"Wakanda Forever". A phrase that echoes throughout pop culture and the world. It became a rallying cry, a sign of respect and a salute to a film that shouldn't be described as anything less than art: Black Panther. The character dates back to the 1960s in the world of Marvel comics but made his live-action film debut in the 2016 entry to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Captain America: Civil War. Then came the wildly popular 2018 solo film Black Panther. This July, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra brings the film to life on the big screen with the soundtrack performed live, and where else to do it but the Sydney Opera House? We're here to tell you why this show is unmissable, and we're starting now. [caption id="attachment_879248" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Matt Kennedy ©Marvel Studios 2018[/caption] THE FILM 2018's Black Panther was a pivotal point for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and superhero culture as a whole. After his MCU debut in Captain America: Civil War, actor Chadwick Boseman became a household name as both T'Challa, king of the fictional African nation of Wakanda, and his superhero alter ego of the Black Panther. Boseman tragically passed away from cancer in 2020, but remains an icon of cinema and the superhero genre. Black Panther broke down barriers as the first Marvel film to feature a majority Black cast and crew. It also joined Marvel royalty as the first ever MCU film to win an Academy Award, collecting three in 2019. Here's what Concrete Playground's film expert, Sarah Ward, had to say in her 2018 review: "[Director Ryan] Coogler has crafted an entertaining, engaging and impassioned movie that is both proud of and confident in its differences, and is also committed to shining the spotlight on the people that blockbuster cinema so often ignores. What could be more awe-inspiring than that?" THE MUSIC One of the three Academy Awards won by Black Panther was for its soundtrack, the first superhero film to ever win an award in that category. That soundtrack was created by Swedish composer Ludwig Göransson, who created a score that not only holds the typical soaring crescendos representative of a superhero and memorable melodies of their antagonistic counterpart but does so using an excellent blend of traditional African music and modern Afrofuturist music. Göransson visited villages in West and South Africa to meet local musicians and research the ins and outs of traditional African music. Famed Senegalese vocalist Baaba Maal took him on a tour of his home country, and when Göransson returned to LA to start working, he knew Maal was perfect to perform the film's vocals. For his score, Göransson took traditional instruments and vocals, backed them with a full orchestra and in some cases merged the instruments with modern hip-hop beats. The result? A truly unique score that propelled Göransson into Hollywood stardom. THE VENUE If you're bringing a game-changing soundtrack like that to life, the venue needs to do it justice. Somewhere large, somewhere famous, somewhere with bloody good acoustics, somewhere like the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall. If you haven't attended anything in the space since its reopening post-renovation, here's what you need to know: from a technical point of view, the hall has been updated to improve the experience for performers and audiences alike. Without getting overly specific, adjustments have been made to the stage, walls and ceiling to allow for better acoustics and amplification of sound. So we've got an exclusively well-made show in an exclusively designed venue. It's also a very limited run, with performances spread across three nights from Thursday, July 27 to Saturday, July 29. THE ORCHESTRA We've talked about the movie, the venue and the music, but what about the musicians who'll be playing it? The Sydney Symphony Orchestra is one of Australia's most esteemed and accomplished musical institutions, with a rich history and record of exceptional performances. Established in 1932, the orchestra has evolved into a world-class ensemble that captivates audiences worldwide. Over the years, it has welcomed numerous acclaimed conductors, composers, and soloists, elevating its reputation for excellence in performing a wide range of classical, contemporary, and Australian works. The Sydney Symphony Orchestra's commitment to musical excellence is evident in their impeccable performances. Their highly skilled musicians, precision, and passion contribute to the exceptional quality of their renditions. The Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House is one of their most frequent venues, so the group has perfected playing for the space. It's an impressive resume, and the orchestra will bring all that experience and expertise to Black Panther in Concert. THE GUEST STARS For this concert run, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra is being joined by two special guest musicians. Conductor Anthony Parnther and percussionist Massamba Diop are joining the orchestra for this performance, bringing a mix of Hollywood talent and traditional musical skills. Parnther, known for his dynamic interpretations and work in film composition, has conducted prestigious orchestras worldwide. Joining him is percussionist Massamba Diop, who worked on the original Black Panther score recordings and is acclaimed for his rhythmic mastery and soulful artistry. Together with a full orchestra, these talented musicians will bring the groundbreaking Black Panther score to life, fusing orchestral brilliance with authentic African beats. This performance promises a mesmerising fusion of culture, music, and storytelling, immersing audiences in the captivating world of Wakanda next to our own Sydney Harbour. With the combined expertise and dedication of these musicians, the orchestra is sure to deliver an incredible experience. Black Panther Live in Concert is running across Thursday, July 27, Friday, July 28 and Saturday, July 29. To get tickets or find more information, visit the website.
Baby, baby, baby, 2023 is looking better — funnier, too — with the news that one of the best comedies currently being made will return with new episodes. Come Tuesday, May 30, I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson will drop six new instalments like coffins drop bodies on Corncob TV hit Coffin Flop. As always, the very real Netflix rather than the extremely fictional Corncob TV will be the place to see comedian and Detroiters star Tim Robinson unfurl his surreal sketch-comedy stylings — a sense of humour that's already gifted viewers hot dog suits, Garfield houses and sloppy steaks. If you've got slicked-back hair and babies know you used to be a piece shit, you'll be keen to see what this sidesplitting sketch comedy series serve up next. Here, literally anything can happen. I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson first arrived in 2019 when, on one otherwise normal day, folks sat down on the couch, switched on their televisions, started scrolling through Netflix and came across an instant cult-hit comedy. The best sketch comedy of that year, and one of the best TV shows in general, too, the series' first season was ridiculously easily to binge. You don't even need two hours to get through all six episodes but, once you're done, you'll wish that it went for at least twice as long. When season two arrived in 2021, it was just as phenomenal. Absurd, hilarious, finding gags about a secret excuse to help men explain away pee stains on their pants, plus quite the loud and lurid shirt, and then a daggy hat — that's this series. Absolutely no one excavates, explores and satirises social awkwardness with the gusto, commitment and left-of-centre viewpoint of Robinson, with his skits diving headfirst into uncomfortable and excruciating situations, dwelling there, and letting them fester. It's no wonder that the former Saturday Night Live comic has a hit on his hands. Just try looking away from his flexible face expressions alone. So far, Netflix hasn't spilled exactly what's in store for season three, or dropped a trailer, but it doesn't matter — whatever Robinson unleashes won't be like anything else. Haven't watched the first two seasons yet, and not sure I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson is for you? It is. Robinson has had plenty of recognisable co-stars by his side over the initial two batches of episodes, too — talents such as Sam Richardson (The Afterparty), Will Forte (Weird: The Al Yankovic Story), Steven Yeun (Nope), Vanessa Bayer (I Love That for You) and Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul). And, the series also boasts some big names off-screen too, with The Lonely Island (aka Brooklyn Nine-Nine's Andy Samberg and his regular comedy partners Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone) its executive producers. Check out the trailers for I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson season one and two below: I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson's third season will be available to stream via Netflix from Tuesday, May 30. Images: Terence Patrick, Netflix.
Earlier this year, it was announced that Sydney hospitality legends Kenny Graham and Jake Smyth (of Mary's, The Lansdowne, The Unicorn, P&V Wine and Liquor, Mary's Pizzeria) were taking over historic jazz venue The Basement and transforming it into a live gig space, a wine bar and a new harbourside Mary's — and the latter is opening tomorrow. Yep, on Wednesday, May 1, when you knock off work, you'll be able to stroll on down to Circular Quay and dig into a juicy Mary's burger and fried cauliflower. Wait, what? Yep, this new Mary's will, for the first time ever, have a vegan menu. Plant-based peeps, rejoice — you'll now be able to get your fill of the famed burgers and fried 'chicken'. The 'chicken' will be fried cauliflower and the burgers made with vegan patty, cheese, bun and a vegan take on Mary's sauce. As an added bonus, there'll also be no chance of contamination with the kitchen having its own vegan-only cool room, grills and fryers. If you were lucky enough to head along to Mary's Newtown's one-off all-vegan collab with Shannon Martinez (of Melbourne's Smith & Daughters and Smith & Deli), you'll know that the boys do vegan well. Very well. As co-owner Smyth said in a statement, "it's fucking delicious plant based food, designed to make your carnivorous mates jealous." [caption id="attachment_706829" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jake Smyth and Kenny Graham by Leyla Muratovic.[/caption] Those carnivorous mates who do prefer their burgers and fried chicken the traditional Mary's way — made with juicy beef and poultry — fear not, you'll find all the meat-filled classic here, too. As well as Mary's classic loud tunes, natural wines, local beers and raucous service. And, if there's not already graffiti in the bathrooms when the 100-seat venue opens, we're sure it won't be long till there is. In a change of direction for the duo, though, you'll also be able to eat your burgers outdoors (in the sun) at the 30-seat Mary's Alfresco. And there's more to come from the new Mary's digs, too. While the upstairs restaurant — fittingly called Mary's Circular Quay — is opening tomorrow, Mary's Underground, the live music venue and full-service restaurant, is slated to open by the end of the month. We'll let you know when it does. Find Mary's CQ at 7 Macquarie Place, Sydney from Wednesday, May 1. It's open from midday–12am Monday–Wednesday, midday–1am Thursday–Saturday, and midday–10pm on Sunday. Top image: Mary's Newtown.
Hands up anyone who’s ever dreamed of touring with the band? The heady mix of hedonism and the seductive lure of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll? David Porter dreamed such dreams and realised them under the pseudonym Jacques L’Affrique, photographing the rock scene in Melbourne as it was gathering momentum in the 1970s. He has an archive of 3000 negatives, and it is of these that the current exhibition, Unreal Rock, is comprised. Black and white, small and intimate, the images present the archetypes of the provocative '70s rock musician and adoring audience. My only criticism of the exhibition is that, while the display may present a nice walk down memory lane for anyone of that vintage, to a younger crowd, styled in the slick planning of contemporary rock studio photography, the images seem a world away. UV3D is, similarly, a survey of the past. Vernon Treweeke presents his early work from 1966 through to contemporary work created just this year — all of which is made acutely current by the advent of 3D TV. Treweeke’s paintings show a hyperreal world that is very much created in the here and now, citing influences such as Salvador Dali, art therapy, Brett Whitely, Leonardo da Vinci, Sydney’s Gallery A and the Yellow House artists. Treweeke says his aim "is to create an artificial world in each work of art … to challenge the conventional concept of reality", and the result is a truly individual aesthetic and intricate inventories of other worlds, which call to mind Surrealist landscapes. The translation of 2D visual art into a 3D display likewise presents Treweeke and viewers with an ‘other world’ and a unique technique "whereby I paint and sculpt at the same time". A free, curator-guided tour will take place for both exhibitions on Saturday, June 12 at 11am.
December is a time for reflection. A time to look back on the year that was, read round-ups to check up on what you've missed and put together best-of lists (indeed, we've just launched our own). Earlier this week Time Magazine announced Donald Trump as their Person of the Year, which, if you needed reminding, is pretty indicative of how this insane year has played out. How to deal with it all? With green, apparently. Greenery (PANTONE 15-0343) has just been named as Pantone's 2017 Colour of the Year. The inoffensive neutral shade was chosen by Pantone's colour experts not only because it's a "fresh and zesty yellow-green shade" but because of the role it plays in our modern society as a connection to nature and vitality. Referencing the year that was, Pantone executive director Leatrice Eisemen says that Greenery provides "us with the reassurance we yearn for amid a tumultuous social and political environment...it symbolises the reconnection we seek with nature, one another and a larger purpose." It's also symbolic of new beginnings — but perhaps that's being a bit too optimistic. At least Pantone was able to settle on just one colour this time. Last year, for the first time, it chose two colours to receive the title: Rose Quartz and Serenity.
A village in Oxfordshire is about to become home to England's first hotel gardening school. From July 2017, Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons — an extremely stately hotel with a two Michelin-starred restaurant — will open The Raymond Blanc Gardening School, giving guests the chance to green up their thumb in between luxe spa treatments and croquet matches. Belmond Le Manoir is already pretty well-known for its 30 acres of landscaped gardens, particularly its lush kitchen garden. There are two acres of edibles, including 90 veggies and 70 herbs. Head gardener Anne Marie Owens knows a thing or two about growing — she's been running the garden for more than 30 years. If you've ever wondered how to trick your tomatoes onto a trellis or pump up your pumpkins, she'd be the person to ask. Just some of the things that Anne Marie and her crew will be teaching include courses on understanding soil and growing organics, micro greens, mushrooms, seasonal veggies. On top of those, occasional classes will be run by special guests, covering more left-field topics, such as the medicinal properties of herbs and pruning fruit trees. You can attend for a half-day or a full day. Either way, you'll be learning in the Hartley Botanic Glasshouse, within the hotel's Heritage Garden. And of course, you could always book a night at the hotel — although, rooms sit at around a quite ludicrous £1000 a night. The school gets its name from hotelier and head chef Raymond Blanc OBE. Born in France, he's been running the Quat'Saisons restaurant since 1977 and the hotel since 1984. The Raymond Blanc Gardening School will launch in July 2017 at Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons in Great Milton, Oxford, UK. For more info, visit their website.
For most folks, starring in one of the best new shows of 2022 so far would be the highlight of their resume for the year. But, of course, most folks aren't Taika Waititi. After getting streaming viewers swooning over warm-hearted pirate comedy Our Flag Means Death, he's about to unleash a little movie called Thor: Love and Thunder upon cinemas. And, based on the just-dropped first teaser trailer for his second contribution to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a director, the goofy vibes, old-school rock tunes and delight that is Chris Hemsworth firmly in comedic mode are all back this time around. In fact, if you watched Thor: Ragnarok, laughed along heartily, lapped up the looser mood and instantly wanted more of Waititi's take on the MCU, you're in luck — because he also co-wrote the script for Thor: Love and Thunder with Jennifer Kaytin Robinson (Sweet/Vicious). In the trailer, that results in a comic look at Thor (Hemsworth, Extraction) dealing with the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame by reassessing his future and opting for retirement. But, if that was all there was to the story, it wouldn't be a Marvel movie. As shot in Australia, Thor: Love and Thunder sees its namesake come up against Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale, Ford v Ferrari), a galactic killer with a world-changing plan: eradicating the gods. So, Thor has to give up his search for inner peace, and call upon help from King Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson, Passing) and Korg (Waititi, doing triple duty) — and his ex-girlfriend Jane Foster (Natalie Portman, Vox Lux), who is now in possession of Mjolnir. Thor: Love and Thunder marks Portman's return to the MCU after appearing in the first Thor flick back in 2011, but sitting out the rest. Given the path her character has taken, it's easy to see why she's back. As set to the sounds of Guns 'N Roses' 'Sweet Child 'O Mine', the trailer makes the most of her new ownership of the god of thunder's magical hammer — understandably. Also popping up in the initial sneak peek for the fourth Thor flick: the Guardians of the Galaxy crew (as played and/or voiced by Chris Pratt, Pom Klementieff, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel), and a lightning-bolt wielding figure who it's safe to expect is Russell Crowe (Unhinged) as Zeus. When it hits cinemas Down Under on Thursday, July 7, following Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness in early May, Thor: Love and Thunder will mark the 29th MCU movie overall. And, it mightn't be the last big-screen release Waititi has for us this year, either, with his documentary-to-feature adaptation of soccer story Next Goal Wins also in the pipeline. Check out the teaser trailer for Thor: Love and Thunder below: Thor: Love and Thunder opens in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, July 7.
Over the past year or so, we've heard a lot about self-driving cars being tested overseas — Uber's doing it in the US, as is ride-sharing service Lyft, there's driverless bus in Washington D.C. and a driverless delivery service in Japan. But save for a very adorable bus launched in Perth back in September, Australia is yet to foray into the sort of terrifying world of self-driving vehicles. Until now, that is, because the Victorian Government has just announced it will start to trial driverless cars on Melbourne roads from next year. The Andrews Labor Government yesterday announced they will partner with toll road management company Transurban to test driverless cars currently on the market to see how they interact with Melbourne's road infrastructure — that is lane signals, electronic speed signs, line markings and that pesky Montague Street Bridge. They'll be letting the cars loose on CityLink, including the Monash and Tullamarine Freeways, albeit with a real-life human driver in the car to take back control if needed. The news that the Victorian Government is committing to a trial of self-driving cars makes their insertion into our daily lives much more plausible for the near future. Indeed, it could mean great things for people who may not otherwise be able to drive, and has the potential to reduce the amount of accidents that occur from human error. "We want to work with the automotive and technology industries so Victoria can be at the forefront of automated vehicle technology and create jobs here in Victoria," said Minister for Roads and Road Safety Luke Donnellan in a statement. "Keeping people safe on our roads is our number one priority and that's why we're running these innovative trials in the safest possible way for all road users. By removing human error from the equation, autonomous vehicles will play a critical role in reducing deaths and serious injuries on Victorian roads." The trial is set to start early next year, so if you're in Melbourne, keep an eye out for any of this.
Explore the works of eight highly lauded 20th-century designers in the Powerhouse's upcoming Graphic Identities exhibition, part of Sydney Design Week 2021. The long-running exhibition will bring together archived work from pre-digital designers who've shaped modern Australian culture through advertising, publishing, fine arts and textiles — and whose designs led to the creation of brands like David Jones, National Trust of Australia, Dri-Glo, Tourism Australia and the Reserve Bank. It'll include artworks that spans pre-digital commercial and graphic design, typography, collage, illustration, printmaking and painting. Featured designers include Douglas Annand, Frances Burke, Gordon Andrews and Arthur Leydin, all of whom were crucial to the history of Australian design. Image: 'Currency' magazine covers, Reserve Bank of Australia, designed by Alistair Morrison, 1690–66, Powerhouse Collection
Stay tuned. More info on its way.
It looks like it's going to be a while longer yet before you can jet off on that next sunny holiday to the Greek islands. So why not let them come to you? A breezy new Greek meze bar has opened its doors in the heart of Bondi Beach, named and inspired by the tiny Aegean island of Ikaria. Here, husband-and-wife duo Joaquin Saez (Alberto's Lounge, Cho Cho San, co-owner of La Palma) and Emily Abay are bringing a taste of the Mediterranean coast to Sydney's own stretch of beachside paradise. You're invited to step through the door and embrace the Ikarian philosophy of life, centred around celebration, happiness and enjoyment. Fashion photographer Abay has helmed the design, creating a tranquil vision of archways, whitewashed walls and neutral-toned tiles, framed by sweeping views across the water. It's a holiday vibe, to be sure. Leading the kitchen is Head Chef Robert Young (Quay, Born by Tapavino, the UK's Restaurant Martin Wishart), who is turning out a share-focused menu peppered with plenty of Mediterranean flavours. You'll find the likes of an Ikarian-style taramasalata served with warm pita for dipping, saganaki finished with chestnut honey and crisp zucchini chips matched with herb aioli. Octopus is grilled, and teamed with lukanika (a type of sausage), radicchio and endives, while salsa verde finishes a dish of Greek-style lamb meatballs. Ikaria's wine offering is diverse for its size, featuring mostly European labels, alongside a handful of local beers and Greece's Mythos lager. But if you're really embracing those vacation feels, expect to be tempted by the cocktail list, which stars sips both classic and original. There's a riff on the martini, crafted with olive gin and rosemary thyme vermouth, and the striking Blue Zone — a fusion of tequila, blue curaçao, cucumber agave and rosemary smoke. What's more, from 3–5pm every Tuesday to Sunday, you can escape even further into the holiday fantasy during the bar's dedicated Aperitif Time, enjoying a series of happy hour drink specials. Find Ikaria at 70 Campbell Parade, Bondi Beach. It's open from 3pm–late Tuesdays–Fridays, 12pm–late on Saturdays and 12pm–10pm on Sundays.
Building grand concert halls and top-notch performance venues is crucial to boosting a city’s arts scene. Equally important is providing creative types with affordable spaces where they can live, work and exchange ideas. Unfortunately, Sydney’s astronomical increases in property prices haven’t been making that too easy. So the City of Sydney Council is straightening up, flying right and doing something about it. The council's brand new cultural policy promises all kinds of gangbusters arts-promoting initiatives, including interest-free loans for art investors, year-round public art smorgasbords and cutting back on red tape for pop-ups. They're not all talk either, as one of the policy's first practical applications has just been announced — the development of a $25 million creative hub smack bang in the CBD. Housed in one slick, bubbling creative centre, artists, dancers, actors, musicians, writers and filmmakers will have access to 36 low-rent work spaces, spread over 2000 square metres and five storeys. They’ll be located within what’s soon to become Sydney’s tallest residential tower — the former Sydney Water site on Bathurst Street, set for redevelopment by Greenland Australia. Creatives will share the 67-storey building with 490 residential apartments, as well as ground-floor retail outlets. The inclusion of the hub has been made possible through a Voluntary Planning Agreement, much to the delight of Sydney's creative community. AN AUSTRALIAN FIRST "While we developed our new cultural policy, Creative Sydney, one issue consistently raised by artists and creative workers was the lack of affordable work space in the inner city," Lord Mayor Clover Moore told us. "The City of Sydney has already had great success with affordable creative spaces in our own properties on William and Oxford Street, but to unlock bigger opportunities we knew that working with commercial developers would be essential." "There’s been a history, albeit limited, of infrastructure — theatres and so on — coming through development agreements," adds Rachel Healy, City of Sydney’s executive manager of culture. "For example, the City Recital Hall came through a voluntary planning agreement with the MLC Centre. But there’s been no attention paid, not to the end result of the artist’s work — which is being on a stage, or being in an exhibition space — but to the spaces that artists need to create their work ... We think this is an Australian first. It’s [Greenland’s] first venture into Australia as well, so they’re really excited to be partnering with us. They were interested in what makes cities interesting and in how they could contribute in a way that wasn’t necessarily orthodox.” SPECIALISED SPACES FOR EVERY ART FORM Bands, bards and ballet dancers have different needs when it comes to creative space. The new hub's 36 unique spaces will cater to the needs of varying art forms — there’ll even be one live-work apartment, enabled through a creative fellowship program. "Workspace is a pretty broad term," Healy explains. "It includes rehearsal studios, offices, meeting rooms and spaces that are set up to accommodate the particular needs of various art forms. If you’re in a metal band, for example, how many spaces exist which are soundproofed — meaning you don’t have to turn yourself inside out trying to rehearse at a time when the neighbours aren’t going to complain? Every art form has particular needs. Dancers need to work on sprung timber floors. Musicians need acoustically treated spaces. Visual artists often need wet-dry spaces." The hub also caters to the technologically inclined, with media editing suites for filmmakers and new media artists. CREATIVE COLLABORATION Creatives need coffee, so a ground floor cafe (planned for the socially advantageous spot right next to the lift) will provide a place for arty types to get together, swap ideas, devise collaborations (and plan creative revolutions). Plus, it’s hoped that the central location will mean exposure to new audiences and helpful commercial forces. "Great cities are places with a great blending of commercial, cultural and residential activity," the Lord Mayor says. "I expect the creative hub to attract more people to the city centre, which is great for business. The Oxford Street and William Street affordable creative spaces have also seen artists develop good relationships with surrounding businesses, and I’m sure the new creative hub will have a similar benefit. I hope that the new residents take advantage of living so close to such great facilities. And I’m sure the wide range of artists working in the creative hub will lead to some interesting collaborations." SO, WHEN CAN WE MOVE IN? Hold on to those flourishing ideas, it’s expected that the facilities will be up and running by mid-2017. Configuring exactly how the spaces will be made available and shared is still a work-in-progress. "One option we’re investigating is to have a cultural organisation based permanently on each floor that would be responsible for running the booking the creative spaces on their floor," says Moore. "We expect to announce details of how artists and creative teams can access the spaces in 2016." To find out more ways the City of Sydney's cultural policy will make Sydney better, head over here for our handy rundown.
On March 26, the Federal Government passed its controversial data retention laws, meaning phone and internet service providers must store the metadata surrounding your phone calls and internet adventures for two years. And not only must they store this information, 85 various agencies associated with security and policing can get access to it: no warrant necessary. While Attorney General George Brandis lauded the passing of the bill, describing metadata as “the basic building block in nearly every counterterrorism, counterespionage and organised crime investigation,” Greens Senator Scott Ludlam remained strongly against its “entrenching” of “a form of passive surveillance over 23 million Australians.” Such a hot topic is the ideal opener for the 2015 IQ2 debate program, run by the Ethics Centre (formerly St James Ethics Centre). On March 31, four speakers will gather at City Recital Hall to argue over the statement, 'Only the wicked need fear government spying'. Opposing the motion will be Suelette Dreyfus, author of cult classic Underground, and David Marr, who writes for Guardian Australia, the Saturday Paper and Quarterly. In the statement's defence will speak Rufus Black, Master of Ormond College at the University of Melbourne and government advisor, as well as Michael Wesley, Professor of International Affairs and Director of the Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs at the Australian National University.
Back in the day, you could walk into any old saloon, tap the bar with two fingers and the bartender would pour you a top-shelf whisky — neat, of course. Sadly, such a suave scenario isn't possible at the moment, but just because bars across the country have been forced to temporarily close doesn't mean you must go without your Laphroaig. Keeping you suitably soused while you're stuck at home is Whisky Loot. And while it mightn't be new, there's never been a better time to get small-batch and hard-to-find whiskies delivered straight to your door. The monthly subscription service delivers a box of three 60-millilitre bottles, with a different theme every time, so you'll never drink the same tipple twice. The aim is to expand your palate and educate you along the way. So, if you're just entering the world of whisky or looking to sample something other than your go-to firewater, this is for you. This month, you'll get to sample three fine Australian whiskies: an award-winning one from Launceston Distillery; a rye by Melbourne-based distillery The Gospel; and the Whisky Loot Private Barrel made by Whipper Snapper Distillery, which is not available for retail sale. While we could go into the tasting notes of each, we reckon you should take the gamble and just drink 'em. Plus, you'll be supporting local businesses, the importance of which cannot be underestimated right now. As well as three tasty ambers, you'll receive expert tasting notes and a tasting journal (with your first box), both of which will help take you from whisky novice to aficionado. And although it's a subscription service, you can do it month-to-month, with no lock-ins. It makes for a great gift, too. Best of all, Whisky Loot is offering $10 off your first order if you opt for the subscription, making it just $49 for your first round, which includes free standard shipping across Australia. And for New Zealand, contact support@whiskyloot.com for shipping information. To get in on this sweet deal, just enter SUPPORT5 at checkout. Plus, it'll be donating $5 from each box to Hospo Voice in support of the hospitality industry, which is doing it pretty tough right now. So, you can cheers to a good cause. For more information about Whisky Look and to sign up, head 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.
Founder of McSweeney's and novelist of high-fivable acclaim, Dave Eggers, is heading to Australia. The 44-year-old Pulitzer Prize-winner is set to appear at a series of talks as part of Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane Writers Festivals — notably providing the closing address for MWF, opening for BWF and meeting up with organisations his own models have inspired like Sydney Story Factory. The poster boy for self-made journalists and novelists, the San Francisco-based writer and editor has cranked out no less than ten books including most recent releases Your Fathers, Where Are They? And the Prophets, Do They Live Forever?, The Circle and A Hologram for the King and his Pulitzer Prize-winning first novel and memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. Eggers also famously founded independent publishing company McSweeneys in the '90s out of SF, an endeavour that now counts a slam dunk of a website, books, a quarterly journal and a monthly magazine, The Believer, in its bag of tricks. But McSweeney's doesn't just publish personified accounts from the font Comic Sans, the team have also released the nonprofit book series Voice of Witness, which illuminates global human rights crises using oral history. Legends. But then there's Eggers' other, closer-to-home initiative, 826 National, the sweet network of eight tutoring centres across the States. It was the 826 model that inspired Australian organisations like 100 Story Building in Melbourne's inner west and Sydney Story Factory in Redfern. In Sydney, Eggers is set to appear in conversation with Sydney Story Factory director, Cath Keenan — whose Redfern organisation is based around Eggers' 826 National tutoring centre model. The pair will be having mad chats at Carriageworks on Wednesday, September 3 as an extension of SWF. In Melbourne, Eggers will apear in a series of Meet McSweeney's-type panels alongside managing editor Jordan Bass with former guest editor Chris Flynn at The Wheeler Centre, before delivering the closing night address for the MWF on Sunday, August 31 at Deakin Edge, Fed Square. In Brisbane, he'll kick things off with the BWF opening address on Thursday, September 4 before a one-off literary cabaret vaudeville show at Brisbane Powerhouse on the Friday. For more informaation, dates and events for Dave Eggers' Australian tour, head to Penguin over here.
Parramatta-based fans of Jamie Oliver are probably still mourning the loss of their very own Jamie's Italian. It's barely been a month since the restaurant closed abruptly amid a national ownership change. In April, The Jamie Oliver Group went into administration and handed over the management of its Australian restaurants to the Brisbane-based Hallmark Group; in June, The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the western Sydney outpost had been closed after the group couldn't reach a rental agreement. But now the site at Centenary Square is set to be a restaurant once more. Matt Moran's Solotel Group will open a second outpost of its CBD steakhouse Chophouse in October this year. The experience of the CBD venue — which Solotel bought from the now-defunct Keystone Group in 2016 — is set to be replicated in Parramatta, with the site set to score a new fit-out and a similar menu that features high-end cuts of steak, oysters, potato scallops and lots of sides. The new Chophouse will be Solotel's second venue in Parramatta — it also runs the Albion Hotel on George Street — but it sounds like there's more where that came from. "We've had our eye on expanding west for a while now," said director Bruce Solomon. "And when the offer to open a restaurant in the hub of Parramatta presented itself we couldn't say no." That, coupled with the fact that Surry Hills' Butter has opened in the suburb and Rockpool and Sake are slated to launch in 2020, makes it seem very likely that more and more inner-city restaurants will produce Parramatta clones. Fingers crossed one of them starts a $10 pasta deal to fill the void. Chophouse will open at Centenary Square, Parramatta in October 2018. Check the website for details — we'll keep you notified on an opening date.
If you've been enjoying someone else's Netflix subscription to get your Stranger Things, Squid Game and Wednesday fix, or work your way through its hefty slate of movies, the streaming platform has been promising bad news for a few years now: ending password sharing, so users can no longer login by borrowing a pal or family member's login details. The feature is being trialled in Chile, Peru and Costa Rica, and is officially on its way to the rest of the world by the end of March. And, if you're wondering how it might work, the service has revealed the details. At present, Netflix's help centre outlines its current rules around sharing the platform with someone who doesn't live with you, noting that "people who do not live in your household will need to use their own account to watch Netflix". Right now, in most places in the world, if a device outside of your home signs in, you might be asked to verify it — but you won't be charged if the service thinks that you are sharing your password. In a change to the help centre that went up temporarily — and, reportedly accidentally — details of Netflix's procedures when the password-sharing crackdown comes into effect were listed. Still archived via The WayBack Machine, the changes first state that users will need to log into Netflix via the app or website on your device when it's connected to the wifi at your primary location, and to do so for at least once every 31 days. That'll make Netflix see whatever you're watching the service on as a "trusted device", so you can use it even when you're away from home. The help centre also noted that "devices that are not part of your primary location may be blocked from watching Netflix", but still says that Netflix won't automatically charge you for share your account with someone who doesn't live with you. That said, the new password-sharing block is being called "paid sharing" by Netflix in a letter to shareholders, so that's in the works. The platform has also recently unveiled an ad-supported subscription package, too. "Today's widespread account sharing (to 100 million-plus households) undermines our long-term ability to invest in and improve Netflix, as well as build our business," the company states in that shareholder letter, which is dated January 19, 2023. "While our terms of use limit use of Netflix to a household, we recognise this is a change for members who share their account more broadly. So we've worked hard to build additional new features that improve the Netflix experience, including the ability for members to review which devices are using their account and to transfer a profile to a new account. As we roll out paid sharing, members in many countries will also have the option to pay extra if they want to share Netflix with people they don't live with." Of course, logging into your Netflix account from a network outside of your wifi doesn't automatically mean you're sharing your password. You might be travelling and still want to get your streaming fix. "If you are away from your primary location for an extended period of time, your device may be blocked from watching Netflix," the Help Centre says. The workaround for this will frustratingly require requesting a temporary access code — one that also annoyingly also only works for seven days. Given that Netflix has taken down these rule changes from its help centre in most markets, these processes might be tinkered with before they are rolled out to the rest of the world. As per The Guardian, the service advised that "for a brief time yesterday, a help centre article containing information that is only applicable to Chile, Costa Rica and Peru, went live in other countries. We have since updated it". Netflix's password-sharing block is set to come into effect worldwide sometime before the end of March — we'll update you when more details are announced.
Attention all iPhone addicts: if you've ever been stranded in the middle of a forest with zero battery power left, in desperate need of access to Twitter and a game (or ten) of Angry Birds, then Ralph Lauren has the answer to your problems. The new RLX men's collection has introduced a line of high-performance bags, one of which has a solar panel attached designed to charge any iPhone, iPad or iPod in a matter of hours when in direct sunlight. The Solar Panel Backpack is made of a lightweight, seamless and water-resistant material with thick adjustable straps for comfort. The panel is attached to the back of the bag, and can generate up to a 3.45 watt-current when the sun is at full-strength. This combo of style and solar power will set you back a steep $800, but if you can't live without Angry Birds it might be worth the big bucks.
Enmore Country Club, BTB Kirribilli and DOOM JUICE are joining forces to host a huge dinner party on Friday, April 28 — and you are invited. Inspiration for the night struck BTB Executive Chef Cam Voltano after some cheeky Chiantis and a screening of Stanley Tucci's Big Night. With the creative juices flowing, this hospitality trio unanimously decided to host an unforgettable dinner party. Head to the BTB's North Shore home, found directly under the Harbour Bridge, for a night of authentic Italian cuisine with a native twist, the Enmore Country Club's signature cocktails and glasses of Doom Juice wine. Voltano will bring his passion for native Australian ingredients to traditional Italian recipes, creating a uniquely BTB menu for the night. On offer, you may spot pepperberry cacio e pepe arancini, purslane-infused caesar salad, house-made focaccia and a truly giant meatball — potentially Sydney's biggest, according to the chef. To round out the night, a native-heavy take on neapolitan ice cream will be available, experimenting with a trio of wattleseed, davidson plum and Geraldton wax flavours. The hits start coming and they don't stop coming – alongside a stacked food menu, you will also be able to nab 70s and 80s-inspired cocktails by the Enmore Country Club. You can sip the night away with these re-imagined classics, or opt for the venue's famous boozy cherry cola. And to top it all off, Zac Godbolt — DOOM JUICE's Creative Director, the Enmore Country Club's Dynn Szmulewicz and Dan McBride, plus BTB's very own Adam Brcic will be on bartending duties. Whether you are after an inventive cocktail or a DOOM JUICE rouge, this triad of talent has got you covered. The dinner party starts at 7pm sharp, so don't be late. Head here for the tickets — they are limited so be sure to get in quick, or check out the Enmore Country Club's Instagram page to keep up to date with event details.
The Red Rattler is hoping for an extra-special birthday present this May; after five years, the alternative arts space, currently facing an uncertain future, is looking to the community for support. 'The Rat' was founded in 2008 by a quintet of queer artists and activists dedicated to independent arts and grassroots activism. They "hocked everything that they could" to create a space that is not only accessible but also legal, and able to survive the market vicissitudes threatening so many live performance venues. All too often, Sydney's exorbitant rent levels get in the way of the arts underground. Two of the five original founders are now departing to take on other projects, so the Rat has decided to adopt a new model, which will see a shift towards becoming a collective-owned, self-sufficient entity. The catch is that this will only be achievable if the venue can find the $40,000 needed to purchase a 40 percent share in the warehouse that it calls home. Enter crowd funding. Audience members, artists and patrons are being asked to donate to the Rat's Pozible campaign, which, at the time of publication, ends in 46 days and has reached 50 percent of its goal. A failure to meet the target amount may mean closure. Given the growing list of venues that have kicked the bucket recently, losing the Rat would seem a rather tough blow. The space occupies a particularly important position, in terms of its focus on community. "The Red Rattler prides itself on accessibility in terms of both affordability and a non-discriminatory mode of operation," says Jamie Ferguson, a member of the volunteer advisory management committee. "[It] was set up as a space where racism, homophobia, transphobia and sexism are not welcome on stage, in the audience, at the door or at the bar. The Rat has and continues to be a space where everyone feels welcome and part of a family, and able to be oneself and also be experimental. There is no judgment, which is a great thing for artists, and performers who want to push boundaries or simply try new things." Anyone wanting to become part of the Save the Rat campaign can make a contribution or offer their services as a volunteer. They're also invited to the venue's fifth birthday celebrations, which will take the form of a fundraiser on Friday, May 3. The line-up includes DJs Seymour Butz and Adonis, Mojo Juju, Wife, Venus Vamp, and "loads of cake".
Hold onto your paper plates Sydney, because Carriageworks has just announced another Night Market, this time to coincide with Vivid Sydney. The after-dark market launched a year ago as part of last year's festival program before returning for another two iterations later in the year. However, the outdoor nosh session appeared to get too popular for its own good — January's Chinese New Year Market was met with angry punters demanding refunds for their entry fee after they met long lines and a lack of food inside. This latest instalment of The Night Market — to be held on Friday, June 16 — will still have a $10 ticket price, but, this time around, there will be some changed. Organisers have reportedly taken on feedback form last time, and will be doubling both the space and the food available. "We have taken great care to ensure this exciting instalment of The Night Market addresses visitors' feedback from previous markets," said Carriageworks director Lisa Havilah. "Following extensive expert consultation, we are doubling the footprint of the area that the Market takes place over and doubling the number of restaurants and food offered on the night. There will be additional seating and increased security in place to facilitate service and ensure that everyone has a fantastic experience." The event will see a slew of stallholders take over Carriageworks from 5pm on the penultimate evening of Vivid. You can expect to once again sample goods from NSW's top tier of restaurants, winemakers, breweries and providores, as curated by Firedoor's Lennox Hastie who is working with the theme 'cooking with fire'. Billy Kwong, Young Henrys, Cake Wines 4Fourteen, No.1 Bent Street and Pepe Saya will be returning, and will be joined by the likes of Three Blue Ducks, Cairo Takeaway, Rising Sun Workshop, Lankan Filling Station and Hartsyard. Darren Robertson's yet-to-open North Bondi venue Rocker will be doing the drinks too. The Vivid instalment of The Night Market will take place from 5pm on Friday, June 16 at Carriageworks. To buy a ticket, visit carriageworks.com.au. Image: Tim da Rin.
People around the world are currently tuning in to watch the live stream of the Curiosity Rover landing on Mars today at 3.31pm (AEST). The aim for the landing on Mars is to analyse a range of samples drilled from rocks on the planet. This will determine whether there has been or ever will be microbial life on Mars. On the Curiosity Rover's Arm is a mounted Mars Hand Lens Imager which will be taking extreme close-up pictures of the rocks, soil and possibly ice, showing details smaller than the width of a human hair. The Imager can also focus on inconspicuous objects that are up to an arm's length away. Broadcasting live with Ustream [via Gizmodo]
One of the year's most confronting documentaries will be shown in select Australian universities starting early next week. Directed by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Kirby Dick, The Hunting Ground chronicles the endemic problem of rape on American college campuses. Combining harrowing personal accounts with staggering statistics – including a claim that as many as one in five American women will be sexually assaulted during their time in university – the film lays bare a horrifying culture of abuse, victim-blaming and institutional negligence. An hour long version of the film will be screened at the University of Canberra on February 22, the Australian National University on February 24 and La Trobe University in Melbourne on February 29, March 4 and March 8. The complete 103 minute feature version will also be shown at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image in Melbourne on March 2. Nothing has been scheduled for Sydney or Brisbane as of yet, however universities and other interested parties can sign up to host a screening via the film's website. The Hunting Ground Australia Project is also engaged with the Australian Human Rights Commission and the Australian Human Rights Centre at UNSW on an independent survey "on the prevalence, reporting experiences and responses to sexual assault and sexual harassment in university settings." Unlike the United States, there is currently no comprehensive data on the rates of sexual assaults at universities in Australia, although a 2011 survey by the National Union of Students reported that one in ten female students had suffered sexual violence while at university. The Hunting Ground has faced criticism from some journalists and college administrators, who have claimed it pushes an agenda and misrepresents statistics. The filmmakers have denied these claims on their website. For more on The Hunting Ground, including information about screenings and how you can host your own, visit www.thehuntinggroundaustralia.com.au.
Blog-scanning, pub-debating Star Wars fans, put your minds and your theories to rest. Star Wars VII captain J.J. Abrams has at last lifted the lid on who’ll be appearing in the hotly anticipated episode seven. Casting announcements have dribbled out over the last few months, confirming a half-dozen irreplaceable veterans are back on board — namely Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO) and Kenny Baker (R2-D2). Along with our long-time favourites, the final casting announcement revealed a plethora of unknowns. So we thought we'd get acquainted with the seven newbies. Their roles and midi-chlorian counts are yet to be revealed, so you can continue your pub arguments for a while yet. ADAM DRIVER You might know him best as Girls' Adam Sackler. But, just lately, we've seen Driver tackle the Australian desert alongside Mia Wasikowska in Tracks and cheese his way through a novelty song with Justin Timberlake in Inside Llewyn Davis. What's more, Star Wars isn't the only major announcement he's been part of during the past few months. You can also expect to catch him in upcoming films Midnight Special (Jeff Nichols) and Silence (Martin Scorsese). OSCAR ISAAC Oscar Isaac hits Star Wars hot on the heels of his wide-eyed, multi-award winning appearance as hapless singer-songwriter Llewyn Davis. He's also in the credits for five films currently in post-production: In Secret, Ex-Machina, The Two Faces of January, Mojave and A Most Violent Year. MAX VON SYDOW 85-year-old Swedish-turned-French legend Max Von Sydow has been appearing on the big screen since 1949. Most recently, he scored a bunch of nominations, including one for his second Academy Award — for his role as The Renter in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. ANDY SERKIS You might not recognise him from the above mug shot, but Andy Serkis is most likely one of your noughties heroes. Through a combo of motion picture capture acting, voice and animation, he played Gollum in Peter Jackon's Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001-3) and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012). He brought similar magic to the lead role in King Kong (2005), Caesar in Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) and Captain Haddock in The Adventures of Tintin (2011). DOMHNALL GLEESON Hogwarts students are most likely to be familiar with this striking Irish face. Domhnall Gleeson played Bill Weasley in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Parts I and II (2010 and 2011). Right now, he's on set for upcoming romantic comedy Brooklyn, an adaptation of the Nick Hornby novel. JOHN BOYEGA In 2012, at the age of 20, Boyega shared a set with Oscar nominee Chiwete Ejiofor in Half of a Yellow Sun (Nigeria/UK 2013). Sci-fi fans knew him before that, though, for his take on Moses in Attack the Block. DAISY RIDLEY And last, but not least (though certainly least-known) is Daisy Ridley. She's appeared in a handful of TV series, including Casualty, Mr Selfridge and Silent Witness, and played the lead in BAFTA-nominated interactive film, Lifesaver. She's now trending like wildfire.
Summer is fast approaching, and you know what that means: warmer weather, fewer layers. Although it seems like thongs and shorts become the uniform of the season for many, the style-conscious woman saves those for the beach. This may be the most exciting time of year for fashion, with all the bright colours, light fabrics and fun shapes. And it looks like it's going to be a good season for all of those things. Here at Concrete Playground, we've rounded up some of the best current looks for every taste. We've also got a style guide for men. Here it is over here. Top image by Oroton. CLASSIC Offering a mix of both ladylike and masculine looks, this season offers the traditional dresser something different. Minimalism has been a huge theme this season, but not necessarily when it comes to length. Think classic styles, clean shapes and funky prints. Matchy-matchy Suits Popping up in fun prints and wearable colours such as navy, pink and white, summer suits are finding their ways to more places than the office. If you're not feeling the pants, these colourful combos can be found in skirt and short options for a warmer weather alternative. Mix them up with a fun printed blouse, roll up the sleeves and throw on a fedora for an instant cool-girl touch. Images: Street Style from PFW ’13 by Victoria Adamson Suit from Dianne Von Furstenberg’s AW 13/14 collection. Catwalking Street Style Stripes at Paris Fashion Week by Lee Oliveira Full Skirts If the weather has you feeling extra cheery, try out fuller, mid-length skirts and dresses in flirty florals, girly ginghams and preppy pinstripes. Throw on some stilettos and cat-eye sunnies if you feel like channelling a little Hollywood glamour. Images: Stylist and fashion editor Viviana Volpicella in an Equipment blouse and Stella Jean skirt at Men’s Fashion Week in Milan by Lee Oliveira Marine Deleeuw modelling mary Katrantzou’s Spring 2014 RTW by Marcus Tondo Street Style at MBFWA ’13 by Diego Zuko Sleek Chic While last season was all about colour blocking, this is the time to clear your slate. Simple, well-tailored pieces in white, black or pastel are anything but boring. Go for the monochromatic edge by pairing similar coloured accessories and shoes with your clothes. Images: Street Style at Milan Fashion Week 2013 by Lee Oliveira Look from Camilla and Marc’s SS 13/14 collection by Breakfast With Audrey Sienna Miller in Carven at the BFI Gala Dinner by RCFA TRENDY For those who like to keep things current, there are some playful new looks that have gracefully transitioned from the catwalk to the sidewalk. Crop Tops The ultimate staple this season, these fun little numbers have matured beyond denim shorts. Try a crop top with a draped suit jacket and a high waisted, mid-length skirt for a vampy look. Or, keep it casual with slouchy trousers and flat sandals. The possibilities really are endless. Images: Street Style from MBFWA ’13 in Sydney by Petra Rudd A new suit from Ginger & Smart’s SS 13/14 collection. Getty Images and Mark Metcalfe Blogger Margaret Zhang of Shine by Three at MBFWA ’13 in Sydney Petra Rudd Slouchy Trousers The popular harem-style pants have gotten a more flattering update this season. Designers have done away with the drop-crotch yet maintained the delightful flow. In tailored shapes and sleek fabrics, these comfy pants have made their way from the beach to the streets. By the end of this season you’ll have forgotten what skinny jeans are. Images: Organic by John Patrick Spring 2014 RTW collection by Imaxtree and Alessandro Luciani BCBG Max Azria SS 13/14 RTW by Vogue UK Blogger Zanita Morgan of Zanita in Cue Clothing pants. Photo by Rebecca See-through Sheers Transparency was a huge theme on runways all over this season, especially in Australia. See-through tops and cut-out frocks from the likes of Karla Spetic to Dior are drawing attention to what is (or isn't) underneath. If you're bold enough to test this trend, you better be wearing your best knickers. Images: Street style during New York Fashion Week Spring 2013 by Mr Newton Sheer panelling from Karla Spetic’s SS 13/14 RTW collection by Lucas Dawson for Vogue Australia Actress/Dancer Julianne Hough in Jenny Packham at the 2013 Emmy Awards by Getty Images MAVERICK This season has seen some pretty out-there stuff. Whether with boudoir-to-boulevard ensembles or striking sunnies, those who are aching to stand out on the streets won't have a problem catching stares. Silky Separates We’ve all been guilty of making a Sunday morning coffee run or two in some sort of pyjama article. With designer approval, fashionistas are now strutting the streets in full-on getups. Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton have sent pyjama-inspired separates and chemises down the catwalk in sultry silks and satins. If you’d feel ridiculous in a matching polka dot blouse and pant combo, try just the blouse over a more structured skirt or pant. Images: Blogger Nicole Warne of Gary Pepper Girl in ASOS by Carin Olsson Edie Campbell modelling for Marc Jacobs’ Fall/Winter 2013 RTW collection Joanna Hillman, Market Editor at Harper's Bazaar by Beauty Frizz Voluminous Sleeves Futuristic with a tinge of '80s, the big shoulder look is not for the faint of heart. Last season we saw sharp shapes, but this season's silhouette is much more giving, with a softer, airy look. Pair a blouse with a mini skirt or try a dress for some serious statement making. Images: Alice McCall SS 13/14 by Lucas Dawson for Vogue Australia Connie Cao of K is for Kani. Photo by Rowena Ellery SS 13/14 at MBFWA 2013 by Getty Images Obnoxious Sunnies We’ve seen sunnies in all sorts of sizes and shapes, from round to rectangular. Now, circular and cat-eye frames are getting some serious makeovers in bold patterns, coloured lenses and dimensional flowers. Images: Elle Fanning in Karen Walker’s ‘Siouxsie’ shades. By FameFlynet Look by Shakuchi ‘s SS 13/14 collection at MBFWA ’13. Getty Images Streetstyle. By Style Creeper
Sydney is full of strange lace. Wrought-iron lacework drips from balconies and gates around the city, reminding us of foreign design fashions long past. The Powerhouse has always had an interest in lace too, but as part of Sydney Design they're bringing their interest to the fore. Love Lace is an exhibition drawn together around the theme, made up of finalists and winners of the Powerhouse Museum International Lace Award. From a laser-cut cardboard web, to a scarred lorry, to the more traditional cloth work, the award takes a broad view of what can be considered lacy; the Museum is even about to wrap its brick courtyard in a canopy of lace pillars, as part of its new renovation program. Alongside the show, the Museum is hosting professional masterclasses and a symposium. And if the exhibition itself doesn't satisfy your appetite for intricate looped needlework, lace from the age of Shakespeare on up is at their Lace Study Centre, where you can check out the older brethren of this year's competition winners, or even have a go at making some yourself. Image by boccalatte.
Every date on the calendar is now an occasion. On May 8, Mates Day is one of them. It's a time to check in with your pals — and, in 2024, it's also time to share a free scoop of a limited-edition Gelato Messina flavour with them. Yes, you do make friends with ice cream. Messina is celebrating Mates Day with a new gelato variety that might get you thinking back to school lunches with your mates growing up. Called Oh Snap!, it's inspired by the tuckshop staple that is the vanilla slice, featuring vanilla custard gelato, passionfruit puree and caramelised puff pastry pieces. The reason for the moniker: this giveaway, which runs from 12pm until stocks last today, Wednesday, May 8, is in conjunction with Snapchat. In fact, to claim your free scoop at any Gelato Messina store around the country, you'll need to show that you have the Snapchat app on your phone. (The only exception: for kids under 13, who can just get a free scoop anyway.) Here's how it works: hit up your nearest Messina, join what's certain to be a line, hope that you get to the counter while there's still Oh Snap! gelato left, then make sure that Snapchat is on your device. That's all there is to it. Obviously, bringing your mates with you so that they can get free ice cream, too — there's only one scoop available per person — is recommended. In Sydney, at Gelato Messina's Surry Hills store, you'll be scoring dessert from an outpost that's been given a yellow makeover — complete with experiences that might be of a pic, plus merchandise — also from midday. The Crown Street venue will also have more supplies of Oh Snap! than other shops, but it's still a while-stocks-last affair. Messina currently has 19 stores in New South Wales, five in Victoria and three in Queensland, plus two in the Australian Capital Territory, and one apiece in South Australia and Western Australia. Gelato Messina's Mate's Day Snapchat scoop giveaway runs from 12pm until stocks last on Wednesday, May 8, 2024, at all of the chain's stores around Australia. Head to the brand's website for more details.
With every innovative project, we're discovering more about crowdfunding's potential to change the world. Large-scale malaria prevention, ultra-accessible tech and ethically manufactured clothing have all inspired generous donations from the pockets of the people. Rather than waiting for cashed-up corporate giants to give us what we want when it comes to socially conscious products and services, we've been taking matters into our own hands. Now, not-for-profit organisation Immunity Project has turned to Crowdhoster for help in the development of a HIV/AIDS vaccine. Partnered with the Until There's a Cure Foundation and supported by Y Combinator, the venture has some heavyweight backing in its favour. Here's how the vaccine works: A team of Stanford, Harvard and MIT scientists has been studying 'controllers' — the 1 out of every 300 people who can catch HIV yet never develop full-blown AIDS. The virus stays in their system in an inactive state. To cut a long (and complex) story short, controllers are the way they are because the 'rifles' in their immune systems are able to accurately attack HIV's biological markers, rendering the virus dormant. Non-controllers have the 'rifles' but their targeting skills are amiss. Through advanced machine learning, the scientists have managed to reverse engineer the controller's biological processes. Over the past few years, a vaccine prototype has been developed and successfully tested in laboratories. The next step is to prove that it can immunise human blood. Enter crowdfunding. Once that's taken care of, Phase I clinical trials will begin with the FDA. First dosing is scheduled to happen in Africa in June 2015. And the even more excellent part? The vaccine will be distributed for free. In fact, the Immunity Project team is committed to saving lives in sub-Saharan Africa, where access to retroviral drugs just isn't financially viable. More than 35 million individuals worldwide live with HIV. Every single day, another 7,000 are infected and more than 4,000 die. Since 1983, almost 30 million people have been killed by AIDS. https://youtube.com/watch?v=V231hDemqeo Via PSFK.
Saltburn. Priscilla. Dune: Part Two. Anyone But You. Madame Web. Immaculate. The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. The Color Purple. Drive-Away Dolls. As that list illustrates, a trip to the movies Down Under over the past few months has generally meant seeing a cast member of Euphoria, such as Jacob Elordi, Zendaya, Sydney Sweeney, Hunter Schafer and Colman Domingo, on the big screen. Enjoy them there, because they won't be back in the HBO TV show that helped make them huge stars for a bit longer. Production on Euphoria's third season has been delayed, Deadline and Variety report. Scripts are still being worked on, but shooting has been pushed back — so much so that Euphoria's cast are free to keep adding to their resumes beyond the award-winning series for the time being. "HBO and Sam Levinson remain committed to making an exceptional third season," a HBO spokesperson told both American publications in a statement. "In the interim, we are allowing our in-demand cast to pursue other opportunities." There's no word yet regarding when the cameras might start rolling on season three, but it's hoped that it will still arrive on HBO sometime in 2025. That's when the US cable network was aiming for anyway, as it noted when it outlined everything that's on its lineup in 2024 and 2025. Obviously, though, there's a big difference between Euphoria's third season hitting in January, mirroring the timing of season two — or arriving in June, which is when its first season premiered. If it takes its cues from the two specials between season one and two, that'd mean dropping in December 2025. Euphoria's on-screen talents have been busy since season two aired. Schafer's new horror movie Cuckoo premiered at the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival, Elordi has been back in Australia making miniseries The Narrow Road to the Deep North and Zendaya swings a racquet around in Challengers in April. Also, Domingo was nominated for an Oscar for Rustin, while Storm Reid won an Emmy for The Last of Us. Maude Apatow has been doing voice work on Pantheon, and Dominic Fike was in Earth Mama — and played Laneway. Apparently the idea of doing a movie instead was floated, but giving Euphoria a third season remains the plan. Given the passage of time — come 2025, it will have been three years since season two, and almost four if season three doesn't arrive till the end of the year or later — it's also being reported that the show's main characters will no longer be in high school. There's obviously no trailer for Euphoria season three yet, but you can watch HBO's 2024–25 roundup trailer below: Euphoria season three doesn't have an exact release date yet — we'll update you when further details are announced. Via Deadline / Variety / The Hollywood Reporter. Images: Eddy Chen/HBO.
The holy trinity of a successful hospitality venue is food, drink and fit-out — though nailing this trifecta is no easy feat. Australasia's 2018 Eat Drink Design Awards covers the interior element in a celebration of hospo design across Australia and New Zealand in eight categories: best restaurant, bar, cafe, hotel, retail space and temporary installation (pop-up). Victoria (and more specifically Melbourne) is the clear winner this year — snagging five of the eight awards, plus additional commendations in seven categories. Birregurra's luxury farmstay Brae Restaurant Accommodation won Best Hotel Design (Six Degrees Architects); Melbourne CBD's tiny Japanese den Ishizuka won Best Restaurant Design (Russell & George); Fitzroy's heritage cafe Bentwood won Best Cafe Design (Ritz & Ghougassian); Yarra Valley's Chandon Australia — a tasting room and boutique – won Best Retail Design (Foolscap Studio); and Swanston Street stalwart Cookie was inducted into the Hall of Fame. The 2018 Best Bar Design went to Adelaide cocktail bar Malt & Juniper (Sans-Arc Studio), and Canberra nabbed a win in the Best Installation Design category for Pop Inn — a mobile wine bar (Daryl Jackson Alastair Swayn Architects). While Sydney did not come home victorious, the city did receive a good number of commendations, including two for Barangaroo House, which earned commendations in both the best bar and best restaurant design categories. The Imperial Erskineville and Edition Haymarket also received best bar design commendations and Fonda Bondi received a best restaurant design commendation, too. In the best retail design category, Little Bonny's received a nod, which was designed by famed studio Luchetti Krelle (Manly Greenhouse, Terminus Hotel, Banksii, Acme). Luxuriate in the sleekness of the top designs below. [gallery ids="697870,697865,697866,671311,691780,651134,662281,697859"] For the full list of winners and commendations, head to the Eat Drink Design website. Images: Ishizuka by Felix Forest, Brae by Trevor Mein, Chandon Australia by Tom Blachford, Bentwood by Kate Shanasy, Edition by Trent van der Jagt, Barangaroo House by Kitti Smallbone, The Imperial by Trent van der Jagt, Cookie.
Get your tissues out. Margaret and David — as in the Margaret and David of At the Movies – are officially, totally and truly, really going off-air. We're in shock. For 28 years now, the legendary duo has been giving us their dynamic weekly film round-up: an idiosyncratic mix of smart commentary, quick wit and frequent sparring. They first paired up at the SBS, where they hosted The Movie Show for eighteen years before moving over to the ABC in 2004. But on December 9, they’ll be recording their final episode. Ever. "After 28 years reviewing films on television with Margaret, ten of them at the ABC, I feel it’s time to go,” David said in a media statement. “We’ve had a wonderful time, thanks to very supportive and encouraging audiences, throughout that period. And we’ve worked with wonderful teams, both at SBS and at the ABC... Most of all, working with Margaret, whose enthusiasm, commitment and passion has been amazing (and only occasionally irritating) has been a joy for over a quarter of a century. But, since I turned 75 last week, I look forward to less pressure and more opportunities to enjoy the movies I love, in the years ahead." Margaret was similarly gracious. "As David says, it’s time to go from the small screen after a great innings,” she said. “Thanks to all our viewers and the fabulous teams we’ve worked with over the years. And thank you to the ABC and SBS. We’ve been lucky to work for two great public broadcasters, and long may they prosper . . . My gratitude goes to David who gave me credibility just by being prepared to sit by me and discuss film when I am just a film enthusiast, not the great walking encyclopedia of film that he is. He’s a grand person, a most generous, decent man, even if a little stubborn at times." And just in case you’re wondering, no more Margaret and David also means no more At the Movies — the last episode will air on ABC on December 9.
A day of sun, surf and sand shouldn't break the bank, and holidaying in Vietnam is the best way to ensure that remains the case. Three of the Asian country's beaches have topped Travelbird's annual Beach Price Index, which ranks 310 beaches from over 70 nations based on their affordability. Cua Dai Beach in Hoi An was dubbed the least expensive place to take a dip, with hitting the waves costing US$13.18. City Beach in Nha Trang (US$13.90) and Long Beach in Phu Quoc (US$14.42) took out the next two spots, with beaches in Egypt (Marsa Nayzak, Sunken City and Sharm El-Naga Bay) and India (Varkala Beach, Benaulim Beach, Palolem Beach and Cavelossim Beach) rounding out the top ten. Croatia and Germany are the only other countries to make the top 20. Travelbird bases their rankings on the cost of five beach essentials: sunscreen (SPF30, 100ml), water (500ml), beer (330ml bottle), ice cream and lunch (for one person, including a meal and a drink). If less than US$15 sounds cheap for all of that, then spending almost US$65 will sound mighty hefty, with Norway's Kristiansand Beach nearing that mark at the other end of the scale. In fact, five Norwegian beaches ranked among the ten most expensive in the world. As for Australian coastal hangouts, the ten included unsurprisingly fall on the steeper side — Blinky Beach on Lorde Howe Island is the cheapest at US$41.03. Queensland's Palm Cove, 75 Mile Beach and Whitehaven Beach, Western Australia's Cottesloe Beach, Mandalay Beach and The Basin, Darwin's Mindil Beach, and both Manly and Bondi in Sydney also make the cut, with Bondi the most expensive at US$44.06. Over in New Zealand, Karekare beach in Auckland (US$38.75) is the most affordable, followed by Piha and Orewa, and then Hahei in Waikato. Via Traveller. Image: Prashant Ram
Some real-life incidents just keep fascinating Hollywood, and the tale of Candy Montgomery is clearly one of them. Back in 1990, TV movie A Killing in a Small Town — directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal, dad to Ambulance's Jake and The Deuce's Maggie — stepped through her story. In 2022, Candy did the same with Jessica Biel playing the titular part. Now, Love & Death is set to do it all over again, this time having WandaVision's Elizabeth Olsen segue from playing a superhero gone dark to getting accused of being an axe murderer. Hailing from HBO — streaming via its online service HBO Max in the US, and on Binge in Australia and Neon in New Zealand — Love & Death turns the grisly details into everyone's likely next true-crime obsession, with the team behind Big Little Lies and The Undoing behind it. If you don't already know the story, it's best to discover all of the ins and outs while watching, but it all starts with two church-going couples in Texas. As the just-dropped full trailer for the seven-part show makes plain, Montgomery isn't thrilled with her suburban life, suggesting an extramarital dalliance. Soon, there's a body and plenty of suspicions going her way. How it all plays out is a matter of history, of course, and chronicled in the book Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion and Death in the Suburbs. Love & Death takes inspiration from that text, plus a collection of articles from Texas Monthly, with viewers getting to see the show's take on the story from late April. Alongside Olsen, Love & Death stars Jesse Plemons (The Power of the Dog), Lily Rabe (Shrinking), Patrick Fugit (Babylon), Keir Gilchrist (Atypical), Elizabeth Marvel (The Dropout), Tom Pelphrey (She Said) and Krysten Ritter (Jessica Jones). TV veteran David E Kelley both writes and produces, adding another series to his hefty list after the aforementioned Big Little Lies and The Undoing — and Nine Perfect Strangers, Boston Legal, The Practice, Ally McBeal and more — while Lesli Linka Glatter (Homeland) directs the first four and the last episodes. Check out the trailer for Love & Death below: Love & Death will stream via Binge in Australia and Neon in New Zealand from Thursday, April 27. Images: HBO Max.
Travelling overseas ranks right up there on everyone's bucket list, but the actual travelling part is far from fun. No one loves spending more than a couple of hours on a plane, and no one loves taking multiple flights to get to their destination either. But if you could choose between hopping over to your destination in one leg, or getting a break from being cramped and uncomfortable in the air, which would you opt for? Thanks to advances in aircraft development, ensuring that today's planes are more fuel-efficient over hefty distances, airlines are increasingly making non-stop long-range flights a reality. After Qantas introduced its 17-hour-plus Perth-to-London route earlier this year, Singapore Airlines will be unleashing the world's longest non-stop commercial flight later in 2018: from Singapore to New York over 19 hours. First announced by the airline in 2015, the route will be made possible thanks to the new Ultra Long Range version of the Airbus A350 XWB aircraft, which completed its first successful test flight in April. The planes can travel up to 16,000 kilometres (or 8,700 nautical miles) without refuelling — or, for over 20 hours non-stop — which makes the 15,322-kilometre trip between Singapore and New York possible. It's not the first time that the airline has flown direct to the US, with Singapore-to-Newark, New Jersey flights in operation until 2013. The world's current longest route without stopovers runs from Doha to Auckland in around 18 hours, travelling 14,529 kilometres on a Boeing 777-200LR, followed by the Perth-to-London leg. Qantas is keen to beat both the current and the impending record-holders, though, announcing plans last year to fly direct from Australia's east coast to both London and New York by 2022 — once either Airbus and Boeing make a plane that can handle the 20-hour and 20-minute, 16,983-kilometre stint between Sydney and London.
Been swooning over Ryan Gosling's crooning? Taken a fancy to Emma Stone's fine footsteps? Felt like La La Land's bittersweet, Los Angeles-set antics were shining just for you? Damien Chazelle's big screen musical has been winning over audiences, critics and awards bodies alike, including taking home seven Golden Globes and being tipped to fare quite well at the Oscars — and once it's done with dominating the movie world, it might just be making its way to the stage. Feels fitting, really. So far, the concept is just that; however it's one that Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, the company behind the hit flick, is looking into. Speaking to investors, co-president Erik Feig said that "if we want to do a stage show, we can do a stage show." Lionsgate has certainly been forging ahead with taking its other films to non-cinema realms; a live Step Up stage show is playing in Dubai, while The Hunger Games has spawned a popular touring exhibition, which is currently on display in Sydney. If La La Land does make the leap from the screen to the stage — with live tunes and routines, obviously, but surely without its high-profile movie stars — the musical will be in considerable company. The list of films turned theatre productions just keeps growing, with Amélie, Moulin Rouge!, The Bodyguard, Groundhog Day, Matilda, Singin' in the Rain, Heathers and Carrie all also receiving the singing, dancing theatre treatment in recent years. Via The Hollywood Reporter.
Across its five seasons to date, Black Mirror has dedicated 22 episodes to imagining dystopian futures — and while it makes for compelling viewing, none of the sci-fi anthology series' predictions are particularly pretty. But, for all of its prognosticating, the Charlie Brooker-created show didn't foresee 2020's chaos. And now we've all endured this hectic year and are about to see it come to an end, the team behind Black Mirror has something to say about it. At 6pm AEST on Sunday, December 27, just before 2020 fades away forever, Netflix will drop a new comedy special called Death to 2020 — which is made by the Black Mirror crew. The show will look back on the year via a documentary-style special that uses real-life archival footage from the past 12 months, as well as narration from fictitious characters played by the high-profile likes of Samuel L Jackson, Hugh Grant, Lisa Kudrow, Kumail Nanjiani, Tracey Ullman, Samson Kayo, Leslie Jones, Diane Morgan, Cristin Milioti and Joe Keery. Immediately keen to see more? After revealing a teaser trailer for Death to 2020 earlier in December — when it first announced that the project even existed — Netflix has now dropped a full sneak peek. Jackson's character gets snappy, Grant's wants to make sure that a drink is close at hand, and Jones' advises she'd say 2020 "was a trainwreck and a shit show, but that'd be unfair to trains and shit". Brooker has a history of looking back at events that have just passed, as Newswipe with Charlie Brooker and his end-of-year Wipe specials between 2010–16 have all demonstrated — so satirising and savaging the year's developments definitely falls into his wheelhouse. Brooker and Netflix also love releasing new material over the holiday period, with interactive Black Mirror special Bandersnatch dropping between Christmas and New Year's Eve back in 2018. So, true to form, they're giving everyone an extra festive — and grimly funny — present this year. Check out the full Death to 2020 trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veUqfcyZ_Bo Death to 2020 will hit Netflix at 6pm AEST on Sunday, December 27 . Images: Saeed Adyani/Keith Bernstein.
It's a movie no film-lover has forgotten over the past 12 years — and wouldn't even if their memories were erased, we're pretty certain. Soon, however, fans of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind won't just have to give their DVDs a workout to get their mind-bending romance fix. Like so many other big screen hits of late, the Michel Gondry-directed, Charlie Kaufman-written, Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey-starring effort is making its way to television. The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that a TV remake is in the works, from one of the folks who produced the original film. Of course, the project is in its very, very early stages, so little other information is available as yet — although one of the writers of spy series Chuck is reportedly in talks to write the script. He'll have big shoes to fill; the original screenplay won Gondry, Kaufman and their co-scribe Pierre Bismuth an Oscar, a BAFTA and a Writer's Guild of America award, among other gongs. That trio won't be involved in the new series, and we're guessing Winslet, Carrey and co-stars Kirsten Dunst, Elijah Wood and Mark Ruffalo won't either — but the show is being made by the company behind True Detective and Mr. Robot. And if the small screen version of Eternal Sunshine doesn't work out, we can just hope that eradicating bad memories really does become a reality. Basically, it's a good time to be a film fan and a TV viewer, given how frequently television takes on movie classics are being announced. Just last week, we learned that What We Do in the Shadows is getting a NZ TV spinoff. Because everyone loves nostalgia, other flicks either currently getting or slated to receive the TV treatment include (get comfy, it's a long list): The Lost Boys, Varsity Blues, Let the Right One In, Heathers, She's Gotta Have It, The Departed, Snatch, Get Shorty, Jack Ryan, Taken, Underworld, Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events, Lethal Weapon, The Exorcist, Westworld, and even Aussie efforts Wake in Fright and Picnic at Hanging Rock. Via The Hollywood Reporter.
From the summery banks of the Seine to the howling winds of Sydney's waterfront, the eternally stylish artisans behind Hermès are about to hit the Museum of Contemporary Art for an insider's look into their trade. From October 2 – 6, the brand's world-renowned Festival des Métiers exhibition will be visiting Sydney, and it'll be leaving a whirlwind of silk scarves and luxurious leather goods in its glorious wake. For those sceptical of luxury brands or dismissive of sentences that involve too many accented French words, Hermès is the fashion house behind those giant leather bags rich heiresses carry small dogs in. They're also well known for their glorious silk scarves that will set you back a hefty portion of your rent. But this upcoming exhibition is anything but snobby. Featuring a leather craftsperson, saddle maker, silk painter, silk engraver, tie maker, painter, gem setter and watchmaker, Festival des Métiers offers unprecedented personal access to the artisans behind the world-famous fashion brand. The MCA will be decked out in Hermès finest threads (and leathers) and visitors are encouraged to interact with the craftspeople while they create their signature goods. Here you'll see the ornate process involved in making those bags and scarves you lust over, and pick the brains of those who craft some of the world's most adored watches, gloves and jewels. The exhibition has already toured around the US, the UK and Asia to rave reviews. Around a quarter of a million people visited the event at Singapore and its time at Saatchi Gallery in London was an understandably lush affair. Originally launched in 2011 to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the label, Festival des Métiers looks to be much less a gaudy celebration of the brand and much more an inspiring celebration of the craft itself. Sure, the goods are still crazy expensive, but at least after seeing the très chic Parisian hand stitching the leather, you'll have a little more understanding as to where all that money goes. Hermès' Festival des Métiers will be exhibiting at the Museum of Contemporary Art from October 2-6. Admission will be free of charge.
Food is food and booze is booze, but both of these glorious gifts from the heavens are always made better if the surrounds are designed to punch you in the face with panache, and then gently guide you through your experience in a habitat of nice things. Last night, the Eat Drink Design Awards took place in Melbourne to celebrate the very best of hospitality interiors from Australia and New Zealand. Top gong for Best Café Design went to Higher Ground in Melbourne, with design team DesignOffice being lauded by judges for "considerable restraint in defining the space, creating a host of experiences at different levels" where "each occupant is rewarded with a different voyeuristic perspective on the gathered crowd." The Best Bar Design went to Adelaide this year, with bin-alley turned log cabin booze vendor Pink Moon Saloon taking out the top prize. Judges praised the bar for being completely sustainable, which can be taken down and returned to its former function at any time, and by the fact the design by Sans-Arc Studio "taps into that deep Australian memory of long-forgotten cubby houses and sheds." Heston Blumenthal's first permanent digs in Australia, Dinner by Heston in Melbourne, clinched the award for Best Restaurant Design, with the judges frothing on the feeling that "you are somewhere special, and special things are about to happen." Praise went to designers Bates Smart for "eschewing the brittle formality that can accompany the high-end gastronomic experience," and instead aiming for something that is "equal parts theatrical and delightful." Best Retail Design went to Lune Croissanterie in Fitzroy, crafter by the team from Studio Esteta, and Pink Moon Saloon took out their second gold in the Best Identity Design Category. Sydneysiders featured heavily in the shortlists, but didn't take any top awards this year. Il Bacaro in Melbourne was also inducted into the Hall of Fame, with the team from Chris Connell Design taking their place among the antipodean design legends. Have a squiz at the sexiest places to eat and drink.
When Robert Pattinson put on pop culture's most famous cape and cowl, it wasn't a once-off, with a sequel to 2022's The Batman on the way. In the same film, when the latest version of Oswald Cobblepot made an appearance, that wasn't the only time that audiences would see the Gotham crime figure otherwise known as The Penguin, either. Come spring 2024 Down Under, the villainous character will feature in a HBO series that dives into his tale — called, yes, The Penguin. The show has been in the works for some time, and been teased in the US network's promotions for its 2024 slate. Now, it has its own initial trailer. If the Batman nemesis met The Sopranos or The Godfather, this series might be the end result, at least based on this early glimpse. Colin Farrell (The Banshees of Inisherin) reprises the show's titular role. In the new footage, his take on Oz waxes lyrical about the command, fear and respect once demanded by another gangster — and how he'd like to have the same status. "Can you imagine to be remembered like that?" he notes of Rex Calabrese, who mightn't be a household name beyond dedicated comic-book fans, but boasts significant ties on the page to a very well-known Batman character. The Penguin is set to span eight episodes, and is obviously designed to extend the Dark Knight's big-screen crime saga. The show doesn't have an exact release date, other than fall this year in the US — which, again, is spring in Australia and New Zealand. Alongside Farrell, The Penguin stars Cristin Milioti (The Resort), Rhenzy Feliz (Encanto), Michael Kelly (Pantheon), Shohreh Aghdashloo (Damsel), Deirdre O'Connell (The Big Door Prize), Clancy Brown (Gen V) and Michael Zegen (The Marvelous Mrs Maisel). Off-screen, The Batman director Matt Reeves is back as an executive producer, while Craig Zobel (Mare of Easttown) directs the show's first three episodes. 2024 is a big year for Farrell fans keen to see him in streaming series. Before his time following in Danny DeVito's footsteps again, Farrell leads Apple TV+ detective drama Sugar, which premieres in April. Check out the teaser trailer for The Penguin below: The Penguin is set to stream in spring Down Under, including via Binge in Australia — we'll update you when an exact release date is announced. Images: Macall Polay/Max.
Before the pandemic, when a new-release movie started playing in cinemas, audiences couldn't watch it on streaming, video on demand, DVD or blu-ray for a few months. But with the past few years forcing film industry to make quite a few changes — widespread movie theatre closures and plenty of people staying home in iso will do that — that's no longer always the case. Maybe you've been under the weather. Perhaps you haven't had time to make it to your local cinema lately. Given the hefty amount of films now releasing each week, maybe you simply missed something. Film distributors have been fast-tracking some of their new releases from cinemas to streaming recently — movies that might still be playing in theatres in some parts of the country, too. In preparation for your next couch session, here are ten that you can watch right now at home. TÁR The least surprising aspect of Tár is also its most essential: Cate Blanchett being as phenomenal as she's ever been, plus more. The Australian Nightmare Alley, Thor: Ragnarok and Carol actor — "our Cate", of course — unsurprisingly scored an Oscar nomination as a result. Accolades have been showered her way since this drama about a cancelled conductor premiered at the 2022 Venice International Film Festival (the prestigious event's Best Actress gong was the first of them), deservedly so. Blanchett is that stunning in Tár, that much of a powerhouse, that adept at breathing life and complexity into a thorny figure, and that magnetic and mesmerising. Even when she hasn't been at her utmost on rare past occasions or something she's in hasn't been up to her standards — see: Don't Look Up for both — she's a force that a feature gravitates around. Tár is astonishing itself, too, but Blanchett at her finest is the movie's rock, core and reason for being. Blanchett is spectacular in Tár, and she also has to be spectacular in Tár — because Lydia Tár, the maestro she's playing, earns that term to start with in the film's on-screen world. At the feature's kickoff, the passionate and ferocious character is feted by a New Yorker Festival session led by staff writer Adam Gopnik as himself, with her achievements rattled off commandingly to an excited crowd; what a list it is. Inhabiting this part requires nothing less than utter perfection, then, aka what Tár demands herself, her latest assistant Francesca (Noémie Merlant, Jumbo), her wife Sharon (Nina Hoss, Shadowplay) and everyone else in her orbit constantly. Strong, seductive, severe, electrifying and downright exceptional, Blanchett nails it. That Lydia can't always do the same, no matter how hard, painstakingly and calculatingly she's worked to ensure that it appears otherwise, is one of the movie's main concerns. Tár is available to stream via Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. MEET ME IN THE BATHROOM In 2022, The Strokes and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs were meant to share the same Splendour in the Grass bill. Karen O's band didn't make it to what became Splendour in the Mud, but the two groups have shared plenty before — and for decades. Their maps have overlapped since pre-9/11 New York, when both were formed in the turn-of-the-millennium indie-rock wave, then surfed it to success and worldwide fame. Both The Strokes and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs were born of the Lower East Side pre-gentrification. Both spun in the same orbit as late-90s saccharine pop and Y2K nu-metal rock gave way to electrifying guitar riffs and an explosive sound that'd become a whole scene. Both are led by charismatic singers who came alive onstage, but also found chaos and challenges. Alongside Interpol, LCD Soundsystem, The Moldy Peaches, The Rapture and TV on the Radio, both now sit at the heart of documentary Meet Me in the Bathroom. Based on Lizzy Goodman's 2017 book Meet Me in the Bathroom, an oral history that focuses on exactly what its subtitle says it does — Rebirth and Rock and Roll in New York City 2001–2011 — this is a fond look back at bands setting the room on fire and rolling heads as one century gave way to the next. While the film isn't about just one or two groups, it returns to The Strokes and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs again and again, and not simply because they're two of the early 00s' biggest NYC post-punk, garage-rock revival names. Listening to The Strokes' first record, 2001's Is This It, is a jolt and a buzz. With Julian Casablancas behind the microphone, it thrums and hums with the energy of hopping between bars, gigs and parties, and with the thrill of a heady night, week, month, year and just being in your 20s. Hearing O's voice is galvanising — intoxicating as well — and has been since the Yeah Yeah Yeah's self-titled EP, also in 2001. It's no wonder that directors Will Lovelace and Dylan Southern just want to keep listening, and also inhabiting that vibe. Meet Me in the Bathroom is available to stream via iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. KNOCK AT THE CABIN Does M Night Shyamalan hate holidays? The twist-loving writer/director's Knock at the Cabin comes hot on the heels of 2021's Old, swapping beach nightmares for woodland terrors. He isn't the only source of on-screen chaos in vacation locations — see also: Triangle of Sadness' Ruben Östlund, plus oh-so-many past horror movies, and TV's The White Lotus and The Resort as well — but making two flicks in a row with that setup is a pattern. For decades since The Sixth Sense made him the Oscar-nominated king of high-concept premises with shock reveals, Shyamalan explored the idea that everything isn't what it seems in our daily lives. Lately, however, he's been finding insidiousness lingering beyond the regular routine, in picturesque spots, when nothing but relaxation is meant to flow. A holiday can't fix all or any ills, he keeps asserting, including in this engaging adaptation of Paul Tremblay's 2018 novel The Cabin at the End of the World. For Eric (Jonathan Groff, The Matrix Resurrections), Andrew (Ben Aldridge, Pennyworth) and their seven-year-old daughter Wen (debutant Kristen Cui), a getaway isn't meant to solve much but a yearning for family time in the forest — and thinking about anyone but themselves while Eric and Andrew don robes, and Wen catches pet grasshoppers, isn't on their agenda. Alas, their rural Pennsylvanian idyll shatters swiftly when the soft-spoken but brawny Leonard (Dave Bautista, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery) emerges from the trees. He says he wants to be Wen's friend, but he also advises that he's on an important mission. He notes that his task involves the friendly girl and her dads, giving them a hard choice yet also no choice at all. The schoolteacher has colleagues, too: agitated ex-con Redmond (Rupert Grint, Servant), patient nurse Sabrina (Nikki Amuka-Bird, Avenue 5) and nurturing cook Adriane (Abby Quinn, I'm Thinking of Ending Things), all brandishing weapons fashioned from garden tools. Knock at the Cabin is available to stream via Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. THE WHALE The actors have it: in The Whale, Brendan Fraser (No Sudden Move), Hong Chau (The Menu) and Sadie Sink (Stranger Things) are each masterful, and each in their own way. For viewers unaware that this drama about a reclusive 600-pound English professor stems from the stage going in, it won't take long to realise — for multiple reasons, the film's performances chief among them. As penned by Samuel D Hunter (also a writer on TV's Baskets) from his award-winning semi-autobiographical play, The Whale's script is talky and blunt. The movie is confined to its protagonist Charlie's home, and is as claustrophobic as it's meant to be as a result. But it's that key acting trio, with the portrayals they splash through a flick that's a complicated sea of feelings and ideas, that helps The Whale swim when it swims. Yes, the Brenaissance is upon us, showering Fraser in accolades including his first-ever Oscar; however, fellow Academy Award-nominee Chau and rising star Sink are equally as powerful. Is it really the Brenaissance if Fraser hasn't ever been too far from our screens for too long? When he was recently stellar in 2021's No Sudden Move, albeit in a supporting part? Given that it's been decades since he's had the space and the feature to serve up this kind of lead effort, the answer remains yes. Slip his The Whale performance in beside standout 2002 thriller The Quiet American — although the latter didn't place The Mummy action star and Encino Man comedic force beneath considerable prosthetics. Fraser doesn't let his appearance here do all the work, though. Filmmaker Darren Aronofsky, who hones in on the stressed and tested as he has so frequently before (see: Requiem for a Dream, Black Swan, The Wrestler and mother!), doesn't allow it to, either. At the core of the pair's collaboration is a portrayal that overflows with vulnerability and grief alongside optimism for humanity, and acutely fuses Charlie's emotional and physical states. The character self-mockingly jokes that his internal organs are buried deep, but nothing conceals Fraser's sensitivity. The Whale is available to stream via Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. CREED III Punching has never been what matters most in the Creed movies, no matter how fast and furiously fists frequently fly. One of the key things that's always set this boxing franchise apart — with its first instalment landing in 2015 and sequel Creed II hitting in 2018 — is its focus on character and emotion first and foremost, including favouring both above going round for round in the ring. Blows are traded, obviously. Bouts are fought, bruises inflicted, bones broken and titles won. But the Creed saga has kept swinging again and again, leading to latest instalment Creed III, because it's still about its namesake, who he is as a person, and his feelings, demons and conflicts. When you have Michael B Jordan (Just Mercy) leading a series — even when it's a part of the broader Rocky series, or perhaps especially when that's the case — you give him the room to dig deep. You also give him weighty material to bear, as well as the space to bare Adonis 'Donnie' Creed's soul. Jordan gives himself that room, weight and space in Creed III, in the actor's first stint as a director. Notching up a ninth chapter for the overall saga that dates back to 1976's three-time Oscar-winner Rocky, this is also the first film to sport either that character or Creed's moniker but not feature Sylvester Stallone on-camera — or his involvement beyond a producer credit. Creed III is all the better for Rocky Balboa's absence, despite Stallone turning in his best performance yet in the initial Creed film. Understanding what it means to move on and openly unpacking what that truly entails is something else this franchise-within-a-franchise has long gotten right. So, Donnie has moved on from struggling with his father's legacy, and from his need to live in the past. He has another date with history, but Jordan and screenwriters Keenan Coogler (Space Jam: A New Legacy) and Zach Baylin (King Richard) — with a story also credited to the original Creed's director Ryan Coogler (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) — aren't just mindlessly repeating the series' pattern. Creed III is available to stream via Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. YOU CAN GO NOW Who better than frank, lively and charismatic First Nations artist Richard Bell to sum up what You Can Go Now is truly about: "I am an activist masquerading as an artist," he offers. The Kamilaroi, Kooma, Jiman and Gurang Gurang man says this early in Larissa Behrendt's documentary about him, because he and the Eualayai/Gamillaroi After the Apology and Araatika: Rise Up! filmmaker both know how essential and inescapable that truth is. They're not here to reveal that Bell's art is layered with statements. Neither is the feature itself. Rather, in a powerful instant must-see of an Australian doco, they explore and contextualise what it means for Bell to be an activist spreading his advocacy for the country's First Peoples around the world by being an artist, especially when the Aboriginal art realm is so often dominated by white interests. They address and examine not just what Bell's work says but why, what it responds to and how it's significant on a variety of levels, including diving deep into the personal, national and global history — and modern-day reality — informing it. Seeing what Bell's art literally expresses — simply taking it in, as splashed across the screen instead of hanging in a gallery — is still crucial to Behrendt's film, of course. In an array of pieces that frequently use heated words on intricately and colourfully painted canvases, his work utters plenty. "I am not sorry". "Give it all back." "We were here first." "Ask us what we want". "Aboriginal art — it's a white thing." Among these and other declarations, You Can Go Now's title gets a mention, too. Every piece sighted — works that riff on and continue a dialogue with styles synonymous with American artists Roy Lichtenstein and Jackson Pollock among them — conveys Bell's activist-artist raison d'être overtly, unflinchingly and unmistakably. Excellent art doesn't end conversations, however, but continues them, pushes them further and prompts more questions. Not that this is You Can Go Now's main takeaway, but Bell makes excellent art, with Behrendt helping to fuel and unpack the discussion. You Can Go Now is available to stream via DocPlay. Read our full review. COCAINE BEAR Killer trailer, filler flick: that's the Cocaine Bear story. This loosely based-on-a-true-tale horror-comedy sports a Snakes on a Plane-style moniker that sums up its contents perfectly, as the sneak peek that arrived at the end of 2022 made enticingly clear. Going heavy on the so-OTT-it-can-only-be-real vibe, that initial glimpse also tasked Alden Ehrenreich (Solo: A Star Wars Story) with exclaiming a couple more sentences to express the utter bewilderment that this story sparks. "The bear, it fucking did cocaine. A bear did cocaine!" he shouts, and with exactly the right amount of infectious incredulity. That is indeed what happened in reality back in 1985, after all, and it's what Elizabeth Banks brings to the screen in her third stint as a director after Pitch Perfect 2 and Charlie's Angels — always playing it, for better when it's at its goriest and for worse when it stretches its idea thinner than a white line, like wild tale that it inescapably is. Yes, almost four decades ago, an American black bear did cocaine when drug smuggler Andrew C Thornton (Matthew Rhys, Perry Mason) dropped a hefty pile of the narcotic from the air. The stash landed in the wilderness, catching the attention of the world's most unlikely coke fiend in Georgia's Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest. The creature ripped open the white powder-filled containers, then ingested — and Cocaine Bear endeavours to have fun hypothesising what could've come next. On-screen, a rampage by the critter now-nicknamed Pablo Escobear ensues, with blood, guts and limbs flung around; the body count mounting like Michael Myers is doing the offing (or maybe Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey's other recent ravenous bear); and two words getting screamed over and over. They're just the terms a picture called Cocaine Bear was always bound to focus on: cocaine and bear, obviously. Cocaine Bear is available to stream via iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. OPERATION FORTUNE: RUSE DE GUERRE Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre isn't the best chance to see Aubrey Plaza slink around swanky locales filled with the one-percent in the past year. That honour goes, of course, to her award-nominated turn in the second season of The White Lotus. Plaza's new action-comedy also isn't the best recent movie to cast the deadpan talent as enterprising, resourceful and calculating, and see her plunged into a dangerous, largely male-only realm, all while putting a scheming plan into action. That film is the exceptional Emily the Criminal, which sadly bypassed cinemas Down Under. And, thanks to her star-making turn in Parks and Recreation, wannabe franchise-starter Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre definitely isn't the finest example of her wry comic talents, either. But in a rarity for writer/director Guy Ritchie and his typically testosterone-dripping capers — see: Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, Revolver, RocknRolla and The Gentlemen — Plaza is the gleaming gem at the centre of this formulaic flick. Putting in a more vibrant performance than the scowling Jason Statham isn't hard, but this is firmly Plaza's picture. Ritchie's go-to leading man still plays Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre's namesake, though: the improbably titled super-spy Orson Fortune, an off-the-books agent who does jobs the British Government can't officially be involved with. Handler Nathan Jasmine (Cary Elwes, Best Sellers) has one such task, recovering a just-stolen item known as 'the handle', which the powers-that-be don't want going to nefarious parties. But, in a mission that first requires collecting a contact at Madrid's airport, then gets far more chaotic quickly, Fortune will have to work with a new team. And, he'll have to jet around the globe with stops at Cannes, in Turkey and more, doing an aspiring Bond and Mission: Impossible act, but in a film that never even threatens to shake or stir the espionage genre. It also doesn't venture beyond mixing Ritchie's beloved bag of tricks together, reading like an effort to split the difference between his last two movies: The Gentlemen and effective revenge thriller Wrath of Man. Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre is available to stream via Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. THE SON With a title that speaks of next generations, The Son is a film about second efforts, including off-screen. For writer/director Florian Zeller, it marks the French novelist and playwright's sophomore stint behind the camera, and notches the list of movies he's helmed based on his own stage works up to two as well. After dual Oscar-winner The Father, which earned Zeller and co-scribe Christopher Hampton the Best Adapted Screenplay award and Anthony Hopkins the much-deserved Best Actor prize, it's also his second feature with a family member in its title. And, it's his second largely confined to interior settings, focusing on mental illness, exploring complicated father-child relationships within that intimate domestic space and driven by intense dialogue spouted by a committed cast. Hopkins pops up once more in another psychodrama, too, as a dad again. Within its frames, The Son follows New York lawyer Peter Miller (Hugh Jackman, Reminiscence) as he's happily starting over with his second wife Beth (Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman) and their newborn Theo, his second son. Here's the thing about second chances, though: sometimes your first shots can't simply be forgotten, no matter how eager you are to move on. Peter confronts this truth when his ex-spouse Kate (Laura Dern, Jurassic World Dominion) unexpectedly knocks at his door one day, distraught about learning that their 17-year-old Nicholas (Zen McGrath, Red Dog: True Blue) has been ditching school long-term. The teen hasn't been a contented presence around her home since his dad left, either, with depression setting in after such a big upheaval to his status quo. So, Peter and Kate agree to a parental rekindling, with Peter giving being an active dad to Nicholas — having him come to live with him, Beth and Theo, in fact — a second go. The Son is available to stream via Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS A sequel to 2019's Shazam! and the latest film the DC Extended Universe, Shazam! Fury of the Gods goes all-in on family — but Billy Batson (Asher Angel, High School Musical: The Musical — The Series) and his pals are too young to knock back Coronas. Also, Shazam! Fury of the Gods isn't much concerned with Billy in his normal guise, giving his Shazam self (Zachary Levi, Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood) the bulk of the character's screentime. The time for origin stories has been and gone here, but largely ditching Angel robs this franchise-within-a-franchise of one of its main points of difference in the DCEU. None of the series' other flicks are about awkward adolescents learning to grapple with power, and understanding that their wildest dreams aren't as easy as they'd always hoped. Shazam! Fury of the Gods still manages to hit some of those notes thanks to a bigger focus on Billy's best friend and fellow foster kid Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer, We Are Who We Are), a person with disability, but sidelining the teenager who turns into Shazam is clumsy and noticeable. Similarly plain as day from scene one: that Shazam! Fury of the Gods got as lucky as any superhero movie can with its new cast members. The film opens at the Acropolis Museum in Greece, where two of Atlas' offspring are determined to get back the Wizard's (Djimon Hounsou, Black Adam) broken staff and reclaim their dad's magic — and those two daughters, Hespera and Kalypso, come in the form of Helen Mirren (1923) and Lucy Liu (Strange World). Despite splashing around the film's fondness for dim lighting and dull CGI early, this introductory sequence lets its big-name talents make more of an imprint standing around in their costumes and looking formidable than much that follows. Indeed, whenever Mirren and Liu are on-screen, and West Side Story's Rachel Zegler as well, Shazam! Fury of the Gods makes a case for pushing aside not just Billy, but Shazam and everyone else. Shazam! Fury of the Gods is available to stream via Prime Video. Read our full review. Looking for more at-home viewing options? Take a look at our monthly streaming recommendations across new straight-to-digital films and TV shows — and fast-tracked highlights from January, February and March, too. You can also peruse our best new films, new TV shows, returning TV shows and straight-to-streaming movies, plus movies you might've missed and television standouts of 2022 you mightn't have gotten to.
Double Bay's having its fair share of hypeworthy openings of late, with newbies like Chinta Kechil and About Life sparking the curiosity of more western-living Sydneysiders. This December, the eastern suburb will see another top-tier addition to the dining scene with the opening of a brand new venue for acclaimed Japanese hat-winner Saké Restaurant and Bar. The newest project from Urban Purveyor Group (the team behind Ananas Bar and Brasserie, Bavarian Bier Cafe, The Cut Bar and Grill and Swine and Co.), Saké is set to open in December at 33 Cross Street, beneath the InterContinental Hotel. With sushi master and executive chef Shaun Presland commandeering the menu, the Double Bay establishment will serve the contemporary Japanese cuisine Saké is already celebrated for — joining hatted sister venues in The Rocks and Brisbane, alongside its Melbourne counterpart. We're talking 'gramworthy new-style sushi to significantly impress your date. "The launch of Saké Double Bay is a great addition to the Group and a welcomed expansion of the Saké brand as it allows us to take a very successful concept outside of Sydney’s CBD," says John Szangolies, proprietor at Urban Purveyor Group. "The venue will allow Saké customers to call in for cocktails, pull up a seat at the sushi bar or settle in with friends for the evening and savour the full Saké experience." The brand new Japanese eatery features indoor seating for 120 (with outdoor for another 30) along with a brand new bar. Of course, the restaurant's namesake won't be left out of this; with Saké's knowledgable staff serving up an impressive range of sake and shochu pairings with your chosen morsels. While you'll need to bring a padded-out wallet, you won't regret a bite. Saké is opening at 33 Cross Street, Double Bay this December. Why not brush up on your sake knowledge in the meantime? Images from Saké.
Discover what's brewing on the Northern Beaches with BrookieFest 2025. Returning after a triumphant first year, this free three-day festival celebrates Brookvale's transformation into a stellar destination for top-notch breweries, distilleries and art spaces. Over the last decade or so, this former industrial hub has seen its car mechanics and dusty warehouses converted into a brewer's haven. As the local scene has grown, the likes of Four Pines Brewery, Manly Spirits Co. and 7th Day Brewery teamed up to create this family-friendly bash. More than 30 eclectic events take place across February 7-9, showcasing the community's welcoming spirit with headline attractions like dachshund dashes, esky races and skateboarding demos. Plus, the kids will love face painting, pony rides and all manner of rollicking games. All this is set against the backdrop of live music and pop-up market stalls featuring the best local creative talent. Don't forget to scan your interactive digital passport at each venue, as you could earn yourself enough stamps to claim a sweet t-shirt or special gift. Amid BrookieFest 2025, the launch of The Brookie Trail is also on the agenda. Guiding Brookvale's visitors from one exciting brewery or eatery to the next, this culinary path makes it easy to encounter all the sumptuous spots this up-and-coming district has to offer.
As we've all been told for centuries on the page, then on the stage, and also on the screen since the birth of film, vampires can live forever. Here's another undead fact: stories about the horror favourites definitely seem to. And, as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and What We Do in the Shadows have shown, such tales are mighty skilled at prolonging their lives. In both of the above instances, movies became TV shows — and fantastic ones at that. On the big screen, What We Do in the Shadows was delightful and hilarious. A New Zealand-shot and -set vampire sharehouse mockumentary made by and starring Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi was always going to be. On the small screen since 2019, the American TV version of What We Do in the Shadows has also proven the same. In fact, with fellow spinoff Wellington Paranormal — the NZ television show that stuck with the movie's cops (Mike Minogue and Karen O'Leary) as they keep investigating the supernatural — it's part of the best on-screen universe there is. Thankfully, the small-screen take on What We Do in the Shadows shows no signs of slowing down. Come mid-July, its fourth season will hit Australia via Binge and New Zealand via Neon, in fact. Even better: based on the two trailers so far — one dropping in early June, and the other to round out the month — fans are set for another wonderfully amusing bloodsuckers gem. For the uninitiated, this iteration of What We Do in the Shadows is set in Staten Island. No, Pete Davidson doesn't show up. Instead, the series focuses on a household where vamps Nandor (Kayvan Novak, Cruella), Laszlo (Matt Berry, Toast of London and Toast of Tinseltown) and Nadja (Natasia Demetriou, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga) all live. Energy vampire Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch, The Office) and Nandor's familiar Guillermo (Harvey Guillen, Werewolves Within), slayers have also staked a claim in the story. There's much, much more to the Shadows television spinoff than that — and plenty to laugh at as well. This time around, there'll also be a vampire nightclub, undead dance-offs, a vamp freestyle rap, a genie's lamp, polyamory, multiple dead wives returning at the same time, and a baby version of Colin. Given that two 'Rasputin'-soundtracked trailers can't tell the full story, as wonderful as both sneak peeks are, expect plenty more where all of that came from. Check out the latest trailer for What We Do in the Shadows season four below: What We Do in the Shadows' fourth season starts streaming in the Australia via Binge on Wednesday, July 13 and New Zealand via Neon on Thursday, July 14.
The McFly's window Scenery Channel 'scene screen' from Back to the Future Part II could become a reality — and not just as a projector screen. Google's just landed the patent for technology that turns your walls into projection screens, so you could be able to fake the weather outside in your kitchen, make your lounge room into King's Landing, or make a Yayoi Kusama installation of your bedroom. Sure, it sounds like your regular ol' projector set-up or even Google's own existing Chromecast technology, but the difference lies in Google's super high-res photoreactive paint. According to Quartz, Google landed a patent today from the US Patent and Trademark Office, one that turn-around-touch-the-ground bagses the technology behind a projection system that uses photoreactive paint to display chosen images on a wall. Sure, it sounds like your regular ol' projector set-up or even Google's own existing Chromecast technology, but the difference lies in Google's super high-res photoreactive paint. So how does it work? After choosing a 'theme' (similar to choosing for your phone/tablet/computer), the projector shoots a laser at the painted wall, which in turn changes from its current boring old wall colour to an image not dissimilar from a desktop wallpaper. Controlled by a smartphone or computer, the projected image would stay put on the wall until changed or switched off. Suggested themes from the Google patent include either mimicking or rejecting the weather outside (we're talking full-on sunshine and palm trees for today), holiday themes (imagine how quickly you could put up Christmas decorations), or scoreboards when it's finals season. Apparently Google's hoping to take their proposed technology from still images to videos — now we're getting to full McFly window status here. Google's photoreactive paint projection technology is not on the market right now, they've just secured the patent. Google told Quartz not to treat this as a product announcement though, saying “We hold patents on a variety of ideas—some of those ideas later mature into real products or services, some don’t. Prospective product announcements should not necessarily be inferred from our patents.” Eh. We can dream. Via Quartz.
If you're a fan of IKEA, but think those huge, daunting warehouses are the stuff of panic attacks, here's some news to make you very happy indeed — the Swedish furniture giant is launching a new kind of retail offering and its size and style is looking a whole lot easier to manage. The brand's Australian arm is set to unveil its first Home Planning Studio, a small-format store that'll make its home at Sydney's Westfield Warringah Mall from next month. A departure from the standard IKEA caper, the new offering's focused only on kitchen and bedroom planning, with a bevvy of staff on hand to coach you through the experience via one-on-one consultations and nifty tablets. Yep, if you're just whipping your loo into shape or sprucing up that kitchen, you can forego the mammoth Tempe or Rhodes adventure and breeze through here instead. [caption id="attachment_715151" align="alignnone" width="1920"] A render of the Home Planning Studio's layout.[/caption] As an added bonus, the space itself reads like a bubble of serenity (supposedly). The bedroom zone is complete with wafting floral scents and a plethora of wardrobe storage solutions. Meanwhile, the kitchen planning section apparently takes the form of a "wellness sanctuary", offering a raft of storage options aimed at the eco-friendly home chef and entertainer. There's no word yet on exactly what products the store will stock — from the renders we're guessing some kitchen appliances, coat hangers, pillows and plants — but we're hoping we'll be able to pick up those essential tealight candles and lint rollers (looking at you, pet owners). The IKEA Home Planning Studio is slated to open in Westfield Warringah Mall, Old Pittwater Road, Brookvale, at the start of May. If it proves a hit, the concept will be rolled out to more locations across the country.
Each year for six years now, Australia's annual Wineslinger Awards have named the country's top spots for ace drops, picking where you should be sipping and buying vino. There are two parts to its annual selections, starting with a longlist, then naming four winners. 2023's Top 55 arrived in November, so now it's time for the main gongs — aka the best of the best in Aussie wine venues. Accordingly, Wineslinger isn't about vino itself, or bars in general. As the name makes plain, it's focused on watering holes that specialise in wine. The four prizes cover the best Wineslinger, Best New Haunt, the Maverick prize for places that push the limits and the People's Choice gong. While the first three awards are voted on by around 150 industry experts, the latter stems from vino aficionados at home. [caption id="attachment_884952" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Roberto Pettinau[/caption] Melbourne boasts 2023's Wineslinger recipient, thanks to Marion in Fitzroy. The awards recognised the venue for laying "reasonable claim to capturing the essence of what are, somewhat inelegantly, known as 'barstaurants'," said the Young Gun of Wine team, which runs Wineslinger. "Perhaps this pitching of wine and food in equal measure was not necessarily the intent, but having one of Melbourne's best-loved culinary sons orchestrating the food message was always going to draw crowds. Having said all that, with the shared resource of the flagship Cutler & Co, the wine offer has always been formidable, and deserving of just as much attention." Marion took out the Wineslinger accolade after Sydney's Dear Sainte Éloise scored it in 2022, Melbourne's Embla nabbed it in 2021 and the Carlton Wine Room picked it up in 2020. The Best New Haunt field also went to a Victorian venue, with Collingwood's Commis receiving the nod for a joint that the Young Gun of Wine crew described as "equal parts wine den, cocktail lounge, shared-plate bistro, chic art gallery and chilled neighbourhood hangout". In the Maverick category, Silver Sands Beach Club in Aldinga in South Australia came out on top, earning some love for being "the type of wine clubhouse that will ideally serve the neighbouring McLaren Vale region and the Fleurieu Peninsula beach community, plus a steady stream of wine nerds making the pilgrimage south from Adelaide". As for the People's Choice, Western Australian's The Corner Dairy in Doubleview took the honours. That means that no New South Wales, Queensland, Australian Capital Territory or Northern Territory sites made a showing in the four gongs, but all states and territories do feature on the full Top 55. The Wineslinger Awards were created by Rory Kent, who also founded the Young Gun of Wine Awards. Where the latter prize aims to recognise stellar up-and-comers, the former is all about excellent and innovative places where vino lovers can enjoy an ace drop. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Young Gun of Wine (@younggunofwine) WINESLINGER AWARDS 2023 WINNERS: Wineslinger: Marion, Fitzroy, Victoria Maverick: Silver Sands Beach Club, Aldinga, South Australia Best New Haunt: Commis, Collingwood, Victoria People's Choice: The Corner Dairy, Doubleview, Western Australia WINESLINGER AWARDS 2023 TOP 50: ACT Bar Rochford, Canberra Rizla, Braddon NSW 10 William Street, Paddington Bar Copains, Surry Hills Bar Heather, Byron Bay Bar Superette, Merimbula Beau, Surry Hills Bentley Restaurant & Bar, Sydney Caravin, Potts Point Dear Sainte Eloise, Potts Point Fix Wine, Sydney Le Foote, The Rocks Lil Sis, Chippendale P&V Merchants, Paddington The Sir George Hotel, Jugiong The Wine Library, Woollahra Where's Nick, Marrickville [caption id="attachment_623527" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nikki To.[/caption] NT Stone House, Darwin QLD Agnes, Fortitude Valley Alba Bar + Deli, Brisbane Cru Bar + Cellar, Fortitude Valley Paloma Wine Bar, Burleigh Heads Snack Man, Fortitude Valley The End, West End Zero Fox, Teneriffe SA Alt. Wine Bar, Unley Good Gilbert, Goodwood Hellbound, Adelaide Jennie Wine Bar, Adelaide Loc Bottle Shop, Adelaide Silver Sands Beach Club, Aldinga Stanley Bridge Tavern, Verdun Stem Bar & Restaurant, Adelaide The Salopian Inn, McLaren Vale [caption id="attachment_860199" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Earl Carter[/caption] TAS Havilah, Launceston Lucinda, Hobart Molto Bar and Cellar, Hobart VIC Bar Marenda, Daylesford Carlton Wine Room, Carlton City Wine Shop, Melbourne Commis, Collingwood Geralds Bar, Carlton North Gimlet, Melbourne Marion, Fitzroy Osteria Illaria, Melbourne Public Wine Shop, Fitzroy North Torquay Wine Store, Torquay Union Street Wine, Geelong Winespeake, Daylesford WA Besk, West Leederville Lalla Rookh, Perth Mayfair Lane, West Perth Mummucc', Wembley The Corner Dairy, Perth Wines of While, Perth For more information about the Wineslinger Awards, visit the awards' website. Top image: Marion, Harvard Wang.
Sydney residents will be donning their gardening gloves and taking to the streets in an attempt to vivify the city’s increasingly banal footpaths. The City of Sydney has instigated a new gardening initiative, designed to increase the flora next to our city's streets, and thereby protecting local habitats, improving air quality and filtering storm water run-off. University of Technology urban ecologist, Dr Jane Tarran, revealed that increasing urbanisation and lack of vegetation throughout the city has caused a loss of connection with birds and wildlife and a gradual decline in contact with nature in general. Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP believes that “trees and other planting help absorb carbon pollution and help cool our city” and will thus help counteract the negative effects of urbanisation. The Footpath Gardening Policy has been developed in order to allow the public to establish a garden or nature strip without a development application. Council adopted the recommendation to allocate an impressive $50,000 for seeds and plant boxes to help kickstart this important process for the first six months. As well as having positive effects on the natural ecology, the increase in trees is also expected to be beneficial for human wellbeing as Dr Tarran says “they have a restorative power..., providing recovery from mental fatigue and information overload”.
Taking inspiration from events in the past 12 months such as the (mainly UK-based) media scandals and the digital frenzy that surrounded the Kony12 campaign, the 2012 Sydney Writers' Festival will get us all thinking, talking (and maybe even writing) about the shifting boundaries between what’s public and what's private. Featuring profound and relevant discussions on current topics like gay marriage and media in a digital age, the 15th SWF will include writing workshops, readings from prizewinning authors, poets and biographers - as well as politicians, judges and even a CIA interrogator. The Festival will be hosting a few international heavyweights too. Libyan novelist Hisham Matar, who was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize for In the Country of Men, will be opening the Festival. He will be talking about his writing and the harrowing events of his past (his father was kidnapped by Gaddafi’s regime in the ‘90s and is still missing). Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Virgin Suicides, Jeffrey Eugenides, is making first trip down under for the Festival, and Jeanette Winterson, author of Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit, will be here to read from her memoir Why be Happy When You Could Be Normal?. Kick-ass writers from the UK and US, including Heather Brooke, who broke the story about the British parliamentary expenses scandal, and Stella Rimington, former head of MI5, are just two from a long list of influential writers who have tackled topics as wide-reaching as the troubled history of Ireland, Vladimir Putin’s hold over Russia and western capitalism versus China’s booming economy. There’s a kids programme too. Jeff Kinney, the creator of the successful children’s series Diary of a Wimpy Kid, will be speaking at Sydney Opera House among other readings and workshops. Closer to home, Australian expat Kathy Lette will be at the festival talking about raising an autistic child, and Aboriginal writer Anita Heiss and politician Bob Katter will be sharing their views on our nation. The Festival will be taking place from May 14 to 20 across venues such as Sydney Opera House, Walsh Bay, Sydney Town Hall and the Recital Hall. And the best part? More than half of the events are completely free. Some events are ticketed, some are not. Go to www.swf.org.au for details of all the writers attending and how to purchase tickets.
