Whether you’re an ‘innie’ or an ‘outie’, the television series Severance resonates so deeply because its vision of fragmented identity, emotional suppression and corporate control no longer feels futuristic. It feels uncomfortably familiar. (more…)
Category: Arts
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Allowing loved ones to rest
A formal apology in Tasmania’s parliament for the past practice of taking human specimens from autopsies and displaying them highlights the importance of repatriation. (more…)
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Cannes and the courts deliver a sharp rebuke to political silencing – Message from the Editor
Two seemingly unconnected things happened this week, one at the Cannes film festival on the French Riviera, the other in the US District Court in Washington. The events concerned two women – Susan Sarandon and Francesca Albanese. So what connects an icon of the screen with an Italian human-rights lawyer, and why does it matter?
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Is Trump actually helping? Message from the Editor
Wouldn’t it be ironic if Donald Trump made us see sense. (more…)
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Friendship, honey and the simple life: 100 years of Winnie‑the‑Pooh
A century after its creation, Winnie-the-Pooh endures not just as a children’s classic, but as a gentle meditation on friendship, community and how to live well. (more…)
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Do people still care about opera? An insider raises some doubts
A new book on opera’s future raises important questions about relevance and access, but misses the deeper case for why the art form still matters.
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A new museum every 1.5 days: what’s driving China’s massive cultural expansion
China’s rapid expansion of museums and galleries reflects a coordinated strategy to shape national identity, manage historical narratives and project cultural influence at home and abroad.
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Randa Abdel-Fattah wins Jerusalem Peace Prize
Randa Abdel-Fattah has been awarded the 2026 Jerusalem Peace Prize, recognising her advocacy for Palestinian rights amid mounting political and institutional pressure.
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ABC’s National Forum fails its first test on antisemitism
The ABC’s new flagship forum failed to interrogate key claims and perspectives on antisemitism, leaving major gaps in a critical national debate.
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Seven good films out of ten – a surprisingly strong year for the Oscars
For the first time in years, most of the films nominated for Best Picture are genuinely good. From Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value to Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, the Oscars may finally be recognising cinema worth watching.
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Louis Theroux’s Inside the Manosphere exposes the business model of misogyny
Louis Theroux’s new documentary highlights how online influencers are repackaging misogyny, anti-feminism and male grievance as self-improvement – building profitable digital communities that shape how many young men understand gender and power. (more…)
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An invitation to dance: How Bad Bunny builds a movement
Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show didn’t rely on argument or translation. By leading with joy, culture and curiosity, it quietly broadened ideas about belonging in the United States.
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Jimpa lovingly follows in the tradition of artwork about fathers who came out of the closet
Sophie Hyde’s film Jimpa explores the personal and generational impact of a father coming out, situating one family’s story within the wider history of gay liberation and changing identities.
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For 27 years, the Kyle and Jackie O Show indulged Australia’s most vulgar, sexist impulses
The collapse of the Kyle and Jackie O radio partnership highlights a contradiction in Australian media culture – a society that condemns misogyny yet rewarded a program built on vulgarity, sexism and humiliation. (more…)
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Michael Caine’s voice is iconic. Why would he sell that to AI?
Michael Caine’s decision to license his voice to an AI company is about more than technology – it’s about class, identity and what happens when a culturally “enregistered” voice becomes a digital product. (more…)
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Lord of the Flies in the age of Trump
William Golding’s Lord of the Flies remains a bleak meditation on power, fear and civilisation. In today’s politics, its allegory feels newly unsettling. (more…)
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Saving Meanjin is a victory – sustaining it is the real test
Meanjin’s return to Brisbane under QUT stewardship has been widely welcomed, but it also exposes deeper tensions about arts funding, cultural value and what sustainability really means for literary journals.
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As Marmite Morrissey returns, let’s talk about the actual music
When news broke of a new Morrissey single and album (both titled Make-Up is a Lie), one thing was assured: it was going to get people talking. (more…)
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Song Sung Blue: a joyful tribute to enduring partnerships, grit and second chances
A new film inspired by a real-life tribute act follows two working-class Midwesterners who build a life and a stage partnership through hardship, music and resilience. With Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson at its centre, it’s a reminder of how powerful a hopeful story can be.
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Linklater and Hawke turn a broken partnership into riveting cinema
Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon uses Ethan Hawke’s portrayal of Lorenz Hart to explore the grief, jealousy and loneliness that can follow a fractured creative partnership. Patricia Edgar argues it is a sharp, claustrophobic film about talent, loss and the human cost of being left behind.
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Censorship doesn’t silence – it amplifies
Attempts to silence writers rarely erase them. More often, they expose insecurity, deepen division, and turn targets into symbols of resistance.
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I cannot be party to silencing writers, which is why I resigned as director of Adelaide writers’ week
Cancelling the Australian Palestinian author Randa Abdel-Fattah weakens freedom of speech and is the harbinger of a less free nation.
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What Australia’s teen social media ban could mean for reading
As under-16s are locked out of major social media platforms, online book communities that helped many teens discover reading are disappearing too. What’s being lost, and what might replace it?
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Niki Savva’s Earthquake is a damning account of the election that shook Australia
In ‘Earthquake: The Election that Shook Australia’, Niki Savva dissects a federal election result that all but erased the Liberal Party from metropolitan Australia and exposed a deep crisis of purpose, leadership and relevance. (more…)
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One UK journalist’s close access to Hitler carries a warning about Trump’s media restrictions
A notorious episode from the 1930s shows how access, proximity to power and the lure of influence can quietly corrode journalistic judgement – a warning that resonates uncomfortably today. (more…)
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It’s never too late to help students learn to read – even in high school
Many students with reading difficulties are missed after the early years. New evidence shows targeted, evidence-based support can still make a real difference well into high school.
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Book extract: Understanding China: governance, socio-economics, global influence
China’s rise has reshaped global economics, lifted millions out of poverty, and challenged Western assumptions about governance. This extract from ‘Understanding China, Governance, Socio-Economics Global Influence’ argues that engagement, not confrontation, offers the only viable path forward.
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Frankie Goes to Bethlehem: myth, music and the power of love
In 1984, Frankie Goes to Hollywood released a reverent nativity ballad that revealed how myth, music and Christmas still speak beyond belief. (more…)
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Bruce Beresford’s The Travellers blends opera and the outback in a heartfelt story about homecoming
Famed Australian director Bruce Beresford loves opera. If you weren’t aware of this before watching his new film, The Travellers, you most likely will be by the time the credits roll. (more…)
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Prime Minister’s Literary Awards winners 2025: investigating power, privilege and inequality
Michelle de Kretser has won the fiction prize in the 2025 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards. It’s her second major prize this year for her ambitious, experimental novel Theory and Practice, which won the 2025 Stella Prize (and was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin). (more…)