When it comes to unearthing furnishings and bespoke goods from a bygone age, there aren't many better at it than Scout House owner Orlando Mesiti. Having long been a collector of weird and wonderful objects from vintage markets across Europe, his St Kilda shopfront should be your first stop when you're trying to hunt down something truly original. From furniture and fine works of art to homewares and peculiar knick-knacks, Scout House's offering is certain to have your home looking fresher than any coat of paint could manage. And, as an extra plus, Scout House also manufactures its own sofas, daybeds and other decorative goodies. Images: Tracey Ah-kee.
One of Melbourne's most recognisable rooftop addresses is getting ready to reveal a dramatic new look. This spring, MAMAS Dining Group — the crew behind Hochi Mama, Suzie Q and Winsdor Wine Room — will unveil its seventh venue: a Japanese izakaya-inspired rooftop set in the former home of Madame Brussels. The third-floor space at 59–63 Bourke Street will swap pastel garden party vibes for a low-lit, disco-drenched homage to 1980s Tokyo. Expect smooth disco and old-school hip hop spinning on vinyl, a drinks list that flows well into the night, and panoramic views of the city skyline — all wrapped in a retro-modern fit-out by hospitality architects Directitude. In the kitchen, MAMAS' Culinary Creative Director Michael Stolley will oversee a menu of share-style Japanese fare. Sushi from master chefs will sit alongside smoky, chargrilled yakitori and other snacky izakaya classics, paired with an extensive sake list, Japanese-inspired cocktails and top-shelf craft beers from Japan. With seating for up to 150, the venue aims to channel "the soul of Shibuya nights and the heart of Harajuku days". For MAMAS Dining Group CEO and Director Thai Ho, the upcoming opening is a moment worthy of the group's tenth anniversary: "We're so excited to open our seventh venue in the heart of Melbourne's CBD, a huge milestone to mark MAMAS' 10 years of operation in Australia's most renowned city for hospitality. To open in one of the city's most iconic locations is a fantastic opportunity." When the doors of the yet-to-be-named venue swing open this spring, expect a rooftop that swaps Pimm's jugs for sake carafes, cucumber sandwiches for smoky yakitori, and prim garden parties for moody Tokyo nights — and a whole new chapter for one of Melbourne's most coveted rooftops. MAMAS Dining Group's as-yet-unnamed seventh venue will open in the former Madame Brussels site this spring. For more information, head to the group's website.
For nearly a century, 280 Little Collins Street has stood as a significant retail and social hub for generations of Melburnians. Designed by celebrated Melbourne interwar architect Harry Norris as the first significant Chicago-inspired gothic-style commercial building in Victoria, it opened in 1930 as the flagship store of the fast-expanding G J Coles empire — later rebadged as Coles — before David Jones took over in the 1980s, transforming the site into that brand's Melbourne menswear flagship. This October, the heritage-listed building will embark on a new chapter as Rodd & Gunn's new global flagship. The upcoming store will showcase fashion, dining and design across its four floors, marking the New Zealand outfitter's most ambitious venture to date. It follows the recent arrival of Mecca's new Bourke Street flagship in the northern wing of the same building, marking a new era for one of Melbourne's most distinctive addresses. Rodd & Gunn has worked with St Kilda-based Studio Y to reimagine the building's southern wing, weaving its art deco glamour with hospitality-led design. Arched motifs, curved joinery, stepped stone and metallic accents nod to the 1930s, while warm timbers, natural stone and marble accents echo Rodd & Gunn's contemporary aesthetic. "This building holds a special place in Melbourne's history, and we wanted our flagship to honour that legacy at every turn," says Mike Beagley, Rodd & Gunn CEO (pictured below). "Every design choice was made to respect its heritage while creating something entirely new." Each of the four distinct but connected levels offers a different experience. The lower-ground Cellar pays homage to the famed Coles Cafeteria, combining a retail wine store with an innovative cocktail laboratory by Matt Bax (Bar Americano), an Italian-inspired menu featuring handmade pasta and all-day aperitivi. Oversized checkerboard flooring, bluestone laneway walkways, intimate booth seating and mood lighting evoke the feeling of a wine cave. The ground floor will become an elegant, immersive retail space, where cornice plasterwork and marble joinery are juxtaposed with modern display fixtures, heritage-inspired balustrades and robust timber finishes. The mezzanine, meanwhile, will be home to an exclusive Member's Bar, a handsomely wood-panelled, club-like space with sculptural lighting by Volker Haug, Kiwi-inspired snacks and classic cocktails for loyalty clientele. [caption id="attachment_854450" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Lodge Bar & Dining, Brisbane[/caption] The crown jewel sits on level one: The Lodge Dining Room. Framed by soaring arched windows and antique mirrors, the grand yet intimate space offers produce-led menus — ranging from à la carte to ten-course tasting journeys — by Executive Chef James Evangelinos (New York's The Musket Room, hatted Sydney pub Hotel Centennial and James Packer's former personal chef). Wines are curated by Master Sommelier Cameron Douglas, showcasing the best of New Zealand alongside standout Australian and international drops, while a reeded-glass private dining room with a striking white marble table adds a layer of exclusivity. The new flagship will open in two stages. The retail store and subterranean cellar will launch in early October, followed by the private lounge and dining room later in the month. "While New Zealand will always remain Rodd & Gunn's spiritual home, the opening of our Melbourne flagship is our way of giving back to a city that has supported Rodd & Gunn from the very beginning," says Josh Beagley, Director of The Lodge Group. "Every surface in this flagship tells a story — a dialogue between past and present that honours the history of the building and the fabric of our brand." [caption id="attachment_854449" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Lodge Bar & Dining, Brisbane[/caption] Rodd & Gunn's Little Collins Street flagship opens in October 2025. For more information, head to the brand's website.
Rustica Sourdough, the Melbourne institution and baker of all things sour and delicious, has opened a new bakery and cafe in Melbourne's central business district. Located on the corner of Little Collins and Queen Street and adjacent to the famous Gothic Bank building, this new 70-seat outpost of Melbourne's iconic bakery-brunch hybrid has both easy grab-and-go options for busy inner-city workers in need of a brew and a bite, as well as a dine-in menu for those wanting to leisurely take their time over lunch. Developed by head chef and long-running team member Chatelle Saba, the menu features delights like a breakfast surf-and-turf lineup of lobster and prawn eggs benedict, accompanied by crispy potatoes and salmon roe. For those who can't go past a pasta, there's a prawn, clam and mussel linguine with white wine, chilli and garlic, and if you're in desperate need of a burg, wrap your laughing gear around a buttermilk fried chicken burger, complete with Korean hot sauce, aioli, pickles and slaw — all stuffed inside a milk bun. As for the pastries, expect to see all the goodies Rustica is known for holding court in the cabinet, including almond and chocolate croissants, brioche doughnuts, cronuts, and other sweet treats. Because no pastry is complete without a good brew to accompany it, the team are serving up their signature coffee blend First Love Coffee, a roast that has become synonymous with Rustica cafes city-wide and now even has its own signature flagship cafe in Collins Arch. Rustica Little Collins and Queen Street is open seven days a week, from 7am-4pm Monday to Friday and 8am-4pm on weekends.
If you stream it, they will come: so discovered the Melbourne International Film Festival in 2020, when its biggest commitment to putting its lineup online resulted in the event's larget audience ever at the time. Now that the early days of the pandemic are over, the fest has been back in cinemas for a few years, and gloriously so. But for those located elsewhere around Australia, or folks who can't fit in as many IRL trips to the flicks as they'd like, or Melburnians who want to deploy every way there is to see as many movies possible during the festival, MIFF is still embracing its digital component. MIFF Online kicks off after the IRL event and runs past its in-person counterpart's end, too. To stare at the big screen, you'll be heading along between Thursday, August 7–Sunday, August 24. To play along from your small screen of choice, the dates are Friday, August 15–Sunday, August 31. While the range of films available to view on your couch via ACMI's Cinema 3 is smaller, there's still plenty to see — including both features and shorts. A post-apocalyptic musical starring Tilda Swinton (The Room Next Door), Michael Shannon (The Bikeriders), George MacKay (The Beast) and Moses Ingram (Lady in the Lake), The End hails from The Act of Killing and The Look of Silence's Joshua Oppenheimer — and it's one of the highlights on 2025's MIFF Online program. Fittingly, so is Videoheaven, with Alex Ross Perry (Her Smell) paying tribute to the video-store era via a Maya Hawke (Inside Out 2)-narrated film essay solely comprised from movie and TV clips. Or, you can visit Inner Mongolia's plains courtesy of To Kill a Mongolian Horse, catch coming-of-age tale Little Trouble Girls, explore a sunny sailing voyage with Kyuka Before Summer's End and join John Magaro (Materialists) for a road trip from Utah to Nebraska in Omaha. Tomorrow We Move from MIFF's 2025 Chantal Akerman retrospective is also available for viewing online, as is the new stop-motion animation Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass from the Brothers Quay (The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes) — plus SXSW-winning documentary Ghost Boy from Rodney Ascher (Room 237, The Nightmare, A Glitch in the Matrix), about a man with locked-in syndrome. 2025's MIFF spans Footy Shorts, a partnership with the AFL that's resulted in five short flicks focusing on the sport — and they're on the MIFF Online lineup as well. For more filmmaking in brief, the Australian shorts package is also making the leap to digital.
Opening its doors in June 2025, Wellness Social Club is a beautiful space that combines state-of-the-art technology and more traditional modalities with a communal — dare we say, a social — approach to wellness. Whether you're stopping in for a spot of yoga and contrast water therapy with mates, or channelling your inner biohacker with a session in the in-house hyperbaric oxygen chamber, the venue offers a wide range of services and treatments designed to help you recharge and reconnect. There's a fair bit packed into this labyrinthine space, but thanks to a considered design featuring clean lines, soft archways, ambient lighting, and earthy tones and textures, it never feels cramped, but instead invites you to slow down. "Think of it as a health club meets a high-end lounge," says Co-Founder Tamara O'Dowd, who developed the concept alongside her son Ayman O'Dowd and business partner Ben Gunning over three years. "We wanted to create a place that doesn't just look after your physical health but supports your emotional and social wellbeing too. It's a place to unwind, catch up with a friend, and reset — all in one visit." There's an impressive range of services available here. In addition to traditional and infrared saunas and magnesium-infused hot and cold plunge pools, you'll also find full-body red-light therapy, vagus nerve stimulation, lymphatic compression therapy, BrainTap tech featuring advanced neurostimulation technology and a medical-grade hyperbaric chamber that supplies you with 100 percent oxygen. More of a wellness lover than a biohacker? Wellness Social Club offers yin yoga, breathwork, IV vitamin drips and sound healing for those looking to dive into inner healing. [caption id="attachment_1010907" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Supplied[/caption]
A young woman sheltered in the most literal sense there is, living her entire life in Vault 33, one of the subterranean facilities where humanity endeavours to start anew. A TV and movie star famed for his roles in westerns, then entertaining kids at birthday parties, then still alive but irradiated 219 years after the nuclear destruction of Los Angeles. An aspiring soldier who has never known anything but a devastated world, clinging to hopes of progression through the military. All three walk into the wasteland in Fallout, the long-awaited live-action adaptation of the gaming series that first arrived in 1997, as hits streaming queues on Thursday, April 11 Down Under. All three cross paths in an attempt to do all that anyone can in a post-apocalyptic hellscape: survive. So goes Prime Video's leap into a world that's had millions mashing buttons through not only the OG game, but also three released sequels — a fourth is on the way — plus seven spinoffs. Even with Westworld' Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy as executive producers, working with Geneva Robertson-Dworet (Captain Marvel) and Graham Wagner (The Office, Silicon Valley) as showrunners and the series' creators, giving Fallout the live-action treatment is a massive and ambitious task. But where 2023 had The Last of Us, 2024 now has this; both are big-name dystopian titles that earned legions of devotees through gaming, and both are excellent in gripping and immersive fashion (and while building worlds meticulously) at making the big-budget, high-profile, star-led move to television. Fallout's vision of one of the bleakest potential futures splits its focus between Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell, Yellowjackets), who has no concept of how humanity can exist on the surface when the show kicks off; Cooper Howard aka bounty hunter The Ghoul (Walton Goggins, I'm a Virgo), the screen gunslinger who saw the bombs fall and now wields weapons IRL; and Maximus (Aaron Moten, Emancipation), a trainee for the Brotherhood of Steel, which is committed to restoring order by throwing around its might (and using robotic armour). The show's lead casting is gleaming, to the point that imagining anyone but this trio of actors as Lucy, Howard-slash-The Ghoul and Maximus is impossible. Where else has Walton's resume, with its jumps between law-and-order efforts, westerns traditional and neo, and comedy — see: The Shield, Justified, Sons of Anarchy, The Hateful Eight, Vice Principals and The Righteous Gemstones, as a mere few examples — been leading than here? (And, next, also season three of The White Lotus.) Fallout's core threesome make each other's acquaintance — some with relief, some begrudgingly — but each character has their own agenda. Lucy, the dutiful daughter of Vault 33's Overseer Hank (Kyle MacLachlan, Lucky Hank), is on a mission to restore the status quo to the only home that she's ever known. When she finds herself chasing the same object as The Ghoul and Maximus, she begins to learn the vast array of differences between being sealed off and weathering the aftermath above, though. The Ghoul's portion of the tale hops between now and then, examining the man that Howard was and who he's since become, the latter through sheer necessity. For Maximus, overcoming trauma and carving out a way forward is also his narrative. "The wasteland's got its own golden rule: thou shalt get sidetracked by bullshit every time," offers The Ghoul. Among those setbacks lurks a pervasive kill-or-be-killed mindset among everyone who hasn't enjoyed an underground existence wearing blue jumpsuits, frolicking in inside fields surrounded by projections of the sky and sun, and deeming marriage and procreation as the most important function there is in response to nuclear holocaust. Throw in decaying mutated people, who'll rot further into zombie territory without the right medicine staving off the effects of residing in a former blast zone, plus every manifestation of human behaviour as its worst as well. And that's before a giant radioactive salamander with a taste for flesh gets munching, adding another layer of monsters to the end of the world. Fallout's production team haven't skimped on vivid detail, bringing the series' scenario to life with lived-in production design that makes its bunkers and barren terrain alike look as if viewers could walk right into them. Nolan, crafting an alternative-history sequel to his brother Christopher Nolan's Oscar-winning Oppenheimer in a way, helped guide a similar visual experience with Westworld alongside his partner Joy. The four-season show also reached TV as an adaptation (in that case, of the 1973 film of the same name that was written and directed by Jurassic Park author Michael Crichton). Also for Prime Video — but sadly renewed for a second season, then cancelled during the 2023 Hollywood strikes — The Peripheral, based on sci-fi author William Gibson's novel, achieved the same enthralling feat. The Ghoul's basic principle for persisting — as uttered in retort to the biblical golden rule about treating others as you'd like to be treated — also describes much of Fallout's narrative journey. Lucy, The Ghoul and Maximus' goals are clear; the route there, however, is anything but. Beneath the orange haze, the series brings in a stacked supporting cast spanning Moises Arias (Samaritan), Sarita Choudhury (And Just Like That...), Michael Emerson (Evil), Dale Dickey (Lawman: Bass Reeves) and Matt Berry (What We Do in the Shadows), too, each adding to the 23rd century's reality. Some of their characters grasp to what they can. Some give striving for a different future their all. Some are robots. Some — from a roster of talent that also spans Leslie Uggams (Extrapolations), Frances Turner (The Boys), Dave Register (Heightened), Zach Cherry (Severance) and Johnny Pemberton (Weird: The Al Yankovic Story), plus Rodrigo Luzzi (Dead Ringers), Annabel O'Hagan (Dear Edward) and Xelia Mendes-Jones (The Wheel of Time) — try to get to the bottom of secrets, mysteries and why this life is the way it is. Fallout revels in exploring amid the ruins, and also in the vaults, which were conceived in the before times by a company called Vault-Tec. The ripples created by protecting the rich in corporate-made compounds but leaving everyone else to a dusty desert melee is one of the show's trains of thought. Pondering the choices that we're all faced with in such circumstances, the type of person that you truly want to be chief among them, is another. There's gleeful gore and a comedic tone as well, with the soundtrack's mix of 50s-era tunes with a tense score by Ramin Djawadi (3 Body Problem) capturing the vibe perfectly. A thumbs up is a loaded gesture in Fallout — but the series itself earns one. Check out the trailer for Fallout below: Fallout streams via Prime Video from Thursday, April 11, 2024. Read our interview with Walton Goggins, Ella Purnell and Aaron Moten. Images: courtesy of Prime Video.
If you've made it to the middle of March without starting to count down until the Easter and ANZAC Day long weekends, congratulations: you're stronger-willed that most. Beginning to think about more than just a few days off sometime soon? If you're keen to travel from the very end of April 2025, you're in luck: Virgin has just dropped a new flight sale. Book in that annual leave, because you can take a discounted trip to Hamilton Island, Uluru, Bali, Fiji, Queenstown, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Hobart and more. The sale covers one-million fares, both Australian and international destinations among them, and prices start at $45. Yes, that $45 fare is for the Sydney–Byron Bay route, for a one-way ticket. You can also head to the Gold Coast from Sydney from $65, from Brisbane to Proserpine for $69 and from Melbourne to the Sunshine Coast from $109. Prefer a Hamilton Island getaway instead? Flights there kick off at $109 from Brisbane and Sydney, and $139 from Melbourne. Other deals elsewhere span Sydney–Melbourne from $95, Brisbane–Hobart from $115, Brisbane–Uluru from $129, Melbourne-Perth from $195 and Sydney–Perth from $199. Do scenic sights further afield call your name? Your overseas options include Melbourne–Queenstown from $425, Gold Coast–Bali from $489, Brisbane–Port Vila from $499, Sydney–Nadi from $569 and Brisbane–Apia from $689, all return. You've got until midnight AEST on Wednesday, March 26, 2025 to book, unless sold out earlier. And the cheap fares, which are valid in both directions between each point in the discounted route, start with Virgin's Economy Lite option — although there are also business seats on offer. Wondering when you'll need to travel? These deals cover periods between Wednesday, April 30, 2025–Wednesday, February 11, 2026, with all dates varying per route. Inclusions also differ depending on your ticket and, as usual when it comes to flight sales, you'll need to get in quick. Virgin's March 2025 sale runs until midnight AEST on Wednesday, March 26, 2025 — unless sold out earlier. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
Come with us now on a journey through time and space, as Matthew McConaughey takes the top spot as heroic protagonist in the new Christopher Nolan film, Interstellar. The brand new (awesome) trailer can only be watched at Interstellar's newly launched website. Once you get there, you'll need a special passcode — '7201969' — the date Apollo 11 landed on the moon. Badass. The film sees McConaughey and fellow astronaut Anne Hathaway travel through a wormhole with the simple goal of saving humanity. The newly-released trailer gives a tiny insight into McConaughey’s character — an engineer and widowed father with two children — as well as vast landscapes of alien worlds and a spaceship hurtling through empty space. We can tell this is not going to be a smooth-sailing intergalactic ride, as McConaughey philosophises in the opening lines, "We used to look up at the sky and wonder at our place in the stars. Now we just look down and worry about our place in the dirt." Cue goosebumps. The highly-anticipated film also stars Jessica Chastain, Casey Affleck, Michael Caine, Wes Bentley, John Lithgow, Ellen Burstyn, Topher Grace and Matt Damon. That’s one stellar Interstellar line-up right there (#sorrynotsorry). This is Nolan’s first film since wrapping up the Batman trilogy with The Dark Night Rises. Interstellar will be in cinemas November 7 and has a pretty killer poster lurking around: Via The Verge.
Cave hotels, tree-house hotels, and hotels next to natural wonders: the bedroom-pros at Mr & Mrs Smith have seen it all (well, we’re still waiting for our first spaceship hotel, but hey). Here are 10 of Smith’s most interesting places to pass a night, picked just for Concrete Playground. 1. LONGITUDE 131° by VOYAGES, AUSTRALIA What: Safari-style desert campWhere: Up close to Uluru What could possibly be any more awe-inspiring than waking up to views of the world’s biggest monolith, Uluru? It’s remote, for sure, but Longitude 131° by Voyages can be reached via a flight to Yulara, where guests are greeted by a member of staff in a four-wheel drive. The villas are called ‘tents’, but you can banish memories of uncomfortable camping trips from your school days. These impressive specimens are on stilts, with ensuite bathrooms and fully automated blinds. Tours of the national park are included in the rates and the curvy pool is kept ice-cold at all times – perfectly refreshing after unforgettable treks up Uluru. 2. HAPUKU LODGE AND TREE HOUSES, NEW ZEALAND What: Architectural meets arborealWhere: Deer-dotted pastures and peaks Simultaneous views of mountains, the sea, olive grove and a deer-park… where else other than New Zealand? A top-spot for whale-watching, Hapuku Lodge and Tree Houses is a true get-away, with fully equipped villas nestled high amongst the tree-tops, so you can coo at the local birds (or just kiss your lovebird). The lodge’s knockout 600-hectare grounds, between the towering Kaikoura Seaward Mountains and surf-lashed Mangamaunu Bay, include the family farm’s oil-producing olive grove and deer stud. For a cool canopy experience, the modern, wood-clad Tree House Rooms, set in a manuka grove remote from the main lodge, are a must. 3. SIX SENSES YAO NOI, THAILAND What: Rustic-chic castawayWhere: Yao Noi island hillside Perched on a cliff-side over-looking Phang Nga Bay, Six Senses Yao Noi makes each night feel like an adventure. A selection of nine different types of villa are available, each with stylish interiors, some with pools, and every one offering the best views we’ve ever clapped eyes on. Privacy-seeking couples or families would do well to book a Hideaway Two-bedroom Pool Villa, which has two levels, an open-air bathroom, private ensuite and its own infinity pool. 4. OHLA, BARCELONA What: Classic Catalan coolWhere: Beside Barrio Gotico With a neoclassical exterior but minimalistic interiors, Ohla Hotel in Barcelona never quite makes up its mind. Originally the palace of the first Count of Barcelona, then a department store and police office, and now a hotel renovated with assistance from artist and sculptor Frederic Amat, Ohla is an eclectic mix of history. Hundreds of ceramic eyeballs adorn the outside walls of the hotel, thanks to Amat. The rooms have wooden floors and refrain from over-decoration; in-room massages are available on request. 5. GORAH ELEPHANT CAMP, SOUTH AFRICA What: Bastion of imperial glamourWhere: Stunning South African savannah The wilderness of Addo Elephant National Park is right on the doorstep of Gorah Elephant Camp. Combining Victorian colonial style with classy mod cons, the tent-like suites have thatched canopies, four-poster beds, private deck and panoramic views of the savannah. The Gorah house itself is a mid-18th-century heritage manor, and serves as the main building on the site. Unabashed luxury abounds in the tents themselves: expect silk-soft Egyptian cotton linen and glossy toffee wooden floorboards. 6. SAFFIRE, TASMANIA What: Elemental sanctuaryWhere: Curving Coles Bay coastline Saffire must confuse the seagulls swooping overhead: is it a giant starfish? A huge silver oil spill? A resting spaceship? If only we could tell them: no, it’s a stingray-shaped sanctuary with eye-widening architecture, an excellent restaurant, a pampering spa and a prime natural location (iconic Wineglass Bay is just minutes away). If you fancy your own private courtyard plunge pool, snaffle one of the four Private Pavilions (rooms 1 to 4, aka Mayson, Amos, Dove or Baudin), which include cat-swingingly spacious living and bedroom areas, a kitchen, dining zone and front deck. Saffire's chef can even come and cook for you in-room. 7. GILI LANKANFUSHI, MALDIVES What: Water worldWhere: Lapis lazuli lagoon Be prepared to come home feeling lonely, or with a Mr Friday stuffed illegally in your suitcase: this hotel’s service is flawless, and every villa comes with a Ms/Mr Friday who will look after you so well, you won’t want to leave them behind. You’re not allowed shoes here, and you won’t find any newspapers, but these are the only limits at this beautiful beachside hotel, which must prompt proposals left, right and centre. Gili Lankanfushi’s villas are all overwater: we like the 210sq m Villa Suites best. They’re open-air, apart from the bedroom (which is also the only bit with air-con; everywhere else gets a sea breeze) and have a large living room with day beds and an overwater sundeck with stairs leading to the ocean. 8. QT SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA What: Theatrical temptressWhere: Sydney's happening heart This super-central design diva is carved out of the historic State Theatre and Gowings department store buildings, blending Gothic, art deco and Italianate architecture with quirky-but-cool interiors. Door gals dressed in saucy uniforms, buzzy drinking and dining, and a hip day spa? We're smitten. Sexy, sassy and stylish, QT Sydney has her party shoes on and is ready to dance. Helmed by chef Paul Easson under the creative direction of Sydney restaurateur Robert Marchetti, Gowings Bar & Grill is an edgy, European-style all-day brasserie, which lures diners with its fresh Australian produce (sourced from artisan providores), so-now culinary techniques (we're talking wood-fired rotisseries and ovens) and smart list of up-and-coming wines. 9. SEXTANTIO LE GROTTE DELLA CIVITA, ITALY What: Boutique BedrockWhere: Matera’s grand canyon If Fred Flintstone were looking for a romantic crash-pad for him and Wilma, he could do a lot worse than check into this cave hotel, set in the ancient stassi (stone settlement) of Matera, a mysterious, overlooked patch of Basilicata in southern Italy, flanked by the Ionian and Tyrrhenian seas. Sextantio le Grotte della Civita has a prehistoric birthday and old-world charm: bed sheets and furniture are antique; candles flicker in corners; bath products feature olive oil and packaged simply, and there’s a tasting room set in the old church. Whole families once bedded down in each cave, so expect buckets of space. 10. SAMODE PALACE, INDIA What: All that glittersWhere: Fairytale desert fort Mirror-tiled walls, mural-lined walls, marble swimming pools and antique-filled suites: Samode Palace in the heart of Rajasthan, Jaipur, sounds like the stuff of far-flung fairy tales, but it’s deliciously real. This blue-blooded getaway began life 300 years ago as a maharaja's mansion, so it’s had a while to perfect its poise; modern additions include a gym, sauna, steam room, day spa and boutique. (Of course, kings and queens need to keep in touch with their subjects, so there’s free WiFi in the central courtyard and business centre.) Wander through the Sheesh Mahal, a series of glittering rooms, each more breath-snatching than the last. Once a royal reception space, it's now used for chichi cocktail sessions.
When you find the coming together of good coffee and a good conscience, great things usually follow. Fest of Merit, the newest venture from youth social enterprise YGAP, proves this to be true. Found in an open space on Swan Street in Richmond, they haven't held back on the interior. It's raw, exposed and perfectly executed. Hanging lights and plants finish the look perfectly (as do the handsome wait staff, but that's a whole other story). As YGAP's newest project, Feast of Merit donates all of their profits to youth education and youth leadership in Malawi, Ghana, Rwanda, Bangladesh, Cambodia and Australia. On top of this they focus on seasonal produce, raw foods and locally sourced drinks. Local, ethical and sustainable food is served up with a distinct Middle Eastern flavour. The breakfast menu caters to a range of tastes with the sweeter side of things looking like Bircher muesli, coconut water, apricot, pistachios, and hung yoghurt ($11.50) and a bowl of backyard fruits, chia seeds, orange blossom, yoghurt ice and smoked almonds ($12.50). For those going down the savoury path, you can opt for the young asparagus, ricotta and avocado with harissa toast and a soft egg ($16) or the beetroot (pickled, raw and roasted) with wild rice, candied walnuts, salted ricotta and za'atar spice ($13.50). Lunch is a 'choose your own adventure' experience with three salads available with three optional proteins for a more hearty meal. You might see a roasted Dutch carrot, mint, pistachio, currant, freekeh, harissa and preserved lemon salad topped with roasted Milawa chicken. Job done. Smoothies, juices, and digestives dominate the drinks list with a raw almond milk creation calling out our name. Warning: raw treats may tempt you as you're paying the cheque. But don't worry — your money is going to a good cause.
UPDATE, MARCH 25, 2020: Due to cinema closures and other concerns around COVID-19, In the Heights will no longer release on its initially scheduled date of Thursday, June 25, 2020. At present, a new release date has not been announced — we'll update you when one has been revealed. To find out more about the status of COVID-19 in Australia and how to protect yourself, head to the Australian Government Department of Health's website. Over the past five years, Hamilton has become a cultural phenomenon — and, thanks to its fame and acclaim, so has the hip hop musical's creator Lin-Manuel Miranda. But that's not the only stellar stage show to the multi-talented composer, actor, singer and playwright's name. Before he took on US history (and before he helped bring Bring It On to the theatre, too), Miranda turned life in Manhattan's Washington Heights into four-time Tony-winner In the Heights. While every Hamilton fan dreams of the day that it's turned into a movie, In the Heights is actually making the leap to the big screen first — in 2020, with a stacked cast, with Crazy Rich Asians director Jon M Chu behind the lens, and via a film primarily shot on location in its titular spot. Quiara Alegría Hudes, who wrote the text for the stage version, has also written the feature's screenplay. And Lin-Manuel Miranda is involved, naturally, producing the movie, overseeing the music and popping up on-screen as well. On Broadway from 2008–11, Miranda played the lead role of bodega owner Usnavi de la Vega. In the film, that honour goes to Anthony Ramos — an alumnus of the original production of Hamilton who has also featured in Patti Cake$, A Star Is Born and Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Usnavi works hard, saves everything he earns and strives for a better life. He also sits at the centre of a vibrant community just beyond the 181st Street subway stop, with In the Heights charting the lives, loves and dreams of the Latinx neighbourhood through colourful, energetic and — as seen in the just-dropped trailer — exquisitely choreographed song and dance numbers. Joining Ramos and Miranda (who plays Piragua Guy, the owner of a shaved ice dessert stand) are Corey Hawkins (Straight Outta Compton), singer Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera (Vida), Dascha Polanco (Orange is the New Black), Marc Anthony and Jimmy Smits — plus original In the Heights stage star Olga Merediz, Rent's Daphne Rubin-Vega and Matilda the Musical's Gregory Diaz IV. Brooklyn Nine-Nine's Stephanie Beatriz also features, after Miranda made an appearance on the hit sitcom earlier this year. Check out the full trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0CL-ZSuCrQ In the Heights was due to open in Australian cinemas on June 25, 2020; however it'll now release on a yet-to-be-revealed date — we'll update you when one is announced.
Prepare to get hopelessly devoted — again — to Rydell High, summer lovers reuniting at school, leather jackets and Pink Ladies, all across Australia's stages in 2024. Because giving Grease a prequel streaming series isn't enough, the 50s-set musical is returning to its original home, with a brand-new multimillion-dollar theatre production of the five-decade-old show set to be the one that local audiences want next year. Grease is shaping up to be Melbourne's big summer hit, zipping into the Victorian capital's Her Majesty's Theatre like lightening in January. Then, from March, it'll take its retro stylings to Sydney's Capitol Theatre. If you live elsewhere in the country, cross your fingers that these two initial seasons are only the beginning. Everyone knows Grease's plot by now, given how popular the 1978 movie adaptation of the musical rom-com still is, especially Down Under. It is about an Australian transfer student, after all, who falls in love with an American high schooler in California. After it sped from the stage to become a silver-screen classic, it spawned a 1982 Michelle Pfeiffer-starring sequel, too, then this year's Paramount+ show Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies. Exactly who'll be slipping into John Travolta (Paradise City) and the late, great Olivia Newton-John's (The Very Excellent Mr Crocodile Dundee) leathers as Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsson in the new Aussie production has yet to be revealed, nor has any casting — T-Birds, Pink Ladies and teachers alike. But whoever gets the gig, obviously they'll be belting out all the famous tunes, including the titular 'Grease' and fellow earworms 'Summer Nights', 'Sandy', 'Hopelessly Devoted to You', 'You're The One That I Want', 'Greased Lightnin' and 'Beauty School Dropout'. "I am thrilled that Grease, one of the world's all-time favourite musicals, is returning to Australia in a brand-new production featuring an all-Australian creative team," said producer John Frost announcing the new tour, which is presented by John Frost for Crossroads Live Australia. "Grease has always been about having fun and, coupled with the much-loved songs and choreography, I know that this will be the party musical that everyone is talking about for a long time to come." GREASE 2024 AUSTRALIAN TOUR: From January 2024 — Her Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne From March 2024 — Capitol Theatre, Sydney Grease will tour Australia in 2024, starting in Melbourne in January. For more information or to sign up for the ticket waitlist, head to the musical's website.
Pour red wine down the front of it. Cover it in tomato sauce. Sweat in it till you can sweat no more. The Silic self-cleaning T-shirt will act like you're not even there, because it's pretty much impervious to stains. Set to be funded via a Kickstarter campaign that's gone bananas, having met its stretch goal 13 times over, the Silic represents a breakthrough in fabric technology. Created by Aamir Patel, in collaboration with an ex-Vera Wang designer, the T-shirt depends upon what's known as 'hydrophobic nanotechnology'. In other words, the fabric is covered in billions of microscopic silica particles. These create a layer of air, causing any liquids that hit to form a sphere and roll away immediately. Many similar technologies tend to disappear as soon as the garment is cleaned, but the Silic remains stain-proof after 80 sessions in the washing machine. Plus, according to the designers, it's been created according to safe, non-cancerous processes. Production is set to happen in Silicon Valley, in a facility that's been responsible for manufacturing goods for Nike and Levi's. Currently available in black and white, the Silic boasts a simple yet stylish design. It's said to "enhance any torso, which gives a bold look". If you're interested in committing to a pledge before the campaign finishes up on Australia Day, US$48 will buy you one shirt, US$88 two, US$138 three and US$199 five.
By now, there's no question that 400 Gradi is Melbourne pizza royalty. Back in 2014, owner and founder Johnny Di Francesco's margherita was famously crowned best in the world at the Campionato Mondiale Della Pizza (Pizza World Championship), beating 600 competitors from across the globe. And now, having added a swag more pizzerias to the family in the years since, 400 Gradi has claimed yet another huge glory, last night taking out the title of Best Pizza in Oceania at the second annual 50 Top Pizza Awards in Naples. The Melbourne pizzeria was secretly judged against almost 1000 others from across Italy and the globe, and secured both a place among the world's 50 best and reigned supreme over all other pizzerias in Oceania. "I am truly honoured, and almost speechless, to be honest," said Di Francesco at the event. "Never did I think that my beginnings in pizza as a twelve year old would lead me here." Other Aussie restaurants named finalists in the Oceania category include Sydney's Verace Pizzeria (Macquarie Park), La Disfida (Ashfield) and The Dolphin Hotel (Surry Hills), along with fellow Melburnian, Guy Grossi's Ombra. Best book a table now — we have a feeling these pizzas will be pretty darn popular in the coming weeks. You can check out the full lineup of award-winning pizzas here.
If there's ever a time not to throw away your shot, it's this: getting the chance to be in the room where Lin-Manuel Miranda chats about Hamilton live in Australia in March. The smash-hit musical's creator is heading Down Under for the first time since the show started its Australian run, to see the Aussie version which kicked off in Sydney, then hit Melbourne and is now playing Brisbane. Even better: he's doing a live public Q&A session to share some insights about the theatre production that everyone has been talking about for almost a decade now. While the news that Miranda would hit Brisbane for an in-person Hamilton fan event was revealed last week, further details have now dropped. The Tony-, Grammy-, Emmy-, Olivier- and Pulitzer Prize-winner will take to the QPAC Lyric Theatre stage on Sunday, March 5 to discuss all things Hamilton in an interview with Leigh Sales. Also joining them: actor Jason Arrow, who plays Alexander Hamilton in the Australian production. [caption id="attachment_795466" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption] Attendees can expect to hear about everything from Miranda's decision to make the show to begin with through to how the lyrics for Hamilton's famous tunes came about — and about the music theatre easter eggs peppered throughout the piece as well. Folks eager to get the Hamilton scoop from the man himself will need to hope they have luck on their side, however, given that the only way to attend is to win free tickets. Entries open at 10am AEST today, Monday, February 20, via the QPAC website, closing at 10am on Wednesday, February 22 — which is when winners will be drawn, then notified by email. Miranda's Brisbane Q&A is an Australian exclusive, so Hamilton obsessives elsewhere in the country will need to make plans to hit up the Sunshine State if they score tickets. [caption id="attachment_773737" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Hamilton filmed version courtesy Disney+.[/caption] "I have been waiting such a long time to come to Australia and I can't wait to be with the company down under in-person for the first time," said Miranda when his visit was first announced. "I have heard such great things from friends and fans in Australia, it is going to be fantastic to be able to meet them and watch them perform." The biggest show in musical theatre this century, this game-changing, award-winning, rightly raved-about take on 18th-century American politics is about the life of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, as well as inclusion and politics in current-day America. In addition to its swag of Tony Awards — 11 in fact, which includes Best Musical — it has nabbed a Grammy Award and even a Pulitzer Prize. And, Miranda wrote the music, lyrics and the book for the critically acclaimed hip hop musical. [caption id="attachment_774805" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Hamilton filmed version courtesy Disney+.[/caption] The Broadway hit's Aussie production features a cast that currently includes Jason Arrow as Alexander Hamilton, Martha Berhane as Eliza Hamilton, Callan Purcell as Aaron Burr, Akina Edmonds as Angelica Schuyler, Matu Ngaropo as George Washington, and Victory Ndukwe as Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson. Sami Afuni plays Hercules Mulligan and James Madison, Wern Mak does double duty as John Laurens and Philip Hamilton, Elandrah Eramiha plays Peggy Schuyler and Maria Reynolds, and Brent Hill steps into King George III's robes. When it finishes its Brisbane season at QPAC's Lyric Theatre on Sunday, April 23, the show will leave the country for a New Zealand run. That'll mean that fans will then need to be content with watching the filmed version of Hamilton's Broadway production, which started streaming via Disney+ in 2020, again. (And yes, it's as phenomenal as you've heard). Brisbanites keen to see Hamilton for cheap in-person can also try the $10 ticket lottery, which offers tickets for less than the cost of lunch. [caption id="attachment_846530" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Daniel Boud[/caption] Lin-Manuel Miranda will chat with Leigh Sales and Jason Arrow at QPAC's Lyric Theatre, South Bank, Brisbane on Sunday, March 5. To enter to win free tickets to attend, head to the QPAC website between 10am AEST on Monday, February 20–10am on Wednesday, February 22. Hamilton's Brisbane season runs until Sunday, April 23 at QPAC's Lyric Theatre, South Bank, with tickets available via the musical's website. Top image: Hamilton filmed version courtesy Disney+.
It's summer, or close enough to it. The temperature is warm, hot or scorching, or somewhere in-between. You can hear the sounds of someone splashing around in a cool, refreshing pool — but those noises aren't coming from your own swimming spot, because you don't have one. Many Australians can relate to this scenario each and every year (and, depending on where you live, maybe even most of the year round). Thankfully, it's a situation that Swimply is designed to counter. Even better: the pool-sharing service is relaunching Down Under at exactly the right time of year. Swimply first debuted locally in 2019, after getting up and running in the US and Canada before that; however, we all know what's happened in the world since then. Now, with Australians facing a summer without restrictions, the service is here to help you out if you don't have a mate with a pool, don't know your neighbours well enough to just pop by for a dip or live too far away from your local waterhole is too far away — and you're stuck trying to chill out in the bath or under the fan in the sweltering heat. Operating in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Perth, Adelaide and select regional areas, Swimply is a fairly typical sharing economy-style platform. One person rents out something they have and don't use all the time, while another person with a short-term need reaps the benefits. In this case, the service lets folks with pools lease out their backyard swimming spots when they're not in use, and helps people without pools find a place for a splash, all via an iOS and Android app. If you fall into the latter category, you can hire a spot by the hour. You can also look for pools with specific facilities and inclusions — such as chairs, lounges, towels, wifi, a changing area, access to a bathroom, a barbecue, a shady spot to sit under, night lighting, pool toys and heated waters. Some allow pets, while others are fine with parties and alcohol. Before booking, you can also scope out just how many guests you can bring (and whether kids are allowed), as well as how private the pool is from the neighbours. That said, it proves most cost-effective if you're splashing around with mates, with the cost set by the owner. Prices start at $25 per hour, but those fees vary. Some hit $100, and there's plenty around the $50–70 mark. Still, if you're keen to hop in a pool — and a private one, rather than your local public spot — Swimply gives you options. Swimply is now available to download on iOS and Android.
The Sunshine State might soon need to upgrade its nickname, even if 'the walking trail state' doesn't quite have the same ring to it. Still, the suggested moniker fits. New hiking tracks have been popping up around Queensland quite frequently of late, including the country's longest continuous walking, cycling and horse-riding path, a 55-kilometre walk through the Scenic Rim in the state's southeast and plans for a 76-kilometre coastal walk in the far north. Now, add a mountain bushwalk trail on North Stradbroke Island, or Minjerribah, to the list. Straddie's addition to the fold is a rather reasonable length, compared to other just-completed and upcoming treks, coming in at just over two kilometres. But the Mount Vane walking track boasts plenty of highlights, including 360-degree views of Moreton Bay and Quandamooka country. It also links into two existing walks within Naree Budjong Djara National Park, making a to ten-kilometre network of trails. Crucially, the track was designed and constructed by the Quandamooka people, the island's traditional owners, with more than 20 rangers involved. Alongside Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, they help care for the national park — which covers around half of the island. [caption id="attachment_702560" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] The Gorge, North Stradbroke Island, via Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] Along the interconnected trails, walkers can now nab a view from the top of one of Straddie's highest peaks, trek half a day down to Karboora (the Deep Silent Pool, which is also known as Blue Lake) and find other high spots with scenic vantages — including sweeping over 18 Mile Swamp and over to the Gold Coast. The Mount Vane walking track is part of a series of upgrades designed to boost tourism, giving Straddie a suite of "upgraded campgrounds and recreational trails, unique cultural experiences, and land-based whale watching," as Tourism Industry Development Minister Kate Jones explained in a statement. [caption id="attachment_640463" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Minjerribah Camping[/caption] In good news for anyone keen not just to wander through Straddie, but stay for a night or several, new beachside cabins, eco-tents, glamping and safari tents are coming to the scenic spot. The island already boasts permanent beachfront glamping grounds at Adder Rock and Amity Point, as run by Minjerribah Camping (formerly Straddie Camping); however the existing caravan park site at Adams Beach adding "environmentally and culturally sensitive beachside accommodation". With specially designed containers transforming into cabins, the new accommodation is due to be open in June. Top image: Tobias Lange via Flickr.
If you can't remember a time before IKEA, that's understandable. In 2023, the Swedish giant celebrates 80 years of operation. The chain started by Ingvar Kamprad, aka the IK in IKEA's moniker, began in 1943 and moved into furniture in 1948. It then opened its first store in Sweden a decade later — and came to Australia in the 70s. Now, a task: imagine all of the different items that the brand has made and sold over the years. Also, think of the huge array of pieces that it has had customers make at home themselves. The list is lengthy, as anyone that's ever walked several kilometres through IKEA's warehouse-style shops knows — but some pieces stand out. To celebrate both the 80-year milestone and the retailer's top products over that period, IKEA is launching a new range that riffs on its past highlights. Available both in store and online from Thursday, June 29, the Nytillverkad collection showers love on everything from 50s side tables to 60s plant stands, and 70s stools and 80s quilt covers, too. Retro alert, clearly. "We know Australians love to mix vintage pieces in their homes, so it is exciting to be able to offer this retro take on Scandinavian modern, defined by bold and playful graphic expressions that celebrate some of our most famous designs from the past 80 years," said Christine Gough, Interior Design Expert at IKEA Australia, announcing the new pieces. "In new bright colours, timeless design and trademark simplicity, the Nytillverkad range is an array of carefully selected, reimagined IKEA classics ready to take on a new life in homes." IKEA is dropping its Nytillverkad pieces in stages, starting with the LÖVBACKEN side table that was first known as LOVET back in 1956, the KULTURSKOG plant stand that initially launched as BALJA in 1962, and the BONDSKÄRET hat and coat stand that was called SMED in the 1978 — and more. Items in the first release range start at $2, which covers two 30-piece paper napkin sets (HAVSKATT, using the ILEX print from 1983; and ROSTVINGE, from 1980's BLADHULT print). Also on offer: candle holders, cushion covers, trays and rugs. IKEA's Nytillverkad collection goes on sale across Australia, in store and online, from Thursday, June 29 — until stocks last. Head to the IKEA website from 9am on launch day for further details.
Tasers, telephoto lenses and a new spate of crimes terrifying the beachside town of Neptune: yes, Veronica Mars is back. Everyone's favourite pint-sized TV private eye is finally returning to our screens, all thanks to the show's long-awaited, eagerly anticipated fourth season. As played with the usual pluck and determination by Kristen Bell, she's ready to sleuth her way through a whole new mystery. Of course she is. Due to release in the US in July, via streaming platform Hulu, Veronica Mars' revival follows its titular heroine as she endeavours to get to the bottom of a wave of bombings that've been blasting their way through her home town. The fictional seaside spot is quite the tourist spot — especially come spring break — and Ms Mars thinks that someone wants to blight its reputation. After dropping a very brief teaser in April, then a short initial trailer in May, Hulu has released a full trailer for the series — and, as well as showing the no-nonsense Veronica doing what she does best, it once again features a heap of familiar faces. Her dad Keith Mars (Enrico Colantoni) and on-again, off-again love interest Logan Echolls (Jason Dohring) also pop up, as do her ex-classmates Weevil (Francis Capra) and Dick Casablancas (Ryan Hansen). Also set to make an appearance: returning cast members Percy Daggs III and Max Greenfield, plus new inclusions such as Patton Oswalt, Clifton Collins Jr and Bell's The Good Place co-star Kirby Howell-Baptiste. Oh and JK Simmons, too, as an ex-con who appears to be the new season's bad guy. Check out the new full trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pt0QuaQ0huk If you've been following Veronica's story for the past 15 years, you'll know that the TV series originally debuted in 2004, ran for three seasons until 2007, and then set a crowdfunding record to get a film off the ground in 2014. Next came two novels and a web series spin-off — and now, as first confirmed in September last year, this eight-episode revival. Break out the marshmallows, obviously. The fourth season of Veronica Mars hits Hulu on July 26. Details of the show's Australian and New Zealand release are yet to be confirmed — we'll keep you posted.
2023 marks a mere five years since Netflix released its first-ever Australian original series, with Tidelands hitting the streaming service three years after it officially launched Down Under. That supernatural drama didn't usher in a non-stop influx of new Aussie content. While older local titles sit among the platform's catalogue, freshly commissioned fare such as Heartbreak High and Wellmania is still fairly rare. But Netflix's small pool of homegrown Australian projects has locked in a few more additions, with four just-announced newcomers on their way. The novel-to-screen adaptation of Boy Swallows Universe is also in the works, but that was initially revealed almost 18 months back. Following it to your queue will be another book-to-TV effort, an outback family-feud tale and two movies — one starring Delta Goodrem and the other a documentary about ONEFOUR. First, your future binges: The Survivors and Desert King (although they're just working titles, so those monikers might change). The first is heading to Netflix from the pages of Jane Harper's text of the same name, while the second sounds like it wants to give Succession-meets-Yellowstone a Top End spin. Neither have casts as yet, or release dates. [caption id="attachment_905971" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Force of Nature, Narelle Portanier[/caption] Yes, Australia's screen industry currently loves bringing Harper's works to the screen. The Dry proved a massive smash, after all, and that flick's sequel Force of Nature will hit cinemas when Hollywood's actors' strike is over. The Survivors isn't linked to either movie by anything but author, so there's no Aaron Falk this time. Instead, the Tasmanian-set story follows families still coping with the loss caused by a massive storm in their seaside town 15 years earlier, then faced with a new murder. As for Desert King, it will be set on the world's largest cattle station, which the Lawson family runs. When the property is left without a firm successor, the fights start — and everyone from billionaire miners and desert gangsters to Indigenous elders and other cattle barons get involved. Netflix will get bonus points from audiences if they manage to get Sarah Snook to star. [caption id="attachment_914014" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Courtesy of Netflix © 2023[/caption] With the streamer's upcoming Aussie movies, Goodrem has been born to give her acting chops another try, this time in a romance called Love Is in the Air. There's no word on whether the film will feature Delta singing John Paul Young's Aussie song of the same name, which first released in the 70s and became a hit again in the 90s thanks to Strictly Ballroom. What is known, however, is that the flick is about a seaplane pilot who falls for the man who's meant to be tanking her business — and that it'll be filmed in the Whitsundays. ONEFOUR: Against All Odds will tell its namesake's story, including the drill rap group's huge popularity and the police taskforce attempting to stop them performing. "The story of ONEFOUR is one of the most significant cultural moments in recent Australian history. It's about the changing face of this country and who gets to have a voice in it," said writer/director Gabriel Gasparinatos. "Australia markets this sunkissed image of itself and it's so important to show it's not all like that, and that there is another side to this country the world is only just starting to see. I'm so grateful to ONEFOUR for trusting us with their story and to Netflix for bringing it to the global audience it deserves." Announced previously, Netflix is also making a second season of its Heartbreak High revival, as well as Surviving Summer. The former is due in 2024 and the latter this September. And, for kids, Eddie's Lil Homies is on its way, based on childrens' books by former AFL superstar Eddie Betts, and following an eight-year-old Eddie and his friends. Netflix's just-announced new Australian projects don't yet have release dates — we'll update you when more information is announced. Top image: The Dry.
Brunch and karaoke. They may seem like an unlikely pair, but if there's one company that's going to combine them well, it's Funlab. The group responsible for Holey Moley and adults-only arcade bars Archie Brothers and B. Lucky & Sons, is bringing together mimosas and 'My Sharona' at its 70s-themed karaoke joint Juke's. Located inside the Crown Complex, this one trades pinball machines and golf clubs for a psychedelic colour scheme, plenty of mirrors and mirrorballs, and decor that'll make you want to bust out your flares and big hair. Oh, and plenty of 70s bangers as well. Now, it's adding bottomless brunches to its repertoire, too. Running every Saturday and Sunday until April 11, the singing, drinking and eating sessions run for two hours and will set you back $50 a pop — which gets you quite a lot. As well as a cocktail on arrival (either a bloody mary or a mimosa), you'll get two hours of karaoke, two hours of endless beer, wine and cider, and food. To eat, you'll get burgers, mini hotdogs, chips and tater tots, with vegetarian, gluten-free and dairy-free options available. The latter definitely veers more into lunch territory than breakfast, but you're also singing karaoke before sunset — all rules have already been broken. You do need a minimum of six people to partake — so, start rounding up your mates now. Bottomless karaoke brunch sessions run from 12–2pm and 3–5pm and can be booked by calling (03) 9070 5373.
As spring brings a breath of fresh air, South Yarra's Bar Carolina enters a fresh new chapter under the ownership of renowned Melbourne chef and restaurateur Karen Martini. This latest venture marks Martini and partner Michael Sapountsis' first independent foray since 2020. The change in ownership came about naturally through conversations between outgoing owner Joe Mammone and Martini. Martini notes that "Joe did such an amazing job, and this feels like a natural progression." While the classic fit-out by Chris Connell will remain mostly unchanged, the kitchen has seen major upgrades, amplifying its capacity. The all-day dining offering will be built around Karen Martini's signature exploration of both northern and southern Italian cuisine. Kick off long lunches and leisurely dinners with cicchetti, small snacks and plates such as stuffed and crumbed olives and pizza fritta with vinegar salt and whipped cod roe. Antipasti like focaccia with brown butter mayo and anchovies, and beef carpaccio will follow, before diners move on to house-made pastas such as tagliarini with blue swimmer crab, and Josper-grilled proteins. "This particular pocket of South Yarra is iconic," Martini says. "I'm excited to add to the vibrancy of the street and to share our hospitality along with great food and wine. Hopefully, it feels like a very personal expression of our love of Italian food and culture." Bar Carolina will reopen under Martini's leadership on Thursday, September 18. The buzzy rooftop bar, Tetto di Carolina, will reopen in time for summer with a new snack menu and summery seasonal cocktails. Images: Chege Mbuthi. Bar Carolina will commence trading Tuesday through Sunday from lunch until late. If you're looking for more, check out the best Italian restaurant in Melbourne.
If you've been to see a blockbuster on the big screen this year, odds are that you've been to see a Disney movie. The Mouse House is responsible for Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame, Aladdin, Toy Story 4 and The Lion King, after all — and it still has both Frozen 2 and Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker to come before the year is out. And now, the huge entertainment company is set to loom large over your streaming viewing, too. This morning — Tuesday, November 19 — it launched its new Disney+ platform Down Under. The service features a heap of content that spans its hugely popular brands, including Disney classics, Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars and National Geographic. On Disney+ you'll find over 600 films and 7000 episodes of TV, so it's basically everything your Disney dreams are made of (and there's a free trial to get you started). From previous announcements, we already knew we'd be watching Star Wars series The Mandalorian, the awkwardly named High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, animated Toy Story spinoff Forky Asks a Question and factual series The World According to Jeff Goldblum. And, along with the platform launch, the live-action Lady and the Tramp has also dropped along with the Anna Kendrick-starring Christmas flick Noelle. Disney has also previously unveiled a lengthy list of upcoming shows that'll hit the platform over the next few years, so prepare for multiple Marvel series about Loki, Hawkeye, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, and the Scarlet Witch and Vision; a Lizzie McGuire revival; and Star Wars shows about Obi-Wan Kenobi (featuring Ewan McGregor as the beloved jedi) and Rogue One's Cassian Andor as well — although none of the above have release dates as yet. What's noteworthy, too, is the array of classic fare that's now available to stream. Disney has amassed a hefty library over the years and, after merging with Fox earlier this year, it picked up plenty of other films and TV shows. That means that you can stream Marvel Cinematic Universe flicks, Pixar hits, Star Wars movies and all your old favourite Disney animated films, naturally. Home Alone, 10 Things I Hate About You, The Muppets, TRON, Avatar, Sister Act, Hocus Pocus, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, The Rocketeer, Turner and Hooch and The Sound of Music. Boy Meets World, Duck Tales and The Simpsons also rank among a very sizeable pool of titles, as Disney+'s new Instagram video shows. https://www.instagram.com/p/B5BWValA0I8/ A bunch of National Geographic docos can also be found on the platform, including rock climbing nail-biter Free Solo, the touching Jane Goodall film that makes great use of archival footage and Leo DiCaprio's 2016 climate cahnge interrogation Before the Flood. The complete list of titles — which you can browse here — confirms what Aussie audiences will able to watch upon launch. Different local rights deals with other platforms have meant that Australian fans couldn't necessarily just assume that their favourite flicks would automatically be available on Disney+ straight away. For example, until recently, Stan had plenty of Disney content available to stream. Of course, it seems that turning Disney+ into a one-stop shop for the company's movies and series is the ultimate aim. On that note, viewers can expect all of the company's aforementioned big 2019 movies to hit the platform, too, as well as its entire film slate from 2020 onwards. If you want to try out the new service before committing to a subscription, you can sign up for a free one-week trial over here. Disney+ is now live, with subscriptions costing AU$8.99 per month or AU$89.99 per year. You can sign-up for a free seven-day trial here. 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.
When Paul Mescal (All of Us Strangers) and Pedro Pascal (Drive-Away Dolls) were cast in Gladiator II, audiences instantly knew what they wanted to see. The film doesn't release until mid-November 2024, but the trailers for it so far — a first sneak peek back in July and the just-dropped latest preview — have been delivering. The pair face off, Mescal gets shirtless, and there's sandals and swords aplenty, too. There's also odious Emperors, of course, and even a rhinoceros and seafaring clashes in the Colosseum. Mescal's Lucius watched the climactic events of 2000's Russell Crowe (The Exorcism) and Joaquin Phoenix (Napoleon)-starring film, as the initial trailer explained, which is just one of the on-screen ties that Gladiator II boasts with its predecessor. Another: Connie Nielsen (Origin) returning from Gladiator as Lucilla, Lucius' mother. And, behind the lens, there's also the not-at-all-minor fact that director Ridley Scott is back to make this 24-years-later sequel. If Gladiator II's protagonist didn't have his own date with Rome's iconic amphitheatre, and his own rage to unshackle, there wouldn't be much of a film. His stint comes after Emperors Caracalla (Joseph Quinn, A Quiet Place: Day One) and Geta (Fred Hechinger, The White Lotus) take over his home. Queue a quest for revenge, plus glory for Rome, with Pascal's general Marcus Acacius becoming Lucius' target. As for Denzel Washington (The Equalizer 3), he plays power broker Macrinus. Alien, Blade Runner and Thelma & Louise director Scott has been in blast-from-the-past mode for over a decade now, first revisiting the Alien realm with Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, then reteaming with Phoenix on Napoleon, and now helming his second Gladiator flick. Of late, he's also been fond of making movies set in the past — long ago and more recent — as not only seen with Napoleon, but also with House of Gucci, The Last Duel and All the Money in the World. With Gladiator II, the British filmmaker teams up two of the internet's boyfriends in Mescal and Pascal, and promises a battle-filled time following up the feature that picked up Best Picture, Best Actor (for Crowe), Best Costume Design, Best Sound and Best Visual Effects at the Academy Awards. Scott also earned his second Best Director nomination, after Thelma & Louise and before Black Hawk Down gave him a third. Gladiator II hits cinemas Down Under on Thursday, November 14, 2024, which means that local audiences will see it a week before American audiences — and a week before Wicked Part One arrives in picture palaces, too, so there'll be no Barbenheimer-style release day here. Check out the latest trailer for Gladiator II below: Gladiator II opens in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, November 14, 2024.
It was true in The Witch, The Lighthouse and The Northman: Robert Eggers knows how to unnerve. So, what happens when the acclaimed filmmaker directs his attention to the second-most famous name there is in vampire tales for his fourth feature? If the just-dropped first teaser trailer for Nosferatu is anything to go by, embracing a twist on Bram Stoker's Dracula is about to turn out chillingly. More than a century has passed since the initial Nosferatu flickered across the big screen, a German Expressionist great that adapted Stoker's story with zero authorisation, hence changes such as its count being named Orlok. The film has been remade before, with Werner Herzog (The Fire Within: A Requiem for Katia and Maurice Krafft) giving viewers 1979's Nosferatu the Vampyre. Now, Eggers is sinking his teeth in — and visibly loving it. The new Orlok: Bill Skarsgård, fresh from action-star mode in Boy Kills World but pivoting back to creepy villains, just swapping IT and IT: Chapter Two's Pennywise for another insidious pop-culture figure. In the first look at Eggers' Nosferatu, the writer/director plays coy with his monster, but not with Orlok's impact. "My dreams grow darker," cries Lily-Rose Depp, trading the nightmare of The Idol for the gothic horror kind, as Ellen Hutter. Eggers' movie is being pitched as a tale of obsession, where Orlok is infatuated, Ellen haunted and nothing good springs. The teaser is teeming with fire and shadows, screaming and blood, and the type of unease that gets under your skin — so, exactly what the man behind it has made his calling card over the past decade. Joining Skarsgård and Depp is a stacked cast of fellow big names, including Willem Dafoe enjoying another stint in gothic mode after Poor Things and returning to Nosferatu after his Oscar-nominated performance in 2000's Shadow of a Vampire, where he played Max Schreck, the IRL actor who played Orlok back in 1922. Nicholas Hoult jumps from dancing with Dracula in Renfield to more undead eeriness, and Emma Corrin (A Murder at the End of the World), Aaron Taylor-Johnson (The Fall Guy) and Ralph Ineson (The First Omen) all also feature. In the US, audiences have a silver-screen date with Nosferatu on Christmas — "succumb to the darkness Christmas 2024," the trailer asks — but viewers Down Under will see the film from Wednesday, January 1, 2025. Check out the trailer for Nosferatu below: Nosferatu releases in cinemas Down Under on Wednesday, January 1, 2025.
Another week, another cookie pie — again. That's how it often feels thanks to Gelato Messina's beloved dessert specials, but no, we're not complaining. After the gelato chain first introduced its cookie pies to the world in 2020, it has kept bringing the OTT dessert back over and over. We all need an extra dose of sweetness every now and then, clearly, including while both Sydney and Melbourne are in lockdown. So, it should come as no surprise that Messina is serving up the decadent dessert once more. This time, it's one of the chain's Frankenstein's monster-style desserts (although cookie pies generally fall into that category anyway). This version is also a returning favourite — and, if you like all things red velvet, prepare to get excited. Hang on, a cookie pie? Yes, it's a pie, but a pie made of cookie dough. And it serves two-to-six people — or just you. You bake it yourself, too, so you get to enjoy that oh-so-amazing smell of freshly baked cookies wafting through your kitchen. Now that you're onboard with the overall cookie pie concept, the red velvet version really is exactly what it sounds like. That crunchy, crumbly red velvet and choc chip cookie pie comes filled with a thick layer of cream cheese custard, too, so prepare to get a little gooey. You can only buy this pie in kits, which means that you'll get some of the cult ice creamery's famed gelato along with it. You can opt for a 500-millilitre tub for $38, a one-litre tub for $44 or a 1.5-litre tub for $48. If you're keen to get yourself a piece of the pie, they're available to preorder online on Monday, September 13. 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). The catch? Most people will need to peel themselves off the couch and head to their local Messina store to pick up their order. The pies will be available for collection between Friday, September 17–Sunday, September 19. Sydneysiders, remember to abide by lockdown restrictions when it comes to picking up your pie — with folks in most suburbs required to stick to their Local Government Area, or within five-kilometres from home, and a strict five-kilometre limit in place in LGAs of concern. Melburnians, if the current lockdown conditions remain in place until then, you'll also only be permitted to travel within a five-kilometre radius to pick up food. Don't live near enough to a store in Sydney and Melbourne? Messina now delivers these specials as well, but only to select areas each time. It'll be bringing the red velvet pie to Sydneysiders in North Kellyville, Glenhaven, Castle Hill, Cherrybrook, Pennant Hills, West Pennant Hills, Baulkham Hills, North Rocks, Carlingford, Epping, North Epping and Beecroft. To get it brought to your door in Melbourne, you'll need to live in Heidelberg, Heidelberg West, Reservoir, Thomastown, Fawkner, Essendon, Moonee Ponds, Maribyrnong, Footscray and Williamstown. Then, when it comes to cooking the pie, you just need to whack it in the oven for 25 minutes at 160–180 degrees and voila! You can preorder a Messina red velvet cookie pie from Monday, September 13, to pick up from all NSW, Vic and Queensland Gelato Messina stores — or for delivery in some Sydney and Melbourne suburbs.
The only resort on the Whitsundays' Daydream Island is finally set to reopen after being devastated by Cyclone Debbie back in March 2018. Following a $100 million redevelopment, Daydream Island Resort is making its return in serious fashion — with a 200-metre living reef, three restaurants, a poolside bar and an outdoor cinema to boot. The exclusive resort will reopen on April 10 with 277 fully refurbished suites that span ocean, garden and pool views. Those aren't any ordinary ocean views, either, with crystal clear turquoise waters surrounding every corner of this tiny oasis. And the massive, newly landscaped pool wraps throughout the resort's tropical gardens and links to its coral beaches, offering views of the Great Barrier Reef beyond. The resort's living reef has also been revitalised — it's a coral lagoon that spans 200 metres and surrounds the central building, with its 1.5 million litres of water housing over 100 species of fish, coral and invertebrates. Guests can learn from local marine biologists while helping to feed baby stingrays and explore the new underwater observatory that lies four metres below sea level. Daydream Island will also boast three distinct restaurants, all of which feature seasonal and local produce. Fine-dining restaurant Infinity offers panoramic ocean views and a menu of Asian-fusion eats, along with a teppanyaki private dining room. Then there's Inkstone Kitchen and Bar, a modern Australian restaurant using native ingredients. Think crispy skin coral trout sourced from Bowen, served over squid ink linguine, and surrounded by thin slices of smoked crocodile and Australian caviar, too. The third dining option, Graze Interactive Dining, better resembles a greenhouse — it's contained in a lush space with hanging greenery and large glass windows that look out over the Living Reef. The dining room is run as a marketplace, with live cooking stations and a buffet breakfast on offer. There's three bars as well, including the poolside Barefoot Bar that'll serve up gourmet-style bar bites, including burgers, pork ribs and chicken wings, along with fresh smoothies and the requisite island cocktails. An outdoor cinema and gym facilities don't hurt the appeal, either. Those keen to explore the Whitsundays further can book snorkelling, helicopter tours, sailing, jet-skiing and island-hopping experiences through the resort, too. While you're in the region, don't miss the chance to check out the nearby Whitehaven Beach, which is listed as one of the best beaches in the world. Daydream Island Resort will reopen on April 10. Room rates start at $492 per night for a standard room, and bookings are open now. For more to see and do in the region, check out our Outside Guide to the Whitsundays.
Twin gynaecologists at the top of their game. Blood-red costuming and bodily fluids. The kind of perturbing mood that seeing flesh as a source of horror does and must bring. A stunning eye for stylish yet unsettling imagery. Utterly impeccable lead casting. When 1988's Dead Ringers hit cinemas, it was with this exact combination, all in the hands of David Cronenberg following Shivers, The Brood, Scanners, Videodrome and The Fly. Attempting to stitch together those parts again, this time without the Crimes of the Future filmmaker at the helm — and as a Prime Video miniseries, which streams from Friday, April 21, too — on paper seems as wild a feat as some of modern medicine's biggest advancements. This time starring a phenomenal Rachel Weisz as both Beverly and Elliot Mantle, and birthed by Lady Macbeth and The Wonder screenwriter Alice Birch, Dead Ringers 2.0 is indeed an achievement. It's also another masterpiece. Playing the gender-swapped roles that Jeremy Irons (House of Gucci) inhabited so commandingly 35 years back, Weisz (Black Widow) is quiet, calm, dutiful, sensible and yearning as Beverly, then volatile, outspoken, blunt, reckless and rebellious as Elliot. Her performance as each is that distinct — that fleshed-out as well — that it leaves viewers thinking they're seeing double. Of course, technical trickery is also behind the duplicate portrayals, with directors Sean Durkin (The Nest), Karena Evans (Snowfall), Lauren Wolkstein (The Strange Ones) and Karyn Kusama's (Destroyer) behind the show's lens; however, Weisz is devastatingly convincing. Beverly is also the patient-facing doctor of the two, helping usher women into motherhood, while Elliot prefers tinkering in a state-of-the-art lab trying to push the boundaries of fertility. Still, the pair are forever together or, with unwitting patients and dates alike, swapping places and pretending to be each other. "It's impossible to explain this relationship to anyone outside of it. We don't need anyone else. We never have." That's Beverly's summary of their codependent lives — or is it Elliot's? When they're side by side, the Mantle twins are patently two halves of the same self-sufficient whole, as a brilliant, biting and blistering opening scene where they reprimand a guy who interrupts their post-work drinks makes plain. The fellow bar patron barely knows what hits him as they sling their displeasure fast and furiously, and nor do most folks in their company afterwards. As the six-episode series progresses, that includes actor Genevieve (Britne Oldford, The Umbrella Academy), who segues from a patient to Beverly's girlfriend; Elliot's researcher offsider Tom (Michael Chernus, Severance); and big-pharma billionaire Rebecca (Jennifer Ehle, She Said), who Dead Ringers' weird sisters court to fund their dream birthing centre. As Beverly is fond of saying, pregnancy isn't a disease — and with Elliot, she wants to move everything about it out of the hospital. There are millions of New Yorkers to help, and a vast amount more Americans, such is the British siblings' ambition with backing worthy of a sequel to Oscar-nominated documentary All the Beauty and the Bloodshed. Dead Ringers is focused on its main two women, however, aka a pair that's hardly doting about their individual wellbeing. They function instinctively as a duo, and Elliot as is committed as she is to playing god because she wants to help the frequently miscarrying Beverly fulfil her own wish to become a mother. But disrupting that status quo, as Genevieve's arrival and Rebecca's money does, sees mayhem flow. In its sleek and cold look, as well as its equally chilly and severe tone, Dead Ringers isn't concerned with being naturalistic. That doesn't apply to the show's approach to bodies and babies, though, or to what the former go through to lead to the latter. In Cronenberg's picture, which was somewhat subtle about its body horror compared to most of the director's work, one of its twins experienced drug-addled delusions about mutated female forms. Birch's version instead plunges its hands deep into the blood and gore of bringing about life. Here, the body horror feels all the more visceral because it's steeped in reality, unflinchingly depicting the crimson rivers, primal screams, distended abdomens, sliced-open wombs, stirrup-strapped legs and invasive procedures that are an everyday fact of maternity and womanhood. Often in horror, the power of suggestion is queen. It can be far more potent to let viewers fill in the gaps in their mind and imagine up their own worst nightmares when something malevolent is haunting a scary movie's characters, for instance. In Dead Ringers, staring wide-eyed at "the best that we have come up with" in medicine surrounding pregnancy, as Beverly decries — also noting that "this is how every single one of us enters the world" while lambasting the state of the field, plus the pain and humiliation expected to be endured by women — is as intense and distressing as it's meant to be. As the Mantles advocate for something better, the show they're in lays bare the truth. This is a series about autonomy within a sororal connection that couldn't be closer, but it's also always about the bodily autonomy that's constantly stripped away from people with female reproductive systems. Birch delivers a piece of television that flawlessly does two things: charts intertwined lives and their combined chaos, including musing on bonds thicker than mere blood, the inherent loneliness of being alive and the solace we all seek in a kindred spirit; and takes a scalpel to everything surrounding women's healthcare. Thanks to the Mantles' patients, it touches upon the way that class and race still dictates treatment and outcomes, the trauma of stillbirths and miscarriages, the control dynamics around surrogacy, how female pain is so easily dismissed and life-changing medical conditions in the process. That's a hefty, have-it-all juggling act, but Dead Ringers' guiding force makes it look effortless. In addition to her big-screen scripts, which also spans Mothering Sunday, Birch co-penned the TV adaptations of Sally Rooney's Normal People and Conversations with Friends — and she just keeps propagating her stacked resume. Now twinned itself, Dead Ringers didn't take its first breaths with the movie that Birch uses as source material, complete with mirroring some of its most striking visual flourishes. Truth has to be especially odd to be stranger than a Cronenberg film, and in 1975 it was when gynaecologists Stewart and Cyril Marcus were found dead in the Big Apple. Their existence and passing sparked a New York magazine article, followed by the fictionalised 1977 novel Twins by Bari Wood and Jack Geasland. Here, that history provides a reminder that the past always leaves an imprint on new lives. That said, with the ever-excellent Weisz lapping up her delicious dual roles, the writing as clever and astute as it is twisted and funny, and the entire show gleaming eerily from its first meticulous frame to its last, the latest Dead Ringers has no trouble making its own mark. Check out the trailer for Dead Ringers below: Dead Ringers streams via Prime Video from Friday, April 21.
On the top of our list in summer? Combining two of our favourite things into one amazing adventure: the outdoors and delicious food. Because let's face it, Melbourne has to be one of the best places in the world for dining in the summer air. Here's Concrete Playground's pick of the best outdoor restaurants in Melbourne. UNION DINING TERRACE The terrace above Union Dining in Richmond is the relaxed little brother of the provincial European restaurant below. With its own bar and menu, it’s a great escape from the streets. Classic cocktails like the Aperol Spritzer and a Gin Fizz are served up alongside a snack menu featuring a chicken sandwich on brioche and fish and potato croquettes. 270-271 Swan Street, Richmond, uniondining.com.au REPUBLICA Republica in St Kilda is situated right on the water's edge and takes full advantage of this with an outdoor area looking right over the water. The restaurant has hanging chairs dotted around, just asking to be sat in until the sun goes down. On the other side of the restaurant is a second outdoor area, which is part of the St Kilda Sea Baths, offering shade and live music on the weekends. The menu is simple. Alongside a pizza menu, mains include pan-fried barramundi with cauliflower risotto or a steak served on polenta. 1a/10-18 Jacka Boulevard, St Kilda, republica.net.au TACO TRUCK If you are looking for a true outdoor dining experience, hit up one of Melbourne's many food trucks. A favourite of ours in the Taco Truck, serving up soft tacos with fish, chicken or even potato. Grab a taco or two and relax with other Melburnians who have waited in line. Make sure you get in early as they sell out almost every night. Various locations, tacotruck.com.au PACO'S TACOS From the team behind Movida, Paco's Tacos is a little oasis at the bottom end of the city. Set inside a huge yellow shipping container with heaters for winter and a grated finish to let the sunshine in, it’s a fun and bright contrast to the surrounding office buildings. The menu is Mexican street food, with a focus on tacos. There are six taco varieties and extras like BBQ corn and nachos. Opt for the roasted duck taco with spicy mole or the fish taco with chipotle and radish. Level 1, 500 Bourke Street, Melbourne, pacostacos.com.au PONYFISH ISLAND Under the pedestrian bridge over the Yarra River at Southbank, Ponyfish Island takes waterfront dining to a new level. Open from breakfast, they serve relaxed and casual food. They also run a BBQ from Thursday night through the weekend serving up burgers to the masses. They’ve got a small but solid drinks oðering including jugs of Pimms cocktails. Southgate Pedestrian Bridge, Melbourne. TROCADERO Trocadero is the newest addition to the arts precinct, located in Hamer Hall at the Arts Centre. Grab a snack at the bar or stay for the long haul. There's a sleek and modern approach to design here, and a beautiful terrace overlooking the Yarra River. This one is going to be a popular stop for theatergoers. Hamer Hall, Arts Centre, 100 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, trocadero.co NEWMARKET HOTEL The menu at Newmarket Hotel draws its influences from California with Latin street food served up from the grill. Start with soft shell crab or a soft taco of beef cheek. The mains are centered around a wood-fired oven and BBQ, with hanger steaks and NY strips on offer. They have a great outdoor dining area where you can enjoy the sun. 34 Inkerman Street, St Kilda, newmarketstkilda.com.au RIVERLAND BAR Riverland Bar is located on the banks of the Yarra River on the edge of Federation Square. Down the staircase right before the bridge you'll find Riverland's large outdoor area dotted with umbrellas and beautiful views. The menu is varied, offering something for any taste from soba noodle salad to pork belly. 1-9 Federation Wharf (under Princes Bridge), Melbourne, riverlandbar.com THE FITZ CAFE The Fitz on Brunswick Street, right in the heart of Fitzroy is the perfect spot for a sunny Sunday afternoon. While they do have outdoor seating downstairs, it’s upstairs in their outdoor courtyard where you can take full advantage of the sun. On the second level you'll find a different menu with tapas-style dishes, perfect for sharing. 347 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, thefitz.com.au SPEAKEASY KITCHEN BAR The name doesn't represent the true essence of Speakeasy Kitchen and Bar. There is nothing dark and underground about it at all. Instead, you'll find a beautiful dining room with a great seasonal menu. The herb and ricotta gnocchi with prawns, peas and tomatoes is a good place to start. They also make great cocktails. The outdoor terrace is an ideal space to enjoy the warmer months. With a laneway outside, many a summer night has seen the party has spill into the street. 359 Chapel Street, South Yarra, speakeasybar.com.au
The Sydney Mardi Gras is almost upon us and, along with it, a feast of new queer cinema is about to descend upon the city. For 29 years now, the Mardi Gras Film Festival has added the latest LGBTQIA+ movies to Sydney's big celebration, and it's doing the same again in 2022 — but, as happened in 2021, it's going hybrid with both physical and online screenings. Accordingly, if you're a Sydneysider who's keen to get your big-screen queer film fix between Thursday, February 17–Thursday, March 3, you can, with the fest showing at Event Cinemas George Street, and holding one one-off sessions at Hayden Orpheum, Cremorne and Event Cinemas in Parramatta and Hurstville. But if you feel more comfortable watching from home during the current Omicron outbreak or you're a fan of LGBTQIA+ movies located elsewhere in Australia, you'll also be able to enjoy MGFF digitally as well. The fest's 2022 lineup spans 119 films from 37 different countries, covering 32 narrative features, 15 documentaries, four episodic screenings, a retrospective and nine programs of shorts — so yes, there's more than a bit to watch. That said, different flicks will play in cinemas and on-demand, as happens with hybrid fests, but more than half of the program will be available for those playing along at home and interstate. Opening the fest on the big screen is Wildhood, which is set in Canada's Atlantic Provinces and hails from MGFF's focus on First Nations filmmaking for 2022. In-cinemas only, it's joined by high-profile international film festival circuit highlights such as Great Freedom, an immensely moving drama about a man's experiences being imprisoned under Germany's former law criminalising homosexuality; and Benedetta, which follows a 17th-century nun who shocks her convent with visions, wild power plays and lesbian affairs, and happens to be the latest feature by Basic Instinct, Showgirls and Elle director Paul Verhoeven. Or, there's the Carrie Brownstein and St Vincent-starring mockumentary The Nowhere Inn, which has them both play versions of themselves, and The Novice, about a queer student on a university rowing team. Other standouts include Mexican magical realist drama Finlandia; documentaries about queer comic creators, lesbians in post-punk 80s London and American artist Keith Haring; and closing night's B-Boy Blues, which is based on the celebrated novel o the same name. Online, LGBTIQ+ cinema fans can also check out horror film The Retreat, which combines a cabin-in-the-woods setup with planning a queer wedding; Cannes-selected Taiwanese drama Moneyboys; the relationship-focused Ma Belle, My Beauty, about a long-term couple living in a scenic villa in the south of France; and Estonia's Firebird, which charts a romance against the backdrop of the Cold War. There's also documentary Coming to You, following two mothers fighting for LGBTQ+ rights in Korea; and As We Like It, an all-female version of Shakespeare's comedy As You Like It. Mardi Gras Film Festival 2022 runs from Thursday, February 17–Thursday, March 3 at Event Cinemas George Street, plus one-off sessions at Hayden Orpheum, Cremorne and Event Cinemas in Parramatta and Hurstville — and online nationally. For more information, visit the festival's website.
Our society seems to be developing an obsession for sleeping in places that are not our beds. Are our lives so busy and so constantly on the go that the notion of getting your 8 hours in the quiet comfort of your bedroom sometime between dusk and dawn is becoming impractical, unrealistic and just plain outdated? A range of designs over the past few years seem to be pointing to our desire to harness modcon's to make going to sleep - the concept, the verb - unnecessary and obsolete and instead, in its place, enable us to take sleep with us wherever we go. it seems survival of the fittest is all about adaptation, with new designs allowing our weary bodies to adapt to our demanding lifestyles. Athanasia Leivaditou has added a new incentive to staying late at the office through her latest offering - an office desk that can convert into a bed. The white, seemingly innocuous, everyday office desk masks deep within its belly a 2m x 0.8m x 0.73m escape to the Land of Nod complete with a small flat screen TV. Leivaditou pointed to the contraction of our lives to fit into the walls of our office as the inspiration for her design. If your occupational allegiance is tied not to an office but to mobility, you may want to invest in an OSTRICH. Designer Kawamura Ganjavian states that it is a combination of a pillow, cushion, bed and garment that offers "a micro environment in which to take a warm and comfortable power nap at ease" with a "soothing cave-like interior" into which we bury our heads and hands in mimicry of the habits of the aforementioned large flightless bird. If you want to take the concept of portable sleep vessel one step further, perhaps try out Forrest Jessee's Sleep Suit, which, for all intents and purposes, transforms you into a walking sleeping bag. It was designed as a facilitatory aid to the adoption of an alternative sleep cycle whereby you take frequent naps over the course of a day rather than having a big greedy sleep at night. The pleated foam construction enables the user to hear, eat, breathe and see, as well as, at the user's discretion, keel over whenever and wherever for a comfortable and safe snooze. Mixing literal instrumentality with aesthetic absurdity, these designs simultaneously allow us to adapt to our evolving circumstances as well as, possibly, making us question whether the need for such adaptations is an indication that it is our lifestyles themselves that need changing.
Since Victoria's second COVID-19 lockdown began in July, dreaming of spending a night somewhere other than your own home has become a regular part of pandemic life. Thankfully, that dream can now become a reality, with Premier Daniel Andrews confirming today, Sunday, November 8, that Victorians will be able to travel regionally — and stay overnight — from 11.59pm this evening. Back in late October, when he ran through the next phases of eased restrictions for the metropolitan Melbourne area as part of the state's roadmap, Premier Andrews advised that this was on the cards. Now, as Victoria marks nine consecutive days without any new COVID-19 cases, he has confirmed the new steps that will come into effect tonight — and outlined plans for the next stage after his, which'll hit from 11.59pm on Sunday, November 22. On the travel front, the hard border between metro Melbourne and regional Victoria will be scrapped from tonight. And, so will the 25-kilometre travel limit. Crucially, accommodation sites will be allowed to reopen; however, there are rules about bookings. You can only book with members of your household, with your intimate partner, or with your household and two adults and their kids from another household. A heap of other changes are also come into effect tonight — some previously advised, some newly announced. In the former category, metro Melbourne's gyms and fitness studios will be allowed to reopen, with a maximum of 20 people per venue and ten per space. At hospitality venues, they'll move to 40 people indoors and 70 outside. Religious gatherings will move to 20 people indoors and 50 outdoors, and indoor pools will also be allowed to open. New steps that'll apply from this evening include the reopening of entertainment venues, with 20 people per venue or 20 per space if that applies — covering indoor cinemas, music halls, concert halls, auditoriums, galleries, museums and the State Library of Victoria. Performance times will need to be staggered, though, so that there's a minimum interval of 30 minutes between sessions to avoid crowds milling around in foyers. Home visiting rules are also changing tonight, with two different adult visitors allowed at a household per day — either together or separately. But, for the foreseeable future, both the requirement to work from home if you can and the mandate to wear masks in public will remain in place. https://twitter.com/DanielAndrewsMP/status/1325218441041604608 Come November 22, assuming that case numbers remain low, the next set of changes will be put in place — and plenty of current rules will relax even further. Hospitality venues will be able to welcome in up to 100 people indoors (with one person per four square metres) and 200 outside (with one person per two square metres). Public gatherings will increase to 50 and private gatherings — so, folks coming over to your house — will increase to ten from any number of other households. And, travel-wise, you'll be able to head out of town in line with the private gathering cap (so in groups of ten people from any number of other households). Both seated and non-seated entertainment venues (such as cinemas and galleries) will be able to welcome in up to 100 people per space, too, at a density of one person per four square metres up to 25-percent of their capacity. For outdoor seated events, numbers will go up to 500 (50-percent capacity, and one person per four square metres). Gyms and fitness studios will increase to a maximum of 100 people per venue and 20 people per space. And religious gatherings will be able to have 20 people in one indoors, up to a total of 100 — and groups of 50 outdoors up to a total of 500. Weddings will also be able to have 100 people in attendance. Announcing the future changes, Premier Andrews noted that Victoria "will only be able to make those changes, take those steps — which is the last step before we reach the COVID-normal [phase], which we were locking well ahead before Christmas before having the COVID-normal Christmas and maintaining those settings and maybe go further again, throughout 2021 — we will only get to that point if each of us fundamentally acknowledge this point: nine days of zero is not the same as a vaccine". He continued: "each of us have played a part in building this precious thing and each of us have to play a part in protecting it. If we want to stay open, we have to stay safe. If we want to enjoy these steps and more, then we all have to play our part. And it is getting tested when you feel sick. It is taking these rules seriously". For more information about the status of COVID-19 and the current restrictions, head over to the Department of Health and Human Services website — and for further details about Victoria's steps for reopening, head to the roadmap itself. Top image: Mark Watson via Visit Victoria.
In food news that's not so #cleaneating #fitspo today, deep fried alcohol is a thing now. At first glance it looks like an unassuming fried doughnut, but rather than being filled with jam or custard, this brand new monstrosity has a gooey centre of potentially poor life decisions. Sure, Texas invented deep fried beer, but this is next level regret. Creators Corinne and John Clarkson, chip shop owners from Lancashire, UK, were influenced by a good ol' traditional sherry trifle when creating this beastly bar snack. The pair soaked sponge cake in Baileys, Sidekick strawberries and cream liqueur (the UK's liqueur equivalent of Passion Pop trashiness) or apple schnapps, then lowered those monsters into the deep fryer. Just look at these things: So, the biggest question, can you really get drunk from them? The answer is yes. Drunk, and fat. The levels are high enough on both counts. But despite the obvious health risks involved with making this product readily available, the deep fried alcohol has already started to establish a fan base. The couple have already tested out the alco-balls at a local event and sold them for £3 a pop. They sold out within hours. Now, the Clarksons want to sell the battered booze cakes from their fine establishment (although their humble chip shop might probably need an alcohol licence). Look, we’re not here to judge. If the opportunity ever arises and curiosity gets the better of you, by all means give those little problematic parcels a try — and tell us all about it. Just remember to, you know, consume responsibly. Via Business Standard and My Daily.
2023 is almost upon us, and the team at Tasmania's Museum of Old and New Art's (MONA) is getting ready in a big way. Already this year, the venue has locked in dates for the return of its sinister winter arts and culture festival Dark Mofo in June 2023; however, it hasn't forgotten about summer fest Mona Foma — which'll be back in February with some mighty impressive names on the bill. The dates to get excited about: Friday, February 17–Sunday, February 19, 2023 in Launceston, and Friday, February 24–Sunday, February 26, 2023 in Hobart. The onstage talents to get even more excited about: Pavement, Bon Iver, Bikini Kill, Angel Olsen and Peaches, just for starters. [caption id="attachment_874262" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Graham Tolbert. Image courtesy of the artist and Mona Foma.[/caption] Bon Iver has already locked in an Australian tour for 2023, and it includes Mona Foma's Hobart run — well, an early show on Tuesday, February 21, before the fest kicks off in the city properly that Friday. Pavement already has an Aussie tour on the books for 2023 as well, and will play Mona Foma in Hobart on Saturday, February 25 with Missouri singer-songwriter Olsen. Actually, the Hobart leg of the fest is looking incredibly enticing, because that's where Bikini Kill will pop up, too. Girls to the front, because the iconic Kathleen Hanna-fronted, Washington-formed, Riot Grrrl movement-instigating group will perform their first Australian show in more than 25 years. (Yes, either watching or rewatching exceptional documentary The Punk Singer, about Hanna, should be on your must-do list right now. Fun fact: when Hanna spray-painted "Kurt smells like Teen Spirit" across her pal Mr Cobain's wall, the name of a certain grunge anthem was born.) [caption id="attachment_874264" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tarina Westlund. Image courtesy of the artist and Mona Foma.[/caption] Peaches is also heading to Hobart, joining the Pavement and Angel Olsen, and Bikini Kill gig, as part of the MONA Sessions — aka summery evening gigs on the MONA lawns. Launceston will get its own batch of impressive talent. Get ready to see Perturbator, The Chills and Kae Tempest in the northern Tassie city; again, that's just the beginning of the full lineup. That complete program will be unveiled on Monday, November 28, with tickets for Bon Iver on sale now, and all other currently revealed gigs going on sale at 9am AEDT on Monday, October 24. [caption id="attachment_874265" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Hadley Hudson. Image courtesy of the artist and Mona Foma.[/caption] "We are effusively launching back into international artists big-time in 2023," said Mona Foma Artistic Director Brian Ritchie, announcing the lineup so far. "The intellectual, spiritual and partying life of Tasmania cannot help but be enriched by such a diverse range of artists as renaissance person Kae Tempest, provocateur Peaches and her raunchy mob, storyteller Angel Olsen, pioneers and forerunners Bikini Kill, venerable Antipodean philosophers, The Chills and the enveloping miasma of Perturbator. This in addition to already announced Bon Iver and Pavement, plus a whole lot more to come. Stay tuned." MONA's summer event was originally held in Hobart, where MONA is located, but made the move to Launceston in 2019. [caption id="attachment_874267" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Mona/Adam Gibson. Image Courtesy Mona, Museum of Old and New Art, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.[/caption] Already keen to get booking? Fancy a Tasmania trip in the interim? Our Concrete Playground Trips Hobart getaway might also be of interest. Mona Foma will take place from Friday, February 17–Sunday, February 19, 2023 in Launceston, and from Friday, February 24–Sunday, February 26, 2023 in Hobart. We'll update you when the full program is announced on Monday, November 28 — but head to the festival website in the interim for further details. Top image: Debi Del Grande. Image courtesy of the artist and Mona Foma Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
Feeling flush? For the first time ever, cashed-up travellers can now book out an entire hotel through Airbnb, for the tidy sum of $15,000. That hotel being the newly opened Little Albion Guest House — a luxurious 35-room operation in the heart of Surry Hills. Launching officially this week, the one-of-a-kind guest house is out to shake-up the luxury travel game, pitched as a fusion of hotel and home. The idea here is to team the comfort of a hotel, with the familiarity and laidback nature of an Airbnb stay. It's the first hotel in the world that can be booked out in its entirety via the app. If you don't have the expendable cash to book out the whole thing, you can also rent out individual rooms in the hotel, which start at around $150 per night. The Little Albion Guest House is the work of boutique accommodation group 8Hotels and talented designer Connie Alessi, and it has designer interiors, a covetable art collection, a rooftop garden complete with an outdoor shower and panoramic city views, and an honour-system bar, where guests can help themselves to high-end nibbles and drinks. There'll also be a team of hosts — headed by Surry Hills local Wendy Morris — on hand at all hours to help out with everything from charging cables to local gym recommendations. It's the latest boutique hotel to join Surry Hills' ever-growing collection, which also includes the newly open Paramount House Hotel. Find Little Albion Guest House at 21 Little Albion Street, Surry Hills
The Dune universe is returning to the small screen. Over the past four decades, the franchise started on the page by Frank Herbert has hit cinemas three times so far, thanks to David Lynch's 1984 film, plus the current spicy cinema saga starring Timothée Chalamet (Wonka) and Zendaya (Euphoria). In the 00s, it also spread sandy across TV via two miniseries. Now, because everything in pop culture has to span both movies and television at the same time, HBO has made six-part prequel series Dune: Prophecy. Due to arrive in spring 2024 Down Under, with an exact release date still to be revealed, the new Dune show sits in the same world as both 2021 standout Dune: Part One and this year's Dune: Part Two — but there'll be no Paul Atreides or Chani. Rather, Dune: Prophecy is set amid the Bene Gesserit 10,000 years before the birth of Paul. HBO has dropped a first teaser trailer for the series, which follows the sect that gives rise to the Bene Gesserit, aka the sisterhood that secretly sways the universe. In the debut sneak peek, the narration explains how the faction formed, and was "assigned to the great houses to help them sift truth from lies" — but also notes that that power comes with a price. Cue plenty of plotting, especially to get a sister onto the throne. Cue lurking in dramatically shadowy spaces as well, as schemes are hatched. Rituals, battles, marriages: they all pop up, too, in a series that's inspired by Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson's novel Sisterhood of Dune. While no familiar faces from Denis Villeneuve's (Blade Runner 2049) Dune movies feature in the trailer, the show's cast includes Emily Watson (Small Things Like These), Olivia Williams (The Crown), Travis Fimmel (Boy Swallows Universe), Jodhi May (Renegade Nell), Mark Strong (Tár), Sarah-Sofie Boussnina (The Colony), Josh Heuston (Heartbreak High) and Jessica Barden (You & Me). On the big screen, there's also more Dune to come, with the tale of Paul, aka sci-fi's spiciest man, set to continue in a third Dune film that doesn't yet have a release date. Check out the first teaser trailer for Dune: Prophecy below: Dune: Prophecy will stream from sometime in spring 2024, including via Binge in Australia — we'll update you when an exact release date is announced. Read our reviews of Dune: Part One and Dune: Part Two, and our interview with cinematographer Greig Fraser.
April Fools Day. It's been a week now and still there are stories circulating the internet which are, in actual fact, hoaxes and jokeses. Have the amazing leaps forward in technology of late turned us all into gullible fools? Personally, I think it's nice there are so many people out there who still believe that almost anything is possible. Here's Concrete Playground's top 3 picks of "technological innovation" suspiciously released on April 1: The Typescreen Oh, but the author in me wishes this was true! It's a typewriting mechanism that integrates with Apple's iPad and it's ever so trendy. Perfect for those who live for the clacking of keys when composing prose. But it's easy to see through it all when you read the fine print of the press release: "Every generation creates a few items that change the way we live forever and help us reinterpret who we are as a society. We are proud of the new Spinning Hat Typescreen™ and are excited to watch its trajectory towards greatness. You're welcome world!" Digital Film Cartridge for Analog Cameras If you're a lover of Leica but craving to go digital, these fake film canisters released by design company Rogge & Pott could be the solution. Purporting to incorporate a pull-out sensor that records images in the cartridge's built-in memory, it connects to your computer via USB to allow for image transfer and charging. The site where you'll find all the details now features an April Fools disclaimer. Turns out heaps of peeps believed the gimmick and are now disappointed that the product doesn't actually exist. The company did discover, however, that with such a widespread interest in the product it might be worth researching the possibility of actually developing it. Henny Rogge says "...there is a gigantic community of photographers with analog equipment out there that is desperately waiting for a product like this to come along." https://youtube.com/watch?v=Bu927_ul_X0 Gmail Motion Try to keep a straight face when watching the model demonstrate gmailing by body movements. In Gmail Motion, the equivalent of pressing "Send" is to make a movement inspired by licking a stamp and whacking it on your knee. It claims easy to learn, simple and intuitive gestures. Plus the opinions of seemingly knowledgeable persons are added into the video for good measure. Amazingly, though, development of technology similar to Gmail Motion is underway at the University of Southern California. Using some of the gestures suggested by Gmail Motion, one of the students demonstrates how it works. In my mind, April Fools Day isn't just for a bit of a laugh. Like science fiction, it inspires inventors to get cracking on the next big thing, which could very well "reinterpret who we are as a society."
If were a kid in Australia over the past four decades, your birthday probably wasn't complete without a butter cake mix, vienna cream icing and some lollies. Thanks to The Australian Women's Weekly Children's Birthday Cake Book, that combination has long been the stuff of youthful dreams — and yes, you probably begged for it to be served in various creative shapes and configurations at all of your childhood birthday parties. We all know the book in question. Even when we were months and months away from next blowing out our candles, we all pored over pictures of its cakes for hours and hours, studiously planning which one we wanted next. And, we all should have a copy of that beloved tome on our shelves now; however, you'd best save some room for its new companion. Get ready to bake your way through the Allen's Party Cake Book, a collaboration between the sweet brand The Australian Women's Weekly that reimagines a heap of the cakes we've all grown up loving with Allen's lollies. To answer your number one question, yes, the famed train cake is included. There are 38 cakes in total, obviously all featuring plenty of Allen's lollies — think: snakes, freckles, bananas, strawberries and cream, raspberries and more — in a big way. That's reason enough to bake a cake, naturally. If you're currently in lockdown, consider it an excuse to treat yo'self to something tasty. And if you need another reason, the book has been released to celebrate Allen's 130th birthday, so you can get mixing and baking to commemorate the occasion. To nab a copy of the Allen's Party Cake Book, you'll need to head to Coles, where they're available for a limited time while stocks last. Because you'll need lollies for all of the recipes, you'll get a copy of the recipe book for free when you buy three Allen's or Bakers Choice products in one transaction. The Allen's Party Cake Book is available from Coles supermarkets while stocks last.
Earlier this year, Mondrian Hotels launched its debut Australian stay just steps from the iconic Burleigh Heads beachfront. And like its other design-first accommodation, spanning glam locations from Los Angeles to Cannes to Seoul, the Aussie foray brought wall-to-wall luxury brimming with natural light, million-dollar views and a calming neutral colour palette. Now Modrian has opened reservations for its two highly anticipated Beach Houses. Following a similar rhythm to the hotel towers, this addition offers something of a residential experience (if you could imagine being so lucky), just with the service and amenities of a world-class hotel. Guided by acclaimed Los Angeles–based designers, Studio Carter, guests can expect privacy, luxury and bespoke hospitality. Across two- and three-bedroom stays, you can live out the beachfront lifestyle of your dreams. Accessed through private entrances, both through the hotel lobby or off the esplanade, these homes away from home come complete with magnesium plunge pools, terraces primed for entertaining, convenient laundry facilities and seamless indoor-outdoor living spaces that invite the Gold Coast warmth. Meanwhile, a full-sized kitchen enhances the long-stay appeal while bringing another level of residential comfort. The smaller details are just as impressive. Think sandy-toned interiors that reflect the laidback essence of the hotel and relaxed textural finishes inspired by coastal life. In fact, those seeking the most opulent stay can combine both residences into a five-bedroom retreat, perfect for big family vacations or celebrations with all your pals. Of course, a five-star stay like this also comes with plenty of guest perks. That includes expedited in-suite check-in, a curated gourmet welcome basket and a personal host and contact throughout your stay. Plus, you'll relish a daily à la carte breakfast at LiTO, the in-house Italian restaurant, and make the most of personalised experiences, from private chefs cooking up a feast to spa and beauty appointments, VIP restaurant and bar reservations, shopping services and more. Naturally, you're also welcome to enjoy the rest of the hotel's amenities. Step into Haven, serving elevated coastal cuisine, or slide into the Ciel Spa for holistic remedies and a high-performance gym. When it's time to explore beyond the hotel, the stunning stretch of Burleigh Heads is directly across from your accom, while the suburb's easy-breezy restaurants, bars and shops are just a few steps away. Mondrian Gold Coast's Beach Houses are now open for bookings at 3 First Ave, Burleigh Heads. Visit the website for more information. Images: Justin Nicholas.
Whether it be reluctant landlords, a busy schedule or allergic flatmates, the predicament of every city-dwelling cat-lover is not being able to have one. But Yarraville couple Anita and Myles Loughran are offering hope to these frustrated feline fanatics. They have quit their uninspiring jobs in pursuit of the dream: opening Melbourne's first cat cafe. The first cat cafes opened their doors in Japan and Taiwan in the early 2000s. Since then it has been a steadily growing phenomenon, with similar establishments popping up in Europe and Asia. The Loughrans plan on housing a number of ex-stray cats, and have launched an Indiegogo campaign to raise the necessary funds to provide the best possible environment for these loveable rescues. As well as offering Melburnians a much-needed kitty fix, the venture is aimed at raising awareness and will accept donations to various shelters and welfare programs. Unlike the traditional cat cafe, to comply with Australia's food safety regulations, there will be a glass screen separating the main cat area and the cafe area, providing a fur-free space to enjoy coffee and cake. Not to worry, customers will still be able to interact with the cats; in fact, this model of 'feline therapy' has been scientifically proven to help lower high blood pressure, stress levels and anxiety. If you're keen to see Australia's first cat cafe come to fruition in Melbourne, you can donate online at Indiegogo. How could you say no to those cute little faces? https://youtube.com/watch?v=kHjpSiJ8gfY
Sometimes, dreams do come true. More often than not, they don't. The bulk of life is what dwells in-between, as we all cope with the inescapable truth that we won't get everything that we've ever fantasised about, and we mightn't even score more than just a few things we want. This is the space that Party Down has always made its own, asking "are we having fun yet?" about life's disappointments while focusing on Los Angeles-based hopefuls played by Adam Scott (Severance), Ken Marino (The Other Two), Ryan Hansen (A Million Little Things), Martin Starr (Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities) and more. They'd all rather be doing something other than being cater waiters at an array of California functions, and most have stars in their eyes. In the cult comedy's first two seasons back in 2009–10, the majority of its characters have their sights set on show business, slinging hors d'oeuvres while trying to make acting, screenwriting or comedy happen. By even existing, Party Down itself is the product of dreams that aren't fulfilled and the twists of fate that follow. If Veronica Mars hadn't initially been cancelled after three seasons, its creator Rob Thomas mightn't have moved onto a new collaboration with two of the show's fellow former staff — writer/producer John Enbom and producer Dan Etheridge — plus one-time guest star Paul Rudd (Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania). And, if that hadn't have occurred, Party Down wouldn't have ever graced screens with its spectacular dark farce at all. It too was cancelled too soon but has found a way to make a comeback. In its 13-years-later revival, it smartly and hilariously grapples with what it means when dreams don't pan out, and when they seem like they will only to crash. Bringing most of the original gang back together — Lizzy Caplan had scheduling issues making the also-excellent Fleishman Is in Trouble, but Jane Lynch (Only Murders in the Building) and Megan Mullally (Reservation Dogs) return — Party Down keeps its shindig-by-shindig setup. Across its first 20 instalments as well as its new six, which drop weekly on Stan from Friday, February 24, each episode sends the titular crew to a different soirée. The opening get-together is thrown by one of their own, Kyle Bradway (Hansen), who has just scored the lead part in a massive superhero franchise. Ex-actor Henry Pollard (Scott) is among the attendees, as are now-heiress Constance Carmell (Lynch) and perennial stage mum Lydia Dunfree (Mullally), but comedian Casey Klein (Caplan) is too busy being Saturday Night Live-level famous. Hard sci-fi obsessive Roman DeBeers (Starr) and the eager-to-please Ron Donald (Marino) are present as well, in a catering capacity. Having some of the team still sporting their black pants, crisp white shirts and pastel pink bow ties after such time has passed could've played as lazy or unbelievable. Party Down has always been as unflinchingly honest as it is sidesplittingly funny, however. It finds its main figures literally in reunion mode, and uses that entry point to explore everything that could've changed — and what mightn't have — for anyone getting their start working in hospitality in LA. Some achieved exactly what they said they would. Some are still just talking about it, and bitterly. As for Henry, he advises Kyle that he's a high-school English teacher. When his pal asks "on what show?" in response, Party Down remains as incisive as ever at tearing down the Hollywood mindset, its posturing and its centre-of-the-universe delusion. Henry genuinely is a high-school English teacher IRL, a fact that Kyle hasn't even entertained. More of the Party Down OGs end up back in uniform, in turns of events that couldn't be more organic, believable and steeped in the series' constant confrontation with dreams failing, flailing and fading. Still, season three has fresh faces; hospitality is a turnover-heavy industry. Content creator Sackson (Tyrel Jackson Williams, Brockmire) would rather be filling his socials, and flouts the Ron Donald dos and Ron Donald don'ts as Henry, Kyle, Roman and the group always have. The Gen-Z influencer wannabe also acts as visible reminder of how the notion of stardom has changed. Chef Lucy Dang (Zoë Chao, The Afterparty) seeks fame through her cooking, which isn't your standard catering spread. Baking ripened camembert into birthday cake, for instance, she wants food to be art rather than mere fuel. Also among the newcomers, but not holding trays for minimum wage, are Jennifer Garner (The Adam Project) as film executive Evie Adler and James Marsden (Dead to Me) as hotshot actor Jack Botty. The former hits it off with Henry — because with Caplan's Casey absent, Party Down still needs its emotional core and will-they-won't-they rom-com spark amid the Hollywood takedowns, ridiculous celebration ideas and slapstick absurdity it throws together skilfully, cleverly and hysterically. Unsurprisingly, season three is usually at its best when the show's old favourites bounce off each other, but Thomas and company have done well with their newcomers. That's another returning talent; before she was winning awards for The White Lotus, Jennifer Coolidge made a killer two-episode addition to the crew, and Mullally joined the cast when Lynch moved onto Glee. Are we having fun yet? Yes, always. While the catchphrase that's long haunted Henry — uttered in a beer commercial, and his biggest acting claim to fame — is rolled out again, Party Down season three is also supremely skilled at working in nods and callbacks without ever feeling like the person at the party that won't move on from the past. With Enbom showrunning, the writing is again intelligent and amusing, and the tone hasn't wavered a decade-plus on. And, once getting the gang back together has been established, Party Down's latest stint still ranks it among the all-time great workplace comedies. Scott does love pondering the daily grind, starring in Parks and Recreation and Severance before making his way back to pouring drinks. There's exactly one issue with season three: it only runs for six episodes. Since 2009, the world has always needed more Party Down, and that remains the case now that it's finally back. No one needs Party Down, the company, like Ron still does, though. None of the show's characters have ever embodied the desperate extremes that someone can go to to make their dreams come true as he still does, either — or what happens when someone has pitched their whole identity on one thing and won't accept any alternatives no matter the humiliations that arise. Marino, like Hansen and Scott, made the jump over to Party Down from Veronica Mars to play the catering outfit's oh-so-keen (but always-bumbling) manager, and his performance continues to be a masterclass in bleak and physical comedy in a series that's outstanding at (and has fun with) both. Check out the trailer for Party Down season three below: Party Down's third season streams via Stan from Friday, February 24 — and via TVNZ+ as well.
At many times in Breaking Bad's history — and in even-better spinoff prequel series Better Call Saul's history, too — Mike Ehrmantrout (Jonathan Banks, The Commuter) has known exactly what to say. The former cop-turned-private investigator, fixer, cleaner and hitman doesn't speak if he doesn't need to, so when he does, it's worth listening to. And in the just-dropped trailer for Better Call Saul's long-awaited sixth and final season, he makes quite the statement. "Whatever happens next, it's not gonna go down the way you think it is," Ehrmantrout utters in his inimitable gravelly voice towards the end of this first sneak peek at the new season — and if you've been along for the Breaking Bad–El Camino–Better Call Saul ride since 2008, that's quite the intriguing choice of phrase. We all do already know what happens in Breaking Bad for Mike, and obviously for lawyer Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk, Nobody), but series creator Vince Gilligan clearly has a few more tricks up his sleeve. Nothing about either two shows has ever just hit the expected beats, of course. And part of what's made Better Call Saul so brilliant is the way it spins its story, fleshing out the two Breaking Bad figures' histories after we've already seen what comes next. For the eponymous Saul — aka Jimmy McGill, his birth name — we've also been getting very short black-and-white glimpses of his Cinnabon-managing post-Breaking Bad life, contrasting with his earnest initial quest to be a legitimate lawyer. We've said it before and it's worth saying again: Better Call Saul is television's greatest tragedy. It's also one that not only spans Jimmy-slash-Saul and Mike — and, in recent seasons, Los Pollos Hermanos owner Gus Fring (Giancarlo Esposito, The Boys), drug kingpin Hector Salamanca (Mark Margolis, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2) and DEA agent Hank Schrader (Dean Norris, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark) — but the characters in their orbit that didn't appear in Breaking Bad. That includes Jimmy's successful older brother Chuck (Michael McKean, Breeders), and his girlfriend and fellow lawyer Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn, Veep), plus gangland figure Nacho Varda (Michael Mando, Orphan Black). Stating the obvious, this aren't turning out well for most of them. The first trailer for Better Call Saul's sixth season — its first batch of episodes since 2020 — doesn't dive too far into the narrative, but it does make plain what we all know is coming. That'd be Jimmy-slash-Saul breaking bad and embracing his "s'all good, man" new persona as a criminal lawyer (and not just because he represents criminals). However, again, that doesn't mean that we know exactly how the season will play out. Whatever the show's future holds, its sixth season will arrive in two parts — with the first seven episodes airing from Tuesday, April 19 in Australia, and the final six arriving from Tuesday, July 12. We'll also see more of post-Breaking Bad Saul's story, where he's known as Gene. Best break out the cinnamon scrolls, obviously. Check out the Better Call Saul season six trailer below: Better Call Saul's sixth season starts streaming in Australia via Stan from Tuesday, April 19 — and will stream in New Zealand via Neon. Images: Greg Lewis/AMC/Sony Pictures Television.
Sometimes, Disney adapts its movies and brands — names like Star Wars, Marvel, Pixar — into theme-park attractions. Sometimes, it makes streaming shows about the rides at its amusement parks as well. And, as happened with Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise and Tomorrowland, sometimes the Mouse House loves the highlights at its parks so much that it spins them out into their own films. Disney already took the latter path with The Haunted Mansion back in 2003; however, the massive entertainment company also adores revisiting its past hits (see: the upcoming live-action versions of Peter Pan & Wendy and The Little Mermaid, plus a whole lot more in recent years). So, it's ticking two boxes with Haunted Mansion, a second flick based on the Disneyland, Magic Kingdom Park and Tokyo Disneyland must-see. Obviously, the overall concept is right there in the name, but the new film's just-dropped trailer provides more story details. This time around, single mother Gabbie (Rosario Dawson, Clerks III) and her son (Chase W Dillon, The Harder They Fall) bring in folks who call themselves 'spiritual experts' when they discover that they're not the abode's only residents Cue a cast that also features LaKeith Stanfield (Atlanta), Tiffany Haddish (The Afterparty), Owen Wilson (Loki), Danny DeVito (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) and Dan Levy (Schitt's Creek), plus 2023 Oscar-nominee Jamie Lee Curtis (Halloween Ends). Plenty of the above names are keen to make some cash offering their services — and some of the movie's stars, such as Jared Leto (Morbius) as The Hatbox Ghost, get spooky. The end result will creep into cinemas in July, with Dear White People and Bad Hair filmmaker Justin Simien directing. And yes, if you want to watch the Eddie Murphy (You People)-starring original movie in the interim, you'll find it — and 2021 special Muppets Haunted Mansion — on Disney+ right now. Check out the Haunted Mansion trailer below: Haunted Mansion releases in cinemas Down Under on July 27.
It's been a busy couple of months of stargazing, with both the Lyrid and Eta Aquarids Meteor Showers lighting up our skies. Tonight, Thursday, May 7, there's another reason to look up, too: a supermoon. The last in a series of four supermoons in 2020, according to NASA, this one is called a flower moon. If you're more familiar with The Mighty Boosh's take on the moon than actual lunar terms, here's what you need to know: a supermoon is a new moon or full moon that occurs when the moon reaches the closest point to Earth in its elliptical orbit. They're not uncommon; three have taken place since February. But, now, it feels especially nice to have something luminous to look out (outside of our apartments). The flower moon is named after the flowers that are usually abundant this time of year in the US, where it's currently spring. Closer to home, this supermoon corresponds with Vesak, a Buddhist holiday marking the birth, enlightenment and passing of Buddha. https://www.facebook.com/NASA/photos/a.67899501771/10158205507416772/?type=3&theater If you're keen to see it, you'll want to catch the full moon when it's most illuminated, which happens when it's opposite the sun (a term called syzygy). According to timeanddate.com, this will happen at 8.45pm AEST and 10.45pm NZST. Have your cameras at the ready, obviously — and see if you can outdo the last big batch of supermoon snaps. Usually, when a supermoon lights up the sky, we'd advise city-dwellers to get as far away from light pollution as possible to get the best view. That's not possible given the current COVID-19 restrictions in place, so you'd best take a gander from your backyard or balcony. If you can't get a clear view, The Virtual Telescope Project will be live streaming the flower moon from 4.30am AEST (6.30am NZST) here. Image: NASA/Joel Kowsky
Run by Tasmania's Museum of Old and New Art, Dark Mofo is an arts celebration where anything truly can occur. A haven for shows, gigs and installations of the dark, sinister, confronting and boundary-pushing variety, it's back for another stunning year in 2023, taking place in Hobart between Thursday, June 8–Thursday, June 22. This year's weird and wild lineup includes a Twin Peaks-inspired ball, a teddy bear with laser eyes, sleeping over, catching Soda Jerk's latest film and seeing punk icons Black Flag play their first Aussie gig since 2013. Oh, and Florentina Holzinger's dance theatre performance A Divine Comedy, an Australian premiere and an Aussie exclusive that reimagines Dante's classic examination of hell, purgatory and paradise, That ball both wonderful and strange? That'd be Dark Mofo's hedonistic masquerade, which this year is called The Blue Rose Ball. David Lynch fans, this sounds like heaven — in a mystery venue turned into the Blue Velvet Lounge, and with live tunes and performances all on theme. If your costume includes red and white zigzags, you've obviously nailed it. That teddy bear? It's called Giant Teddy, a new commission by Dark Mofo from EJ Son. Festival attendees will see a giant Korean pop culture-inspired teddy bear that, yes, has lasers for eyes — plus a camera that'll show its live surveillance elsewhere in Hobart. [caption id="attachment_895370" align="alignnone" width="1921"] Winter Feast, Dark Mofo 2022. Photo credit: Rémi Chauvin, 2022. Image courtesy of Dark Mofo 2022.[/caption] The sleepover comes courtesy of Max Richter's SLEEP, which returns to Australia for an eight-and-a-half-hour overnight stint. You'll slumber, and Richter's compositions will play. The former will happen on beds provided by Dark Mofo, and the latter is based on the neuroscience of getting some shuteye. And if you've seen the documentary about it, you'll already be excited — and have your pyjamas ready. Soda Jerk joins the fold with Hello Dankness, which compiles samples into a 70-minute survey of American politics circa 2016–21 — so, a chaotic time. And Black Flag won't have Henry Rollins with them, but will be doing a one-off exclusive Australian show in Tassie. The music bill also features First Nations artists BARKAA, Tasman Keith, dameeeela, DENNI, MARLON X RULLA, Uncle Dougie Mansell, Katarnya Maynard, Rob Braslin and more on opening night; Ethel Cain hitting Australia for the first time; Thundercat breaking out the bass; and Witch with Dinosaur Jr's J Mascis on the drums. Squarepusher, Trentemøller, Drab Majesty, Plaid, Sleaford Mods, Deafheaven — yes, the list goes on, with Zindzi & The Zillionaires, as led by Play School host Zindzi Okenyo, also on offer for younger attendees. Dark Mofo's arts lineup spans two new pieces by Martu artist Curtis Taylor: video work Ngarnda (pain) about blood rituals, cultural rites and lived experiences; and multi-media installation Boong, which focuses on exposing racial violence. And, there's Western Flag from Irish talent John Gerrard — aka a ten-metre-by-ten-metre digital screen depicting a flagpole, but spewing out black smoke non-stop, in a reference to the world's first major oil find in Texas in 1901. [caption id="attachment_895362" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Ethel Cain | Dark Mofo 2023. Photo credit: Helen Kirbo. Image courtesy of the artist and Dark Mofo.[/caption] Top image: Dark Mofo/Rosie Hastie, 2021. Image Courtesy Dark Mofo, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
