Pier One's harbourfront igloos are back. And, this time, one of them has its very own hot tub. Yes, a hot tub. So if you've been hankering after wintry waterside drinks — but aren't quite willing to brave the cold — this should be a very viable option. In case you're wondering, the igloos aren't made of snow and ice. They're transparent dome-shaped structures that you can hire for yourself and up to 15 mates, as long as you're willing to indulge in a few cocktails, glasses of Champagne and snacks from the Igloos on the Pier menu (you have to spend $150 for one hour in the tub or $300 for three hours. The hire comes with fluffy robes, slippers and a change room, and regular non-hot tub igloos are available too. During Vivid, the igloos are lighting up in blues, red and pinks. Plus, there's an installation inspired by the native Australian honey bee, which hopes to raise awareness of the creature's precarity.
After unveiling first-look images for Fallout season two, Prime Video hasn't left fans of the game-to-streaming series waiting long for a deeper dive into what's on the way in the post-apocalyptic hit. A day later, the platform has revealed the show's first trailer for its second season. Also included: an exact release date, after previously advising that Fallout will return in December 2025. You'll start watching the eight-episode sophomore run on Wednesday, December 17, 2025, with instalments dropping weekly. "I'm looking for someone," Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell, Yellowjackets) notes to kick off the season two teaser. The reply: "common story around here". The Ghoul (Walton Goggins, The White Lotus) pipes in when she's also asked if she's seeking "someone you care about ... or someone you hate?". "Oooh, what a great question" is his observation — and everyone who has watched season one will surely agree. When it dropped its initial eight episodes in 2024, Fallout took its cues from the games that debuted on computers back in 1997, with three released sequels, a fourth on the way and seven spinoffs all following. The live-action television iteration follows Lucy, a lifelong vault-dweller, who leaves her cosy underground digs to navigate the irradiated wasteland that earth has remained for two centuries after the nuclear apocalypse. Crossing her path: bounty hunter The Ghoul, who has ties to life before the devastation; and Maximus (Aaron Moten (Emancipation), an aspiring soldier with the Brotherhood of Steel, who don giant robotic suits. In this nightmarish future, a hellscape filled with mutants, wild west vibes and plenty of violence lingers beyond the bunker that the optimistic Lucy, daughter of Hank (Kyle MacLachlan, Overcompensating), who oversees Vault 33, has always called home. New Vegas is now her destination with The Ghoul — because if "you wanna know why the world ended," he advises, that's where this story will take you. The first season two trailer also features a glimpse at Justin Theroux (Poker Face) at Robert House in the show's jumps backwards, as well as a peek at a Deathclaw, one of the franchise's post-apocalyptic predators. Bringing the chaos to life is a behind-the-scenes team featuring Westworld creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, plus Geneva Robertson-Dworet (Captain Marvel) and Graham Wagner (Silicon Valley) as writers and co-showrunners. And yes, Bethesda Game Studios has a hand in it as well. After premiering in 2024 and becoming one of the platform's top-three most-watched shows ever, notching up more than 100-million viewers globally, this game adaptation isn't just making a comeback for its second season — earlier in 2025, Prime Video advised that Fallout has already been renewed for a third season, too. Check out the teaser trailer for Fallout season two below: Fallout streams via Prime Video, with season two premiering on Wednesday, December 17, 2025. Read our review of season one, and our interview with Walton Goggins, Ella Purnell and Aaron Moten. Images: courtesy of Prime Video.
Maybe you first saw Britain's Penguin chocolate biscuits in the supermarket during a UK holiday. Perhaps you have a British partner or pal who raves about how delicious they are. Or, like almost all Australians, you could just really love Tim Tams — and, as a result, you're eager to give any biscuit that even remotely resembles them a try. Whichever category you fall into, you can now get your hands on Penguins in all their famed glory, as they've just landed on Aussie shelves for the first time. You'll need to head to Coles to pick up a six-pack, which'll set you back $2.80. If you're currently thinking "hmmmm, but we already have Tim Tams", these chocolate-covered, chocolate cream-filled bikkies actually pre-date them. Penguins have even been dubbed "the original Tim Tam", which might sound almost sacrilegious Down Under — but, although they're longer and crunchier than the Aussie biscuit we all know and love, they first debuted in Britain in 1932, more than three decades before Australians started munching on Tim Tams in 1964. Discovering whether another bikkie really is as great as a Tim Tam is probably all the motivation you need to "p-p-pick up a Penguin!", as its slogan encourages, and give them a try. If you need more, though, Penguins also come with penguin-themed jokes printed on the wrapper (maybe keep them away from your dad). And, back in the 70s, the British treats inspired quite the advertisement — which you can watch here. Six-packs of Penguin biscuits are now available at Coles for $2.80.
Water repulsion is all the rage at General Electric right now. New hydrophobic, durable coatings that repel liquid could increase energy efficiency across all kinds of machine-based industries. While this is a great advance for technology, a pleasant offshoot is beauty: cue mesmerising slo-mo video of glittering droplets, artfully scattering and dancing in unison. To develop a superhydrophobic coating, GE's chemists looked to nature's own superhydrophobicity and specifically the "lotus effect" — the way raindrops stay intact and roll off lotus leaves without adhering or soaking in, thanks to nanoscopic hairs on the leaf surface. If you could harness this water-repelling power of the lotus, what would you do with it? GE's wind turbines and other machinery adversely affected by ice and moisture build-up will benefit from the coating, and a path ahead is also clear for self-cleaning and anti-fouling materials. Below, watch as the cute, scruffy Slow Mo Guys wear lab coats and utter sweet nothings with their British accents, all while applying macro-lens scrutiny to liquids bouncing off a superhydrophobic coating. This bouncing (or "splooshing" as the guys eloquently put it) creates tumbling, flower-like formations that expand and retract. Marvel as they mess around with food dye, back-lighting and ferrous liquid. It's not unlike the famous Sony Bravia bouncy ball ad, enhanced by an emotional synth soundtrack and the shape-shifting elasticity of water. Via Gizmodo.
Streaming services overflow with TV series to watch, with new titles added daily, but the best of them achieve a particular feat. We all have our favourite television show that it feels like we live inside; however, that isn't a sensation that any old program can manage. From 2023's new TV offerings so far, only the best of the best can make that claim. If you've already started planning a move to Tasmania thanks to an Australian murder-mystery comedy, you understand this. If you feel in your bones like you know how you'd react to the apocalypse, or having Pedro Pascal as your surrogate dad, you do as well. And if you just want to hang out in a coffee cafe with Aussie comedians, you're definitely ticking that box. They're some of 2023's best new TV shows so far — the series that, no matter how little couch time you have or how easy it is to just revisit Parks and Recreation again, you need to see. After hours and hours of viewing, we've chosen 15 of them now that 2023 is halfway through. Play catchup and you won't be able to say that you don't have anything to watch before the year is through. DEADLOCH Trust Kate McCartney and Kate McLennan, Australia's favourite Kates and funniest double act, to make a killer TV show about chasing a killer that's the perfect sum of two excellent halves. Given their individual and shared backgrounds, including creating and starring in cooking show sendup The Katering Show and morning television spoof Get Krack!n, the pair unsurprisingly add another reason to get chuckling to their resumes; however, with Deadloch, they also turn their attention to crime procedurals. The Kates already know how to make viewers laugh. They've established their talents as brilliant satirists and lovers of the absurd in the process. Now, splashing around those skills in Deadloch's exceptional eight-episode first season lead by Kate Box (Stateless) and Madeleine Sami (The Breaker Upperers), they've also crafted a dead-set stellar murder-mystery series. Taking place in a sleepy small town, commencing with a body on a beach, and following both the local cop trying to solve the case and the gung-ho blow-in from a big city leading the enquiries, Deadloch has all the crime genre basics covered from the get-go. The spot scandalised by the death is a sitcom-esque quirky community, another television staple that McCartney and McLennan nail. Parody requires deep knowledge and understanding; you can't comically rip into and riff on something if you aren't familiar with its every in and out. That said, Deadloch isn't in the business of simply mining well-worn TV setups and their myriad of conventions for giggles, although it does that expertly. With whip-smart writing, the Australian series is intelligent, hilarious, and all-round cracking as a whodunnit-style noir drama and as a comedy alike — and one of the streaming highlights of the year. Deadloch streams via Prime Video. Read our full review. I'M A VIRGO No one makes social satires like Boots Riley. Late in I'm a Virgo, when a character proclaims that "all art is propaganda", these words may as well be coming from The Coup frontman-turned-filmmaker's very own lips. In only his second screen project after the equally impassioned, intelligent, energetic, anarchic and exceptional 2018 film Sorry to Bother You, Riley doesn't have his latest struggling and striving hero utter this sentiment, however. Rather, it springs from the billionaire technology mogul also known as The Hero (Walton Goggins, George & Tammy), who's gleefully made himself the nemesis of 13-foot-tall series protagonist Cootie (Jharrel Jerome, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse). Knowing that all stories make a statement isn't just the domain of activists fighting for better futures for the masses, as Riley is, and he wants to ensure that his audience knows it. Indeed, I'm a Virgo is a show with something to say, and forcefully. Its creator is angry again, too, and wants everyone giving him their time to be bothered — and he still isn't sorry for a second. With Jerome as well-cast a lead as Atlanta's Lakeith Stanfield was, I'm a Virgo also hinges upon a surreal central detail: instead of a Black telemarketer discovering the impact of his "white voice", it hones in on the oversized Cootie. When it comes to assimilation, consider this series Sorry to Bother You's flipside, because there's no way that a young Black man that's more than double the tallest average height is passing for anyone but himself. Riley knows that Black men are too often seen as threats and targets regardless of their stature anyway. He's read the research showing that white folks can perceive Black boys as older and less innocent. As Cootie wades through these experiences himself, there isn't a single aspect of I'm a Virgo that doesn't convey Riley's ire at the state of the world — that doesn't virtually scream about it, actually — with this series going big and bold over and over. I'm a Virgo streams via Prime Video. Read our full review. DEAD RINGERS Twin gynaecologists at the top of their game. Blood-red costuming and bodily fluids. The kind of perturbing mood that seeing flesh as a source of horror does and must bring. A stunning eye for stylish yet unsettling imagery. Utterly impeccable lead casting. When 1988's Dead Ringers hit cinemas, it was with this exact combination, all in the hands of David Cronenberg following Shivers, The Brood, Scanners, Videodrome and The Fly. He took inspiration from real-life siblings Stewart and Cyril Marcus, whose existence was fictionalised in 1977 novel Twins by Bari Wood and Jack Geasland, and turned it into something spectacularly haunting. Attempting to stitch together those parts again, this time without the Crimes of the Future filmmaker at the helm — and as a miniseries, too — on paper seems as wild a feat as some of modern medicine's biggest advancements. This time starring a phenomenal Rachel Weisz as both Beverly and Elliot Mantle, and birthed by Lady Macbeth and The Wonder screenwriter Alice Birch, Dead Ringers 2.0 is indeed an achievement. It's also another masterpiece. Playing the gender-swapped roles that Jeremy Irons (House of Gucci) inhabited so commandingly 35 years back, Weisz (Black Widow) is quiet, calm, dutiful, sensible and yearning as Beverly, then volatile, outspoken, blunt, reckless and rebellious as Elliot. Her performance as each is that distinct — that fleshed-out as well — that it leaves viewers thinking they're seeing double. Of course, technical trickery is also behind the duplicate portrayals, with directors Sean Durkin (The Nest), Karena Evans (Snowfall), Lauren Wolkstein (The Strange Ones) and Karyn Kusama's (Destroyer) behind the show's lens; however, Weisz is devastatingly convincing. Beverly is also the patient-facing doctor of the two, helping usher women into motherhood, while Elliot prefers tinkering in a state-of-the-art lab trying to push the boundaries of fertility. Still, the pair are forever together or, with unwitting patients and dates alike, swapping places and pretending to be each other. Most folks in their company don't know what hit them, which includes actor Genevieve (Britne Oldford, The Umbrella Academy), who segues from a patient to Beverly's girlfriend — and big-pharma billionaire Rebecca (Jennifer Ehle, She Said), who Dead Ringers' weird sisters court to fund their dream birthing centre. Dead Ringers streams via Prime Video. Read our full review. THE LAST OF US If the end of the world comes, or a parasitic fungus evolves via climate change, spreads globally, infests brains en masse and almost wipes out humanity, spectacular video game-to-TV adaptation The Last of Us will have you wanting Pedro Pascal in your corner. Already a standout in Game of Thrones, then Narcos, then The Mandalorian, he's perfectly cast in HBO's latest blockbuster series — a character-driven show that ruminates on what it means to not just survive but to want to live and thrive after the apocalypse. In this smart and gripping show (one that's thankfully already been renewed for season two, too), he plays Joel. Dad to teenager Sarah (Nico Parker, The Third Day), he's consumed by grief and loss after what starts as a normal day, and his birthday, changes everything for everyone. Twenty years later, he's a smuggler tasked with tapping into his paternal instincts to accompany a different young girl, the headstrong Ellie (Bella Ramsey, Catherine Called Birdy), on a perilous but potentially existence-saving trip across the US. Starting to watch The Last of Us, or even merely describing it, is an instant exercise in déjà vu. Whether or not you've played the hit game since it first arrived in 2013, or its 2014 expansion pack, 2020 sequel or 2022 remake, its nine-part TV iteration ventures where plenty of on-screen fare including The Road and The Walking Dead has previously trodden. The best example that springs to mind during The Last of Us is Station Eleven, however, which is the heartiest of compliments given how thoughtful, empathetic and textured that 2021–22 series proved. As everything about pandemics, contagions and diseases that upend the world order now does, The Last of Us feels steeped in stone-cold reality as well, as spearheaded by a co-creator, executive producer, writer and director who has already turned an IRL doomsday into stunning television with Chernobyl. That creative force is Craig Mazin, teaming up with Neil Druckmann from Naughty Dog, who also wrote and directed The Last of Us games. The Last of Us streams via Binge. Read our full review. THE MAKANAI: COOKING FOR THE MAIKO HOUSE At the beginning of The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House, 16-year-old best friends Kiyo (Nana Mori, Liar x Liar) and Sumire (Natsuki Deguchi, Silent Parade) leave home for the first time with smiles as wide as their hearts are open. Departing the rural Aomari for Kyoto in the thick of winter, they have internships as maiko lined up — apprentice geiko, as geishas are called in the Kyoto dialect. Their path to their dearest wishes isn't all sunshine and cherry blossoms from there, of course, but this is a series that lingers on the details, on slices of life, and on everyday events rather than big dramatic developments. Watch, for instance, how lovingly Kiyo and Sumire's last meal is lensed before they set out for their new future, and how devotedly the camera surveys the humble act of sitting down to share a dumpling soup, legs tucked beneath blankets under the table, while having an ordinary conversation. Soothing, tender, compassionate, bubbling with warmth: that's The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House from the outset. There's a key reason that this cosy and comforting new treasure overflows with such affection and understanding — for its characters, their lives and just the act of living. Prolific writer/director Hirokazu Kore-eda simply isn't capable of anything else. Yes, Netflix has been in the auteur game of late, and The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House is unmistakably the work of its rightly applauded creative force. One of the biggest names in Japanese cinema today, and the winner of the received Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or back in 2018 for the sublime Shoplifters, Kore-eda makes empathetic, rich and deeply emotional works. His movies, including the France-set The Truth and South Korea-set Broker, truly see the people within their frames. On the small screen, and hailing from manga, the nine-episode The Makanai is no different. It's also as calming as a show about friendships, chasing dreams and devouring ample dumplings can and should be. The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House streams via Netflix. RAIN DOGS In 2019's Skint Estate, Cash Carraway told all; A memoir of poverty, motherhood and survival completes the book's full title. Penned about working-class Britain from within working-class Britain, Carraway's written jaunt through her own life steps through the reality of being a single mum without a permanent place to live, of struggling to get by at every second, and of being around the system since she was a teenager. It examines alcoholism, loneliness, mental illness and domestic violence, too, plus refuges, working at peep shows, getting groceries from food banks and hopping between whatever temporary accommodation is available. Rain Dogs isn't a direct adaptation. It doesn't purport to bring Carraway's experiences to the screen exactly as they happened, or with slavish fidelity to the specific details. But this HBO and BBC eight-parter remains not only raw, rich, honest and authentic but lived in, as it tells the same story with candour, humour, warmth and poignancy. Slipping into Carraway's fictionalised shoes is Daisy May Cooper — and she's outstanding. Her on-screen resume includes Avenue 5 and Am I Being Unreasonable?, as well as being a team captain on the latest iteration of Britain's Spicks and Specks-inspiring Never Mind the Buzzcocks, but she's a force to be reckoned with as aspiring writer and mum (to Iris, played by debutant Fleur Tashjian) Costello Jones. When Rain Dogs begins, it's with an eviction. Cooper lives and breathes determination as Costello then scrambles to find somewhere for her and Iris to stay next. But this isn't just their tale, with the pair's lives intersecting with the privileged but self-destructive Selby (Jack Farthing, Spencer), who completes their unconventional and dysfunctional family but tussles with his mental health. Including Costello's best friend Gloria (Ronke Adekoluejo, Alex Rider), plus ailing artist Lenny (The Young Ones legend Adrian Edmondson), this is a clear-eyed look at chasing a place to belong — and it's stunning. Rain Dogs streams via Binge. Read our full review. SILO Rebecca Ferguson will never be mistaken for Daveed Diggs, but the Dune, Mission: Impossible franchise and Doctor Sleep star now follows in the Hamilton Tony-winner's footsteps. While he has spent multiple seasons navigating dystopian class clashes on a globe-circling train in the TV version of Snowpiercer, battling his way up and down the titular locomotive, she just started ascending and descending the stairs in the underground chamber that gives Silo its moniker. Ferguson's character is also among humanity's last remnants. Attempting to endure in post-apocalyptic times, she hails from her abode's lowliest depths as well. And, when there's a murder in this instantly engrossing new ten-part series — which leaps to the screen from Hugh Howey's novels, and shares a few basic parts with Metropolis, Blade Runner and The Platform, as well as corrupt world orders at the core of The Hunger Games and The Maze Runner flicks — she's soon playing detective. Silo captivates from the outset, when its focus is the structure's sheriff Holston (David Oyelowo, See How They Run) and his wife Allison (Rashida Jones, On the Rocks). Both know the cardinal rule of the buried tower, as does deputy Marnes (Will Patton, Outer Range), mayor Ruth (Geraldine James, Benediction), security head Sims (Common, The Hate U Give), IT top brass Bernard (Tim Robbins, Dark Waters) and the other 10,000 souls they live with: if you make the request to go outside, it's irrevocable and you'll be sent there as punishment. No matter who you are, and from which level, anyone posing such a plea becomes a public spectacle. Their ask is framed as "cleaning", referring to wiping down the camera that beams the desolate planet around them onto window-sized screens in their cafeterias. No one has ever come back, or survived for more than minutes. Why? Add that to the questions piling up not just for Silo's viewers, but for the silo's residents. For more than 140 years, the latter have dwelled across their 144 floors in safety from the bleak wasteland that earth has become — but what caused that destruction and who built their cavernous home are among the other queries. Silo streams via Apple TV+. Read our full review. AUNTY DONNA'S COFFEE CAFE If comedy is all about timing, then Aunty Donna have it — not just onstage. In 2020, Aunty Donna's Big Ol' House of Fun was the hysterical sketch-comedy series that the world needed, with the six-episode show satirising sharehouse living dropping at the ideal moment. While the Australian jokesters' Netflix hit wasn't just hilarious because it arrived when everyone had been spending more time than anyone dreamed at home thanks to the early days of the pandemic, the ridiculousness it found in domesticity was as inspired as it was sidesplittingly absurd. Three years later, heading out is well and truly back, as are Aunty Donna on-screen. Their target in Aunty Donna's Coffee Cafe: cafe culture, with Mark Samual Bonanno, Broden Kelly and Zachary Ruane returning to make fun of one of the simplest reasons to go out that there is. Grabbing a cuppa is such an ordinary and everyday task, so much so that it was taken for granted until it was no longer an easy part of our routines. Unsurprisingly, now that caffeine fixes are back and brewing, Aunty Donna finds much to parody. With fellow group members Sam Lingham (a co-writer here), Max Miller (the show's director) and Tom Zahariou (its composer), Aunty Donna's well-known trio of faces set their new six-parter in the most obvious place they can: a Melbourne cafe called 'Morning Brown'. The track itself doesn't get a spin, however, with the show's central piece of naming is its most expected move. As demonstrated in episodes that turn the cafe into a courtroom, ponder whether Broden might still be a child and riff on Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt's 1967 disappearance, nothing else about Aunty Donna's Coffee Cafe earns that description. Pinballing in any and every direction possible has always been one of the Aussie comedy troupe's biggest talents, with their latest series deeply steeped — riotously, eclectically and entertainingly, too — in that approach. Think: Richard Roxburgh (Elvis) playing Rake, even though that's not his Rake character's name; Looking for Alibrandi's Pia Miranda making tomato day jokes;. stanning Gardening Australia and skewering unreliable streaming services, complete with jokes at ABC iView's expense; and relentlessly giggling at the hospitality industry again and again. Aunty Donna's Coffee Cafe streams via ABC iView. Read our full review. BEEF As plenty does (see also: Rye Lane above), Beef starts with two strangers meeting, but there's absolutely nothing cute about it. Sparks don't fly and hearts don't flutter; instead, this pair grinds each other's gears. In a case of deep and passionate hate at first sight, Danny Cho (Steven Yeun, Nope) and Amy Lau (Ali Wong, Paper Girls) give their respective vehicles' gearboxes a workout, in fact, after he begins to pull out of a hardware store carpark, she honks behind him, and lewd hand signals and terse words are exchanged. Food is thrown, streets are angrily raced down, gardens are ruined, accidents are barely avoided, and the name of Vin Diesel's famous car franchise springs to mind, aptly describing how bitterly these two strangers feel about each other — and how quickly. Created by Lee Sung Jin, who has It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Dave and Silicon Valley on his resume before this ten-part Netflix and A24 collaboration, Beef also commences with a simple, indisputable and deeply relatable fact. Whether you're a struggling contractor hardly making ends meet, as he is, or a store-owning entrepreneur trying to secure a big deal, as she is — or, if you're both, neither or anywhere in-between — pettiness reigning supreme is basic human nature. Danny could've just let Amy beep as much as she liked, then waved, apologised and driven away. Amy could've been more courteous about sounding her horn, and afterwards. But each feels immediately slighted by the other, isn't willing to stand for such an indignity and becomes consumed by their trivial spat. Neither takes the high road, not once — and if you've ever gotten irrationally irate about a minor incident, this new standout understands. Episode by episode, it sees that annoyance fester and exasperation grow, too. Beef spends its run with two people who can't let go of their instant rage, keep trying to get the other back, get even more incensed in response, and just add more fuel to the fire again and again until their whole existence is a blaze of revenge. If you've ever taken a small thing and blown it wildly out of proportion, Beef is also on the same wavelength. And if any of the above has ever made you question your entire life — or just the daily grind of endeavouring to get by, having everything go wrong, feeling unappreciated and constantly working — Beef might just feel like it was made for you. Beef streams via Netflix. Read our full review. POKER FACE Cards on the table: thanks to Russian Doll and the Knives Out franchise, Natasha Lyonne and Rian Johnson are both on a helluva streak. In their most recent projects before now, each has enjoyed a hot run not once but twice. Lyonne made time trickery one of the best new shows of 2019, plus a returning standout in 2022 as well, while Johnson's first Benoit Blanc whodunnit and followup Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery were gems of the exact same years. The latter also saw the pair team up briefly — Lyonne and Johnson, that is, although getting a Russian Doll-meets-Knives Out crossover from the universe, or just the Netflix algorithm, would be a dream. Until that wish comes true, there's Poker Face. It's no one's stopgap or consolation prize, however. This new mystery-of-the-week series is an all-out must-see in its own right, and one of 2023's gleaming streaming aces already. Given its components and concept, turning out otherwise would've been the biggest head-scratcher. Beneath aviator shades, a trucker cap and her recognisable locks, Lyonne plays detective again, as she did in Russian Doll — because investigating why you're looping through the same day over and over, or jumping through time, is still investigating. Johnson gives the world another sleuth, too, after offering up his own spin on Agatha Christie-style gumshoes with the ongoing Knives Out saga. This time, he's dancing with 1968–2003 television series Columbo, right down to Poker Face's title font. Lyonne isn't one for playing conventional detectives, though. Here, she's Charlie Cale, who starts poking around in sudden deaths thanks to an unusual gift and a personal tragedy. As outlined in the show's ten-part first season, Charlie is a human lie detector. She can always tell if someone is being untruthful, a knack she first used in gambling before getting on the wrong side of the wrong people. Then, when a friend and colleague at the far-from-flashy Las Vegas casino where Charlie works winds up dead, that talent couldn't be handier. Poker Face streams via Stan. Read our full review. MRS DAVIS It was back in March 2022 that the world first learned of Mrs Davis, who would star in it and which creatives were behind it. Apart from its central faith-versus-technology battle, the show's concept was kept under wraps, but the series itself was announced to the world. The key involvement of three-time GLOW Emmy-nominee Betty Gilpin, Lost and The Leftovers creator Damon Lindelof, and The Big Bang Theory and Young Sheldon writer and executive producer Tara Hernandez was championed, plus the fact that Black Mirror: San Junipero director Owen Harris would helm multiple episodes. Accordingly, although no one knew exactly what it was about, Mrs Davis existed months before ChatGPT was released — but this puzzle-box drama, which is equally a sci-fi thriller, zany comedy and action-adventure odyssey, now follows the artificial intelligence-driven chatbot in reaching audiences. Indeed, don't even bother trying not to think about the similarities as you're viewing this delightfully wild and gleefully ridiculous series. There's also no point dismissing any musings that slip into your head about social media, ever-present tech, digital surveillance and the many ways that algorithms dictate our lives, either. Mrs Davis accepts that such innovations are a mere fact of life in 2023, then imagines what might happen if AI promised to solve the worlds ills and make everyone's existence better and happier. It explores how users could go a-flocking, eager to obey every instruction and even sacrifice themselves to the cause. In other words, it's about ChatGPT-like technology starting a religion in everything but name. To tell that tale, it's also about nun Simone (Gilpin, Gaslit), who was raised by magicians (Love & Death's Elizabeth Marvel and Scream's David Arquette), and enjoys sabbaticals from her convent to do whatever is necessary to bring down folks who practise her parents' vocation and the show's titular technology. She also enjoys quite the literal nuptials to Jesus Christ, is divinely bestowed names to chase in her quest and has an ex-boyfriend, Wiley (Jake McDorman, Dopesick), who's a former bullrider-turned-Fight Club-style resistance leader. And, she's tasked with a mission by the algorithm itself: hunting down the Holy Grail. Mrs Davis streams via Binge. Read our full review. SWARM Becky with the good hair gets a shoutout in Swarm. Facial bites do as well, complete with a Love & Basketball reference when the culprit flees. This seven-part series about a global pop sensation and her buzzing fans and stans also has its music icon unexpectedly drop a stunner of a visual album, ride a white horse, be married to a well-known rapper, become a mum to twins and see said husband fight with her sister in an elevator. Her sibling is also a singer, and plenty of folks contend she's the more interesting of the two. Still, Swarm's object of fascination — protagonist Dre's (Dominique Fishback, Judas and the Black Messiah) undying obsession — sells out tours, breaks Ticketmaster and headlines one of the biggest music festivals there is. And, while they call themselves the titular term rather than a hive, her devotees are zealous and then some, especially humming around on social media. Donald Glover and Janine Nabers, the show's creators and past colleagues on Glover's exceptional, now-finished Atlanta — Nabers also worked on Watchmen, too — couldn't be more upfront about who they're referring to. No one says Beyoncé's name, however, but Swarm's Houston-born music megastar is the former Destiny's Child singer in everything except moniker. In case anyone watching thinks that this series is trading in coincidences and déjà vu, or just failing to be subtle when it comes to Ni'Jah (Nirine S Brown, Ruthless), the Prime Video newcomer keeps making an overt opening declaration. "This is not a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or events, is intentional," it announces before each episode. From there, it dives into Dre's journey as a twentysomething in 2016 who still adores her childhood idol with the same passion she did as a teen and, instalment by instalment, shows how far she's willing to go to prove it. Swarm streams via Prime Video. Read our full review. CUNK ON EARTH If you've ever watched a David Attenborough documentary about the planet and wished it was sillier and stupider, to the point of being entertainingly ridiculous and ridiculously entertaining alike, then Netflix comes bearing wonderful news. Actually, the BBC got there first, airing history-of-the-world mockumentary Cunk on Earth back in September 2022. Glorious things come to waiting viewers Down Under now, however — and this gleefully, delightfully absurd take on human civilisation from its earliest days till now, spanning cave paintings, Roman empires, Star Wars' empire, 1989 Belgian techno anthem 'Pump Up the Jam' and more, is one of the best shows to hit Australia in 2023 so far. This series is a comedy masterclass, in fact, featuring everything from a Black Mirror-leaning skit about Beethoven resurrected inside a smart speaker to a recreation of a Dark Ages fray purely through sound also thrown in. It's flat-out masterful, too, and tremendously funny. This sometimes Technotronic-soundtracked five-part show's beat? Surveying how humanity came to its present state, stretching back through species' origins and evolution, and pondering everything from whether the Egyptian pyramids were built from the top down to the Cold War bringing about the "Soviet onion". The audience's guide across this condensed and comic history is the tweed-wearing Philomena Cunk, who has the steady voice of seasoned doco presenter down pat, plus the solemn gaze, but is firmly a fictional — and satirical — character. Comedian Diane Morgan first started playing the misinformed interviewer in 2013, in Charlie Brooker's Weekly Wipe, with Black Mirror creator Brooker behind Cunk on Earth as well. Over the past decade, Cunk has also brought her odd questions to 2016's one-off Cunk on Shakespeare and Cunk on Christmas, and 2018's also five-instalment Cunk on Britain. After you're done with the character's latest spin, you'll want to devour the rest ASAP. Cunk on Earth streams via Netflix. Read our full review. SHRINKING Viewers mightn't have realised they'd been lacking something crucial until now, but Shrinking serves it up anyway: a delightfully gruff Harrison Ford co-starring in a kind-hearted sitcom. Creating this therapist-focused series for Apple TV+, Bill Lawrence, Brett Goldstein and Jason Segel didn't miss this new gem's immediate potential. Lawrence and Goldstein add the show to their roster alongside Ted Lasso, which the former also co-created, and the latter stars in as the also wonderfully gruff Roy Kent to Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning effect. It too bathes in warmth amid chaos, all while understanding, exploring and accepting its characters as the flawed folks we all are. As for Segel, he's no stranger to playing the type of super-enthusiastic and super-earnest figure he inhabits again here, as seen in Freaks and Geeks and How I Met Your Mother. If Ted Lasso downplayed the soccer, instead emphasising the psychologist chats that were a pivotal part of season two, Shrinking would be the end result. Also, if Scrubs, another of Lawrence's sitcoms, followed doctors specialising in mental health rather than working in a hospital, Shrinking would also be the outcome. Round up those familiar elements and details brought over from elsewhere, and Shrinking turns them into a series that's supremely entertaining, well-cast and well-crafted — and an engaging and easy watch. The focus: Segel (Windfall) as Jimmy Laird, a shrink grieving for his wife Tia (Lilan Bowden, Murderville), making bad decisions and leaving parenting his teen daughter Alice (Lukita Maxwell, Generation) to his empty-nester neighbour Liz (Christa Miller, a Scrubs alum and also Lawrence's wife). When he decides to start checking back in, and to also give his patients like young war veteran Sean (Luke Tennie, CSI: Vegas) some tough love, it causes ripples, including for his boss Paul (Ford, The Call of the Wild) and colleague Gaby (Jessica Williams, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore). Shrinking streams via Apple TV+. Read our full review. PLATONIC Sometime in the near future, Rose Byrne, Seth Rogen and filmmaker Nicholas Stoller could easily join forces on a new rom-com. In fact, they should. Until then, buddy comedy Platonic makes a hilarious, engagingly written and directed, and perfectly cast addition to each's respective resumes. Reuniting the trio after 2014's Bad Neighbours and its 2016 sequel Bad Neighbours 2, this new series pairs Australia's comedy queen and America's go-to stoner as longterm pals who are never anything but mates — and haven't been in touch at all for years — but navigate a friendship that's as chaotic and complicated as any movie romance. That's an easy setup; however, watching the show's stars bicker, banter and face the fact that life doesn't always turn out as planned together proves as charming as it was always going to. Also, Platonic smartly doesn't try to be a romantic comedy, or to follow in When Harry Met Sally's footsteps. Instead, Platonic explores what happens when two former besties have gone their own ways, then come back together. The show knows that reconnecting with old pals is always tinged with nostalgia for the person you were when they were initially in your life. And, it's well-aware that reckoning with where you've ended up since is an immediate side effect. Enter Sylvia (Byrne, Seriously Red), who reaches out to Will (Rogen, The Super Mario Bros Movie) after hearing that he's no longer with the wife (Alisha Wainwright, Raising Dion) she didn't like. She's also a suburban-dwelling former lawyer who put work on hold to become a mother of three, and can't help feeling envious of her husband Charlie's (Luke Macfarlane, Bros) flourishing legal career. Her old BFF co-owns and runs an LA brewpub, is obsessive about his beer and hipster/slacker image, and hasn't been taking his breakup well. They couldn't be in more different places in their lives. When they meet up again, they couldn't appear more dissimilar, too. "You look like you live at Ann Taylor Loft," is Will's assessment. Sylvia calls him "a '90s grunge clown." Neither is wrong. Platonic streams via Apple TV+. Read our full review. Looking for more viewing highlights? Check out our list of film and TV streaming recommendations, which is updated monthly. We also keep a running list of must-stream TV from across the year so far, complete with full reviews.
Gelato Messina has whipped up a lot of of tasty specials in its time, and during the pandemic. Indulgent red velvet cookie pies, caramel scrolls with cheesecake gelato, Golden Gaytime-inspired Viennetta, 40 of its greatest gelato hits — they're just some of the OTT dishes that've been on the menu just over the past 18 months or so. Another that's proven particularly popular: Iced VoVo gelato. So, the dessert fiends are bringing back its frosty version of everyone's favourite childhood biscuit, and they're also turning it into a bavarian. What's better than turning an Iced VoVo into gelato? Taking that gelato and turning that into a bavarian, obviously. And, what's even better than that? Making something that can either be eaten frozen as a gelato cake, or defrosted as a mousse cake — or somewhere in-between if you'd like to go all semifreddo. Wondering what exactly an Iced VoVo bavarian entails? It layers coconut and raspberry mousse and raspberry gel over a coconut biscuit base, then tops it with raspberry marshmallow and desiccated coconut. And yes, the end result looks like the bikkies you know and love — but in frosty cake form. If you're keen to get yourself a piece — which'll cost you $38 — they're available to preorder online on Monday, September 20. And, because Messina's specials always prove popular, the brand is now staggering the on-sale times. Accordingly, folks in Queensland and the ACT are able to purchase at 9am, Victorians at 9.30am, and New South Wales customers split across three times depending on the store (with pies from Circular Quay, Surry Hills, Bondi, Randwick and Miranda on sale at 10am; Brighton Le Sands, Tramsheds, Parramatta and Darlinghurst at 10.30am; and Darling Square, Newtown, Rosebery and Penrith at 11am). The catch? You'll need to peel yourself off the couch and head to your local Messina store to pick up your order. The pies will be available for collection between Friday, September 24–Sunday, September 26. Sydneysiders, remember to abide by lockdown restrictions when it comes to picking up your bavarian — with folks in most suburbs required to stick to their Local Government Area, or within five-kilometres from home, and a strict five-kilometre limit in place in LGAs of concern. Melburnians, under new eased lockdown rules that come into effect at 11.59pm on Friday, September 17, you'll be permitted to travel within a ten-kilometre radius to pick up food. Gelato Messina's Iced VoVo bavarians will be available to order from 10am on Monday, September 20, for pick up between Friday, September 24–Sunday, September 26. Head to the Messina website for further details.
Come with us on now, on a journey through time and space, to the world of Behind The Boosh. You may not hear those words spoken aloud when you walk into the exhibition celebrating British comedy troupe The Mighty Boosh, but fans will think them. When you're peering at behind-the-scenes peeks into Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding's hilarious and surreal creation, as snapped by fellow group member Dave Brown, that's the very first thing that should come to mind. A part of all things Boosh since the troupe was first formed in the 90s, Brown played Bollo the Gorilla, Naan bread, Black Frost and Australian zookeeper Joey Moose. He's also taken care of tour posters, DVDs, set graphics and merchandise; compiled and designed The Mighty Book of Boosh; and had a hand in Boosh music and choreography. And, he's been snapping away with his camera — the results of which are gracing this photography showcase. There aren't enough elbow patches in the world for this exhibition, or shoes filled with Baileys. Whether or nor you can find either — or the black hair dye and strong hairspray needed to get Vince Noir-style locks, green Old Gregg-esque body paint or 60s-era suits that look like they've been taken straight from Howard Moon's wardrobe — heading to Sydney's M2 Gallery from Wednesday, August 2–Sunday, August 6 means getting a glimpse into the minds behind The Mighty Boosh's stage shows and radio series, and obviously the three-season TV gem also called The Mighty Boosh. Brown's two decades of images traverse a history that saw The Boosh become a live smash at the Edinburgh and Melbourne Comedy Festivals, then a 00s cult hit on the small screen. These days, Fielding might co-present The Great British Bake Off and do team captain duties on Never Mind the Buzzcocks, while Barratt has been playing a part in The Great, but they'll always been known for The Boosh. Brown is also in Australia with the exhibition, and doing an artist talk to chat through his work — and being part of a troupe, plus their various onstage and on-screen shows, where anything could happen — on Saturday, August 5. In Sydney as well, Brown will hit the decks at Redfern Surf Club's Surfapolooza festival, also on Saturday, August 5. Images: Dave Brown.
This June celebration of all things punani, foo foo and vagina has one message — love your lady parts! Philip Werner's photographic exhibition, 101 Vagina, and the Festival of the Vagina are en route to Redfern so "get your bits out, they're all fine" (if you watch the promo video that should make more sense). The exhibition is from Werner's coffee-table book of the same name, which features black-and-white stills of full-frontal vaginas and accompanying messages from the subjects. The show will be up for three days at 107 Projects in a bid to not only celebrate but redirect the plight of the forgotten vagina. Tied up in all kinds of taboos, mandatory porno airbrushing and a dramatic increase in labiaplasty, it sounds like the old girls could use a breath of fresh air. So feel free to giggle, scream or get naked (but don't say it came from me). 101 Vagina is also the centrepiece for an all-day vajayjay fest on Saturday, June 29. The Festival of the Vagina will unite educators, performers, artists, journalists and the rest of us with the noble goal of taking the shame out of vagina. Did I mention there is also a ukulele band called the Three Sisters Katoomba? Awesome. Check out the full line-up at the 101 Vagina website.
When the COVID-19 pandemic first started making its impact known, we all began to feel like we were living in a disaster movie. Contagion flicks, outbreak films, sci-fi fare about infectious diseases — they all echoed with eerie prescience. The next types of movies that might start cutting a little too close to home? Dystopian flicks about climate change's impact. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has released its sixth assessment report about the state of the planet, global warming's impact and humanity's influence upon increasing temperatures — and it doesn't paint a calming picture. The big news: if no big moves are made in current efforts to combat climate change, the planet will warm by 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial temperatures by as early as 2030. That figure has been mentioned for some time as an unwanted milestone, as it's when climate scientists predict that higher temperatures, rising sea levels, heavier rains, longer fire seasons and worse droughts will kick in. Given the increasing frequency of extreme weather events around the world already, including Australia's devastating 2019–20 bushfire season, seeing these conditions worsen is obviously alarming news. Also flagged by the IPCC, which is the United Nations' body for assessing the science related to climate change, has been around since 1988 and has 195 members from around the world: that the planet has already warmed by 1.1 degree since industrialisation, and that Australia has warmed by 1.4 degrees. And, it has dubbed humanity's part in these increases as "unprecedented", with working group co-chair Dr Valérie Masson-Delmotte saying that "the role of human influence on the climate system is undisputed." The #IPCC released its latest #ClimateReport today, #ClimateChange 2021: the Physical Science Basis. "The role of human influence on the climate system is undisputed." – Working Group I Co-Chair @valmasdel Report ➡️ https://t.co/uU8bb4inBB Watch the video, 🎥 ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/hZOSU1xWQR — IPCC (@IPCC_CH) August 9, 2021 Also, even if the IPCC's most ambitious targets to arrest the impact of climate change were put in place, global warming would still likely hit 1.5 degrees by 2035. The body's scientists expect that the planet will warm by at least 1.6 degrees above pre-industrial temps regardless of whichever measures are put in place, before ideally beginning to drop again once those drastic mitigation tactics — things like large-scale reforestation projects, or being able to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere — started to have an effect. It's no wonder that United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called the IPCC report "a "code red for humanity" in a statement. "The alarm bells are deafening, and the evidence is irrefutable: greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel burning and deforestation are choking our planet and putting billions of people at immediate risk. Global heating is affecting every region on Earth, with many of the changes becoming irreversible," he continued. "The internationally agreed threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius is perilously close. We are at imminent risk of hitting 1.5 degrees in the near term. The only way to prevent exceeding this threshold is by urgently stepping up our efforts, and pursuing the most ambitious path," the Secretary-General said. "This report must sound a death knell for coal and fossil fuels, before they destroy our planet... If we combine forces now, we can avert climate catastrophe. But, as the report makes clear, there is no time for delay and no room for excuses." World leaders will meet at the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow from October 31 this year to discuss the planet's plans to stop warming at 1.5 degrees. To read the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's sixth assessment report, head to the IPCC's website.
Add Marco Pierre White to the list of acclaimed British culinary figures, such as regular visitors Nigella Lawson and Jamie Oliver, who are fond of trips Down Under. Back in 2023, the famed chef and White Heat author brought his first-ever live theatre show to Australia. On that visit, he also made a date with HOTA, Home of the Arts on the Gold Coast for a four-course dinner. The latter experience clearly left an imprint, because that's where White is heading again in 2025 — this time for an exclusive three-day stint. HOTA has announced that White is hitting the venue, and the kitchen, for a three-day culinary residency in June 2025. There's multiple parts to this visit, whether you're keen to eat or learn — or both. The luxe meal at HOTA's restaurant Palette is back, but that's just part of the program. On Thursday, June 5, White will get chatting at an in-conversation event hosted by HOTA's Executive Chef Dayan Hartill-Law. Certain to receive a mention: that he was first British chef to be awarded three Michelin stars, earning that achievement when he was just 33, making him the youngest chef to do so. Then there's his 1990 cookbook White Heat, which played up his "bad boy" image — and the fact that he's been dubbed "the first celebrity chef" as well. Also likely to fuel the chat: that White has popped up on everything from Hell's Kitchen to MasterChef, including in Australia — and that he's trained fellow well-known food figures such as Mario Batali, Heston Blumenthal, Gordon Ramsay and Curtis Stone. Or, there's his beginnings in the culinary world, after he arrived in London with just "£7.36, a box of books and a bag of clothes", as White describes, before his tutelage under Albert and Michael Roux at renowned French fine-diner Le Gavroche. At HOTA, White is also taking part in a masterclass that's part-discussion, part-demonstration — so you'll dig into his life story, plus get his tips and tricks. If you're keen to sit down for a meal, the return of the Palette x Marco Pierre White dinner involves a chat, too, plus a five-course spread. On the menu: dishes that showcase southeast Queensland produce alongside White's culinary philosophy. Or, if you're feeling flush, you can head along to the intimate White Heat dining experience, serving up five courses of dishes that scored White his three Michelin stars — and only 30 people can attend. Another five-course dinner will cap off the residency, featuring not only White but also Hartill-Law and fellow Gold Coasters Tim Stewart, Koki Anekawa and Melanie Day. Each is putting together a course, while HOTA's beverage team is picking the drinks. The setting: the venue's outdoor stage lawn. "I'm thrilled to be returning to HOTA for this exclusive Australian residency. There's something truly special about the Gold Coast — the energy, the people, the passion for food. Palette is a restaurant that understands the artistry of cuisine and experience. These events are about more than just cooking, they're about sharing stories, experiences, and creating unforgettable moments together," said White about his return Down Under. "Having Marco back in the kitchen with us is an honour. His knowledge, his storytelling and the way he approaches food is truly inspiring. This time around, we've taken it even further — from fire-fuelled outdoor events to the most intimate of dinners — and I can't wait for guests to experience the incredible lineup of flavours, talent and creativity we've curated together," added Hartill-Law. [caption id="attachment_812565" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Palette[/caption] HOTA, Home of the Arts' 2025 Marco Pierre White pop-ups are taking place across Thursday, June 5–Saturday, June 7, 2025. For more information and tickets, hit up the HOTA website. Top image: Derek Dsouza.
Just six months after opening his first solo venture, Jared Merlino (co-owner of Big Poppa's, Kittyhawk and Lobo Plantation) is already changing this up. Bartolo (FKA Caffe Bartolo) has just reopened with a new name, a new interior and a new menu to boot. As part of the all-day eatery's revamp, the venue now features a 13-seat bar space, which has launched alongside the approval of the bar's PSA licence — allowing punters to drink without having to order any food. When you visit, expect a sleek fit-out with walnut floorboards and high tables, along with a cocktail menu that spans spritzes ($15), classics ($14–20) and signatures ($22). The menu changes with the season and has been created by the group's lauded head bartender, Grazia Di Franco. At the moment, there's a Vermuttino spritz (vermouth, lemon myrtle and soda), the Rain cocktail (tequila, two types of vermouth, verjus and golden beetroot), the Merino Wool (sherry, cognac and vermouth with apple, almond milk and egg whites) and the Fireplace (Rinomato Aperitivo and Americano Bianco with plum, cacao and earl grey), which is served hot. Over at the dining room, Merlino wanted to serve up something that Crown Street didn't already offer. For that, he called in chef Teofilo Nobrega, who spent the past 13 years working at Potts Point's Fratelli Paradiso. When creating the food menu, Nobrega's aim was to create a lineup of dishes that you could happily spend 17 hours — how long the cafe's open for each day — eating. And, indeed, you can. For lunch and dinner, there are grilled lamb rump skewers with rosemary and garlic ($15), locally made burrata with white anchovy ($18), charred octopus with salsa verde and pickled onion ($23) and pan-fried Spanish mackerel with asparagus and celeriac puree, ($26). Pair these with one (or both of) the house-made pastas — at the moment, those include the tagliolini alla sorrentina with buffalo mozzarella ($21) and the duck ragu pappardelle ($31). And don't forget a serve of the veal and pork meatballs in tomato sugo ($15), which is made using a recipe from Merlino's nan. On weekends, head in for the regularly changing brunch specials, with house cocktails available from 8am — including the bloody mary, mandarin and prosecco mimosa, espresso-based Coffee Break and a campari and grapefruit concoction. For eats, enjoy the likes of brekkie meatballs with poached eggs and parmesan, or brioche French toast with apple and rhubarb compote and mascarpone. For weekday breakfast before heading into the office, the espresso bar is open from 7m till 3pm, at which you can grab Gabriel coffee and a pastry from Organic Bread Bar. Images: Kitti Gould Words by Samantha Teague and Marissa Ciampi
Just days after confirming that picnics are a permitted form of outdoor recreation — and after hitting the six-million-jab threshold, too — New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian has today, Thursday, August 26, announced that folks in much of NSW will soon be able to gather outdoors in larger groups in the very near future. Greater Sydney remains under lockdown until the end of September; however, the Premier had previously announced that NSW residents would see at least one rule loosen once six million doses of the COVID-19 vaccination had been administered statewide. So, from 12.01am Monday, September 13, that's exactly what'll occur. Residents who live outside of Sydney's Local Government Areas of concern will be able to enjoy outdoor recreation in groups of five, as long as all adults are fully vaccinated. That means that as long as you and four of your friends have all had both of your jabs, you will be able to gather outside for recreation — so, for "sitting for relaxation, or to eat, drink or read outdoors", as defined by the NSW Government rules — within your LGA or within five kilometres from home. That cap includes children, but only the adults must be fully vaxxed given that Australia's vaccination campaign hasn't opened to kids yet. And, all those adults came come from different households. "It means that if you have friends or relatives within your LGA or within the five kilometres, you will be able to congregate together in an outdoor gathering of five, as opposed to just two from different households," said the Premier. "We know people coming together is what people miss the most. From the various options we looked at, that was the option that met the mental health needs and wellbeing of our community, but also provided the lowest-risk setting," she continued. Live inside one of the LGAs of concern (so, in the Bayside, Blacktown, Burwood, Campbelltown, Canterbury-Bankstown, Cumberland, Fairfield, Georges River, Liverpool, Parramatta and Strathfield LGAs, as well as 12 suburbs in the Penrith)? Change is coming there, too. Outdoor recreation currently isn't allowed at all; however, it'll be back on the cards from the same date. From that point onwards, families with fully vaccinated adults in LGAs of concern will be able to go out together for an hour of outdoor recreation — and that's in addition to your one hour of exercise each day — although it'll have to be between 5am–9pm given the nighttime curfew. Because there's a strict five-kilometre rule in place in these LGAs, you'll need to abide by that requirement for your picnics there as well. NSW recorded 1,029 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night. Of these locally acquired cases, 185 are linked to a known case or cluster – 160 are household contacts and 25 are close contacts – source of infection for 844 cases under investigation pic.twitter.com/6VcaKAXjno — NSW Health (@NSWHealth) August 26, 2021 The announcement comes as NSW recorded 1029 new locally acquired COVID-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8pm on Wednesday, August 25 — and yes, it does feel strange to hear about restrictions easing when case numbers have hit their highest levels so far during the pandemic. That said, the NSW Government sees hitting the six-million-jab vaccination milestone as the first step in easing the Greater Sydney region out of its current lengthy lockdown. After that, when NSW reaches 70-percent and 80-percent vaccination rates, restrictions are meant to loosen even further — including allowing restaurants and bars to reopen to fully vaccinated patrons at the 70-percent mark — which falls in line with the country's new overall 'National Plan to transition Australia's National COVID Response' that was announced in July. "I also want to strongly message today that New South Wales is calling on industry and citizens to get ready for when we are 70-percent double-vaccinated. That's when things will start to open," said the Premier. "The New South Wales Government will start conversations with industry, but we do say that the condition of you participating in what will be reopening is on you being vaccinated. Because when you start opening at 70 precent, there are certain activities only vaccinated people can do — because we know that whilst a certain portion of the population is unvaccinated, that poses a risk to many people." This isn't quite the full roadmap out of lockdown that Berejiklian promised in mid-July and is still yet to announce, but a few further details were provided. At the 70-percent full vaccination mark, a range of yet-t0-be-revealed family, industry, community and economic restrictions will be lifted for jabbed folks — and at 80 per-cent, restrictions will be further eased when it comes to industry, the community and the economy. The Premier has previously advised that the NSW Government does expect case numbers to remain high in September and October; however, she expects that there'll still be scope to ease some rules for vaccinated people — with encouraging folks to get vaccinated obviously a very big part of the strategy moving forward. If you're wondering were you can get vaccinated, there's a handy online map that helps you find your nearest clinic. Australia's vaccination campaign is also expected to get a boost from Monday, August 30 once the Pfizer jab opens to under 40s around the country — and from September as well, which is when the Moderna vaccine has been approved for use and will join the rollout. Fully vaccinated adults in much of NSW will be able to gather in groups of five outdoors for outdoor recreation from 12.01am on Monday, September 13. Families in Sydney's LGAs of concern will be go outside for recreation for an hour a day from the same date. For more information about the changes, head to the NSW Government website. For further details about the status of COVID-19 in NSW, head to the NSW Health website. Top image: Destination NSW.
The results of the 36th edition of the Official Great Aussie Pie Competition have just been announced, revealing the best pies, sausage rolls and pasties across Australia. The competition, which ran over four days at the Fine Food Event at the International Convention Centre in Sydney, welcomed over 1500 entries from more than 200 bakeries. This year's winners, across 15 categories, came from far and wide. Paradise Bakehouse in Bundaberg, Queensland, won the award for the best plain meat pie. Banana Boogie in Belair, South Australia, took out the award for the best plain sausage roll. The best gourmet pie was a beef bourguignon version from Mount Barker Country Bakery in Western Australia. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Daisy (@australia.food.drink) There is a wide range of categories judged, including everything from the best gourmet seafood pie to the best slow-cooked barbecue pie and the best brekkie pie. The best vegetarian pie was a roasted cauliflower pie with black truffle and provolone cheese sauce. An apple and raspberry pie from Miami Bakehouse Greenfield in Western Australia took out the dessert pie category. Victoria took out the best manufacturing sausage roll, the best gourmet game pie, and the best gluten-free pie awards. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Miami Bakehouse (@miamibakehouse) Over $50,000 in prize money and products were on the table, but the real prize of the competition in the past has been the remarkable boost in sales for winning bakeries. Previous winning bakeries have attracted customers from hours away, with lines out the door, to try their award-winning goods. Images: Supplied. For the full list of winners, check out the official website. If all this talk of pies and pastries has made you hungry, check out the best bakeries in Melbourne.
While many of us wish we were jumping on a plane for a week of relaxing at a beachside resort in Saint-Tropez or hopping over to the Cinque Terre for many bowls of pasta and spritzes, the reality is international travel can be a time-consuming and expensive hassle. But, that doesn't mean a glamorous waterfront getaway is completely unattainable. About an hour's drive north of Sydney, you'll find Pittwater, which is surrounded by hundreds of secluded beach houses, charming cabins set right on the water and serene retreats that'll transport you miles away from the hustle and bustle of the city. To save you hours of scrolling, we've rounded up a list of the most stunning — and most secluded — Airbnbs located by the water around Sydney's northern beaches. So, book a spot, pack your togs and get ready to escape the city for a weekend of relaxing. Recommended Reads: The Best Places to Go Glamping in NSW The Best Tiny Houses You Can Book Around NSW The Best Hotels in Sydney The Best Places to Stay in the Blue Mountains The Boathouse, Scotland Island This cosy coastal cabin is the ideal destination for couples wanting to unwind, beachside. It's got character aplenty, with sparkling water views to match. From $440 a night, sleeps two. Boathouse on the Waterfront, Avalon Beach A cheery couples' hideout perched right on the shores of Careel Bay, where just a few steps connect open-plan living with a waterfront jetty. From $995 a night, sleeps two. Secluded Waterfront Cottage, Lovett Bay It doesn't get much more secluded than this bayside retreat for two, which backs onto a lush national park and has water-only access. From $399 a night, sleeps two. Retreat at Coasters, Coasters Retreat Treat your flock to some downtime at this family-style retreat, enveloped by pristine bushland and set just metres from the shore. From $444 a night, sleeps four. The Secret Palm Beach Getaway, Palm Beach At this breezy Palm Beach cottage, the open-plan living space, sprawling deck and infinity pool all boast the same covetable water views. From $700 a night, sleeps two. Sandstone Cottage, Great Mackerel Beach One of Mackerel Beach's original sandstone cottages is now a secluded six-person hideaway with spectacular sunrises to match. From $1100 a night, sleeps six. Cape Mackerel Cabin, Great Mackerel Beach Secure your own patch of Great Mackerel beachfront, boasting an entertainer's dream deck and views that stretch from Palm Beach to the Central Coast. From $635 a night, sleeps six. Tides Reach Boathouse, McCarrs Creek Accessible only by water, this modern nautical cottage feels worlds away from reality. Fresh white interiors and a sun-drenched waterfront deck round out the holiday vibes. From $700 a night, sleeps eight. The Boathouse Retreat, Elvina Bay This peaceful hideaway nestled on the edge of Ku-ring-gai National Park offers stunning views of Pittwater and that cosy tiny home feel without compromising comfort. From $360 a night, sleeps two. The Oyster Shed, Lovett Bay Accessed only by water, this rustic studio on the bay is perfect romantic getaway. This nautical boathouse comes complete with a fire pit, private dock and cosy vibes to spare. From $369 a night. Sleeps two. Top image: Waterfront Boathouse FYI, this story includes some affiliate links. These don't influence any of our recommendations or content, but they may make us a small commission. For more info, see Concrete Playground's editorial policy.
Chinatown prides itself on being one of the most vibrant destinations in Sydney; it's alive with colour, movement and, of course, mouthwatering smells. As you're welcomed by the somewhat iconic Golden Water Mouth sculpture, you'll see the buzzing Paddy's Markets to one side and the yum cha dens of Dixon Street to the other. In the heart of it all lies Sussex Centre. From the outset, it may seem like a simple food court — thanks to a slightly dated, no-frills facade — but step inside to find a veritable buffet of quality Asian cuisine, with price tags that will surely please the penny-pinchers among us.Whether you're after a rich seafood laksa from the ever-popular Happy Chef, fresh sashimi or a giant, steaming bowl of pho, your belly will be satisfied after a visit here. Work lunch or casual dinner, Sussex Centre has got you covered.
Sunset Cinema is no stranger to St Ives Showground, screening flicks there late in 2021 and early in 2022. For its new season from Friday, December 9—Saturday, January 28, the openair cinema still boasts the same main attraction, too: watching movies under the stars. Whether you're planning a cosy date night or an easy group hang outdoors, there'll be something on the bill for you — kicking off with box-office behemoth Top Gun: Maverick, and spanning plenty of new and recent titles as well. If you haven't yet given Black Panther: Wakanda Forever a spin, or entered Strange World, or gotten twisty thrills from Don't Worry Darling, they're all on the lineup. Other highlights include Black Panther: Wakanda Forever; a heap of festive flicks leading into Christmas, such as Elf, Love Actually, Home Alone and The Nightmare Before Christmas; and three dog-focused films in January, spanning Marley & Me, Scooby-Doo and 101 Dalmatians. BYO picnics are encouraged here, but the event is fully licensed, so alcohol can only be purchased onsite. Didn't pack enough snacks? There'll be hot food options, plus plenty of the requisite movie treats like chips, chocolates, lollies and popcorn.
Have you launched a hospitality business that deserves some love? Think you could be Australia's next great business success story? Been in business for five years or less? Keep reading because you could be in with a chance to win a business-changing worthy prize. Here at Concrete Playground, we love championing the hospitality businesses that keep the country fed and entertained. We also understand that times are tough right now. That's why, in partnership with Square, Concrete Playground is giving away a marketing package worth $20,000. If you've been in business for five years or less, the Boost Your Business competition aims to shine a light on your brand. By entering the competition, you could be in with a chance to win a native editorial feature on Concrete Playground and get your business in front of our dedicated readers, as well as inclusion in Concrete Playground's hospitality directory. You'll also receive a social media push as we promote your business across various channels and help you reach engaged audiences with an eDM inclusion. Intrigued? Simply tell us in 25 words or less why your hospitality business is Australia's next great success story. For the full details, see the comp form below. T&Cs apply. [competition]1022571[/competition]
Redfern's much loved ramen shop RaRa has garnered a cult-like following since opening its doors in 2018. Those who've visited the joint will have seen lines around the block, which start to form even before the restaurant opens for dinner service. Now, lucky Sydneysiders have doubled their chance to taste a bowl of the restaurant's ramen. RaRa Randwick has opened within the recently launched Newmarket Dining Precinct — and it boasts bigger digs, an extended menu and its very own window-framed noodle room. "We have been thrilled with the response and amount of interest and patronage at Redfern," says Scott Gault who co-owns the restaurants with Katie Shortland. "Opening a second site will be a good chance for more Sydneysiders to experience what RaRa offers." [caption id="attachment_761118" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kitti Gould[/caption] Executive Chef Terry Jeon (ex-Spice Temple) is a self-proclaimed ramen fanatic. At the new outpost, Joen is making the noodles daily using an imported noodle machine — in a dedicated noodle-making room with large windows. Plus, all of the soups are still made from scratch in a special pressure cooker using all free-range meat and eggs. The full RaRa Redfern menu is available at Randwick, too, but the new joint is also set to launch plenty of brand new dishes, which will be available in the coming weeks. While the menu is not quite yet finalised, expect the likes of chicken and vegan katsu curries, pork and corn korokke (Japanese croquettes), chicken karaage and a variety of onigiri options. Another new specialty will be the hiyashi chuka — a Japanese cold noodle salad with sous-vide shredded chicken breast, topped with house pickles and goma dare sesame dressing. [caption id="attachment_761114" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kitti Gould[/caption] For drinks, expect more imported Japanese beers and local cans from Yullis Brews, as well as natural wines by the glass and other Japanese specialties like sake, highballs and umeshu sodas. And, similarly to Redfern, the space will have a mix of glowing red neon and light timber elements — just much larger. It was designed by Aphora Architecture, whose team took a trip back to Japan in order to prepare for the build. "As with Redfern, the store layout is focused on connecting the diner to the theatre involved in the preparation of various handmade elements of the ramen, which is ultimately at the heart of the RaRa spirit," says head designer Andrew Forsyth. [caption id="attachment_761119" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kitti Gould[/caption] That voyeuristic noodle room we mentioned earlier sits near the entrance and allows patrons to watch all of the noodle-making in action. Meanwhile, at the other end of the restaurant, smoke from the char siu grill offers its own form of 'theatre'. We recommend pulling up a stool at the wrap-around bar, which sits central to the space and allows you to enjoy all of restaurant's entertainment. RaRa Randwick is now open at Shop 1/162- 164 Barker Street, Randwick. Opening hours are Monday through Wednesday from 11.30am–9.30pm, Thursday through Friday from 11.30am–10pm, Saturday from noon–10pm and Sunday from noon–8pm. Images: Kitti Gould
In recent years, there's been an interesting shift in the way Australians approach leisure and travel. There was a time when an ideal weekend involved throwing back espresso martinis, racking up a $200 Uber bill, and waking up with a vague recollection of last night's bad decisions. Now? Our collective vibe (and level of disposable income) has changed. People are drinking less, going out less, and prioritising feeling good on Monday morning over how late they can stay out. In 2024, Forbes reported a study that found Gen Z, in particular, are drinking 12.8 fewer alcoholic drinks a month compared to before COVID-19. This coincides with the increasing popularity of run clubs, bath houses, #GutHealth and holistic wellness both online and IRL. But it's not just about cutting back on booze, it's about chasing something that actually makes you feel good. Enter the rise of micro wellness escapes: short, intentional trips that are designed to leave you recharged instead of wrecked. Instead of saving for one big, long-haul, blowout trip, more and more people are leaning into weekends spent off-grid, ice baths instead of beach clubs, and yoga in the hinterland rather than sunrise shots in Bali. If that sounds like your kind of reset, here are five wellness retreats worth checking out. Eden Health Retreat Currumbin Valley QLD If you've ever wished you could disappear off the grid for a few days, Eden Health Retreat makes that dream a reality. Tucked away in Queensland's Currumbin Valley, it's a place where your phone gets zero reception, the Wi-Fi doesn't exist, and your only connection is with nature, your body, and that book you finally have time to read. This isn't the kind of place you go to lie by the pool with a cocktail. The days here are structured but flexible, with daily classes or workshops ranging from yoga, Pilates and sound healing to rainforest meditations, cold plunges and sauna. You can book in for massages or sweat it out in the state-of-the-art gym, and still have time for long walks through the forest tracks that wrap around the retreat. The food is nutritionally balanced, seasonal, and designed by their team of award-winning chefs and nutritionists. They provide three totally gluten-free meals per day (breakfast, lunch and dinner) served in the beautiful dining room overlooking the valley. They even have a custom-built demonstration kitchen where you can learn how to cook for yourself. You won't go hungry, and you'll leave with a new standard for what healthy eating can taste like. Eden is immersive. It's a chance to disappear from real life, breathe deeply, and actually hear yourself think again. If you're in need of a full system reset, this is your best bet. Book Eden Health Retreat Gaia Retreat & Spa Brooklet NSW Not everyone wants a retreat where they have to ditch their vices entirely. Gaia, set in Byron Bay's lush hinterland, caters to that. Here, you can have your organic, locally sourced meals and grounding meditations, but you can also enjoy a glass of wine with dinner. You can go full wellness mode, or you can simply read a book on the balcony, get a massage, and forget reality. Gaia's experience is built around balance. There are daily yoga classes, as well as opt-in opt-out spa treatments and holistic wellness therapies like art therapy, astrology, kinesiology and energetic healing. But you can pick and choose your own pace, jumping into everything, or doing absolutely nothing and just floating through the weekend. Food here is a highlight. Fresh, organic produce from the onsite gardens and local farmers is served across three daily meals by Gaia's award-winning chefs. Yes, there's a wine list. And no, you don't need to feel bad about indulging. It's part of the wellness equation. Gaia offers you space to relax without rules. Whether you're escaping the city, celebrating something, or just need a reset, this is luxury wellness without the rigidity. Book Gaia Retreat The Brooklet Brooklet NSW Some places make a point of saying, "We're not a retreat," and The Brooklet is one of them. Nestled in Byron Bay's rolling hills, it's set on 125-acres with 6 luxury Villas for those who want a break from life without the structure of a traditional wellness retreat. Instead of a rigid schedule, you get a stunning space where you can take things at your own pace. It's self-guided, self-paced, and all about reconnecting with nature. There's an infinity mineral pool overlooking the hills, a sauna, hot tub, tennis court, private yoga sessions and spaces designed purely for chilling out: think warm timber tones, neutral palettes, and interiors that instantly make you feel calm. It's like staying at a ridiculously aesthetic countryside Airbnb, but one that also happens to be built for wellness. If you choose a retreat package, your stay will include three meals per day and a non-alcoholic beverage package. Or you can head to nearby cafes and farm-to-table eateries. The space also includes a communal kitchen, where guests can make their own pizzas and eat at the huge family-style communal table. The Brooklet is for those who don't want to be told what to do with their downtime. Just beautiful space, plenty of nature, and all the facilities you need to tune back in. Book The Brooklet Elysia Wellness Retreat Pokolbin NSW If you're after a full-body-and-mind transformation, Elysia is the place. Located in the Hunter Valley in NSW, it's a wellness retreat in the most literal sense of the title. Structured, intentional, and designed to help you completely reset your mind and body with long term habits. Elysia offers three to seven day packages. Each stay includes guided fitness, mindfulness and wellness sessions, ranging from group yoga and tai chi to educational seminars, spa therapies, and one-on-one health consultations. There's a schedule to follow, but it's flexible and designed to empower you with tools to take home. The food is designed to detox, nourish and energise, but it's never boring. Clean, wholesome meals are served communally to encourage mindful eating, and you're given a break from red meat, alcohol, caffeine, sugar and saturated fat. It's a retreat that feeds your body and your social spirit. Elysia is perfect if you're looking for a retreat that's equal parts educational and experiential. Book Elysia Wellness Retreat Billabong Retreat Maraylya NSW Only 45 minutes from Sydney, Billabong Retreat is one of the most accessible wellness getaways around, designed for those who want to unplug without going too far. It's less about luxury and more about getting back to basics, with a philosophy around reconnection with nature, mindfulness, and slowing down. Everything here is simple but thoughtful. Treehouse-style cabins overlook a serene billabong and there's a general sense of "let's just breathe for a minute" energy about the place. The daily program centres around yoga, meditation and mindfulness, with classes that suit all levels. You can book extra spa treatments, take a dip in the mineral pool, or simply sit with a cup of tea and look out over the trees. The food is like a warm, plant-based hug. Each stay includes all food, drinks and snacks, which are all locally sourced and served in a communal buffet style that encourages genuine connection. It's healthy, hearty and made with love. Book Billabong Retreat In 2025, wellness retreats are no longer for the ultra-spiritual or ultra-rich. Now, they're for anyone who just wants to feel better. As the world speeds up, the real luxury is being able to check out of the chaos and check in with yourself.
Whether you're committed to reducing your use of single-use plastics or dedicated to a vegan diet, it's easy to change your consumption habits for the good of the environment — while you're in your own home. Once you venture out, however, there's much that's out of your control. Sure, you've eliminated disposable plastic from your routine, but every business you patronise mightn't have done the same. And you've ordered a vegan meal at your local cafe, but does the place you're eating at use animal products in its decor? On the plastics front, plenty of organisations and brands are starting to do their part, with the likes of IKEA, McDonald's, Melbourne's Crown Casino and Coca-Cola Amatil phasing out single-use items, and one airline pledging to become wholly plastic-free. When it comes to living a vegan lifestyle, Hilton's London Bankside is joining in by opening the world's first entirely vegan luxury hotel suite. Now available for bookings, the room only uses plant-based substances, fibres and surfaces — so you won't find any leather, feathers and wool among its wares. With the suite designed by food artists Bompas & Parr, what you will find is a material created from pineapples. The bed's headboard is made from pineapple leaves, while vegan-friendly fruit leather piñatex features heavily. It's made from the cellulose fibres sourced from pineapples, and is not only used in the upholstered seats, footstools and cushions, but in the room's keycard as well. With no animal products to be found in any of the suite's materials or inclusions, guests will step onto cotton carpets and bamboo floors; sleep on pillows made from organic buckwheat, millet hulls, kapok or bamboo fibres (your choice); grab a snack from the complimentary vegan mini-bar; and use cruelty-free toiletries. When your room is cleaned by housekeeping, they'll also be using vegan products. Even when you're checking in, you'll be doing so at a plant-based counter. And if you're keen to order in, of course the vegan range extends to the in-room menu. Find Hilton London Bankside at 2–8 Great Suffolk Street, London, and visit the hotel website for further details. Images: Hilton London Bankside.
Tucked away down Scott Street, Yuzu is an understated sushi joint that stands out from the crop of Pyrmont eateries. It's a cosy, affordable restaurant that locals love. The menu favours light and fresh plates, perfect for pre-theatre dining. The quality of food and attention to detail is consistently above and beyond expectation — the nigiri plates look like works of art. The Yuzu team has a strong commitment to sustainable, seasonal produce, too. Its menu changes constantly, so the sharable plates are always fresh and innovative.
You'll find this cafe inside a restored police cottage overlooking the Nepean River in the Regatta Park Precinct. The family- and dog-friendly spot has a bright and all-around homey decor to make you feel welcome indoors, as well as picnic tables out on the lawn. On Saturday nights and on Sundays at lunch, live tunes from local artists add to the relaxing atmosphere. The all-day brekkie menu has treats like buttermilk scones, a deep dish macadamia pancake, the Man Bun (a full fry-up stuffed into a soft milk bun) and pork belly benedict on offer. Meanwhile, the lunch menu brings a luxe lobster and prawn roll, burgers, nachos, poke bowl and salads. The venue is also open for dinner, Wednesday through Saturday, with an eclectic range of modern classics available — think cheeseburger spring rolls, crispy maple pork ribs and chargrilled octopus. And don't skip the cocktail menu, with signature tipples named after former residents of the cottage. Perhaps you'd like to try the Constable Thorsby (a mango and lime caprioska) or Constable Musgrove (lychee martini).
It's no secret that living in Sydney is mighty tough on the hip pocket sometimes. In between rent, bills and the occasional house deposit-diminishing avocado on toast, there's often not a lot left over for the finer things in life — like dining out. Never fear though, you don't have to sit at home eating two-minute noodles to stay on budget. We've rounded up our list of the top places where you can eat well without breaking the bank. These generous venues all serve up set menus for under $50 — think Middle Eastern and Italian feasts, Thai banquets and Mexican Peruvian fusion, plus vego options aplenty.
Sweet news: this spring and summer, your lips can taste like Gelato Messina no matter what you're eating. We can't all devour ice cream all day and night, sadly, but we can all slather our smackers with Messina's Lanolips collaboration — especially now that it comes in a dulce de leche version. Back in 2021, Messina and Lanolips first teamed up on their debut gelato-flavoured balm — a salted coconut and mango sorbet number that, yes, was always going to give you a constant craving for a few scoops. The pair have brought that popular version back in 2022, too, as well as the new dulce de leche balm. We said it a year ago and we'll say it again now: if you start eating more gelato as a result, you'll know why. How do you make a dulce de leche balm? It takes its cues from Messina's signature in-house Argentinean caramelised milk gelato flavour, and was inspired by a gelato-tasting session, naturally. As for the salted coconut and mango sorbet flavour, it still nods to Messina's most popular coconut milk sorbet — a flavour that features Murray River salt and Australian Kensington Pride mango salsa. In balm form, the two Aussie-made products are infused with lanolin from local sheep's wool, as well as coconut oil, vitamin E and natural flavour. You'll find the lip-smacking products in all Messina stores, Messina's online store, at Lanolips' website and at Mecca. And, while they're perfect for that obvious purpose, Messina and and Lanolips also advise that the multi-balms have one hundred other uses. Head to Messina to pick some up today, on Tuesday, September 27 — or buy one from Messina's website — and you'll also nab a free scoop while stocks last. For more information about Gelato Messina's new Lanolips balm — and to buy some — head to the chain's website.
After five months of deliberation, Nestlé has announced the new names for two of its classic lollies. Those chewy red lollies FKA Redskins are now Red Ripper and the brand's chocolate-flavoured, people-shaped Chicos are now called Cheekies. The names may not seem dramatically different at first glance, but they no longer have the racist overtones the company says are "out of step" with its values. "Nestle has an unwavering commitment to upholding respect for our friends, neighbours and colleagues," General Manager Confectionery Chris O'Donnell said in a statement about the name changes. Redskins is an antiquated and derogatory term for Native Americans, while Chicos means 'children' in Spanish and is considered offensive to people of Latin American descent. The lolly monolith first announced the decision to change the Allen's brand lollies' names back in June, when discussions around race and discrimination were thrust to the fore due to the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement, and protests over the death of American George Floyd at the hands of a police officer — as well as, at the local level, the ongoing fight to end the systemic mistreatment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and Māori by law enforcement. Calls for Nestlé to change the names of its two products aren't new, however — with the debate raging when they were featured in a 2013 episode of MasterChef Australia — and they're not the only controversially named product on Australia supermarket shelves, either. Cheese brand Coon also recently announced it will change its name. A similar long-running debate about the offensiveness of the Washington Redskins NFL ramped up in the US this year, too, and led to the team removing its logo and temporarily changing its name to Washington Football Team for at least the 2020 season, before deciding on a new permanent name. While the Nestlé lollies will have different names when the new packaging lands on supermarket shelves in 2021, the company promises the lollies themselves "remain unchanged". Red Ripper and Cheekies will hit supermarket shelves in early 2021.
UPDATE, MARCH 5: Due to concerns around the coronavirus, Universal Pictures has announced that No Time to Die will no longer release on its initially scheduled date of Thursday, April 8, 2020. It will now release worldwide in November 2020 — including Down Under on November 12, 2020. To find out more about the status of COVID-19 in Australia and how to protect yourself, head to the Australian Government Department of Health's website. It's trailer time. James Bond trailer time. That means espionage thrills, world-in-peril action, formidable villains, savvy ladies, plenty of gadgets and — since 2006's Casino Royale — Daniel Craig as 007. All of the above is present and accounted for in the just-released first look at No Time to Die, which'll mark the British spy's 25th official big-screen outing. It's also Craig's final go-around as the martini-loving hero. After the events of 2015's Spectre — and after retiring from active service to soak in Jamaica's splendours — Craig's version of Bond is looking a bit shaken and stirred in the No Time to Die trailer. That's bound to happen when he's told his skills are needed to rescue a kidnapped scientist, only for that mission to bring him face-to-face with an unhinged new adversary (Bohemian Rhapsody Oscar-winner Rami Malek). Throw in a new 00 agent (Captain Marvel's Lashana Lynch) covering Bond's turf, a forced meeting with imprisoned ex-opponent Blofeld (Christoph Waltz) and things not seeming to have ended well with psychiatrist Dr Madeleine Swan (Lea Seydoux), and it's safe to say that the mood is rather tense. The instalment is directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga (True Detective, Maniac) and penned by a team that includes Fukunaga, The Report director Scott Z Burns and Fleabag's Phoebe Waller-Bridge — and all the usual Bond offsiders are on hand, too. Yes, Ralph Fiennes is back as M, alongside Naomie Harris as Eve Moneypenny, Ben Whishaw as Q, Rory Kinnear as MI6 head Bill Tanner and Jeffrey Wright as CIA agent Felix Leiter. Plus, reuniting with Craig after co-starring in the fabulously entertaining Knives Out, Ana de Armas also joins the cast. And, naturally, the first No Time to Die sneak peek delivers plenty of impressive action. It is a Bond film after all. Indeed, if Craig is stepping away from the role after five features (including 2008's Quantum of Solace and 2012's Skyfall), he looks to be going out in suave, stunt-filled, Aston Martin-driving style. Watch the trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo-jtTLBhok&feature=youtu.be No Time to Die was originally due to release in cinemas on April 8, 2020, but will now release in Australia on November 12, 2020.
On May 3, 2012, over 3000 women came together in Sydney's iconic Centennial Park for the inaugural Nike She Runs the Night event. It made Australian history by being the country's first women-only night race. After a sell-out in 2012, the course has expanded for the 2013 race, giving more space for more runners. With a now 90,000-strong Facebook community, the 2013 Sydney race will without a doubt attract even more racers. The event includes bands and DJs throughout the course to help motivate the runners, and after the run participants are invited to a post-celebration with live music, massages, giveaways, refreshments, Nike Free Run+ 3 trials, Nike+ demos, and a photo booth. The Nike She Runs campaign has become something of a movement for Australian women to share their common love of running and sport together. If you're a female runner looking for a fun and challenging race, this is certainly the event for you. Registration opened Thursday, February 14, 2013, and continues until the event date. There are 6000 available spots, but do make sure to sign up before those 90,000 Facebook fans swoop in.
Thought there was room in this town for just one retro-inspired line of Melbourne beer merch? Well, think again. VB has been dropping different collections and items over the past couple of years years, including Christmas sweaters and swimwear — and, after first releasing some sweet new merchandise of its own back in 2018, too, Melbourne Bitter has just announced its latest range. Once again, it's a collaboration with fuss-free menswear label Mr Simple. And once again, it's taking its cues from history. This time around, the collection draws upon Melbourne Bitter's archive, with four different graphics on offer. Melbourne Bitter's reputation as a hipster sip of choice should give you some idea of the vibe of this latest collection — think, vintage-style tees showcasing old-school logos, plus long-sleeved shirts, bucket hats and caps. Basically, now that Melbourne's pubs and bars have reopened, it's the perfect wardrobe choice. Unlike the largely unisex offerings of VB's range, this one's marketed more towards men — as Melbourne Bitter's first collab with Mr Simple was as well. Still, we think it can rocked by all beer lovers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZfw9lZTojQ For more information about the Melbourne Bitter x Mr Simple Pt II clothing line, head to Mr Simple's website.
It's been a staple of the LGBTQIA+ community in Sydney and a bustling nightlife spot for decades. It even features in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. It's The Imperial Erskinville and now it has new owners. The storied pub has officially been sold, with Universal Hotels taking the reins. Universal Hotels is owned and operated by the Kospetas family. The group's footprint on Sydney's hospitality scene is significant, with venues like Newtown Hotel, Universal, Oxford Hotel, Civic Hotel, Hotel Downing, Bat and Ball Hotel, The Riley, Tempe Hotel and V Bar all falling under the group's portfolio. "The opportunity to transact on the Imperial was one in which we believed had great synergy with our group of venues. We have a strong connection with the LGBTQIA+ community and are very excited about the next chapter for the venue," said Universal Hotels in a statement to Concrete Playground. "To begin we will take some time to build relationships with the staff and community. We are attracted to the strong legacy of The Imperial and will endeavour to continually improve and evolve the venue." Since the group took over the venue, things have remained business as usual — so don't expect any radical changes to the beloved community venue. You can still pop into The Imperial for sweaty dance floors and singalongs on weekends, live drag Wednesday–Sunday, trivia on Wednesdays, bingo on Thursdays or for a feed at one of its dining rooms including Priscilla's and Carlotta's Rooftop. The Erskineville mainstay last closed in 2018 for a $6 million makeover. After an eight-month revamp it reopened with its current slate of dining and entertainment offerings including its vibrant new rooftop bar and basement party area. You'll find The Imperial Erskineville at 35 Erskineville Road, Erskineville. It's open 4pm–12am Wednesday–Thursday, 4pm–3am Friday, 12pm–4am Saturday and 12pm–12am Sunday.
Francis Bacon (not the painter) once wrote, "The joys of parents are secret, and so are their griefs and fears: they cannot utter the one, nor they will not utter the other." In Unholy Ghosts (written by Campion Decent and directed by Kim Hardwick), a son does his best to extract exactly these utterances from his ailing parents as he, and they, get to grips with the pointy end of mortality. The play, which stems heavily from Decent’s own experiences, comprises a number of scattered reminiscences related by Son (James Lugton) as he recalls certain conversations with his ageing parents, Mother (Anna Volska), a retired actress who continues to revel in the dramatic, and Father (Robert Alexander), an irascible ex-salesman with no shortage of bitterness. Although the story is not strictly linear, there is never any doubt as to the direction in which we are headed; the play begins with Son’s recitation of synonyms for nothingness — “abyss, void, chasm, hole” — and it is a list he repeats at various points throughout the play. Despite allusions to hospitals and nursing homes, the stage is hidden under plush crimson carpet, overlooked by a dilapidated chest of flower-patterned drawers. It is the landscape of a fading memory, sparse and ebbing. The lighting is for the most part warm and realistic, but a subtle cold glow upstage illuminates a constant mist, the fug of history through which Son is backtracking, perhaps. Although described by Decent as a ‘navigation of loss’, Unholy Ghosts also traverses some very funny territory. The characters have obviously been written with a great deal of affection, and they are treated the same way by the actors inhabiting them. Volska is all class and wit as Mother, whilst Alexander’s skinflint Father seems to have been working his whole life to attain the status of perfect curmudgeon. Lugton runs between the two, an apt foil for both, his fondness often outweighed by sheer exasperation. The ending is quite odd and not entirely convincing. A fantasy reconciliation in the afterlife and a hurried celebration of extant family undermines a great deal of the excellent character work that preceded it. There is an obvious need to step back from the void at some stage, but this jarred considerably. Ultimately, though, Unholy Ghosts is a well-acted exploration of family and grief, an unflinching portrait of two flawed individuals who continue to charm and frustrate despite having shuffled off this mortal coil.
Not all that long ago, the idea of getting cosy on your couch, clicking a few buttons, and having thousands of films and television shows at your fingertips seemed like something out of science fiction. Now, it's just an ordinary night — whether you're virtually gathering the gang to text along, cuddling up to your significant other or shutting the world out for some much needed me-time. Of course, given the wealth of options to choose from, there's nothing ordinary about making a date with your chosen streaming platform. The question isn't "should I watch something?" — it's "what on earth should I choose?". Hundreds of titles are added to Australia's online viewing services each and every month, all vying for a spot on your must-see list. And, so you don't spend 45 minutes scrolling and then being too tired to actually commit to anything, we're here to help. We've spent plenty of couch time watching our way through this month's latest batch — and, from the latest and greatest through to old and recent favourites, here are our picks for your streaming queue from April's haul. Brand-New Stuff You Can Watch From Start to Finish Now Ripley Boasting The Night Of's Steven Zaillian as its sole writer and director — joining a list of credits that includes penning Martin Scorsese's Gangs of New York and The Irishman, and also winning an Oscar for Schindler's List — the latest exquisite jump into the Ripley realm doesn't splash around black-and-white hues as a mere stylistic preference. In this new adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's 1955 book, the setting is still coastal Italy at its most picturesque, and therefore a place that most would want to revel in visually; Anthony Minghella, The Talented Mr Ripley's director a quarter-century back, did so with an intoxicating glow. For Zaillian, however, stripping away the warm rays and beaches and hair, blue seas and skies, and tanned skin as well, ensures that all that glitters is never gold or even just golden in tone as he spends time with Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott, All of Us Strangers). There's never even a glint of a hint of a travelogue aesthetic, with viewers confronted with the starkness of Tom's choices and actions — he is a conman and worse, after all — plus the shadows that he persists in lurking in and the impossibility of ever grasping everything that he desires in full colour. On the page and on the screen both before and now, the overarching story remains the same, though, in this new definitive take on the character. It's the early 60s rather than the late 50s in Ripley, but Tom is in New York, running fake debt-collection schemes and clinging to the edges of high-society circles, when he's made a proposal that he was never going to refuse. Herbert Greenleaf (filmmaker Kenneth Lonergan, who has also acted in his own three features You Can Count on Me, Margaret and Manchester by the Sea) enlists him to sail to Europe to reunite with a friend, the shipping magnate's son Dickie (Johnny Flynn, One Life). As a paid gig, Tom is to convince the business heir to finally return home. But Dickie has no intention of giving up his Mediterranean leisure as he lackadaisically pursues painting — and more passionately spends his time with girlfriend Marge Sherwood (Dakota Fanning, The Equalizer 3) — to join the family business. Ripley streams via Netflix. Read our full review. Fallout A young woman sheltered in the most literal sense there is, living her entire life in one of the subterranean facilities where humanity endeavours to start anew. A TV and movie star famed for his roles in westerns, then entertaining kids, then still alive but irradiated 219 years after the nuclear destruction of Los Angeles. An aspiring soldier who has never known anything but a devastated world, clinging to hopes of progression through the military. All three walk into the wasteland in Fallout, the live-action adaptation of the gaming series that first arrived in 1997. All three cross paths in an attempt to do all that anyone can in a post-apocalyptic hellscape: survive. So goes this leap into a world that's had millions mashing buttons through not only the OG game, but also three released sequels — a fourth is on the way — plus seven spinoffs. Even with Westworld' Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy as executive producers, giving Fallout the flesh-and-blood treatment is a massive and ambitious task. But where 2023 had The Last of Us, 2024 now has this; both are big-name dystopian titles that earned legions of devotees through gaming, and both are excellent in gripping and immersive fashion at making the move to television. Fallout's vision of one of the bleakest potential futures splits its focus between Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell, Yellowjackets), who has no concept of how humanity can exist on the surface when the show kicks off; Cooper Howard aka bounty hunter The Ghoul (Walton Goggins, I'm a Virgo), the screen gunslinger who saw the bombs fall and now wields weapons IRL; and Maximus (Aaron Moten, Emancipation), a trainee for the Brotherhood of Steel, which is committed to restoring order by throwing around its might (and using robotic armour). The show's lead casting is gleaming, to the point that imagining anyone but this trio of actors as Lucy, Howard-slash-The Ghoul and Maximus is impossible. Where else has Walton's resume, with its jumps between law-and-order efforts, westerns traditional and neo, and comedy — see: The Shield, Justified, Sons of Anarchy, The Hateful Eight, Vice Principals and The Righteous Gemstones, as a mere few examples — been leading than here? (And, next, also season three of The White Lotus.) Fallout streams via Prime Video. Read our full review, and our interview with Walton Goggins, Ella Purnell and Aaron Moten. Heartbreak High When Heartbreak High returned in 2022, the Sydney-set series benefited from a pivotal fact: years pass, trends come and go, but teen awkwardness and chaos is eternal. In its second season, Netflix's revival of the 1994–99 Australian favourite embraces the same idea. It's a new term at Hartley High, one that'll culminate in the Year 11 formal. Amerie (Ayesha Madon, Love Me) might be certain that she can change — doing so is her entire platform for running for school captain — but waiting for adulthood to start never stops being a whirlwind. Proving as easy to binge as its predecessor, Heartbreak High's eight new episodes reassemble the bulk of the gang that audiences were initially introduced to two years ago. Moving forward is everyone's planned path — en route to that dance, which gives the new batch of instalments its flashforward opening. The evening brings fire, literally. Among the regular crew, a few faces are missing in the aftermath. The show then rewinds to two months earlier, to old worries resurfacing, new faces making an appearance and, giving the season a whodunnit spin as well, to a mystery figure taunting and publicly shaming Amerie. The latter begins their reign of terror with a dead animal; Bird Psycho is soon the unknown culprit's nickname. Leaders, creepers, slipping between the sheets: that's Heartbreak High's second streaming go-around in a nutshell. The battle to rule the school is a three-person race, pitting Amerie against Sasha (Gemma Chua-Tran, Mustangs FC) and Spider (Bryn Chapman Parish, Mr Inbetween) — one as progressive as Hartley, which already earns that label heartily, can get; the other season one's poster boy for jerkiness, toxicity and entitlement. Heightening the electoral showdown is a curriculum clash, with the SLT class introduced by Jojo Obah (Chika Ikogwe, The Tourist) last term as a mandatory response to the grade's behaviour questioned by Head of PE Timothy Voss (Angus Sampson, Bump). A new faculty member for the show, he's anti-everything that he deems a threat to traditional notions of masculinity. In Spider, Ant (Brodie Townsend, Significant Others) and others, he quickly has followers. Their name, even adorning t-shirts: CUMLORDS. Heartbreak High streams via Netflix. Read our full review. Such Brave Girls If Such Brave Girls seems close to reality, that's because it is. In the A24 co-produced series — which joins the cult-favourite entertainment company's TV slate alongside other standouts such as Beef, Irma Vep, Mo and The Curse over the past two years — sisters Kat Sadler and Lizzie Davidson both star and take inspiration from their lives and personalities. Making their TV acting debuts together, the pair also play siblings. Josie (Sadler) and Billie (Davidson), their on-screen surrogates, are navigating life's lows not only when the show's six-part first season begins, but as it goes on. The entire setup was sparked by a phone conversation between the duo IRL, when one had attempted to take her life twice and the other was £20,000 in debt. For most, a sitcom wouldn't come next; however, laughing at and lampooning themselves, and seeing the absurdity as well, is part of Such Brave Girls' cathartic purpose for its driving forces. If you've ever thought "what else can you do?" when finding yourself inexplicably chuckling at your own misfortune, that's this series — this sharp, unsparing, candid, complex and darkly comedic series — from start to finish. Creating the three-time BAFTA-nominated show, writing it and leading, Sadler plays Josie as a bundle of nerves and uncertainty. The character is in her twenties, struggling with her mental health and aspiring to be an artist, but is largely working her way through a never-ending gap year. Davidson's Billie is the eternally optimistic opposite — albeit really only about the fact that Nicky (Sam Buchanan, Back to Black), the guy that she's hooking up with, will eventually stop cheating on her, fall in love and whisk her away to Manchester to open a vodka bar bearing her name. Both girls live at home with their mother Deb (Louise Brealey, Lockwood & Co), who also sees a relationship as the solution to her problems, setting her sights on the iPad-addicted Dev (Paul Bazely, Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves) a decade after Josie and Billie's father went out for teabags and never came home. With actor-slash-director Simon Bird behind the lens — alongside first-timer Marco Alessi on one episode — if Such Brave Girls seems like it belongs in the same acerbically comedic realm as The Inbetweeners and Everyone Else Burns, there's a reason for that, too. Such Brave Girls streams via Stan. Read our full review. Baby Reindeer A person walking into a bar. The words "sent from my iPhone". A comedian pouring their experiences into a one-performer play. A twisty true-crime tale making the leap to the screen. All four either feature in, inspired or describe Baby Reindeer. All four are inescapably familiar, too, but the same can't be said about this seven-part Netflix series. Written by and starring Scottish comedian Richard Gadd, and also based on his real-life experiences, this is a bleak, brave, revelatory, devastating and unforgettable psychological thriller. It does indeed begin with someone stepping inside a pub — and while Gadd plays a comedian on-screen as well, don't go waiting for a punchline. When Martha (Jessica Gunning, The Outlaws) enters The Heart in Camden, London in 2015, Donny Dunn (Gadd, Wedding Season) is behind the counter. "I felt sorry for her. That's the first feeling I felt," the latter explains via voiceover. Perched awkwardly on a stool at the bar, Martha is whimpering to herself. She says that she can't afford to buy a drink, even a cup of tea. Donny takes pity, offering her one for free — and her face instantly lights up. That's the fateful moment, one of sorrow met with kindness, that ignites Baby Reindeer's narrative and changes Donny's life. After that warm beverage, The Heart instantly has a new regular. Sipping Diet Cokes from then on (still on the house), Martha is full of stories about all of the high-profile people that she knows and her high-flying lawyer job. But despite insisting that she's constantly busy, she's also always at the bar when Donny is at work, sticking around for his whole shifts. She chats incessantly about herself, folks that he doesn't know and while directing compliments Donny's way. He's in his twenties, she's in her early forties — and he can see that she's smitten, letting her flirt. He notices her laugh. He likes the attention, not to mention getting his ego stroked. While he doesn't reciprocate her feelings, he's friendly. She isn't just an infatuated fantasist, however; she's chillingly obsessed to an unstable degree. She finds his email address, then starts messaging him non-stop when she's not nattering at his workplace. (IRL, Gadd received more than 40,000 emails.) Baby Reindeer streams via Netflix. Read our full review. Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV One of the most difficult episodes of documentary television to watch in 2024 hails from five-part series Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV. It's also essential to see. In its third chapter, this dive into the reality behind Nickelodeon's live-action children's TV success from the late-90s onwards gives the microphone to Drake Bell, who unravels his experiences while first working on The Amanda Show (led by Amanda Bynes, Easy A) and then on Drake & Josh (co-starring Josh Peck, Oppenheimer) — specifically his interactions with dialogue coach Brian Peck, who became immersed in Bell's life to a disturbing degree and was convicted in 2004 of sexually assaulting him. The case wasn't a major scandal at the time, incredulously. Even with Bell's name withheld because he was a minor, it was the second instance of a Nickelodeon staff member being arrested for such horrendous crimes in mere months, and yet widespread media coverage and public awareness didn't follow. Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV marks the first time that Bell talks about it publicly. Witnessing him speak through the details is as harrowing as it is heartbreaking. Originally releasing as four episodes, then adding a fifth hosted by journalist Soledad O'Brien to reflect upon the revelations covered, this docuseries has much that's distressing in its sights — much of it under television producer Dan Schneider. From sketch series All That onwards, he was a Nickelodeon bigwig; Kenan & Kel, Zoey 101, iCarly and Sam & Cat are also among the shows on his resume. Former child actors such as Giovonnie Samuels, Bryan Hearne, Alexa Nikolas, Katrina Johnson, Kyle Sullivan, Raquel Lee and Leon Frierson talk about the pressures on set, and the inappropriate jokes that they didn't realise were inappropriate jokes worked into their material. Ex-The Amanda Show writers Christy Stratton (Freeridge) and Jenny Kilgen step through the misogynistic environment among the creatives; that they were forced to split a salary between them but do the same amount of work as their male colleagues is only the beginning. Parents, including Bell's father Joe, share their unsurprisingly upset perspectives. Bynes' post-Nickelodeon fortunes also get the spotlight. Clips and behind-the-scenes footage are weaved in throughout, too, and looking at any of the network's shows from the era the same way again is impossible. Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV streams via Binge. Scoop What did it take to get one of the most important interviews with a member of the royal family that has ever aired on British television (and most important interviews in general)? That's Scoop's question — and not only do director Philip Martin (The Crown) and screenwriters Peter Moffat (61st Street) and Geoff Bussetil (The English Game) ask it while adapting Sam McAlister's 2022 book Scoops, but their compelling journalism thriller answers it in detail. The bulk of the feature is set in 2019, spending its time among the BBC staff at news and current affairs show Newsnight as they first try to lock in and then attempt to execute a chat with Prince Andrew. The end result, aka the program's 'Prince Andrew & the Epstein Scandal' episode, will go down in history; even if you didn't see it then or haven't since, everyone knows of that discussion and its ramifications. Getting it to the screen was the result of hard work, dedication and smarts on the parts of booker and producer McAllister, host Emily Maitlis and editor Esme Wren — and a tale that deserves to be just as well known. Billie Piper (I Hate Suzie) plays McAllister as whip-smart, fiercely determined and indefatigable when she's chasing a story, but undervalued at her job, so much so that her colleagues regularly accuse her of wasting time following up the wrong guests instead of simply complying with their requests. She's certain that a class clash isn't helping — and just as confident that she knows what she's doing, including when she begins corresponding with the Duke of York's (Rufus Sewell, Kaleidoscope) private secretary Amanda Thirsk (Keeley Hawes, Orphan Black: Echoes) about getting him on-camera to discuss his connection to Jeffrey Epstein. She needs backup from both Maitlis (Gillian Anderson, Sex Education) and Wren (Romola Garai, One Life), as well as the entire team's support, in bringing the chat to fruition. Just like the IRL interview itself, this polished how-it-happened procedural is riveting viewing as it slides into its genre alongside Spotlight and She Said. Scoop streams via Netflix. New and Returning Shows to Check Out Week by Week Sugar Colin Farrell's recent hot streak continues. After a busy few years that've seen him earn Oscar and BAFTA nominations for The Banshees of Inisherin, collect a Gotham Awards nod for After Yang, steal scenes so heartily in The Batman that TV spinoff The Penguin is on the way and pick up the Satellite Awards' attention for The North Water, Sugar now joins his resume. The Irish actor's television credits are still few — and, until his True Detective stint in 2015, far between — but it's easy to see what appealed to him about leading this mystery series. From the moment that the Los Angeles-set noir effort begins — in Tokyo, in fact — it drips with intrigue. Farrell's John Sugar, the show's namesake, is a suave private detective who takes a big Hollywood case against his handler Ruby's (Kirby, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off) recommendation. He's soon plunged into shadowy City of Angels chaos, bringing The Big Sleep, Chinatown, LA Confidential and Under the Silver Lake to mind, and loving movie history beyond sharing the same genre as said flicks. Softly spoken, always crispy dressed, understandably cynical and frequently behind the wheel of a blue vintage convertible, Sugar, the PI, is a film fan. The series bakes that love and its own links to cinema history into its very being through spliced-in clips and references elsewhere — and also foregrounds the idea that illusions, aka what Tinseltown so eagerly sells via its celluloid dreams, are inescapable in its narrative in the process. Twists come, not just including a brilliant move that reframes everything that comes before, but as Sugar endeavours to track down Olivia Siegel (Sydney Chandler, Don't Worry Darling). She's the granddaughter of worried legendary film producer Jonathan (James Cromwell, Succession); daughter of less-concerned (and less-renowned) fellow producer Bernie (Dennis Boutsikaris, Better Call Saul); half-sister of former child star David (Nate Corddry, Barry), who is on the comeback trail; and ex-step daughter of pioneering rocker Melanie (Amy Ryan, Beau Is Afraid). Trying to find her inspires heated opposition. Also sparked: an excellently cast series that splashes its affection of film noir and LA movies gone by across its frames, but is never afraid to be its own thing. Sugar streams via Apple TV+. Read our full review. The Sympathizer Fresh from winning an Oscar for getting antagonistic in times gone by as United States Atomic Energy Commission chair Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer, Robert Downey Jr gets antagonistic in times gone by again in The Sympathizer — as a CIA handler, a university professor, a politician and a Francis Ford Coppola-esque filmmaker on an Apocalypse Now-style movie, for starters. In another addition to his post-Marvel resume that emphasises how great it is to see him stepping into the shoes of someone other than Tony Stark, he takes on multiple roles in this espionage-meets-Vietnam War drama, which adapts Viet Thanh Nguyen's 2016 Pulitzer Prize-winning book of the same name. But Downey Jr is never the show's lead, which instead goes to Australian Hoa Xuande (Last King of the Cross). The latter plays the Captain, who works for South Vietnamese secret police in Saigon before the city's fall, and is also a spy for the North Vietnamese communist forces. It's his memories, as typed out at a reeducation camp, that guide the seven-part miniseries' narrative — jumping back and forth in time, as recollections do, including to his escape to America. As the Captain relays the details of his mission and attempts to work both sides, The Sympathizer isn't just flitting between flashbacks as a structural tactic. The act of remembering is as much a focus as the varied contents of the Captain's memories — to the point that rewinding to add more context to a scene that's just been shown, or noting that he didn't specifically witness something but feels as if he can fill in the gap, also forms the storytelling approach. Perspective and influence are high among the show's concerns, too, as the Captain navigates the sway of many colonial faces (making Downey Jr's multiple roles a powerful and revealing touch) both in Vietnam and in the US. Behind it all off-screen is a filmmaker with a history of probing the tales that we tell ourselves and get others believing, as seen in stone-cold revenge-thriller classic Oldboy, 2022's best film Decision to Leave and 2018 miniseries The Little Drummer Girl: the inimitable Park Chan-wook. He co-created The Sympathizer for the screen with Don McKellar (Blindness) and it always bears is imprint, whether or not he's directing episodes — he helms three — with his piercing style, or getting help from Fernando Meirelles (who has been busy with this and Sugar) and Marc Munden (The Third Day). The Sympathizer streams via Binge. Loot Across ten extremely amusing initial episodes in 2022, Loot had a message: billionaires shouldn't exist. So declared the show's resident cashed-up character, with Molly Wells (Maya Rudolph, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem) receiving $87 billion in her divorce from tech guru John Novak (Adam Scott, Madame Web), then spending most of the sitcom's first season working out what to do with it (and also how to handle her newly single life in general). That she had a foundation to her name was virtually news to her. So was much about everything beyond the ultra-rich. And, she was hardly equipped for being on her own. But Loot's debut run came to an entertaining end with the big statement that it was always uttering not so quietly anyway. So what happens next, after one of the richest people in the world decides to give away all of her money? Cue season two of this ace workplace-set comedy. Created by former Parks and Recreation writers Alan Yang and Matt Hubbard, in their second Rudolph-starring delight — 2018's Forever was the first — Loot splices together three popular on-screen realms as it loosely draws parallels with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his philanthropist ex-wife MacKenzie Scott. At her charity, as Molly's staff become the kind of friends that feel like family while doing their jobs, shows such as 30 Rock and Superstore (which Hubbard also has on his resume) score an obvious sibling. As its protagonist endeavours to do good, be better and discover what makes a meaningful life, The Good Place (which Yang also wrote for) and Forever get company. And in enjoying its eat-the-rich mode as well, it sits alongside Succession and The White Lotus, albeit while being far sillier. Loot streams via Apple TV+. Read our full review. The Big Door Prize If there was a Morpho machine IRL rather than just in The Big Door Prize, and it dispensed cards that described the potential of TV shows instead of people, this is what it might spit out about the series that it's in: "comforting". For a mystery-tinged dramedy filled with people trying to work out who they are and truly want to be after an arcade game-esque console appears in their small town, this page-to-screen show has always proven both cathartic and relatable viewing. Its timing, dropping season one in 2023 as the pandemic-inspired great reset was well and truly in full swing, is a key factor. Last year as well as now — with season two currently upon us — this is a series that speaks to the yearning to face existential questions that couldn't be more familiar in a world where COVID-19 sparked a wave of similar "who am I?" musings on a global scale. The difference for the residents of Deerfield in this second spin: their journey no longer simply involves pieces of cardboard that claim to know where the bearer should be expending their energy, but also spans new animated videos that transform their inner thoughts and hopes into 32-bit clips. When the Morpho first made its presence known, high-school teacher Dusty (Chris O'Dowd, Slumberland) was cynical. Now he's taking the same route as everyone else in his community — including his wife Cass (Gabrielle Dennis, The Upshaws) and daughter Trina (Djouliet Amara, Fitting In) — by letting it steer his decisions. But whether he's making moves that'll impact his marriage, or his restaurant-owning best friend Giorgio (Josh Segarra, The Other Two) is leaping into a new relationship with Cass' best friend Nat (Mary Holland, The Afterparty), or other townsfolk are holding the Morpho up as a source of wisdom, easy happiness rarely follows. Season two of this David West Read (Schitt's Creek)-developed series still treats its magical machine as a puzzle for characters and viewers to attempt to solve, but it also digs deeper into the quest for answers that we all undertake while knowing deep down that there's no such thing as a straightforward meaning of life. As well as being extremely well-cast and thoughtful, it's no wonder that The Big Door Prize keeps feeling like staring in a mirror — and constantly intriguing as well. The Big Door Prize streams via Apple TV+. Read our full review. An Excellent Recent Film You Might've Missed Showing Up Kelly Reichardt and Michelle Williams are one of cinema's all-time great pairings. After 2008's Wendy and Lucy, 2010's Meek's Cutoff and 2016's Certain Women, all divine, add Showing Up to the reasons that their collaborations are an event. Again, writer/director Reichardt hones in on characters who wouldn't grace the screen otherwise, and on lives that rarely do the same. With her trademark empathy, patience and space, she spends time with people and problems that couldn't be more relatable as well. Her first picture since 2019's stunning First Cow, which didn't feature Williams, also feels drawn from the filmmaker's reality. She isn't a sculptor in Portland working an administration job at an arts and crafts college while struggling to find the time to create intricate ceramic figurines, but she is one of America's finest auteurs in an industry that so scarcely values the intricacy and artistry of her work. No one needs to have stood exactly in Showing Up's protagonist's shoes, or in Reichardt's, to understand that tussle — or the fight for the always-elusive right balance between passion and a paycheque, all while everyday chaos, family drama and the minutiae of just existing also throws up roadblocks. Showing Up couldn't have a better title. For Lizzy (Wiliams, The Fabelmans), who spends the nine-to-five grind at her alma mater with her mother (Maryann Plunkett, Manifest) as her boss, everything she does — or needs or wants to — is about doing exactly what the movie's moniker says. That doesn't mean that she's thrilled about it. She definitely isn't happy about her frenemy, neighobour and landlord Jo (Hong Chau, Asteroid City), who won't fix her hot water, couldn't be more oblivious to anyone else's problems and soon has her helping play nurse to an injured pidgeon. Reichardt spins the film's narrative around Lizzy's preparations for a one-night-only exhibition, including trying to carve out the hours needed to finish her clay pieces amid her job, the bird, advocating for a liveable home, professional envy and concerns for her alienated brother (John Magaro, Past Lives). The care and detail that goes into Lizzy's figurines is mirrored in Reichardt's own efforts, in another thoughtful and resonant masterpiece that does what all of the filmmaker's masterpieces do: says everything even when nothing is being uttered, proves a wonder of observation, boasts a pitch-perfect cast and isn't easily forgotten. Showing Up streams via Netflix. Need a few more streaming recommendations? Check out our picks from January, February and March this year, and also from January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November and December 2023. You can also check out our running list of standout must-stream shows from last year as well — and our best 15 new shows of 2023, 15 newcomers you might've missed, top 15 returning shows of the year, 15 best films, 15 top movies you likely didn't see, 15 best straight-to-streaming flicks and 30 movies worth catching up on over the summer.
Many an Aussie kid has spent a Saturday night hyped up on lime cordial spinning around their lounge room to Kylie Minogue. So, prep the cordial, and get ready to party like it's 2000 'cause the Aussie pop icon is heading back to home turf. While your inner child might be more familiar with her hits 'Spinning Around', 'Can't Get You Out of My Head' and that duo with Robbie Williams 'Kids', next year, Minogue is returning to Australia to perform songs off her just-released album Golden. Minogue was last here four years ago, in 2014, for her Kiss Me Once Tour, and now she's back, taking her Golden Tour for a spin around the country in March, 2019. As well as performing headline shows in Sydney, Adelaide and Melbourne, she'll also be performing at A Day on the Green in Perth, the Hunter Valley and Mount Cotton, Queensland. She'll be singing hits off her latest — and fourteenth — album Golden, which debuted at number one on the ARIA charts just this year. Featuring hits like 'Dancing' and 'Stop Me from Falling', the album has more of a country music-feel than her others, which is fitting, seeing it was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee. On stage, Minogue will be joined by former Scissor Sisters frontman (now solo artist) Jake Sears at all shows and Brisbane artist Hatchie at A Day on the Green. Another special guest is expected to be announced soon, too. KYLIE MINOGUE 2019 'GOLDEN' TOUR DATES Sydney — ICC, March 5 Perth — A Day on the Green, Sir James Mitchell Park, March 9 Melbourne — Sidney Myer Music Bowl, March 13 Hunter Valley — A Day on the Green, Bimbadgen, March 16 Mount Cotton — A Day on the Green, Sirromet Wines, March 17 Tickets for capital city shows are available through Frontier Touring and A Day on the Green tickets are available through its website. Both go on sale at midday on Monday, November 19.
When you plaster giant, ornate portraits of beautiful women across the walls of nine-storey buildings, you're bound to get a name for yourself. Accordingly, Melbourne street artist Rone has become quite the sensation. Since bursting onto the local scene in the early 2000s, his work has been shown in London, New York, San Francisco, Miami and Hong Kong. Now, he's returning to where it all began for his first Australian show in two years. From October 24, Rone will present 11 new, large-scale portraits in — and on — an abandoned office building on Little Collins Street. The exhibition, Lumen, will be created with the help of lighting designer John McKissock, as the artworks will be illuminated from the building's decrepit, black walls. The artist will also create a 12-metre high mural on the building's ventilation tower. Adding to the creepy feel of the whole thing, the building has actually been slated for demolition, and it will presumably still be knocked down once the exhibition is over. Rone has an ongoing interest in transforming these kind of derelict and forgotten places. He's initiated similar projects in Mexico, Louisiana and New Orleans in the past. "Each of these places have, in recent times, been deeply affected by natural disaster, crime or debilitating economic situations," said the artist. "There is a genuine sense of community in these places, people embrace and appreciate what I'm doing." While Little Collins Street is a far cry from the Mexican city of Juarez, it's just as easy to understand Rone's fostering of local community in this latest Melbourne project. His mural at Rue & Co is still a much-loved icon of the CBD; people converge on it to take photos, drop their jaws in awe and meet friends for delicious Korean fried chicken. This support for the artist is evident in his other projects too. He's just been hand-selected by Jean Paul Gaultier himself to create installation works for the NGV's latest exhibition, and the Melbourne Festival has just plastered his art across one of the city's trams. Make sure you get a chance to check out this epic exhibition while it lasts — this guy's in high demand. Lumen will be on show on Level One, 109 Little Collins Street, Melbourne from October 24 to November 9. For more information, see the website.
Today the Sydney Opera House has launched its Own Our House campaign, inviting Australians and international admirers of the World Heritage-listed building to support its renewal by purchasing one of 125,000 tiles from its tallest sail. If you're looking for a unique Christmas present idea, this might be for you. Just $100 buys you the shiny 'Ice' tile, or if you’re feeling flush, $400 gets you the apparently rare 'Snow' tile, which has a matte finish. Choose your tile and then it's yours to play with online. You can visit your tile, check out the view, personalise it with a photo and short message, and share it on social media with your friends and family. The money raised by the campaign will go towards the renewal of the 40-year-old building, while also aiming to increase public access to the Opera House in the future with new education initiatives and more free events. Sydney Opera House CEO Louise Herron AM says, "The Opera House belongs to everyone. This campaign gives people a really tangible, practical way of showing how much they care."
2018 was a great year for cinema. If you've been thinking otherwise, then maybe you just haven't had time to watch enough flicks or you haven't ventured out of your viewing comfort zone. Indeed, the past 12 months have served up a feast of films that show why we all love catching a movie, whether we're heading to our local picture palace or getting cosy on the couch. The very best films aren't just an artful, entertaining combination of sound and vision — they're a reminder that, even though this medium is more than a century old, it's still full of surprises. Don't worry — we have examples. There's Black Panther with its engaging embrace of its vivid on-screen world, all while carving out a new space in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There's the combination of dance and horror that made both Suspiria and Climax two of this year's highlights, all while doing something completely different from each other. Widows boasted smart heist thrills, packaged with an all-star cast and a stunning statement, while A Simple Favour offered a delightfully twisty time at the cinema. There's also First Reformed's soulful and provocative contemplation of faith, The Favourite's wickedly funny royal hijinks and Can You Ever Forgive Me?'s involving account of literary forgery too. Each offered up something unexpected — and they're all unlucky to make our best-of list. Throughout 2018, Concrete Playground's film critics watched all of the above and more, and reviewed over 120 films. Now, they've whittled down their favourites to the below ten movies. Maybe you saw them. Maybe you didn't. But that's another great thing about cinema — you can always rewatch the flicks that you loved and seek out the ones that you missed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQyDaGWQ43w YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE In Lynne Ramsay's long-waited fourth feature, an ex-soldier and former FBI agent grapples with his own trauma while trying to save others from theirs. Joe rescues children abducted and abused by pedophile rings — and if that sounds like an astonishing story, just wait, because You Were Never Really Here isn't done yet. Indeed, it's hard to pick what's more stunning here: Ramsay's empathetic and expressive direction, which keeps making unexpected choices to immerse viewers in Joe's headspace, or Joaquin Phoenix's internalised performance as the movie's protagonist, which won him the best actor prize at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival. Call it a tie, and call this film an exceptional achievement that isn't easily forgotten after watching. — Sarah Ward Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSYHHLk12x8 COLD WAR After the Oscar-winning Ida, Polish filmmaker Pawel Pawlikowski plunges into a sweeping love story that's also a portrait of his post-war homeland. In fact, it's a personal tale inspired by his parents (and dedicated to them as well), with Wiktor (Tomasz Kot) and Zula (Joanna Kulig) their on-screen surrogates. As Poland adjusts to the titular period, the ups and downs of the intertwined duo's lives spill across the screen. A film of deep yearning as well as a clear-eyed understanding of the way that the world works, especially in times of conflict, every aspect of Cold War borders on flawless, from its intimate performances to its moving soundtrack to its Academy ratio, black-and-white images. — SW https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3__y-uPwbe8 HEREDITARY In a banner year for the horror genre, no film provided a more anxious or uncomfortable viewing experience than Hereditary. Director Ari Aster takes his time, immersing viewers in the unsettled life of the Graham family, which teeters on the brink of collapse long before demonic forces take hold. It's a smart move, one that makes the film's eventual descent into madness that much more disturbing. Toni Collette gives a career best performance as a mother consumed by grief, while the recurring dollhouse motif further emphasises the feeling that the characters — and the audience as well — are merely the playthings of a far more powerful force. — Tom Clift Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fp_i7cnOgbQ ROMA In a stellar year for excellent directors doing what they do best, Alfonso Cuarón sits at the top of the heap. And yes, Roma does showcase the Gravity filmmaker doing what he often does — that is, peering at someone who doesn't usually take pride of place on the screen. Taking inspiration from his own upbringing, the Mexican helmer tells the tale of housemaid Cleo (Yalitza Aparicio), splicing together slices of her life working for a well-off family in the early 70s. Whether watching Cleo clean up after the family dog or delving into her problems beyond her job, every moment proves both emotionally intricate and visually sumptuous. Roma earned Cuarón the Golden Lion at this year's Venice Film Festival, and he's only going to keep picking up more trophies. — SW Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYKBG1znk4A SWEET COUNTRY When Sweet Country emerged victorious at this year's AACTA awards, it was truly a case of the best film winning. Warwick Thornton's Australian western is a sight to behold, with the Samson and Delilah filmmaker seeing every inch of the Northern Territory's outback landscape. The film also makes a firm statement, as becomes clear when an Indigenous stockman (Hamilton Morris) kills a white station owner in self-defence. He's forced to flee with his wife Lizzie (Natassia Gorey-Furber), but a local posse is soon on their trail. As Sweet Country decisively confronts this all-too-real situation, it also confronts the country's history of racial prejudice. The movie might be set in the 1920s, but Thornton purposefully, convincingly and heartbreakingly holds a mirror up to Aussie attitudes today. — SW Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqy27Bk0Vw0 A QUIET PLACE The dreadful quiet before the scare has always been a crucial of horror moviemaking. But with A Quiet Place, actor-turned-director John Krasinski weaves the idea into the very DNA of his story. Silence is the key to survival in this gripping creature feature, which makes the most of its brilliant premise and benefits from standout (and largely dialogue-free) performances from Krasinski, Emily Blunt and young newcomer Millicent Simmonds. And while the film suffers somewhat from the Jaws effect in that the monsters are scarier before you see them, A Quiet Place is nevertheless a masterclass of tension. — TC Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8mJT7wEtkA CUSTODY A marriage crumbles. A woman leaves and takes her children with her. After a difficult ordeal in court, life should go on, except that Miriam's (Léa Drucker) husband Antoine (Denis Ménochet) won't accept the new status quo. In weekend visits, he resorts to bullying his pre-teen son Julien (Thomas Gioria), who is now forced to flit between his parents. Forget action blockbusters and spooky thrillers — the seemingly routine events of Custody provide this year's most suspenseful viewing experience. The extraordinary debut of French writer/director Xavier Legrand, this is a bleak, tough, raw, involving and unforgettable film from start to finish. — SW Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpxJIWz8MNQ BLACKKKLANSMAN Director Spike Lee fires on cylinders with this funny, compelling and uncomfortably timely story about a black cop's mission to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan. Lee has never been an especially subtle filmmaker, and his allusions to contemporary American politics — and one politician in particular — are impossible to miss. But the approach works perfectly in this stranger-than-fiction true story, which delights in hammering home the overwhelming stupidity that drives so much prejudice and hate. With a perfect mix of outrageous comedy and sobering drama, BlacKkKlansman truly is the perfect film for these troubled times. — TC Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVkX1qAyMrY LEAVE NO TRACE In another world, it wouldn't have taken Debra Granik eight years to direct another feature after Winter's Bone. That's not the world that we're living in — but, thankfully, we do now have this affecting and sensitive portrait of a father and daughter trying to live their own way. Making an Oregon forest their home, military veteran Will (Ben Foster) and teenager Tom (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie) try to avoid attention so that they can continue to do as they please — but life has other plans. Watching them adjust, and watching the wise-beyond-her-years Tom realise that her own path might be different from her dad's, Leave No Trace steeps viewers in an empathetic exploration of America's increasingly fractured society. — SW Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOOcpb48Oyo SHOPLIFTERS Few filmmakers are as adept at crafting intimate family dramas than Japan's Hirokazu Kore-eda. His latest effort, Shoplifters, won the prestigious Palme d'Or at this year's Cannes Film Festival, and its hard to imagine a worthier recipient. Charting the highs and lows of an unconventional family unit living on the margins in Tokyo, the film shines a light on a side of Japanese society that's rarely seen, while tugging deftly at the heartstrings. There's no sense of emotional manipulation in Kore-eda's work, but audiences will invariably be in tears by the time all is said and done. — TC Read our full review. These are our favourite films of 2018, but we've also put together a list of the best films hardly anyone saw this year — y'know, the ones that sort of went in and out of cinemas without much fanfare but definitely deserve a watch.
It was Britney Spears who said it best. There are only two types of people in the world: the ones that entertain, and the ones that observe. Whichever category you fall into, there's no denying that, when done right, a dinner party is one of life's great pleasures. And, don't be fooled, there is definitely a right way to go about it. It's not rocket science, though — and that's where we come in. We've teamed up with Tempus Two to create your ultimate dinner party checklist. CURATE YOUR GUEST LIST (AND SEND OUT A PROPER INVITATION) So, you want to host a dinner party? First things first — who's around the table? Perhaps even more so than the food, the guest list is the most important element for a host to consider. It's all about striking the right balance between people who will keep the conversation both interesting (and, more pertinently, actually going), and a bringing together group of people who will get along. The guest list also hinges on the reason you're hosting in the first place — do you just feel like getting your people together? Looking to make an introduction? In this case, the 'why' will determine the 'who'. Guest list finalised, the next thing is to send out an invitation. This will set the tone from the outset — a casual text has a different vibe to a well structured e-invite or even a paper invitation. We love the touch of a proper invitation (be it paper or virtual) as it automatically makes your dinner feel like an event worth attending. SET THE MOOD Music is an often overlooked element of a dinner party. Ideally you want to soundtrack the evening with tunes that will both blend into the background while being interesting enough to cover any potential gaps in conversation. Low-tempo jazz and electronica are always winners — but a good DJ always knows how to read the room, so you shouldn't be afraid to mix it up if you feel the night going in a different direction. Although, we'd suggest that a dinner party probably isn't the right occasion to show off your latest Scandinavian scream metal find — it's probably better to keep the tunes a little more neutral. If the music provides the soundtrack for the night, how you prepare the room is akin to setting the stage. Lighting is key here — too bright and it might feel like you're in the office, too low and it might look like you forgot to pay your bills. Soft lights — think floor lamps and candles — are your friends here. Another nice touch is to bring in something from outside. Nice artwork is always a lovely touch, but flowers and the like really make a room come to life. PREP AS MUCH AS YOU CAN IN ADVANCE — OR EVEN GET IT CATERED As a host, it's all too easy to forget to actually enjoy yourself. And it makes sense — you're probably too worried about everyone else having a good time and making sure glasses stay full. But ideally, a dinner party is an opportunity to enjoy yourself and the company of the people you've invited. Do yourself a favour and do as much prep as you can before your guests arrive, so you have more time to have a good time rather than having to run back and forth from the kitchen. Want to really sit back and enjoy yourself? Go to the next level and get it catered — sure it's a little extra, but after all, it's hard to know these days just when you might be able to host your next dinner party. SERVE A LOW-ALCOHOL WINE TO KEEP THE GOOD TIMES GOING LONGER While you probably don't want to host a dry dinner party, you probably also don't want the night to potentially get out of hand. Plan ahead with an easy compromise: serve low-alcohol vino and keep the good times rolling. Tempus Two has just dropped an excellent range of low-ABV wines — they've got 30 percent less booze and calories than a standard bottle. The Lighten Up range includes top-shelf, low-alcohol pinot noir, prosecco and rosé, with each bottle clocking in at just four standard drinks. BEGIN WITH A SIGNATURE COCKTAIL This slick move is a surefire way to class up even the most casual of dinner parties. Yes, it's probably easier to pop a bottle of something, but a cocktail on arrival works better for two reasons. Not only can you serve these up to order, meaning latecomers can still enjoy a fresh drink when they arrive, but shaking or stirring in front of your guests adds a touch of theatre to the evening. And what's a dinner party without a bit of theatre? You could even go low-alcohol here, too — make a bubbles-based bevvie with a generous splash of Tempus Two Lighten Up Prosecco to start the night on the right note. For more information about the low-alcohol Tempus Two Lighten Up range, head to the website. Top image: Supplied
In Stay of the Week, we explore some of the world's best and most unique accommodations — giving you a little inspiration for your next trip. In this instalment, we go to the newly revamped The Island Gold Coast, the spot we're putting up guests who book one of our exclusive For The Love VIP packages. WHAT'S SO SPECIAL? The Island once had a reputation of notoriety as a Schoolies-friendly Surfers Paradise hot spot with an aesthetic and fit-out wearied by time and wear. But no longer. It's undergone a major renovation and design overhaul to be re-envisioned as a tasteful boutique hotel that gives off nods to Soho House members clubs and classic California coastal hotel design. Located in the heart of Surfers Paradise across the road from Main Beach and walking distance to some of the area's best restaurants and bars, it puts guests situated perfectly for a combination of laidback beaching by day and mixing it up at night. THE ROOMS Each of the 98 rooms is full of hardwood timbers, native plants and open facades that bring the outside, in. The natural elements help make this space feel like a calm personal hideaway. The four-and-a-half-star accommodation has all the top amenities. Rooms feature a private balcony as well as tea and coffee facilities, a mini bar, the obligatory flat-screen TV, free wifi and a safe — luxe linen sheets are also a big win. Many of the rooms also come with partial sea views down to Surfer's Paradise Beach, so make sure you pick one when booking. FOOD AND DRINK You don't have to go far for good grub, with the hotel's restaurant, Goldie's, on the ground floor (right next to the pool). Get your classic brunch dishes till 10am then pop in for lunch or dinner for $18 wood oven pizzas, selection of burgers or the holy chicken parmy. You can also head up to The Island Rooftop in the afternoon for similar dishes alongside a selection of fresh seafood including trays of oysters and a special aperitivo menu on Thursday — for $69 guests get unlimited cocktails and food for two hours. [caption id="attachment_833776" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Lynda Hinton (Unsplash)[/caption] THE LOCAL AREA You're right in the thick of it when staying at The Island Gold Coast. First off, the Surfer's Paradise Beach is mere moments away or you can head further south if you want some slightly less-populated beach action at Broadbeach, Palm Beach or North Burleigh. Alternatively, you can take to the streets to find some of the area's boutique stores or hit up Home of the Arts to find live performances, lake-side strolls, cinema and art exhibitions. THE EXTRAS The Island is not just a fun place to stay, it's also a proper nightlife destination for locals and guests. The boutique hotel hosts drag brunches, a drag musical, Sunday live music sessions around sunset, weekend parties on the rooftop and the Cocktail Flight Club each Thursday (for $20 you'll get to taste a series of cocktails and get a full size version of your favourite). Even if you're not staying here, it's worth stopping by if you're visiting the GC. Feeling inspired to book a truly unique getaway? Head to Concrete Playground Trips to explore a range of holidays curated by our editorial team. We've teamed up with all the best providers of flights, stays and experiences to bring you a series of unforgettable trips in destinations all over the world.
Thelma and Louise. Chocolate and peanut butter. Romeo and Juliet — all iconic pairings. Now, rosé wine and gin creators Maison Mirabeau might have introduced a new contender to the mix in the form of its signature drop: the Mirabeau Dry Rosé Gin. As you might have guessed, it's created via the power pairing of Provençal pink wine and gin. The low down? It's a fresh drop that you will want to enjoy in an appropriately refreshing environment. So, fantastically, a great introduction to the drop is on offer at the Maison Mirabeau x Four Seasons Sydney poolside pop-up this summer. From Monday, December 5 to Monday, January 23, you'll have the chance to channel a South of France sojourn by heading to Four Seasons Sydney and sipping a selection of delicious rosé- and gin-based cocktails from the comfort of your sun lounger. Whether you like a traditional dry gin (tinted pink), or are a purist and opt for a glass of Pure Rosé, you can expect subtle, stylish drops. There's Mirabeau's Riviera Gin & Tonic served with Mediterranean tonic water, fragrant rosemary and zesty lemon peel; and a chilled Rosé Negroni served with Lillet Rosé, Campari and orange peel — a particularly decadent indulgence when coupled with a stay at one of Sydney's most fabulous five-star hotels. Alternately, if you can't quite find the time to stop and smell the rosé, then Maison Mirabeau is making it easy to create a piece of Provence at home with bottles of Mirabeau Dry Rosé Gin now stocked at Dan Murphy's. For more on the Maison Mirabeau x Four Seasons Poolside Summer pop-up, head to the website.
Maybe you're always on the hunt for new experiences. Perhaps you can't go past a meal with a view. You could be keen to indulge your adrenaline-junkie side any way that you can. Or, you just might want to see Brisbane from a different perspective. All of the above is on the menu at Vertigo, as is dinner. Sure, a great bite to eat should satisfy your tastebuds and your stomach; however, this one will also get your blood pumping and pulse racing. Initially announced in August and now serving sky-high diners Thursday–Sunday weekly, Vertigo is a brand-new addition to the River City's iconic Brisbane Powerhouse. The twist: it isn't just located on top of the riverside New Farm venue, but hangs off of the site's industrial facade. Forget just living on the edge — this is dining on the edge, and literally. Obviously, the views are spectacular. Given that patrons climb out to their seats while donning a safety harness, then eat four stories (and 17 metres) up, so are the thrills. An Australian-first vertical dining experience, Vertigo's levelled-up dinners welcome in tables of two to peer out over Brisbane. It comes with a big caveat, however, with the restaurant at the mercy of the weather. That'll certainly play a factor over Brissie's stormy summers, but the night's sitting will still go ahead if it's only lightly raining. Once you're seated, Brisbane Powerhouse's Bar Alto downstairs provides Vertigo's food across its eight tables — and each reservation's two-hour sitting — with the two-course menu featuring local ingredients to go with what's certain to become a local attraction. Unsurprisingly, a visit here doesn't come cheap, costing $250 per person. Another caveat: you can't head up if you've been drinking, with everyone breathalysed first and required to return a 0.00-percent blood alcohol reading. That said, while you need to be sober to climb over the edge, a matched glass of wine will be served with dinner. You'll also get a post-descent champagne, beer or soft drink. If you're not fond of heights, this won't be for you. But if you're fine with towering not just atop but over the side of an old power station-turned-arts precinct that dates back to the 1920s — whether you're a Brisbane local or a tourist — you'll be in for quite the unique experience. To make the evening even more dramatic, diners can also choose to come back to earth post-meal via dropline down the facade. Or, if that's too much adventure for you — especially after eating — you can just head back to the ground through the venue. If star chef Luke Mangan achieves his dream of setting up a restaurant on the Story Bridge, too, Brisbane might need to rename itself the Sky-High City. "Vertigo is unlike anything else in the world, it is an unexpected combination of adventure tourism and fine-dining on a heritage site," said Brisbane Powerhouse CEO/Artistic Director Kate Gould when the restaurant was first announced. "Stepping off the roof of Brisbane Powerhouse to take a seat suspended at your table, four stories above the ground, will be the ultimate thrill. Experience silver service dining — albeit one with unbreakable crockery and cutlery attached to the table!" "We are creating a uniquely Brisbane dining experience, at height. You will be on the edge of your seat in the open air before descending via an unforgettable exit," added Riverlife creator and co-founder John Sharpe, with the outdoor tour operator partnering with Powerhouse on the venture. "Vertigo will inspire fear but with the knowledge that safety is the priority of our experienced team of adventure tourism guides." Find Vertigo at Brisbane Powerhouse, 119 Lamington Street, New Farm, Brisbane, operating from 5pm Thursday–Sunday — head to the venue's website for further details and bookings. Images: Markus Ravik.
If wild tales about peculiar characters from the early days of circus life intrigue you, perhaps you should take another look at the history behind travelling performers from a First Nations' perspective. Natives Go Wild reveals a dark truth behind the stage and screen versions of so-called pioneering circus purveyors such as PT Barnum — the founder of Barnum & Bailey Circus, which began in 1871. If you don't recognise his name, maybe you'll have heard of 'the greatest showman'? Barnum gave audiences a peculiar mix of what was considered 'exotic', and he became a household name in the process, which has since been celebrated by one of the best selling musicals of all time. This new First Nations cabaret — premiering at the Sydney Opera House from October 22-27 — aims to set the record straight, and entertain you with a touch of darkly comic storytelling and spectacular cabaret performances. In this world-first production, prepare to be amazed not only by the skills of the acrobats but also by the real-life stories of the performers who were coerced — and some kidnapped — to appear in Barnum's 'Ethnological Congress of Strange Tribes'. We've picked out some of the stories you should know about the people who performed for PT Barnum that'll make you think twice about 'the greatest showman'. Read on, then go and see the show for yourself. [caption id="attachment_743514" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Niuean acrobat and aerial contortionist Josephine Mailisi.[/caption] SEE THE REAL 'FIJIAN MERMAID' Still have 'Rewrite the Stars' ringing in your ears from The Greatest Showman? Zendaya and Zac Efron's moves during their love song might have been Hollywood-level impressive, but Niuean acrobat and aerial contortionist Josephine Mailisi can go one better. Mailisi will bring to life the story of a Polynesian performer, who, after falling victim to pneumonia not long after being recruited to the circus, made Barnum realise the power of the 'exotic'. On the passing of his female star, he created an exhibit comprising the torso and head of a juvenile monkey sewn to the back half of a fish, and billed it as 'The Fiji Mermaid' (also Feejee Mermaid). Presented to audiences as 'caught off the coast of Fiji', this creature became a worldwide spectacle and has since been replicated several times over. See Mailisi, a trained dancer, aerial artist and contortionist, take on this fascinatingly morbid tale with mesmerising moves and a whole lot of respect. [caption id="attachment_743517" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Mununjali circus artist Beau James.[/caption] MEASURE UP TO THE 'LITTLE NUGGET' Mununjali circus artist Beau James will play one of the most well-known Aboriginal circus performers, William 'Billy' Jones, AKA 'Little Nugget'. At nine years old, Little Nugget was performing great acts of agility and versatility in the circus — and later he became famous for leaping over 20 horses and "walking a tightrope stretched from the centre pole of the big top down to a tree stump." Originally from Dubbo, Jones travelled all around the country with the circus, and it was the only life he knew. His talent with horses kept him in the business into his later life, and James — an accomplished physical theatre and circus performer — will honour that long career with a few cheeky stunts of their own. [caption id="attachment_744533" align="alignnone" width="1920"] An 1880s poster for 'Australian Cannibal Boomerang Throwers' at PT Barnum's circus.[/caption] HEAR ABOUT THE KIDNAPPED 'CHIEF CANNIBAL' Fans of the 2017 movie The Greatest Showman will know that very tall actor Timothy Hughes played the Strongman — a role based on the real-life story of a Scottish-Canadian giant. In reality, people with physical differences (like the Strongman) weren't recruited into PT Barnum's circus as willingly as the movie suggests. Tambo, a senior Aboriginal man from Palm Island, was kidnapped by one of PT Barnum's henchman. Billed as part of an act called the Aboriginal Cannibal Boomerang Throwers, the 'chief cannibal' became a spectacle even after his death (from pneumonia only a few months after his arrival in the circus). Barnum embalmed Tambo's body and wheeled him out in front of curious audiences, as a way to continue the success of one of his drawcard performers. Sadly, Tambo's body was left behind in Chicago and only uncovered by chance in 1994, when he was brought back to his home country to have proper funeral rites performed. In Natives Go Wild, you'll hear Tambo's story with searing social commentary and more humour than you might expect. [caption id="attachment_744533" align="alignnone" width="1920"] A 1945 poster for 'The Wizard of the High Wire' featuring Con Colleano; performer Waangenga Blanco.[/caption] MEET THE 'SPANISH' SOMERSAULTER Con Colleano — who will be played by Waangenga Blanco (a Bangarra dance who you might know from films Bran Nue Dae and Spear) — was the first person to successfully perform the forward somersault on a tightrope. The Wizard of the High Wire, as he became known, eventually became one of the highest paid and most celebrated circus acts in the 1920s. But Colleano, who adopted a Spanish bullfighter appearance, was actually an Aboriginal man from Lismore. The new persona wasn't a decision made by fancy, but one of survival. He concealed his identity as a way to give him freedom to travel around the world and become successful, independent of the Aborigines Protection Ban that prohibited Indigenous people to earn money. 'Natives Go Wild' (October 22-27) features the incredible talents of First Nations performers, and is a celebration of the resilience and strength of First Peoples. Tickets start from $39. Book now, right here.
Do you have a whole shrine filled with gin? A shelf? A decent section of your liquor cabinet? If so, it's likely that many of those bottles hail from Australia's own Four Pillars. And, thanks to the gin-making superstars' next two tipples, you might be about to add to them. The latest additions to the award-winning brand's range both play with its original gin — and one that has quite the following. So, if you've sipped Four Pillars' Rare Dry Gin, you'll want to try its new Rarer Dry Gin and Rarest Dry Gin. The first is made with yuzu, the second features bergamot, and obviously no one stretched themselves too much thinking of these gins' names. Still citrus-heavy like the OG tipple, Rarer Dry Gin and Rarest Dry Gin came about after the Four Pillars' team discovered some locally grown yellow yuzu and green bergamot — and then started tinkering. Where the Rare Dry Gin uses nine botanicals in the pot and oranges in the vapour basket that sits above the pot, these two newbies swap in their different types of citrus. That's it, that's the change. While Four Pillars still recommends that you drink the original in G&Ts, it's suggesting that these two newcomers also suit the cocktail — or you can add the Rarer Dry Gin to a gin and soda highball if you're after something different. Rarer Dry Gin and Rarest Dry Gin will be available from Saturday, September 11 from the distillery's website, costing $75 each per bottle. And, because Four Pillars likes to put the bi-products from the distillation process to good use, this time it has whipped up a Made from Gin Yuzu & Bergamot Shred Marmalade that'll be available for $12 for a 160-gram jar. For more information about Four Pillars' Rarer Dry Gin and Rarest Dry Gin, or to buy them from Saturday, September 11, head to the distillery's website.
Splendour in the Grass is back this July, but not as we know it. The blockbuster Byron Bay music festival is packing its bags and road tripping down to Sydney to launch a new nine-day festival at the city's Overseas Passenger Terminal. Splendour in the City will run from Saturday, July 10–Sunday, July 18 in the lead up to Splendour's virtual festival Splendour XR, which will kick off the following week. Across the lineup, music fans will find an array of beloved Australian artists — plus two stacked nights of stand-up comedy and a whole heap of extras that are aiming to recreate as much of the OG Splendour in the Grass experience as possible. While you won't get caught knee-deep in mud or have to climb North Byron Parklands' heartbreak hill to reach the main stage, you'll still find art installations, a range of dining options and food trucks, specialty bars from the likes of The Winery and The Strummer Bar, markets, a Little Splendour kids program and a VR pop-up at Splendour in the City. Taking over the 900-person Customs Hall and 400-person Cargo Hall, the lineup ranges from Splendour in the Grass mainstays such as Violent Soho, Illy, Vera Blue, Dune Rats and Tash Sultana to fresher faces like Spacey Jane, Masked Wolf, Ziggy Ramo and Triple One. Some local Sydney and Wollongong artists will also be popping up including Big Twisty, A.Girl and The Lazy Eyes — with the latter launching their second EP at the festival. Then, across at the Comedy Club, you'll find the likes of Nazeem Hussein, Nikki Britton, Tom Ballard, Nath Valvo and Triple J's Michael Hing and Lewis Hobba. 2021 will be the second year in a row that Splendour in the Grass won't welcome patrons come July. The full-sized Byron Bay edition of the music festival is currently scheduled for November with headliners Tyler the Creator, The Strokes and Gorillaz; however, that's reliant upon COVID-19 restrictions allowing the event to take place. [caption id="attachment_788985" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Ocean Alley[/caption] SPLENDOUR IN THE CITY Customs Hall Saturday, July 10 — Spacey Jane Sunday, July 11 — Tash Sultana Wednesday, July 14 — Ocean Alley and Clews Thursday, July 15 — Illy, Masked Wolf and A.Girl Friday, July 16 — Running Touch Saturday, July 17 — Vera Blue and Cxloe Sunday, July 18 — Violent Soho Cargo Hall Saturday, July 10 — Nikki Britton, Tom Ballard, Michael Hing and more Sunday, July 11 — Nazeem Hussein, Nath Valvo, Lewis Hobba and more Monday, July 12 — Big Twisty and the Funknasty Wednesday, July 14 — The Southern River Band and Vast Hill Thursday, July 15 — Ziggy Ramo and Alice Skye Friday, July 16 — Triple One Saturday, July 17 (Early) — The Lazy Eyes Saturday, July 17 (Late) — Ebony Boadu Presents Sunday, July 18 — Dune Rats and Totty Splendour in the City will run from Saturday, July 10–Sunday, July 18 at Sydney's Overseas Passenger Terminal. Tickets go on sale at 9am on Friday, June 18.
You'll have a new perch to soak up Sydney's summer weather, as the Watsons Bay Hotel has just revealed its fully renovated top and middle decks. With work commencing back in April, this significant update breathes new life into the 190-year-old venue, with a cool $3 million going towards shaping these much-loved decks into contemporary spaces that not only elevate events but also make the most of the harbourfront views. Embarking on a new vision, the primary goal behind the transformation was to create a seamless connection between the indoor and outdoor spaces. Punters who know and love the Watsons Bay Hotel will now discover wrap-around bifold windows, making the most of the fresh air and scenery. At the same time, a newly added dry bar is lined with high stools, meaning just about every guest can find a place to admire the world-class skyline in the distance. "The Top Deck has always been a special part of our venue — it's where locals and visitors have gathered for years to enjoy those incredible harbour views," says Laundy Hotels owner, Danielle Richardson. "With this renovation, we've enhanced what was already great about the space while solving practical challenges that allow us to better serve our community and guests who have made this venue a Sydney institution." Now with a capacity of 150 seated guests, the top deck has been reshaped with weddings and special events in mind, adding a dedicated internal entrance and direct bathroom access. Meanwhile, the middle deck's revamp has gone further, with a full-scale rethink bringing about new decking, banquette seating and reimagined furnishings that Emilie Delalande, Director of Etic Design, says will foster a space "where people feel they can stay for hours." Beyond both decks, the Sunset Room & Bar has also received a significant refresh, with a redesigned bar, flooring and bathrooms evoking the look and feel of a Hamptons estate. Think beachside charm but with better flow and functionality for year-round use. Combining with a colour palette brimming with coastal blues and deep harbour tones, oversized sculptural lighting elevates the evening atmosphere with creative touches that rise above tired nautical themes. Dining also has received an uplift, with Head Chef Damian Heads introducing a fresh summer menu. Inspired by Sydney coastal cuisine, expect top-quality seafood and plenty of pub classics. The venue is also levelling up its day party offering, as the Watsons Bay Hotel introduces Club Amalfi. Looking to the Med for inspiration, a bustling beach club will take over the top deck once a month, featuring share plates and premium wine magnums made for sun-drenched Sundays. Watsons Bay Hotel's top deck and mid deck have reopened. Head to the website for more information.
This week Art/Work has a chat with Jai Pyne, frontman of local Sydney band, The Paper Scissors. I won't bother with the talk up because I am sure you already know them, and if you don't - you should! - they have already reached Mecca in guest programming Rage, so there. Come with us as Jai takes us for a wander through his day and round his 'hood. Most days you'll find me in my kitchen. I cook as much as I can, it gets me away from the computer. There are so many virtual things in life that it's nice to get real things and combine them and eat them, for real. When I am not there I am behind my computer doing work on stuff for the band. In my day job I teach people how to make coffee, I'm a Barista trainer. I work for The Golden Cobra, which sounds like a martial arts school, but is actually a coffee roaster. I spent a long time working as a barista, but starting work at 7am very much conflicts with playing music. I'm also working at a restaurant in Surry Hills a few days a week, it's called El Capo. It's all Latin American style street food. At the moment I am working on some new songs with The Paper Scissors. In Loving Memory was made over the course of 18 months, so after purging that we have started working on new music. If money wasn't an issue I'd make more music, I'd have a better kitchen and I'd buy more clothes. Being a musician in Sydney is fun. I was tempted to say it was hard, which it is, but it's also pretty amazing. I've met lots of great people in the last 6 or so years through music, some of them I now count as my best friends, I've seen some of them succeed wildly, I've seen some of them have babies, buy houses, I play basketball with some of them, I have man dates with them, I have played music with them. Plus just being fortunate enough to be a musician is a very amazing thing, I've been able to travel, play to people that are having the time of their life because of your music, I've heard my music being blasted out of speakers, on the radio… all good things. I wish that there were more people with heaps of money that would open venues in Sydney, but hey, money is an issue. My neighbourhood is great. I live of the South end of King Street in Newtown. I've been here for 4 years. I think Newtown has its crap bits, lots of shit Thai restaurants, shit cafes, but I still love this end of town. There are heaps of cool little shops and random oddities, I love the Fiji Market - spices, coconuts, any random ingredient you need, and Pete's Musicians Market is always good for a browse. It's hard to find a good coffee but Addison Road and thus Alchemy is nearby which is some of the best coffee in Sydney. I like the fact that Newtown is at the edge of the inner city, so you can go to Marrickville, or Dulwich Hill or other spots that are a bit more removed from the upwardly-mobile-elite in the inner city and you get to see real people that have lived there for ever and will sell you olives or Portuguese custard tarts, or charcoal chicken or obscure Spanish beers. My favourite spot in Sydney is by the water. I grew up in Sydney and have lived everywhere from here to Bondi to Balmain, my parents and I moved almost yearly when I was a kid. I really like the cliffs at Coogee, the south end, I just like feeling like you are at the end of the earth although you are in a massive city. https://youtube.com/watch?v=H5EqYCBq0E4
Jeff Koons is anything but coy. We know that. His oeuvre consists of enormous neon balloon animals, nightmarish cartoon characters, and graphic sexual acts; sometimes a single artwork will feature all three. He's a middle-aged multi-millionaire who employs hundreds of assistants to make his works, he was married to an Italian porn star, and was once described by Stephen Colbert as "the world's most expensive birthday clown". With all that in mind, his bare butt being plastered across the pages of Vanity Fair shouldn't be much of a surprise. And yet you can never really prepare yourself to see a nude 59-year-old man splayed across what can only be described as a torture apparatus. Nor should you ever have to. But, part of a larger feature (yet to go online) about an upcoming Koons retrospective at the Whitney Museum in New York, an unforgettable image of Koons naked presumably comes as proof of the artist's determination and commitment to his craft. "Koons, at 59, has already begun a strict exercise-and-diet regimen," reads the article. "[Now] he will have a shot at working undiminished into his 80s, as Picasso did." Though it's an admirable crusade, we can't help but get creepy Patrick Bateman vibes off the whole thing. It's suspiciously easy to imagine this well-established neo-pop artist waking up in his silk sheets each morning and reciting the following mantra. "I live in a townhouse on the Upper East Side with my wife and six children. My name is Jeff Koons. I'm 59 years old. I believe in taking care of myself with a balanced diet and rigorous exercise routine, but more than that I believe in giant inflatable rabbits." Aside from Picasso and fictional serial killers, Jeff Koons is compared to many great artists in this latest feature. Courbet, Duchamp, and Brecht all get a mention, and of course the founding father of pop art himself, Andy Warhol. Though Koons is undoubtedly as well-known as many of these artists, he's equally as controversial. Both praised and criticised for his kitsch and mass-produced work, Koons has a troubled history with the art world despite his widespread commercial success. Hopefully this feature and forthcoming exhibition do him some favours in the popularity stakes. Now readers will see he's just like them! He works out naked and loves Pink Panther erotica just as much as the next guy. Via Huffington Post and Gallerist.
Look, lockdown wasn't the best of times. But that's not to say there weren't some perks — no commute, perfecting that sourdough starter and the knock-off wines had in the garden were pretty good, too. Not to mention the comfortable and inventive fashion choices we made when working from home (WFH). While many may be ready to ditch the Uggs and trackies, there are still a great many of us who have embraced the WFH aesthetic — and totally nailed it. So, even though we're back in the office (at least sometimes), we don't want to forgo all those stellar outfits. Together with American Express, we've come up with a list of wardrobe essentials that can take you from your morning coffee, into the office and right through to the end of the day where all you want to do is flop on the couch. Take a peek at these eight comfy-but-oh-so-chic threads and level up your work wardrobe. You'll just have to leave those fuzzy slippers at home.
If you've been making an effort to be kinder to the planet, chances are your daily coffee habits have had a bit of a shakeup of late. Maybe you've said farewell to your last takeaway coffee cup, switched to drinking only fair-trade beans, ditched environmentally harmful coffee pods, or all of the above. Well, now local company Pod & Parcel could just see you change up your coffee game once again. The start-up is the brainchild of three Melbourne business consultants, Ben Goodman, Elliott Haralambous and Jai Felinksi, who wanted to combine the ease of a coffee pod with the quality of specialty coffee — without leaving a nasty impact on the planet. The trio developed a special plant-based pod that is fully biodegradable and compostable, taking just six months to break down, as opposed to the 500 years of its competitors. With an estimated two-to-three million coffee pods consumed daily in Australia alone, that's a whole lot of reasons to switch. Another is the coffee itself. Far from skimping on quality, the trio has collaborated with local coffee roasters to develop its product, so you can enjoy that cafe-level cuppa from the comfort of your home. Choose from a single-origin Guatemalan — with notes of creamy vanilla and blood orange — or a toffee-noted blend of Colombian and Tanzanian beans, among many others. Because it's specialty-grade arabica coffee, it has a back-story, too. Consumers can find out where it came from, how it travelled and exactly when it was roasted. Consider this a budget-friendly alternative to those exxy brews from your local specialty coffee shop, that also challenges big name pod manufacturers like Nespresso. Pod & Parcel's creations come in a swag of different flavours and intensities, available online from around 86 cents per pod. If you fancy saving even more, you can sign up to its Coffee Club, which delivers pods straight to your door.
Filling your house with Swedish furniture is already a wallet-friendly affair, much to the joy of anyone who likes nice homewares but also likes sticking to a budget. Come 2020, however, it'll also be an environmentally-friendly choice, with IKEA announcing plans to ramp up its sustainability measures. Over the next two years, the furniture retailer will phase out all single-use plastic products from both its range and its restaurants all around the globe. That's right — you won't find all those Allen keys in tiny plastic bags taped to your Billy bookshelves, or whatever other flat-packed wares you're fond of. And you won't be taking any frozen meatballs home in throwaway plastic bags either. IKEA has also pledged to only use renewable and recycled materials in all of its products by 2030, alongside a range of other initiatives — upping its plant-based menu items from this year, reducing its home delivery emissions to zero by 2025 and expanding its range of solar offerings to more countries by the same year. It's all part of the company's goal to abide by 'circular principles'. As IKEA's Sustainability Manager Lena Pripp-Kovac explains, "becoming truly circular means meeting people's changing lifestyles, prolonging the life of products and materials and using resources in a smarter way." Accordingly, they'll be designing "all products from the very beginning to be repurposed, repaired, reused, resold and recycled." It's not IKEA's first attempt to shake off its 'fast furniture' reputation, with the brand unveiling a non-disposable collection with Danish designers HAY last year. Still, the announcement brings the company into line with the growing movement towards ecologically conscious packaging and products, as seen in supermarkets and other businesses around both Australia and the globe — eradicating singe-use plastic bags, straws, takeaway containers and more, and working towards banning non-recyclable packaging outright.
The northern beaches has long been associated with sand, surf and sun. After all, this stretch of Sydney coastline is home to some of the country's most picturesque beaches. And, in buzzing Avalon, you can also track down fun-loving bars, boutique shops and ideal date-night spots. Yes, the locals may be known to rarely leave, but with so much on offer, it's easy to see why. You could happily spend a few days — or weeks — in Avalon going for leisurely walks, catching up with friends over coffee and forgetting about your worries by diving into the ocean. With the help of American Express, we've picked some of the top spots to visit around this neck of the woods — from lively Mexican restaurants to go-to florists and small shops stocking unique gifts. Whatever the occasion, Avalon has you sorted.
