Long before Photoshop became widely available photo hoaxes were much more noteworthy and had larger repercussions for contriving fake events. Today we are accustomed to seeing completely unrealistic and out-of-this-world scenes on photographic prints, but in bygone days society was a little more innocent. Whether used as propaganda in war times, t0 invent or perpetuate superstitions, to improve appearances, or to make ordinary events appear extraordinary, photo hoaxes have historically changed our perceptions, beliefs and even our actions. Here are ten of the most famous photo hoaxes (appropriately from The Museum of Hoaxes) throughout history. Portrait of a Photographer as a Drowned Man Hippolyte Bayard was angered by the lack of attention and recognition given to his independently developed process of direct positive printing, which was instead focused on his rival Louis Daguerre. In the 1830s during the race to perfect the printing process, Bayard was not remembered as the first to invent photography, yet he is known as the first to fake a photograph. To demonstrate his frustration, Bayard took a faux photo of himself as a suicide victim alongside a note reprimanding those who supported Daguerre as the discoverer of photography rather than himself. President Lincoln Due to Abraham Lincoln's lack of 'heroic-style' portraits, an amateur entrepreneur created the photo of Lincoln on the left by combining two other photographs. By cutting out Lincoln's head from a picture by Matthew Brady and pasting it onto an image of southern leader John Calhoun, this widespread image of a bold President Lincoln was created. The Cottingley Fairies Cousins Frances Griffith and Elsie Wright were playing in the garden of Elsie's Cottingley village home when a group of frolicking fairies seemingly decided to join in on their fun. The series of photos taken by the young girls captured the world's attention, providing 'proof' to many spiritualists that supernatural creatures really did exist. Little did the world know (until 1980) that the fairies were in fact only cardboard cutouts drawn by Elsie inspired by the book Princess Mary's Gift Book. Trotsky Vanishes Leon Trotsky, the second in command to Lenin in Soviet Russia during the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, was deported and eventually assassinated in later years after demonstrating open dissent towards Stalin's policies. This photo was taken in 1920, with the original depicting Vladimir Lenin atop a platform speaking to troops at Sverdlov Square and both Trotsky and Kamenev standing beside him on his left side. This picture is one of the most famous images in the many falsified photos using paint, razor and airbrushes as part of Stalin's attempt to eliminate all traces of the 'traitor' Trotsky. Baby Hitler In the 1930s, a photo supposedly showing a baby Adolf Hitler circulated throughout England and America. The menacing scowl upon the baby's face and greasy mop of hair covering its head was distributed by Acme Newspictures Inc. and appeared in a large number of newspapers and magazines. The photo actually portrayed a young american boy, John May Warren, whose cute and and bubbly features had been manipulated to make him look more sinister. The origin of the hoax picture has been traced back to Austria, Hitler's home country, yet the identity of the forger remains unknown. Lung-powered Flying Machine One of the most successful and widespread April Fools jokes in history, this photo was run in the Berliner Illustrierte Zeitung on April 1, 1934 presenting a flying machine run by the breath from a man's lung. Many immediately thought the image to be true and International News Photo distributed the image of this 'new invention' to its American subscribers. This caused the image to go viral, with it even making it into the New York Times. The Surgeon's Photo A few months after the initial media hype following a sighting of an 'enormous monster' by a couple in the Loch Ness, a highly respected British surgeon, Colonel Robert Wilson, came forward with a picture showing a serpent rising out of the water. By far the most famous image of the 'Loch Ness Monster', this photo, named 'The Surgeon's Photo' (due to Wilson's wish to remain anonymous) was debunked in 1994, 60 years after the photo's initial release. 90 year-old Christian Spurling, on the eve of his death, revealed his role in the hoax. At his stepfather's wishes he had created a toy submarine with a sea-serpent head to appear in a photograph, which Colonel Wilson would be the frontman for. The Brown Lady of Raynham By far one of the most famous ghost pictures, the Brown Lady supposedly haunted the walls of Raynham Hall in Norfolk, England. The image was taken by two photographers for Country Life magazine, who had been setting up their cameras and apparently saw an unearthly figure floating down the stairs and subsequently snapped a photo. The appearance of the ghost has later been attributed to camera vibration, light entering the lens from the window or double exposure, yet it is unknown whether the result was produced on purpose or was accidental. The Bluff Creek Bigfoot This image represents frame 352 of Patterson and Gimlin's infamous short film about Bigfoot set in Northern California. The pair set out out to make a documentary on horseback about the beast and conveniently managed to capture footage of a female 'Bigfoot' strolling along the river bank. Skeptics argue that this image is obviously just a figure in an ape suit, yet believers counter that costumes and effects were not sophisticated enough in 1967 to create such a believable image. The quality of the film is not good enough to conclusively prove or deny the existence of the beast, so feel free to make up your own mind on the authenticity of the image. The Foetal Footprint One of the more recent photo hoaxes, this image showing the outline of the foot of a baby in utero pressing against a pregnant mother's belly has gained widespread prominence on the internet and elsewhere. Many have been fooled by this miracle photo, but in actual fact, the abdominal wall is too thick and muscular for a foetal foot to be seen so clearly, and the foot itself is also unusually large.
Made out of sponge cake, chocolate coating and desiccated coconut, the humble lamington is a jewel of a sweet treat. Australian childhoods aren't complete without them, and neither are trips to the bakery any old time. But Sydney-born dessert chain Tokyo Lamington likes to mix up the classic cake, making a great thing even better by serving it up in an array of inventive flavours. And, in a first, the brand is also spreading the lamington love by releasing its own custom sneakers as well. To eat, Tokyo Lamington's wares have come in varieties such as Ferrero Rocher, Neapolitan (yes, taking inspiration from the ice cream combo), yuzu meringue, vegan red velvet, black sesame and more. To wear, the brand's shoes also reimagine the dessert's usual setup — so you'll see cream and brown colours like you do on OG lamingtons, and also blue and pink hues as well. The shoes: Nike Dunk Lows, which the artists at Customs Den are using as a canvas. Tokyo Lamington hasn't formed a partnership with Nike, but has purchased 40 pairs, then tasked Customs Den with working their magic on them. Yes, the range is that limited. As a result, these kicks don't come cheap. If you love lamingtons, Tokyo Lamington or both so much that you need a pair of sneakers to show it, they'll set you back $450. At that price, you might want to display them rather than wear them — calling all sneakerheads as well as lamington fiends, obviously. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tokyo Lamington (@tokyolamington) Every pair of Tokyo Lamington x Customs Den shoes is individually handcrafted, and bespoke for each order — so your kicks won't just be one in 40, but unique as well. When you woke up this morning, you likely had no idea that lamington-inspired footwear exists. Now, you're probably keen on new shoes and, understandably, craving a cake. [caption id="attachment_774463" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tokyo Lamington x Koko Black collaboration[/caption] For more information about Tokyo Lamington's sneakers, or to buy a pair, hit up the chain's website.
How many times have you booked a relaxing holiday away, only to find yourself unable to disconnect from your phone and not actually relaxed at all? Well, pause that infinite scroll and make your next escape an off-the-grid adventure. by hitting up one of the best tiny cabins in Australia. A stay at one of these remote cabins in Australia will leave you no choice but to chuck your phone in your bag and forget about it till you're back in mobile range, utterly relaxed and refreshed. We're doing this for your own good. From pristine beaches and bountiful wine regions to alpine hideaways and bustling country towns, there are a wealth of tiny cabins in Australia to explore at any time of year. Recommended reads: The Best Glamping Sites in Australia The Best Dog Friendly Accommodations in Australia [caption id="attachment_720725" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Riparide[/caption] VICTORIA Tea Tree Hill Beach Shack was created with all the important creature comforts in mind — it's a stone's throw from the beach, plus it has an indoor (and outdoor) fireplace and an outdoor bath. Set in stunning Venus Bay, this Victorian tiny cabin is surrounded by stellar secluded beaches and coastal landscapes but also features luxurious amenities and top-quality furnishings to lounge on. It's perfect for those who want to ensconce themselves in the worlds of fishing, stand-up paddleboarding and staring at a fire contemplating life. Plus, Wilsons Prom is just an hour or so away, so you can easily head out for a day trip. And upon your return, you can snuggle in beside the fire with a complimentary whisky or port in hand. [caption id="attachment_720717" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Airbnb[/caption] NORTHERN TERRITORY Thirty kilometres from Alice Springs, Ooraminna Station Homestead is about as far off the beaten track as they come. Set on 600 acres of red Aussie outback, the small homestead lies between the MacDonnell Ranges and the Simpson Desert and has four cabins available to rent — the Stone Cottage, the Timber Cabin, the Tin Cabin and the Log Cabin. Bushwalks, bird watching and camping under the stars are optional extras, but very much encouraged. Wander around the station and you'll come across an old movie set, where you can pretend you're in your own spaghetti western, a billabong, cattle and plenty of native wildlife. And if you're worried about getting lost during your stay, in lieu of Google Maps, there's resident dog Scruffy to guide you through your off-the-grid exploring. NEW SOUTH WALES Essentially a very, very fancy caravan, the stunning JR's Ecohut holds two people and everything you and your travel buddy will need for a weekend in luxurious seclusion — including jaw-dropping 360-degree views of the Kimo valley. Although teeny tiny, the space is well-designed and highly functional, set with a bed, dedicated workspace, kitchen, heating as well as an indoor fireplace. You can sleep snug under the stars, overlooking the 7000 acre Kimo farm and Murrambidgee river flats. Plus, brekkie is included. Just look at it, there's no doubt it is one of the best tiny homes in Australia. [caption id="attachment_720720" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Airbnb[/caption] QUEENSLAND Known for its glorious sun and lush rainforests, Queensland and its northern parts are well worth the trip, and this tiny Rainforest Creek Cabin makes it even more so. Smack bang in the middle of a rainforest, with birds singing at you and a stream bubbling nearby, it's the type of place where you'll close your eyes and think you're on a yoga retreat in Bali. There's no internet, no reception and no screens in sight at this tiny cabin in Queensland — just a bed, kitchenette, a deck with glorious views and an outdoor shower and toilet. So, you're getting back to basics in the Australian tiny home set among some lush tropical surrounds. Located just a six-minute drive from the artistic little town of Maleny, with a few restaurants, coffee shops and galleries to poke your head into, it's a great spot for those wanting the best of both worlds. TASMANIA If it's rustic, seaside vibes you're after, Tasmania should be at the top of your list. Worth crossing rough seas for, Swansea is a town with under 900 residents and a seriously chill coastal vibe. And it's in this little town where you'll find the quaint Scarecrow Cottage. Built in the 19th century, this tiny cabin in Tasmania features a cosy indoor fireplace and it's completely wifi-less. Plus, you get complimentary wine and chocolates upon arrival. What's more, if you can pull yourself away from the fireplace, it's just a casual five-minute stroll to Swansea's shops and historic colonial buildings. If you're up for a hike, Freycinet National Park is just a short drive away, too. Top image: JR's Ecohut.
As you read this, Kiwi charity Live More Awesome are getting their hands dirty, literally, constructing the world's biggest waterslide. This 650m long monster is the length of two Sky Towers and is located just 30 minutes from Auckland, New Zealand. The aim of the event is to raise funds and increase awareness for depression, as the not-for-profit charity is all about combatting mental illness through life changes, not just drugs. D-day is set for the 23rd and 24th of February and will feature three waterslides (the others will be a more standard 60m and 80m), food, and a shady area to hang out, complete with Kiwi entertainment (courtesy of George FM). Co-founder Jim Hunt says, "The World's Biggest Waterslide is all about pushing boundaries and creating the ultimate summer event. We have some epic entertainment planned for the day and we can't wait to see the reaction on people's faces as they come down the slides, it will be a truly unique experience". According to MentalHealth.org.nz, depression in New Zealand has affected as many as 1 in 5 people within the past year alone. "We're a couple of Kiwi guys who like so many others have really suffered at hands of depression," co-founder Dan Drupsteen says. "It was really tough, but having come out the other side we decided the best way for us to keep depression at bay was to 'Live More Awesome'. We hope this amazing project will encourage others to do the same and we want people to know it's ok to ask for help." Ticket prices start at $46 and are limited to 2000 people. You can contribute to the building of the waterslide through Indiegogo. Check out their progress so far in the video below.
If you're the type of person that loves getting into heated pop-culture debates with friends, then you'll definitely want to get on board with this Kickstarter project. Part card game, part ridiculous debate, the Metagame asks players to consider questions like 'Which feels like first love: Pride and Prejudice or Hungry Hungry Hippos?' and 'Which should be required in schools: Dungeons and Dragons or the Bible?' The game comes with two decks of cards: one set of discussion cards with questions like 'Which will save the world?' or 'Which best represents America?', and one set of culture cards, which feature various works of art and pop culture, like Helvetica, the Rubik's Cube and 'Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)'. There isn't really a set way of playing, but the makers include a few game suggestions and encourage players to invent their own. Most of the suggested games involve players choosing culture cards that best answer the question and debating their choices. The Metagame was created by Local No. 12, a game design collective made up of Eric Zimmerman, Colleen Macklin and John Sharp. While the original Metagame focused on video games, the trio decided to release 'Metagame: The Culture Edition' following numerous requests for music and film versions. The game is still in prototype form, but it's already attracting praise from Filmmaker Magazine and Attract Mode, and the original Metagame was also an official selection of the 2013 IndieCade International Festival of Independent Games. The project has raised over $50,000 on Kickstarter — nearly double their original target of $25,000. Potential backers have the option of donating anything from $1 (which gets you early access to a print-and-play PDF version) to $500 or more (which gets you your own version of the Metagame, where you pick the rules).
In the Melbourne–Sydney rivalry, the Victorian capital beat its New South Wales capital to score the first-ever Australian IKEA Plan and Order Point concept store back in 2022. But the Harbour City isn't too far behind, with the Swedish retailer announcing its second condensed site: in Belrose in the Northern Beaches, and opening this winter. If you believe that IKEA's warehouse-style stores are basically furniture-filled playgrounds for adults, then you'll know their regular sprawling outposts are more than just a shopping space — they're the place where we all go to dream about our ideal homes. Who hasn't wandered through the Nordic brand's showroom setup, felt inspiration strike and suddenly known exactly what you want your house to look like? We all have, and that's often why visiting the chain isn't a short trip. Fancy decking out a specific part of your home, but without also conjuring up plans for every other single room in your house, then picking up three throw cushions, realising you need a new lamp, somehow buying another Billy bookcase and also eating all of the Swedish meatballs? In other words, fancy solving a particular home-design problem without indulging in the full IKEA experience? That's where the brand's Plan and Order Point concept stores come in — a place, as the name suggests, where you can simply plan out what you need, then order it, all while getting advice from IKEA experts (and, yes, without having to wander through the chain's warehouses). IKEA has been rolling out its Plan and Order Point locations around the world for a few years now, finally bringing the idea to Australia last year. Now, the second Aussie version of the concept store — and first Sydney one — will launch on Belrose's HomeCo shopping centre, and focus on the brand's more complex home solutions and products, such as kitchens and wardrobes. Know that you want to give your kitchen a makeover, but daunted by the IKEA options? Desperate to organise your clothes, but looking for some advice about what'd work best for your bedroom? That's the kind of one-on-one service that'll be on offer — after which customers can order whatever they've decided upon while they're still at the Plan and Order Point, and then either get it delivered or pick it up at your chosen IKEA warehouse. "The Plan and Order Point format has opened up new opportunity for IKEA to be exactly where our customers need us to be, and this is a key part of our growth strategy for IKEA in Australia," explains Johanna Gbenplay, IKEA Australia's Market Area Manager. "We already have a strong presence with three IKEA stores in Sydney, but we will now be on the doorstep of the many people of the Northern Beaches area, who we know are avid home furnishers and renovators, but may have not considered IKEA as close or convenient for them previously." "We have learnt valuable lessons from our first opening at Highpoint, Melbourne, and are anticipating an exciting response from existing and new customers when IKEA Belrose arrives in June." This more compact IKEA outlet will only span 215 square metres, but it still gives customers access to the full IKEA range. Keen to order something that isn't a new kitchen or wardrobe? You can also do that here. Although Belrose's new IKEA doesn't open till June — with an exact date still to be revealed — you can keep an eye out for bookings for planning appointments on the IKEA website. IKEA's Belrose Plan and Order Point will open sometime in June at 4–6 Niangala Close, Belrose. Head to the IKEA website for more information and bookings.
If you're after a traditional Italian grocer, look no further than Quattro Deli in Chatswood Chase. The delicatessen sources local and imported specialty items, offering a huge range of cheeses — think Italian gorgonzola, buffalo mozzarella and plenty of washed-rind numbers — and heaps of Italian cured meats, including salami, mortadella and prosciutto. Its impressive selection also extends to olives, antipasti, jams, spreads, fresh pasta and sauces. You can grab desserts aplenty, too, including Italian nougat, biscuits, chocolates and other packaged sweets. If that's not enough, a huge cellar features vinos from Italy, France, South America and Spain, along with Australia and New Zealand. Images: Trent van der Jagt.
Put on your thinking cap and start sleuthing through all of the internet. Converse are hosting a series of amazing A-list gigs in Melbourne, Sydney and New Zealand, and they're hiding tickets where you'll least expect them. So far we know that The Vines — who are all about the freebies lately — and Bloods are playing a free show somewhere in Melbourne on Wednesday, October 22; Remi and Collarbones are hitting up Sydney the following night; and a fresh lineup is heading over to New Zealand soon after. Oh, and we have your first clue. Converse sneakily posted an ad on Seek this morning for a casual "fist pumper". "This temporary, one night only, position is open for a front row fist pumper at a free gig," the ad read. "The successful applicant will show a willingness to party in the front row of the mosh pit ... [They also must] appreciate the epic sounds of bands, The Vines and Bloods". In case you haven't worked it out already, this is your ticket. If you're from Melbourne and maintain any of the above characteristics, we highly recommend applying for this job. They're currently taking "applications" for the position at hey@converse.com.au, but maybe trade in a full cover letter for a few photos of you in the mosh. This is possibly the only time making a resume link to your Facebook photos is a good thing. If you're hanging out for news about Sydney and New Zealand, we can't help you quite yet. When the campaign was launched last month in Europe and the UK there was a big focus placed on spontaneity, so you'll have to be pretty alert. Make your plans soft and let your friends think you're flaky; it'll be worth dropping everything when you're front and centre of a free show rubbing it in their faces.
Whalebridge sits in Circular Quay the shadow of the Sydney Harbour Bridge offering up French cuisine and specialising in seafood. The venue comes from The Sydney Collective, the team behind the Watsons Bay Hotel, The Farm in Byron Bay and The Imperial. It boasts a prestigious head chef, ultra-luxurious menu and unbeatable harbour views. Open in the former Circular Quay digs of longstanding seafood restaurant Sydney Cove Oyster Bar, the harbourfront venue is headed up by Executive Chef Will Elliot who has previously worked across London's St John, Melbourne's Cumulus Inc. and fellow Sydney CBD French bistro, the beloved Restaurant Hubert. "What's exciting about Whalebridge is the opportunity to prepare and plate a menu which is entirely new to Sydney," says Elliot. "These are produce-driven dishes rooted in traditional French technique and the articulation of those flavours." On the menu, you'll find house specialities that celebrate French cooking and fresh local seafood including duck confit ($38) and lobster thermidor (market price). An array of charcuterie and an expansive selection of caviar ($80-320) are on offer to start you off, as are mains like steak or mussel frites ($45-55). There's also an entire range of canned goods reminiscent of popular Sydney eatery Continental Deli. Enhance your meal with a selection of tinned tuna belly, scallops, or white asparagus and leek barigoule to your meal ($10-38). Accompanying the dishes will be a 150-strong wine list pulling from renowned regions in both France and Australia. "I love good produce treated simply, that's why I love French cooking. It has very humble origins, but it's been refined over so many years to bring out the best in something, without masking what made it good in the first place," Elliot continues. Most striking at Whalebridge is the view, with an uninterrupted view of the Sydney Harbour Bridge from the outdoor seating that's calling out to be enjoyed with a glass of French wine and a spread of oysters, scallops and kingfish.
Your daily commute isn't something that normally screams festive cheer — unless you happen to board one of Sydney's most extra buses this month. Eight public buses currently doing the rounds have been decked out top-to-toe in Christmas finery, courtesy of some local primary school kids. Filled to the brim with colourful, handmade decorations, the select buses are cruising around on their usual routes, ready to surprise commuters with a whole lotta Christmas joy. It's an annual Christmas tradition for the city's bus operator State Transit, which each year invites different primary schools to pimp out eight buses — one from each depot — with tinsel, stickers, baubles and other shiny things. The eight buses will be parading their festive looks until December 31 — but since they'll be switching up routes regularly, finding one is a bit of a lucky dip situation. To see whether you'll be travelling on a festive bus on any given day, keep an eye on your go-to real-time travel app, where they'll be signified. If you're using NextThere, you'll spy a party and bus emoji next to the bus number (below). The best-looking bus is always judged by a patient from Sydney Children's Hospital — and this year, five-year-old Kai decided North Sydney depot's bus was the most impressive as it had "lots of tinsel and baubles". The whole thing is very wholesome and quite possibly the nicest thing about catching a bus all year. So if you're catching the bus this week, keep your eye out for one on your commute.
For seven years, Melburnians have inhabited the world's most liveable city. But that reign has come to an end — the Victorian capital has been dethroned by Vienna for the top spot on the The Economist Intelligence Unit's global 2018 Liveability Index, which was announced today. The index ranks 140 cities on stability, healthcare, education, infrastructure, culture and environment, giving each city a rating out of 100. Last year, Vienna (97.4) and Melbourne (97.5) were incredibly close, but this year the Austrian capital has pipped the reigning champions. While none of Melbourne's ratings dropped — its overall ranking actually climbed to 98.4 — Vienna's stability and culture and environment ratings increased, which The Guardian is attributing to downgraded threat's of militant attacks in western Europe and the city's low crime rate. The Economist said, "Although both Melbourne and Vienna have registered improvements in liveability over the last six months, increases in Vienna's ratings, particularly in the stability category, have been enough for the city to overtake Melbourne. While Melbourne dropped, Sydney managed to climb the ranks (huzzah) — coming in at fifth this year, compared to last year's eleventh. Rounding out the top five were Osaka at third and Calgary at fourth.
TIVA combines Sydney's love of luxurious bars and live music into a romantic venue underneath The Charles Grand Brasserie & Bar. Head down Wednesday through Saturday, and you're sure to find a band or a solo artist filling the room with jazz, soul, R&B or folk music until late. Plus, accompanying this roster of live entertainment is a daily program of DJs spinning tunes Monday through Saturday. The venue is reminiscent of many classic lounge bars, boasting subtle lighting, velvet booths and mirrored tables. A palette of navy and black tones pulls the room together, complimented by polished steel and marble finishes, giving it a luxe atmosphere. Once you've found your table or booth, your attention will turn to what you'll pair the night's playlist with. If you've come for a few drinks, there's plenty to choose from. "Tiva is a place you want to settle in to enjoy the music. High-end spirits, elegant cocktails, champagne, and table service with some understated theatre are the ultimate support act to the incredible entertainment planned," says Head of Bars Jonothan Carr (About Time, The Rover, Grandma's Bar). The espresso martini ($24) is elevated by the use of a high-end French press, the single malt whiskey and cognac old fashioned ($24) is served tableside in a decanter, and the Regal Margarita ($24) is complete with smoked paprika and roasted pineapple. As for food, Tiva takes queues from its upstairs sibling, The Charles Grand, serving up a French-inspired array of eats. Highlights include hashbrowns with roasted chicken cream ($10), a wagyu cheeseburger ($30) and crumbed Moreton Bay bug sandwiches ($20) — as well as caviar service ($140), of course. Pulling together champagne, impressive cocktails and French bar snacks with top-notch live music, Tiva is coming to Sydney's most romantic venues list. Head to the bar's website to see the list of performances it has coming up. Appears in: Sydney's Best Underground Bars for 2023
We've said it before and we'll say it again: Nicolas Cage cures all woes. Whether you're having an average 2022 so far, or you're sad that the long weekend is over — or you're in parts of the country that don't get a long weekend mid-June and you're sad about that — watching one of the greatest actors alive make on-screen magic as only he can is always a thrill. Yes, that's true whether he's in an excellent or awful movie, too. Your latest excuse to see Nicolas Cage do his thing comes courtesy of The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, aka a movie that's gotten a fair amount of attention for one huge reason: it stars Cage as Cage. It was first announced back in 2021, then hit Australian cinemas back in April. Now, as a mid-winter gift — and because fast-tracking flicks from cinemas to digital has become the pandemic-era status quo — the film has made the very quick leap to video on demand. That means that you can now spend your next at-home movie night watching Nicolas Cage play Nicolas Cage — and playing a whole lot of different styles of Cage, too. There's serious Cage, comedic Cage, out-there Cage, OTT Cage, short-haired Cage, floppy-haired Cage, slick Cage, gun-toting Cage and every-facial-expression-imaginable Cage. Whichever kind of Cage you can think of, it's accounted for. All your favourite Cage titles also get a nod or mention in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, which sure does love absolutely everything about its leading man. There is a story behind the film's Cage-obsessed premise, of course. The fictionalised Cage is in a career lull, and is thinking about giving up acting, when he accepts an offer to attend a super fan-slash-billionaire's birthday. Getting paid $1 million is just too much to pass up, and he needs the money. But when it turns out that he might now be working for and palling around with one of the most ruthless men on the planet (played by Pedro Pascal, Wonder Woman 1984) — as a couple of intelligence agents (The Afterparty co-stars Tiffany Haddish and Ike Barinholtz) eventually tell him — things get mighty hectic. Also joining Cage playing Cage — not to be confused with his work in Adaptation, where he played two characters — are Sharon Horgan (This Way Up) as his fictional wife and Neil Patrick Harris (The Matrix Resurrections) as his manager. And, Are We Officially Dating? filmmaker Tom Gormican sits in the director's chair, because if there's anything else that this movie also needs, it's the director of a Zac Efron and Michael B Jordan-starring rom-com pivoting to total Cage worship. Yes, we've seen Cage break out of Alcatraz, sing Elvis songs, run around the streets convinced that he's a vampire, let his long hair flap in the wind and swap faces. He's voiced a version of Spider-Man, driven fast cars, fought space ninjas, hunted for his kidnapped truffle pig and stolen babies as well. Staying in his own shoes definitely stands out, though — as Cage himself always does. Check out the trailer for The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent below: The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is available to stream via Google Play, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review.
When a decent drink costs almost $20 and a restaurant main is at least $30, it might seem like $100 can't get you very far in Sydney. But we've set out to show you that you can still enjoy a night out without breaking the bank, thanks to Forage The Rocks. The Rocks is chock-full of lively bars, restaurants and pubs offering exciting deals throughout the month of August. From happy hour tipples to decadent dinners, these are the top venues around the historic precinct where you can take advantage of exclusive specials and discounts that happen even when Forage the Rocks isn't on. Consider your next group hang sorted. Pre-Dinner Aperitifs Start the night off right with happy hour at two of the most elegant venues in The Rocks. Enjoy a drink with views of Sydney Harbour at Bar Lulu, the upstairs bar of Asian fusion restaurant Luna Lu. Every Sunday to Thursday between 3–6pm, you can get a beer for only $10 or wine and cocktails for $15. If you're feeling peckish, check out Le Foote's daily happy hour from 5–6pm, which includes a martini, negroni or sbagliato (with prosecco in it, if you know, you know) for $12, a glass of wine for $7 and the signature fish sandwich for $15. Dinner Once you've whet your appetite, it's time for a hearty meal to accompany your drinks — and we've found two deals under $30. Opt to keep the winter chills at bay with a satisfying beef and Guinness pie at The Mercantile Hotel, which is paired with a pint of Guinness for just $25. Meat lovers should head to The Orient on Friday to tuck into a rump steak with chips and slaw for $26 — get in early, as they are only available until sold out. Wash it down with a cocktail at the pub's terrace bar, Mrs Jones, which will set you back only $15 during happy hour from 5–7pm on Mondays to Wednesdays. Dessert No night out is complete without a sweet treat, so we've compiled two options that come in at less than $20. For a hit of nostalgia and comfort, dig into stacks of fluffy buttermilk pancakes at Sydney establishment Pancakes on The Rocks. Go classic with the Lemon Meringue or Apple Crumble, or indulge in chocolate decadence with the Coco Berry, topped with coconut, cream, chocolate sauce and raspberry coulis. Each option is served with a generous helping of ice cream and costs $15.95. If you're after something more luxe, meander along Kendall Lane to reach Pony Dining. The modern Australian restaurant offers house-made truffles for $4 apiece, which you can pair with David Franz Botrytis semillon or Gundog Estate muscat for $12 a glass. Post-Dinner Drinks and Dancing Now that you're full and fed, it's time to keep the night going strong — and maybe even throw on your dancing shoes. Step back in time when you grab a drink at Sydney's oldest licensed pub. Dating back to 1828, The Fortune of War boasts beer on tap, glasses of wine starting from $9.80 and cocktails for $20, as well as live music from Wednesday–Sunday. Next door, you'll find The Fortune of War Lock Up, which is the venue's newly opened, more refined sibling, serving the same drinks and pub fare with table service in a refurbished police station from the 1800s. You can't go to The Rocks without soaking up a view of the harbour, and what better place to do it than with a cold one in hand on the rooftop of The Glenmore Hotel? The Rocks institution hosts DJs on Saturday night and acoustic sets on Sunday, with daily meal and drinks specials, trivia and live sports during the week. It's beats and bass until the early hours at The Argyle. The versatile venue has been a mainstay of Sydney's nightlife for over 15 years, housing six bars, a courtyard and a nightclub within its heritage digs. There's a $20 cover charge for headline DJs on Friday and an RnB club night on Saturday, or you can drop in during the week to avoid the entry fee. Find more ways to Forage the Rocks at the website. Top image: Kristoffer Paulsen
Most people don't imagine themselves making a career out of voicing Disney villains — but, of course, Jemaine Clement isn't most people. So did he see a Disney villain in his destiny? "If I was honest, I'd probably say yes," the comedian, actor and one half of Flight of the Conchords offers. And, lending his distinctive tones to the singing, scurrying character of Tamatoa in Disney's new film Moana, he has well and truly fulfilled that prophecy. Dwelling deep under the sea in the realm of monsters, Tamatoa is a swift-talking 50-foot crab with a fondness for treasure and a David Bowie-esque musical number in which he somewhat joyfully, somewhat menacingly declares: "I'd rather be shiny". He's also one of the formidable forces standing in the way of Moana's titular heroine (newcomer Auli'i Cravalho) as she explores the ocean to save her island-dwelling people, all with a shapeshifting demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson) reluctantly by her side. Yes, Clement voicing a cheeky character and singing a glam rock track is the stuff that dreams are made of, and with his frequent collaborator and What We Do in the Shadows co-scribe and co-director Taika Waititi taking a first pass at Moana's screenplay — along with former Flight of the Conchords opening act and Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda co-writing the film's original music — it just gets better. With Moana now in Australian cinemas, we spoke with Clement about working on Disney's Polynesian musical, voicing giant characters and channelling his inner Bowie. ON GETTING INVOLVED WITH MOANA Concrete Playground: How did you get involved with Moana? Jemaine Clement: A friend of mine, Taika Waititi, who I work with a lot, was one of the writers. And when he was doing his draft of the film, he told me that Disney, who I've worked with a couple of times before, wanted me to do something in it. It's a Polynesian story and they've gone for a mostly Polynesian cast — and I'm part Maori, so I think it was pretty natural. And I also, I've played a lot of animated villains. So who else would you get? ON PLAYING A LIGHT-FINGERED, SELF-ABSORBED, 50-FOOT CRAB CP: How did you go getting into character for the role of 50-foot crab Tamatoa? JC: Well, I guess I'm not 50 foot — I'm only just approximately six foot, just over. So I had to work on that. It's the second 50-foot character I've played this year. In The BFG, I was also 50-foot. So I guess I must sound pretty big. CP: People are obviously getting that idea from listening to you. JC: "How this big is this guy? He sounds huge." CP: And then they meet you in person, and they realise… JC: "Oh no, he's only about six foot." ON FILLING HIS RESUME WITH ANIMATED VILLAINS CP: You recently played Fleshlumpeater in The BFG — you've got quite the CV when it comes to playing animated villains now. JC: I hope I can get some use out of that. Maybe just telling my son it's bedtime. I'll do the voice. I always was interested in animation, that was the first job I ever wanted to do. When I was five, I remember seeing a thing on The Wonderful World of Disney about the animation process and I wanted to do that as a first job — I aspired to be an animator. And I imagined that I'd do all the parts, you know, like write it, voice it, animate it, — but I haven't gotten to the other two. ON CHANNELLING DAVID BOWIE — AGAIN CP: Between Flight of the Conchords and Moana, your Bowie impression is getting a good workout too. JC: I don't even think my impression's that good. But it stuck with people. In the TV show [Flight of the Conchords]...my comedy partner is having dreams about David Bowie, so I play David Bowie. But I wasn't supposed to play him. It was very last minute that I ended up playing that character, and I've been asked to do it a few times now. CP: You originally tried to get David Bowie to play himself? JC: We did, yeah. But I think that would've been nerve-wracking. I mean, it would've been amazing as well, but, you know. ON REUNITING WITH LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA CP: How was it working with Moana songwriter and Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda again? JC: I'd remembered Freestyle Love Supreme [Lin-Manuel Miranda's hip hop comedy troupe], and I'd even seen them again not that long ago — and I hadn't connected him with the guy I had met [previously]. I didn't realise it was the same person until he said, "Oh we met. We met, we were doing that gig in 2004/2005". And yeah, suddenly it came back. Whoa. I've never seen any musical show have the reaction that Hamilton has. He deserves that. He's very clever, bright, and very talented. Moana is in Australian cinemas now. Read our review here.
No one will need to make any wishes to visit the most magical place in Australia over the summer of 2023–24. Enchanted creatures, alluring woodland spaces, eerie mirrors, dazzling slippers and eye-catching stagecoaches will all be part of the experience, however. The place: Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, where Fairy Tales is taking over from Saturday, December 2–Sunday, April 28 as the River City venue's big summer exhibition. Fairy Tales was first announced in 2022 as part of GOMA's 2023 slate — and, from the moment that the 100-plus-piece showcase was revealed, it instantly sounded wondrous. The focus is indeed the stories that we all lapped up as kids, telling us about otherworldly critters, magic and more. Fairy Tales' art, installations and objects will split into three thematic chapters, starting with 'Into the Woods', then heading 'Through the Looking Glass' and finally pondering 'Ever After'. And yes, the exhibition will also survey the movies filled with such elements that still grace our screens, in what's set to be entrancing experience all round. [caption id="attachment_919713" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Henrique Oliveira / Brazil b.1973 / Baitogogo 2013 / Palais de Tokyo, Paris / Plywood and tree branches / 6740 x 1179 x 2076cm / Courtesy SAM Art Projects, Galerie GP&N Vallois, Galeria Millan / © Henrique Oliveira / Photograph: André Morin / This work is indicative of a new commission by Henrique Oliveira for the exhibition 'Fairy Tales' at QAGOMA.[/caption] One massive highlight is Corupira 2023, a huge site-specific installation by Henrique Oliveira, which GOMA also advised would be part of Fairy Tales when the exhibition was initially added to its 2023 calendar. This sprawling piece will take pride of place inside the riverside venue, with the Brazilian artist using salvaged timber, plywood and tree branches to transform the building's architecture. The result: a sure-to-be-stunning gnarled and twisted forest (a sure-to-be-snapped sight, too, naturally) courtesy of a specially commissioned work. Another sizeable installation hails from Patricia Piccinini, who is no stranger to filling GOMA with delights. Here, she'll create a magical path that sits below a canopy. Of course genetically modified plants are involved, this time in the form of 3000 blooms. [caption id="attachment_919718" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Trulee Hall / Witch House (Seance of the Umbilical Coven)(detail) 2020 / Wood, paper mâché, resin, fabric, stuffing, fake fur, synthetic hair, altered sex dolls, acrylic paint, spray paint, found candle holders, cornucopia baskets, found ceramic cornucopia, found crystal balls, convex mirror, polymer clay, hardware, LED candle / 431.8 × 685.8 × 436.88 cm / Collection: The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA) / Photograph: Joshua White / JWPictures.comThis work is indicative of a new commission by Trulee Hall for the exhibition 'Fairy Tales' at QAGOMA.[/caption] Overall, as it fills GOMA's entire ground floor, Fairy Tales will explore how folklore-, myth- and legend-related narratives have fascinated audiences through art and culture over not just years and decades but centuries. If creepy woods have influenced sculptures, or tales of princes and princesses have inspired painters, expect to see it here, in a blockbuster Australian-exclusive showcase that'll run for five months. On a list that goes on like breadcrumb trails, the full showcase will feature everything from drawings and installations through to fashion, as well as films and filmic elements such as props and costumes. Across the venue's walls and screens, wicked witches, magic animals (fierce and friendly alike), coming-of-age tales, shifting gender roles, bravery, loyalty, castles and pumpkins will all feature in one way or another — with help from artists such as Jana Sterbak, Kiki Smith, Abdul Abdullah and Ron Mueck. [caption id="attachment_919715" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Timothy Horn / Australia/United States b.1964 / Mother-load2008 / Crystalised rock sugar, plywood, steel / 292.6 x 182.9 x 170.7cm / Courtesy: The artist / Image courtesy: Jason Schmidt / New York Times / Photographer: Jason Schmidt.[/caption] Other specific pieces include a glass coffin by Sterbak, a dual mirror from Anish Kapoor, Gustave Doré's Little Red Riding Hood and Trulee Hall's Witch House (Umbilical Coven) 2023. Or, get excited about seeing interactive sculpture Flying Mushrooms 2015 by Carsten Höller; Costume for a mourner, a ballet costume by Henri Matisse; and Mueck's version of Pinocchio. Film fans will have much to peer at, and not just because an accompanying movie program is a reality as well thanks to GOMA's excellent Australian Cinematheque. That big-screen lineup will show relevant flicks, but the exhibition will overflow with other cinema-related details. Think: a costume donned by David Bowie in all-time classic Labyrinth, plus the thirteen-hour clock and glass orbs from the film; celebrating Where the Wild Things Are, both images from Maurice Sendak's and costumes created by the Jim Henson Creature Shop for the 2009 movie; a dress from Jean Cocteau's 1946 masterpiece La Belle et la Bête; costumes from 2012's Mirror Mirror by Eiko Ishioka; and Del Kathryn Barton and Brendan Fletcher's animation The Nightingale and the Rose. [caption id="attachment_919719" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Still from 'Cinderella' (1922) dir. Lotte ReinigerImage courtesy:British Film Institute[/caption] "The exhibition explores enchantment, thresholds and transformation while articulating concerns that have always been inherent in fairy tales, such as power imbalances, injustice, ageing, gender and otherness, and resilience in the face of adversity," said QAGOMA's Amanda Slack-Smith, who curated Fairy Tales and is also the Australian Cinémathèque's Curatorial Manager. "The exhibition includes more than 100 works encompassing sculpture, installation, painting, photography, printmaking, papercuts, animation, video art, film, props, costumes and even the hidden realm of augmented reality," added QAGOMA Director Chris Saines. "Celebrating a much-loved genre of storytelling, Fairy Tales is an adventure that will inspire and delight as it reminds us how timeworn narratives can be remixed and updated to both surprise and disconcert audiences." [caption id="attachment_919717" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tarsem Singh (director) / India/United States b.1961 / Eiko Ishioka (designer) / Japan 1938–2012 'Green dress' costume from Mirror Mirror 2012 / Silk, synthetic taffeta, nylon netting, plastic / © 2012 UV RML NL Assets LLC. / Photograph: Jan Thijs.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_919720" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Del Kathryn Barton (artist, director) / Australia b.1973 / Brendan Fletcher (director) / Australia /The Nightingale and the Rose (still) 2015 / Single-channel video: 14 minutes, colour, sound / Animators: Chris Breeze, Simon Bronson, David Edwards, Liz Ellis, Richard Swan / Music: Sarah Blasko/ Gift of Del Kathryn Barton through the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art Foundation 2022. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program / Collection: Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art© Del Kathryn Barton / Image courtesy: The artist and RoslynOxley9 Gallery, Sydney.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_919716" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Timothy Horn / Australia/United States b.1964 / Glass slipper (ugly blister) 2001 / Lead crystal, nickel-plated bronze, Easter egg foil, silicon / 51 x 72 x 33cm / Purchased 2002 / Collection: National Gallery of Australia, Canberra© Timothy Horn.[/caption] Fairy Tales will display at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, Stanley Place, South Brisbane from Saturday, December 2, 2023–Sunday, April 28, 2024. For further details, visit GOMA's website. Top image: Henrique Oliveira / Brazil b.1973 / Baitogogo 2013 / Palais de Tokyo, Paris / Plywood and tree branches / 6740 x 1179 x 2076cm / Courtesy SAM Art Projects, Galerie GP&N Vallois, Galeria Millan / © Henrique Oliveira / Photograph: The artist / This work is indicative of a new commission by Henrique Oliveira for the exhibition 'Fairy Tales' at QAGOMA.
Cafe owners and baristas are the cornerstones of every community they serve, providing excellent food and cups of precious coffee to keep the world (and all of us) turning. Who better to show appreciation for these local legends than the businesses they source their coffee from? Enter Toby's Estate and the annual Local Legends competition. Every cafe in Australia that grinds, pours, and serves coffee made with Toby's Estate beans is up for voting by its community. The winner receives the prestigious title of one of the most popular cafés in their state and a well-deserved moment in the spotlight. We're proud to present the NSW Toby's Estate Local Legend of 2024: Hippo Espresso in Warners Bay. We spoke to Aaryn Algie, owner and Hunter Valley resident, about the cafe and his favourite spots around town. How Did You Get Into The Hospitality Industry? I've been involved in the industry for about 20 years. I got into it because I really enjoyed interacting with people, and hospitality was the best way I could do this and get paid! Like most people, I started at the bottom and have worked my way up, doing everything along the way. It's the perfect industry to meet people, and the friends I've made through the industry are unbelievable. What's Your Go-To Coffee Order, and Do You Have a Trick For Making The Perfect Cup Every Time? An almond latte gets my day going. There's no real reason why it's almond; I just got one by mistake one day and stuck with it. My secret to getting a perfect cup every time…get someone else to make it. Things always taste better when you don't have to make it yourself. From Your Menu, What's The Perfect Pairing with a Morning Coffee? If it's a grab-and-go kind of day, it's hard to beat our breakfast wrap: scrambled egg, hash brown, bacon, spinach, and tomato relish. Or one of our famous Acai Bowls, where you can even create your own with unlimited toppings! But if I have the time (which isn't often) to sit and eat, our omelettes are a must! They're like an egg pizza with the lot! Why Do You Use Toby's Estate? We've been using Toby's for nine years now. It's a very smooth and consistent coffee, easy to drink, and I think that's what appeals to me about it the most. What's Your Favourite Toby's Estate Roast? We use the Woolloomooloo or 'Wolly' as its friends call it! So, it's obviously my favourite, but they all have their own unique qualities. What Made You Choose to Open in The Area You're in Today? The cafe had been here a couple of years before we purchased it. I grew up nearby and knew the area pretty well, and it really is the perfect spot for a cafe— a busy little hospitality strip with Lake Macquarie just 50 metres away! Where's Your Favourite Local Spot to Grab a Bite? (Other than Here) Living an hour from the cafe, I don't get to eat nearby too often, but when I do, my go-to is definitely Emilio's, the perfect Italian restaurant. Their pizza and pasta are fantastic, and the chilli octopus is next level! Where's Your Favourite Local Spot to Grab a Drink After Work? Close to home in The Hunter Valley, Nineteen at The Vintage is my go-to. A couple of Stone & Woods on tap is the perfect end to the day. Where Do You Like to Go to Escape Into Nature Nearby? There's a little sand island at the bottom end of Lake Macquarie called Naru. It's the perfect spot on a summer's day: crystal-clear water, a sandy beach area—just the perfect chill-out spot. If You Had a Friend Come to Visit, Where's The First Place You Would Take Them? I'd take them to the best vineyards in the world and do some wine tasting in the beautiful Hunter Valley. What are Some Other Local Small Businesses You Think People Should Support? Sharon at Warners Bay Dog Shop supplies us with dog treats to sell to all our furry customers. It's a great local business with a great team! Even her dogs, Fifi and Max, pop in occasionally. Is There Anything Else That You'd Like People to Know About Your Business? We know the majority of our customers by their coffee orders, not their names. So much so, we were watching a Matildas game once, and Emily Van Egmond (who's a regular when she's in Australia) came on the TV, and one of the staff said, "OMG, that's a small flat white and coconut and pistachio girl!" Hippo Espresso is the Toby's Estate Local Legends winner for NSW in 2024. For more information on it or other cafes that serve Toby's Estate, visit the website.
Just in case you needed a timely reminder that girls can, and indeed do, run the world, the Sydney Opera House's All About Women festival has a pretty inspirational lineup for its 2017 program. Set to return to the House on March 5 next year in the lead up to International Women's Day, the annual event both explores and celebrates what it means to identify as a woman in today's changing world. And, following on from a record-breaking attendance in 2016 — which saw the likes of Miranda July, Carrie Brownstein and Mallory Ortberg share their wisdom with the crowd — next year's festival is shaping up to be a doozy, as legendary ladies from across the globe descend on Sydney for a jam-packed day of talks, panel discussions, performances and female-centred fun. With 22 events, there's something in this lineup that'll speak to just about every woman out there. Academy Award-winner and advocate Geena Davis will be diving into the latest research on entertainment stereotyping and on-screen gender diversity, while Janine di Giovanni, Newsweek's Middle East editor, will discuss her own work on violence and the human cost of war. Elsewhere in the program, you'll find Jess Thom's eye-opening performance about life with Tourette's, Seattle-based writer and fat acceptance activist Lindy West talking about her memoir, comedian Zoe Norton Lodge's side-splitting storytelling session, and an insightful glimpse into some of writer and activist Clementine Ford's wildest hate mail. Image: Prudence Upton.
When a major arts festival drops its latest program, as Sydney Festival just has for its massive 2023 event, it's easy to start playing the numbers game. The figures are impressive, with the event's second year under Artistic Director Olivia Ansell boasting 748 performances across 54 venues. The lineup also spans more than 100 unique events, 26 of which won't cost attendees a thing. And, there'll be 18 world premieres and 14 Australian exclusives — aka shows that you'll need to travel to Sydney to see if you don't live there, because they won't pop up elsewhere. All of these stats do indeed tell a story, conveying how widely the festival crew has scoured for top-notch shows; how jam-packed the resulting calendar of performances, gigs and exhibitions is; and how busy the 25 days from Thursday, January 5–Sunday, January 29 are going to prove. And, they help express the most important message there is for audiences: if you're looking for not just a culture fix but to bathe in art, theatre, music and all-round exciting festivities for weeks on end all around Sydney at the start of 2023, then you'd best block out your diary now. There's no shortage of highlights in the program, no matter what kind of cultural experience take your fancy. Here's perhaps the most surprising one: turning Sydney Town Hall into a beach courtesy of 26 tonnes of sand. No, you won't be able to swim there — but you can watch Lithuanian opera Sun & Sea, which won the Venice Biennale's Golden Lion in 2019, stage its sandy work in the round. The end result explores the climate emergency, is certain to make for a memorable show, and is one of Sydney Festival's Australian exclusives. Also unlikely to be forgotten quickly: the Australian premiere of Frida Kahlo: Life of an Icon, a multi-sensory art experience dedicated to the iconic Mexican painter. Think: the immersive Vincent van Gogh showcase that's being doing the rounds, or the new Monet one headed to Melbourne, but all about the one and only Kahlo. Hailing from Spanish digital arts company Layers of Reality, alongside the Frida Kahlo Corporation, it'll take over the Cutaway with holography, 360-degree projections and live performances of traditional Mexican music, as well as a virtual-reality system that'll let you step inside the artist's iconic pieces. [caption id="attachment_874188" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jacquie Manning[/caption] Other standouts include Bonobo hitting the decks at the Masonic Centre, and turning its banquet hall into a unique dance party; performance piece In Chamber, which literally takes place in a safe in the basement of the Margot Kimpton Hotel; ROOM, the latest surreal theatre piece by James Thiérrée; and Tracker, which sees choreographer-director Daniel Riley combine dance, ceremony and text. Or, there's also 16 days of live music inside the 70s-era underground bar beneath Martin Place's Harry Seidler-designed Commercial Travellers' Association building (yes, the mushroom building). That subterranean space remains unrenovated, so expect The Weary Traveller, as the fest-within-the-fest is called, to serve up a huge blast from the past (plus tunes by Alice Skye, Astral People, Automatic, June Jones, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Lil Silva, Party Dozen, Tom Snowdon, Moktar, Two Birds with Bayand, Coloured Stone, HTRK and Potion). In the same structure, the 28-room hotel itself is being taken over by American artist Kelsey Lu. You'll want to check in for this one, and stay the evening — because In The Lucid: A Dream Portal to Awakening is an eight-hour audio journey. [caption id="attachment_874185" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Peter Wallis[/caption] Heartbreak High fans will want to catch Blue, and fans of homegrown theatre as well — it stars and has been written by Thomas Weatherall, and will enjoy its world premiere at Sydney Festival. Or, for something completely different, a Shinjuku-inspired magic bar will pop up at Darling Harbour, transporting you to Tokyo if you haven't already made Japan holiday plans now that the country has reopened its borders. The list goes on, including Bloodlines, an exhibition paying tribute to artists lost to HIV/AIDS; The Party, which'll celebrate Sydney's LGBTQIA+ nightlife and party culture between 1973–2002; and Retrosweat hosting a big 80s pool party that, yes, will involve aqua aerobics. Or, there's flamenco dancer Sara Bara in Alma at the Sydney Opera House; Dead Puppet Society and Legs On The Wall's take on the Trojan war in Holding Achilles; drag brunch show Smashed: The Brunch Party hosted by Victoria Falcone; and Prinnie Stevens singing tunes by superstars like Aretha Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Whitney Houston and Beyoncé. Plus, Sydney Symphony Orchestra will celebrate Lunar New Year outdoors at Parramatta Park; Polar Force at Carriageworks explores the extremes of ice and wind by pairing Antarctic field recordings with live industrial percussion; and Restless Dance Theatre's dance piece Guttered is set in a real-life bowling alley. And, Lego lovers can check out a new Brickwrecks exhibition, which recreates shipwrecks with the plastic bricks. Also, ENESS, who was behind the 2022 fest's Airship Orchestra, is back with Cupid's Koi Garden — which'll give Tumbalong Park a six-metre-tall immersive water-play park right in the middle of summer. [caption id="attachment_874184" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Sam Roberts Photography[/caption] Sydney Festival 2023 runs from Thursday, January 5–Sunday, January 29 at venues across the city. For further details and to buy tickets, visit the Sydney Festival website. Tickets go on sale at 9am on Wednesday, October 19. Top image: Andrej Vasilenko.
We've all wondered what goes on behind closed doors. It's the whole reason that gossip magazines and reality TV exist, after all. But, there's a difference between reading about it or watching it on television, and actually walking into someone's hotel room and seeing it with your own eyes — and QT Gold Coast is currently letting people do the latter. At the first Hotelling program in what is hoped will become a regular event, audiences explore the building from the penthouse down to the tennis court; however they're privy to more than fancy '80s-style baths in the former and somewhere to play sports at the latter. They also meet the inhabitants, from a hostess living right at the top, to a visiting IT exec fighting with his wife, to an otherworldly presence channelling a rock star. Okay, okay, so they're actually actors that are playing a part in a site-specific performance piece put together by Bleached Arts, QT Gold Coast and City of Gold Coast, but they're replicating the weird, wonderful, over-the-top and ordinary things that go on the mini society that is a hotel (and a hotel on the Gold Coast in particular). First cab off the rank is Slavka, partying on the highest level of the place that just last week hosted the Thor: Ragnarok wrap party. She greets attendees warmly, gets them dancing, and then sends them on their merry way. With the event called Down The Rabbit Hole, that's mostly the direction everyone is then headed, with multiple stops. At one of them, the aforementioned Larry from Perth lets you into his room, where you'll overhear his phone conversation, help sing happy birthday to his son Morgan, and watch his reaction as his marriage almost falls apart. Also on the itinerary: a homage to rock-gods like Mick Jagger, Iggy Pop and Patti Smith, which will make you feel like you're in their rooms. Plus, there's some more adventurous fun on the agenda when you enter the domain of a Gold Coast-based sex counselling service, Rhythm Stick, that has chosen QT Gold Coast as a venue to solicit new clients. Or, do what absolutely everyone does when they're somewhere with plenty of high-rises: try to look into a neighbouring tower. Here, international surveillance artist Joao Montessori customises his signature artwork, In-Focus, to Gold Coast's hotel landscape, inviting you to stare in at a neighbouring block. Yep, it's a little bit like Rear Window. Over the course of the three-hour event, attendees go up and down between different rooms and peering into different lives in four groups — and no group has the same experience, or sees the exact same performances. Don't think the hallways are safe, though. There, you just might spy a Russian wrestling his bear-hat; a tall, twitchy and somewhat creepy Donnie Darko-esque rabbit, a pyjama-clad woman looking for her best bunny buddy (yep, rabbits are a thing), a go-go dancer who doesn't dance and a lost Kiwi. There's more, including several interactive components — but, at something like Hotelling, much of the fun is about experiencing it for yourself. And, about getting into the swing of things; everyone's a voyeur and a performer down deep, after all. Just a word of warning, though: you'll be in close quarters with many, many people in a whole lot of elevators. And, even if you've never had vertigo before, the experience of continually getting into a lift just might cause your first bout (we're speaking from experience). Hotelling takes place at QT Gold Coast from November 4 to 5. For more information, visit the event website and Facebook page. Images: Matt Marny. Slavka, Penthouse, performed by Nadia Sunde; Like A Rolling Stone, Room 706, performed by Kate Harman; The Crying Man, Room 306 performed by Todd MacDonald; In-Focus, Room 1915 performed by Hayden Jones with Steph Pokoj, Reuben Witsenhuysen, Marco Sinigaglia and Tammy Zarb; The Otherworld, Hallways.
The apocalypse is something we fear, right? The desolation and destruction caused by a cataclysmic event is something we surely would not want to witness. Yet we seem to have a weird fascination with Armageddon, dedicating a significant amount of time to it in film, video games and those pub conversation about which of your friends has the best zombie survival plan. Now Lori Nix, a Kansas-born artist, has shared her deep wonderment with Judgement Day in her exhibition The City, which depicts New York City devoid of humanity, scarred by the apocalypse. "My childhood was spent in a rural part of the United States that is known more for its natural disasters than anything else," says Nix on her website. "For a child it was considered euphoric." This informed her project The City, which imagines "a city of our future, where something either natural or as the result of mankind, has emptied the city of it's human inhabitants. Art museums, Broadway theaters, laundromats and bars no longer function. The walls are deteriorating, the ceilings are falling in, the structures barely stand, yet Mother Nature is slowly taking them over. These spaces are filled with flora, fauna and insects, reclaiming what was theirs before man's encroachment." Nix portrays this reclamation through a series of photographed dioramas that she painstakingly constructs, right down to the most minute detail. Some of you may have heard of the The City before and that is because Nix began the project in 2005. However, each diorama takes approximately seven months to construct, followed by three weeks to shoot the final image of it, and so the series is ongoing. It has come to the fore again as the latest nine photographic works in the series are currently on exhibition at ClampArt, NYC until November 16 to coincide with the release of her first book. Explore our favourites in the gallery below and head to Nix's website to see the full collection. Via Gizmodo.
No matter how jolly December normally looks to you, one merry getaway has your festive plans beat: staying in Santa's cabin for three nights. Say "ho, ho, holidays" to Airbnb's latest one-off listing, with the accommodation-sharing and -booking platform letting up to four lucky guests — two adults and two children — head to Finland to slumber in a winter wonderland adjacent to Santa's Main Post Office in Rovaniemi. And if that's not enough of a present, the reservation is free. Airbnb's Santa's cabin listing follows in the footsteps of Shrek's swamp, Barbie's Malibu DreamHouse, the Ted Lasso pub, the Moulin Rouge! windmill, Hobbiton, the Bluey house, the Paris theatre that inspired The Phantom of the Opera, the Scooby-Doo Mystery Machine, The Godfather mansion, the South Korean estate where BTS filmed In the Soop, the Sanderson sisters' Hocus Pocus cottage and more — all once-in-a-lifetime experiences. As well as the ultimate jolly vacation, the trip to the Arctic Circle includes channelling your inner elf to help with the letters. 'Tis the season, after all. If you're lucky enough to score the booking for Monday, December 18–Thursday, December 21, Katja, Chief Elf of Santa Claus' Main Post Office, will be your host — and teach you the necessary 'elfing' skills for your visit. You'll sort letters while referring to the naughty and nice list, as well as empty mailboxes, stamp the post with the Arctic Circle postmark and learn about how the post office runs on a day-to-day basis. "The elves have been working around the clock to transform Santa Claus' cabin into a winter wonderland. We want this to be a magical and immersive experience for a family in search of the ultimate yuletide experience. Not only will guests get to sleep in Santa Claus' cabin, they'll also get a sneak peek behind the scenes of the world's official Santa Claus' Post Office during our liveliest time of the year," said Katja. The stay isn't just about Christmas, Christmas and more Christmas. It also spans seeing the northern lights, getting steamy in a traditional Finnish sauna, a snowmobile activity and traditional Finnish meals. Still, grinches likely need to not apply — nor anyone already thinking "bah humbug!" to the idea. As for the cabin itself, it's decked out with Yuletide Lapland decorations, an open fire for roasting chestnuts and appropriate elf attire — because you'll be donning a felt hat, complete with a jingling bell, as well as a tunic for your stay. If you're keen, you'll need to try to nab the booking at 9pm AEDT / 8pm AEST / 11pm NZDT on Monday, December 11. Whoever gets these special kinds of Airbnb reservations is usually responsible for their own travel, including if they have to get to and from their destination, but this one includes complimentary return flights to Rovaniemi from London Heathrow Airport via Finnair. You will still need to cover your travel to and from London, however. This listing is also helping a good cause, with Airbnb making a one-off donation to Special Children's Omaiset ELO as part of the Santa's cabin promotion. For more information about the Santa's cabin stay on Airbnb, or to book at 9pm AEDT / 8pm AEST / 11pm NZDT on Monday, December 11 for a stay across Monday, December 18–Thursday, December 21, head to the Airbnb website. Images: Samir Zarrouck. 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.
If your first binge-watch of 2023 was the debut season Black Snow, you might've pressed play to start the year with a new Australian mystery series, then found yourself digging into the thriller's weight as much as its twists and turns. Starring Travis Fimmel (Dune: Prophecy), the homegrown Stan hit follows a Brisbane-based Cold Case Unit detective dispatched across the state to attempt to close disappearances left unsolved for decades. In season one, the Sunshine State's cane fields in its north beckoned, as did an interrogation of the nation's colonial history and the nation's treatment of the Australian South Sea Islander community while Fimmel's James Cormack searched for a 17-year-old girl last seen in 1994. If the end result hadn't proven gripping must-see viewing, season two Black Snow wouldn't have begun its run to kick off 2025. This time around, with episodes dropping weekly rather than arriving in a single batch, the Glass House Mountains backdrop the latest case to cross Cormack's desk. In 2003, Zoe Jacobs (Jana McKinnon, Silver and the Book of Dreams) left her 21st birthday party in the Sunshine Coast hinterland town of Moorevale and hasn't been seen since, but her backpack has just been found locally. Black Snow splits its time between its absent figure and Cormack — not merely jumping between then and now, but giving the former as much of a voice in the show as the latter. This isn't just another missing- or dead-woman show, the type that the first season of Deadloch satirised, then; it's as interested in the character that might simply be a face on a flyer in other series, alongside the social issues that played a part in their disappearance. Setting its action in picturesque Queensland surroundings, the current season also dives into the housing crisis. Before playing the plucky, idealistic Zoe — a twentysomething with big dreams to get out of the only home that she's ever known, to make a difference and to live a life far removed from the existence that her real-estate developer father Leo (Dan Spielman, The Newsreader) has planned for her — McKinnon watched Black Snow's first season as a fan. "To be honest, I was living in Cairns at the time and I saw the first season with my housemates, just as a random audience member, pretty much. And I was so excited about seeing the landscape of Far North Queensland on screen, because I personally hadn't really seen it that much before," she tells Concrete Playground. "And so I just felt really moved by those images of the cane fields — and because they were right in front of my house as well, so it really tied in beautifully with my life that I had there, which was very based in Queensland. I just thought that was really special. And also the representation it gave to Australian South Pacific Islander peoples. I just was a fan of the show. Then I got an audition for the second season and I got really excited about it, and I thought 'I have to be a part of this'." Now, McKinnon is Black Snow's second lead in its second go-around. The Austrian Australian actor was last seen on Aussie screens in fellow Stan series Bad Behaviour (also alongside Spielman), and stars again as a young woman endeavouring to find for her place in the world. McKinnon is drawn to "complex and nuanced characters, and characters that are searching for purpose in life, or for their place in life," she advises. "Because I think as a young woman in the world, it's so interesting how we all navigate the world and society. And I guess I can relate to that in a sense on a personal level. I find it quite interesting." While Fimmel remains its constant, surrounding the Boy Swallows Universe, Raised by Wolves and Vikings alum with other impressive talents has never been a struggle for Black Snow. In addition to McKinnon and Spielman, season two enlists a cast that includes Megan Smart (Class of '07), Alana Mansour (Erotic Stories) and Victoria Haralabidou (Exposure). Adding to a resume that seems to feature almost every Aussie show made in the last few decades — think: Underbelly, of course ("it stands up really well and I'm so proud of it; it was a great experience," Stewart notes), plus Offspring, and also The Secret Life of Us, Blue Heelers, Stingers, City Homicide, Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, Newstopia, Tangle, No Activity, Get Krack!n, Five Bedrooms and One Night, too — Kat Stewart also joins the series as politician Julie Cosgrove. One of the few characters seen both in the 2000s and 2020s, she's initially the pro-development Moorevale mayor, then a senator and the Minister for Infrastructure and Planning. Cosgrove's son is also Zoe's ex-boyfriend. Stewart was "really, really thrilled to be a part of it," she shares with Concrete Playground, especially as Black Snow stood out among her past roles. "It's a character unlike anyone I've played before. I've tended to play characters that have no filters or are a bit highly-strung or neurotic, and Julie is completely grounded, completely focused, completely composed and quite ruthless — and that was great fun," she continues. Also a highlight: balancing Julie's very distinctive professional and personal guises. "I think that was a key interest for me, because that was a conflict for much Julie's storyline. She's got to balance her impulses and fierce protective instincts for her son with her ethical concerns and her professional concerns. So, that was a big appeal. And I think that's something that's universal. That's something that lots of parents can understand. I think of Joe Biden right now and what he's done — you want to do anything for your kids, but can you? Should you?" Then there's the fact that this is a topical series — with Julie directly tied to the season's examination of housing insecurity and homelessness, the factors behind both, and the clash between ensuring that people can afford to live in their own communities and attempting to create wealth through development — but "it's not a documentary. First and foremost, it's going to be entertaining. I think it's really smart," Stewart notes. We also chatted with McKinnon and Stewart about playing strong-minded figures, heading back in time, getting energy from the rest of the show's cast, bringing different visions of the Australian landscape to the world and plenty more. On How McKinnon Approached Playing a Character Who's Pondering What It Means (and Takes) to Be Her Own Person Jana: "I think Zoe's a very strong-minded person, and she really knows what she wants to do in life. And she's just trying to find a way, as in how to sell that to her family in the long run — and compromising here and there to wiggle her way through that, through those expectations, I guess. I thought that was really interesting. And showing someone who is so focused on also changing the world and making it a better place, and being so invested in that — and then being thrown by all these other things that that life forces onto her, like grief and just everything that comes with that. I found that a very interesting aspect of Zoe's journey, how she deals with the grief of losing her friend and what that does to her life and the trajectory that she's on." On Stewart's Initial Read on Julie, and What Got Her Excited About the Part Kat: "First and foremost, you look at great writing and a great story. Is this something I would watch? That's kind of my litmus test, and it was a big yes. And I thought 'okay, this is something I can have fun with. This is something a bit different for me'. And I hasten to add it's a fantastic ensemble. So I'm one of a brilliant ensemble. I'm in and out of the two timeframes, 20 years ago and currently. I liked that she's a grown-up character. I play her in her 40s and her 60s, and I love that she's so centred. That just appealed to me. I thought 'there's a stillness here that I can really explore'. And also the fact given the right set of circumstances, we're capable of really surprising actions. And she's a mother as well as a politician, and those roles butted up against each other. So I thought 'yeah, this is interesting'. I thought it'd be good fun — and it was." On What McKinnon First Saw That She Could Bring to Zoe — and How She Prepared to Jump Back to the Early 00s Jana: "I like that she was a bit edgy and had this really strong interest in music, and did the community radio show. And it was all about the bands and the music with her friends. I just thought that was so cool. It was so nice to research all the music myself, because I didn't know all of the bands that she was into, and dig into that aspect of the period. I mean it's 2003, but it's technically period now. It's kind of strange when it's sort of still the time that you're living in, but sort of not. It's uncanny sometimes, like suddenly you're thinking about 'oh, did you have computers at the cash system at the shop or did you not? How did that work?'. And also all the tech at the community radio station, we had to learn all that because it was old tech that we didn't grow up with anymore. So it was really interesting and fun to explore." On How Stewart Got Into the Mindset of a Politician Kat: "I think subliminally we all probably research a bit. We just look at our politicians and how they hold themselves. I went in with a central idea that Julie has — I'm someone who, I don't go into the into a room thinking I'm the most important person in the room. But Julie does, and I put that in my head. I was like 'yep, everyone's looking at me, everyone's interested in me'. That's Julie, I hasten to clarify. And that was a really interesting idea to take on because that's not how I carry myself in my own life. It was just a different head space to be in. It's such a fun job. I love acting. This is a great job." On McKinnon's Balancing Act Charting Zoe's Journey Towards Stark Realisations About Her Community Jana: "Even though she has that very ambitious sense — and she really wants to change the world for a better place — she also can be very righteous, and she can also have blind spots to what's going on in front of her. So for me that was a balancing act. So balancing these really noble ideas and ambitions with what's actually going on in her community around her and what she's blind to, even when it's right in front of her nose — and the injustice that she's unable to see in her own community. I think it's something that a lot of people can relate to. A lot of people want to be good people out in the world, but they forget to do it on their own doorstep. So I thought that was a very complex aspect of the character that I enjoyed exploring." On the New Season Not Only Chronicling a Missing-Person Mystery, But Examining Housing Uncertainty and Insecurity Kat: "That's the beauty of Lucas Taylor's writing, and he did it in the first season, too. He'll give you a ripping yawn with really engrossing characters and plot twists, but he'll sort of Trojan horse in bigger issues as well. But you don't feel like you're eating vegetables. It's done in a really organic, sophisticated way, where you're not really aware of it, but you come away thinking about the larger issues — in this case, it's homelessness, particularly for older women. So I think that's one of the great things about this show and it was the case in the first series. Julie's part in it is interesting, too, because from her point of view, she's bringing wealth to area and she's bringing a lot of people with her. But, we're seeing an exploration of the more personal aspects and implications of that trajectory, and who's been left behind. It's not preachy, but it's a really interesting examination of the issue. It feels like it's a part of the world, but it's not the point of the show. So I think for people who want to see the show, they're going to be grabbed by a great mystery, and great characters, and that's something that is just at the backdrop of it. In a way, it's something that's almost subliminal, but it's there and I think that's sometimes the best way to explore issues, because no one wants to be told what to think." On Joining Black Snow as a New Cast Member for Season Two Jana: "When I came in, I really just felt the love that the Heads of Departments and the crew members that were already on season one — and quite a lot of them were — had for the show. It was really beautiful to come in and start something fresh, but with people that already had that experience of season one, and they were also fond of that experience and also the final product, the show. So it felt really special. I remember that pre-production time where I went in and we had all our costume fittings and everyone was just excited to be back on at the production office. It was really, really nice, honestly." Kat: "It gives you a sense of the parameters and the tone. I think it's really helpful. And I haven't had this situation much. I suppose if you come in as a guest actor in an established show, it's like that, too. It's a good idea to watch a couple of episodes to get a sense of the tone. So I guess I have had that situation before. I think it was really helpful, because I'm very much a character that's one of the ensemble, and so we're in and out. So having that blueprint, even though it's its own show, just in terms of the style of the show and what it is, was actually really, really useful. I had a good sense of what I was stepping into in advance, which is great." On Drawing Energy From the Rest of Show's Impressive Cast Jana: "The beautiful thing was that everyone was so excited to be on the show. No matter where they came from, if that was their first acting job ever or if they were well and truly established actors, everyone was excited to be on the show. I think that really creates a beautiful spirit on set, and was very family-like. And it's just such a gift when you work with people like that, because it elevates the experience, but also elevates your own performance if you're acting opposite people who are really good actors opposite you. So it's just the best thing that can happen to you, really." Kat: "I actually only have one scene with Travis, and it was really interesting, because that one scene was quite an intense, big scene — and he was directing it. That was full on, because it was like 'hello'. I was really excited to work with him because I think he's terrific. I loved him in Boy Swallows Universe, the first series of this, obviously he's in Vikings. But it was a very unusual situation to be in. But I think I had the benefit of watching the first series, so I knew what the character was, and that certainly anchors it. So having seen the series, it gave me an idea of the tone of the show and the parameters and the way it would be shot. But yeah, that was just headfirst. I haven't seen it. I can't wait to see how it turned out." On the Importance of Black Snow Giving Its Missing People as Much Attention as the Search for Them Jana: "It's funny because going into it, for me it was all about creating her life and what that was like. And it wasn't for me to create anything beyond that, really. So to me, it was almost like whatever happens outside of that is not part of my storytelling, because I can't — knowing what happens to her, I can't bring that into my performance as the Zoe before anything happens. So it's kind of like, in that sense as an actor, pretty much like any other character — because it's all about doing justice to the person that they are and bringing them to life. I think it's really special that Black Snow does that, because you also get really invested as an audience member and you really want to know what happens to that person. So I can only hope that that's the same for Zoe and that people are invested in what happened to her." On Season Two Being Set in Queensland's Glass House Mountains Jana: "I think the producers are doing a really good job at picking out these beautiful, very striking pieces of landscape that you know to be Australian, but you don't see them so much. I think that's really special. The biggest block of shooting we did on the Gold Coast. We only had a few bits and bobs that we did at the Sunshine Coast. It was all pieced together. But I remember being there, seeing the Glass House Mountains for the first time, and I was just stunned. I loved it so much. They're very powerful." Kat: "I love being on location, and most of my work's been done in Victoria, Melbourne, which is just luck — and it's worked out well because I've got a young family — but this was great. It's so beautiful, the climate is completely different and the way they've shot it, they've really showcased that part of the world so beautifully. I think it's like a character, really. People say that all the time, but it really is. It's really beautiful. And I can't think of a production that's looked at this particular part of Australia like this." On Whether the Balance of Projects and Diversity of Roles That Stewart Has Enjoyed Is What She Hoped for When She Was Starting Out On-Screen a Quarter-Century Ago Kat: "I don't think I'd ever thought that far ahead. And it's all very strange, you saying 25 years, because I don't look back, either. You're always looking ahead. I know I've been very fortunate. I've been very lucky to work consistently and to work with such great people. And some long-running roles, too, where I really had a chance to develop the life of a character over a long time. That's a special — that's a really great experience to have. So I have been lucky. But having said that, I hope I'll be working for a very long time yet." On What Black Snow's Second Season Taught Its New Stars Jana: "It was just incredible to watch everyone bring their skills to the table on this show, because all the crew and the cast and all the directors were so incredibly skilled and beautiful at their jobs, and it was just such an enriching experience to get to watch them and just be present in that really concentrated and really skilled type of work. And also for me on a personal level, I think I always take inspiration from the characters that I play, and Zoe, with the fire that she has for the world, was definitely a very big inspiration for me as well on a personal level." Kat: "I just want to work on — it's the stuff you hear, but it's true — I just want to work on great scripts with great people. And each time you're building a character from the ground up, each time you sort of start with nothing, and each time you think 'oh god'. You always have to think 'oh, gee, how am I going to do this?'. You just learn things along the way just through doing it. And honestly, I love what I do. It's the coolest thing." Black Snow streams via Stan. Read our review of season one.
There are a lot of things Japanese cuisine does right. Ramen, sushi, teppanyaki — it's all had its time in the sun of the Australian foodie scene, and for good reason. In recent years, though, Sydney has wholeheartedly embraced the sweet life, with plenty of Japanese and Japanese-inspired dessert companies bringing their goods to the people Down Under. Here in Australia, eateries and dessert shops, like their Japanese counterparts, are usually met with long lines and Instagram-happy customers eager to try the much-photographed sweets. To help you on your mission to try all the cult Japanese desserts Sydney has to offer, here are five to add to the top of your list.
Australia is home to some incredible music festivals, with Laneway, Bluesfest, Splendour, Groovin' the Moo and Dark Mofo bringing some of the world's best acts to our shores each year. But live music isn't the only excuse to head out of town. Australia is also home to heaps of out-there festivals set in rural and random locations, celebrating everything from spuds and watermelon to Mary Poppins and the Nutbush. Looking for an out-of-the-ordinary getaway? Here's our pick of the top ten weird and wonderful festivals to track down around the country.
If someone was to ask you to imagine a dinosaur, and to picture one type only, it's likely that the Tyrannosaurus rex would come to mind. The towering ancient creature is just that fascinating to kids and adults alike, and not solely because it's rarely far from screens. Head to any museum with a T. rex fossil on display and you'll be surrounded by crowds, whether or not they've seen King Kong, a Jurassic Park movie or Night at the Museum. Head to Melbourne Museum from Friday, June 28–Sunday, October 20, 2024 in particular and expect to have plenty of company, then. Thanks to the Victoria the T. rex exhibition, that's when the fossil of Tyrannosaurus rex Victoria will make its Australian debut in the state with the absolute best name for the occasion. The specimen dates back 66 million years, and is one of the world's largest and most complete T. rex skeletons. Showing exclusively at Melbourne Museum, it's also marks the first time that a real T. rex has ever been on display in Victoria. How big is big? Found in South Dakota in 2013, Victoria is comprised of 199 bones, including a skull that weighs 139 kilograms. The fossil reaches 12 metres in length and 3.6 metres in height. And, because the skull is so heavy, it has to be displayed separately as it can't be mounted upon Victoria's body. Victoria the T. rex will also feature interactive elements, such as multi-sensory installations that'll let you experience how the Tyrannosaurus rex saw and smelled, plus dioramas and a section where you can make your own customised 3D T. rex. Welcome to... the cretaceous period, then. The informative side of the showcase will step through recent palaeontological findings, so that you'll get an idea of what Victoria's life was like all that time ago — and also find out what brought about her end. If that's not enough dino action to make you feel like David Attenborough — or his brother Richard in Jurassic Park and The Lost World — Victoria the T. rex will display alongside Triceratops: Fate of the Dinosaurs, which has been open at Melbourne Museum since 2022. The latter permanently features Horridus, the world's most complete Triceratops fossil, and entry to both exhibitions is included in one ticket. At IMAX Melbourne, 45-minute documentary T.REX 3D will also be showing — complete with footage of Horridus — from Friday, June 21. "Victoria the T. rex will see visitors from near and far enthralled by this real-life wonder alongside another marvel from the cretaceous: the world's most complete Triceratops fossil Horridus, whose permanent home is right here at Melbourne Museum," said CEO and Director of Museums Victoria Lynley Crosswell. "'Melbourne Museum will be the only place on Earth where, for a limited time, visitors can come face-to-face with two of the biggest and best real dinosaurs who once walked the planet." Victoria the T. rex will be on display from Friday, June 28–Sunday, October 20, 2024 at Melbourne Museum, 11 Nicholson Street, Carlton. Head to the museum's website for tickets from Wednesday, April 10, as well as further information. Images: Neon Global.
Is the 21st century Middle-earth's golden age? For viewers, that keeps proving the case. The 00s had barely begun when The Lord of the Rings franchise started its journey to becoming one of the global box office's biggest-ever film sagas — it currently ranks 12th — by first arriving between 2001–2003 as Peter Jackson's initial trilogy based on JRR Tolkien's beloved and iconic fantasy novels. After The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King met such adoring cinema audiences and earned accolades, of course The Hobbit next made the leap to the silver screen under Jackson's direction, from 2012–2014 and again as a trio of flicks. A decade has now passed since An Unexpected Journey, The Desolation of Smaug and The Battle of the Five Armies as 2024 wraps up. The lack of Middle-earth at the movies also comes to an end via The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. Jackson has focused on documentaries since The Hobbit films, courtesy of the First World War-centric They Shall Not Grow Old, plus TV series The Beatles: Get Back and accompanying movie The Beatles: Get Back — The Rooftop Concert. Since becoming almost as synonymous with all things LoTR as the author who created it, however, he's still attached to the saga. In the live-action realm, planned Andy Serkis (Venom: The Last Dance)-directed and -starring 2026 release The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum boasts Jackson as a producer. First, though, he has executive-produced The War of the Rohirrim, the franchise's new anime instalment. One of his greatest choices from The Two Towers and The Return of the King still echoes here, too, and literally, with Miranda Otto reprising her role as Éowyn. The 21st century's original LoTR pictures were a massive deal everywhere, but the wealth of Australian actors among the cast didn't go unnoticed across the ditch from where New Zealand's green hills earned their most-famous movie use yet. While Otto, David Wenham (Fake), Cate Blanchett (Disclaimer) and Hugo Weaving (How to Make Gravy) weren't strangers to the screen by any means at the time, The Lord of the Rings remains one of the projects that they'll each forever be known for. Playing elves, Blanchett and Weaving were each able to return for The Hobbit flicks, but popping up at different times in the saga isn't as easy when you're portraying a human. In Otto's case, The War of the Rohirrim has found a way to bring her back as Éowyn. Like streaming series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, but unrelated to it, the new film is set before the events of the LoTR movies, but is told as a tale relayed by Rohan's best-known noblewoman and shieldmaiden. Imagine Éowyn "coming back and telling this story to her children"; that's what Otto did, she tells Concrete Playground. The narrative that the character unfurls from 183 years prior to her time has another Rohan heroine at its centre, explaining why she's someone that Middle-earth's kingdom of men, as well as its famed horsemen, should champion — even if her deeds don't furnish Rohan's songs and haven't been mentioned to audiences before. Héra (Gaia Wise, A Walk in the Woods) is the daughter of king Helm Hammerhand (Brian Cox, Succession), whose reign and house are threatened by a marriage proposal. When Wulf's (Luke Pasqualino, Rivals) hand in matrimony is rejected, so sparks the battle that gives filmmaker Kenji Kamiyama's entry into the LoTR franchise its moniker. With episodes of Blade Runner: Black Lotus, Star Wars: Visions, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 on his resume, Kamiyama is well-versed at stepping into existing and already-adored worlds, and at giving them the anime treatment — a task that awaited with The War of the Rohirrim, and that the director handles with ease. That said, in connecting a tale that wouldn't be so resonant if viewers weren't familiar with Éowyn paving the way in the saga first with its on-screen past, Otto's voicework couldn't be a more crucial part of the movie. Returning to the role, she understands how the pair are mirrored, and also Éowyn's impact on the page and on the screen so far. "This character was really significant to a lot women growing up," she notes. Reteaming Otto with Philippa Boyens — who shared a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar with Jackson and Fran Walsh for The Return of the King, then penned the story for The War of the Rohirrim's script and also produces the new film — the latest LoTR movie adds to a busy few years for an actor who last graced cinemas in 2023 hit Talk to Me. On the small screen, she's also brought her talents to everything from Wellmania and Koala Man to The Clearing, Ladies in Black and Thou Shalt Not Steal of late, expanding a filmography that has taken her through War of the Worlds, Cashmere Mafia, Blessed, South Solitary, I, Frankenstein, The Homesman, Rake, The Daughter, Homeland, 24: Legacy, Annabelle: Creation, Downhill, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, True Colours, Fires and more in the past two decades. We also chatted with Otto about what excited her about a Lord of the Rings comeback, reprising the role solely as a voice actor and the responsibility of portraying Éowyn — as well as whether the diversity of parts that she's been enjoying was the original dream back in her pre-The Two Towers days in The Last Days of Chez Nous, The Nostradamus Kid, Love Serenade, The Well, Doing Time for Patsy Cline, What Lies Beneath and Human Nature, plus what she makes of her journey across her career so far. On What Excited Otto About Returning to the World of The Lord of the Rings, and to Playing Éowyn, But This Time in an Animated Film "I was really excited by the idea that it was anime. I thought it was so interesting to go back into this world of Lord of the Rings and Tolkien and tell the story as an anime, and all the things that that gives you licence to do. The films have always done so well over there, and I feel like there's something in Japanese mythology that really has some kinship with Tolkien's mythology in some ways. So it just sounded like a great fit. And the idea of coming back as a narrator was really lovely. It made utter sense to me the way that Philippa put it forward to me when she wrote to me about doing it. I could understand the concept, that it was Éowyn coming back and telling this story to her children. I just really liked that idea." On How Otto Approaches Not Only Reprising the Role of Éowyn, But Solely Doing So as a Voice Actor "The first time I came back to do the recording was, I think, in 2022, and I'd just had COVID and my voice was croaky — and I thought 'oh they'll like it, because I sound kind of husky and deep and mature'. And then they were disappointed because they wanted me to have the same voice. They really very much wanted to hear the Éowyn voice from 20 years ago. So when we came to do the second recording in Wellington, it was great to actually be in the studio with Philippa and with Kenji, and to actually get to see more of the film. And I worked with Roisin [Carty, The Agency] again, who had done a lot of the dialect work on the original films. So that was a great way of really fully getting back into the character. And just being back in Wellington, and being back with a lot of the same people, really took me back to that feeling of Middle-earth." On Whether Returning to Éowyn Was Something That Otto Could Imagine Two Decades Ago When She First Played the Part "It's just amazing — you think 'my gosh, that much time has passed, wow'. No, I never. I very much knew when we made the films, I remember the first time coming over and seeing some of the footage, and going to the costume fittings and seeing the footage, I remember that night I did not sleep because I was so excited to be a part of it. I felt like I knew in that moment that these films would last a really long time, and it's exciting as an actor to be a part of something that will actually last for people. But I never thought at the time about being able to come back in any way. I know when they made The Hobbit, many of the Elvish characters got to come back. But me being a mere human, I wasn't involved in that story. So I never envisaged that I would get the call, but it was very lovely." On Héra's Story Following in Éowyn's Footsteps, Even If the New Tale Is Set Before the Original Films "I think it's really lovely that there's that mirroring of those two characters. To me, it also felt like in Lord of the Rings, Éowyn holds this legacy of the women of Rohan, the shieldmaidens. And she speaks about the women of Rohan, and you get a sense that there's this this lineage of women who have come before her, the people she looked up to and formed her. So when you go into this film, you get to see the women that she admired. She is telling the story because she admires Héra and finds Héra inspirational, and so it's really lovely to get a sense of that history." On Otto's History of Playing Influential Women Beyond Éowyn "I think it's the way the interesting roles have come my way. I think I just gravitate to women like that. It's really to do with the writing of the character, and whether it speaks to me — like sometimes I can read something and think 'that's really good, but I don't have any emotional connection to it' or 'I haven't got that spark'. In a rational sense, I know it's really good, it's probably going to be a great project, but I just don't have that launch point within myself in my gut that tells me 'I want to do this'. So I think I just respond to what's on the page. I don't make tactical choices of thinking 'I need to play influential women' — it's more just that I'm drawn to those characters. They're interesting to me." On the Sense of Responsibility That Comes with Playing Éowyn "It does come with responsibility. When you're a returning to a film, I think you have the responsibility, you're carrying the mantle of the history of those trilogies into this film. And I certainly feel when I meet people who are huge fans of film, that this character was really significant to a lot women growing up. Really, really significant, Éowyn's story. And I'm just the person holding that role. The character was written by Tolkien, invented by Tolkien and brought to the screen by Peter Jackson, and I'm just the conduit of it. But it is a responsibility when I meet people to understand their stories and how significant Éowyn was to them." [caption id="attachment_983393" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Thou Shalt Not Steal[/caption] On Whether the Diversity of Otto's Roles From the Past Few Years, Including Talk to Me, The Clearing, Thou Shalt Not Steal and Ladies in Black, Was What She Hoped for When She Was Starting Out "I definitely hoped that I didn't get stuck in the girlfriend roles. I sensed, in the scripts I would read along the way, there was a lot of female roles where you were just the girlfriend and they didn't have a lot of character written on the page. I prefer playing characters that are strongly written on the page, that I can leave myself and become someone else. And it's not just relying on my personality — that I can be somebody else. So I definitely didn't want to, from the beginning, be typecast into any particular thing. I really didn't want to be boxed in. And that's probably why I do tend to choose really different things, because I just don't want to be in any kind of cage, I guess." On What Otto Makes of Her Journey as an Actor So Far, Including Returning to Lord of the Rings "I feel really lucky. I have to say, Lord of the Rings was a really significant part of my career because I think it's given me that longevity in some ways. To have been a part of something that was so beloved has definitely helped my career. I feel really lucky that that I'm working, and that I still get to work with really interesting people. I've worked with a lot of younger, like first-, second-time directors in recent years, which has been really great. I feel really blessed. It's been really nice coming back to Australia, where I've felt like I've been able to jump around and do lots of different things. I've felt like in recent years in Australia, in film and particularly in television, there's a lot of different genres happening now, a lot of different styles, which has been so great and so inspiring to see. Dylan's [River, Robbie Hood] work in Thou Shalt Not Steal is so different to Gracie's [Otto, Seriously Red] work in Ladies in Black, and they're so different to Danny and Michael's [Philippou] work in Talk to Me. So it's just been really nice to work with all those different energies, I think." The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim opened in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, December 12, 2024.
Eco-warrior Joost Bakker (Greenhouse by Joost, Brothl) is at it again, acting as creative consultant for what may become the world's most sustainable shopping centre. Teaming up with Frasers Property Australia, Bakker will design a 2000-square-metre rooftop farm and restaurant at the heart of the new Burwood Brickworks development — set to begin construction in mid 2018, just 15 kilometres south of the Melbourne CBD. The rooftop's massive agricultural hub will sit within the complex's 12,700-square-metres of retail and hospitality space, with the urban farm split between greenhouse, external planter box and landscaped growing areas. Some of the sustainable elements Bakker plans to implement include a closed-loop water system, composting capability, and minimal transportation of food and waste. It has yet to be decided which restaurateur will run the space, with Frasers currently seeking expression of interest from established food and drink providores. The rooftop is already sounding like an inner-city gem and we are eager to see which tenant takes this massive project on. "There is such a hunger for this kind of development throughout the world," says Bakker. It really fills a gap in the market to feed and nurture conscious consumers... [that] want to shop, eat and relax in environments that truly support a sustainable world." The design of the wider mixed-use development will also focus on sustainability, using a large solar PV system and an embedded electricity network to target a minimum five-star green rating, with the aim of becoming Australia's first six-star Green Star Design — and to achieve Living Building Challenge accreditation. This accreditation is seriously hard to obtain and means the building must have a net zero carbon footprint, produce more electricity than it consumes, grow agriculture on 20 percent of the site, and prove net water and waste positive. It must also be constructed using non-toxic and recycled materials, and have other social benefits like access to natural daylight and indoor air quality. Once completed in October 2019, the Burwood Brickworks development will join the challenge to determine if they meet the criteria to be considered the world's most sustainable shopping centre. Here's hoping Frasers puts their money where their mouth is.
Uber's really gunning on the whole transportable goods monopoly, huh. Transport's youngest taxi-threatening empire moved to explore the billion-dollar food delivery market, after the recent Messina delivery hootenanny (which didn't actually work for hundred of new Uber — Newber? — users). But that type of gimmicky PR stunt is going one step further into an actual delivery service: lunch delivered by taxi driver, in under ten minutes. UberFresh is the idea, with the plan to make Uber drivers into the ultimate vehicular-based slashie: equal parts taxi driver and delivery person. Planning to take you "happy to hungry in under ten minutes", the service is capitalising on that bout of hanger that sets in when your delivery snail takes an age to show up. But you can't just order any ol' extravagant, slow-cooked short rib for lunch and expect it to show up in ten. UberFresh works on a limited menu, daily specials restricted to sandwiches, salads or soups from local businesses (with a little side cookie thrown in). You'll have to meet the driver on the street to pick up your lunch, but you just skipped a 20-minute lunch line, so hush. The UberFresh program is currently only available in Santa Monica and on weekdays until September 5. Plans to bring the service to Australia or New Zealand haven't yet been announced, but with the rising rates of Uber users (and the anger at Cabcharge's sneaky extra fees) rising, shouldn't be too long before your lunch is just ten minutes away. Delivery.com and Seamless probably need new pants. Via Grub Street.
Trips to the flicks in Sydney are about to get big again. Huge, even. Massive, in fact. After closing down back in 2016 when the entire building was demolished, the IMAX in Darling Harbour will finally reopen in its newly rebuilt form before 2023 is out. Initially, the venue was meant to relaunch in 2019, then in 2021; however, that clearly didn't happen. Giant nights at the movies are coming to all film lovers who wait, however, complete with a hefty 693-square-metre screen to peer at. That screen really is large. It'll also be part of IMAX's most-advanced theatre experience so far, spanning 4K laser projection using a system with a new optical engine and custom-designed lenses. Thanks to a range of proprietary technology, viewers can apparently expect the images gracing the screen to be brighter, too, with increased resolution, deeper contrast and the widest range of colours that IMAX has seen. As for the sound, that'll be piped through a 12-channel setup. Running the site will be EVT, the hospitality company behind Event Cinemas, Moonlight Cinema, the Skyline Drive-In and the State Theatre, a heap of bars and restaurants, plus QT Hotels, Rydges and other hotel chains. The organisation also has three other IMAX venues to its name: in Auckland and Queensgate in New Zealand, and IMAX Karlsruhe in Germany. As well as that enormous screen, the luxe IMAX Sydney upgrade will include a choice of different seating, such as recliners, couples' lounges and private pods. There'll be 430 seats in total, on par with the old venue. And, the food and beverage range is getting a revamp courtesy of a marketplace experience. "We're thrilled to partner with EVT to bring audiences a world-class movie going experience at the new IMAX Sydney theatre in The Ribbon," said Giovanni Dolci, IMAX's Chief Sales Officer, announcing the news. "We're confident that this iconic venue will become a cultural landmark and will instantly join the ranks of our most celebrated and successful flagship cinemas around the world, from New York, Cannes and Tokyo to Los Angeles, Seoul and London," Dolci continued. View this post on Instagram A post shared by imaxsydney (@imaxsydney) "At EVT, our vision is to be leaders in creating experiences and properties that escape the ordinary. Our research tells us that audiences want choice," added EVT's Director of Entertainment Australia Luke Mackey. "We've created multiple ways to experience IMAX, featuring Australian first premium seating options — full recliners, couples' lounges and private pods. The location also leverages experts from across EVT to deliver elevated food and beverage and an innovative venue for conferences and events. We believe that IMAX Sydney located in the heart of Sydney will be the best IMAX in Australia, attracting locals and tourists alike". There's no word yet as to which massive blockbusters will be gracing the new IMAX screen when it reopens, or an exact date — but Sydneysiders, you'll soon have a new huge spot to see huge flicks. IMAX Sydney will reopen at Darling Harbour sometime in 2023 — we'll update you with an exact date when one is announced.
Marrickville's Illawarra Road now boasts a real deal Peruvian 'taberna', courtesy of long time local José Alkon (Marrick's Wines). Situated between two Vietnamese favourites, Hello Auntie and Eat Fuh, Pepito's is doing things old school. "When I visit Peru, we hang out in tabernas — these 100-year-old family-run institutions that are stripped-back places to go for a drink and some food," Alkon tells Concrete Playground. "It's a really fun kind of vibe and I wanted to bring that back to Australia." Pepito's follows the South American tradition of casual eateries that are equal parts bar and restaurant. Alkon sees a lot of parallels between Marrickville and his favourite Peruvian city, Barranco; much the way Marrickville is a melting pot of cuisines, Peruvian food is also a mash-up of cultural influences, including Japanese, Chinese and Italian. Head Chef Jeffrey Forrest adds one more influence, too. Hailing from the USA, he has worked across Michelin-starred and other highly lauded restaurants in New York (including Bouley, Aldea, Zoe, Gotham and Le Cirque). While Forrest is not of Peruvian heritage, Alkon says customers have already said that Pepito's is the best Peruvian food they've had in Australia. "Most Peruvians will tell you a non-Peruvian cannot make Peruvian food, but I think it shouldn't matter where you're from; it's about your passion and where your heart lies, and people can taste that on the plate," says Alkon. [caption id="attachment_791663" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cassandra Hannagan[/caption] The menu focuses on Peruvian classics, made using seasonal Aussie produce. Expect dishes like the causa de camarones, a layered potato terrine with prawn and avocado salad; and anticuchos ($15–19), a popular Peruvian street food that consists of different skewered and barbecued meats. Pepito's specialties include Nikkei-style quail ($19) — a term that refers to Japanese Peruvian fusion — and ox heart ($16) with panca chilli peppers and huancaina (a spicy cheese sauce). There are also short rib-stuffed potatoes, olive and ham sandwiches, and plates of stir-fried beef. The menu changes regularly and seasonally, with rotating specials and around ten-to-12 dishes on the menu at any given time. The booze selection, of course, focuses on pisco, but it goes well beyond the pisco sour. Alkon is working with small boutique producers from all across Peru, notably in the south. At Pepito's, you can taste sustainably produced pisco, as well as aged bottles dating back to 2004. If straight up isn't your thing, the bar is also slinging four pisco classics ($15–20). Sitting alongside the requisite pisco sour is the Chilcano (house-made ginger ale, lime and bitters) the El Capitan (a negroni-style pisco cocktail with sweet vermouth and Campari) and the summery Pisco Punch (with pineapple syrup and lime). Meanwhile, the wine list has been pulled together by Marrickville bar Where's Nick, with a clear focus on minimal-intervention drops. To preserve the site's history while paying homage to Peru's tabernas, design firm Smith & Carmody (Cornersmith, Mecca, Brickfields) maintained many of the building's existing features. These include all original tiling, the entrance archway and the rustic brick walls, which Alkon exposed by hand using a chisel and hammer. The furniture was also salvaged from an old Queensland bowling club. And the sign from the old Vietnamese seafood shop that once occupied the space still hangs above the storefront, too. Images: Cassandra Hannagan
Finding a spot that appeals to everyone can be tough. Sometimes you're hankering for a pét-nat, but your evening's partner in crime would scoff at the lack of prosecco on the Love, Tilly Devine list. Well, if you're looking to be a little adventurous but you're hanging out with someone who, when asked "do you want an orange wine?", would respond with "I prefer a drop from Mudgee", look no further than Now and Then, Clarence Street's new bar that's serving up new-age drinks and tried-and-true throwbacks in equal proportions. The underground CBD bar comes from Natalie Ng, the mind behind another intimate inner-city fave Door Knock, alongside co-owner Locky Peach. Ng calls her new venue "predominantly a cocktail bar without the wank", basing the offerings around a simple crowd-pleasing concept. The drinks menu at Now and Then is split into two distinct sections. You guessed it: the 'Now' and the 'Then'. On the modern side of the menu you'll find funkier wines — whether that be a skin contact or a chilled red — as well as more boundary-pushing cocktails, craft beers and Mango White Claws for all of the seltzer fans. Over on the more traditional section, you'll discover seasonal sherry cobblers, caipiroskas, Coopers Sparkling Red Ale and a selection of more traditional vinos including sav blanc, pinot noir, rosé and Perrier-Jouët Brut by the glass. "Some people love a buttery chardonnay or a big Barossa Valley shiraz, and some love natural, minimal sulphur/preservatives or orange wines. Here, the choice is broken down easily for you," says Peach. Adding to the experience at Now and Then is a short and snappy list of bar snacks. The lobster and prawn vol-au-vent, the panko-crumbed ham hock croquette and the Moroccan lamb cigars will all hit the spot for anyone looking to treat themselves to a satisfying bite while enjoying the drinks. Ng is even offering personally curated snack and cocktail pairings — ideal for afternoon catch-ups and Friday drinks. Kick off your night with the Manhattan United made with bread- and butter-washed whiskey, sweet vermouth and walnut, partnered with the hot ham hock croquette, served with mustard aioli, all for $30. Rounding out the offerings here is the Now and Then commitment to bringing some fun back to its corner of Clarence Street. Each Friday and Saturday you'll find live music and DJ sets from 9pm–2am. To stay up to date with the venue's nightlife, just follow the bar on Instagram. Now and Then is located at 222 Clarence Street, Sydney. For more information and to make a booking or browse the menu, head to the venue's website.
Hankering for a visit to Europe this year, but don't have the cash? Skip the plane trip and head along to The Rocks' French-inspired Christmas in July Village, set to coincide with Circular Quay's Bastille Festival. The market will take over Argyle Street for four days and nights, from Thursday, July 11 until Sunday, July 14. To make it feel as authentic as possible, 25 wooden chalets (more than twice as many as last year) will be shipped in from France. These little shacks will be set up around the area, with vendors serving up heart-warming snacks, mulled wine, freshly roasted chestnuts, a gingerbread house and Christmasy creations. The markets will open at 10am each day, but it's when the sun goes down that things will really get magical. Snow will be falling from the skies, all thanks to snowfall machines — and it'll pair perfectly with a very European blanket of fairy lights, Christmas pines, and a soundtrack of English and French Christmas carols. Expect a Club Med ski village vibe, too, with old ski racks dusted with snow, a pop-up ice skating rink for kids, and a Christmas-themed pop-up bar for adults (only) complete with cocktails and karaoke. The Christmas in July Village will take place over four nights, from from 10am–11pm each night except Sunday, which will wrap up at 9pm. If you can't wait till then, then visit the regular Friday Foodie Markets that take place in the Rocks every week from 9am–3pm. Updated May 19.
Arriving in a flurry of new openings for the Sydney CBD in the closing days of 2023, King Clarence marks the Sydney return of acclaimed chef Khanh Nguyen who's teamed up with the award-winning hospo crew Bentley Dining Group (the team behind Monopole, Cirrus and, of course, Bentley Restaurant + Bar). It's a case of the prodigal son returning home, Nguyen rejoined the group after cutting his teeth at the team's restaurants early in his career before moving down to Melbourne to open his wonderful restaurant Aru. The expansive venture celebrates Chinese, Japanese and Korean cuisine in a 100-seat space that co-owner Brent Savage describes as "fun, loud, and busy". The menu is designed around the kitchen's custom-built barbecue and live seafood tanks. Impressive highlights pulled from the tanks or placed on the grill include the signature grilled rock lobster, 14-day aged duck, whole roasted pork belly ssam and grilled miso eggplant. Choose your poison and pair it with a cucumber salad and spanner crab fried rice. Or, order a selection of lighter dishes, including the signature fish finger bao, woodfired edamame, lime and nori scallops, pork and prawn dumplings, and Spencer Gulf kingfish collar. Hate to choose? Never fear, there's a pair of set menus available for $95–154, depending on how extravagant you pictured your night. The next-level Signatures Menu runs through plenty of the above items, plus oysters, beef tartare, chicken liver skewers and coffee parfait for dessert. Matching the ambition of the King Clarence menu is the drinks on offer, especially the vino. Polly Mackarel, former Head Sommelier at Cirrus, is curating and guiding you through a wine list that's equal parts approachable and comprehensive. There are more than 40 drops available by the glass and plenty of bottles on offer for $100, with the list placing particular focus on rieslings, chardonnay and medium-bodied reds. Those looking to impress can even dip into the Bentley Wine Vault for a rare drop if the budget allows. This is one to get on your new restaurant hit list ASAP.
What do Borat, Nicole Kidman, Homer Simpson and the creepy 'Red Light, Green Light' doll from Squid Game all have in common? At different points over the past year or so, they've all popped up in Sydney in a big way. First came giant statues and giant billboards, which is all well and good and normal. Now, The Rocks is temporarily home to a 4.5-metre, three-tonne recreation of Squid Game's eerie animatronic figure with laser eyes. If you've seen the hit Netflix series, you'll know why this towering short-term addition to the city is so unnerving. If you've noticed what time of the year it is right now, you'll know why it has set up shop now, too. Yes, it's just your ordinary, everyday, super-unsettling Halloween installation — one that recreates a savage South Korean TV show about people competing in childhood games and getting killed right by Sydney Harbour. Already donning your finest green tracksuit? (Or your best red number, if that's what you'd prefer?) You'll find the doll at Circular Quay W, The Rocks, from today, Friday, October 29, through until Monday, November 1. And yes, this IRL version is animated and moves — its head even turns — for maximum effect. You will need to be double-vaccinated to add some Squid Game chaos to your Halloween weekend, and the pop-up is only for over 16s. Patrons are asked to play safe, not to run and to abide by the one person per two-square-metres density rule — or they'll be eliminated. This isn't really Squid Game, though, so you'll just be asked to leave. Maybe steer clear of anyone playing ddakji in a train station on the way there and back, though. And if you decide to get caught up in a game of tug of war or marbles, that's on you. Find Squid Game's 'Red Light, Green Light' doll at 4 Circular Quay W, The Rocks, from Friday, October 29–Monday, November 1.
The Abercrombie is back! The storied corner pub and haven of electronic music reopened at the end of 2022 with Solotel at the helm, bringing packed dance floors nd its 24-hour license back to Chippendale. The expansive space boasts three mini-venues within the overarching title of The Abercrombie. The main bar and beer garden plays home to regular events hosted by some of the best tastemakers and party crews from around Sydney, Australia and the world. When the beats aren't firing, this area serves as a friendly neighbourhood haunt with beers and cocktails on tap, pizza by the slice and Italian mains for those that may get peckish. Head up two floors and you'll discover a sleek cocktail lounge and rooftop bar called Casa Rosa. The food here draws from the Mediterranean, and the DJs spin Italo-disco classics until the early hours of the morning. Rounding out the trio of offerings is Lil Sis. This final piece of the puzzle is located in the adjoining terraces next to the pub. Here, you'll find a cosy wine bar serving up classic drops and new-world, minimal-intervention wines, both of which can be enjoyed on-site or be taken away. While the venue generally stays open until 5am on weekends, those open hours can stretch even further — sometimes all the way into the next day — when special event are on. The club immediately reopened to lines around the block and a boundary-pushing program of dance music, with no signs of slowing down. Maybe there is hope for Sydney's nightlife after all. Appears in: The Best Pubs in Sydney The Best Rooftop Bars in Sydney
When 2019 rolls to a close, more than 550 films will have screened in Australasian cinemas across the entire year. That's a huge amount of movies — enough to send you to your favourite picture palace almost twice a day. But unless watching films is your actual job, you probably don't have the time (or stamina, willpower or eagerness to basically live in a darkened room) to see anywhere near that many flicks. So, you prioritise. And, based on 2019's box office tallies, that means that most folks see all the big titles. This year, it seems that absolutely everyone caught a session of Avengers: Endgame, The Lion King, Captain Marvel, Joker and Aladdin. Plenty of cinemagoers spent some time with Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum, Yesterday and Alita: Battle Angel, too. Excellent movies such as Us and Hustlers also found a crowd. Terrible flicks like Men in Black: International and The Angry Birds Movie 2 did as well. And, although it actually first hit cinemas at the beginning of November 2018 (and ranked fourth in last year's box office), Bohemian Rhapsody still currently sits 15th in terms of ticket sales in 2019. While you were watching all of the above flicks (or watching Bohemian Rhapsody again, apparently), you might've missed some of 2019's smaller gems. They're the movies that weren't plastered all over billboards, didn't spend weeks and months on every screen around town, and you could've blinked and missed them. Thankfully, they all still exist — and we've compiled a rundown of the films that rank among the year's best, but you might not have seen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMs28A1s1OA BORDER Rarely has a movie felt as unique, engrossing and electrifying as Swedish film Border, the sophomore feature from Iranian-Danish writer/director Ali Abbasi. Based on a short story by Let the Right One In author John Ajvide Lindqvist, this constantly surprising horror- and fantasy-tinged drama sifts through the life of customs agent Tina (a phenomenal Eva Melander), who is especially suited to her job thanks to her special ability: due to a chromosome flaw, she can smell what people are feeling. When the mysterious Vore (Eero Milonoff) passes through her checkpoint, his scent sets her nostrils ablaze with curiousity. This isn't an unconventional meet-cute in a quirky rom-com, though. In a film that saunters into dark genre territory with a purpose, Border savvily draws on myth, sci-fi and body horror to explore societal limits, the concept of otherness and the search for identity that plagues us all. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwJ5LDOl2Tc ACUTE MISFORTUNE If Adam Cullen had been any other artist and Erik Jensen any other journalist, Acute Misfortune may not exist. In 2008, the former invited the latter to stay with him, see him at his best and worst, and channel his life story into a biography — and, as dramatised by actor-turned-filmmaker Thomas M. Wright, the results are blistering. Just as Jensen didn't shy away from Cullen's erratic, frequently controversial nature, nor does this stunning drama, which could never be accused of being a straightforward biopic of the Archibald-winning painter. Aided by stellar performances by Daniel Henshall as Cullen and Toby Wallace as Jensen, as well as a script by co-written by the real-life Jensen, this is a warts-and-all portrait that lays bare not only its subject, but Australia's fascination with festering masculinity, and it's a lively and compelling watch from start to finish. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VTFLvLtdYw SKATE KITCHEN Crystal Moselle's first and second films shouldn't share as much in common as they do. With documentary The Wolfpack, the American filmmaker stepped inside a Manhattan apartment inhabited by a homeschooled family, who learned about the wider world by watching and re-enacting movies. With the fictional Skate Kitchen, she glides across New York's streets with the titular all-female skate crew — and it still feels like she's entering a rarely seen realm. That's partly this equally expressive and naturalistic drama's point, as it conveys through the story of 18-year-old Camille (Rachelle Vinberg), a Long Island teen who finds the part of herself she's been missing when she joins Skate Kitchen. A flame-haired Jaden Smith also pops up as one of the boys in the crew's orbit, but this film belongs to its fantastic real-life skater cast, and to the fiercely female perspective it champions. Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amB2Ol6wihg HAIL SATAN? Hail Satan? isn't trying to recruit new members to the Satanic Temple, but that might happen anyway. Exploring satanism beyond the usual horror movie trappings, filmmaker Penny Lane crafts engaging and amusing documentary about a controversial group endeavouring to subvert the societal status quo in a broader sense. Yes, goat horns, fetish outfits and heavy metal all feature, but this is primarily a chronicle of concerned citizens speaking out against the the current political climate. They're fighting for true freedom of belief, which doesn't just mean enshrining discriminatory and oppressive conservative Christian values — a topic of particular relevance in Australia at present. They're also battling religious-motivated hate, championing equality and rallying against injustice in general, like any other social activist group. As seen in this sympathetic but illuminating film, that's the kind of satanic panic that many could get onboard with. Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTh4uTFWPeg THE THIRD WIFE For her impressive directorial debut, Vietnamese-born filmmaker Ash Mayfair delves into her ancestry. The story: the arranged marriage of a 14-year-old girl to an already twice-wed wealthy landowner, with the late-19th century-set tale drawing its details from Mayfair's own family history. In rural Vietnam, and in the life and experiences of May (Nguyen Phuong Tra My), The Third Wife unpacks the minutiae of a patriarchal system that treats women like property — all as its protagonist is told she must bear her husband a son, and strives to find what little contentment she can in her new life. Favouring lush imagery over dialogue, this is a moving and ravishing film not only aesthetically, but in the simmering emotions clearly felt by May and the other languishing ladies around her. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TslErMXUBp4 HAPPY AS LAZZARO At first, Happy As Lazzaro seems straightforward — venturing to a traditional Italian estate, following the interplay between its tobacco farm workers and the arrogant aristocracy who decide their fates, and doing so in both a poetic and naturalistic manner. The film's eponymous figure, the kindly and caring Lazzaro (Adriano Tardiolo), stands out from his agitated rural brethren by virtue of his good-natured demeanour; however writer/director Alice Rohrwacher appears content to watch him navigate the sometimes ordinary, sometimes exaggerated struggles of feudal life. Then, in a twist that needs to be seen to be believed, this Cannes Best Screenplay winner changes. Making a connection with modern-day life, the wry film cements its status as a parable. Equally surreal and astute, the end product is one of the most distinctive films of this and many other years. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zch4VPKGBwU ISLAND OF THE HUNGRY GHOSTS Despite its festive name, Christmas Island has been splashed across Australia's news headlines for all the wrong reasons. For much of the 21st century, it has been one of the places where those fleeing hostilities and seeking asylum have been housed — amid protests, controversies, closures and, this year, the re-opening of its Immigration Reception and Processing Centre. In a potent, haunting blend of fact and recreation that proves far more effective than a straightforward documentary, Australian filmmaker Gabrielle Brady ponders the impact of the site and its purpose on those who call it home. Trauma counsellor Poh Lin Lee draws the film's focus, with her discussions with detained refugees, her daily life, her family, the island's migrating crabs and its history all playing a part in this compassionate, deservedly acclaimed movie. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwgUesU1pz4 UNDER THE SILVER LAKE After working horror fans into a frenzy with It Follows, David Robert Mitchell opted for a neo-noir black comedy for his next film. A thematic companion piece to similarly sprawling, spiralling, slacker-focused California-set fare such as Inherent Vice and The Big Lebowski, Under the Silver Lake hones in on aimless 33-year-old Sam (Andrew Garfield), who stumbles upon several mysteries. Murdered pets, his alluring new neighbour (Riley Keough), a missing billionaire and an underground zine series about local neighbourhood legends all rate a mention in this deliriously labyrinthine movie, as do Hollywood history and ominous conspiracies. Mitchell's technical game is pitch-perfect, as evidenced in both the film's vibrant images and intoxicating score, with every element inviting audiences along for a wild and rewarding ride. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLIQABWm2mg FINKE: THERE AND BACK The past few years have been memorable for Dylan River. The Alice Springs filmmaker directed Robbie Hood, the delightful SBS web series; was the cinematographer on rousing Adam Goodes documentary The Australian Dream; and worked as the second unit director on Sweet Country, which was helmed by his father Warwick Thornton. He also wrote, directed and shot Finke: There and Back. While the iconic Finke Desert Race is the kind of event that you're either into or you're not — it's a rough, tough, two-day off-terrain trek through central Australia's dust and dirt via motorbike and car, and it's been known to cause casualties — this insightful documentary is for everyone. Through intimate interviews and striking on-the-ground footage, River follows the competitors before and during the race, telling their tales while exploring a difficult feat from the inside. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=322NzXR3n4o LORDS OF CHAOS According to Euronymous (Rory Culkin), Norway is known for "seal clubbing and a very high suicide rate". If that sounds far from cheery, then this simultaneously dramatic and comic true crime tale won't be for you. Fictionalising a spate of murders and church burnings in the early 90s, Lords of Chaos spends time with the bleak-minded guitarist and his bandmates as they scream and thrash their way through the Norwegian black metal scene, shaping its early days as they go along. History dictates that this is an incredibly dark story, and director Jonas Åkerlund — an ex-Swedish black metal rocker himself — doesn't shy away from its violence. That said, he firmly recognises that he's following wannabe rebels looking for any cause they can find. Åkerlund also made the abysmal straight-to-Netflix John Wick clone Polar, but with Lords of Chaos, he tackles a grim story with both brutal style and weight.
Kick off the first weekend of summer with a massive street party, taking over the laneway between The Courthouse Hotel and Websters Bar in Newtown. Hitting the bustling thoroughfare on Saturday, December 2, 2023's Newtown Street Party will feature a cracking lineup of local musicians, plus a hefty program of food and drinks. Presented by The Courty and Young Henrys, the laneway mini festival will welcome sets from The Beefs, Sweet Talk, Greatest Hits, Salarymen, RISSA, Manfredo Lament and Lady Lyon. Evening Records DJs will also be on-site on the day to set the tone behind the decks. [caption id="attachment_747996" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Mary's burgers[/caption] Mary's will be bringing its beloved burgers down a couple of streets to keep patrons well fed, alongside a selection of tacos being cooked up by The Courty's culinary crew. And there will be pop-up bars from both the beloved pub and Young Henrys, serving up ice-cold tinnies. This is the second year the Newtown Street Party is popping up — an evolution of The Courthouse and Young Henrys' popular tinnie crack event. Entry is free via donation, with the event raising money for the Newtown Neighbourhood Centre. [caption id="attachment_928037" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Salarymen, Tom Wilkinson[/caption] Top image: Young Henrys Tinnie Crack.
As Carmy in The Bear, Jeremy Allen White was born to cook up kitchen chaos. In Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere, he's born to run, slipping into Bruce Springsteen's shoes in the next big music biopic that's on its way to cinemas. Less than 12 months after Bob Dylan scored the same treatment in the Oscar-nominated A Complete Unknown, another icon is getting their filmic time to shine. Deliver Me From Nowhere has a time-specific focus, too, with the making of the rockstar's 1982 Nebraska record in the spotlight. Does the just-dropped first trailer for the film deliver White singing, including belting out 'Born to Run' onstage? Does it also feature Jeremy Strong (The Apprentice) monologuing in the role of Springsteen's manager Jon Landau? Does it head into the Boss' New Jersey bedroom, where the acoustic album that joined his discography immediately before 1984's smash-hit Born in the USA was recorded? The answer to all three: yes. Also seen, alongside Allen swapping The Bear for another real-life tale after The Iron Claw: glimpses of Stephen Graham (Adolescence) plays as Springsteen's father Dutch Springsteen and Gaby Hoffmann (Poker Face) as his mother Adele. The movie's cast spans Odessa Young (The Narrow Road to the Deep North), Marc Maron (Stick), Paul Walter Hauser (Cobra Kai) and David Krumholtz (The Studio) as well. Audiences will be able to check out their efforts Down Under from Thursday, October 23, 2025. Scott Cooper (The Pale Blue Eye) both directs and penned the script, adapting the latter from Warren Zanes' book Deliver Me From Nowhere: The Making of Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska. The last time that the filmmaker focused on a musician was in his 2009 debut Crazy Heart, fictionalising the story of Hank Thompson — and Jeff Bridges (The Old Man) won the Best Actor Oscar for his starring role. "Making Springsteen was deeply moving as it allowed me to step inside the soul of an artist I've long admired — and to witness, up close, the vulnerability and strength behind his music. The experience felt like a journey through memory, myth and truth. And more than anything, it was a privilege to translate that raw emotional honesty to the screen, and in doing so, it changed me. I cannot thank Bruce and Jon Landau enough for allowing me to tell their story," said Cooper about Deliver Me From Nowhere. Check out the first trailer for Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere below: Deliver Me From Nowhere releases in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, October 23, 2025. Images: © 2025 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
Presenting Wilhelmina's Liquid + Larder: Starring the food talents of recent MasterChef finalist Jamie Fleming, it’s the third instalment from James Bradey and Warren Burns, the producers who brought you cosmopolitan kitsch at Grandma's Bar and Irish folk fun at The Wild Rover. At Wilhelmina's, there’s no theme or gimmick to get you in the door; it’s just local, fresh, seasonal and sensational. Located on Balmain’s Darling Street, Wilhelmina’s celebrates the local community through food, drink and design. Recycled materials from the timber yard make up the back bar and walls, local pottery hangs from the ceiling, and then there’s the vibrant mural by local artist Anya Brock. While bar menus are typically crowd-pleasing and cholesterol-inducing, Wilhelmina’s opts for fresh and thoughtful selections that change with the daily market offerings. Today, there’s a plate of kingfish ceviche ($14), where twirls of raw kingfish sit with piles of crumbed pistachio and pickled cucumber, garnished with translucent slivers of radish. There’s little resemblance to the traditional Peruvian version — will these fusion flavours spell disaster for Jamie? The music is tense and we cut to an ad break where George Calombaris spruiks Swisse Vitamins. Fortunately, the flavours are inventive, intelligent and it “packs a punch”. Jamie is safe for this round. Cue uplifting music. So there's that. But for a more substantial evening meal, the Newcastle pippies ($23) are a mariner’s paradise. These butterflied beauties swim in a buttery white wine broth, served with a great hunk of sourdough sourced from Sydney's Bread and Butter project. If it's a beer-friendly bar snack you need, don't go past the Berkshire pork cheek croquettes ($8) or a cup of Wilhelmina’s spiced nuts ($5). If you’re sceptical about beetroot’s place on a dessert menu, you’ll be left red-faced after trying the delicious lemon posset ($9.50). It balances with precision a tangy lemon curd with a sweet beetroot gel and it’s finished off with an almond crumb topping for textual crunch. Wilhelmina’s doesn't drop the ball in the drinks department either. There’s an extensive list of local boutique wines, craft beers and inventive cocktails to ponder over. The Thyme Me Up cocktail ($16) mixes rum, banana, apple and thyme into a marvellously herbaceous creation. As this episode draws to a close, it’s time to hold up our scorecards. Wilhelmina's is a winner, and what's more, Balmain’s masterful new bar is sure to score high ratings with the locals.
Unsurprisingly, Paul Feig has had Wham!'s 'Last Christmas' stuck in his head for some time. Given that the Bridesmaids, Ghostbusters and A Simple Favour director's latest film is a festive rom-com based on the well-known 1980s hit, and uses 14 other songs by the late, great George Michael, that comes with the territory. "It never goes away — but in a great way," he explains. Feig isn't complaining. "The funny thing is that, when you're working on a Christmas movie, your entire year is Christmas," he says. "So, in the middle of May, when you're singing 'Last Christmas' while you're walking down the street, you're like, 'this is weird'. But now it all comes full circle and you're like, 'I'm all set!'." Starring Emilia Clarke as down-on-her-luck Londoner Kate, and Henry Golding as the handsome stranger who turns her life upside down — again, in a good way — Last Christmas isn't Feig's first Yuletide-themed movie. That honour goes to 2006's Unaccompanied Minors, although considering the higher-profile titles on his resume (he created cult TV series Freaks and Geeks, featured on-screen in the 90s version of Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and also helmed The Heat and Spy), it's hardly his calling card. Indeed, based on his past experience on that feature, he didn't particularly want to make another Christmas movie. But Feig is a seasonal film fan. His favourite picture of all time: It's A Wonderful Life. Guided by his background in the genre, his love of watching Christmas movies himself, and a witty script co-penned by Emma Thompson (after he almost directed her in Late Night), Last Christmas is his attempt to add a new perennial go-to to everyone's end-of-year viewing lists. With recently Feig visiting Australia to promote the release of the movie, we chatted with the filmmaker about all things festive on-screen, creating a "warm hug" of a movie and championing funny women — among other topics. ON RETURNING TO THE CHRISTMAS GENRE "It was really Emma Thompson's script. Honestly, I didn't want to do another Christmas movie — and she said, 'oh I've got this script together, you should read it and we should do it'. And I was like, 'oh how exciting, it's Emma Thompson'. And then you open it up and it says Last Christmas and you're like, 'oh no, it's a Christmas movie'. But it was so good. My favourite movie in the world is It's A Wonderful Life, and to me, this had elements of that. It had elements of just every rom-com I've ever loved, too. And also it had this great lead character in Kate, who's this very challenging woman who is not behaving the way that women are normally meant to act in these movies. And Emma's writing was so smart and so honest about this woman that I couldn't not do it." ON THE ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF A CHRISTMAS MOVIE "[On Unaccompanied Minors] I learned that a Christmas movie needs to have a lot of layers. It needs to really have emotion — and characters that people relate to, and feel that the kind of issues that come around Christmas sort are filtering through them. Those layers are what gives you depth and reality. Here, Last Christmas is not only about a women surviving a catastrophic illness, but it's also an immigrant story. And that really appealed to me — this displaced family who were doing well in their country and, because of a war, had to flee, and now they've ended up in this big city where they can't do what they normally did, and how they're all damaged by that. None of us set out to make a political movie, but at the same time, if you're going to make a film about an immigrant family in London in 2017, they are going to be affected by Brexit. It's going to affect their psyche. I really liked that that layer was in there, but not in a way of just being preachy or being anti-anything — just saying 'look, these are the consequences of how people feel because of these things'." ON TRYING TO MAKE A FILM THAT VIEWERS WILL REVISIT EVERY YEAR "You definitely think about it. It's funny — when I made Unaccompanied Minors, I'd never made a Christmas movie before. So you kind of go is 'well, the great thing about this is it's going to be a movie that people are going to watch every year, and it's going to become a favourite, a perennial!'. And then you find out that that's not true. There are a tonne of Christmas movies, and a lot of them are very forgettable. A lot of them just sort of disappear and don't make that once-a-year list. If you look at that list, it's incredibly small. So I just realised that you can't take it for granted, and you just really have to make the best movie you can. Again, it's all about the characters and story. That's the only reason that any movie works. But you also make it, as Emma calls this movie, 'a warm hug' — that, visually, it's got this beauty of Christmas to it, and it's got this happy, lovely glow. I wanted to make Last Christmas something you'd want to revisit, hopefully not just at Christmas time, but definitely when Christmas rolls around — to make it one of these things that you have warm memories about and makes you feel good. Because no Christmas movie doesn't make you feel good at the end. Maybe Black Christmas or some horror movie. Even then, I think probably the protagonist wins and defeats evil. I remember when I first saw It's A Wonderful Life in film school — and saying that if I could make a movie that makes me feel the way that I do at the end of that movie, if I could do that on my own, then I would be very happy. I definitely feel like, for me, our movie gives you that same world of feeling." ON THE CHRISTMAS MOVIES HE REVISITS AGAIN AND AGAIN "Love Actually is such a great one, because it's so uplifting. I love watching that because I can never get over what a master feat Richard Curtis did juggling all those stories in a way that you follow them all and care about them all — that's the hardest thing in the world. But then, I like Die Hard. I think that's a great Christmas movie. I know there's a lot of controversy — people say it's not a Christmas movie, but I'm on the 'it's a Christmas movie' side. And it ends with 'Let it Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!'!" ON CHAMPIONING WOMEN IN COMEDY — AND WEATHERING THE DEBATE SURROUNDING GHOSTBUSTERS "It just shows you how ridiculous and how behind the times Hollywood has been for so long — the fact that we're still arguing that. Especially about should women be in certain franchises or roles and all that kind of thing. But the most onerous part is just the 'are women funny or not?' question. You just have to scratch your head and go 'what year are we in? Is it 100 years in the past? Have I stumbled into a time machine or something?'. It's not even a valid question, but people still seem to bring it up. How many times can we disprove it? How many hilarious women can there be before people wake up. But I think it's the same thing as, when I talk to people and they go, 'oh, the food in London is terrible'. And I say, 'when was the last time you were in London?'. And they go, 'well 20 years ago'. That's the dumbest thing. You're just saying some stupid thing and passing along some trope that you heard somebody else say, and it doesn't even make any sense. So yeah, it's crazy." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co5jWMYsr34 Last Christmas is now screening in Australian cinemas — read our full review.
Throw those GoPros, bubble bottles and novelty gumboots in your rucksack, Splendour in the Grass is returning to North Byron Parklands for another year of festival merriment. After a fake lineup posted was 'leaked' prior to the official triple j announcement to catfish all us suckers eagerly awaiting the list of acts that will be appearing, the details for Splendour 2016 are finally here. In what is the best news we've heard this year, The Strokes (The Strokes!!!) will be Splendouring for their only Australian show. It also seems the predictions for The Cure were incredibly, amazingly correct — meaning that we'll be seeing both The Strokes and The Cure this July. It's almost too much to handle. Joining them is one heck of a lineup that includes The Avalanches — who haven't played a gig (that wasn't a DJ set) in over ten years. Fingers crossed the show coincides with new music. Iceland's Sigur Rós and Irish artist James Vincent McMorrow will also being doing one-off Australian shows at the festival, Courtney Barnett will make her first appearance at Byron, while James Blake and At the Drive-In will return, as will locals Flume and Sticky Fingers. Anyway, we know what you're here for. We'll cut to the chase. SPLENDOUR IN THE GRASS 2016 LINEUP The Strokes (only Aus show) The Cure Flume The Avalanches (only Aus show) James Blake At The Drive-In Violent Soho Hermitude Band of Horses Sigur Ros (only Aus show) Santigold Matt Corby Sticky Fingers Boy & Bear Courtney Barnett Jake Bugg The 1975 Leon Bridges Duke Dumont (DJ set) James Vincent McMorrow (only Aus show) The Kills The Preatures What So Not Years And Years Gang Of Youths Illy Peter, Bjorn & John Golden Features Crystal Fighters Ball Park Music Tegan & Sara DMA'S Jack Garratt Hayden James City Calm Down Snakehips Mark Lanegan Michael Kiwanuka Jagwar Ma King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard The Jungle Giants The Internet Motez Marlon Williams Lido Emma Louise Kim Churchill Nothing But Thieves Lapsley Kacy Hill Slumberjack Robert Forster (10 Years On) Beach Slang Urthboy Little May Boo Seeka Ganz Spring King Melbourne Ska Orchestra Fat White Family Total Giovanni Methyl Ethel Slum Sociable L D R U In Loving Memory of Szymon Blossoms High Tension Roland Tings Sampa The Great The Wild Feathers Harts Ngaiire montaigne Tired Lion Green Buzzard Jess Kent Gold Class Lucy Cliche Opiuo Mall grab Dom Dolla Paces Just A Gent Dro Carey Running Touch Wafia World Champion Suzi Zhen Remi Nicole Millar Dreller Feki Kllo Banoffee Plus... Moonbase Comander The Meeting Tree Twinsy Purple Sneaker Djs Human Movement Panete Swick Amateur Dance Ribongia Splendour will return to North Byron Parklands on Friday 22, Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 July. Onsite camping will once again be available from Wednesday, July 20. Image: Bianca Holderness.
Name a fictional detective — be it Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Nancy Drew, Scooby-Doo, Inspector Gadget or Benoit Blanc — and, no matter who they are or which cases they've solved, someone has wanted to follow in their footsteps. Actually, more than a few someones have. We've all done it: watched, read or listened to a murder-mystery, then figured that we could solve a big case if the situation arose. Thanks to podcasts such as Serial, as well as the recent true-crime boom in general, that's become the default reaction to hearing about an unsolved or thorny story. It's also the premise behind returning Disney+ series Only Murders in the Building, which satirises the fact that everyone has wanted to be Sarah Koenig over the past decade. Only Murders in the Building has its own version of Koenig, called Cinda Canning (Tina Fey, Girls5eva). As viewers of the show's first season know, though, she's not the marvellous murder-mystery comedy's focus. Instead, it hones in on three New Yorkers residing in the Arconia apartment complex — where, as the program's name makes plain, there's a murder. There's several, but it only takes one to initially bring actor Charles-Haden Savage (Steve Martin, It's Complicated), theatre producer Oliver Putnam (Martin Short, Schmigadoon!) and the much-younger Mabel Mora (Selena Gomez, The Dead Don't Die) together. The trio then turn amateur detectives, and turn that sleuthing into their own podcast, which also shares the show's title. In season two, which starts streaming Down Under on Tuesday, June 28, the show returns to the same scene. No time has passed for Only Murders in the Building's characters — and, while plenty has changed since the series' debut episode last year, plenty remains the same. Viewers now know Charles, Oliver and Mabel better, and they all know each other better, but that only makes things more complicated. Indeed, there's a lived-in vibe to the program and its main figures this time around, rather than every episode feeling like a new discovery. Among the many things that Only Murders in the Building does exceptionally well, finding multiple ways to parallel on- and off-screen experiences ranks right up there. That applies to podcast fixations, naturally, and also to getting to know someone, learning their ins and outs, and finding your comfort zone even when life's curveballs keep coming. There wouldn't be another season without another murder, however. This time, Arconia board president Bunny Folger (Jayne Houdyshell, Little Women) has left the land of the living. The OMITB crew were all known to have their struggles with her, so they're all persons of interest. They have media profiles now, due to their first-season success. Canning herself starts a podcast about the podcasters. It's Mabel who finds Bunny, in fact, sparking too many internet theories. And, to the joy of the actual NYPD detective on the case (Michael Rapaport, Life & Beth), all the evidence keeps pointing at her, Charlies and Oliver. Even if you've only watched one murder-mystery before, you know the old cliche about returning to the scenes of crimes. Generally, that's what the guilty do, driven by a need to witness the aftermath of their handiwork, insert themselves into the investigation and enjoy a second round of thrills. But Only Murders in the Building makes a comeback for a different reason, which definitely doesn't involve zapping more enjoyment out of evil deeds. At a series level, there's none of the latter to revel in anyway. The first season was such a warm and amusing gem — and smart and astute, too, whether it was serving up odd-thruple banter, or parodying whodunnits and their obsessives — that it instantly became one of 2021's best small-screen newcomers. What makes season two tick is the same thing that made season one tick, though: the show's fondness for people above all else. They're the only thing that ever truly matters in any murder-mystery, as should always be the case when someone has lost their life at the hands of another. In its first batch of episodes, Only Murders in the Building made a point of identifying its victim's flaws and troubles — explaining why more than a few people wanted him dead, because that's the genre's whole concept — but also took great care to flesh him out as a person, too. It does the same with Bunny the second time around, unsurprisingly. Indeed, diving into the ups and downs, strengths and struggles, and wins and losses that make the Arconia's inhabitants who they are is as crucial a part of the show as figuring out who decides to wield a gun, knife or knitting needle. Only Murders in the Building has been doing exactly that with Charles, Oliver and Mabel from the outset, of course, and keeps digging into its central trio. But new residents and familiar faces alike still get the same treatment during season two, including Amy Schumer as herself and the returning Theo Dimas (James Caverly, A Bennett Song Holiday). Viewers learn more about Charles' past with his father, which may be linked to Bunny — and his connection to Lucy (Zoe Colletti, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark), the now-teenager who was almost his stepdaughter. Oliver's bond with his son Will (Ryan Broussard, Modern Love) gets pushed into the spotlight, as does his need to be the dip-eating centre of attention. And Mabel's distrust of others continues to help drive the narrative, especially after she becomes the key suspect and gets badged #BloodyMabel on social media. Around of all the above, there are blackouts and 70s-style parties, canny commentary about lives lived online and lonely hearts in equal measures, wonderful one-liners and knowing in-jokes, and an impressive balance of comedy and heart. If cracking any case is all about puzzling together the right pieces, then Only Murders in the Building has found its ideal components — more so in season two, which is weightier, deeper, funnier, more insightful and more charming. It's also an even better showcase for its three leads, who just might be the most likeable trio currently gracing any series. Martin, Short and Gomez all such delights together that they deserve their own podcast about why they're so great playing podcast-obsessed podcasters. If you're already a fan of Only Murders in the Building, you know you'd listen to it. Check out the trailer for Only Murders in the Building season two below: Only Murders in the Building's second season starts streaming Down Under via Star on Disney+ on Tuesday, June 28, starting with two episodes, then airing new instalments weekly. Read our full review of the show's first season. Images: Craig Blankenhorn/Hulu.
It's alive: Guillermo del Toro's version of Frankenstein, that is, with the Oscar Isaac (Moon Knight)- and Jacob Elordi (The Narrow Road to the Deep North)-starring film on its way to Netflix before 2025 is out. Earlier in the year, the platform unveiled the movie's initial trailer. Now comes a range of images that provide a new glimpse at the director's version of Mary Shelley's horror masterpiece, including a first look at Elordi as the creature. Oscar-winning The Shape of Water director del Toro will be the first to tell anyone, as he did at Neflix's annual Tudum event for 2025, that he's long had an obsession with Frankenstein, that he's been weaving that affection for it into his work since he first hopped behind the camera and that making his own adaptation of the gothic-horror masterpiece is a dream come true. "This is, for me, the culmination of a journey that has occupied most of my life," he advised the crowd at the time. So far, from its trailer and images, that love for Shelley's now 207-year-old novel is evident in every frame of del Toro's Frankenstein. "I first read Mary Shelley's book as a kid, and saw Boris Karloff in what became, for me, an almost-religious stage," he continued at Tudum while accompanied by Isaac and co-star Mia Goth (MaXXXine). "Monsters have become my personal belief system. There are strands of Frankenstein throughout my films — Cronos, Blade, Hellboy, big time on Pinocchio, and a long, long [list], et cetera." Audiences will be able to watch the Netflix flick from sometime in November, with an exact release date not yet confirmed. Isaac portrays the feature's namesake, aka Victor Frankenstein, the scientist driven by tragedy to attempt to conquer the line between life and what exists beyond it. As the trailer notes, "only monsters play god". As Victor advises himself, "in seeking life, I created death". Also uttered in the movie's debut sneak peek, reinforcing its theme: "what manner of creature is that? What manner of devil made him?". Goth is Elizabeth, Victor's fiancée. From there, Christoph Waltz (Old Guy), Ralph Ineson (The Fantastic Four: First Steps), Charles Dance (The Day of the Jackal), Lars Mikkelsen (Dalloway) and del Toro regular Burn Gorman (Pacific Rim, Crimson Peak, Pinocchio) are also part of the cast. Frankenstein will never stop entrancing filmmakers, as it has James Whale back in 1931 when Karloff played the monster, Mel Brooks (Dracula: Dead and Loving It) with 1974 comedy Young Frankenstein, Kenneth Branagh (A Haunting in Venice) on his 1994 take, Danny Boyle (Yesterday) with his stage adaptation, Tim Burton (Beetlejuice Beetlejuice) via Frankenweenie and Yorgis Lanthimos (Kinds of Kindness) in Poor Things, plus Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Lost Daughter) with 2026's The Bride!, just to name a few other examples. Check out the trailer for Frankenstein below: Frankenstein will release via Netflix sometime in November 2025 — we'll update you when an exact date is announced. Images: Ken Woroner/Netflix © 2025.
Right now, Sydney's Western Harbour is hosting Waterfront Whale Tales — a new outdoor exhibition that aims to strengthen our connection to Gadigal Country, its people and culture. The free exhibition sees 30 whale tail sculptures scattered along a six-kilometre trail along the harbour, with each two-metre-high tail replica painted by a different local artist. Each tail tells a unique story inspired by its location and the land, and allows the audience to step into a different story and gain a new perspective on Indigenous culture and history. Uncle Graham Toomey, one of the exhibition's two Indigenous Curatorial Advisors, says Waterfront Whale Tales allows artists to engage with the public through open dialogue and storytelling — a crucial part of preserving history. "This project is a doorway that invites the public to step through to learn and connect to the spirit of Gadigal Country, its people and its culture. Gadigal Country is an old Country with an enduring spirit that is strong and beautiful. This spirit holds old stories, old beliefs, values, lore and practices. It's also a powerful tool that brings us all together as allies in trying to make the world a better place through sharing, understanding and creativity." Uncle Toomey says the aim of this project is for the public to understand what the Country means to First Nations people and how important this knowledge is for the health and wellbeing of future generations. "Aboriginal people are not only connected to Country and its water, but we are literally the Country and the water. We are the ground and what lies beneath it. We are its dust, the flora, the fauna and the environment. In sharing our responsibilities as custodians of Country, we aim to educate those on the project, to understand that we have obligations to care for Country and to preserve culture." Aunty Joanne Selfe, the exhibition's other Indigenous Curatorial Advisor, says that passing knowledge and stories in an oral form is an important tradition passed from generation to generation — and this tradition is one that's reflected in the exhibition experience via audio narratives that can be accessed via the Waterfront Whale Tales website. "Visitors will hear directly from the artists, their thoughts and the messaging behind their work. Accompanying this, there is a First Nations audio narrative. In this narrative, First Nations perspectives and understandings of Country, of people and place are shared with visitors, demonstrating the enduring connection and knowledge held within these oral traditions." A diverse range of artists was selected by curators Art Pharmacy to participate in this project, to produce artwork that represents the Sydney art world's extensive range of voices. Art Pharmacy collaborated with Toomey and Selfe to identify both emerging and established artists who came from different backgrounds — including school groups, artists working with a disability, CALD artists and even eco-warrior artists — each with their own stories to tell. The lineup includes Indigenous artists, street artists, illustrators and muralists, making for a richly diverse body of works. "We selected an exciting program of artists — all local to Sydney and all with a unique story to share," says Zeta Xu from Art Pharmacy. "The result was a whole range of stories of Sydney, water and whales told through magnificent life-sized tails. These vary from stories of childhood nostalgia and memories of the ocean, to environmental concerns and Dreamtime storytelling. The range of styles, stories and designs means there is something for everyone who visits the trail." Geoff Parmenter, Chair of the New Sydney Waterfront Company, emphasises the importance of having community events such as Waterfront Whale Tales. "In times of global pandemics and unseasonal weather events, these sorts of active, outdoor community events have never been more important." So what would he like visitors to take away from the exhibition? "I would like audiences to take a little piece of the waterfront away with them! Whether that is in the form of knowledge or just the feel-good factor that comes with experiencing beautiful art." Waterfront Whale Tales is on exhibit at Western Harbour until Saturday, September 24. For more information, head to the website.
Don't get stuck in the Bondi and Coogee bubbles this summer. Instead, branch out further down the coast to The Boatshed La Perouse. This coastal cafe, located just south of Maroubra, overlooks Frenchmans Bay and offers beachside dining, panoramic ocean views and a seafood-focused menu to boot. The venue is open for breakfast and lunch seven days. For summer mornings, grab a table on the expansive deck and tuck into the likes of passionfruit ricotta hotcakes ($18.5) and knafeh french toast with almond chocolate crumb, strawberry curd and rose syrup ($17). Or go for staples like eggs benny ($19.50), bacon and egg rolls ($10.5) and English-style big brekkies ($23). At lunchtime, the seafood-heavy menu features oysters, buckets of tiger prawns and pots of spicy tomato mussels. Enjoy a bit of everything with the loaded seafood platter ($80) — in addition to oysters and prawns, it comes with blue swimmer crab, salt and pepper calamari, seared scallops, barbecue baby octopus, crispy battered fish and chips, and an optional addition of half-or-whole lobster for good measure ($25–40). If this is little too much, you can also indulge with the half-lobster linguine for a more reasonable $28.5. Diners can also take in the views with drink in hand. Sidle over to the outdoor bar where you can sip summertime favourites like passionfruit mojitos ($16) or the vodka and watermelon Santorini Sunset ($17). And, to help battle those Monday blues, The Boatshed is now offering $2 oysters and $5 glasses of bubbles each week over lunch.
The annual festival of lights, art and music has revealed the first three installations in its 2021 program. The three installations include an immersive sound and light display in Cockle Bay, a 3D projection encompassing Circular Quay's Customs House and the projection of an artist's creative process in The Rocks. The announcement came 100 days before Vivid 2021 is set to begin, coinciding with the launch of two luminous clocks counting down to the festival's 'lights on' moment on Friday, August 6. You can visit the clocks which are ticking away at First Fleet Park in The Rocks and Wulugul Walk in Barangaroo. Following a breakout year of immersive walkthrough experiences, Sydneysiders will be able to head to Cockle Bay and wander across a floating walkway surrounded by 200 bubble-like spheres and towering structures scattered across the bay. The installation, titled Ephemeral, is the work of Sydney design studio Atelier Sisu and will be the first time Cockle Bay's waters have been incorporated into Vivid. [caption id="attachment_809931" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Ephemeral, Destination NSW[/caption] Hong Kong's Treacle Media are responsible for Circular Quay's VORAX, a three-dimensional projection that will tell the story of a mischievous thief's rise to greatness in front of Customs House. Down the road in The Rocks, local artist Brad Robson and Esem Projects will project Robson's spellbinding portraits, as well as his process of creating them for the installation Point of View. "Vivid Sydney is a bright star on Sydney's events calendar supporting the entire ecosystem of the state's visitor economy," NSW Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney said. "It brings hundreds of thousands of visitors to the city and inspires locals to get out and enjoy Sydney and support our CBD businesses during winter which is typically a quieter period." Vivid will activate a little later than usual this year with the event tipped to run from Friday, August 6 until Saturday, August 28. It follows the cancellation of the 2020 event due to coronavirus. This year's full program is set to be announced in late May. Vivid Sydney 2021 will take place from August 6–28, 2021. We'll update you when the full program is released closer to the event date. For more information in the interim, visit the event's website. Top images: Destination NSW
It's been seven years in the making, but Sydney's new Metro line, connecting Sydenham in the city's southeast to Chatswood in the north, is now set to welcome passengers from Sunday, August 4. In addition to platforms at existing stations like Martin Place and Sydney Central, six new stations have been constructed along the line, but these transport hubs will offer more than just access to trains. To take advantage of the influx of Sydneysiders using the Metro, placemaking plans are in the works to develop precincts in and around new stations. The first to be unveiled is in Barangaroo, where new footpaths, over 200 trees and plants, 38 new streetlights and new bike parking facilities, as well as pleasant seating areas, taxi ranks and bus stops have been installed. Travellers leaving the station via the Nawi Cove entrance will find a fascinating monument marking the spot where the Barangaroo Boat was discovered. The well-preserved 200-year-old remains of a vessel were unearthed in November 2018 during the Metro station's excavations and it is believed to be the oldest colonial-era Australian-built craft to ever be fully excavated, recorded and raised. A dramatic, rusting iron inlay, depicting a nine-metre-long, three-metre-wide overview of the boat as it was found buried in the soft harbourside earth, has been etched into the pavement. The craft would most likely have been used to ferry cargo around Sydney Harbour during the earliest days of European settlement. Other areas of the precinct have yet to be completed but they should be accessible to the public by the end of the year. These areas will feature upgraded roads leading to the Dalgety Bridge and a major new car park at 25 Hickson Road as well as a pedestrian footpath and bicycle path on the eastern edge of Hickson Road. Not only will the new Barangaroo precinct service the new Barangaroo ferry hub and the eateries and bars around Crown Towers, Cockle Bay and Darling Harbour, but it will also offer better access to the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct and Roslyn Packer Theatre, which is currently difficult to reach using public transport. Impressive as the Barangaroo precinct may be, there is arguably an even more astonishing feat of infrastructure hiding beneath Sydney's streets just a few blocks away. The Martin Place superhub, also set to open on Sunday, August 4, will feature 3,000 square-metres of retail and dining space spread over three levels encircling a cavernous atrium where escalators will deliver passengers to the station's platforms. For more details on the Sydney Metro's City and Southwest Line head to the Sydney Metro website. Images: Transport for NSW
Stay tuned. More info coming soon.
