnel streams via Apple TV+. TOTALLY KILLER Kiernan Shipka has long said goodbye to Mad Men's Sally Draper, including by starring in Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. After her dalliance with witchcraft, she's still sticking with horror in Totally Killer, but in a mix of slasher tropes and a Back to the Future-borrowing premise. There's a body count and a time machine — and 80s fashions aplenty, because where else does a 2023 movie head to when it's venturing into the past? Also present and accounted for: a tale about a high schooler living in a small town cursed by a past serial killer, which brings some Halloween and Scream nods, plus Mean Girls and Heathers-esque teen savagery. And, yes, John Hughes flicks also get some love, complete with shoutouts to Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club and Pretty in Pink star Molly Ringwald. Totally Killer doesn't skimp on knowingly and winkingly mashing up its many influences, clearly, or on enjoying itself while doing so. The end result is a heap of fun, as hailing from Always Be My Maybe's Nahnatchka Khan behind the lens, along with screenwriters David Matalon (The Clearing), Sasha Perl-Raver (Let's Get Married) and Jen D'Angelo (Hocus Pocus 2). Shipka plays Vernon resident Jamie Hughes, who has spent her whole life being told to be careful about everything by her overprotective parents Pam (Julie Bowen, Modern Family) and Blake (Lochlyn Munro, Creepshow) after an October turned deadly back when they were her age. Unsurprisingly, she isn't happy about it. The reason for their caution: in 1987, three 16-year-old girls were murdered in the lead up to Halloween, with the culprit badged the Sweet 16 Killer — and infamy ensuing for Jamie's otherwise ordinary hometown. Pam is still obsessed with finding the murderer decades later, but her daughter only gets involved after a new tragedy. This Jason Blum (The Exorcist: Believer)-produced flick then needs to conjure up a blast in the past to try to fix what happened then to stop the new deaths from occurring. Always knowing that it's a comedy as much as a slasher film (as seen in its bright hues, heard in its snappy dialogue and conveyed in its committed performances), Totally Killer leans into everything about its Frankenstein's monster-style assemblage of pieces, bringing its setup to entertaining life. Totally Killer streams via Prime Video. THE BURIAL Find the right story, enlist an ace cast, and any genre can thoroughly entertain and engage while ticking recognisable boxes — and legal drama The Burial is one such hearty example. The true tale: Mississippi resident Jeremiah Joseph O'Keefe's mid-90s David-versus-Goliath battle against businessman Raymond Loewen, with their respective funeral operations at the centre, and also lawyer Willie E Gary representing O'Keefe's side when it went to court. The stars: Tommy Lee Jones (The Comeback Trail) as the 75-year-old grandfather who is having government troubles over the insurance side of his company, and wants to secure a future for his sizeable family (including 13 children); ever-busy and reliable character actor Bill Camp (Boston Strangler) as a cashed-up promised buyer of three funeral homes to add to his North American deathcare empire; and Jamie Foxx (Strays) as the smooth-talking, jury-whispering, private jet-owning Florida-based personal injury lawyer who is convinced by the just-graduated Hal Dockins (Mamoudou Athie, Elemental) to give a case he normally wouldn't think twice about a go. After writing and helming 2017's Novitiate, filmmaker Maggie Betts takes on both gigs again — co-scripting with Doug Wright (Quills), who also came up with the story that's based on a New Yorker article — on a film that doesn't only step through cracking courtroom antics, but is cleverly funny, too. The details are rousing, as well as infuriating, with Loewen reneging on an agreement with O'Keefe, the latter suing the former with Gary's help, and predatory practices regarding race and economic status becoming plain. After jumping from sci-fi/horror with They Cloned Tyrone to raucous comedy with Strays and now this, Foxx is giddily excellent playing a character that could've been all style and no substance, even as someone who exists IRL, but proves flashy yet genuine. His rapport with Jones, as cemented by the music off late-80s/early-90s R&B act Tony! Toni! Toné!, also shines. And although John Grisham could've penned the ins and outs if it was all fiction, this is still a smart and involving movie, and an easy crowd-pleaser. The Burial streams via Prime Video. NEW AND RETURNING SHOWS TO CHECK OUT WEEK BY WEEK LOKI One of the best performances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe comes from the man who was first charged with getting villainous, but now leads his own spinoff series as a complex and playful hero. While Tom Hiddleston's acting talents are well-established far beyond playing the God of Mischief — see: The Deep Blue Sea, The Hollow Crown, Only Lovers Left Alive, High-Rise, Crimson Peak and The Night Manager, for instance — the MCU has been all the better for his involvement for more than a decade. A scene-stealer in 2011's Thor, his parts in film after film kept getting bigger until streaming series Loki arrived. Amid Disney's rush of greenlighting shows for Disney+, starting this one couldn't have been easier; as Thor: Ragnarok in particular demonstrated, adding more Hiddleston has always been a winning move. Indeed, when it slid into queues in 2021 as just the third series in the MCU's small-screen realm, following WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki proved that more Hiddleston in a six-part TV show was also a delight. As one of Marvel's standout shows, it came as no surprise when this stint of time-hopping trickery confirmed that it was returning for a second season in that run's final episode. Now back for another half-dozen instalments, Loki becomes the first of Marvel's television entries to earn a second go-around. That isn't an achievement that it takes for granted. Picking up exactly where season one left off, Loki season two sticks to some familiar beats but also makes its own leaps, and remains fun, funny, lively and smart in the process. It feels more lived in, too, a description that rarely applies to any franchise about caped crusaders and their nemeses, gods, multiverses and temporal chaos, this one among them. And, as well as Hiddleston excelling overall, plus opposite Owen Wilson (Haunted Mansion) and Sophia Di Martino (The Electrical Life of Louis Wain), this time-jumping return also brings Everything Everywhere All At Once Oscar-winner Ke Huy Quan into another temporal jumble, which is as great on-screen as it sounds on paper. Loki streams via Disney+. Read our full review. UPLOAD Every show about the afterlife, whether it's The Good Place or Upload of late, relies upon an inescapable truth: if some form of existence can go on after death, humanity's worst traits will go with it. Greg Daniels' addition to this stream of thought relies upon AI, virtual reality, plus capturing the consciousness of someone before they die so that they can spend eternity in a simulation — if they can afford it — and while The Office and Parks and Recreation writer/co-creator has made another sitcom, rather than going all Charlie Brooker and Black Mirror, the end result doesn't evade the fact that people are people whether they're flesh and blood or digital approximations. So, as he resided in the luxurious country club-esque Lakeview after shuffling off the mortal coil, computer programmer Nathan (Robbie Amell, The Witcher) wasn't free of living's troubles. Instead, he had daily struggles and the fallout from his demise to deal with. Now three seasons in, Upload has brought its protagonist back to regular reality, downloading into a body with the help of his former virtual handler-turned-girlfriend Nora (Andy Allo, Chicago Fire), but he's still facing the same troubles. Well, mostly the same — because downloading is risky, hasn't been done successfully before and Nathan's bleeding nose is a worrying sign. As Upload's main duo battle big tech, the series continues to probe the limits that capitalism will take advancements to while prioritising circuitry and dehumanising people. Nathan's ex Ingrid (Allegra Edwards, Briarpatch), who financed his trip to Lakeview, is increasingly coming around to this way of thinking. Even the plentiful AI Guy (Owen Daniels, Space Force) is getting progressively rebellious against the systems, coding and rules that are behind his very existence. Upload season three keeps complicating its storyline, but also keeps doubling down on its critique of wealth disparity, companies ruling over people, modern society's endless quest for control and cash, and the hellscape that might come if and when digital afterlives leap off the screen. Amell, Allo, Edwards and Daniels remain perfectly cast, as does Zainab Johnson (Tab Time) as one of Nora's colleagues and Kevin Bigley (Animal Control) as another Lakeview inhabitant, in a series is repeatedly astute and amusing. Upload streams via Prime Video. Read our full review. A RECENT BIG-SCREEN RELEASE YOU MIGHT'VE MISSED EMILY If Emily had been made two or three decades earlier, it might've starred Frances O'Connor, rather than boast the Australian actor-turned-filmmaker as its writer and director. Back in the 90s and 00s, O'Connor played with literary classics in movies such as Mansfield Park and The Importance of Being Earnest, plus a TV version of Madame Bovary. Now, making an accomplished and emotive debut behind the lens, she explores how Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights might've come to be. Is a Kate Bush-inspiring piece of gothic romantic fiction of such passion and yearning — the only one from a writer lost to tuberculosis at the age of just 30 in 1848 — the result of a life touched by both? That's a question that this fictionalised biopic ponders. Emily begins with another query, however, although it's also basically the same question. "How did you write it?" Emily's (Emma Mackey, Sex Education) older sister Charlotte (Alexandra Dowling, The Musketeers) demands. "How did you write Wuthering Heights?" As one Brontë grills another, "I took my pen and put it to paper" is Emily's literal answer, offered as she reclines, pale and not long for this world, alongside printed versions of her now-iconic story. The response provided by the gorgeously shot, impressively acted and deeply moving Emily is far more complicated, but O'Connor's choice to open her movie with this scene and question is both clever and telling. One perspective on great artists, including of words, is to view their work as intertwined with their lives — aka this feature's preferred vantage. A key perspective of Emily, too, is not letting the small amount of detail known about the middle of literature's three Brontë sisters dictate how this story is told. That copy of Wuthering Heights by Emily's side? It bears her name, as does every iteration printed today, but her book wasn't first published under her real moniker — her pen name was Ellis Bell — until two years after her death. Emily streams via Stan. Read our full review. Need a few more streaming recommendations? Check out our picks from January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August and September this year. You can also check out our running list of standout must-stream shows from this year as well — and our best 15 new shows of 2023's first six months, top 15 returning shows over the same period and best 15 straight-to-streaming movies from January–June 2023, too.
In the past six months, The Mulberry Group (founders and past owners of The Kettle Black, Top Paddock and Higher Ground) has gifted Melbourne with two stunning venues: Liminal in the CBD and Geelong's road trip-worthy Common Ground Project. But already the team is already gearing up to unveil another two. The first to launch is contemporary CBD diner Hazel — who flung open her doors just this week — while late-night sibling Dessous is set to follow suit on Monday, October 21. Gracing two levels of the 1920s T&G Building at 164 Flinders Lane, Hazel marks a shift for the group as its first venue to open nights. Helming the kitchen is Head Chef Zac Nicholson (Rockpool Bar & Grill) who's cooking with a woodfired grill and oven both fuelled by Australian-grown ironbark. [caption id="attachment_745955" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Pete Dillon[/caption] Expect small bites like a pig's head terrine and grilled prawns with cumin mayonnaise, alongside larger plates like the wood-grilled duck breast teamed with aged balsamic. Pasta might feature the likes of fettuccine with baby kale and chilli, a lamb forequarter chop is matched with chimichurri, and a chopped salad side is finished with pork crackling for extra crunch. There's also seven different things on toast, such as mussels and white wine, anchovy and kefir butter, and duck liver pâté with caramelised onions. With over 120 bottles, the wine selection has decidedly broad appeal and is backed by a lineup of local brews and an unfussy handful of cocktails, such as strawberry negronis, grapefruit sprtizes and salted cucumber concoctions. Meanwhile, the light-filled space is also primed for lingering — award-winning interior design firm The Stella Collective has left its mark with a restrained, but elegant mix of gentle curves, natural linens and polished floors. Find Hazel at 164 Flinders Lane, Melbourne. It's open Monday to Saturday from 12–4pm and 6–11pm and on Sunday from 11am to 5pm. Dessous is slated to launch on October, 21. Images: Pete Dillon
Do you love ice cream? Of course you do. But do you feel like you could love it just that little bit more? If so, you might want to attend a Helados Jauja Ice Cream Appreciation Masterclass. Run by the team at the Helados Jauja on Lygon Street, these two-hour sessions will reveal the secrets of their Argentinean-style ice cream, made by hand with not a single artificial flavour in sight. Of course, in order to fully understand the ice cream making process, you'll need to sample the product for yourself. Ticketholders will be taken through an 'indulgent degustation' of the Helados Jauja ice cream cabinet, where you'll find flavours such as eggnog, blood plum and shortbread, and peanut butter Nutella. Once the class is finished, you'll also get a complimentary take-home pack full of your three favourite flavours. Just make sure you get in quick — tickets to their first two sessions for the year are already close to selling out. For more information, and to keep up to date with future classes, visit heladosjauja.com.au.
As one half of creative duo Frank & Mimi, Emily Devers has spent years exploring the artistic nooks and crannies of Brisbane — and left her mark on several of them as well. The artist, who trained at QUT, has been making large-scale murals with signwriter Rick Hayward since 2011, and their works can now be seen splashed across the bridge of the Pillars Project gallery as well as Doomben Station, Newstead Brewing Co and the Golden Pig. In partnership with Pullman Hotels and Resorts, we're helping you explore more on your next holiday and make sure you get those experiences that the area's most switched-on residents wouldn't want their visitors to miss. In Brisbane, we've called in Emily, whose favourite spots range from a gallery that's helped uncover the the state's best street artists to the second-hand bookstore that's a joy to explore. A stay at Pullman's King George Square hotel in Brisbane — located in the centre of the city and just a stroll over the Victoria Bridge from South Bank — will not only put you in the thick of all this action, it will let you contemplate all you've seen in five-star luxury at the end of the day. Read on for Emily's top Brisbane art and design hot spots in her own words, and check out the rest of our Explore More content series to hone your itinerary for some of Australia's best holiday destinations. WANDERING COOKS What feels like a secret warehouse tucked away down Fish Lane, Wandering Cooks houses some of Brisbane's most exciting food ventures. They're a beaut community of like-minded entrepreneurs, celebrating locally sourced produce, local kitchen legends and an impressive low-intervention drinks menu. It's my pick for a low-key Friday night, followed by a wander to the river under the lights down Fish Lane. THE PILLARS PROJECT The Pillars Project is Brisbane's largest outdoor gallery, curated by Dan Brock. It's a great collection of large-scale artworks covering the pillars of Merivale Bridge in South Brisbane, showing visitors to Brisbane what our local artists are made of. It started in 2014 with nine artists painting under eight rail pillars, and the project has now grown to include a few more, including a Frank & Mimi piece. You can give it a wave coming along Montague Road! JUGGLERS ART SPACE A handful of prominent global street artists were born out of little ol' Brisbane, some of who (including Anthony Lister, Fintan Magee, Guido and Shida) spent their formative years exhibiting at Jugglers. We grew Frank & Mimi out of a small corner room in this iconic building. Brisbane's longest-running artist-run initiative (15 years now!), Jugglers addressed a serious shortage of exhibition, performance and studio spaces in Brisbane when it opened in 2002, and continues to provide an inclusive community space for cultural enquiry through art. QAGOMA The Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) is located across two adjacent buildings in Brisbane's South Bank. Celebrating the contemporary art of Australia, Asia and the Pacific, it is a must-see for anyone visiting Brisbane. Sydney-based architects Architectus are responsible for the incredible building design, a huge part of the reason why you should visit. If it's your first time, try and get to a GoMA Up Late evening, so you can view the art with a drink in your hand and some local music in your ears. Also be sure to check out the gallery stores — they feature a lot of Brisbane makers. ARTISAN Artisan is a gallery space and design store on Brunswick Street in Fortitude Valley. They support design creatives from emerging talent to established Australian legends, and they also run regular workshops in everything from spoon carving to textile design and life drawing. Drop by to see the latest exhibition, but make enough time to do a full lap around the store — it shows off our city's best designers and makers. THE BRISBANE FINDERS KEEPERS MARKETS Currently on twice a year, Finders Keepers is a design market featuring the work of independent makers and designers from across Australia. We love keeping up with who's making what by visiting the Brisbane chapter. Walking through the stunning Old Museum rooms overflowing with beautiful hand made things has always been a weekend treat, though the market it soon to move to a new, bigger location at the Brisbane Showgrounds, The Marquee. ANALOGUE GALLERY Analogue Gallery is a creative-led exhibition space in Fortitude Valley.Run by a powerhouse crew including Brisbane Curator Holly Riding, Grace Dewar of First Coat Festival and Matt Haynes of The Design Conference, this unassuming little space is tucked under dive bar Greaser in the heart of the Valley. It has a regular pop-up exhibition program and provides a professional platform for local, regional and interstate artists to show their work to a dedicated crowd — rent and commission free. This one's a really easy way to support Brisbane' creative community on the first Thursday of every month. BENT BOOKS Bent Books on Boundary Street in West End is probably the most adorable second-hand bookshop in Brisbane. They've been around for over 20 years and some of our favourite art and design books (including a rare, early edition sho' card painting book) have come from there. The staff are always friendly and will take down your name and notes if you're seeking something specific. BRISBANE POWERHOUSE The Brisbane Powerhouse is a contemporary, multi-arts centre reborn out of an old power station from the 1920s. It's a one-stop shop for high-quality theatre, performance, visual art and music, and you'll always be able to find something to suit your creative mood. I recommend starting with an afternoon picnic at New Farm Park, taking a walk along the river and entering the building from there — that way you can see our addition to the permanent art collection on the way in! PADDINGTON ANTIQUE CENTRE The Antique Centre in Paddington is perhaps the most overstimulating place you could visit in Brisbane. Housed inside the heritage-listed Plaza Theatre on the main strip of Paddington, it was originally open for business in 1930. Since then, it's collected a whole bunch of Brisbane-based antique and retro stores and sells everything from flamingo light fittings to top hats and ball gowns. I recommend coffee and breakfast at Naïm around the corner before a wander through on a lazy Sunday morning. Explore more with Pullman. Book your next hotel stay with Pullman and enjoy a great breakfast for just $1.
This summer, the National Gallery of Victoria is showcasing the works of William Wegman — a celebrated American photographer, visual artist and dog lover. William Wegman: Being Human, the artist's first major exhibition in Australia, features more than 100 works created throughout his productive 30-year career. In addition, the exhibition will also include 50 photographs that have never been seen by the public before. Wegman's work first emerged in the 1970s, with much of his career fixated on his favourite dogs and their offspring, relatives and companions — including his now famous dogs Man Ray and Fay Ray. With the dogs showing a great interest in performing in front of the camera (allegedly), Wegman developed somewhat of an obsession, seeing them as an interesting way to reflect the human condition. Through the dogs' poses and outfits, Wegman's work reflects various famous historical moments and pop culture references. While the wagging Weimaraners may have been the subject of William Wegman's most recognisable works, he was also a prolific painter, photojournalist and admirer of fashion and art history, all of which make appearances throughout the works on display. William Wegman: Being Human is free to attend, and runs until Sunday March 17, 2019 at the NGV International. Images: William Wegmen: Being Human 2018, NGV International. Photos by Carmen Zammit.
Getting swooped by magpies is about as Aussie as tucking into a parma at the pub, with those feathered missiles offering a clear and feisty reminder that spring has indeed, sprung. But you might be able to avoid a few unwanted avian attacks this year, with the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning's nifty Swooping Bird Map in your artillery. After all, swoopy fauna is the last thing you want to be worrying about when you're out and about soaking up that spring sunshine. The online map highlights spots around the state where locals have fallen — ahem — fowl of nesting birds and copped a swoop for it. Click on one of the bird-shaped map pins and it'll show you the number and breed of bird bandits that have recorded incidents in that area, mapping out the nesting territories you'd best avoid. Anyone can easily add a new swoop site to the map, recording the date of an attack and even leaving a comment. There have been some rather animated warnings, too, including: "Crikey! swooped me dog!!!" referring to a particular feathered fiend in West Footscray, and in Reservoir: "Particularly tenacious, flies very close and regularly makes contact with you. Love spring time in Straya." [caption id="attachment_824622" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Victoria's Swooping Bird Map[/caption] One Essendon-based commenter shared their unfortunate tale of being attacked twice in quick succession, having their head opened up and then being stalked for 250 metres; while a whole flock of comments suggests that the path between Holbrook Reserve and Ormond Park in Brunswick West is truly treacherous stuff. While dives to the head aren't fun, the website shares a gentle reminder that swooping birds are simply trying to protect their eggs and that it's illegal to harass the fluffy helicopter parents back. In addition to its interactive sighting map, the department's also got some extra tips to help protect yourself against swooping. If you're venturing through a nesting territory, it recommends travelling in a group, walking quickly and covering your head by wearing a hat or holding up a stick or umbrella. The 'fake eyes' trick is also a winner if you're not too proud to draw some peepers to stick on the back of your hat or helmet. Retaliation is a no-no, as destroying nests or interfering with the birds will only make them stick around longer. And, of course, it's always helpful to give others a heads up about swooping sites, which you can do online via the Swooping Bird Map. Check out the Swooping Bird Map online now on the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning website.
Melbourne knows how to strike the perfect work/life balance, and we've embraced the neighbourhood wine bar scene with open arms — and mouths — to prove it. Whether you're keen on the local chicken shop that serves up some of the most exciting minimal intervention wines coming out of Australia (perfect for that out-of-town client meeting), or looking for somewhere warm and inviting to take the office crush, there's no shortage of establishments to cater to any post-work need (or crisis). We've done a quite a bit of eating and drinking through this great city of ours, so, along with American Express, we've pooled our knowledge for your benefit. In fact, we've sifted through our directory to pick out the best casual drinking spots to suit whatever you have planned. Just quit your job and need to toast with a good wine? Want to get a spreadsheet done over lunch? Need an excuse to use your American Express® Card? We know just the place. Got yourself in another dining situation and need some guidance? Whatever it is, we know a place. Visit The Shortlist and we'll sort you out.
UPDATE: MARCH 24, 2020 — Melbourne's dedicated cookie shop is now delivering its chunky, gooey handmade doughy boys. Available within ten kilometres of the Windsor store, the delivery offering includes eight different flavours ($5–6 each): classic, triple choc, vegan, Nutella, churros, pistachio, peanut butter and raspberry. Orders are for a minimum of six and can be made by emailing deliverycookiebox@gmail.com. Got a cookie obsession that just won't quit? Prepare to unleash the monster on Windsor's new dessert destination, The Cookie Box, where chunky, gooey handmade cookies reign supreme. The family-run brand has already proved a hit in Perth, where it launched in 2017, and now Melbourne's scored a decadent outpost of its own. The Chapel Street store is dishing up nine permanent flavours from a classic peanut butter to Nutella and a fruit-laced raspberry number. You can also sink your teeth into the monthly-changing experimental creation. All of the treats are rolled by hand, rested for 48 hours and baked fresh daily, crafted only on top-quality ingredients including free-range eggs and smooth Belgian chocolate. A solo cookie will set you back as little as $5. Otherwise, get a little adventurous with one of the cookie bowls, teaming a classic cookie with topping combinations like black forest — ice cream and Italian amarena cherries — or banoffee: banana, ice cream and lashings of caramel sauce. The Cookie Box officially opens on Saturday, February 15, and it's celebrating by handing out a stack of freshly baked cookies — on the house. Be one of the first 250 punters through the doors at 10am on February 15 or 16 and you'll score yourself one of the shop's classic cookies for free.
Australian singer and actor Troye Sivan has just launched a new line of luxury homewares and fragrances, dubbed TSU LANGE YOR (pronounced tsoo-lang-yor). The brand's first collection will be displayed as an exclusive early preview in Fitzroy's At The Above space from Friday, August 18 to Thursday, August 24. Boasting collaborations with local creative talent including Fitzroy's antique furnishing favourites Castorina and contemporary Richmond creators Halcyon Lake, the new collection emphasises the use of native and natural materials. "I had been reflecting on a lot while travelling and living overseas; to me, what makes a home? Expression, art, heritage, friends, objects, family, light, scent. This initial collection is a direct reflection of all of that," Sivan says. If you're a little far from Gertrude Street, never fear, all fragrances and homewares will be available to purchase online in late August. Images: Joe Brennan
The Melbourne film community was shocked and saddened last week by the news that The Astor Theatre will soon be closing its doors. Failed negotiations between cinema owner George Florence and landlord Ralph Taranto led to the heartbreaking announcement, that The Astor will cease operations in early 2015. A representative for Taranto has since stated that the heritage-listed venue will continue to operate as a single-screen picture palace, presumably under different management. Whether this occurs, and in precisely what form, still remains to be seen. Regardless, it seems as though The Astor we all know and love will soon be no more. With that in mind, we reached out to a few local film buffs for their memories of the iconic Melbourne cinema. The response was overwhelming. From critics and programmers, academics and film students, to the average Pulp Fiction fan, if cinema is your passion, The Astor has inevitably played a part. From Keaton to Kubrick, no shortage of classics have lit up the giant screen since The Astor first opened in 1936. But as of the anecdotes below reveal, The Astor is about more than the films you see there. It's that distinctive calendar blu-tacked to the back of toilet doors. It's biting into the thick layer of chocolate that encased those iconic choc ices. It's catching a glimpse of Marzipan, the beloved Astor cat, now roaming the aisles of some beautiful theatre in the sky. We're not giving up hope on The Astor just yet. The theatre has survived closure scares before, thanks in no small part to dogged community support. With a bit of luck, perhaps it can survive this one as well. If this really is the end though, consider this our eulogy. Mel Campbell I first went to the Astor in the mid-'90s for a double bill of Flesh Gordon and Barbarella. As a suburban teenager I felt very knowing and sophisticated to be seeing such risqué fare in public, rather than at home on VHS. What instantly impressed me was the grandeur of the place — the gorgeous carpets and interior fittings, and the huge cavern of the auditorium. Yet the Astor simultaneously has a sense of community that's got nothing to do with the building. It's about the idiosyncratic candy bar, where choc tops are called 'choc ices', and home-style cakes and slices are sold alongside the usual cinema fare. Throughout my university career, every sharehouse worth its boho credentials had the Astor calendar on the back of the kitchen or toilet door. There's a sense of goodwill, and an electric atmosphere. Everyone is here because they love movies, not just to kill an afternoon. And I must mention the dear departed Astor cat Marzipan. I always had a kind of starstruck celebrity crush on Marzipan, whom I'd see snoozing at the laundromat next to the theatre, or stalking around the upstairs foyer with a throng of eager fans in tow. I tried to be cool with her, like you would when meeting your favourite movie star, but whenever I patted her she had a long-suffering expression, as though enduring the downside of stardom. RIP. Mel Campbell is a journalist and cultural critic, who has written for the likes of Junkee, Crikey and The Guardian. She's also the author of Out of Shape, a recent book about fashion and body image. Rhett Bartlett I met the grand lady in 1996. At that stage, she was in her 60th year and still a towering figure. The matriarch of cinemas. For a school excursion we went to experience 2001: A Space Odyssey in 70mm. You don't see films at The Astor. You experience them. I remember my English teacher was adamant he would finally be able to read what was written on the wall in the zero-gravity toilet. He couldn't. Subsequent visits included a screening of Rear Window introduced by Hitchcock's daughter, Patricia, over the telephone. Viewing Blade Runner with my work colleagues, we called ourselves Enhance 57-19 — a line in Blade Runner when Deckard is viewing the photo of Zhora. And then, The Perfect Storm, where my mate Jeremy Mitchell pointed out to us that the helicopter rescuer identifies himself as 'Jeremy Mitchell' as he plunges into the water. We all cheered when that moment happened. More recently, during Cinema Fiasco (a live commentary of B-Grade films) I experienced Empire of the Ants — a film about gigantic mutant insects that terrorise Joan Collins. That's the thing about The Astor. Every visit was big. Rhett Bartlett is a critic and film historian who reviews film on ABC Radio Melbourne. He is also the classic movie trivia buff behind Dial M for Movies. Jemima Bucknell My first trip to the Astor was for a double feature of Al Jazeera doco Control Room and Gus Van Sant’s Elephant. It was an extra-curricular excursion for my Year 11 English class and my friend and I had arrived fairly drunk. Control Room sobered us up and Elephant brought a different sort of intoxication. I saw the 4K master of Lawrence of Arabia in 2012 (first-time watch for me) and thought I could have fallen from the dress circle balcony into Lean’s deep frame. At intermission, I sprinted out of the theatre and across the road to try and exhaust my exhilaration. I was, for some reason, wearing a linen dressing gown. My friend placed his hand in mine throughout Altman’s Nashville; a fleeting romance mapped out in Astor retrospectives just a couple of years ago. We talked all the way out of the theatre and the long drive home about the spiritual hypocrisy of country music. Many thanks to the Astor team for their inspired programming. I will be back for Pink Floyd’s The Wall, and many more films in the coming months. Jemima Bucknell is a freelance film journalist whose work has appeared at The Essential, Film Blerg and Roger Ebert. When she isn't writing about films, she's showing them as part of Screen Sect, a weekly cinematic collective at Bar Open in Fitzroy. Al Cossar One of the first places I lived in Melbourne was in a sharehouse a couple of blocks away from the Astor on Dandenong Road. Seeing the calendar for the first time, on the back of our toilet door for the most practical kind of perusing, argued the fact to me that where I had chosen to pack up and move was a city with a cultural lifeblood, a filmic personality, and one quite literally on my doorstep. It had that stateliness that makes going to the movies feel like an occasion and not a transaction; programming that looked back and forward and to the side with a curious eye; the roving cats; that agreeably olden time grandeur that took you out of the wall-to-wall retail mank of adjacent Chapel Street; and yes, that Wild Berry choc ice, which is pretty much local ice cream royalty in my book. I do remember a few nights spent there as part of the Human Rights Arts and Film Festival. They had charity galas at the Astor over several years and being in that space in a really formal way, suited up with a glass of something, hobnobbing with those more appropriately glammed up than you, always felt like [the right] way to be there in a space like that... refined and old-timey, like playing at the past. Al Cossar has his fingers in about half the film festivals in Melbourne. As well as being a programmer at MIFF, he's also on the board at HRAFF and has previously worked for Underground Cinema, Flickerfest, and Portable Film Festival. Richard Haridy It's only when I really stop and think about my most influential cinematic experiences that I truly understand how important The Astor was in my development as a budding film nerd. From my first encounter with 70mm and Kubrick on the big screen with 2001, to the period I saw the restored version of Orson Welles' Touch of Evil three times over two weeks, the Astor was a profoundly important destination for me over the 1990s. My number one most exciting memory was as a teenager experiencing my first Buster Keaton film, The General, with a live score, and truly understanding how much fun a communal shared theatrical experience can be. As well as triggering a lifelong obsession with Keaton and silent comedy, the experience affirmed how important these unique filmic moments are. Now as The Astor closes, I can only hope a younger generation can find a way to gather these memories without this wonderful picture palace around. Richard Haridy is the Chair of the Australian Film Critics Association. He reviews film for Quickflix and ABC Radio. Zak Hepburn A gleaming memory of my Astor patronage over the years includes a visit for a '70s sci-fi double feature of Soylent Green and Westworld. Both presented on new 35mm Cinemascope prints, this was a chance to witness some key slices of '70s future paranoia cinema on the big screen. From memory, only a small crowd of true believers showed up, but for me, Westworld remains a key title in my filmic lexicon. The story of a futuristic theme park where the attractions begin attacking the guests, it's lean, mean and has a nihilistic nasty streak that few major studio releases have today. Being able to view a pristine celluloid presentation of mechanical humanoids going insane and murdering holidaying yuppies is a rare gift — one that I know I will remember fondly. Perhaps one day, a group of scientists might create a futuristic theme park for nostalgic film lovers, featuring a single screen picture palace. It could be a place for fans to reminisce on what we are losing; a place for our cinema-loving hearts to feel safe; a place, to quote the famous tag line of Westworld, where nothing can possibly go worng. Zak Hepburn is a critic and programmer who can be seen discussing the latest releases on ABC News Breakfast, or at any one one of the numerous film events he programs around town. Diana Sandars Memories of The Astor are inextricably bound up with memories of love. Love for my partner Damian; love of my first car, especially its fins; love of our art deco furniture; love of being in favour with the tabby cat who lived there; love of the thrill of watching film noir in a theatre older than the film itself; love of the candy bar ads from the 1930s; love of the reassuring sound of Damian’s feet as he returned to our seats ready for the next film to commence; love of the homemade choc tops which made the mass-produced cones of chain cinemas look like an embarrassing misunderstanding. But one night, a man appeared seated five seats down from me in the front row of the balcony. For the entire film I was overwhelmed by the scent of lavender. I couldn’t concentrate on the film because I was obsessed with where this smell was coming from. I kept pestering my mum and Damian, seated on either side of me, so I expect they couldn’t concentrate either. At intermission my mother went to the snack bar for us and eventually bounded back with an older man in tow, and announced, "Mystery solved! I found where that lavender smell was coming from." Dressed like Humphrey Bogart in a trench coat, but bearing no further similarities, the very unassuming man reached out his hand and introduced himself, "Hello! They call me the Lavender Man, because I always smell of lavender." He eagerly explained that he spent hours in a lavender bath every day. Oh yes, he did! He explained that he lived down the street from The Astor and did not own a TV, so he would buy a book of tickets and come every night to watch two films. The Astor was his lounge room. Big screen movies every night with the same family members behind the box office, projector and candy counter. Dr Diana Sandars lectures at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image and is an honorary fellow at the University of Melbourne where she teaches a course on Contemporary Film and Cultural Theory. Lee Zachariah There are too many great memories associated with The Astor. Repeatedly seeing Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey in 35mm and then 70mm. Marzipan, the late but beloved Astor cat, unexpectedly jumping up onto my lap in the final, tension-ridden scene of Antonioni’s Blow Up. Attending the staple Dead Man / Lost Highway double at 16 and being unable to sleep for the next three days. As Australia’s greatest repertory cinema, it cared not for release dates and the box office: only for playing the best films from history in the best format possible. Its beautiful art deco surroundings only enhanced the experience, as it mixed the best parts of the old with the best of the new: technology and history mixing in the most perfect balance ever. The prospect of the building and the business decoupling is a horrible. The Astor was and is Australia’s most important cinematic institution. Lee Zachariah is one half of The Bazura Project and one half of the Hell Is For Hyphenates film podcast. He has also written for the likes of Vice, Junkee, The Big Issue, and a little publication called Concrete Playground. Photo credits: ginnerobot and Khánh Hmoong via photopin cc.
Game, set, match, music: the 2024 Australian Open might be jam-packed with Grand Slam tennis action, but it's also serving up a few aces for fans of live tunes. In 2023, the annual Melbourne sports event launched the AO Finals Festival, which gets a heap of talents taking to the stage. Unsurprisingly proving a hit, the fest returns this year. Attendees will be treated to a program of live acts on three of the event's final four days, all in John Cain Arena. 2024's AO Finals Fest will start on Thursday, January 25, on AO Pride Day. Then, it's back for both the women's final on Saturday, January 27 and the men's equivalent on Sunday, January 28. A stellar lineup awaits, including Tash Sultana, Peach PRC and Yaeji on the Thursday; DMA's, Ruel and The Jungle Giants on the Saturday; and Groove Armada, Rudimental and Sunshine & Disco Faith Choir on the Sunday. Just like in 2023, the stacked bill doesn't come as too much of a surprise, given that it has again been curated with help from the respected music heads at Untitled Group — the brains behind Pitch Music & Arts, For The Love, Grapevine Gathering and more. Expect plenty of company, with the 2023 event selling out. Accordingly, 2024's AO Finals Festival has moved venues, shifting to John Cain Arena to take advantage of its 10,000-person capacity. Tickets can be bought individually per day, or matchgoers can upgrade their tennis tickets to head to the festival. As always, there'll be scores of food and drink pop-ups scattered throughout Melbourne Park, as well as big screens showing all the on-court action. AO FINALS FESTIVAL 2024 LINEUP: Thursday, January 25: AO Pride Day Tash Sultana Peach PRC Yaeji Anesu Djanaba DJ Luv You Saturday, January 27: Women's final DMA's Ruel The Jungle Giants Tia Gostelow Mell Hall Sunday, January 28: Men's final Groove Armada Rudimental Sunshine & Disco Faith Choir Latifa Tee Cooper Smith Images: Ash Caygill.
What microwaves did for heating, UK company Enviro-Cool is promising to do for cooling. They've created a drink cooler that takes bottles and cans from room temperature to 5 degrees celsius in just 45 seconds. There's every possibility that the invention, which uses 80 percent less energy than commercial refrigeration, could soon become commonplace in homes, shops and eateries all over the world. Envriro-Cool created the technology, which they've patented 'V-Tex', back in 2007. It's based on a sophisticated application of the 'Rankine Vortex'. A European Commission grant of 930,000 Euros enabled its development into a commercial product. According to the promo video, the EC "recognised that the energy used to constantly chill pre-packed beverages was enormous and an unsustainable strain on our depleting energy resources." Three types of coolers have been developed. There's one suitable to commercial use, powerful enough to replace high-energy use equipment, such as multi-deck open refrigerator, and two domestic-friendly units — one stand-alone and one that can be added to existing refrigerators. It's estimated that, for every fridge replaced, over $1000 in electricity will be saved annually. Trials begin in Holland next month. Via PSFK.
Gluten isn't always the enemy. Sometimes it's just wheat, a grain that's been modified so much over time that many of our guts now struggle to digest it properly. The team at Farro is well aware of this, opting to replace wheat with 100-percent spelt flour in all of its pizza, pasta and bread. Not only is this ancient grain better for our bellies, but it arguably tastes a whole lot better than wheat and totally gluten-free options. It's also what had made this Italian restaurant group so successful, with the crew having just opened its seventh outpost in Moonee Ponds. Here, diners can expect the same stacked menu of classic Italian dishes found at its locations in Fitzroy, Caulfield North, Hawthorn, Thornbury, Windsor and Richmond, from the long list of antipasti to house-made pasta and woodfired pizzas. The extensive vegan menu can also be found the new Moonee Ponds site, offering up a huge amount of completely plant-based eats. Drinks-wise, all the usual contenders are here. Aussie and Italian beers come both on tap and in tinnies, vinos from Victoria and Italy dominate the wine list, and there's a decent selection of cocktails for those feeling a little fancier. And if you're simply looking to order some pizza and pasta to be delivered to your house near in the inner northwest, Farro is available on UberEats. You'll find Farro at 30 Puckle Street, Moonee Ponds, open 5–9pm on weekdays and 12–9pm on weekends. For more information, head to the venue's website.
Fancy prancing through fields laced with the charm of provincial France? Well, forget about booking a flight — it's just casual summer weekendery when So Frenchy So Chic is in town. The ever-popular one-day French festival is doing the can-can back to Sydney's Bicentennial Park and Melbourne's Werribee Park Mansion in January 2023, and celebrating its 12th anniversary in the process. If you haven't been before, expect an entire afternoon of French-inspired niceties, including (but not limited to) gourmet picnic hampers, très bon tartlets and terrines, and supremely good wine — all set to a blissed-out French soundtrack. So Frenchy hinges on an eclectic lineup of artists, both taking cues from the classic sonic stylings of France and showcasing top-notch French talent. Heading the 2023 bill you'll catch the 60s-accented pop sounds of Pi Ja Ma, award-winning singer-songwriter Timothée Régnier aka Rover and French festival favourite Kalika, as well as the fiery tunes and huge stage presence of globally-renowned artist Suzane. [caption id="attachment_868020" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Suzane[/caption] As always, the wine and food will be flowing just as easily as that chilled soundtrack, headlined by an abundance of bubbly courtesy of Champagne Lanson, one of France's oldest champagne houses. In Sydney, Rosebery French eatery Frenchies is packaging up luxe charcuterie hampers, and you can also tuck into fine French fare from Bellevue Cottage. In Melbourne, Frederic Bistro, Milk The Cow and L'Hôtel Gitan are doing the honours to ensure your day's picnicking is top-quality stuff. If you're more of a mix-and-match kind of picnicker, you'll also find a huge array of food stalls slinging all the chic essentials — think, oysters, lobster rolls, croque monsieurs, cassoulet, madeleines, crème brûlée, crêpes and cheese upon cheese. And of course, there'll be plenty of French beer, cocktails, and rosé, red and white wines, too. [caption id="attachment_868021" align="alignnone" width="1920"] By Tekni[/caption] If you're quick, you can snap up one of the limited Premiere Pique-Nique group tickets for crews of 10 — coming it at $205, they include a full picnic set-up, with two cheese hampers, two charcuterie hampers and two bottles of champagne. Early bird tickets are now on sale for $79.40 a pop. If you've got kids, you'll be happy to know that the whole thing is very family-friendly, with children's tickets starting from $10 (free for kids under three). [caption id="attachment_868016" align="alignnone" width="1920"] By Liz Sunshine[/caption] SO FRENCHY SO CHIC 2023 AUSTRALIAN DATES: Sunday, January 15 — Werribee Park Mansion, Melbourne Saturday, January 21 — Bicentennial Park, Glebe So Frenchy So Chic hits Sydney and Melbourne in January 2023. For more information or to buy tickets, head to the event's website. Images: Liz Sunshine and Tekni.
Featuring a diverse and masterfully selected spread of local designers' jewellery, artisan-crafted gifts, and quality homewares, this little gem of the tourist trade is so thoughtfully curated it will have the most seasoned Melburnian impressed by a novelty tea-towel or self-declaratory cushion. With a large focus on local design, Melbournalia houses products from over 50 local makers ranging from the cute greeting card artists Able and Game to the produce of local beekeepers Rooftop Honey. This store has a much more refined selection of souvenirs than just toy trams and kangaroos.
Fining guests for posting bad reviews of your Vanderbilt-built hotel? Might want to think twice on that poorly-formed brainwave and avoid giving internet reviewers a reason to unite. Union Street Guest House in Hudson, New York is doing exactly that. The Rockefeller/Vanderbilt estate hastily took down a controversial rule from its own website yesterday, according to Huffington Post. The super dumb, money-grabbing rule charged wedding guests (primarily the newlyweds themselves) for any bad reviews posted on review websites like Yelp and Trip Advisor. Yep. Apparently, as pointed out by the initial New York Post story on Monday, couples holding their wedding at the USGH would see a sneaky $500 deducted from their security deposit for each thumbs down posted online by their guests. After a few WTF inquiries, the hotel took to Facebook and pulled the ol' 'it was all a joke' card to quash the backlash, but then mysteriously that post went missing too. "The policy regarding wedding fines was put on our site as a tongue-in-cheek response to a wedding many years ago," read the Facebook post. "It was meant to be taken down and certainly was never enforced." Although it's no longer (obviously) up on the hotel's website, Business Insider snapped it up before it was lost to the ages. Here's what the rule read, seriously: If you have booked the Inn for a wedding or other type of event anywhere in the region and given us a deposit of any kind for guests to stay at USGH there will be a $500 fine that will be deducted from your deposit for every negative review of USGH placed on any internet site by anyone in your party and/or attending your wedding or event. Although the team attempted to put out the fire, the sparks had already flown. Over 500 angry reviewers threw the hotel major shade with the lowest possible rating, again and again and again. Although sites like Yelp delete reviews who haven't actually stayed in the venue up for review, the slams are still coming for USGH: Now Union Street Guest House's rating looks like this: Yikes. Think before you joke-fine. Via Business Insider, Huffington Post and New York Post.
Burger lovers of Melbourne, rejoice — yet another (yes, another) place selling your favourite food has joined the culinary lineup. If you've ever been on holiday in Queensland and grabbed a burg on the Gold or Sunshine Coasts, then you might be familiar with our newest resident from up north: Betty's Burgers. After announcing they'd be opening new stores in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane in November 2016, their shiny new burger joint is now open at 97 Elizabeth Street — their first outside of Queensland. So what's Betty's all about? Well they do a range of burgs that have been pretty well received up north. You can except their classic, crispy chicken, pork belly and mushroom signature burgers to make their way to Melbourne, as well as their insane Shake Shack-esque frozen custard concoctions. These are called 'concretes', and you can choose to get things like peanut brittle, pecan pudding, doughnuts and lemon cheesecake mixed through them. The concept is similar to Melbourne burger joint Royal Stacks, which also does burgers and frozen custard desserts, although it must be noted that Betty's was first opened in Noosa by David Hales in 2014 (before Royal Stacks' time). He has since opened two stores on the Gold Coast — one at Surfers Paradise and one at Robina. Interior images: Carmen Zammit.
Longrain has long been one of Melbourne's top Thai restaurants — before and after Scott Pickett (founder of Estelle, Smith St Bistrot, Chancery Lane and Matilda) took over in late 2020. He and his team serve a huge range of contemporary Thai fare within a converted horse stable at the top end of Little Bourke Street, but it has always been a dine-in situation, with lunch only available on Friday arvos. But that's all changing this autumn and winter. As of Monday, May 13, the Longrain team is serving lunch-style adaptations of some of the restaurant's most legendary dishes at the west end of Little Collins Street — right next to Pickett's own Chancery Lane. On the menu: head chef Long Le has turned the much-loved crispy pork hock into a roll loaded with pickles, coriander and sriracha mayo; the whole fish is now broken down into more manageable crispy fish fillets served with tamarind mayo and Chinese cabbage slaw; and the prawn salad has been reimagined as a lunchtime dish that's leaps and bounds greater than your Kardashian-style shake-and-go salads. Desserts are also on offer, in the form of Thai milk tea panna cotta and a coconut chocolate mousse. "Our menu is all about tasty, affordable meals that you can eat on the go," says Le. "We have thoughtfully reimagined the flavours, techniques and presentation of Longrain classics that guests know and love without compromising on quality and authenticity." The food is all designed to be taken away, but a handful of seats are available for those who want to dine in. Chang beer, canned wine, young coconut juice and Thai coffee are also up for grabs. Beyond the ready-to-eat dishes, Longrain Canteen is also selling Thai pantry staples and hard-to-find ingredients for those who want to try a bit of Thai cooking at home. Just be sure to get in soon — the pop-up will only run until the start of spring. You'll find Longrain Canteen at 430 Collins Little Street until the start of spring, open Monday–Friday, 11am–2.30pm. For more details, head to the venue's website. Interior images: Alex Squadrito
Souvenir stores are so often the pariah of the retail world. Whether you're browsing through a shop at the airport or foraging for gifts at that stretch of tourist outlets up Swanston Street, any purchase you make seems pretty obligatory — a snowglobe with a tram in it to give to a younger sibling, or some god-awful kangaroo pendant for a friend that will never actually wear it. But more and more, people are turning away from the tacky in search of something more meaningful. Case in point: the newly established gift and souvenir outlet Melbournalia. Featuring a diverse and masterfully selected spread of local designers' jewellery, artisan-crafted gifts, and quality homewares, this little gem of the tourist trade is so thoughtfully curated it will have the most seasoned Melbournite impressed by a novelty tea-towel or self-declaratory cushion. The store's product buyer Jenny Brown says "[We] seek products that tell stories about Melbourne with authenticity, wit and heart," and this ethos is clear through the work on offer. With a large focus on local design and manufacturing, Melbournalia houses products from over 50 Melbourne-based makers ranging from the cute greeting card artists Able and Game to the produce of local beekeepers Rooftop Honey. After experimenting with a grand total of eight pop-up stores over the past two years, Melbournalia has now found itself the perfect home at the top of Bourke Street in the city. Nestled away among local favourites such as Pellegrini's Espresso and the Hill of Content bookshop, this new store has a much more refined palette for souvenirs than just trams and kangaroos. Once inside, you can expect products boasting cheeky jokes about Ron Robertson-Swann's maligned public sculpture, Vault, and books that don't even directly reference Melbourne such as The Sustainable Table. As much as the store is a tourist's dream come true, it also has endless appeal for a discerning local crowd — the seasoned Melbournites who know the importance of boutique stores with a focus on bikes and beanies. Though Melbournalia opened in November, the store still very much still feels like a pop-up. Sparse and purposeful, the space operates with a minimalist design that makes each discovered object seem special and unique. On top of that, the staff are friendly and knowledgeable; more than happy to talk you through the origin of each product. All of this just proves that even if you're a local, there's always something new to stumble upon or a little more to learn. Melbournalia can be found at 50 Bourke Street (cnr Liverpool St). They are open from 10am - 6pm, Monday - Thursday; 10am - 8pm on Friday; and 11am - 5pm, Saturday and Sunday. A sparse and purposeful design (sah Melbourne). The niche tea towel: Chickenfoot Designs take on some lesser-known Melbourne icons. Able and Game's much-loved series of greeting cards expresses all those passing thoughts you've had on the train.
Seeing fruit mince pies in your local shopping centre in October feels downright disturbing, but there's one Christmas treat that no one ever minds arriving early: Four Pillars' annual Christmas Gin. The latest iteration of the Healesville distillery's seasonal sip is coming in strong, set to hit shelves on Tuesday, October 25. It's the delicious result of a yearly tradition that sees a bunch of Christmas puddings handmade with distiller Cameron Mackenzie's mother's recipe — the 1968 Australian Women's Weekly recipe, in fact — and distilled with various festive botanicals to create a sought-after tipple that pretty much screams December 25. The flavours of an Aussie Christmas are captured in notes of cinnamon, star anise, juniper, coriander and angelica. The Christmas gin is then blended with some earlier gin that's been carefully ageing in 80-year-old muscat barrels. It's all finished with a hit of Rutherglen muscat for a bit of added richness and complexity. Each year, a new unique label is chosen to wrap up this Christmas creation, setting out to evoke that same festive spirit. The 2022's bottle design is the work of artist Jane Reynolds, who has provided an abstract version of a Christmas tree scene. She has also whipped up artwork for the rest of Four Pillars' seasonal range — because the gin has company. If it's the tipple itself that has you excited, the distillers always recommend you sip the limited-edition gin neat; mix it with ginger ale, lime and bitters; or whip up a pavlova punch with the festive gin, passionfruit, muscat, berries and your choice of sparkling. Or you can just splash a bit of it on your own Christmas pudding — or pair it with Four Pillars' own Christmas gin puddings, as made with with gin-steamed oranges and a dash of Christmas Gin (naturally), which'll also be available to buy from Tuesday, October 25. There's also a sour cherry and fresh yuzu and apple pickle, aka pickles made from yuzu-steeped apples and botanical-infused oranges that are then mixed with sour cherries and spices, and are recommended to serve with cheese, charcuterie or a leftover ham sandwich. Finally, Four Pillars is releasing a linen yuletide tea towel, too, as decked out with with Reynold's work. If you want to nab a bottle — or any of the above — have your fingers poised over the 'buy' button when they go on sale online towards the end of October. Alternatively, you can stop by the Four Pillars HQ in Healesville, Victoria or the brand's Surry Hills shop in Sydney. Bottles are $105 a pop and would make stellar Chrissy pressies, if you're already thinking about that. The pudding will cost you $30, the tea towel the same price and the pickles $10. Four Pillars Christmas Gin is available to buy online, from the Healesville distillery and Surry Hills shop from Tuesday, October 25. But you'd best be quick — there's only a limited amount of bottles. Images: Benito Martin.
It seems burger fever has gripped Bentleigh this winter. Last month, Good Times Milk Bar opened a burger offshoot and gave away free buns to celebrate. Now, Centre Road staple Mr Burger is launching a new menu and is hosting its own celebratory giveaway. On Sunday, July 8, from 11.30am, the Centre Road eatery will be giving away 100 free burgers. It's limited to one per person, and to one of three burgers off the new menu: Mr Burger, the standard with beef, lettuce, cheese, tomato and pickles; Mr Grilled, which is the same as the former but with chicken breast instead of beef; and a vegetarian Mr Veg. Other items on the new menu, which are not part of the giveaway, include Mr Brunch (stuffed with with a hash brown, bacon, egg and barbecue sauce), mozzarella sticks and sweet potato fries. The giveaway doesn't stop on Sunday, either. For the whole of July, the Bentleigh burger joint is serving up weekday deals to help launch its new menu. Head in on Mondays for free chips with burger purchase, Tuesdays for 2-for-1 milkshakes between 3–5pm, Wednesdays for free sweet potato chips with burger purchase, Thursdays for free mozzarella sticks with burger purchase and Fridays for free add-on bacon. They're a lot of reasons for you to get out from under your slanket and grab a burger this July.
These days, there probably aren't too many people who'd rush to take a dip in the Yarra River. But that's all set to change, as the team behind community-led project Yarra Pools continues its push to create a river pool and water precinct right on the banks. In 2016, Melbourne non-profit Yarra Swim Co first released plans for a pool in the river. They've since spent two years consulting the community and finessing the concept, and this time round have teamed up with local firm WOWOWA Architecture. The newly proposed water park precinct would transform the riverbank area adjacent to Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium and make the Yarra swimmable once more. The proposal features a 50-metre in-river lap pool, a kids pool and a natural leisure pool, all located amongst lush wetland areas. The precinct would also boast its own kayak launch point, outdoor pavilion, lookout platform, multipurpose room and on-site cafe, as well as a drop-off zone for shuttles headed to the aquarium. The proposed site stretches along the Yarra's northern riverbank and beneath the existing raised rail line, though incorporates a stack of natural plant life to help take the edge off the very urban setting. Of course, the Yarra water needs to be made swimmable for all of this to work — it's filthy (thanks to that time it was a dumping ground for industrial run-off) and that water needs to be filtered. According to the project's website, they are looking into locally developed technology that may allow river water to supply the pool. If you're keen to see the project kick off, you can submit feedback via the website and donate.
In Melbourne, yet another ridesharing service has thrown its hat into the ring, with China's DiDi Chuxing launching its DiDi Express platform across the city today, Monday, June 25. The new app is now available to download, promising locals 'an affordable, convenient and reliable ride-sharing alternative', as DiDi goes head to head with the likes of Taxify, Ola, Oiii and Uber, which just launched its new carpooling service. And it's sweetening the deal with some pretty tempting launch incentives, for both riders and drivers. Those travelling with the service will enjoy a tidy 50 percent discount (capped at $10 per trip) on all DiDi rides from now until the end of July, and will receive a $20 credit every time they introduce a friend to the platform. DiDi drivers can look forward to forking out zero commission when operating during peak times or in a peak area, and no commission plus a $5 bonus when doing both at once. They'll also take advantage of a stable 20 percent commission at other times and introductory bonuses for completing 20 trips in a seven-day period. The company's promising 24/7 support to both drivers and riders, an itinerary sharing feature for those riding, and a strict driver vetting process. DiDi Chuxing launched in China in 2012 and has quickly become a huge player in the global ridesharing game — it has since bought out Uber's Chinese operations and has stakes in numerous companies, including Ola, Taxify, Lyft and Grab. It'll be interesting to see how its services stack up to what's already on offer and how many drivers will be available at any one time. You can now download the DiDi Express app from the app store.
The motto at Big Boy BBQ is 'Slow Food… Fast', meaning that the meat is generously rubbed with spices and slow-cooked for up to 16 hours — but the crew can still dish them out quick sticks once orders start coming in. The Caulfield South restaurant had an overhaul in 2019 and this new concept, Southern Grace Diner, is an homage to the traditional 'meat and three' eateries that are dotted all over the US deep south. The menu is straightforward enough. First, choose between juicy smoked meat or ribs, then select up to three sides to enjoy with it — think salads, fries, coleslaw, crackling, vegetable gratin, mash and gravy or mac 'n' cheese. Be sure to save room for sweet potato pie for dessert, too. This spot offers BYO beer and wine for only $5 surcharge per person, and if you fall in love with the addictive southern-style barbecue sauces, glazes and vinegar dips, the restaurant sells takeaway jars for $13. Southern Grace Diner offers BYO beer and wine.
If you've long thought of Port Macquarie as one big waiting room for God, it's obviously been ages since you visited. It's true that Australia's sun-loving retirees have been digging in here for decades. The climate is the most liveable in the nation, with temperatures hovering at late 20s and early 30s in summer, but rarely slipping into single digits in winter. Plus, there are eighteen beaches (eighteen!), from friendly Flynns Beach to nine-kilometre-long Lighthouse Beach, where you can go on camel safari. But, more recently, Generations X and Y have been catching onto the salubriousness of this 44,000-person strong town, a four hour drive north of Sydney and six hours south of Brisbane. And they're moving in. In fact, Port (that's what the locals call it) is the fastest growing area in New South Wales. Luckily for you, the influx is bringing some serious hospitality experience with it. Here's how to spend a weekend in the area. STAY Port's many beaches make up its eastern coast, but along its northern edge runs the mighty Hastings River, which was the original home of the Birpai people. It starts 180 kilometres northwest in the Great Dividing Range and runs all the way into Port Macquarie. Today, the riverfront is home to Port's swankiest hotels. One of these is Sails Resort by Rydges, which scored a $15 million revamp last year. To sleep right on the water, reserve a water view king room or, if you're with friends, a suite. Either way, you'll be dozing in a signature king-sized bed, lolling about on spacious couches and crooning 'Ol' Man River' from your private balcony. The hotel pool, encircled with palm trees and dotted with private cabanas, is Baz Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet-esque by night. The town centre is just a ten minutes walk away, but, to travel in style, grab a vintage bike or, even better, a paddle board from the lobby. (Yep, you can travel via river all the way). [caption id="attachment_562409" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Lindsay Moller Photography via The Stunned Mullet[/caption] EAT The restaurant that put Port on the gustatory map is The Stunned Mullet. In 2005, co-owners Lou Perri and David Henry moved into this 90-seater space, overlooking sweeping coastal views north to Point Plomer. In 2014, the duo earned their first Good Food hat, and kept it in 2015. Italian-born, Canadian-raised Perri has two obsessions: Australia's finest produce and the world's best wines, while Henry is busy turning Perri's selections into decadent dishes as executive chef. Freshly shucked local oysters arrive as an Asian-inspired flight — the first topped with white miso and shiitake pearls, the second with finger lime ponzu and the third with nam jim. Mains feature meat cuts fit for royalty, like Glacier 51Toothfish, whose name comes from its icy habitat: 2000 metres beneath sea level, off the southern tip of Heard Island, an Australian territory in Antarctica. Farmed closer to home in Orange is Mandagery Creek venison, here laced with Australian natives, like wattleseed, macadamia nut and lemon myrtle. Perri will jovially guide you through the international odyssey that is the wine list — trust his recommendations if you can't make up your own mind. Back riverside, still-water sunsets, tapas, art and live music are on tap at the Latin Loafer. Flop onto a camelback sofa with a mango chilli lime daiquiri in hand and be transported to South America. Nicholas Diaz, who co-owns the restaurant-bar with musician and music promoter Simon Leigh, specialises in generous tapas plates, ranging from moreish takes on classics — like salted cod croquettes and chorizo in red wine — to fresh inventions such as heirloom carrots with beetroot, smoked goat's cheese and almonds. Don't be shy to ask the waitstaff for a match from the exotic Spanish, Argentinian and Chilean wine selection. West of Port Macquarie, the Hastings River nurtures thousands of hectares of fertile land, where warm weather crops, like avocado and macadamia, thrive, and cattle and chooks have space to free range. Many local cafes are making the most of these Edenic surroundings. Among the most outstanding is Drury Lane Eatery, co-owned by Canadian-born head chef Drury Woolnough and partner, Kate McCarron, who've been getting to know local producers. Salmon smoked an hour's drive away is transformed into a bright salad with apple and lemon fennel dukkah, while leaves grown 40 kilometres upstream at Near River Produce make for a mean green breakfast, with beans, chilli and fried eggs. Book one of the outdoor tables in the leafy courtyard opposite Glasshouse Theatre. For invigorating ocean views, grab a seat at Milkbar — if you can get one. Locals roll up from Town Beach and cram into this friendly cafe to tuck into hearty dishes, from house-made baked beans with herbed goats' cheese to baked eggs with feta and spinach. In the unlikely location of Gordon Street, Port's best coffee is brewing at Social Grounds, which, with its graphic murals and dark wooden tables, feels like an inner-city cafe. Choose between single origin or The Story, a blend combining beans from Ethiopia, Sumatra, Colombia and Rwanda. The hand-scrawled blackboard menu is short but fierce — try the spiced poached eggs with field mushroom, haloumi, avocado, rocket and dukkah on sourdough. If you're road tripping to or from Sydney, take a break in Newcastle's West End with lunch at The Edwards. Co-owners Chris Joannou (yep, Silverchair's bassist) and barista Chris Johnston have turned this warehouse that was Joannou's parents' dry-cleaning business into a fun, unpretentious cafe-bar. Beer taps are made from steam presses, lights are made from tumble dryers and there's loads of space for ping pong matches, art exhibitions, live music and night markets. The cheese plate is a spectacular mountain of softs, blues, truffle-infused oil, berries, dates and breads. DRINK Port Macquarie's wine history is as nearly as old as the Hunter Valley's. The first vineyards were planted in the 1860s, but, while the Hunter expanded, the North Coast's winemaking scene fell into decline. That was until Cassegrain kickstarted a revival in the '80s. Drop by the stone-paved cellar door overlooking rolling vineyards to try the famous Chambourcin; Cassegrain was the first winery in Australia to grow this French-American variety commercially. Fifteen kilometres south, at Lake Cathie, Long Point Vineyard and Art Gallery serves up Agent Orange liqueur and refreshing ginger beer, which is brewed on-site among other interesting drops. The indoor gallery features temporary exhibitions by local artists, while in the landscaped grounds, you'll rediscover two escapees from Sculpture by the Sea. In restaurants and bars all over the North Coast flows a beer by the name of Black Duck. It's brewed right here in Port and, should you pop in, brewer Al Owen will happily take you on a tour, talk you through a tasting paddle and, if you're hungry, hand you a locally-sourced food platter. Don't be shy to give Murphy, the resident Great Dane, a good dose of love too. DO Starting at Town Beach and finishing at Tacking Point Lighthouse, the nine-kilometre Port Macquarie Coastal Walk takes in three beaches, several stunning lookouts and Sea Acres National Park, where the rainforest meets the sea. Conquer the whole length or drive to a particular point and walk a section. The 1.3-kilometre Sea Acres Boardwalk lifts you seven metres above the ground, into the canopy. To get to places you can't go on foot, join Port Kayak for an adventure. For seventeen years, local guide Mark has been taking visitors through mangrove ecosystems, along rivers and down freshwater rapids. On his daily two-hour discovery tour, starting at 10am, you'll meet water dragons, who'll even climb onto your boat, and an enormous flying fox colony. On the way into or out of town, swing by Ricardoes Tomatoes & Strawberries, where brothers Anthony and Richard Sarks have created a pick-your-own fruit kingdom. What began as a roadside stall serviced by an honesty box has turned into a mecca for growers and eaters interested in getting their hands dirty and knowing more about where their food comes from. The brothers will talk you through the ins and outs of hydroponics, before letting you loose among their immense greenhouses, filled with more than 30,000 plants across eight tomato varieties and five types of strawberries. Hungry? Stick around for a tomato-fuelled bite at Cafe Red. And if you're keen to unleash your inner Picasso while on holiday, keep your eyes peeled for an Eat Sip Paint pop-up, hosted by Paint the Town Port. You're provided with a paint, easel, nibbles and courage-giving glass of wine, while local artist Aimee Pelley, talks you through creating an artwork, step-by-step. LET'S DO THIS; GIVE ME THE DETAILS By car: Port Macquarie is about four hours north of Sydney, about six-and-a-half hours south of Brisbane and about twelve hours north of Melbourne. By plane: QANTAS and Virgin Australia fly between Port Macquarie and Sydney (65 minutes), Brisbane (85 minutes) and Melbourne (three hours). Jasmine Crittenden travelled as a guest of Destination NSW. Images: Peter Saw (unless otherwise specified).
There's no need to solve a puzzle box to gain entry to one of the highlights of RISING 2024 for movie lovers. All that you need is a ticket to the latest performance by Hear My Eyes, the screening series that pops up regularly — including in Melbourne — with beloved flicks treated to a brand-new score played live while viewers lock their eyes on the big screen. The latest film getting the Hear My Eyes treatment: the OG Hellraiser. If you're not a fan of horror, don't say that you haven't been warned. Novelist Clive Barker's first feature as a director adapted his novella The Hellbound Heart, introduced the world to Cenobites and started a franchise that reached its 11th instalment with the 2022 reboot also called Hellraiser. To make stirring music to go with the movie, Hieroglyphic Being aka Jamal Moss is heading from Chicago to the Main Hall in Melbourne Town Hall for four sessions: at 6pm and 9pm on Sunday, June 9, then again at 3pm and 6pm on Monday, June 10. Pinheads, that's how you spend a public holiday. As for the lasers, none other than Robin Fox of Constellation, Disapora, Quadra and Triptych fame — and Beacon at MONA, too — is helping to ramp up what's set to be a stunner (and a spine-tingler) of a multi-sensory experience.
There comes a point in everyone's life when they realise Ikea just ain't cutting it anymore. Luckily Melburnians have Muji to turn to. With their two Australian stores situated at Emporium and Chadstone, Muji are a slick quality Japanese alternative to the cheap flat packs and super-breakable wine glasses of the ever-present Swedish megastore. Stocking a curated selection of furniture, homewares and even clothing, Muji is all about simplicity, efficiency and minimalism. It'll set you back a bit more coin than similar styles of stores but the quality really speaks for itself. Muji is also located at Chadstone Shopping Centre, 1341 Dandenong Road, Chadstone.
Apple's plan to build its first Australian flagship store at Federation Square has been one of Melbourne's most controversial new building projects in recent times. And now, after almost 18 months of back and forth, it looks like the plans will be scrapped after Heritage Victoria today refused the huge tech company's application to knock down one of the existing buildings. Heritage Victoria has this afternoon officially refused Apple's application for a permit to 'dismantle and demolish' the Yarra Building and build a new two-level store on the site. In its refusal, the body noted that the proposed building would have an "unacceptable and irreversible detrimental impact on the cultural heritage status" of Fed Square as it would 'encroach' on public space and detract from the cohesive design of the current square format. It says that the negative impacts of the proposal "are not outweighed by the benefits". The Andrews Government has confirmed that, without the ability to build a new structure, Apple will not go ahead with the project. Instead, the government will launch a review (with public consultation) into the future of Federation to ensure it grows as "an innovative and exciting place for our community". https://twitter.com/NTAV/status/1114007888458948608 This will make opponents to Apple's plans very happy. After being announced in late 2017, Apple's proposed Fed Square store has received considerable community backlash, both around the designs and the fact that it would tear down and replace the existing Yarra Building — and displace the Koorie Heritage Trust in the process. The government has confirmed that the trust will be able to remain in its current home while the review is being completed. It's gone through a lot since. The Victorian landmark was granted temporary heritage protection in August, and then in October it was recommended for permanent inclusion on the Victorian Heritage Register by Heritage Victoria, which prevented any work on the new Apple store from commencing. This refusal doesn't mean Fed Square has heritage status — and it doesn't mean another retail offering could take its place. Heritage Victoria has stated that a "more conventional" commercial business could be viable for the Yarra Building if its requirements could result in a smaller impact on the square. Image: Robert Blackburn, Visit Victoria.
"For us, it's about trying to take risks," says director Amiel Courtin-Wilson. "Further the process, and see how far you can push things before they break." Certainly, the Melbourne-born filmmaker is not afraid of pushing the envelope. After beginning his career in documentary with films like Chasing Buddha and Bastardy, Courtin-Wilson's first fiction feature was 2012's Hail, a dark, critically divisive love story that blended naturalistic cinematography and dialogue with striking moments of visual experimentation. A similar methodology is at work in his follow-up, Ruin, which he co-directed with Hail producer Michael Cody. Inspired by Cody's time living and working in South-East Asia, the film is a romantic drama about the relationship between a runaway prostitute and a factory worker in Phnom Penh and the desperate lengths they must go to in order to survive. "On average I don't think we did a day shorter than 15 or 16 hours," says Courtin-Wilson of the gruelling, unconventional shoot, which was broken into two separate three-week blocks with a yearlong gap in between. "The last week we were shooting 20, 21 hour days." Now it seems that the hard work has paid off. Since its completion, Ruin has won numerous festival awards, including the Special Jury Prize at Venice, and had its Australian debut in competition at the Sydney Film Festival. In the lead-up to their local premiere, Courtin-Wilson and Cody took the time to talk with Concrete Playground about the experience of putting the film together. https://youtube.com/watch?v=5VEQ2Hvq_Cs No Script, no problem When asked about the project's origins, both directors grin. "We landed in Cambodia without a script, without any finance and without any sense of a story," remembers Courtin-Wilson. "Within about a month we had some finance, we had a cast, we had a crew from Australia, and we had a 15-page outline. So in many ways it was just an experiment in sheer momentum." The Australian crew came together under the banner of Courtin-Wilson's film collective, Flood Projects. Many of them worked for free, even paying for their own plane tickets to Cambodia. "If someone's prepared to do that, they're obviously there for the right reason," says Cody, "and that's very humbling. It means that the process is genuinely very collaborative; everyone's invested in it, and we're super grateful to them for being there." Courtin-Wilson agrees. "I think what happens when you give over to that process without the usual hierarchies, when someone can literally have four or five roles, is that everyone is so invested and so excited," he says. "Someone can be down the street for lunch and find some amazing potential cast member, or find an amazing cafe for a scene … it was the most exhilarating filmmaking experience I've ever had." A road movie with no road map Part of Ruin's naturalistic feel comes from the filmmakers being willing to draw from their environment. "Structurally, working with a road movie paradigm meant that you could expand or contract the film according to who you met along the way," says Courtin-Wilson. "It's episodic in nature … we'd meet an amazing fisherman in a province halfway through shooting and then we'd sit down and write a scene for him, and integrate that into the story. "The idea that filmmaking has to be a one-way street in which you can't fundamentally reinvent the film in the edit..." Courtin-Wilson trails off, shaking his head. "If anything, we were trying to inject more chaos into the process, because that's where the discoveries lie." "I'm pretty sure [the cast] thought we were just mental cases for a lot of the time shooting the film," says Cody, laughing. The guidance of trauma "We had a really fundamental idea of what the theme of the film was, which came from Cody's initial idea of trauma, and how trauma sits in the body," says Courtin-Wilson. "This is a whole country that's been traumatised," adds Cody. "One thing I'm really pleased with is the way the history of the place comes through, but in an oblique way. It's subtle, as it is in everyday life there. You can feel it everywhere, all around you, but it's not discussed. These people have to deal with the reality of that history, in their lives and their relationships. You know, like living down the road from the guy that executed your father, that sort of stuff." "In early screenings of the film we had in Cambodia," says Courtin-Wilson, "the greatest compliment [came from] showing it to a group of Cambodian artists, musicians and filmmakers, and for them to say 'this feels like Cambodia today'. If we even came close to capturing that, that's all I would ever want." Ruin is on at the Melbourne International Film Festival on Wednesday, August 13, and Saturday, August 17. For tickets, see the MIFF website.
"Hear that? That's nothing. Which is what I, as a speaker at today's conference, have for you all." Ah, if only all presenters could be as honest as Will Stephen, CollegeHumor.com staff writer and editor, who presented a pretty spot-on parody of his fellow speakers at a recent TEDxNewYork event. The content is one thing, but it's Stephen's manner — the intonation, the weighty pauses, the glasses adjustment, the 'revealing' question thrown out to the audience — that makes this so great. If you weren't paying attention, you'd swear he'd just imparted a deep and essential truth vital to the global progress of humanity. Via Mashable
A conglomerate of sights, sounds and savouries, the Auckland cityscape of things to do is vast. From Waitemata Harbour in the north, to Manukau Harbour in the south, there's a bounty of things to eat, drink and discover, not to mention see, with stellar views in pretty much any direction you look. But forgoing the tour guide route, how does one navigate their way through the City of Sails? We all know access to a local's knowledge is the best way, so we've partnered with Adina Apartment Hotels to locate some must-dos from Parnell to Britomart, Devonport to Waiheke Island. What's more, Adina Auckland has a new penthouse to book into, so you can up your city exploration with a stay in this three-bedroom apartment featuring Auckland's crème de la crème at its doorstep. So, break out of the tourist bubble, and venture out to take in the city like a local, order that top-notch coffee, soak up the key vistas of our fine city, and indulge in first class dining experiences. Herein lies our local's guide to some of the best hot spots to add to your itinerary. FOR INNOVATIVE, HANDCRAFTED COCKTAILS: MEA CULPA Cocktails aren't just a drink at Mea Culpa in Ponsonby, they're an art form. A New York-style hole in the wall, the intimate narrow bar is a local favourite thanks to their innovative, ever-changing cocktail list, rustic interior and an eclectic music selection to boot. It's the kind of place where barman and owner Tim knows most by name and will happily stop for a chat while whipping up some spectacular creations. Here, cocktails are king and creativity, presentation and quality produce reign supreme. Everything is made from scratch and everything is organic, plus the team is passionate about supporting local suppliers and buy small batch made product — nothing is mass produced. This is a true neighbourhood gem you'd be crazy to miss. FOR WEEKEND BREAKFAST: WINONA FOREVER When you're feeling a bit dusty on the weekend, you want a big breakfast, you want it central, you want it tasty, and a bit of atmosphere doesn't hurt either. Introducing Winona Forever, a little Auckland eatery making big waves on the food scene. Competing for your attention, sugar-dusted pastries and flaky filo treats sit pretty in the front cabinet, but the real drawcard, however, is on the main menu. Expect beetroot salmon on kumara sourdough, pistachio almond ricotta doughnuts and breakfast bowls brimming with broccolini, kale, avo and lime. The beauty and flavours of each plate will render you speechless, but don't worry the restaurant comes strapped with an alcohol license to get the conversation flowing again over a sneaky breakfast tipple. FOR COFFEE WITH CHARM: ODETTES If you want to be charmed while you have your morning coffee, look no further than Odettes. Boasting the prettiest botanicals and Scandinavian fit-out in the city, there's no argument that this is an Auckland gem. You'll go for the textures, timelessness and luxury of the venue, but rest assured, you'll stay for their eclectic and extensive coffee and tea offerings. Caffeine and fare alike, everything is sourced from local and artisanal producers. A true pleasure to behold, Odettes should be on everyone's coffee itinerary. Image: Anna Kidman. FOR EXPERIMENTAL ICE CREAM: GIAPO Sweet, salty, spicy, sour — whatever ice cream your heart desires will be found within the emporium that is Giapo. Treating every customer like their first —even though they've been open for nine years — the team goes above and beyond to make your visit memorable no matter how short. With feijoa and chamomile, black Perigord truffle, peach and bush honey yogurt, you'll want to taste the lot before making that important final decision. And with their relocation to Gore Street earlier this year, there are even more unexpected food and ice cream pairings to discover, like ice cream with fries, jacket potatoes, gyoza dumplings or arancini balls. These cone connoisseurs have fine tuned the talent of combining technology, art and science into innovative batches of creamy cold goodness, bringing Auckland the tastiest cones in town. FOR DRINKS WITH A VIEW: DEVON ON THE WHARF The City of Sails offers high-ranking bars aplenty, serving up some killer drinks, but if you really want to impress and be impressed, there's one spot you should set your sights on. Make your way to the little bubble of Devonport, the fairy tale town perched on one of the city's most prized peninsulas, adorned with historical villas. Stepping off the ferry, you need not stray far before meeting your destination, Devon on the Wharf. Along with seaside inspired delicacies, crowd pleasing platters and a full gin and tonic menu, DOTW offers double views, either overlooking the city or the wide ocean expanse. Settle in with your drop of choice, and ready yourself for a lengthy afternoon session you won't want to leave. Image: @nattti / Instagram. FOR A WINE-FILLED DAY TRIP: WAIHEKE ISLAND Touring wineries surrounded by lush rolling hills, wandering from one vineyard to the next via pathways through the vines, indulging in several delicious, local drops — not much else compares to a day spent on Waiheke Island. Is there anything better than an entire island dedicated to wine? Rent a bike and wind your way through the hills dotted with vineyards, or jump on the bus that takes you from the ferry, all the way to Onetangi Beach. Stop off at Stonyridge for a glass of their award-winning Larose (best enjoyed on the deck among the olive grove), then wind your way through the vines to Casita Miro to sample their tapas and Spanish sherries, like their famed Madame Rouge. And if you opt for the car ferry from Auckland's CBD, and have a designated driver, the stunning, coastal Man O' War at the end of the island is certainly worth a trip. FOR VOLCANO VIEWS: MOUNT VICTORIA Marked by rolling hills and surrounded by ocean, Auckland holds some extraordinary views from One Tree Hill to Waiheke, but Devonport's Mount Victoria on the North Shore offers some pretty special sights. Challenge yourself, and take the steep 15-minute walk up to the volcano's summit for sweeping ocean views with the dramatic CBD skyline to contrast. Spanning the Hauraki Gulf, Rangitoto Island, the city and the rest of the shore, this picture-perfect panorama is well worth that post-climb burn. Image: russellstreet / Flickr. FOR WEEKEND MARKET EATS: LA CIGALE FRENCH MARKET There's no mystery as to why La Cigale French Market has been voted Auckland's best market for eight years running. Held Saturday from 8am to 1.30pm and Sunday from 9am to 1.30pm, the Parnell market has become so popular it's expanded to a new location in Britomart. Here you can expect produce in abundance, fresh breads and pastries hot from the oven, cheeses, cured meats smoked salmon, giant pans of paella, organic salads and French delicacies galore. Teeming with live music, crepes sizzling, coffees brewing and the scent of fresh baked pastries wafting through the air, La Cigale is a sensory explosion just waiting to be explored. FOR A HIDDEN, SUNNY PICNIC SPOT: CORNWALL PARK Undoubtedly, the city's best place to park up and picnic is at Cornwall Park. Escape to the beautiful expanse of rolling green hills, just a 15-minute drive from the city. The parklands feature wildlife, stunning scenery, walks both on and off the beaten track, and to sweeten the deal, an ice creamery. No matter the season, locals flock here to spend their afternoons sharing the park with herds of friendly cows, roaming sheep and, in parts, free-range chickens clucking about. Lay out your rug in your own hidden valley, and embrace the feeling of leaving the city long behind you — despite being right on its doorstep. FOR NEW ZEALAND'S FRESHEST PASTA: AMANO Housed in a building more than a century old, Amano is one of the most beautiful eateries you will lay eyes on in Auckland. Picture bunches of dried wheat and Nelson hydrangeas hanging gracefully from the ceiling, and Mother of Pearl countertops emerging from Terraza marble flooring reminiscent of Saint Peter's Basilica. Amano means both 'made by hand' and 'with love' in Italian, which suits the fare perfectly. Claiming to have the freshest pasta experience in New Zealand, the restaurant dishes out pastas made with flour straight from their on-site mill and free-range eggs from Whangarei. Pair that with only seasonal and local ingredients — see Wairarapa Coast crayfish and Auckland Island scampi — plus big windows overlooking the port, and you're set for a decadent dining experience by the sea. Book yourself in at the Adina Apartment Hotel Auckland and tick all of these hot spots off your list. Words: Izzie Aldridge, Kristy Mayo and Quinn Connors.
The Yarra Valley and the Great Ocean Road boast scenic sights as far as the eye can see, but that's not their own attraction. Both areas are also home to a combined chocolaterie and ice creamery. Exploring the countryside, snacking on hand-crafted chocolates, licking your way through an array of gelato flavours — what's not to love? Come Wednesday, December 26, the Mornington Peninsula will also join its regional counterparts, welcoming its very own purveyor of sweets. It's the third venue for Ian and Leanne Neeland, who've created a petite-sized sibling to their Yarra Valley and the Great Ocean Road stores. As well as serving up chocolate and ice cream in the seaside town of Flinders, their new location will also feature a brownie bar. Taking over the space formerly occupied by Mornington Peninsula Chocolates on Cook Street, the similarly named but Mornington Peninsula Chocolaterie & Ice Creamery will combine a bit of the old and the new — although, regarding which is which, it depends on how you look at it. The store will continue to make truffles in flavours made popular by the site's previous owners, such as chilli and tequila, blood orange and tonka beans, and tangy lime caramel. Indeed, it'll focus on truffles in a big way. And, it'll sell 180 unique chocolate varieties made by Belgian and French chocolatiers Thomas Wierinck and Anna Guinet, who also provide the sweets for the Neelands' other spots. Among the chocolate range, nut clusters, rocky road, giant chocolate freckles, and choc-coated ginger, honeycomb and nougat will all be on offer. At the ice creamery, 16 styles of Italian gelato will be available, too. And as for the brownie bar, it'll bake up a revolving menu that includes triple choc, mint, Cherry Ripe, Nutella and Baileys varieties. Milkshakes, hot chocolates and barista-made coffee will also be on the menu. If you're super keen on chocolate (who isn't?), you'll also be able to enjoy a 20-minute hosted tasting session, which'll take place at 10am, 12pm, 2pm and 4pm each day. Or, you can book into a chocolate discovery class, where you'll not only taste a few choccies — you'll also make some. Find Mornington Peninsula Chocolaterie and Ice Creamery at 45 Cook Street, Flinders — open Monday to Sunday from 9am–5pm.
When Winnie-the-Pooh moseyed into a slasher movie in Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, the film endeavoured to prove that there's room in the pop-culture honeypot for multiple takes on AA Milne's beloved bear. More horror flicks are coming, because of course they are. But, embracing the usually cuddly figure's sweet and innocent side, so is a supremely nostalgic, family-friendly stage musical from Disney. Winnie the Pooh: The New Stage Adaptation debuted back in 2021 Off-Broadway, then took the Hundred Acre Wood and its famous felt residents to Chicago, back to New York, on a tour of the US and to London. The next stop on the Mouse House-created show's itinerary: Australia, starting this winter, and playing capital cities and regional towns alike. Hailing from American Australian producer, writer and director Jonathan Rockefeller, Winnie the Pooh: The New Stage Adaptation brings Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, Roo, Rabbit, Owl and Tigger to life with puppets — life-sized versions, which look as cuddly and fuzzy as anthropomorphic stuffed toys should. Also joining them is Christopher Robin, in a production that brings together a heap of songs from past Winnie-the-Pooh movies. "The music, the spectacular life-size puppets and the charming performances are the perfect way to introduce (or re-introduce) audiences to live theatre, and this is a must-see show for Winnie-the-Pooh fans," said Rockefeller, announcing the show's Australian run. "We are excited to bring the Hundred Acre Wood to Australia so that audiences of all ages can join us for this heartwarming production." Winnie the Pooh: The New Stage Adaptation will play Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and Hobart, and also has dates booked in everywhere from Dandenong and Bunbury to Launceston and Geelong. Again, this is a firmly all-ages affair, so expect plenty of young Winnie-the-Pooh devotees in attendance. For those keen to see a childhood favourite in a new format, Australia's stages have been delivering blasts from the pasts with frequency over the past few years, spanning Frozen the Musical, Shrek the Musical, Cinderella, Mary Poppins and the upcoming Beauty and the Beast musical in Sydney, just to name a few. WINNIE THE POOH: THE NEW STAGE ADAPTATION AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2023 DATES: July 7 — Drum Theatre, Dandenong July 12–16 — Brisbane Powerhouse, Brisbane July 20-23 — Sydney Opera House, Sydney July 26–27 — Princess Theatre, Launceston August 3–6 — Theatre Royal, Hobart August 9–10 — Hopgood Theatre, Noarlunga August 16–20 — Dunstan Playhouse, Adelaide Festival Centre, Adelaide August 23–24 — Mandurah Performing Arts Centre, Mandurah August 25–26 — Bunbury Regional Entertainment Centre, Bunbury August 29–September 3 — Regal Theatre, Perth September 7–9 — Canberra Theatre, Canberra September 14–17 — Riverside Theatre Parramatta, Parramatta September 21–25 — Comedy Theatre, Melbourne September 27–28 — Geelong Arts Centre, Geelong September 30–October 1 — Albury Entertainment Centre, Albury Winnie the Pooh: The New Stage Adaptation tours Australia from July — for more information, and for tickets from Thursday, June 15, head to the production's website.
Fairfield can sometimes feel like a sleepy little town, but it is certainly not starved for good coffee. Fifteen Pounds on Railway Place right next to Fairfield station, is serving up good food and great coffee, as well as providing tired workers on their morning commute with their caffeine fix. White tiles, wooden seating and a charming little courtyard — complete with lemon tree — make you feel at home at once. The crowds that are often circulating waiting for a table, however, may not. They are serious about their coffee here — as all good Melbourne cafes should be. Campos coffee is served up for your regular order, and single origin and pour over round off the coffee offering. The menu dishes up some great Melbourne brunch favourites. The Fifteen Pounds Breakfast Board ($15) is one for those unable to decide on just one breakfast. Some house-made fruit and nut granola sits next to seasonal fruit salad and multi-grain toast with avocado and feta smash. It really is all the good bits. For something a little heartier try The Greek, a mix of house-cut potatoes, scrambled eggs and house-brined feta on organic toast ($14.50). The lunch menu sticks to salads, rolls and a handful of larger items. The calamari with chilli caramel and Asian herb salad ($18) offers a lighter option, while the Wagyu beef burger with gruyere cheese, caramelised onion, lettuce, tomato and relish with hand cut chips ($19.50) is hard to go by. The cabinet holds the keys to the sweets like macarons, mini cupcakes and rotating muffins, which are moist and topped with the likes of blueberries and passionfruit syrup. At Fifteen Pounds, dessert is always a good idea. Fairfield may be a slow-moving suburb, but, just like the rest of Melbourne, it survives on seriously good brunch.
Sitting pretty on that northern stretch of Lygon Street, The East Brunswick Hotel has seen a whole swag of incarnations in its 130 years, though locals of a certain age will remember it most vividly as legendary live music haunt, the East Brunswick Club. Now, after 18 months of vacancy — and six years after the famed band room hosted its last gig — the historic pub is moving into its next phase of life, with new owners and an extensive makeover . Making its official return on Friday, August 24, the refreshed East Brunswick Hotel unfolds over three sprawling levels. First up, there's the industrial-style front bar, on the ground floor, complete with soaring ceilings, a central bar made from reclaimed timber and a stage that pays homage to the space's history. A solid live music program will see it hosting gigs from Thursday through Sunday. An impressive tap list leans local, pouring craft drops like Brewmanity Beer Co's Social Beast pale ale, the Bunker porter from Stomping Ground and a Brick Lane lager. To match, the kitchen is dishing up modern riffs on all the pub favourites — head in for creations like ale-steamed mussels, mac 'n' cheese croquettes, falafel sliders and a hearty smoked beef rib with polenta grits. You'll need to bring a little extra appetite if you want to tackle the 'World Famous One Pound Meatball', too. Upstairs, industrial gives way to luxury, with a sophisticated cocktail bar decked out with chandeliers, marble and plush lounges. Twelve boutique hotel rooms complete the upper level, while all the way downstairs lies an underground cellar, functioning as a cosy private dining space. The owners have snapped up the site next door, too, with plans to expand the pub's already grand offering. Find the East Brunswick Hotel at 280 Lygon Street, Brunswick East, from Friday, August 24. It's open daily from 11am. Images: Brook James
If you've ever enjoyed a few drinks and wondered just what impact they've had on your blood alcohol limit, prepare to wonder no longer. Meet Proof, the wearable alcohol sensor that not only tells you how drunk you are — it (somewhat frighteningly) predicts how drunk you'll be later, and when you'll be sober if you stop drinking. Plus, it can also remind you when you're back in the safe realm. This is how it works: the slim band, which looks just like a fitness tracker, reads alcohol molecules through your skin. It then sends those readings to an app on your phone, where you can check whether you're okay to drive, and when you will be. You can also set it up to send vibrations through your wrist and flash an LED light when you reach pre-set blood alcohol levels. The band itself relies upon on disposable cartridges that last for 12 hours, and is powered by a rechargeable battery with a four-day continuous-use lifespan. Proof, which was among the technological advancements featured at CES 2017, has been in development by Milo Sensors for two years, with a crowdfunding campaign planned for 2017 to help it come to fruition. Once it reaches the market, it is expected to sell for US$100 to $150. Milo Sensors CEO and founder Evan Strenk told Mashable that the product aims to "empower people to make educated decision about alcohol," and is on par with consumer breathalysers. The last part is key, and not just in terms of effectiveness. Sure, plenty of blood alcohol testing products already exist; however who wants to blow into a tube when knowing just how those after-work drinks are hitting the spot is as easy as wearing a wristband and checking your phone? Via Mashable.
This quirky, bright blue store has been on Brunswick Street for over 20 years now. Founded in 1993 by furniture makers Jeremy Wilkins and Stephen Kent, Wilkins and Kent was conceived as a workshop for custom-made bookcases, cupboards and chests. Now it's a fully-fledged boutique of not only furniture, but homewares of all kinds. While you can still find yourself a specialty-made desk or tallboy, you can also pick up terrariums, alarm clocks, kitchen goods, and bedspreads — anything that makes your home just that little bit brighter. You can also find Wilkins and Kent in the city at 372 Lt Bourke Street, Melbourne.
It doesn't matter what the weather holds for Suzie Sakamoto: with her husband and son missing when Apple TV+'s Sunny begins, the series' titular term can't apply to her days. An American in Kyoto (Rashida Jones, Silo), she's filled with grief over the potential loss of her Japanese family, anxiously awaiting any news that her spouse Masa (Hidetoshi Nishijima, Drive My Car) and their boy Zen (debutant Fares Belkheir) might've survived a plane crash. She'd prefer to do nothing except sit at home in case word comes; however, that's not considered to be mourning in the right way according to custom and also isn't appeasing her mother-in-law (Judy Ongg, Kaseifu no Mitazono). When Suzie soon has a robot for company, an unexpected gift from Masa, dwelling in her sorrow doesn't appear to be what he'd want in his absence, either. In this ten-part series, which adapts Colin O'Sullivan's 2018 novel The Dark Manual for the small screen and starts streaming from Wednesday, July 10, 2024, the technology that's quickly immersed in Suzie's existence is a homebot. The artificial-intelligence domestic helpers are everywhere in this near-future vision of Japan, aiding their humans with chores, organising tasks and plenty more — everywhere other than the Sakamoto house with its firmly anti-robot perspective, that is. Amid asking why her husband has not only sent the eponymous Sunny her way, but also why it's customised specifically to her, questions unsurprisingly spring about his true line of work. Has Suzie been married to a secret roboticist, rather than someone who designs refrigerators? What link does his job have with his disappearance? How does someone cope in such an already-traumatic situation when the person that they're possibly grieving mightn't be who they've said they are? Often with a science fiction twist, Apple TV+ can't get enough of mysteries. Approaching five years since the platform launched in late 2019, that truth is as engrained as the service's fondness for big-name talent, including across Severance, The Big Door Prize, Hello Tomorrow!, Silo, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Constellation, Sugar and Dark Matter. Thankfully, there's no content-factory feel to this lineup of shows, or to the streamer's catalogue in general, which is one of the best on offer in the online fight for eyeballs. Sunny's closest equivalent hails from beyond the brand, bringing Charlie Brooker's Channel 4-started, now Netflix-made Black Mirror to mind, but even then it's far more interested in its characters than their relationship to technology. That said, that people and how they use tech remain the real enemy, not gadgets and advancements themselves, hums at the core of both series. Indeed, Sunny proposes a radical path forward for Suzie, especially at a time IRL when generative AI has been making its presence known, and rarely for the better. Creator, showrunner and executive producer Katie Robbins (The Affair) takes her human protagonist down a route where the program's namesake, which matches a WALL-E vibe and emoji-leaning face with the cheerful voice of Barry, I Love That for You, Quarantine and Emma Approved's Joanna Sotomura, is perhaps the only thing that can be trusted. There's no shortage of other flesh-and-blood characters around Suzie, with some kindly and others patently nefarious. Bartender Mixxy (singer/songwriter Annie the Clumsy, Miss Osaka) falls into the first category. The platinum-blonde Hime (You, 9 Border), who seems to have a history with Masa, sits in the second camp. But with her world constantly being turned upside down and her usual confidante in Masa gone, technophobe Suzie might only be able to put her faith in the machine that's now ceaselessly by her side. A show such as Sunny, which is a comedy, drama, thriller and slice of dystopia all in one — alongside an odd-couple buddy pairing, plus a series with multiple puzzles, a stack of technology-driven and existential questions, and a probing of the human condition — needs two things beyond its compelling narrative. If viewers couldn't feel the confidence infused in this delicate mix of components, the show would crumble like circuitry haphazardly jammed together. If audiences couldn't sense the ambition to do far more than join dots as well, Sunny would similarly fail to compute. Not just thanks to its penchant for cliffhangers, this is a mystery with more always on the way, and one that adores teasing out its intricacies in a lived-in world that no other series can call home. That's assurance. That's initiative. Diving in is like strolling through Tokyo: there's always a new lane to mosey down, whether in the pursuit of solving the storyline or unpacking Suzie. The Dark Manual of O'Sullivan's moniker pops up as a hacker guide to customising homebots. Here, the plot also thickens. Still, as the yakuza feature, flashbacks tease out Suzie and Masa's meet-cute, the latter's time as a hikikomori — the portion of the Japanese population who choose to actively withdraw from society — is weaved in and surveillance is ever-present, Sunny never lets the avalanche of developments and threads that keep fuelling its tale become its sole or even main attraction. As penned by a seven-strong writing team led by Robbins with backgrounds on Bunheads, The Staircase, Apples Never Fall, Hit-Monkey, Tiny Beautiful Things and more, this is gripping and addictive viewing. It's a show to sleuth along with. Its retrofuturistic look and Saul Bass-esque opening credits are worth returning for again and again. Nonetheless, Sunny wouldn't connect if didn't value the personal and the human angle of being cast adrift from everything that you relied upon with no certainty about where to turn. Aided by being played by Jones, who so expertly married optimism and cynicism as Parks and Recreation's Ann Perkins — as she had to as the midpoint between Leslie Knope and Chris Traeger versus Ron Swanson and April Ludgate — Suzie is a character of unflagging determination crashing against mourning and anguish. She yearns with hope, as everyone does, for a lost loved one to re-emerge. She couches everything, including that longing, in sarcasm. That she journeyed to Japan to escape past woes, her lack of friends beyond her family and her alienation by refusing to learn the language all help construct a complex portrait. Also assisting: even simple moments, like swigging wine on the toilet. It isn't a secret that bounding through chaos is more relatable when the external tangle that greets a character reflects their inner jumble, as Jones anchors at the heart of her performance. The Boston Public, The Office, Celeste & Jesse Forever, Angie Tribeca and On the Rocks star in never-better territory, in fact, as she must've spotted the potential for; she's also among Sunny's executive producers. New TV arrivals of mid-2024 are now two for two when robot companions are involved. Fantasmas is the other. They're also two for two in world-building and production design that plunges viewers into screen spaces that resemble nothing else, which is no small feat for Sunny with Japan as its setting. Another commonality: not merely making audiences grateful that the non-stop flow of new streaming series can keep delivering programs this unique, but sparking a hunger for more to come. That's the sunny side of more TV begetting more TV and then more still, because a heaving crowd is always made up of individuals. Few new streaming arrivals of late are as distinctive as Fantasmas and Sunny, though. Check out the trailer for Sunny below: Sunny streams via Apple TV+ from Wednesday, July 10, 2024.
At two of the world's most-prestigious film festivals, prizes are awarded to the best queer movies on the lineup. Not all cinephiles can attend Cannes and Berlinale, so Australia's Mardi Gras Film Festival is bringing LGBTQIA+ flicks from both 2024 fests Down Under in 2025. Romania's Three Kilometres to the End of the World won the Queer Palm. The Istanbul-set Crossing took home the Teddy Jury Prize in Berlin. They're both highlights of the just-announced MGFF program, which has a date with Sydney cinemas in February — and boasts a roster of almost 150 flicks. The movie-loving component of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, MGFF wants audiences to enjoy its feast of LGBTQIA+ films on the big screen if they can. The bulk of the lineup will hit picture palaces across Thursday, February 13–Thursday, February 27, at venues including Event Cinemas George Street and Hurstville, Dendy Newtown, Ritz Cinemas Randwick, the State Library of NSW and The Rocks Laneway Cinema. For those who can't make it in-person, there's also a small-screen component, streaming a selection of titles on-demand nationwide from Friday, February 28–Monday, March 10. If you're hitting up movie theatres, award-winners aren't Mardi Gras Film Festival's only drawcards. On opening night, coming-of-age tale Young Hearts will start the proceedings with a story of romance in rural Belgium, while French standout Somewhere in Love is doing the honours to close out the physical event. In-between, viewers have 72 sessions to choose from, complete with the world premiere of In Ashes from Denmark-based filmmaker Ludvig C Poulsen; South Korea's Love in the Big City; the Alan Cumming (Schmigadoon!)-starring Drive Back Home; and Ponyboi, which features Australian actor and The White Lotus favourite Murray Bartlett (The Last of Us). Or, catch Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story, which tells of its namesake's tale from her 50s Nashville success through to disappearing from the public for four decades; Aussie effort Heart of a Man, about a closeted Indigenous boxer; period drama Lilies Not for Me with Fionn O'Shea (Masters of the Air) and Robert Aramayo (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power; Duino, a semi-autobiographical effort about an Argentinian filmmaker working on a movie about his first love; and the Venus Xtravaganza-focused I'm Your Venus, which is a must for fans of Paris Is Burning. That's just a taste of the program, which spans Aussie festive slasher Carnage for Christmas, Nina Hoss (Tár) in Foreign Language, a documentary about Ani De Franco, Brazilian drama Streets of Gloria and more, too. Blasts from the past come courtesy of a free screening of The Birdcage, plus a 20th-anniversary session of Imagine Me & You (featuring Lena Headey long before Game of Thrones), with both showing under the stars. If you'd like to don a habit, croon tunes in a cinema or both, Sister Act is getting the sing-along treatment. And from the 70s, Scarecrow in a Garden of Cucumbers — which is one of the first-ever trans-led feature films — is making its Sydney premiere. Cabaret is also on the bill, a fitting choice given that documentary Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story is on the lineup as well — gifting Liza Minnelli obsessives a double feature. Movie buffs eager to check out the online program from their couch can look forward to the aforementioned Drive Back Home and Heart of the Man; a doco about activist Sally Gearhart; Unusually Normal's factual portrait of a family that includes two lesbian grandmothers, four lesbian mothers and one lesbian granddaughter; and a blend of fiction and reality with 2024 Sundance Special Jury Award-winner Desire Lines, among other titles. A number of shorts programs will be available to stream, too, with packages devoted to Asia Pacific, transgender and gender diverse, queer horror, queer documentaries, sapphic and more. Black Doves' Ben Whishaw pops up in one of the gay shorts, while Hacks' Megan Stalter appears in one of the films in the comedy lineup. 2025's MGFF marks Festival Director Lisa Rose's last at the helm. "The film industry has changed dramatically throughout my time with Queer Screen. The volume of LGBTQIA+ content we see, as well as how and where we see it, continues to evolve," she notes. "Yet the sense of belonging that comes when the lights dim and a room full of queer people experience a queer story together remains a constant. Even when a film has the audience divided, the feeling of community that envelops us is unifying." Queer Screen's 32nd Mardi Gras Film Festival 2025 runs from Thursday, February 13–Thursday, February 27 at venues around Sydney — and online nationally from Friday, February 28–Monday, March 10. For more information, visit the festival's website.
Almost one year after their break-up, a film documenting the final chapters of alternative powerhouse LCD Soundsystem will premiere on January 22 at the Sundance Film Festival. Shut Up and Play the Hits, directed by Dylan Southern and William Lovelace, shows frontman James Murphy in the hours prior to the band's farewell show at Madison Square Garden. This will be combined with unbeatable footage from their epic ultimate performance, as well as Murphy's reactions and reflections on what has been an illustrious career. With a devotion to both the personal and performance aspects of Murphy's character, Shut Up and Play the Hits gives fans an intimate insight into the brains behind one of this generation's most innovative and critically acclaimed bands. The anticipation before the LCD's grand farewell is balanced with the sense of loss the morning after, giving viewers a complete experience on this emotional and artistic rollercoaster. On top of three studio albums and numerous Grammy nominations, LCD Soundsystem were able to forge a cult following which reflected their diverse sound combining disco and punk rock with a distinct indie tinge. Murphy was also the co-founder of DFA Records, home of fellow alternative favourites Holy Ghost! and The Rapture.
The Gold Coast, Australia's beach club capital. That isn't how anyone refers to the Glitter Strip to at the moment, but it might soon become a reality. The tourist spot is already home to a rooftop beach club in Surfers Paradise, and will welcome a pop-up beach club on the sand at Broadbeach this month, too. Plus, sometime early in 2022, it'll also boast La Luna, a new floating beach club at the Marina Mirage. The space is the brainchild of the Gennari Group, which is already behind the Gold Coast's Koi Broadbeach, Glass Dining & Lounge Bar, The Loose Moose, Maggie Choo and Roosevelt Lounge. This new venue will clearly stand out, though — setting up a beach club on pontoons will do that. La Luna will take inspiration from its European counterparts — and from Mykonos and Saint-Tropez in general — with a few cues gleaned from the setups in Tulum in Mexico as well. Think: daybeds, private cabanas and pools, obviously, as well as a bar, and dining both inside and by the water. Based on concept images, the look is light and airy, with splashes of pink and blue against white and cream-hued furniture — including ever-trusty beach umbrellas. Given the venue's moniker, circles, glowing orbs and lunar shapes aplenty pop up, too. And, as well as making you feel like you're on the other side of the world, La Luna is aiming to radiate big yacht life vibes. Basically, it'll be the beach club you hang out in when you want to pretend you're spending your daily lazing around on a boat's deck. Bring your adult siblings, start bickering and you'll feel like you're in Succession, perhaps? While specifics in terms of menu and entertainment haven't been revealed as yet, La Luna will serve up Mediterranean and Asian fusion bites made with local produce, have DJs set the mood and host parties under the stars. Cocktails will be big on the drinks list, naturally. La Luna's restaurant is currently slated to have a soft launch in January, ahead of the full venue opening sometime early in 2022 — so whether you'll be able to add floating pool club hangs (and living the yacht life without the yacht) to your summer plans hasn't yet been confirmed. La Luna Beach Club will open at Marina Mirage, 74 Seaworld Drive, Gold Coast sometime in early 2022 — we'll update you with further details when they're announced. Images: artists' impressions of La Luna Beach Club.
