We're teaming up with Intrepid for a season of adventure throughout 2024, and we need your help to put it all together. If you've got a craving for a food-fuelled adventure and are pretty savvy with a camera and video tools, you could secure your place on a ten-day tour of Vietnam with Intrepid Travel as our newly-appointed roving reporter, capturing every moment of the experience and helping us share the wonders that travel has to offer. This adventure will take you from one end of the country to another, seeing famous sights like Ha Long Bay and the Mekong River Delta. Along the way, you'll sample the specialty cuisines the country is known for, seeing the sights fly by on an overnight train ride, explore quiet fishing villages and the busy streets of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City alike. Just remember, keep that camera charged and ready for the money shots and the little snippets you can't see coming. We'll need your footage and creative skills to put together a video to showcase the trip and others like it. To enter, you just need to fill out the form below and submit an original video entry to prove you've got what it takes to get behind the camera and shoot a video as a roving reporter for Concrete Playground. It doesn't need to be a travel video, just as long as it shows you've got an eye for good content and have the practical skills to film and edit footage. Good luck, winners will be contacted by midnight on Friday, August 30. [competition]965314[/competition] Images courtesy of Intrepid Travel
It took more than 25 years for Twin Peaks to revisit its moody, otherworldly and all-round odd small-town mysteries — and if you're not done diving into the television show's wonderful and strange world just yet, don't stress. Whether there'll be any more episodes is anyone's guess, but you can spend an evening with the show's stars in the interim, with five of the series cast members heading to Australia later this year. Although David Lynch famously refuses to talk in-depth about any of his work, including Twin Peaks' three seasons to date and the film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, expect Sheryl Lee (Laura Palmer), Kimmy Robertson (Lucy Moran), Michael Horse (Deputy Hawk), Al Strobel (Philip Gerard) and Dana Ashbrook (Bobby Briggs) to be much more forthcoming as they chat about their experiences both on- and off-screen. In fact, maybe Lynch will be too — while he won't be there in person, he'll be Skyping in to answer questions live. On Saturday, September 1 at ICC Sydney's Darling Harbour Theatre, Lee, Robertson, Horse, Strobel, Ashbrook and the via-video Lynch will be joining forces with Twin Peaks producer Sabrina S. Sutherland for a 'Conversation with the Stars' discussions. If you've ever wondered what it was like to be wrapped in plastic, or to line up piles and piles of doughnuts, or to play the other half of the series' evil entity, here's your chance to find out. While Twin Peaks' lead Kyle MacLachlan won't be making the trip, the lineup is still a Peaks-lover's dream come true. Lee played Laura Palmer, the teen sweetheart whose murder sparked the whole series, while Ashbrook swaggered through highs-chool hallways as her boyfriend Bobby Briggs, and then turned unlikely cop in the latest season. Robertson is best known as bubbly police station receptionist Lucy, and Horse played the enigmatic Deputy Hawk — and had one of the most recent series' most moving scenes. As for Strobel's Phil Gerard, he was pals with Bob before becoming a resident of the Black Lodge. If all of the above gets you thinking about damn fine coffee and the Double R Diner's cherry pie, then you'll be keen to nab tickets to the intimate chat, which is in town for one night only. No word yet if the cast members will be sitting in front of red curtains or being interviewed by someone called Diane, but we can only hope. And if you're an absolute die-hard Peaks fan with some spare cash (around $500 in spare cash), meet-and-greet tickets are also available. Updated August 5.
Before getting a glimpse into everyone else's lives was as simple as logging into your social-media platform of choice, a game arrived that let its players do something similar with computerised characters. A spinoff from SimCity and its city-building follow-ups, The Sims allows whoever is mashing buttons to create and control virtual people, then step through their existence. First hitting in February 2000, it has spawned three sequels, plus a whole heap of expansion and compilation packs for each — and online, console and mobile versions as well. A quarter of a century since its debut, The Sims still keeps dropping new releases. To mark its 25th birthday, there's now The Sims: Birthday Bundle. That's one way to celebrate the game's latest anniversary. Here's another: stepping inside a three-day Australian pop-up dedicated to the beloved life simulator, which is heading to Melbourne's Australian Centre for the Moving Image from Friday, February 21–Sunday, February 23, 2025. Despite The Sims' more-recent titles, thinking about the game usually means thinking about the 2000s. So, this pop-up is taking that truth to heart by celebrating the Y2K era, too. Going along involves entering inside a 2000s-era pre-teen bedroom that's been decked out by Josh & Matt Design with all of the appropriate touches. Yes, it'll be nostalgic. Yes, there'll be CD towers and blow-up couches, just to name a few decor choices. The pop-up will also feature free stations where you can play The Sims: Birthday Bundle, if the best way for you to commeroate the occasion is by diving into the franchise virtually. In addition, there'll also be a free panel about the game on the Saturday, with speakers including Josh & Matt Design's Josh Jessup and Matt Moss — who are big The Sims fans — and EA/Firemonkeys' Simulation Division General Manager Mavis Chan. "As Australia's home of videogames, ACMI is so chuffed to be celebrating the 25th anniversary of The Sims! For 25 years, The Sims has provided a platform for so many kinds of imaginative play for multiple generations, allowing them to achieve great feats of digital architecture, guide their Sims to dizzying success — or cruelly remove their pool ladders. With each new expansion and sequel, The Sims has expanded its complex social world, reflecting changes to real-life society, and facilitating even more forms of self-expression in its passionate player base," said ACMI Curator Jini Maxwell, announcing the pop-up. "As a long-term Sims player myself, I'm so thrilled to celebrate the game's cultural legacy and personal significance in this event and free talk hosted by ACMI." EA Presents The Sims 25 is popping up from Friday, February 21–Sunday, February 23 at ACMI, Federation Square, Melbourne — head to the venue's website for more details.
SXSW is taking over Sydney between Sunday, October 15–Sunday, October 22. It's the first time that the world-renowned music, film, tech and gaming conference has left the US — and it has a jam-packed eight-day program in store. Included on the lineup is a slate of over 700 speakers, who will be appearing on talks and panels during the festival's massive conference. You can browse the full schedule at the SXSW Sydney website, but it's pretty overwhelming with plenty of not-to-be-missed sessions popping up each and every day. In order to help you plan out your fest, we've compiled our picks for the cream of the crop — ten absolute must-catch conference sessions at SXSW Sydney 2023. Our recommendations include looks at Australia's arts and culinary scenes, big-name creatives sitting down for exclusive chats, and even a panel that we've pulled together ourselves pondering the future of journalism and digital learning. APPETITE FOR DISTRACTION: YOUTH, INFORMATION AND THE DIGITAL AGE Gone are the days of "I read an article about". Gone are even the days of "actually, I just saw the headline". We're now well and truly in the age of "I watched a TikTok". The way that we absorb information is constantly changing, and right now video is ruling — especially among gen z and millennials. Concrete Playground's very own SXSW Sydney panel is looking at just this, pulling together a group of video-first creatives to discuss how young people are consuming info in the digital age. The panel will feature Pedestrian.TV's Issy Phillips to discuss news and journalism in the era of short-form video; astrophysicist and scientific communicator Kirsten Banks to chat about the role of TikTok, Reels and YouTube in sparking people's love in all things space; and Concrete Playground's very own Ben Hansen to talk about how we're searching for recommendations and deciding how to fill our calendar in 2023. Catch Appetite for Distraction: Youth Information and the Digital Age at 2pm on Wednesday, October 18 at Room E3.9, ICC Sydney. [caption id="attachment_917272" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Anthony Quintano via Wikimedia Commons[/caption] 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIP HOP FEATURING CHANCE THE RAPPER "As we celebrate 50 years of hip hop in 2023, I'm reminded of the transformative power this culture has had, not just on the world stage, but on the streets of Chicago's South Side," said Chance The Rapper, announcing his SXSW Sydney appearance. The three-time Grammy winner is appearing on the event's lineup to discuss the global impact of the genre five decades after DJ Kool Herc first isolated percussion breaks, then repeated them — and made history. "Chance The Rapper is renowned for both his chart topping and community advocacy. There's few out there like him, who take what they've made and use it to build the dreams of others," noted SXSW Sydney Managing Director Colin Daniels. The conversation should be top of the must-see list for all hip hop heads and music lovers in general. It also stands as the marquee session in a program full of hip hop — including other panels like Hip Hop How a Generation Is Changing the World, films like OneFour: Against All Odds, and boundary-pushing sets from rappers Redveil, Barkaa, Zion Garcia and Flyanna Boss. Catch 50th Anniversary of Hip Hop ft. Chance the Rapper at 1pm on Thursday, October 19 — check the website for venue details. [caption id="attachment_856346" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dan Boud[/caption] THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY — MICHAEL CASSEL AM AND KIP WILLIAMS IN CONVERSATION After selling out multiple Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland runs, and before it hits the UK's West End with an iteration starring Succession's Sarah Snook, Sydney Theatre Company's The Picture of Dorian Gray is being dissected at SXSW Sydney. Premiering in Sydney in 2020, this take on the tale uses video and theatre to get its star playing 26 characters. In the Australian runs, Eryn Jean Norvill has done the honours, and brilliantly, with Snook following in the actor's footsteps abroad. Renowned producer Michael Cassel AM will sit down with Sydney Theatre Company's Artistic Director Kip Williams to discuss the imaginative, groundbreaking and thought-provoking stage show. Developed right here in Australia by a local creative team during the pandemic, the The Picture of Dorian Gray is a real success story for Australia's arts scene — and this is your chance to take a look under the hood and hear what's next for the production. Catch The Picture of Dorian Gray — Michael Cassel AM and Kip Williams at 4pm on Tuesday, October 17 — check the website for venue details. [caption id="attachment_820444" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nine Perfect Strangers, Vince Valitutti/Hulu[/caption] A SPOTLIGHT ON BLOSSOM FILMS In a late addition to the SXSW Sydney program, Australian icon Nicole Kidman is joining the event. Adding one of the nation's most famous acting names at home and in America to perhaps the biggest tech, innovation, screen, music, games and culture festival that Australia has ever seen is fitting. 2023 marks 40 years since Kidman starred in BMX Bandits, but that's not why she'll be taking to the SXSW Sydney stage as part of its massive speaker lineup. Instead, she'll be chatting with her producing partner Per Saari about her production company Blossom Films. On its resume: the Nickers-starring Big Little Lies, Nine Perfect Strangers, The Undoing and Rabbit Hole, as well as this year's Elizabeth Olsen (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness)-led Love & Death. Catch A Spotlight on Blossom Films on at 11am on Thursday, October 19 — check the website for venue details. DERRICK GEE — HOW TO TALK MUSIC (ON THE INTERNET) You may have come across the soothing tones of Derrick Gee's voice on your TikTok or Instagram feeds chatting about Erika De Casier, audio equipment or the international influence of yacht rock. If you haven't, this is your sign to get lost in his videos right now. Gee will be hitting the SXSW Sydney stage to discuss the wonders of discussing music on the world wide web. Sometimes music feels like this indescribable thing, but other times genres feel like they've been talked to death; however, Gee has a distinct way of finding the story and the humanity in the music he chats about. This is a must-see session whether you're a band or promoter looking to change up how you communicate your music online, a lover of all things sound or just like Derrick Gee's videos. Catch Derrick Gee — How to Talk Music (On the Internet) at 11.30am on Friday, October 20 at The Guthrie Theatre, UTS Building 6. INDIGENOUS COLLABORATION: MAKING FILMS THAT HEAL Māoriland Film Festival, the world's largest Indigenous film festival, joins the SXSW Sydney lineup in conjunction with UNESCO Wellington City of Film with a panel featuring award-winning talent from across the film industry. The focus: discussing Indigenous collaboration, plus creating films that facilitate change, and help the audience and the filmmakers heal. On the panel: writer and director Chantelle Murray (My Name is Mudju, Elvis, Thor: Love and Thunder); Chelsea Winstanley (Jojo Rabbit, What We Do in the Shadows, Moana Reo Māori, Talk to Me), the first Indigenous woman to be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar; Māoriland Film Festival Director and producer Libby Hakaraia; and independent film and television producer, director, writer and presenter Tainui Stephens. Catch Indigenous Collaboration: Making Films That Heal at 3.30pm on Monday, October 16 at Cinema Theatre, UTS Building 6. BETTER THAN YESTERDAY WITH OSHER GÜNSBERG TV personality and author Osher Günsberg is bringing two live episodes of his podcast Better Than Yesterday to SXSW Sydney. The man of many talents — including the host of Australian Idol and The Bachelor, creator of the satirical news parody NTNNNN: Night Time News Network Nightly News and narrator of Bondi Rescue — will take to the stage for two long-form interviews about how we can work towards a brighter tomorrow. The first, on Wednesday, October 18, will be with psychotherapist and holistic counsellor Diane Young. Günsberg and Young will discuss the ramifications of addiction — however, they'll do so with the hope of creating a constructive conversation that will leave the audience feeling "better than yesterday". The following day, Günsberg will sit down with activist, politician and Midnight Oil frontman Peter Garrett. The conversation will traverse Garrett's storied career and also see the musician announce a brand new musical project. Catch Better Than Yesterday with Osher Günsberg at 10am on Wednesday, October 18 and 10am on Thursday, October 19 — check the website for venue details. [caption id="attachment_917939" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Netflix[/caption] CHARLIE BROOKER IN CONVERSATION If you're a bit wary of technology's ever-growing influence in humanity's daily lives — be it artificial intelligence, streaming algorithms, social media, drones, augmented reality or online dating, to name just a few examples — then Charlie Brooker and Black Mirror might be one of the reasons. Since 2011, they've been spinning dystopian nightmares about what might happen as tech evolves. In plenty of cases, they've been satirising and interrogating innovations we use today, and what their next step might be. Yes, that makes Brooker the perfect speaker to get chatting at SXSW Sydney. "Black Mirror consistently leads the cultural conversation on what we face in the now or may confront in our future, offering a chance for reflection and change. Charlie embodies what attendees can expect from SXSW Sydney: creativity and innovation," says SXSW Sydney Managing Director Colin Daniels. Catch Charlie Brooker in Conversation at 1pm on Wednesday, October 18 — check the website for venue details. [caption id="attachment_759108" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Alana Dimou[/caption] WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF CHINATOWN? Sydney's Chinatown finds itself in an interesting situation. In some ways, it's continuing to thrive, with the streets packed every Friday night and a fleet of new venues arriving post-lockdown. At the same time, urban sprawl, the cost of living and changing migration patterns have seen the city's Asian diaspora move out to the suburbs more and more. Moderated by Soul of Chinatown's Eddie Ma, this panel will break down where Chinatown is now and what's to come for the bustling inner-city district. The roster of experts joining Ma includes acclaimed chef and Chinatown resident Dan Hong (Mr Wong, Ms. G's, MuMu), property developer and Chinatown advocate Brad Chan, and award-winning architect Qianyi Lim. Catch What Is The Future of Chinatown? at 10am on Wednesday, October 18 at Theatrette, Powerhouse Museum. HORROR & AUDIENCE: WHY WE LOVE TO BE TERRIFIED Whether you love them, hate them or love to hate them, people flock to horror movies — and thanks to studios like A24 and an exciting batch of homegrown horror filmmakers, the genre is having a real moment right now. This panel features four leading voices in horror movies, discussing why they find the genre enthralling, the art of horror storytelling and where the spookiest of films are heading. Daley Pearson leads the lineup of speakers, bringing experience from his eclectic career to the stage, including executive producing Bluey, creating the concept for Danny and Michael Philippou's Talk to Me and playing Thor's roommate Darryl on Team Thor and Team Daryl. Joining Pearson will be Wyrmwood director Kiah Roache-Turner, filmmaker Natalie Erika James (Relic) and Causeway Films producer Samantha Jennings (Talk to Me, You Won't Be Alone, Of An Age). Catch Horror & Audience: Why We Love to Be Terrified at 2pm on Thursday, October 19 at Cinema Theatre, UTS Building 6. SXSW Sydney runs from Sunday, October 15–Sunday, October 22 at various Sydney venues. Head to the SXSW Sydney website for further details. Top image: Brittany Hallberg.
Pack your camp gear, fishing rods and multiple sets of swimmers and visit this Sapphire Coast gem. You'll find idyllic inlets like Nelson Beach or Moon Bay, perfect for swimming, surfing and fishing. Picnickers and those prepared to paddle with a canoe or kayak should head to Nelson Lagoon. Or, if it's sea life you seek, stroll along the walking track to Wajurda Point lookout and spy whales and dolphins among the endless blue. Park your pack at the campgrounds at Gillards, Picnic Point or Middle Beach for a canvas room with an ocean view. Or, you can book the historic Myer House by Lake Wapengo for up to 12 people. The nearby towns of Bermagui and Merimbula are good spots to stay for the less intrepid, too — and you can even fly straight into the latter if you're short on time. [caption id="attachment_802263" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption] Image: National Parks
Sure, picnics are a common enough pastime for Sydneysiders. But now that double-vaxxed residents of NSW can get together in groups of five outdoors, it's high time to champion the return of the humble BYO picnic. In partnership with Rosie Spritz, we're helping you jump on the picnic fever that's taking over the city this spring. Whether you want to simply lay in the sun and read Sally Rooney's latest novel or to plan a full-blown al fresco feast with four mates, we've got you. And for northern beaches folk, that means uncovering the most idyllic parks, bays and beaches where you can throw down a rug — and BYO booze. So, grab your wicker basket and head to these top spots to fill your gob with cold cuts and sip an ice-cold spritz in the afternoon sun. [caption id="attachment_827080" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Elliott Kramer[/caption] CLONTARF RESERVE, CLONTARF Despite beaches reigning supreme on this side of town, there's no shortage of beautiful bays and parklands either — and Clontarf Reserve, on the fringes of Balgowlah, ticks all of the worthy park boxes. Beach? Check. Leafy tree-filled space? Yep. Netted swimming zone to keep any purported finned friends at bay? Yessir. It also overlooks the Spit Bridge (in case engineering marvels are your thing) and features a play area for fully vaxxed picnickers with young kids in tow. Physical attributes aside, the reserve is also BYO booze-friendly from 8am–8pm, making it perfect spot for a spritz. [caption id="attachment_827079" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Elliott Kramer[/caption] CLAREVILLE BEACH RESERVE, CLAREVILLE If sun and sand is more your speed, get on down to Clareville Beach for your next picnic. This lesser-known (but equally impressive) stretch of beach tucked away near Avalon is the kind of sandy serenity you no doubt seek. Expect calm waters, lightly bobbing sailboats, shady pines and a soft seabreeze to keep you cool long into the afternoon. Add four vaxxed mates, a picnic spread of prawns rolls and freshly shucked oysters, and a cooler full of rosé spritzes and, congrats, you've mastered the casual beachside picnic. You'll just have to quit any boozing from 8pm–8am. [caption id="attachment_827078" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Elliott Kramer[/caption] WINNERERREMY BAY, MONA VALE If you're looking for the most family-friendly picnic spot on the northern beaches, feast your activity-hunting eyes on Winnererremy Bay. It's got an epic flying fox ride for one, plus a skate park, playground, picnic shelters and barbeque facilities, so you can throw a shrimp on the barbie and sip a spritz (from 8am–8pm). There's also a swimming area and trails featuring stone carvings if you want a quick dip or walk before you tuck in. Then, roll out a blanket under one of the many shady trees at this relaxed spot and you'll feel a world away from the bustle of the more publicised picnic spots in the area. [caption id="attachment_827076" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Elliott Kramer[/caption] DES CREAGH RESERVE, AVALON The northern beaches lays claim to quiet, sandy coves by the dozen. But if you're looking for somewhere a bit livelier to lay down a picnic spread, head to Des Creagh Reserve in Avalon. This stretch of tree-lined park is right opposite Avalon Beach, meaning there's plenty of action to be witnessed, as well as uninterrupted ocean views. Plus, it's just a short stroll to some of the sweetest Avalon eateries on offer for all your takeaway picnic needs. So, live out your Puberty Blues dreams with a Chiko Roll and watch the surfers duck and glide along the waves as the sun starts to set. Like much of the northern beaches BYO-friendly spots, alcohol is banned at Des Creagh Reserve from 8pm–8am. [caption id="attachment_827088" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Elliott Kramer[/caption] THOMAS STEVENS RESERVE, CHURCH POINT As far as remote-yet-accessible picnic zones go, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better pick than Thomas Stevens Reserve. Located on the shores of Pittwater and overlooking the alluring Scotland Island, Thomas Stevens Reserve is laden with shady spaces and secluded coves to meander until you find the perfect picnic possie. Booze is usually off-limits, but you can imbibe on Fridays, weekends and public holidays between 3pm-9pm, so plan accordingly if you're looking to BYO booze. Thankfully, snacks are allowed any day, any time. [caption id="attachment_825771" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Barrenjoey Lighthouse, Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, Michele Cooper/DPIE[/caption] BARRENJOEY HEAD, KU-RING-GAI CHASE NATIONAL PARK Everyone's favourite natural backdrop from Home and Away, Barenjoey Head and its famed lighthouse are also home to an unbelievable picnic spot with views for days. It's a bit of a trek — around 30 minutes from the car park — but once you're there, you're gifted with 360-degree views of pristine coastline stretching from the Central Coast and long sandy beaches to the south. Across the water, there's the winding bushlands of Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park and the dazzling bays of the Hawkesbury. If that's not the backdrop for a picnic cheers, we don't know what is. [caption id="attachment_827083" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Elliott Kramer[/caption] EAST ESPLANADE RESERVE, MANLY Located on the harbour side of Manly, East Esplanade Park is one of the most-loved parks on the northern beaches. While the majority of the park is an alcohol-free zone, there is one small pocket where you can sip a cold one (responsibly, of course). Locally known as 'The Office', this section of grass is in East Esplanade Reserve and it's one of the very few outdoor areas where you can BYO booze in Manly; however alcohol consumption is banned between the hours 8pm–8am. So, we recommend coming here to watch the ferries to and fro across the harbour and sip a spritz at sunset, then get dinner from one of the local restaurants, like Queen Chow or Chica Bonita (which are both currently serving up takeaway options, too). Rosie Spritz is an ideal springtime sip and is available at BWS, Dan Murphy's and First Choice Liquor stores across Sydney. For more picnic inspiration, check out our guides to idyllic picnic spots where you can BYO booze in Sydney's inner west, inner city, lower north shore and eastern suburbs. Top image: Clareville Beach, Elliott Kramer Remember to Drinkwise.
For every Australian that was a toddler from the 90s onwards, and their counterparts worldwide as well, heroes wear blue, yellow, red and purple skivvies. Since the early 90s, The Wiggles have been one of the biggest Aussie names in children's entertainment, and one of the country's most-successful global hits. Alongside Bananas in Pyjamas and Bluey, they're part of a trio of homegrown icons in pop culture's early-childhood space, all thanks to the decision by Anthony Field, Jeff Fatt, Greg Page and Murray Cook to turn their university studies in the area, plus their experience in music — Field and Fatt were part of The Cockroaches, while Page was in Dead Giveaway and Cook in Bang Shang a Lang — into an album for kids. The rest is history, which The Wiggles just keep making. In Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2021, three decades after the group's self-titled debut album, they topped the poll with a cover of Tame Impala's 'Elephant'. Also among the troupe's recent achievements and highlights: appearing at the Mardi Gras parade, playing Falls Festival, earning some love from Lil Nas X and bringing the OGs back together for adults-only shows. Premiering at the first-ever SXSW Sydney, documentary Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles — which is now streaming via Prime Video — has joined their resume as well. Onstage for today's toddlers — plus every batch of preschoolers since 'Get Ready to Wiggle' and 'Dorothy the Dinosaur' first started echoing — The Wiggles serve up business as usual. Whether playing at home or around the world, the Aussie entertainers put on a child-pleasing live show. Other than Field, the folks donning the skivvies have changed, with the troupe becoming bigger, more culturally diverse and championing gender balance. At gigs specifically focused at 90s and 00s kids who are now well past The Wiggles' prime demographic, Field, Fatt, Page and Cook have reformed for reunion tours. As seen in Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles, both types of concerts draw huge crowds. For Field, Fatt, Page and Cook, life has been shaped by wearing bright colours, singing to fans young and older alike, and getting 'Hot Potato' and 'Fruit Salad' lodged in everyone's brains — and lives have been moulded by their efforts in turn. Early-childhood teaching philosophies have always sat at the forefront of The Wiggles, which the OG four attribute to their success. Young devotees who dance along to their tunes then become adults who still think fondly about their first-ever favourite group. Hot Potato: The Story of the Wiggles clearly has much to cover, then, all within a 104-minute doco that does much more than trade in nostalgia: as directed by Valerie Taylor: Playing with Sharks and David Stratton: A Cinematic Life filmmaker Sally Aitken, it chronicles how four friends started a phenomenon that's taken them everywhere from small Aussie shows to Madison Square Garden, and sparked a beloved group that shows no signs of stopping. With the movie now delighting audiences, Field, Fatt, Page and Cook spoke to Concrete Playground about all things Wiggles, including reflecting upon their careers via the doco, the whirlwind last few years for the OGs and why they're so beloved. And if you're wondering if Fatt, Page and Cook wear skivvies or their famous colours now, Page bought yellow sneakers just for the film's premiere "to have something yellow in my wardrobe", Fatt says he "definitely avoids the purple" and Cook does "have some skivvies though, but they're black". ON THEIR RESPONSE TO A DOCUMENTARY BEING MADE ABOUT THE WIGGLES Anthony: "This New Zealand company approached us about doing it. So they were filming us for the last couple of years and being with us, and then got all this archival footage, and got fans to send in a whole lot of stuff — and just got all these incredible photos right through our career. We were all a step away from the actual creatives of it, and the storytelling. It was pretty well Sally [Aitken] and Fraser [associate director Fraser Grut] with the guys in New Zealand who put it together. But I was a bit scared to see it. I found it very emotional and beautiful — and sad and happy, all that stuff. A lot of great memories." Murray: "When someone's going to make a documentary about you, you're not involved in the decision-making. There's a bit of trust involved and you just hope that they do the right thing. But once we met the filmmakers, Fraser and Sally, we got to know them a bit, and I felt very trusting that they'd tell the story honestly. You don't want to whitewash — you just want the the truth to be told, I think." Jeff: "And Fraser grew up with The Wiggles. So, he held us in very high esteem." Greg: "I think, too, that because he did, because he was a fan as a child, he got the essence of what the documentary is, and that is showing that connection between us and the children, and that connection that continues on today with the new Wiggles. I think that really sums it up beautifully. And I think the overall tone of the picture is one — can you believe I said picture, like moving picture? — the tone of the documentary is one of joy and happiness. Really, that's what it's about. And I think he's done a great job, and so has Sally." ON REFLECTING ON THEIR CAREERS VIA THE FILM Greg: "It must have been such a challenge to try and cram 30 years into probably 100 minutes or so. But they've done a really good job at capturing those high points and the low points along the way — the milestone moments of The Wiggles. To sit there and watch it back for us, I know personally it was really interesting because living it from the inside, you see it very differently to how other people have seen it. But then to step outside of that now and watch it in a different perspective, it's really quite fascinating." Anthony: "You see little bits on YouTube of things we did 15 years ago, but this was like a line of just what happened. And just at the end of it, I was overwhelmed by it all." Murray: "I thought it was quite moving at at times. There was a lot of joy there, but there were a few tears. It does give you an opportunity to reflect on what it was that we achieved and what we created. I think it's really great for the world to see the people behind The Wiggles — that it's not just four goofballs, although we are that — but that there's theory and philosophy behind it. But also just seeing the journey that we went on together, it was really lovely to be able to see that." Greg: "It's interesting because when people ask us questions like they did in the documentary, they're asking questions that we probably never asked each other. And a lot of things we kind of took for granted that we're on the same page about, or we just felt that we would all feel the same way about, but I think there were some differences — not major differences at all. It's kind of funny, like we never sat around and shared a lot about our own feelings about things. A lot of the time, we were talking about the show, the production that we were going to do, there was a lot of that stuff. So I think for me it was really a chance to hear the other guys' perspective on what The Wiggles was to them." ON REALISING THAT THE WIGGLES WERE BECOMING A PHENOMENON Anthony: "In Australia, we went from birthday parties to playing fundraisers for the Nursing Mothers Association, which was really good. They'd sell the tickets and get a percentage of the tickets, they were fundraisers for them and it was great because, basically, it just was word of mouth. The Wiggles in those days, we weren't on television and we weren't on the radio. But the big step up in America, when I knew that things had changed, was when we went over and the people in customs recognised us — not in a bad way. That's when I went 'things have changed here'. It was because Disney took our TV series and put it on four times a day on their channel. And we became massive in America and Canada, and it was amazing." Murray: "I don't think we thought it would go around the world until we actually spent a bit of time in America. For us in the 2000s, from about 2002 on, America was a fairly big focus because it was very successful there. Once we started doing things like playing Madison Square Garden and doing the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, it became a little bit surreal, for me anyway. We'd be sitting on buses going to these cities in America that in a lot of cases we've heard of but never been to, and it was a great adventure but it was also a little bit hard to get your head around." Jeff: "From the early days, for example, when we put out the first video and it really made a connection with our audience — and just little steps like that. We'd quite often play for the Nursing Mothers Association in little halls, and that started getting traction. So the audience was continually building in those regional areas and in the city. So there were these little steps along the way, so it wasn't like a huge leap — it was a very gradual thing for us." Greg: "I think, too, it's interesting that people use words like 'global phenomenon' or 'global empire'. For us, it was never about that. It was just about being able to do something that we loved and do it well. And for that reason, every time we had a little bit of success, it felt like we had achieved so much more than what we ever set out to do. And every step along the way, it just kept building and building. So on reflection, I think that was probably the biggest thing about the doco — to sit back and watch those milestone moments be played back. It's like 'well, god, I can't believe we did that because we never set out to do it' — it was just all these happy bonuses that came along. We've had a a blessed time and I think, I hope, that people take away from the doco the fact that when you do something in life that you really enjoy, if it brings joy to other people and that joy is something that's shared both ways, and if everybody's life can be filled with joy, then it's a really great thing." ON THE WIGGLES' ONGOING SUCCESS Murray: "I think that what made The Wiggles successful in the first place is a few things. One of them is that we had this philosophy that was being child-centred, which is a philosophy from early-childhood education where you put the child first and you think about where they're at in terms of their development. We tried to use that in The Wiggles, I think quite successfully. Also just things like we're pretty genuine about it. We're very genuine about what we're doing and what we're trying to achieve. And the songs are good, I think, and really connect with the audience. What's happened after we moved on is that mostly Anthony's seen to it that those things are intact, that the philosophy's still there, that the way of speaking to the audience is still there, the songs are there. So I think that has carried on through the decades and kept The Wiggles in the forefront." Anthony: "I think the bottom line for us is that we have to entertain, and keep children interested and educate them if we can. We're more about pro-social skills, and I think that we've kept the early-childhood philosophies at the forefront, and we haven't gotten too carried away with too many bells and whistles. When we play a live show, we can go off the script at any time, as opposed to a lot of children's shows that are taped. We can, if a child calls out something, we can go with it. That keeps it interesting for us as well. I think that for all those reasons we still love it. I love it still." ON THE WIGGLES' TARGET DEMOGRAPHIC GROWING UP, BUT REMAINING WIGGLES FANS Greg: "I think for those fans, it's the connection to their childhood, when they were young — hopefully carefree and innocent. It's a time of your life where, if you can connect to that inner child when you're in your 20s or 30s, it's something to celebrate. And if The Wiggles are that connection for people, it's a great channel to be able to play music for them and come to our shows, and it's great for us too, actually." Murray: "Oh it's fantastic." Greg: "Because it connects us to that time of our lives as well, when we were doing something that we absolutely loved doing and very privileged to be a part of so many people's lives in a way where they did embrace us and they still do." Jeff: "And for Australian fans, us topping the Triple J, Hot 100, that certainly boosted things with our older audience now." Anthony: "We get told that it was a positive part of their childhood. And when those shows, when we do those adult shows, we don't change our show at all. I mean, pretty well, we're just the same — in the documentary, Paul Paddick, who plays Captain Feathersword, thought it was going to be a chance to swear on stage. And we said 'no, it's got to be exactly how it was or we're going to ruin what these people think about us'." ON THE HOTTEST 100, LIL NAS X AND THE HIGHLIGHTS OF THE LAST FEW YEARS Anthony: "It's been awesome. I'm still going with The Wiggles, so the eight Wiggles, and I'm loving that we've had Jeff come on stage, Murray come on stage, Greg come on stage with us — and it just proves that we're all part of the Wiggles family. Lil Nas was amazing. He made a couple of fun tweets that he'd like to do a collaboration — I really did think it was tongue in cheek — but we did get to meet him at Falls. Falls Festival was just the best, and hanging out with Australian bands that are in their 20s that grew up with the Wiggles, it's just been great. The Hottest 100 was surreal. And musically, it was great because I got to experience Tame Impala, who I knew nothing about — so it was educational for me." We're ready to wiggle with you! 💛💜💙❤️ — The Wiggles (@TheWiggles) April 27, 2022 Murray: "It's funny that so much of what we've done over the years, like going to America, quite a lot of the things we've done have been uncharted. And we've always had this sense of doing things for the adventure of it — and I think this is again something that we never expected. We never expected the initial success that we had, and we never expected that 30 years later we would be playing for those kids who grew up — and no one ever thought that we'd be on Triple J at all, let alone topping the Hottest 100. So it's just wonderful. It's like some sort of icing on the cake, I guess, that we can still get together and have fun with our audience, but also to spend time with each other, and really go back and do this thing that we loved and this amazing thing we created together. Jeff: "At the time we didn't even know who he [Lil Nas X] was. I was totally out of touch with all. But looking at it now, it's crazy." Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles streams via Prime Video. Read our review.
You don't have to travel far to find a little tranquillity in Byron Bay. Even just getting the sand between your toes on Main Beach or heading further afield to Wategos can make you feel more at ease. Yet a new adults-only boutique hotel — appropriately called Hide — offers a luxe spot to connect with yourself and nature. Best of all, it's in the middle of town. Designed by architect John Burgess, the stay's highly intentional design is crafted for a gentler pace of life, where slowing down is part of the experience. Featuring only six rooms and suites, each combines calming minimalism and thoughtful details, offering a peaceful atmosphere to rise in and retreat at the end of the day. You'll find king-size beds dressed in premium Cultiver linen, Salus bath products, in-room coffee and a carefully curated minibar filled with locally sourced goods — it gets restocked daily with everything from fine wine to chocolate. Plus, there are rooms with private balconies, outdoor baths and full-scale kitchens, elevating the comfort even more. But the mindfulness extends well beyond your room's four walls, as pleasant as they are. Hide offers a fully kitted wellness bathhouse, featuring a heated magnesium mineral pool and a Stoked outdoor spa. There's also nourishment of the hot and cold variety, with a Clearlight infrared sauna and an Odin ice bath helping guests recover and recharge. Wellness stays aren't exactly uncommon in Byron Bay. But what sets Hide apart is how it offers that retreat-style stay without placing you on the fringe of town. Tucked into the backstreets only a short walk from Byron's main drag, keeping that laidback feeling going isn't an issue when it's time to roam. Enjoy a morning dip in the mineral pool, then head to Baloney's for an Italian-style sandwich or Bar Heathers for natty wines. Crafted for rejuvenation, it's no surprise Hide has made sustainability a core part of its design. Eighty rooftop solar panels help power the property, while the bathhouse welcomes in sunlight for warmth. Rainwater is harvested for use, and plastic is kept to a minimum. Together, this shapes a low-impact environmental footprint that fosters a serene solo or couples escape ripe for relaxation. Images: Jacquie Turk.
Sitting grand above Woolloomooloo, the Art Gallery of New South Wales is one of the largest in the country. Its permanent collections include everything from paintings to photography, audio clips and short films by both Australian and international artists. All up, there are five permanent galleries which you can check out for free, from the Yiribana Gallery showcasing artworks by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists, to the Australian, European, Asian and Contemporary galleries. It also hosts a number of temporary exhibitions every year. To check out what's coming up, head here. The Art Gallery of NSW is open daily, except Christmas Day and Good Friday.
One of the most spectacular must-sees on any Tokyo trip will soon be back on every tourist's itinerary: digital-only art gallery teamLab Borderless. When it opened in 2018, the stunning spot instantly became one of Japan's top destinations. Since mid-2022, however, the venue has been closed while it shifted to a new site. Thankfully, wandering through its dazzling array of artworks is about to become a reality again from January 2024. Breathtaking, kaleidoscopic, glorious, delightful, worth a trip to Tokyo all by itself: all of those descriptions apply to teamLab Borderless, which became the most-visited single-artist museum in the world during its first year of operation. Expect all those gushing terms to flow again when it reopens at Azabudai Hills in central Tokyo, relocating from its past Odaiba base. [caption id="attachment_912403" align="alignnone" width="1920"] teamLab, Sea of Clouds © teamLab[/caption] First, the bad news: to get there, you'll no longer be crossing over Tokyo's gorgeous Rainbow Bridge. That's the only negative aspect of move, however. Among the excellent news, the new teamLab Borderless will feature both evolved and brand-new artworks. So, even if you've been before at its old digs, you won't just be seeing the same things — even though they're definitely worth enjoying more than once. [caption id="attachment_912401" align="alignnone" width="1920"] teamLab, Microcosmoses (tentative title) © teamLab[/caption] If you were lucky enough to mosey around the OG spot before the pandemic, you'll know that the Borderless experience involves vibrant, constantly moving, always-changing interactive digital art keeps that keeps glowing and rearranging before your eyes. As the name makes plain, nothing is fixed or static here. Pieces move from one space to the next, and interact with other works. Sometimes, several different projections and installations mingle together. For attendees, peering at the end results isn't merely a passive experience, with the venue encouraging patrons to "wander, explore and discover". While the full list of works that'll feature at teamLab Borderless 2.0 hasn't yet been revealed, the pieces announced so far include the jaw-dropping Light Sculpture series — which cycles through an array of light formations and colours — as well as an eye-catching mirrored infinity room-style space that's tentatively been titled Microcosmoses. teamLab might be best-known for its Tokyo site, but it doesn't only operate in Japan. A second teamLab Borderless has already been open in Shanghai since 2019, and others are slated for Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and Hamburg in Germany — the former without an exact opening date, the latter slated to launch in 2025. The organisation also operates a different museum in Macao, and has its first teamLab Phenomena on the way for the Saadiyat Cultural District in Abu Dhabi, again targeting a 2024 launch. The list goes on, with teamLab's works a drawcard wherever they pop up. [caption id="attachment_868130" align="alignnone" width="1920"] teamLab Borderless: MORI Building DIGITAL ART MUSEUM, Azabudai Hills, Tokyo © teamLab[/caption] [caption id="attachment_912400" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Birth © teamLab[/caption] [caption id="attachment_912402" align="alignnone" width="1920"] teamLab, Microcosmoses (tentative title) © teamLab[/caption] teamLab Borderless Tokyo: MORI Building Digital Art Museum will reopen at its new location at Azabudai Hills, Garden Plaza B B1F, 1-2-4 Azabudai, Minato-ku, Tokyo sometime in January 2024 — for more information, visit the museum's website. Top teamLab, Universe of Water Particles, Transcending Boundaries; teamLab, Flowers and People, Cannot be Controlled but Live Together © teamLab.
In her first solo exhibition at the Australian Centre for Photography, Justine Varga invites viewers to experience a large-scale installation that immerses them in photography's unique means of production. A deeply thoughtful artist who uses analogue techniques, sometimes with a camera and sometimes without one (oh, what, you didn't know cameraless photography was a thing?), Varga is interested in complicating a viewers experience of both time and 'looking', inviting them to join her in interrogating the photographic process itself. In Photogenic Drawing this process is put on display through a dense layering of test strips – incomplete pieces of a photo that the artist explains as 'not quite photographs'. The result is a rare insight into the decisions made in a photographer's studio and lab, where photographs are 'tested, transformed, rejected, reprinted, found wanting and destroyed'. Intrigued? Head along to the ACP between September 8 and October 21 for an insight into the parts of a photographer's work that aren't usually given public exposure. Image: Installation view (cropped), Memoire, Hugo Michell Gallery, Adelaide, September 2016. Photo: Steph Fuller. Courtesy of the artist and Hugo Michell Gallery.
As far as unnerving settings go, The Third Day's couldn't be better, with the HBO miniseries unfurling its story on Osea Island. The real-life locale boasts an intriguing history, including its purchase in 1903 by brewing company heir Frederick Nicholas Charrington, his passionate efforts to turn it into a treatment centre for addicts and alcoholics, and the fact that he was once apparently suspected of being Jack the Ripper. Osea also spans just 1.5 square kilometres, sits within an estuary along England's east coast and is connected to the mainland via a Roman-built causeway, which can only be accessed during low tide. Both within the show and in reality, that means that cars are limited to making the journey during two four-hour windows each day. At all other times, travellers can only get to and from the island by boat. So, if you venture over but don't time your return drive just right, you'll end up stuck there until the tide next subsides — whether you like it or not. That's exactly what happens to Sam (Jude Law, The Nest) and Helen (Naomie Harris, Spectre). The Third Day tells its main tale via two separate halves, with its three 'summer' episodes focusing on Sam and its trio of 'winter' segments switching to Helen. Their experiences have unmistakable parallels, but start out differently. Sam doesn't intend to visit the island, only making the trip after he rescues a teenage girl nearby. Helen books a holiday rental with her daughters Ellie (Nico Parker, Dumbo) and Talulah (debutant Charlotte Gairdner-Mihell), but those plans don't pan out. Accordingly, both Sam and Helen are forced to adjust to a sudden change in circumstance, and miss their initial windows to leave Osea in the process. The longer they stay — and the more they interact with the island's residents, such as pub proprietors Mr and Mrs Martin (The Outsider's Paddy Considine and Chernobyl's Emily Watson) — the harder it becomes to head home. Each of The Third Day's halves takes place over three days, as per the show's title. Each day proves even more chaotic than the last, too. And, each altercation that Sam and Helen has with Osea's inhabitants only plunges them both deeper into the small island's many big mysteries. Here, Osea is a place of distinctive traditions, beliefs and rituals. The locals are not only fighting among themselves to retain their way of life, but will do whatever it takes to preserve the customs they proudly claim date back to ancient times. So, when Sam notices that a bathroom floor is covered in salt, and Helen and her daughters keep spotting the same symbol graffitied on the island's buildings, that's just the start of their strange journeys. Both groups keep seeing dead animals, too — and they're hardly greeted warmly by the insular community, including those who do and don't wear masks. If you're already thinking about Midsommar, you won't stop while you're watching. As horror's creepy cabin subgenre has shown, good things rarely happen when someone finds themselves in a secluded spot on-screen. That idea proves just as true in tales of island trips gone awry — including shows that ran for too long such as Lost, terrible horror remakes of decades-old TV series like Fantasy Island and now The Third Day. The details vary (no one in Lost intended to end up on a beach, for instance), but the underlying concept is simple. Take a picturesque setting, fill it with folks eager to escape their troubles, then use those gorgeous surroundings and that bliss-seeking mentality to augment their underlying woes. When done well, however, the notion is far from straightforward. And, thanks to the exceptional work of its main screenwriter and co-creator Dennis Kelly (Utopia) and his colleague Felix Barrett (director of Britain's Punchdrunk theatre company), The Third Day takes to the idea in an instantly engaging and involving way. Plenty about the miniseries' storyline feels familiar at first, by design. An unsettling tone radiates from The Third Day's opening moments, though, working hard to push everyone out of their comfort zone. For Sam and then Helen, that happens easily as their trips to Osea just get weirder and weirder. For the show's viewers, the efforts of directors Mark Munden (The Secret Garden) and Philippa Lowthorpe (Misbehaviour) and their cinematographers Benjamin Kracun (Promising Young Woman) and David Chizallet (Mustang) couldn't be more crucial. The Third Day is a striking piece of folk-horror TV all round, but what often proves most staggering is its constant ability to immerse its audience so firmly in its characters' headspace. Roving visuals that feel cast adrift, toying with focus and perspective, placing the camera unnaturally close to Law's face, letting Harris's stare bore through the screen, colouring the island's forest with almost-otherworldly hues — they're all deployed here, and they all work a treat. Also excellent are Law and Harris, with the former turning Sam's swift unravelling into riveting viewing, and the latter as steely as she has ever been on-screen. The Third Day's entire supporting cast is terrific, too, which includes Katherine Waterston (Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald) as an American visitor obsessed with the island's history and the imposing John Dagleish (Farming) as a local who doesn't take kindly to strangers. It isn't streaming in Australia along with the show's six main parts, but The Third Day also boasts a third section. 'Autumn' screened overseas as a twelve-hour live event, and is set during the big festival that Osea's residents are preparing for during Sam's half of the story. You don't need to have seen it to get the full tale, but even just knowing it exists paints a picture — because this is a series that dives headfirst into its sea of eeriness. Check out the trailer for The Third Day below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T43V6z9wYyE The Third Day is available to stream via Binge. Images: Liam Daniel/HBO.
Nothing short of a feast will be had at Al Asseel. This is the place to come with your nearest and dearest when you want to eat so much you can barely walk back to the car. Here, you'll find all the share-style dishes that make Lebanese cuisine a great choice for group meals. You'll want to make sure you order the dips such as baba ghanoush, hummus and garlic dip; finger food like vine leaves and falafel; and mains like shish tawook (grilled chicken), laham mishwi (grilled lamb), kofta and lamb shanks. For salads, think tabouli and Al Aseel's signature fattoush. And, you'll of course want some flatbreads to soak up all the dip and sauces. Images: Cassandra Hannagan
When Wine Machine and Snow Machine first popped up, pairing vineyards and alpine settings with live tunes, one of each event's big drawcards was right there in their names. Dream Machine's moniker isn't quite as descriptive; however, it still sets the scene. Fancy hitting up a music festival in a tropical setting? That's on the bill at this dream event — including in 2023. Dream Machine first took place early in 2022, at a secluded beachside resort in The Whitsundays, after initially planning to go ahead in 2021 but getting waylaid by the pandemic. For its next event from Thursday, June 8–Monday, June 12, it's still going tropical, this time in Nusa Dua in Bali. If you've been longing to hear your favourite tunes while surrounded by your friends and while taking a trip to a beachside resort in Indonesia, this fest has you covered. 2023's dest will take place over a five-day, four-night run again, too, and bring together a hefty lineup of must-see talent. On up the party-forward bill: 1300, Boy & Bear, Client Liaison, Girl Talk, San Cisco, Spacey Jane, Sycco and Vera Blue, as well as Harvey Sutherland and Peking Duk hitting the decks for DJ sets. Yes, the list goes on. If the simple activity of grooving to tunes in tropical surroundings, including by the pool and ocean, isn't enough motivation for you, festival-goers will have a range of resorts to choose from in the fest's ticket package options. Keen to treat yo'self to a beachfront stay? You can add that to your itinerary. At the 2022 event, you could also enjoy other activities, such as kayaking, paddle boarding, jet skiing and waterside cocktails — fingers crossed they're on the roster as well. [caption id="attachment_873059" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Sam Hendel[/caption] Unsurprisingly, this isn't a cheap festival to attend, but accommodation, transfers and festival tickets are all included in the fest packages. Folks feeling particularly flush can also upgrade their tickets to gain VIP access to the festival's compound to watch the main stage shows, where there'll be a cocktail bar, chill zone, table service, fancy toilets and sit-down dinner options. And, you'll score luxury airport transfer upgrades and access to an exclusive pool party at Manarai Beach Club, complete with special guest DJs. DREAM MACHINE 2023 LINEUP: 1300 Boy & Bear Client Liaison Girl Talk (USA) Groove City Harvey Sutherland (DJ Set) Holy Holy Hot Dub Time Machine Illy Jimi The Kween Ldru Mell Hall Northeast Party House Peking Duk (DJ Set) San Cisco Sideboob Spacey Jane Stace Cadet Sycco Tori Levett Tyson O'brien Vera Blue Winston Surfshirt Dream Machine takes place from Thursday, June 8–Monday, June 12 at Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, with pre-sales from 6pm AEDT on Tuesday, October 18 and general sales from 12pm AEST on Wednesday, October 19 via the festival's website. Dream Machine images: Brittany Long / Pat Stevenson. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world. That includes a Bali escape surrounded by nature, if you're keen to extend your stay around Dream Machine,
When news first broke of Sacha Baron Cohen's new film about a Middle Eastern dictator, it was difficult not to feel like the greatest idea for a comedy had been staring us all in the face and only he'd been clever enough to see it. Despots and madmen like Hussein, Kim Jong-Il and Gaddafi, wait … Kaddafi? Qadhaf- … like bin Laden were already so ripe for parody that the script would almost have written itself, not to mention the added benefit of not having to worry too much about allegations of slander. Add to that the phenomenal events of the Arab Spring and the overthrowing of both the above leaders and their contemporaries and The Dictator seemed poised to be the perfect film for the perfect time. Unfortunately, however, it instead feels like the kind of film a real dictator would have penned and put into production without anyone offering any sort of constructive criticism for fear of being executed. There are definitely some funny moments, and even a few brilliant ones, but on the whole it's a disappointingly infantile film lacking in so much of the subtlety that's underscored Baron Cohen's previous work. "Subtlety?" you say. Well yes — beneath the trademark political incorrectness and gross-out humour of a movie like Borat lurked Baron Cohen's artful capacity for revealing the ludicrous nature of his interviewees' prejudices. Perhaps it was the ambush nature of his earlier films — something no longer possible due to the notoriety they earned him — but exposing a person as a bigot is quite a different beast to simply creating a character and having him say the same sorts of derogatory things. In that sense, The Dictator is consistently offensive, and not in a way that should automatically be excused as 'edgy' or 'provocative'. If anything, it's just lazy. When it's not being so misogynist or homophobic, the jokes largely fall under the three broad areas of urination, defecation or masturbation, and one can only laugh so much at that kind of humour before it grows tiresome. Traditionally we call that period: 'puberty'. https://youtube.com/watch?v=cYplvwBvGA4
Book in a date with 2 M3GAN 2 Furious now: even if it doesn't take that name, which it won't, a sequel to 2023's first guaranteed horror hit will come. Said follow-up also won't be called M3GAN 2: Electric Boogaloo, but that title would fit based on the first flick's TikTok-worthy dance sequence alone. Meme-starting fancy footwork is just one of the titular doll's skills. Earnestly singing 'Titanium' like this is Pitch Perfect, tickling the ivories with 80s classic 'Toy Soldiers', making these moments some of M3GAN's funniest: they're feats the robot achieves like it's designed to, too. Although unafraid to take wild tonal swings, and mining the established comedy-horror talents of New Zealand filmmaker Gerard Johnstone (Housebound) and screenwriter Akela Cooper (Malignant) as well, this killer-plaything flick does feel highly programmed itself, however. It's winking, knowing, silly, satirical, slick and highly engineered all at once, overtly pushing buttons and demanding a response — and, thankfully, mostly earning it. Those Child's Play-meets-Annabelle-meets-The Terminator-meets-HAL 9000 thoughts that M3GAN's basic concept instantly brings to mind? They all prove true. The eponymous droid — a Model 3 Generative Android, to be specific — is a four-foot-tall artificially intelligent doll that takes the task of protecting pre-teen Cady (Violet McGraw, Black Widow) from emotional and physical harm deadly seriously, creeping out and/or causing carnage against everyone who gets in its way. Those Frankenstein-esque sparks, exploring what happens when humanity (or Girls and Get Out's Allison Williams here, as Cady's roboticist aunt Gemma) plays god by creating life? They're just as evident, as relevant to the digital age Ex Machina-style. M3GAN is more formulaic than it should be, though, and also never as thoughtful as it wants to be, but prolific horror figures Jason Blum and James Wan produce a film that's almost always entertaining. In her job for toymaker Funki, working under brash CEO David (Ronny Chieng, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings), Gemma is responsible for three of the movie's most perturbing aspects. Yes, M3GAN is one of them. But the "cyborg puppet show", as David initially dubs it dismissively, comes about after his star employee installs listening software in the company's bestselling PurRpetual Pets — aka furry, troll-like trinkets that chat back, poop if you overfeed them and, as a parody-leaning ad openly says, bests IRL dogs and cats by never dying. As technology advances, ignoring how insidiously it's surveilling us is the bargain we've generally struck, but M3GAN doesn't forget it. Fleshing out a story co-conjured up by Saw, Insidious and The Conjuring's Wan, Cooper doesn't forget the other deal we've made with our smart gadgets and even just our ever-present screens, letting them make our lives easier by eradicating plenty of our human interactions. Gemma is meant to be working on a new, cheaper but shinier version of PurRpetual Pets, with a competitor undercutting Funki with a more affordable knockoff to David's dismay; however, her heart belongs to M3GAN. Then, via a tragedy, she's suddenly Cady's guardian — and because she wears flannelette, keeps collectibles and gets cranky about her overbearing neighbour's wandering pooch, she's immediately coded as anything but the mothering type. So, getting M3GAN functional serves multiple purposes, including giving Cady the kind of caregiver that her aunt instinctively isn't. "We're gonna kick Hasbro's dick!" David exclaims when he sees M3GAN in action as a walking, talking, bonding, nurturing, do-it-all bestie-slash-nanny that he can sell for $10,000 a pop. While the doll itself doesn't ever utter anything similar — she's murderous, but also child-friendly — as its AI learns and evolves, it's gonna knock about everyone who threatens Cady and its own existence. Hasbro's wares have scored the movie treatment in the Transformers, Power Rangers and GI Joe flicks and more, and M3GAN makes junk of most. They all largely did that themselves anyway, but none have this film's namesake, who makes one helluva horror nemesis. Clearly the product of ample time meticulously getting the specifics exactly right, M3GAN sports a lifelike-enough appearance that dwells deep in the uncanny valley, and could never visibly be confused for actual flesh-and-blood up close. And yet, the size is right, it pals around with Cady like they're peers and it dresses more like a stylish 70s Barbie than a standard doll. Its physical movements are preternatural, and its arch retorts and reactions — and often just its voice — would make Mean Girls' Plastics wither. Young actor Amie Donald (Sweet Tooth) plays the part, while TikTok star Jenna Davis (Maggie) provides M3GAN's vocals, with every detail pitch-perfect. Execution: M3GAN chiefly slays it, but because Gemma fluffs it (rushing to get the job done, overlooking parental controls as well as parameters for morals and ethics, and being too eager to avoid her guardian responsibilities), M3GAN savagely and repeatedly slays. As the brutal plaything's inventor and main target, Williams is fascinating, too, especially given that she comes to the part — any part — with her most famous past role's considerable baggage. She isn't playing Marnie Michaels as an expert coder here, obviously. In fact, the fact that the deranged toy she's facing patently resembles Williams is a savvy way of having the actor tear down the idea that she's crafted herself an on-screen type. Gemma isn't the uncomplicated hero of the piece, though, as a workaholic who happily outsources caring for a child to an untested gadget, revels in creating AI life to help cope with loss, then finds herself firmly standing in Victor Frankenstein's shoes. There's bite to Gemma's path, and to M3GAN's musings on motherhood, work-life balance, corporate culture and 21st-century chaos, as familiar as they all are — and, even when simply jerkily tilting its head or stealthily sneaking up unexpectedly, to M3GAN. There isn't as much blood to the film, sadly, with needing to appeal to a teen audience ensuring that it never fulfils its gory and deranged potential, including when the body count starts ramping up and the final act goes for adolescent-appropriate broke. What this sci-fi nightmare lacks in splatter, it compensates for with that gleefully campy, tongue-in-cheek and utterly self-aware vibe, forceful as it can be; M3GAN's trailer and its choreography didn't go viral months before the movie hit cinemas by accident. Indeed, Johnstone evokes the right sardonic atmosphere with the efficiency of his central robo-slasher. 2023 was already set to be the year of the big-screen doll thanks to Barbie, but M3GAN stalks the cinematic toy chest formidably and fiendishly first.
It's often said that modern technology is ruining our lives; turning us more and more in on ourselves in a dangerous spiral of introversion, narcissism and disconnection from the physical world. And can you blame us? An iPhone can look significantly more appealing than the other sweating, mouth-breathing humans we sit next to on public transport or pass on the morning commute. But, occasionally there comes along a real reminder that the human race isn't totally doomed to becoming robotic unfeeling drones. A new project by Sydney photographer Pete Hawk is one such reminder. In Stranded Corridors, Hawk takes to frequented 'corridors' about town – the tunnel at Central, Newtown's King Street, and the wind tunnel opposite Redfern station. Using one light, he photographs people passing by and asks them to write something about themselves. Think Humans of New York, but in black and white, and coming to you from your own backyard. It's a simple idea, but Hawk's photographs are really quite beautiful. And the captions people have written offer snippets of their lives, aspirations and worries, which range from life advice ("Wear colour and enjoy your night.") to confession ("I fell in love. Twice."), and where they're going to (Zumba) or coming from (Japanese class). If the popularity of projects like HONY has taught us anything, it's that we love to peek into other people's lives. It speaks to some of those good old-fashioned human pastimes — like voyeurism and eavesdropping — but packaged in an artful, socially acceptable format. It's the perfect way to people watch without the awkward eye contact. All images via Pete Hawk.
It's pretty hard to ignore the hype surrounding restaurant/market/all-round empire The Grounds of Alexandria. Whether it be through the award-winning coffee, the extraordinary food or the multiple kidnappings of Kevin Bacon the pig, The Grounds has garnered something of a cult following. It's inner-city Sydney's ultimate garden estate — and soon, it'll have booze. The Grounds stable is expanding, with The Potting Shed, a late-night bar and eatery, set to open on Monday, March 24. In what is sure to be another outstandingly popular move by the team, the Potting Shed will be an extension of the unique Grounds experience, mirroring the impressive design aesthetic and staying true to its comfortable charm. There's a lot still in the works before opening, but what we do know is that the bar will be open 11am till late (later than the CBD lockouts? That remains to be seen), seven nights a week. Expect to see the fresh herbs and produce-driven techniques specific to the Grounds experience reflected in the cocktail list. Boutique wines and craft beers will also feature. The food menu, meanwhile, will be aiming at simplicity and affordability, with plenty of share options. The Nursery, at the rear of The Potting Shed, will continue to hold functions after the opening. The leafy, romantic space is in high demand for corporate events, private parties and weddings. Image: Gui Jorge.
"The worlds that we create are heightened and slightly larger than life," says artist, designer and maker Jonathon Oxlade. It's a credo he's carried across multiple stage productions, including Faustus with Bell Shakespeare and Wizard of Oz with the Windmill Theatre Company. Helpmann-nominated for his work on School Dance and Pinocchio, he's been covered in design gongs, notably the prestigious Sidney Myer Creative Fellowship this December and an AACTA award for Best Costume Design. Oxlade's most high profile project is Windmill Theatre's production of Girl Asleep, the coming of age story of Greta, 14, very shy and starting life at a new school. On her first day there she meets the geeky Elliott and they develop an unlikely friendship. Her life and all its inherent confusion stays private until her parents throw her a massive 15th birthday party and all her internal chaos spills over. Together with writer Matthew Whittet and director Rosemary Myers, Oxlade helped bring the stage play to life in Adelaide in 2014 before translating the play into a widely celebrated feature film. Currently, the trio are masterminding a run of the play at Belvoir. We caught up with Oxlade to talk film, design and what this renaissance man has planned for the future. ON WAKING UP GIRL ASLEEP Without a doubt, Oxlade is one of Australia's most whimsical theatre designers, having studied illustration and sculpture at the Queensland College of Art. "A lot of my work is in magical realism and fantasy," he says, listing Jean-Luc Godard, Japanese film and even Bjork as creative minds that ignite his own. Each of Oxlade's projects exudes a certain nostalgic eccentricity, almost lending a living, breathing personality to the set itself. "With most of the shows that we make at the Windmill Theatre, the scripts or the ideas treat the sets and design like a character," he says, and you can see what he means with the set of Belvoir's current run of Girl Asleep, a bold, playful personality dressed in the bright, phantasmagoric garb of the 1970s — just look at that bright purple wallpaper. Oxlade is quick to stress, however, that, "it's our version of the '70s — it's not an historic piece." The play's script lends itself to a vivid reimagining on stage. "Matt [Whittet] writes, very visually," he says, and a whole swathe of unexpected influences combine to create evocative aesthetic of the play. "The whole team is heavily influenced by a lot of different genres," he says, "including film. A lot of our references when we make theatre are film references, and a lot of the other references are photography and graphic novels." The design of the play shares a stylised composition that's heightened in colour, illuminating shared influences with legendary director, Wes Anderson. "They're his signatures," Oxlade says, "but people have been doing that for a really long time." ON TRANSLATING STAGE TO SCREEN Onstage, Oxlade's bright, Wes Anderson-like designs physically frame lead character Greta's world, a whimsical but recognisable landscape sitting on the cusp of adulthood. Moving this kind of set into a cinematic situation was a welcome challenge for Oxlade. A success with critics and audiences alike in 2016, Girl Asleep was Oxlade's first foray into the world of film, allowing his stage design to develop into new, free territory. "The film has a really obvious, kind of fractured space that works for the psychology of what Greta is going through," he says. "Visually, we could do so much more, so we did so much more!" Not bound by the need to create a space on stage that "forms a metaphor for every space in the script", Oxlade found a certain freedom in bringing the play to the big screen. "In terms of the design, it grew a lot more," he says. "In theatre, there's an abbreviated design world, but in film we have the opportunity to make some really special places." [caption id="attachment_602287" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Original costume design from Girl Asleep. Courtesy of Jonathon Oxlade.[/caption] ON WHAT'S NEXT In early December, Oxlade was awarded the prestigious Sidney Myer Creative Fellowship — a peer reviewed fellowship granted for outstanding talent and exceptional courage. "It's an amazing privilege," he says, though Oxlade is clearly not a man to rest on his laurels. Instead, the plan is to keep on keeping on. "It's a compulsion for me to make things," he says. "So I'm just going to keep on doing it and hopefully people like it." And, with a work ethic and a creative eye that sees more than the Eye of Sauron, it's hard to see how people won't. Girl Asleep runs at Belvoir Theatre until December 24. Book tickets and find more info on Belvoir's website. By James Whitton with Imogen Baker.
Family-run for three generations, Woy Woy Fishermen's Wharf is one of those longtime, NSW Central Coast institutions, famed statewide for its top-notch fresh seafood offering and its idyllic patch of waterfront real estate. And this year, the Woy Woy legend's launched the latest iteration of its wharfside restaurant, swapping the former digs for a new dining space — the work of locals LAW Building Design, Parkwood Homes and Verve Building & Consulting. You won't find a much better spot than this for chowing down on the day's freshest catch and sharing a jug of something light and fresh. Floor-to-ceiling glass windows boast views across the water and a custom-made fish trap, crafted by Maningrida artists Bonny Burarn.gara and Freda Ali Wyartja, presides over the dining room. With this menu, the Cregan-Clayton family are continuing that long tradition of feeding their fans' seafood obsessions in style. The seasonal lineup might find you kicking off with local oysters and a sashimi plate of the day's best, tucking into some Singapore-style chilli crab, or settling for a family feast, sharing hot and cold seafood platters, barbecued scampi and spicy tomato mussels. There are endless crabs, mountains of prawns and a daily-changing carpaccio, though there'll always be room for the classic, no-fuss fish and chips. To match, you'll find an award-winning booze offering that holds its own against all that seafood — wines from across Australia and Europe, a sprawling selection of beers and a crop of classic cocktails, including share-friendly jugs of negroni and Pimms. Find Woy Woy Fishermen's Wharf just over an hour's drive from Sydney, at The Boulevarde, Woy Woy. Images: Nikki To
Remember the days when the only meat-free options on menus were side salads, fries and sad-looking garlic bread? Us too. While some days definitely still call for carb-loading, Sydney's growing list of plant-based cafes means the options available now are anything but beige. And to help you find your new favourite, we've create this round up of Sydney's very best vegetarian and vegan cafes — home to tasty grain bowls, vege burgers and plant-based pastas and pizzas. [caption id="attachment_798216" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cassandra Hannagan[/caption] DAILY GREENS, PADDINGTON If veggie-packed shakshuka on hearty, homemade bread, fresh pastries, and vanilla-whipped ricotta with raspberry preserve sound like your thing, make sure you visit Daily Greens in Paddington. Feeling creative? There's also an option to build your own bowl, complete with an extensive list of ingredients for you to customise your own warm or cold dish — here, selections include baked tofu, charred cauliflower, spiced crispy chickpeas and dressings like avocado ranch or miso caramel. When the sun is out, soak up the rays in the plant-based cafe's leafy courtyard which has a tree growing right through its centre. [caption id="attachment_707088" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Sam Ali[/caption] KHAMSA CAFE, ERSKINEVILLE The inner west is arguably Sydney's ground zero for plant-based dining, and Khamsa Cafe is the kind of place you'll want to visit more than once. At this all-day diner, every plate of photo-worthy Palestinian food is generously packed with fresh, flavoursome ingredients. Must-tries include the signature Jerusalem Bowl, stacked with hummus, baba ganoush, quinoa, fattoush, falafel and cauliflower and a mushroom-packed shawerma pastry. There's also a range of traditional sweet and savoury pastries — think a musakhan with sumac, mushroom and onion and semolina cake with orange blossom syrup — as well as a rotating daily lunch special of a traditional Palestinian dish. The best part? You can take your dog along with you, too. It is a clear front-runner for the best vegan and vegetarian cafe in Sydney. CORNERSMITH, ANNANDALE This thriving, family-run casual dining spot is living proof that from little things big things grow. Starting as a humble eatery, the Cornersmith empire now includes cooking classes, cookbooks and plenty of homemade pickled and preserved goods to take home. The Annandale plant-based cafe has a simple, seasonal menu which includes decadent toasties, fresh salads and a particularly delicious tahini granola bowl with roasted pears. You'll can sit down and enjoy your meal in the friendly, laidback surrounds or preorder an adorable picnic box to enjoy in one of the nearby Sydney parks. SHIFT EATERY, SURRY HILLS Surry Hills locals love Shift Eatery. Office workers and city dwellers alike frequently crowd the pavement waiting for a lunchtime pick-me-up from Sydney's first meat-free deli. The Sydney vegan cafe's ethos is simple: it's all about making the shift to a plant-based diet as easy as possible. And that's exactly what it does. Known for its meat-free takes on popular dishes — think a plant-based reuben and meatball sub — this cafe will have even the biggest sceptics converted. Sample the self proclaimed 'best vegan bacon and egg bagel in the whole world' and find out if it's as good as a traditional one. Spoiler alert: it's better. [caption id="attachment_613611" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Alana Dimou[/caption] TWO CHAPS, MARRICKVILLE Two Chaps is the kind of place you can visit on the reg and yet dine on something different every visit. The cosy Marrickville plant-based cafe and bakery has an ever-changing, seasonal menu designed to reduce food waste, support local producers, and keep its hungry customers coming back for more. While the dinner menu's fresh, homemade pasta packed with nuts and vegetables has amassed a cult-like following, things during the day are just as delicious thanks to some of Sydney's best plant-based doughnuts and homemade pies. And did someone say dulce de leche-filled brioche? Whether you stop in for a little pick-me-up or a full-blown feast, you'll walk away feeling satisfied. RUBY LONESOME, PETERSHAM This little local cafe has a whole lot of heart — and a simple menu featuring meat-free versions of all the classics. The Cheeze Burger will have you asking why you didn't try plant-based earlier, while specials might include the melt-in-your-mouth Sloppy Jocelyn — it will get all over your face but is so tasty you won't mind. Order the Big Boi for breakfast if you're hungry or a Buddha Bowl if you're looking for something lighter, then peruse the countertop for super cute and tasty take-home goodies like pickled veggies, relishes, cashew cheese and daily-made baked goods. Heck, even order yourself an entire fairy bread cake, really indulging at one of Sydney's best vegetarian and vegan cafes.
Technology is now a player in how we carry out one of the bare necessities of life: eating and drinking. We've lately been enraptured by the thought of being able to 3D print our food (the 3D chocolate printer is already among us, while the 3D pizza printer is just around the corner). And the excitement isn't just based on our own appetite for novelty foodstuffs; these are technologies with the capacity to help us through the global food shortage. Yet the internet and mobile technology that's ubiquitous right now has already changed the way we eat — in some very positive ways. We take a closer look at the apps and websites that are helping people reduce waste, save time and be better informed. We Can Make Less Waste According to the 2009 study, What a Waste! from the Australia Institute, Australians throw out 4.45 million tonnes of food every year, or in dollar terms, $5 billion. If this makes you wince a little, but not enough to start composting or dumpster diving, the internet may be your saving grace. Websites such as Germany's Foodsharing.de are harnessing the web to connect individuals who would prefer to share their excess food than turf it. Their only rule is that you offer food you would eat yourself. Here in Australia similar sites like Fare Share and Second Bite, aimed at collecting food from supermarkets and farmers to be redistributed to those in need, are reducing this inefficiency. Taking a different tack, Sydney's HelloFresh, a new online service, is making judicious grocery shopping easier. With new menus each week, they deliver only those ingredients required for a particular meal. As Tom Rutledge from HelloFresh put it to us, "By packing precise amounts of ingredients we supply only what is required for the recipes. Gone is the need to buy a big jar of capers when you only need a tablespoon. The customers save money and there are no nasty surprises lurking at the back of the pantry when it comes time for a spring clean." Aussie Farmers Direct makes a good case for the internet's role in reducing waste, as their buying is done after customers' orders are placed online. Internet grocery shopping in general wins over bricks and mortar outlets, because perishable products are not simply displayed on the off chance that a shopper is making leak soup this week. We Pay with No Money Apps such as Beat the Q allow queue-averse customers to pre-pay for their coffee en route. They simply pick it up and go. CLIPP app allows barflies to run a tab from their phone without ever flashing cash or card. While this may be extremely convenient, it will also encourage higher spending — a phenomenon called hyperbolic discounting means people are likely to buy more if they don't have to pay until the end of the night. Apps such as these, along with Paypal's payment processor and Square.com are making a cashless future not only possible but, according to Adam Theobald of Beat the Q, inevitable. "In coming months, consumers will be presented with a large number of e-wallet alternatives," he told us. "Imagine your bank, telco, ISP, Google, Apple, Mastercard, Visa, Amex all offering you a great incentive to use their mobile wallet." Though the payment interaction is being reduced to the touch of a screen, Theobald doesn't think that technology is taking away from the human interaction. "I'm not sure about you, but I am much better to talk to if I haven't waited, and have a coffee in my hand!" he says. He figures the 10,000 customers registered with his app must feel the same way. We Know All the Things And then, of course, technology is giving customers better access to information. The internet is allowing smaller ventures to succeed by connecting with punters to let them know their changing hours and locations. Hungry Mondays is a collection of Sydney restaurants (started by El Capo) who slow cook meat on a Sunday and offer vacuum packed meals the following Monday for pickup from a range of changing venues (the Hollywood Hotel, the Lord Wolseley), which are spruiked on Facebook. The nomadic food trucks of Sydney rely on their online communities to advertise times and locations, as do pop-up venues. While bloggers and review sites such as Urbanspoon and Eatability may strike terror in the hearts of restaurateurs, they give a fuller picture of a venue for diners. As well as advice on where to eat, technology is helping customers with what to eat. The Traffic Light Food Tracker app, released by Cancer Council Victoria, allows consumers to scan the barcode of a product and immediately receive a red, orange or green light from the app according to the product's nutritional value. Prevailing ideas about the future of food culture tend to polarise into either a fast food dystopia of mindless Cheezel consumption or a slow food utopia in which we harvest quinoa each morning from our organic hobby farm in Tasmania. But there is a happier medium, where technology speeds up boring activities like shopping and paying and gives us more time to enjoy food. Top image by Binpress.
You could've been forgiven for thinking that Bentley's former Crown Street shopfront was a corner pub. Of course, once you walked inside the darkly lit, restaurant-bar with designer Pascale Gomes-McNabb's famous wire mesh petal light shades, it was evident you were in one of Sydney's best fine diners. At their new digs in the heritage-listed Radisson Blu Hotel building with its grand entrance off O'Connell Street, there's certainly no mistaking Bentley for your local. Gomes-McNabb has been at it again, painting over a perfectly good ceiling rose with black and grey triangles straight out of a marvel comic strip. She's flung a bunch of black metal scaffolding through the space and has lit it with an assortment of diamond frosted shades, as well as a large revolving cube light installation at the entrance. In fact, walking into Bentley feels like you're stepping into a cubist painting to find, serendipitously, that freeze-dried foie gras with scallops is the order of the day. It's not a bad way to finish off the working day, which is what hordes of punters, solo and in groups, are already doing on a Monday night. So Brent Savage's food can be fussy, and who needs to freeze-dry foie gras anyway? Well, someone who wants to pair it with an otherwise texturally unsuitable Queensland scallop ($14). Foie gras crystals, brioche crumb and raspberry powder comprise the necessary contrast to make the scallop shine. A bowl of cold pea soup with frozen buttermilk and hidden spanner crab ($24) is oddly out of step with the rest of the excellent tasting menu. Quail with smoked celery and white soy ($28) is a neat little number and the pork cheek with jamon crumb that follows has a classic sweet match not in fruit but with charred leeks and crispy radicchio. A main of kangaroo ($42) with purple carrot has a kind of Australian Christmas feel to it, with a riberry jus that's all cloves and booze. The star accompaniment of the meal is Iggy's bread, the kind of sourdough that will make your teeth happy, with its chewy crust and tangy, savoury wholesomeness. There's been a delicious efficiency gain in the pastry section, with the replacement of finicky petit fours with one large honeycomb crunch landing on the table at meal's end. I don't speak French but if this is 'petit' I'll eat my mini oven. The service at Bentley 2.0 is decidedly friendlier than the Crown Street haunt, which had a bit of a Nick Cave Appreciation Society vibe. With Yellow and Monopole well and truly established as late-night Potts Point favourites, the addition of Bentley in the city means the Savage-Hildebrandt combo have this city covered for smart, grown-up dining. Photo gallery by Lindsay Smith.
Back in 2019, Sydney fine-dining institution NEL introduced tastebuds to a whole new culinary world: a decadent Once Upon a Time degustation inspired by all things Disney. Unsurprisingly, it provided a magical meal and proved a massive hit, returning in 2020 and 2022 with themed dishes created by the Surry Hills' restaurant's created by Executive Chef and namesake Nelly Robinson. Come winter 2023, it'll be back again for a fourth chapter. Amid NEL's creative spreads, this one now feels like a tasty tale as old as time — repeatedly popping up amid KFC-inspired dinners, Moulin Rouge!-themed and Christmas degustations, and one heroing native Australian ingredients as well. But whenever it unleashes its 11 courses upon plates, the Once Upon a Time serves up new and fresh dishes riffing on the Mouse House's favourites. Accordingly, even if you've been before, you haven't feasted your way through the latest menu. An alfredo linguini that nods to Ratatouille? Yes, that twist on the classic dish — and flick — featuring a lasagne-style structure layered with confit vegetables, pasta sheets, béchamel, mozzarella cheese foam and basil dust is on the lineup. So is The Tugley Wood, which combines mushrooms and fresh Australian truffle to nod to Alice in Wonderland. And when things get sweet, there's a honey-soaked sponge with a nest of honey curd topped with bee pollen, then served in a honey pot, that Winnie-the-Pooh would clearly covet. As for what else will be bothering your appetite in the best possible way, discovering the full range is part of the fun of heading along — no matter whether you're a Sydneysider with more than a few nights' experience tucking into Robinson's creations or a Disney fan keen to make a date on a future interstate trip. The Once Upon a Time menu's fourth chapter will start serving on Tuesday, May 30 and run for eight weeks only, with bookings available now. Price-wise, this childhood-inspired feast will require an adult salary, costing $185 per person, with beverages matched for an extra $165. Reserving a spot ASAP for dinner Tuesday–Saturday from 5.15pm is recommended — this unsurprisingly always books out.
Named after Australia's renowned thoroughbred company, William Inglis and Sons, Western Sydney's latest hotel is a sure thing if you're after a mini Sydney staycation. The William Inglis Hotel's centrepiece is its rooftop bar, which offers a spot to relax by the pool with a drink — and to soak in the stunning panoramic views of the surrounding Warwick Farm. Once you've built up an appetite, head downstairs to the Newmarket Room, the hotel's dining room overlooking the gardens and riverside horse stables. It serves up everything you want on a carefree staycation, from oysters to prawn linguine and NSW Riverina Black Angus steak. Whisky fans will be at home here, too — the mezzanine's 1867 Lounge serves high-end cocktails and boutique wines. But that ain't all. The William Inglis Hotel also houses a luxury spa facility, gym and work out spaces and rooms for holding meetings and conferences. They've got it all under one roof(top pool). All of these inclusions help make it one of the top hotels in Sydney.
First, the bad news: Australia's most-envied job, aka Tourism Australia's Beach Ambassador, is sadly already taken. Now, the excellent news, especially if you're keen on a beach holiday or several (or ten) throughout 2023: that lucky coast lover, beach expert Brad Farmer AM, has just named Australia's best beaches the year. Australia has 11,761 sandy spots according to Tourism Australia, so narrowing down the most stunning to a mere ten is no small feat — even if you've spent four decades focusing on the absolute best, as Farmer has. The number-one place to hit the shore this year from that hefty list? South Australia's Stokes Bay, which is located on Kangaroo Island. Being named Australia's best beach is the second huge piece of praise that Kangaroo Island has received already in 2023, after The New York Times included the entire landmass among its 52 places to visit this year. Farmer has gotten more specific, however, singling out Stokes Bay for a number of reasons — its location, safe swimming options, overall atmosphere and clandestine entrance among them. [caption id="attachment_886634" align="alignnone" width="1920"] South Australian Tourism Commission[/caption] "Most of the island's 50 or so glorious beaches are all relatively secluded, yet accessible, so visitors are much more likely to encounter paw prints of the many furry lounging locals than footprints of the work weary human," notes Farmer of Kangaroo Island, announcing his picks for Australia's best beaches for the year. "Stokes Bay Beach on the gentler north coast, with its long 500-metre sandy sweep of low impact waves, features a generous and safe tidal swimming pool for wading or snorkelling with its aquarium like atmosphere. There's a timeless hint of mystique about this hidden treasure with a shimmering reward when the curtains lift. From the western entry carpark and seasonal cafe, this veiled beach is reached through a 'secret tunnel' — a hand-hewn cavernous carved trail finally revealing a stunning scene as if rewarding the adventurer. Stokes Bay is long overdue to be recognised as Australia's Best Beach in 2023," he continues. [caption id="attachment_886635" align="alignnone" width="1920"] East Coast Photography[/caption] Stokes Bay claimed top position after Misery Beach in Western Australia scored the honours in 2022, Cabarita Beach in New South Wales did the same in 2020, Nudey Beach on Fitzroy island in Far North Queensland achieved the feat in 2018, and Cossies Beach in the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, in the Indian Ocean, earned the title in 2017. This is the first time that a South Australian beach has earned the honours. Still, among the 2023 list's highest-ranked spots, Stokes Bay is joined by beaches in every Australian state and territory, including Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean Territories. [caption id="attachment_886636" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] Coming in second in Australia's best beaches for this year: Boomerang Beach on New South Wales' mid-north coast. NSW is the one of only two states to take two places in the top ten, too, with Balmoral Beach on Sydney Harbour in tenth position. Elsewhere, Rainbow Beach on Queensland's Cooloola Coast ranked third, Apollo Bay on Great Ocean Road in Victoria slotted in fourth, Adventure Bay on Bruny Island in Tasmania came fifth and Hamelin Bay in Western Australia's southwest notched up sixth position. Then came Little Bondi Beach in East Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory at seventh, British Admiralty Beach on King Island in the Bass Strait in Tasmania at eighth and Flying Fish Cove on Christmas Island in ninth spot. [caption id="attachment_886637" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Visit Great Ocean Road[/caption] Wondering how Farmer makes his picks? This year, he was particularly interested in beaches with a unique cultural connection to First Nations Country, as well as outstanding locations that don't always come up when folks are searching for Australia's best beaches online. "Australia really is just one big beach and there are simply so many surprises to be discovered in our own sandy backyard," Farmer says. So pack your togs, round up some mates and start ticking these off. We see many road trips in your future — not that anyone ever needs a new excuse to head to the beach, whether they're one of Australia's best or not. THE TOP TEN BEST AUSTRALIAN BEACHES FOR 2023: 1. Stokes Bay, Kangaroo Island, South Australia 2. Boomerang Beach, Mid North Coast, New South Wales 3. Rainbow Beach, Cooloola Coast, Queensland 4. Apollo Bay, Great Ocean Road, Victoria 5. Adventure Bay, Bruny Island, Tasmania 6. Hamelin Bay, South-West, Western Australia 7. Little Bondi Beach, East Arnhem Land, Northern Territory 8. British Admiralty Beach, King Island, Bass Strait, Tasmania 9. Flying Fish Cove, Christmas Island 10. Balmoral Beach, Sydney Harbour, New South Wales For more of Brad Farmer's beach tips, head to his Best Australian Beaches website. Top images: Tourism Australia / @ihaig72. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world — including Kangaroo Island.
Since opening at the end of 2018, Totti's has become a cult favourite among eastern suburbs locals and Sydneysiders citywide. With chef Mike Eggert at the helm, the Bondi eatery is a go-to for bowls of pasta and its highly popular wood fire oven bread. In the years since, Totti's has been expanding westward, opening its CBD iteration Bar Totti's last year, and now popping up with its third Sydney outpost in Rozelle. This time, the Merivale venue has found a home in the beloved, temporarily closed inner west pub 3 Weeds. At Totti's Rozelle you'll find the expected assortments of favourites from the OG Bondi spot, including spinach pappardelle or chittara and clams pasta. An assortment of charcoal oven treats are also on offer, including whole roasted fish, half-smoked chicken and of course, the wood fire bread. Those looking to come in for a snack can take their pick from the antipasti menu which features kingfish crudo, chicken liver parfait and burrata, or if you've booked in with a group of meat-eaters, split 1.5-kilograms of Brooklyn Valley rib eye steak. The drinks menu doesn't steer far from what you'd expect, but you'll still find an enjoyable array of classy cocktails and some fun natty wines that are sure to pair perfectly with a big bowl of pasta. Setting this inner west iteration apart from its counterparts is a new dessert bar with Italian classics like gelato, tiramisu, coffee granita, pistachio cake and panna cotta, as well as ice cream sundaes to finish off your night on a sweet note. Merivale acquired 3 Weeds back in 2019, teasing at the time that it had big plans for the venue. While Totti's has now opened inside the space, the pub area remains closed two years on. The Sydney hospitality giant maintains that the beloved pub will reopen, with the property's next iteration to be announced soon. Totti's Rozelle is located at 3 Weeds, 197 Evans St, Rozelle. It's open Wednesday–Sunday, 12pm–late. Images: Steven Woodburn
Love a good Italian street festival? Yeah y'do. Italian nosh, wine and live music? What's not to like? Head for Five Dock this Sunday, August 20 for Ferragosto, showcasing the best of Italian culture on Great North Road from 10am to 4pm. Celebrating a cheeky 20 years of festivities, Ferragosto is a staple of Canada Bay's Italian calendar. There'll be over 300 food, wine and merchandise stalls, live kitchen demos from local chefs, rides for 'kids' (yeah, probably still just for actual kids), alongside dance and music performances across five stages. Don't worry if you can't make this one, for the Italian Food and Wine Festival takes place over by Town Hall the week following.
Sydney loves all things bottomless — from bao at Bondi's Easy Tiger to lunch at RAFI overlooking URBNSRF and brunch at Balmain's Casa Esquina. We can't blame you. Paying one price, then eating and drinking to your heart's content – surrounded by mates doing the same — makes eating out simple. So, it's no surprise that bottomless steak and frites at Surry Hills' French brasserie Armorica has been a big hit. And, because it's incredibly popular, it's not going anywhere. That's right — now there's always the option to pop down to Armorica any Monday night and swap 59 bucks for as much steak and as many fries as you can handle. Why not get a head start on your working week with a massive protein hit? While you're there, you'll have more than 400 wines to consider trying. Plus, there's every chance you'll be sorely tempted by the dessert menu (even after all that meat), especially the divine Armorica chocolate bar — an explosion of Valrhona chocolate mousse with salted caramel and choc chip cookie.
When it comes to winter family getaways, Sydney is often overlooked in favour of snowier spots further south. But the Harbour City is full of unexpected wintry delights—both indoors and out. Think cosy corners, hearty pub fare, awe-inspiring exhibitions, and close-up wildlife encounters. Add kids into the mix, and it becomes even more magical. From spotting humpbacks along the Bondi to Coogee Coastal Walk and soaking up Harbour views aboard the iconic Manly Ferry to sampling global eats at Hay St Market, we've rounded up some of the best family-friendly activities to help you plan your next escape. Plus, if you're keen to stay in the city, Marriott Bonvoy is offering 10% off your stay across six hotels—all you need to do is sign up (for free). It's also the perfect excuse to extend your stay. Pack your puffer and rally the little ones—here are nine top family-friendly things to do in Sydney this winter. Wander Through Hay St Market If the weather turns grizzly or you're facing decision paralysis over what to eat, Hay St Market—Sydney's newest hawker-style foodie hub—is an ideal spot for the whole family to explore. Bringing together 48 traders and over 25 international cuisines under one roof, the market buzzes with lively, aromatic stalls serving everything from freshly-baked sourdough and creamy cannoli to juicy citrus, melt-in-your-mouth sashimi, and premium cuts of meat. To keep the food adventure going, walk across to Spice Alley in Chippendale—just a short stroll from Four Points By Sheraton Sydney, Central Park. Picnic In the Royal Botanic Gardens While many botanical gardens around Australia boast magnificent, manicured grounds, few compare to Sydney's historic Royal Botanic Garden. Home to more than 27,000 plant species and boasting uninterrupted views of Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge, it's the ultimate spot to roll out a picnic rug and absorb some precious winter rays. There are plenty of things to keep the little ones entertained, too. Wander through the aromatic herb garden, the vibrant wildflower meadow, and the sun-drenched succulent garden—or book the kids into a nature-inspired craft workshop. Spot Whales Along Bondi To Coogee Coastal Walk Revered as one of the most picturesque walks along Australia's east coast, the Bondi to Coogee Coastal Walk is a year-round favourite—but it's especially popular from May to November during the annual humpback whale migration. The walk stretches about six kilometres one way, is suitable for all fitness levels, and offers vantage points aplenty, including Ben Buckler Point, Clovelly Beach, Waverley Cemetery, and Gordon's Bay. Mornings and late afternoons are the best times to spot whales, which often breach close to shore—but bring a pair of binoculars to get an even closer view of the action. Ride Sydney's Iconic Manly Ferry Keen to check out one of Sydney's iconic beaches? Jump aboard Sydney's historic Manly Ferry. Departing regularly from Circular Quay, the 30-minute journey is packed with spectacular Sydney Harbour views, including the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Sydney Opera House, and Kirribilli House. A must on any first-timer's Sydney itinerary, Manly offers plenty to explore once you arrive, with viral eateries like Norma's Deli, Butter Boy, and Chica Bonita regularly drawing crowds daily. Plus, the ferry terminal is just a quick stroll from Sydney Harbour Marriott, Circular Quay making it the perfect day-trip if you're staying close by (and scoring 10% off your stay). Run Amok at Luna Park Speaking of ferries, hop aboard the Milson's Point Wharf ferry at Circular Quay and spend a day exploring Luna Park—one of Sydney's most iconic amusement destinations. The heritage-listed theme park blends vintage carnival charm with modern thrills like the sky-high Coney Island Devil's Drop, the gravity-defying Rotor, the classic Ferris Wheel, and The Big Dipper—the world's first-ever double-launch single-rail rollercoaster. Get Up-Close with the Animals At Taronga Zoo Taronga Zoo is a playground for all ages that rolls education and fun into one, and has offered unforgettable wildlife encounters for over 100 years. Committed to wildlife conservation, the zoo is home to 4,000 animals across 350 species, including majestic African lions and Western Lowland gorillas, playful fairy penguins, and adorable pygmy hippopotamuses. To kick the adrenaline up a notch and see some wildlife from a new perspective, strap in for a climb on the zoo's thrilling high ropes course. Adventure Underwater at SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium Home to over 4,000 animals across more than 300 species, SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium is a sample of the seven seas right in the heart of the city. With immersive themed zones like Jurassic Seas, Shark Valley and Penguin Expedition, it showcases the world's largest variety of Australian aquatic life—and has become a rite of passage for Sydneysiders and young visitors alike. Highlights include Pig, the resident rescue dugong, up-close shark scuba encounters, and a walk-through tunnel where rays and sharks glide overhead. Plus, it's just moments away from W Sydney, making it well within reach for an easy yet exciting day out. Tour Sydney's Historic Cockatoo Island Once a convict gaol and shipyard, Cockatoo Island is now a UNESCO World Heritage-listed site just nine minutes by ferry from Barangaroo Wharf. The largest island in Sydney Harbour, it offers a fascinating mix of historical tours suitable for all ages, plus regular cultural exhibitions and events. After exploring, pull up a seat at one of the family-friendly waterfront cafes and watch a flurry of boats glide past—and if you're staying at Pier One Sydney Harbour, take the scenic route back and wander through Barangaroo. Get Inspired at Sydney's Art Galleries The Art Gallery of NSW is a cultural cornerstone and arguably one of the most significant art galleries in the state — if not the country. While it's known for showcasing a program of both local and internationally acclaimed artists, it also offers a mix of compelling creative activities for the little ones, including Australia's first children's art library on lower level 3, weekly Storytime sessions, and interactive exhibitions. This winter, check out the annual Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prize (on display until August 17), and the Young Archie finalists. Down by the Harbour, The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia is the only public museum dedicated exclusively to contemporary art in the country. A must-visit for modern art lovers, it hosts a rotating lineup of globally acclaimed artists—including Cerith Wyn Evans' monumental light sculptures, on display from June until October. Families can also enjoy drop-in drawing classes, and unstructured creative art play for kids under five. Ready for a jam-packed family adventure? Book your Sydney escape before September 30 to access 10% off your stay and dining with Marriott Bonvoy. All you have to do is sign up as a member—and it's completely free. With access to exclusive member rates, your stay will also earn points towards free nights at over 30 hotel brands around the world. Book your stay here. T&C's apply and vary by participating hotels including blackout dates, cancellation restrictions and more. Offer may not apply in properties not participating in the award and redemption of Marriott Bonvoy.
This article is sponsored by our partners, the Sydney Festival. Ah, Town Hall. Site of so many dorky private school Speech Nights. Who knew it could chill out and show us a really good time? In fact, the sandstone Victorian architecture and epic Grand Organ set off Sydney Festival's live music offerings in a manner most spectacular, creating a marriage made in acoustic heaven similar to the Becks and Keystone Festival Bars at Hyde Park Barracks. The popular Paradiso at Town Hall returns this year with a dream line-up, aiming to do its iconic, namesake rock venue in Amsterdam proud. Here's the plan: first you head out from work, gather partners in crime, make a beeline for the Terrace Bar (free entry, open from 5.30pm) and shake off the day's stresses. The bar's light hot dishes help you to conserve your strength for the long night of awesome ahead. Then from 8pm — appeased by alcohol, protein, carbs, the bar's DJ and attractive locals — you can enjoy the building atmosphere as a support act takes the stage with main fare to follow. The huge talent includes John Grant, Modular, Orquesta Tipica Fernandez Fierro, Mick Harvey, Kurt Vile & the Violators, Georgia Anne Muldrow & Dudley Perkins, Future Classic and Soil & Pimp Sessions. Bonus: Paradiso is free after 11.30pm, with DJ sets by Tyson Koh, Blair Stafford, Matt Vaughan and more to set the late-night vibe. Just another reason why Summer in Sydney is the best. Standing tickets only, 18+. Paradise Lates is free from 11.30pm (10.30pm 19 and 26 January). Image by Jamie Williams.
As far as publicity stunts go, this one is as literal as it gets. For its next big fundraising/marketing venture, Aussie company AMP is pulling out some transparent but undeniably ambitious moves, announcing plans to launch a mildly terrifying-sounding building-to-building zipline in Sydney this October. Dubbed The AMP Foundation Big Zipper, the 125-metre zipline is set to stretch between AMP's two CBD skyscrapers, perched 75 metres above Circular Quay, and propelling riders through the air at up to ten metres per second. Registrations are now open for the casual plummet, which will be held on October 20 and 21. It's not a cruisy public affair though. To be involved, participants will need to raise at least $5000 in funds for one of The AMP Foundation's 15 non-profit partners like Wesley Mission, The Stroke Association of Victoria or Cancer Council NSW. If you reckon you can make that kind of coin for charity and want to actively participate in a major corporation's marketing campaign, sign up here.
Northies has been keeping the party happening in Cronulla since 1888, now belonging to the beach-loving Sydney Collective. Just as with the other venues, the Group has given this one a serious spruce up, without taking away its casual feel. One addition is Old Joe's, a summery, pastel-coloured room that pays homage to Joe's Milk Bar (a longstanding local favourite) styled by design legend Sibella Court. Whether you're hanging out there or in one of Northies' other spaces, the mighty menu will conquer your post-surf starvation, with its burgers, pizza, steaks and seafood hot pots.
Cosy up by the fire sipping Margaret River cabernet at Empire Retreat and Spa or embrace Sydney’s industrial past at 1888 Hotel. Either way, you’ll be chasing away winter blues and indulging at each of these top ten Mr & Mrs Smith hotels in Australia and New Zealand. Stay three nights (or more) to save 30 percent on stays until the end of September — but get in quick; these exclusive offers must be booked by July 31. Hotel Hotel, Canberra Overlooking Lake Burley Griffin in the cultural heart of Canberra, Hotel Hotel is the designer pad you’ve always wanted — on a greater scale. Out of the 68 individually styled rooms, the Meandering Rooms are by far the biggest and best, with a tub for two and double rain showers. Housed in the Nishi Building in NewActon, the hotel is part of a new development that combines contemporary art, landscaped gardens and the bespoke modern living that’s becoming popular in Australia. The courtyard cinema is closed in winter, but don’t fret: you can still get your arthouse cinematic fix at Palace Electric, just downstairs. Spicers Vineyards Estate, Hunter Valley A tapestry of vines and veggie patches surrounds this handsome hotel in the Hunter Valley. Spicers Vineyards Estate is just two hours from Sydney and draws on its location to provide you with a romantic, culinary-themed getaway. Here, fresh regional produce teamed with the latest vintages (featuring grapes harvested from the estate’s vines) will have you mellow in no time. An added bonus is Spa Anise, where you can replenish mind, body and soul with organic honey-and-cocoa treatments or hot-stone massages. Ground-floor King Spa Rooms open onto an inviting verandah: first-floor rooms will earn you views all the way to the Brokenback Mountain Range. For cosy nights by the fire, opt for a Luxury Spa Suite. QT Gold Coast Bright pops of colour and retro furniture complete the Miami-esque feel at QT Gold Coast. Just a stone’s throw away from Surfers Paradise beach, you can soak up some sun and set yourself free from the weight of those winter woollies. Sample international cuisine at Bazaar, the hotel’s restaurant, styled with a bustling marketplace in mind. All rooms are fun and flirty with bonus DIY lemonade kits, but the QT King Ocean View rooms take the cake with seascape vistas and surfer-spotting potential. The Gold Coast is known for being a party playground, so join in the fun at the hotel’s bar, Stingray, where cocktails flow in an industrial-chic setting. Eveningwear is a must when the sun goes down: no board shorts allowed. The Prince Hotel, Melbourne Situated in the vibrant St Kilda precinct in Melbourne, The Prince Hotel is an edgy designer’s dream. Its modern, contemporary rooms feature timber floors, artfully placed throws and stand-alone bath tubs for peaceful soaks. You’ll get 30 percent off the Boutique and Deluxe rooms here, so take those savings and sample some of the fantastic restaurants that St Kilda has to offer. Stroll past nearby Acland Street for delectable treats at Monarch Cakes or sample the menu at the hotel’s restaurant, Circa, which champions seasonal eating using the freshest produce from Victorian and Australian farmers. If you fall in love with any of the artworks adorning the walls, you might be able to take them home (for a price, of course). The walls, curated by Utopian Slumps’ Melissa Loughnan, allow art to be seen in a more social, everyday environment. Spicers Peak Lodge, Qld A mountain retreat on the Scenic Rim of Queensland, Spicers Peak Lodge is a place where you can surround yourself in nature without sacrificing luxurious comforts. Set on a 9000-acre cattle station, the hotel has bushwalking and mountain bike trails for adventurous types and gourmet picnics on offer too. Five of the seven luxury lodge suites have warming stone fireplaces, perfect to snuggle by on a winter’s eve. The earthy, natural tones are calming and fuss-free, drawing you outwards to the natural beauty of the area. Dining at the lodge is a must. The cuisine highlights seasonal and organic produce, including honey, which stars in delicacies such as the chocolate, caramel popcorn and honeycomb dessert. Empire Retreat and Spa, WA A relaxing oasis among the southern wilderness of Western Australia, Empire Retreat and Spa combines a level of luxury and seclusion among the gum trees. The retreat’s villas and suites are set in and around a restored farmhouse — once the owner’s family home. Both rustic and modern interiors work well with timber and natural stone accents that celebrate the beauty of the surrounding native bushland. The main house has an open fireplace, timber decking and a secluded Jacuzzi and sauna for extra entertainment. Some of the nation’s best cabernets and pristine beaches can be found in this pocket of the west, so it’s well worth hiring a car to explore. The Spire, Queenstown The Spire is an urban hideaway in the midst of Queenstown, the adventure capital of New Zealand's South Island. Interiors of dark wood and rich, candy-apple red highlight create rooms that are inviting sanctuaries away from wintry winds. Room six has an exclusive view of the spire that the hotel is named after, but all have stone-clad fireplaces and private balconies. Sip a cocktail while enjoying some Mediterranean- and European Alps-inspired tapas at No5 Church Lane, the hotel’s laidback lounge bar, or venture to the waterfront for some of the freshest seafood Queenstown has to offer. The hotel is more than happy to arrange some adrenaline-pumping activities such as bungee-jumping or jet-boating, but a simple hike and picnic lunch is also on the menu. The Farm at Cape Kidnappers, NZ Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand is a pristine natural wonder. Rolling green hills stretch from The Farm at Cape Kidnappers all the way to the churning water’s edge. A par-71 golf course is on hand, along with 180-degree views of the spectacular Pacific Ocean. A luxurious barn-like conversion worthy of a Grand Designs feature, the Owner’s Cottage has added seclusion away from the main lodge, a large stone fireplace and an open kitchen for entertaining. Tawny interiors throughout add to the farmhouse style, and invoke a homey, welcoming environment. The lodge even has its own winery located in the Gimblett Gravels region, with regular wine tastings. There’s an onsite pastry chef and a new vegetable garden that provides head chef James Honore with fresh produce to accompany the locally sourced meats and seafood. 1888 Hotel, Sydney An eclectic industrial conversion, 1888 Hotel turns Sydney’s past into a stylish inner-city hangout. In a prime location for visiting Sydney’s famous harbour and the captivating Powerhouse Museum, this historic wool store offers a vibrant resting place that moulds together the best of days gone by and modern Australian design. Three-metre-high ceilings and original wooden beams are featured throughout rooms, and the Attic room has a sun-kissed patio and sociable lounge for entertaining. A philosophy of simplicity encompasses the menu at 1888 Eatery & Bar, where meals celebrate wholesome and sustainably sourced ingredients. There’s also a monthly photography competition for all you avid Instagrammers, so don’t forget to tag the hotel in any snaps as it could win you a free night’s stay. Islington Hotel, Tasmania A Regency house situated just outside of Hobart in Tasmania, Islington Hotel sports views of Mount Wellington and hosts manicured gardens. A sustainability motto that will knock your socks off, paired with an 80 percent organic decree, sets this hotel above the rest with its eco-friendly practices. The moreish dishes at the hotel’s restaurant — such as maple-and-whisky-glazed pork loin and Tasmanian wallaby shank — are definitely set to spoil. Rooms in the old house are generous and elegant with bespoke bedding and contemporary artworks from the owner’s worldwide travels adorning walls. This is the perfect getaway for curling up by the outdoor open fire and settling in with a good book while sipping on some of the hotel’s swill-worthy wines. Browse all Smith’s winter warmer offers or see all available hotel offers online. Contact our expert Travel Team on 1300 896 627 for further details on the hotels and their deals.
Without a shadow of a doubt, Surry Hills is one of the most varied suburbs in Sydney. You'll find a sneaker shop serving fried chicken and champagne alongside an underground saloon bar complete with taxidermy elk and endless whisky — it's creative, pushes the boundaries and is always two steps ahead — in glitter stilettos, no less. So, whittling down a long list of must-see spots to just ten essentials was never going to be an easy process. In fact, it felt a little like Sophie's Choice. But, with the help of City of Sydney, we got there. If you're ready to see the very best of Surry Hills, don your most fashion-forward threads, make sure you have an empty belly and get set to tick off some stellar spots. Plus, for a few more hot tips, check out our video above for owner of Yulli's Karl Cooney's favourite spots around the suburb.
Good news hasn't been easy to find in Sydney of late. Being in lockdown to combat the COVID-19 pandemic — and having those stay-at-home conditions expanded, extended and tightened as case numbers rise — will do that. But one infectiously adorable bundle of joy has just entered the world, and it's the heartwarmingly cute kind of sight that we all definitely need right now. If you're reading this from elsewhere in the country, trust us — you need this, too. Taronga Zoo has announced the arrival of a southern hairy-nosed wombat joey that was born in October last year. Yes, that's more than a few months back now, but the as-yet-unnamed baby critter has only just started to emerge from her mother's pouch in recent weeks — so she's still big news. The joey was born to experienced mum Jetta. Wombat joeys are the size of a jellybean when they first enter the world, and then they remain in their mother's pouch for between seven and nine months as they grow. "The little joey has just reached the size where she no longer fits in the Jetta's pouch; we have seen her try to get back into the pouch a couple of times, but Jetta just won't allow it — she is just too big!" advises keeper Rebecca Russell-Cook. "At the moment the joey is out and about quite regularly exploring both the burrow and outside areas, on her own as well as with mum and sister Wanyi," she continued. "In the next few weeks, the joey will become even more active — so once Taronga starts welcoming guests back, they will definitely get the chance to spot the little joey at Taronga's wombat burrow at our Backyard to Bush precinct." That's enough words about this loveable little critter, because we all know that you're here to get a glimpse — and Taronga Zoo has helpfully released a video that shows the joey just doing super-cute joey things. Check it out below: [video width="1920" height="1080" mp4="https://cdn.concreteplayground.com/content/uploads/2021/07/Taronga-zoo-ES-edit-09072021-78.mp4"][/video] If you're after further information, you can also watch keeper Rebecca Russell-Cook chat about the joey — if you can hear her above all the "awwwwwwwwwws" you'll be exclaiming, that is. [video width="1920" height="1080" mp4="https://cdn.concreteplayground.com/content/uploads/2021/07/Wombat-Joey_VNR_P2C.mp4"][/video] Taronga Zoo is currently closed during Sydney's lockdown, but you can check out more videos of its cute animals via its online Taronga TV channel.
Originally from the trendy Melbourne suburb of Windsor, concept restaurant and cocktail bar Sash has fully embraced the concept of fusion cuisine. Overseen by Kyle Stagoll, it marries the Japanese palate with familiar dishes from other countries. Think pizza, tacos and sliders dished up with a Japanese twist — and it's coming to Sydney in April 2018. Sash's most eye-catching dish is the black pizza. Topped with sticky pulled pork, hoisin duck, orange ginger, spanner crab, eggplant miso and strawberries, the menu explores territory that no other pizzeria considers. And the bases are dyed with squid ink to give it that charcoal-black colour. Sash's pizzas are all about texture. "The experience starts with a slightly crunchy, thin base, balanced by textures of soft fish and wasabi mayo. There's also a contrast in temperature. The pizza has a hot base topped with cold fish," explains Stagoll. "Even though the combination of sashimi and fruit in poke bowls is now common in Sydney, the way we do our pizzas provides a much richer flavour and totally different experience." In terms of drinks, the original Melbourne pizzeria was designed as simply a place to enjoy an extensive range of Japanese beer, sake and wine. But since head barman Kyle Rose (Chin Chin) was brought in and given free rein over the cocktail menu, Sash became known for their yuzu and sake-heavy cocktails — such as the Japanese Spritz made from sake, Aperol, yuzu and sparkling rose; and the Geisha Girl with cranberry, plum yuzu, gin and lemon juice. "Kyle Rose definitely brings that Melbourne look and feel to the restaurant," notes Stagoll. Style-wise, Sash Sydney will take on a different visual look to its dark-lit, narrower Melbourne sister. "We absolutely fell in love with a big, white brick, heritage building in Surry Hills with stunning arched pillars running through the venue," says Stagoll. "Three retail shops have been pulled down to open the whole place into one." Sash opens in the first week of April 2018. Keep an eye on their website and Facebook page for further details.
When it opens in May 2023, SEA SEA looks set to be much more than your usual coastal hotel in New South Wales. Co-owners George Gorrow (co-founder of Ksubi fashion label and creator of The Slow hotel in Bali) and Cisco Tschurtschenthaler (a model, keen surfer, raw food chef, yoga teacher and founder of Cisco & The Sun Home) will use this new Crescent Head site to host art exhibitions, a fashion line and a homewares collection. And yeah, you can spend a few nights there as well. In terms of design and functionality, the 25-room hotel will take inspiration from Australia's 70s surf culture. Each room will be filled with bespoke, artisan-produced furniture and crafts paired with bold pieces of artwork. If it's anything like The Slow in Bali, it will be a visually stunning space where patrons can really relax. The food and drinks offerings will be a big part of the experience, too. The venue is teaming up with Sydney's much-loved P&V Wine & Liquor Merchants and mixologist Antonello Arzedi (who has previously worked at Icebergs Dining Room and Bar) to level up the drinks menu. Food will be looked after by Daniel Medcalf of Cabarita's No 35 Kitchen and Bar and, previously, The Dolphin Hotel and The Slow Kitchen and Bar in Bali. Guests and visitors can also make their way over to Room 13, where Gorrow's passion for art and design will keep taking centre stage. This 90-square-metre project space will house a rolling series of art exhibitions, changing every six weeks, and also play host to musical performances curated by Wesley Heron, the hotel's Music Director. You can even tune into the venue's in-house radio station from your room — curated by Reverberation. [caption id="attachment_878246" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Wesley Heron, SEA SEA's Music Director.[/caption] Also a feature: Gorrow's new fashion label Non-Type, which will be sold at the hotel. That venture sees him team up with another Ksubi co-founder, Gareth Moody — keep an eye out for the label's tailored pants, board shorts, wetsuits and leather blazers. Cisco Tschurtschenthaler's aforementioned homewares range Cisco & The Sun Home will be sold at the hotel as well, with the owners clearly putting a lot of themselves into this venture. And, of course, the new boutique hotel will be right by the beach. In fact, SEA SEA will be just 400 metres away from a must-surf Crescent Head point break. So, grab your surfboard (or boogie board) and prepare for an epic seaside vacay down in this laidback town. SEA SEA will open in Crescent Head, New South Wales on May 1, 2023, and will start taking bookings from the beginning of December. Head to the hotel's website for further information. Now you can book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips, and discover inspiring deals on flights, stays and experiences.
Summer in Sydney is always an amazing time for live music given the ridiculous number of bands that come out for Sydney Festival, Big Day Out, Laneway and more, as well as all those bands that are just here independent of a festival. We're totally spoiled for choice. And being able to see so many of the world's biggest bands in the same city at more or less the same time is a real treat. But there are so many great bands that aren't headlining anything, or whose tour announcements you simply haven't heard about thanks to Christmas madness and end-of-year planning. But lucky for you, we've been keeping our ear to the ground and have a put together a list of ten gigs that you should seriously consider selling a body part to get along to. If I could give one piece of advice to all of you about summer shows, it's this: get to the gig early and see the support band; they could be awful and you might wish you had your time back, but every now and again you will find yourself in a room with only a dozen people watching a scintillating set from a band that are clearly going places, and it's one of the most exciting feelings in the world. https://youtube.com/watch?v=1U3q9zgYaUA TALIB KWELI & DEAD PREZ Celebrate the new year in style with two absolute legends of hip hop. You might know Talib Kweli from the amazing album he made with Mos Def in the late '90s — Mos Def & Talib Kweli are Black Star — but he has been making intelligent, insightful and lyrically rich music for almost two decades. Joining him on this massive double bill is Dead Prez, one of the most respected outfits in the history of the genre, who follow in the footsteps of Public Enemy, KRS-One and 2pac by using brilliant, banging tunes to address the impact of unthinking consumerism, rampant sexism and homophobia in hop hop. Their signature tune 'Hip Hop' is an incredible example of their fiercely intelligent art. Saturday, January 4; Metro Theatre; Tickets $49 https://youtube.com/watch?v=U6-3j4_bfIo ELODIE SABLIER If you have ever been walking around the Queen Victoria Building and heard a gentle cascade of piano music falling from the upper levels, you've already heard Sablier play. Born in France, she studied at world-famous conservatoires in Lyon and Paris before moving to Australia a few years ago, and her own compositions sit somewhere between old-world French Romanticism and a decidedly modern Australian attitude. If you find yourself burnt out by summer's heat, or perhaps just overstimulated from all the parties and sugar, this show will be an absolute oasis of calm and beauty. Wednesday, January 15; The Basement; Tickets $24.10-100.80 JAGWAR MA Following the release of their debut album Howlin' earlier in 2013, Jagwar Ma have been on some kind of rampage of touring across Europe, playing all the biggest festivals and establishing themselves as a live act that you simply have to see. Their last Australian shows were at Splendour in the Grass in July, but reports out of the northern hemisphere suggest that this band has gone to a whole other level in just a few short months. And summer in Sydney is the perfect setting for their highly danceable tunes, full of great grooves and an irresistible energy. Friday, January 17; Metro Theatre; Tickets $33.70 BIG STAR'S THIRD Third has become one of the most important and influential records in history, described by Peter Buck from REM as "a Rosetta Stone for a whole generation" — which becomes clear when you look at the amazing lineup of guest musicians that have signed on to perform this tribute as part of Sydney Festival. The 'house band' is pretty amazing, including Big Star's original drummer Jody Stephens, Mike Mills from REM and Ken Stringfellow from The Posies. Joining these motley all-stars will be vocalists such as Sydney Festival headliners Cat Power, Kurt Vile and Edwyn Collins, as well as local legends Tim Rogers from You Am I, Kim Salmon and Dave Faulkner from Hoodoo Gurus. Thursday, January 23; Enmore Theatre; Tikets $71-89 https://youtube.com/watch?v=fSVwJyxeVYI TORO Y MOI & PORTUGAL. THE MAN A killer double-bill of artists on the Big Day Out lineup which will be a fascinating, energetic mishmash of styles. Toro Y Moi is one of the leaders of the whole 'chillwave' thing, his live shows nothing but joyous, summery good times. But whatever you do, don't miss Portugal. The Man. Portugal are like the best covers band in the world; it sounds like music you've always loved but with a new kinda kick to it. They are gradually picking up a following in Australia after touring here a few times in the last couple of years, and you'd be crazy not to get down early to catch them. Wednesday, January 29; The HiFi; Tickets $55 EARL SWEATSHIRT & DANNY BROWN & RUN THE JEWELS An absolute monster of a lineup and a special treat for anyone who missed out on Laneway tickets, with three of 2013's hottest hip hop acts set to tear the roof off the Enmore. Earl Sweatshirt came into the spotlight as part of the Odd Future crew but missed much of the group's huge first year of tours and releases, and no one knew quite why — was he in prison? At boarding school in Samoa? At a military academy? Whatever it was, Earl has been making up for lost time with his debut album, Doris, both a critical and commercial smash hit, and featuring on countless end-of-year lists. Danny Brown also had a big year with the release of his third album, Old, a throwback album that wears its love for old-school hip hop proudly on its sleeve, while Run the Jewels is a new name, but the two names behind it are anything but: El-P and Killer Mike. Tuesday, February 4; Enmore Theatre; Tickets $69.95 OLIVER TANK Sydney boy Oliver Tank has been absolutely killing it in the past couple of years since winning FBi Radio's Northern Lights competition in 2011, which saw him fly to Iceland to perform his first overseas show. Comparisons to Bon Iver and James Blake were perhaps inevitable, and to a certain extent Tank exists in that same broad 'electronica with emotions' sub-genre that those two artists dabble in. But Tank's electronica goes far deeper than a passing association to create intricate, densely layered music that has more in common with Boards of Canada or Jon Hopkins. Saturday, February 15; Metro Theatre; Tickets $17 https://youtube.com/watch?v=n7UeGBULQ7Y OKKERVIL RIVER Is there a better songwriter in the world than Okkervil River's Will Sheff? There might be a few his equal, but surely no one surpasses his wit, his emotion and his way with words — it's not unfair to suggest that Sheff is almost more a prose writer whose work is then set to music, rather than a musician writing lyrics specifically for a song. (Lines like "When I've been fixed I am convinced that I will not get so broke up again", from 'Unless Its Kicks', just amaze me every time I hear them.) They really are a wonderful band, and I can't wait to see them in a room as small as Oxford Art Factory. Friday, February 21; Oxford Art Factory; Tickets $52 JURASSIC 5 I've been dreaming of this moment for years, but I don't know that I ever truly believed it would happen. But one of the most-beloved hip hop ensembles of all time are reuniting to return to Australia six years after their breakup. With four MCs and two DJs (including the wonderful, world-famous Cut Chemist) the ensemble is incredibly versatile, and their chemistry and the speed of their overlapping wordplay gives the impression of one single, unified organism rather than a series of individuals. Combining incredible lyricism with huge party tunes (like 'What's Golden', 'Quality Control' and 'Concrete Schoolyard'), there ain't no party like a J5 party. Wednesday, March 19; Enmore Theatre; Tickets $89.90 https://youtube.com/watch?v=unNa-9qGkfI NEKO CASE So I know that March isn't technically summer, but you're mad if you think I'm leaving the incredible Neko Case off this list. If you have never heard her before, you are missing out on one of the great singer-songwriters of our time. With a voice as clear as a bell and a knack for writing gorgeous, emotionally rich songs, Case has released one amazing album after another. Her latest, The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You, could well be her best. Monday, March 3; Sydney Opera House; Tikets $50-70
Under current COVID-19 restrictions in Australia, there are various interstate border restrictions in place. Up-to-date information on restrictions are available at your state's health websites (click through for NSW, Victoria and Queensland). Of course, even border closures don't mean you can't start dreaming — bookmark this for when you can explore freely once again. It's not exactly news that connecting with nature has all sorts of benefits for your wellbeing. And, given what we've been through over the past year and a bit, there's probably never been a better time to get out and explore the natural beauty of our great land. One solution: pack your tent and sleeping bag, and embark on a multi-day hike. However, leaving the city behind doesn't mean you have to forgo every creature comfort. The new Sonos Roam is designed to take your backcountry adventure to the next level. Sleek, drop-resistant and waterproof, this lightweight, technology-packed speaker slips straight into your swag so you can soundtrack your day, dawn till dusk. [caption id="attachment_812488" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] COOLOOLA GREAT WALK, QUEENSLAND Set on the Sunshine Coast between Noosa North Shore and Rainbow Beach, the Cooloola Great Walk spans the entire Cooloola Recreation Area and its wonderful landscapes. With the trek's total distance clocking in at 102 kilometres, you're going to need to set aside around five days to journey from end to end. But this strenuous hike is more than worth it, as you wind through lush rainforests, coastal woodlands and the stunning Carlo Sandblow. With the region's heathlands coming to life with spring wildflowers between August and October, now is the perfect time to start planning. [caption id="attachment_812482" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption] YURAYGIR COASTAL WALK, NEW SOUTH WALES Linking a myriad of beaches, sandy tracks, lagoons and rocky outcrops, the Yuraygir Coastal Walk is ideal for those who want to fully appreciate Australia's rugged coastline. Stretching for 65 kilometres and considered around a four- to five-day hike, emu footprint signposts guide the way as you travel from the surfing hotspot of Angourie (pictured above) to the sleepy village of Red Rock, located about 40 kilometres from Coffs Harbour. As well as stunning coastal views for the duration of the hike, you'll also encounter endless opportunities to chill on the beach and listen to tunes in peaceful solitude. Head there between May and November and you'll likely see whales embarking on their annual migration. [caption id="attachment_812474" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Visit Victoria[/caption] TWELVE APOSTLES LODGE WALK, VICTORIA Don't want to embark on a hike that's going to leave you physically exhausted? The Twelve Apostles Lodge Walk is designed to keep you in luxurious comfort as you complete a 40-kilometre trek through the Great Otway and Port Campbell National Parks. Rather than struggling with your tent poles in the cold, you'll be whisked away at the end of each day to a private eco-lodge situated on Johanna Beach. You and your fellow hikers will feast on a sumptuous meal prepared by the live-in chefs, before enjoying a glass of wine in the spa, where you'll rejuvenate your weary legs in style. [caption id="attachment_812490" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] GOLD COAST HINTERLAND GREAT WALK, QUEENSLAND Stretching 54 kilometres from the tiny town of O'Reilly to the Springbrook Plateau, the Gold Coast Hinterland Walk is a stellar way to spend three days off the beaten track. Leaving from the renowned O'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat — where we recommend spending a comfy night before you hit the trails. On the hike, you'll explore the species-rich Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area of Lamington and Springbrook Plateaus via the scenic Numinbah Valley, as well as the ancient volcanic landscape of the Tweed Volcano which offers panoramic views of the surrounding mountain range. Upon delving back into the rainforest, you'll be guided into Springbrook via a network of tranquil streams and waterfalls. Celebrate your journey by uncorking a bottle at one of the nearby wineries. [caption id="attachment_812483" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption] GIBRALTAR-WASHPOOL WORLD HERITAGE WALK, NEW SOUTH WALES Get amongst New South Wales' Northern Tablelands by completing a challenging 45-kilometre loop that links the Gibraltar Range and Washpool National Parks, part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area. With around three full days needed to finish the journey, there's no need to rush your way through eucalyptus forests, granite tors and impressive falls. You're going to want some waterproof footwear as there are marshy streams and hidden waterfalls to navigate throughout the hike. Make sure you also pack some binoculars, as the region is also known for its endangered bird species. [caption id="attachment_812489" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] K'GARI (FRASER ISLAND) GREAT WALK, QUEENSLAND Multi-day hikes don't come much more scenic than this 90-kilometre journey across K'gari (Fraser Island). With the full distance taking most people around six to eight days, this relatively relaxed trek exploring the world's largest sand island is punctuated by overnight stops at many of its most beautiful sites, including Lake McKenzie, Lake Wabby and Wanggoolba Creek. You'll want to stay alert as things do get pretty remote when you head deep inside inland tropical rainforests before you eventually return to the pristine coastline at Dilli Village. Along the way, though, you'll be rewarded with incredible scenery and ever-changing landscapes including coastal heathland, mangrove forest, woodland and rainforest along the way. [caption id="attachment_812480" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Don Fuchs; Destination NSW[/caption] NEW ENGLAND WILDERNESS WALK, NEW SOUTH WALES Consider yourself a serious hiker? The New England Wilderness Walk might just be the challenge you've been waiting for. Although it's only 33 kilometres in length, it's regarded as one of the toughest hikes in the region due to its rough, unmarked track, and quad-burning gradient. Best completed across three days, you'll descend over 1000 metres from the lofty New England Tableland down towards the edge of the Bellinger River. Along the way, you'll make several river crossings and wander through long-abandoned farms and stock houses. If you're feeling extra adventurous, you can extend your trek and canoe or kayak down the river from Cool Creek Crossing. [caption id="attachment_812473" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Visit Victoria[/caption] WALLABY TRACK, VICTORIA Rolling countryside, volcanic hills, built heritage and mineral spas — the 52-kilometre Wallaby Track will definitely not bore you. Beginning in artist Norman Lindsay's hometown of Creswick and ending at Lake Daylesford, this three-day hike takes in a variety of terrain and elevations. Make your way through imposing forest and airy farmland, before walking next to an abandoned 19th-century railway track, which is still the longest timber track in the state. The home stretch sees a gradual uphill give way to a sharp descent and then a tough ascent, before you reach the blissful Lake Daylesford. Extend your stay and unwind in one of the restorative mineral spas in the area. Find out more about the new Sonos Roam at the official website. Need some tunes to soundtrack your stroll? Check out the all-Aussie playlist, curated by Concrete Playground, below: Top image: Destination NSW
Only eat hole foods? You're in luck. The much-loved market stall Donut Papi also has a permanent space in Redfern. Founded by long-time doughnut-lover Kenneth Rodrigueza, this sweet little doughnut store specialises in small-batch, handmade doughnuts spiked with creative Asian flavours. Forget jam, cream and powdered sugar, Rodrigueza prefers to stuff his dough with taro and pandan custard and glaze his rings with sticky matcha brûlée, strawberry sakura and bittersweet calamansi (Chinese orange). He has also been known to produce some weird-dough flavours too, including a pepperoni-pizza doughnut, a caramel Vegemite doughnut and a cheese-and-bacon-ball Cheetos doughnut. One of the best things about Donut Papi is its incredibly high turnover, with a fresh batch of fried batter coming out every ten or so minutes. This means you're never stuck with a sad, stale display doughnut (which is pretty much the worst doughnut fate imaginable). While there are heaps of doughnut options already out there (Shortstop and Grumpy Donuts to name a couple) none are like Donut Papi's. They're rich and cakey in flavour, yet tear apart like spun sugar, and truly massive — promising to satisfy even the most impressive of eaters. While there are limited places to sit inside Donut Papi, with the entire pink-and-white space eaten up by the line, you'll find some scattered stools outside, or better yet, Redfern Park across the road offers plenty of spots for sitting and sharing or shameless private gorging.
2023 ain't nuthing ta f' wit: it's the year that Wu-Tang Clan are returning Down Under, after all. After the hip hop legends kicked off their NY State of Mind tour with Nas in 2022, they're bringing the 2023 leg to Sydney — and it's still a joint affair. Two of the biggest names in the business since the 90s — with Wu-Tang Clan first making a splash with their 1993 debut album Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), and Nas doing the same with 1994's Illmatic — will play one show at Qudos Bank Arena on Saturday, May 13. These Aussie dates are the first gigs in the 2023 tour, too, after its 2022 leg hit up more than 25 cities. This year's run is just as epic — after its stint Down Under, it heads through Europe and then back to the US. Along the way, fans can enjoy Wu-Tang Clan's RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, U-God, Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck and Cappadonna taking to the stage three decades after they first came to fame — and Nas sharing the mic as well. Over that time, Wu-Tang Clan have dropped seven further albums from a fill discography that, including solo records by its members, notches up more than 85 full-length releases. Their tours pull from the whole lot, as set against that ever-present Wu-Tang 'W' — and honours the deceased Ol' Dirty Bastard as well.
A 24-year run is a stellar effort in anyone's books. Still, the time has come for change at Opera Bar, as Applejack has taken over the restaurant from Matt Moran and his Solotel hospitality group. Perched on the edge of Sydney Harbour, this attention-grabbing spot will soon be under new management following "a highly competitive tender process." Applejack will operate Opera Bar for at least the next 10 years as part of the new agreement. Plus, it's taking charge of House Canteen — the restaurant's neighbouring all-day hawker-style diner. No strangers to leading high-profile Sydney venues, Applejack is also behind the likes of Bopp & Tone, Forresster's, June's Shoppe, Taphouse, RAFI URBNSURF and more. "To be entrusted as custodians of venues at the Sydney Opera House — the world's most iconic cultural stage — is both humbling and inspiring," say Applejack Co-Founders Ben Carroll and Hamish Watts. "We can't wait to share the exciting new concepts we've developed for both locals and visitors while honouring this extraordinary location." With this in mind, Applejack will officially take over the reins of Opera Bar in mid-September, while the House Canteen changeover is expected in mid-November. Meanwhile, the hospitality group plans to commence refurbishments in 2026, once the bustling summer season has come to a close. As for Moran and Solotel, Sydney Opera House Chief Customer Officer Jade McKellar expressed gratitude to the renowned chef and his general manager, John Gallas, for their contributions to the venue over the past two-and-a-half decades. Together, they helped shape Opera Bar into one of Sydney's most prominent venues. "The Solotel team has been instrumental to the success of these iconic Sydney venues, creating unforgettable experiences for locals and tourists over decades and contributing to the vitality of Sydney's hospitality scene," says McKellar. "We thank them for their significant contribution and acknowledge their lasting legacy." Applejack will take over Opera Bar in mid-September, with House Canteen to follow in mid-November. Head to the website for more information.
In 2023, Matt Adnate was an Archibald Prize finalist with his portrait of Daniel Johns, his first-ever entry for the acclaimed award. In 2024, the Northern Rivers–based artist has both repeated the feat and gone one better with his second entry, a new work featuring Baker Boy. Rhythms of heritage is among this year's shortlisted entries for the prestigious award, and also the recipient of 2024's Packing Room Prize. Which artist will tale home the Archie in the gong's 103rd year will be unveiled on Friday, June 7, but Rhythms of heritage status as the Packing Room Prize-winner for 2024 has just been announced. The latter is selected by three members of the Art Gallery of New South Wales' packing room team — Timothy Dale, Monica Rudhar and Alexis Wildman in 2024 — hence the name. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Art Gallery NSW (@artgalleryofnsw) "I have always been inspired by music as it can help me channel and evoke strong emotion into my work. It gives me the energy to keep painting, from canvases in my studio to large-scale murals. I'm in awe of artists like Baker Boy who have the power to use music to transform people's mood, mind and energy," said Adnate about Rhythms of heritage and his Packing Room Prize win. "It was an honour to paint him again and capture the intensity of his music. It has been incredible to watch Baker Boy evolving into a multi-talented and award-winning artist over the last decade, cementing his legacy as an Australian music icon," Adnate continued. "I learned to paint through doing graffiti letters as a teenager; I switched to portraiture in 2010. This painting was produced mostly with spray paint, a medium that has always allowed me the most control. It's been a challenge to maintain my own technique and resist the pressure to use oils or more traditional mediums. I've always considered the Archibald to be the pinnacle of art prizes, especially for portraiture. To win the Packing Room Prize with a portrait that is so significant to me, and to be the first street artist to do so, it really pushes me further." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Adnate (@adnate) If you're wondering how Baker Boy, aka Danzal Baker, feels about being a Packing Room Prize-winning subject, he's also thrilled. "Big congratulations to Matt for taking home the Packing Room Prize with his portrait of me. It's unreal to see how he captures me as I am today, reflecting my love for music and a deep connection to my home of Arnhem Land, seen through the soulful reflection in the eyes," he said. Dale, Rudhar and Wildman had no shortage of praise for Adnate's work. "Matt Adnate is an incredible Australian street artist renowned for his large mural paintings. His portrait of singer-songwriter Baker Boy in his signature style is characterised by grand scale, vivid colours and a gaze that draws you in," advised Rudhar. "Matt and Baker Boy are both highly accomplished in their respective fields and share a mutual recognition of each other's talents. Matt's powerful portrait encapsulates Baker Boy as the inspirational Indigenous storyteller that he is, mirroring the joy and hope that his music brings to the world." [caption id="attachment_959475" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Archibald Prize 2024 finalist, Caroline Zilinsky 'A lucid heart – the golden age of Jacob Elordi', oil on linen, 152.5 x 122.4 cm © the artist. Sitter: Jacob Elordi[/caption] Rhythms of heritage is one of 57 finalists in the Archibald, as whittled down from 1005 entries. Other works vying for the accolade include Caroline Zilinsky's portrait of Saltburn and Priscilla's Jacob Elordi, Mia Boe's of Tony Armstrong, Jessie Bourke's of Heartbreak High star Chloé Hayden, Paul de Zubicaray's of Jaguar Jonze and Angus McDonald's likeness of Professor Marcia Langton. Also on the list: Drew Bickford's portrait of Hello Dankness filmmakers Dan and Dominique Angeloro, aka Soda Jerk; Camellia Morris' of Anthony Field from The Wiggles; Tim Owers' of Matildas player Cortnee Vine; and Nick Stathopoulos' of film critic David Stratton. If you'd like to see all of the above, plus the rest of 2024's finalists, they'll all be on display at the Art Gallery of NSW in Sydney from Saturday, June 8–Sunday, September 8, 2024. And, they'll have company from works shortlisted for the venue's similarly coveted Wynne and Sulman prizes. The Wynne received 738 entries, with 41 named as finalists, while the Sulman received 628 entries, naming 40 as final contenders. The Wynne also made history by selecting 21 pieces by Aboriginal artists — the first time that there's been more works by Aboriginal artists than non-Aboriginal artists among the finalists. [caption id="attachment_959474" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Archibald Prize 2024 finalist, Jessie Bourke 'Different, not less', oil on canvas, 130 x 90.2 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter. Sitter: Chloé Hayden[/caption] Speculation about who will be awarded the coveted Archibald Prize — and, more often than not, the Archibald winner itself — usually causes much-heated debate. From 2018's five-time Archibald finalist Yvette Coppersmith's first win to Tony Costa's 2019 victory with his painting of fellow artist Lindy Lee — the first portrait of an Asian Australian to pick up the prize — it's hard a prize to pick. All that's really assured is that it'll be a portrait of a person by an Australian-based artist. In 2020, Vincent Namatjira's portrait of Adam Goodes did the honours, and also marked the first time the award has gone to an Indigenous artist. In 2021, Peter Wegner's portrait of fellow artist Guy Warren nabbed the gong. In 2022, it was Blak Douglas' portrait of artist Karla Dickens in the Lismore floods that came out on top, while 2023's accolade went to Julia Gutman for a portrait of Montaigne. Whoever earns the nod for 2024's Archibald, there's still another award up for grabs afterwards. If you don't agree with the judges, you can cast your own vote for People's Choice, which will be announced on Thursday, August 8. [caption id="attachment_959477" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Archibald Prize 2024 finalist, Angus McDonald 'Professor Marcia Langton AO', oil on canvas, 154.5 x 271.5 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter. Sitter: Marcia Langton[/caption] Archibald Prize 2024 Dates: Saturday, June 8–Sunday, September 8, 2024 — Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney, NSW Friday, September 20–Sunday, November 17, 2024 — Orange Regional Gallery Saturday, November 30, 2024–Sunday, January 26, 2025 — Ngununggula, Southern Highlands Regional Gallery Friday, February 7–Sunday, April 6, 2025 — Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre Thursday, April 24–Sunday, June 15, 2025 — Araluen Arts Centre, Northern Territory Friday, July 4–Sunday, August 31, 2025 — Lismore Regional Gallery [caption id="attachment_959478" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Archibald Prize 2024 finalist, Drew Bickford 'Direct-to-video', oil on canvas, 152 x 101.7 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter. Sitter: Soda Jerk[/caption] The winner of 2024's Archibald, Wynne and Sulman prizes will be announced on Friday, June 7 at 12pm — check back here then. If you can't make it to any of the above exhibition dates, you can check out the award winners and finalists of the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman prizes on the Art Gallery of NSW website. Top image: Winner Packing Room Prize 2024, Matt Adnate 'Rhythms of heritage', spray paint and synthetic polymer paint on linen, 220 x 188.5 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter . Sitter: Baker Boy.
First, RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under sashayed its way Down Under. Now, the series that's been known as Drag Race Down Under since RuPaul handed over hosting duties to Michelle Visage for season four is sharing its talents with the world. Or, to be more accurate, Drag Race Down Under vs The World is welcoming queens from around the globe to compete against Drag Race Down Under favourites. Stan has announced that Drag Race Down Under vs The World is on its way — although there's no exact release date as yet. The streaming platform has also revealed that Visage, who has been involved in the Drag Race world as a judge since the third season of the OG RuPaul's Drag Race, is hosting. PLus, Rhys Nicholson is back on the judging panel, joined by season four's winner Lazy Susan. Whenever it hits, there'll be eight hour-long episodes of Drag Race Down Under vs The World, all pitting Down Under competitors from the four seasons so far of Drag Race Down Under against contenders from beyond Australia and New Zealand's shores. Viewers will also be tuning in for a show that's following in the footsteps of other Drag Race spinoffs such as UK vs The World and Canada vs The World. The drag queens at the centre of the series haven't yet been announced, either, and neither has the lineup of guest judges. "After four incredible seasons of Drag Race Down Under, we're delighted to bring back our Aussie drag fan-favourites and unleash them onto the world stage," said Michael Healy, Nine Entertainment's Executive Director, Entertainment Content Commissioning. "With a formidable and familiar panel, and the reigning queen Lazy Susan joining the esteemed judges' desk, Drag Race Down Under vs The World will showcase the extraordinary talent we have in Australia and give local audiences a front-row seat to watch our queens shine globally." Drag Race initially made the leap Down Under in 2021 — and if you've been watching since, it's time to start guessing which past queens will be making a comeback for Drag Race Down Under vs The World. Of course, there's no trailer yet for Drag Race Down Under vs The World, but check out clips from past seasons of Drag Race Down Under below: Drag Race Down Under vs The World doesn't yet have a release date, but will stream via Stan and TVNZ when it returns — we'll update you with an exact date when one is announced.
While Australia pushes back the prospect of a high-speed rail (presumably for infinity), Elon Musk has been doing his usual incredible genius thing and has come up with his own high-speed transport system. Although it's not a train — it's a large, human-fitting pneumatic tube. And it looks like it's about to become a reality. After first proposing the high-speed, compressed air-powered Hyperloop back in 2012 and establishing a headquarters in March last year, the Tesla, PayPal and Zip2 cofounder has now announced his plans to start erecting a five-mile test track in California. Their building company, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, has filed for construction permits in the Quay Valley. And if all goes to plan, the Hyperloop could be taking passengers as early as 2018. That means 2018 could officially be the future. Described by Musk as a “cross between a Concorde and a railgun and an air hockey table,” the proposed Hyperloop system would consist of a long route of elevated vacuum-sealed steel tubes, through which pressurised capsules ride cushions of air at speeds of up to 1220km/h. Just like Futurama. Designed to transport both freight and brave human passengers, Musk’s first proposed route would run from LA to San Francisco, cutting the roughly six and a half-hour drive time to just 35 minutes. If you think that this idea sounds awesome, then you’re right — it’s straight-up awesome. There are however still a few small details to work out. Despite Musk’s initial assertions that the project would cost a ‘mere’ US$6 billion to complete, several economists have put the price tag closer to ten times that, if not more. There’s also the possibility that people might be a little reluctant to seal themselves inside a windowless metal pod travelling at breakneck speeds through the desert — although if the proposed US$20 ticket price holds true, it may be a preferable alternative to flying. We're sure anyone who's taken a delayed flight from Melbourne to Sydney lately will most probably agree. Via TechCrunch. By Tom Clift and Lauren Vadnjal.
Each year on January 26 triple j put a mortgage on Australia's airwaves, pumping out the best 100 tracks from the previous year as voted by their listeners in the world's largest annual music poll. The station is one of the only non-commercial national youth radio networks anywhere in the world, and places a real focus on uncovering and supporting the best Australian talent, providing a soundtrack to many a misspent youth in the process. So it was with great excitement that listeners awaited results in triple j's inaugural Hottest 100 Australian Records of All Time this past weekend. The results provided us with some interesting factoids, and after the 47,000 votes were counted, the top gong went to Powderfinger's Odyssey Number 5. At the time of its release in 2001, the album sold more than 500,000 copies and spent almost two years weeks on the ARIA Charts, winning six ARIAs in 2001, including Album of the Year and Single of the Year for 'My Happiness'. Our personal picks for the Top Ten at Concrete Playground HQ are: 1. Since I Left You – The Avalanches 2. Frogstomp – Silverchair 3. Crowded House – Crowded House 4. Back In Black – AC/DC 5. Kick – INXS 6. Unit – Regurgitator 7. 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 – Midnight Oil 8. Lovers – The Sleepy Jackson 9. In Ghost Colours – Cut Copy 10. Human Frailty – Hunters & Collectors The full Hottest 100 Australian Albums of All Time list is as follows: 1. Odyssey Number 5 – Powderfinger 2. Frogstomp – Silverchair 3. Back In Black – AC/DC 4. The Living End – The Living End 5. Kick – INXS 6. Internationalist – Powderfinger 7. Apocalypso – The Presets 8. Wolfmother – Wolfmother 9. Since I Left You – The Avalanches 10. Unit – Regurgitator 11. Like Drawing Blood – Gotye 12. Guide to Better Living – Grinspoon 13. Crowded House – Crowded House 14. Vulture Street – Powderfinger 15. Slightly Odway – Jebediah 16. The Hard Road – Hilltop Hoods 17. Eternal Nightcap – The Whitlams 18. Woodface – Crowded House 19. Innerspeaker – Tame Impala 20. Conditions – The Temper Trap 21. 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 – Midnight Oil 22. Diorama – Silverchair 23. The Calling – Hilltop Hoods 24. Sunrise Over Sea – The John Butler Trio 25. Get Born – Jet 26. Hourly, Daily – You Am I 27. Neon Ballroom – Silverchair 28. The Cat Empire – The Cat Empire 29. The Sound of White – Missy Higgins 30. Themata – Karnivool 31. Down the Way – Angus & Julia Stone 32. Universes – Birds of Tokyo 33. Diesel and Dust – Midnight Oil 34. Memories & Dust – Josh Pyke 35. Hi Fi Way – You Am I 36. In Ghost Colours – Cut Copy 37. Highly Evolved – The Vines 38. A Book Like This – Angus & Julia Stone 39. Birds of Tokyo – Birds of Tokyo 40. Echolalia – Something for Kate 41. Double Allergic – Powderfinger 42. East – Cold Chisel 43. Freak Show – Silverchair 44. Tu-Plang – Regurgitator 45. Sound Awake – Karnivool 46. Walking On A Dream – Empire Of The Sun 47. Black Fingernails, Red Wine – Eskimo Joe 48. Ivy and the Big Apples – Spiderbait 49. Whispering Jack – John Farnham 50. The New Normal – Cog 51. I Believe You Liar – Washington 52. Murder Ballads – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds 53. Three – The John Butler Trio 54. Tea & Sympathy – Bernard Fanning 55. Blue Sky Mining – Midnight Oil 56. Bliss Release – Cloud Control 57. The Honeymoon Is Over – The Cruel Sea 58. New Detention – Grinspoon 59. As Day Follows Night – Sarah Blasko 60. We Are Born – Sia 61. Hold Your Colour – Pendulum 62. Cruel Guards – The Panics 63. Grand National – The John Butler Trio 64. Polyserena – George 65. Cold Chisel – Cold Chisel 66. Running on Air – Bliss N Eso 67. Flying Colours – Bliss N Eso 68. The Experiment – Art vs. Science 69. Gossip – Paul Kelly and The Coloured Girls 70. Young Modern – Silverchair 71. Beams – The Presets 72. Beautiful Sharks – Something For Kate 73. Highway To Hell – AC/DC 74. The Overture & The Underscore – Sarah Blasko 75. Living In The 70s – Skyhooks 76. Human Frailty – Hunters & Collectors 77. Immersion – Pendulum 78. Lovers – The Sleepy Jackson 79. Gravity Won't Get You High – The Grates 80. (I'm) Stranded – The Saints 81. Feeler – Pete Murray 82. Up All Night – The Waifs 83. Wonder – Lisa Mitchell 84. 16 Lovers Lane – The Go-Betweens 85. State Of The Art – Hilltop Hoods 86. This Is The Warning – Dead Letter Circus 87. A Song Is A City – Eskimo Joe 88. Imago – The Butterfly Effect 89. Pnau – Pnau 90. The Long Now – Children Collide 91. Gilgamesh – Gypsy & The Cat 92. A Man's Not A Camel – Frenzal Rhomb 93. Moo, You Bloody Choir – Augie March 94. Everything Is True – Paul Dempsey 95. Stoneage Romeos – Hoodoo Gurus 96. Paging Mr. Strike – Machine Gun Fellatio 97. Begins Here – The Butterfly Effect 98. The Boatman's Call – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds 99. Thrills, Kills & Sunday Pills – Grinspoon 100. Two Shoes – The Cat Empire https://youtube.com/watch?v=8fBbKtq_Li8
Facts, facts and nothing but facts: at Antenna Documentary Film Festival, that's what's on the agenda. Since 2011, the Sydney fest has been bringing the best and brightest in factual filmmaking to the city's screens, with 2024's just-announced program marking a big return. In 2022, the event held two festivals in the same year. Then, in 2023, it took a well-deserved break, preparing for this year's 52-title lineup. Opening the 11-day fest, which runs from Friday, February 9–Monday, February 19 in 2024: The Gullspång Miracle, which won an award at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival, and focuses on a family unexpectedly brought back together via the purchase of an apartment. If you need an example to demonstrate how fact is always stranger and wilder than fiction, Antenna is kicking off with exactly that. While the bulk of the event's screenings will take place at Dendy Newtown and the Ritz in Randwick, the festival is making a trip to the Sydney Opera House for another of 2024's big standouts. Ryuichi Sakamoto|Opus covers the final recorded concert by the late, great The Revenant composer, who passed away in March 2023, and will screen in Antenna's closing slot. No stranger to Werner Herzog's docos, the fest also boasts the German filmmaker's Theatre of Thought on its lineup. This time, the Into the Inferno, Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds and The Fire Within: A Requiem for Katia and Maurice Krafft director explores the human brain. Still among the big-name helmers, Antenna will screen Wang Bing's Youth (Spring), Claire Simon's Our Body and Alex Gibney's In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon, with the latter joining the Oscar-winning director's resume alongside everything from Taxi to the Dark Side and We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks to The Armstrong Lie and Going Clear: Scientology & the Prison of Belief. Other on-screen highlights include the Oscar-shortlisted 20 Days in Mariupol, with journalists Mystlav Chernov, Vasilisa Stepanenko and Evgeniy Maloletka in the Ukrainian city immediately after Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation"; Thank You Very Much, about comedian Andy Kaufman; and A Still Small Voice, hailing from Midnight Family director Luke Lorentzen and following a chaplain-in-training at New York City's Mount Sinai Hospital. There's also Samsara, which aims to take the audience through the Buddhist concept of birth, life, death and rebirth; Knit's Island, which is shot entirely in the DayZ video game (and from 963 hours spent in it); and Sundance-winner Kokomo City, which is also on the 2024 Mardi Gras Film Festival lineup. Plus, John Wilson from HBO TV show How to with John Wilson is coming to Antenna in-person to present a selection of films that proved instrumental in shaping his work. In 2023, he did the same at New York's Anthology Film Archives, with Sydney scoring a version of the same series, as well as a masterclass about his approach. Antenna's DocTalk day of chats is also back, which is where Wilson will get chatting. Heading to the State Library of NSW on Monday, February 12 for a day of discussion about the documentary form — spanning covering Indigenous topics, ways of viewing culture and sound design for docos. Antenna Documentary Film Festival 2024 runs from Friday, February 9–Monday, February 19 at Dendy Newtown, the Ritz in Randwick, State Library of NSW and Sydney Opera House. For more information and to buy tickets, head to the festival's website.
It's the country responsible for everything from A Trip to the Moon and The 400 Blows to Amelie and Portrait of a Lady on Fire — and, each year, Australia celebrates accordingly. The largest of the nation's annual cultural cinema showcases, the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival has been highlighting the latest and greatest in French flicks for 31 years now. And, after initially kicking off in March, then shutting down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it's returning in July — to charge forth in 2020 as it always has. For movie buffs around the country, that means a heap of new French flicks, all as part of the fest's revived season from Tuesday, July 14. Start with opening night's suitably movie-obsessed La Belle Epoque, then dive into Oscar-nominated dramas, the latest work from top directors and a stellar exploration of heading into space. If you're feeling a little spoiled for choice, that's where we come in. Grab a glass of wine and a cheese platter, then nab a ticket to one of our top ten picks of the fest — and say 'oui' to a very French night at the movies. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDaZdj66Nls ZOMBI CHILD After making one of the best films of the past few years — 2016's mesmerising and provocative Nocturama — writer/director Bertrand Bonello is back with another instant standout. Don't be fooled by Zombi Child's name — this isn't your usual undead thriller. Instead, the film weaves together two tales. Firstly, in the 60s, Haitian man Clairvius Narcisse (Mackenson Bijou) is turned into a zombie through a vodou ritual. That part of Zombi Child is actually based on real-life details. Later, in the present day, Parisian boarding school student Fanny (Louise Labèque) befriends Haitian student Mélissa (Wislanda Louimat), with the latter's cultural background proving of particular interest. Bonello's ability to challenge, confront complex themes and topics, and create an atmospheric, ambiguous piece of art remains in this folklore-infused colonial critique, as does his winning ways with moody imagery, an ethereal vibe and pitch-perfect soundtrack choices. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHMH-vrtnTM PROXIMA Even astronauts have to deal with work-life balance. Indeed, that seemingly elusive concept comes into sharp focus in Proxima; however Sarah's (Eva Green) situation is a little different to most folks'. A single mother to Stella (Zélie Boulant-Lemesle), she's in training for year-long space mission 'Proxima' — an already complicated task that's made all the more so by her guilt over what it means for her daughter. A space-related saga with a firmly female mindset, this is the latest film by Mustang co-writer Alice Winocour, who filmed the feature on location inside the European Space Agency. Co-starring Matt Dillon, Toni Erdmann's Sandra Hüller and real-life French astronaut Thomas Pesquet, Proxima benefits from its formidable leading lady, too. From Casino Royale to Penny Dreadful, Green makes an impact on-screen like few other actors. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqs6KHAIfFw LES MISERABLES Ladj Ly's Oscar-nominated crime-thriller takes its name from a very obvious source, and its Montfermeil setting and exploration of class clashes as well. In the process, it openly invites comparisons to Victor Hugo's famous, much-adapted work, all while twisting its various components into its own compelling and confronting piece of cinema. Taking to the banlieues of Paris, Les Misérables spends its time flitting between cops, kids and gangs, as tensions between all three reach boiling point — over the usual prejudices, long-held beefs, stolen lions, a wrongful shooting and some highly sought-after drone footage. Unrelentingly terse, deftly choreographed and unafraid to filter real-world unrest through every frame, it's not always subtle; however, given the complicated terrain that it traverses, Ly's film needn't be. What it occasionally lacks in nuance, it feverishly makes up for both emotional and visceral power. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1EtAq-34lA THE TRANSLATORS One book. Nine international language experts. A leak, a ransom and one big mystery. That's the nuts and bolts of The Translators, which twists the world's current crime fiction obsession in a clever direction. Assembled to work on the final novel in a best-selling French trilogy that's been compared to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo — adapting it into English, Danish, Chinese, Spanish, Russian, Italian, Greek, Portuguese and German — a team of translators is placed on lockdown. Alas, that doesn't stop the manuscript's first ten pages from somehow getting out. Whodunnits have been increasingly in big-screen popularity of late (see: Murder on the Orient Express and Knives Out, both of which proved such huge box office hits that they're getting sequels), with this film starring Olga Kurylenko (The Man Who Killed Don Quixote), Alex Lawther (The End of the F***ing World), Riccardo Scamarcio (John Wick: Chapter 2) and Sidse Babett Knudsen (Westworld) adding another to the fold thanks to Populaire writer/director Régis Roinsard. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUlYAWVsgB4 OH MERCY! Towards the end of this year, when No Time to Die finally releases after its coronavirus-inspired delay, French actor Léa Seydoux will return to the Bond franchise. She's also part of another highly anticipated new 2020 movie, aka Wes Anderson's The French Dispatch — but first, she's dabbling with a murder-mystery in Oh Mercy! In fact, her character Claude is one of the main suspects after an elderly woman is killed. It's a brutal case in the northern French city of Roubaix, and police station captain Yakoub Daoud (this year's Cesar Award-winner Roschdy Zem) is determined to get to the bottom of it. Inspired by a 2008 television documentary, this true-crime drama boasts a stellar cast, and also marks the latest feature by Jimmy P, My Golden Days and Ismael's Ghosts filmmaker Arnaud Desplechin. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DZF8OyN_7A THE EXTRAORDINARY Inspired by not only a real-life figure, but also the reality for many autistic youth and their families in France, it's easy to see why The Intouchables' Olivier Nakache and Éric Toledano were moved to make The Extraordinary. Drawn from the story of Stéphane Benhamou — who is renamed Bruno here, and played by the great Vincent Cassel — it explores his efforts to run an unofficial Parisian shelter to care for kids that the state-run system won't take. In a sensitive and heartfelt drama that weaves between two specific cases, also charts the government's investigation into Bruno's informal facility and makes plain the general struggle to stay running, the passion that the directors have for this tale always shines through. Indeed, there's no missing the point that the film makes about the need for better treatment for those in need. That said, this situation earns its sometimes heavy-handed on-screen treatment, and both Cassel and his co-star Reda Kateb (as a colleague who runs a similar space) put in nuanced and affecting performances. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCKX-2QY2kM ROOM 212 It not only stars Chiara Mastroianni, daughter of The Truth and Farewell to the Night's Catherine Deneuve, but it earned her the Un Certain Regard Prize for Best Actress at last year's Cannes Film Festival. Like many a French comedy, it ponders infidelity and a midlife crisis. And, in news of particular interest to fans of 2018's sublimely melancholy Sorry Angel, it's the latest film by writer/director Christophe Honoré. Yes, all of the above apply to Room 212, and even one would make this movie worth watching. Story-wise, it follows the middle-aged Maria (Mastroianni) as she's forced to reassess her marriage, sift through her feelings about love and confront her many affairs — including via A Christmas Carol-style ghostly exchanges with all the men that have been in her life — while staying in the hotel suite that gives the feature its title. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pACv7L-d3Is ONLY THE ANIMALS Stepping into the thriller realm, Only the Animals draws upon a familiar setup: a mysterious murder. But, even with its also well-worn small-town setting — an isolated, mountainous locale in the thick of winter, in fact — the latest film by veteran director Dominik Moll has more than a few compelling tricks up its sleeves. Disappearing during a snowstorm, the unhappy Évelyne Ducat (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi) is the unfortunate victim. Also connected to her demise are Alice (Laure Calamy) and her husband Michel (Custody's Denis Ménochet), who run a farm near where she lives; fellow farmer Joseph (Damien Bonnard); and Évelyne's lover Marion (Nadia Tereszkiewicz). Cycling between their perspectives, and serving up suitably complex performances in the process, Only the Animals teases out its thorny, puzzle-like narrative with precision. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vinYBdOoK8 EDMOND Even if you don't think you know anything about Cyrano de Bergerac, you probably do. Penned back in 1897, the French play fictionalises the broad story of the eponymous real-life figure — and it has been brought to the screen many times in various shapes and guises, including as the 80s Steve Martin-starring comedy Roxanne, 90s rom-com The Truth About Cats and Dogs, and, in the past few years, Netflix flicks Sierra Burgess Is a Loser and The Half of It. Now, Edmond explores the tale behind the famous and immensely popular drama, focusing on playwright Edmond Rostand (Thomas Solivérès). It's a movie about a writer struggling to jot down words, desperate for a career-changing hit and finding inspiration a lot closer to home than he expected — that is, a film with a very familiar premise — but the end product proves imaginative and entertaining. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TiEqmHZ2UM FAREWELL TO THE NIGHT In Hirokazu Kore-eda's The Truth, Catherine Deneuve reminded audiences just why she's been such a star — and a titan of French filmmaking — for decades, not that anyone should need the nudge. She's similarly superb in Farewell to the Night, her latest collaboration with director André Téchiné, although she's in distinctively different thematic and narrative territory. Playing a grandmother who runs a cherry farm and horse-riding school, she's forced to reckon with an unexpected revelation. When Muriel's (Deneuve) beloved grandson Alex (Kacey Mottet Klein) comes to stay, it's his last stop before following his girlfriend Lila (Oulaya Amamra) to Syria, where the newly radicalised teen intends to join ISIS. Understandably, a weighty, intimate drama about personal ties and political turmoil results. The Alliance Française French Film Festival tours Australia from Tuesday, July 14–Tuesday, August 4, screening at Sydney's Chauvel Cinema, Palace Norton Street, Palace Verona, Palace Central and Hayden Orpheum Picture Palace; Brisbane's Palace Barracks and Palace James Street; and Perth's Palace Raine Square, Luna on SX and Windsor Cinema. For more information and to buy tickets, visit the AFFFF website.
It's been a big year of news coming out of Four Pillars. Earlier this year, the Yarra Valley gin distillery announced the sale of 50 percent of its business to beer giant Lion. Now, the crew is heading north, and setting up its first permanent spot in Sydney. Part distillery, part workshop, part small bar and part retail space, the Four Pillars Gin and Drinks Lab is set to open in early 2020 inside a 1930s warehouse on Crown Street (next to APC and across the road from Bartolo and Bills). Headed up by James Irvine, Four Pillars' creative director of drinks, the space will be the new home for Eileen: the distillery's 70-litre still. This means small batches of gin will be made on site — and you might even be able to get in on the action. Irvine is hoping to host masterclasses, corporate events, tastings and gin gatherings in the space, with a small bar licence (pending approval), meaning he'll be whipping up tasty Four Pillars-based cocktails for Sydney's gin lovers a few nights a week. [caption id="attachment_741244" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Matt Jones, Stu Gregor, James Irvine and Cam Mackenzie by Steven Woodburn.[/caption] If all of that isn't enough to excite you, the lab will also be a spot to pick up all of Four Pillars' made-from-gin products (we're talking marmalade, Gin Pig salami and Hunted & Gathered chocolate), merchandise, books, bar kits and, of course, the bloody good limited release Bloody Shiraz Gin. The Four Pillars Gin and Drinks Lab is set to open at 410 Crown Street, Surry Hills, sometime in early 2020 — we'll keep you posted when we get an exact date. Top image: Four Pillars in Healesville, Victoria.
