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Amazing on-screen chemistry that covers up the off-screen backstabbing and feuds of its primetime hosts. While this might sound like the plot from an episode of hit drama series Morning Wars, these are just some of the shock scenes that have played out in real life this month on British screens. After more than a decade as the UK’s reigning king and queen of breakfast TV, Holly Willoughby has emerged as the sole survivor of ITV’s This Morning after sidekick Phillip Schofield was given the boot after the relationship of the once-close pair became “unworkable”. “I have agreed to step down from This Morning with immediate effect,” the veteran star, 61, who had been at the helm of the show for 21 years, said in a statement on May 20. Willoughby became…

YOU’RE NOT wrong! It’s a bit unfair to front the Ranger Raptor up against the RAM 1500 TRX. On price alone, the TRX costs about twice as much as the Ranger Raptor ($210K vs $90K), its supercharged V8 generates 240 more kilowatts than the Raptor’s V6 can muster, and the TRX monsters the Raptor in both size and style. But the thing is, except perhaps for the recently released Chevrolet Silverado ZR2, the Ranger Raptor is the closest thing we officially have n Australia to the TRX. The fight becomes fairer when you depart suburbia in pursuit of twisty trails and off-road tracks. Both models are flagships of their respective brands, and as such both feature uprated brakes and quality suspension, and both have been designed for the same purpose: to…

I love speaking at user group meetings. There aren’t as many Apple user groups out there as there used to be, and these days the meetings are mostly over Zoom, but as someone who mostly speaks with developers, PR people, and media types, it’s refreshing to speak to people who are much more purely enthusiastic about Apple and its platforms. User groups also tend to do a good job of exposing the concerns and pain points of Apple customers who aren’t doing this for a living. It’s a great perspective shift. Last month, I spoke to a group that made it pretty clear what Apple is doing that is making them unhappy. The particular complaints that floated to the top were, I think, instructive about where Apple needs to make changes…

Finally, I’ve taken control of my domestic patch. Harmony has returned to the frontline of family life. I’m writing to you today not only as a member of a more functional playing group, but as a coach, happy to point the way towards improvement in your own lives. This dramatic action was necessitated by years of abuse, blurred boundaries and instructions that were ignored. No matter what I did, what I said or what I tried to role model, the members of this household refused to yield. Eventually I cracked and found myself at the information desk asking the kindly lass in red and green where chains and locks were located. After congratulating her on the forensic knowledge of product location I headed to aisles nine and 15. Coming home, I went…

It started over a sausage sizzle and casual game of cricket on a sweltering Queensland day. Journalist Nicole Madigan was feeling flat. Her marriage was ending, and it had been a bruising few years. But she had tossed her blonde hair up into a bun to take her son to his game and when it was his turn to bat, she perked up and snapped some photos. A woman she didn’t know breezed past. “Are you taking photos of Adam?” “What?” Nicole asked, bemused. She wasn’t sure she had heard the woman correctly. Adam was one of the fathers who coached the team. “An acquaintance at best,” Nicole says. It was a strange interaction that Nicole might have completely forgotten had she not received a Facebook message that night from someone…

Rumors picked up again recently that a new 15-inch MacBook Air will be Apple’s next major Mac release, possibly at the Worldwide Developers conference, according to Mark Gurman’s latest report. But whether we get it before, during, or after WWDC, this much is true: It will instantly become Apple’s perfect laptop. That may seem like a stretch, but hear me out. Assuming the rumors and our own assumptions are true, the 15-inch MacBook Air will be the ideal laptop for nearly every user, with its combination of size, processing power, and value. The MacBook Air is already Apple’s most popular laptop, and a 15-inch model would be the jewel of the lineup. Here’s why. THE RIGHT SIZE Apple offers MacBooks in four different sizes: 13.3 inches (13-inch MacBook Pro), 13.6 inches (M2 MacBook…

“Our intentions were always to respect the original cottage’s footprint and maintain its historical importance.” EACH MORNING, CLAIRE TAFFE and her border collie, Doug, stop at the window of her cottage and watch two Shetland ponies munching grass on the neighbouring property. “I often find myself frozen in front of it, completely mesmerised by the view,” she says. “It’s like a piece of art and never ceases to make me smile.” It’s one of many small pleasures she and her husband Kieron Christ, a roof plumber, can now enjoy. They spent one and a half years respectfully restoring the 150-year-old miner’s cottage in Trentham, Central Victoria, home of the Dja Dja Wurrung people. While the cottage is gorgeous and cosy now, its ‘before’ shots tell a sorry tale: rotten carpets; dark, poky…

STRANDS LIGHTING LAUNCHES IN AUSTRALIA One of Europe’s leading automotive lighting brands, Strands Lighting, is now available in Australia. The brand’s Siberia range of LED driving lights are available in 7- and 9-inch variants, feature IP67/69K ratings, aluminium housings, tough polycarbonate lenses, and a claimed light output of 1 lux @369m and 1 lux @465m respectively. Customers are able to select from single- and double-row bars and straight and curved bar options, the latter contouring to the shape of a vehicle’s windscreen for roof mounting. Lightbar length options span from 8- to 50-inch. The Siberia range also includes several compact work lamp models. All lights come with wiring and mounting hardware for convenient installation, and are covered by a three-year warranty. RRP: From $279 (7-inch Siberia driving light ea) Website: www.strandslighting.com NARVA…

People love Shiv. “You lucky bitch,” said my friend when I mentioned I was going to New York to interview Sarah Snook, who plays Shiv in the hit TV series Succession. What’s so lovable about a character described (by one of her creators) as “a flawed, monstrous nightmare”? It’s her strawberry-blonde hair, her razor-sharp retorts, her sidelong looks, her stealth-wealth wardrobe, her strangely expressive face and manipulative ways. She’s “Shiv fucking Roy” and she embodies one of the delightfully unpredictable elements that run through the heart of Succession: the fact that, despite being a woman, she doesn’t have a heart of gold. “I actually think Shiv is an incredibly difficult part to play. In the wrong hands she could seem like a stone-cold bitch,” says co-executive producer Georgia Pritchett, also one…

Entrusted to “make the best of this tired house”, interior designer Fiona Bruzzano pulled out all the stops. The property in question is located in an enviable position near one of Sydney’s northern beaches and had been home to this family of four for nearly 20 years. Custom designed and built in 2004 when the owners, Ramy and Kerry, were starting their family – and consolidating their careers – it was a solid, serviceable home. But with daughters Mia and Bianca now young adults, they felt it was in desperate need of a makeover. Introduced to the owners by builder James Clayton of Four Front Building, Fiona tackled the renovation with relish. “The family loved the home’s closeness to the beach and Kerry wanted a fresh coastal feel with luxury inclusions.…

Sheila Keen-Warren thought she’d got away with murder. In 1990, her now-husband’s then-wife, Marlene Warren, 40, was shot in the face after answering her door. The only witness, Marlene’s 21-year-old son Joseph Ahrens, told how the killer was dressed in a clown costume, holding carnations and balloons – leading media to dub the murderer the “Killer Clown”. The trail ran cold for almost a quarter of a century until 2014 when an advancement in DNA technology led them right to Keen-Warren’s own door. “Sheila Keen-Warren has finally been forced to admit that she was the one who dressed as a clown and took the life of an innocent victim. She will be a convicted murderer for the rest of her days,” Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg told media, after…

In some ways, the natural wine movement and I grew up together (from afar). It was 2011 and I was just starting out as a sommelier when Tom Shobbrook and the late Sam Hughes (in neon pink hot pants, no less) came bursting through my door with their newest vintage of Natural Selection Theory wines (crafted alongside Anton Von Klopper and James Erskine). Twelve years on, that first meeting still lives in my mind and I hold it dear as I reflect on the impact a group of winemakers in South Australia’s Basket Range had on the entire Australian wine industry, for better and worse. It’s a complicated story to tell but it’s one Tom Keelan, winemaker and ex-president of the Adelaide Hills Wine Region and I have discussed many times…

I PARTICULARLY LIKE THE SIMPLICITY OF ONE SOLID COLOUR AND THE ABSENCE OF GARISH GRAPHICS Suzuki has a long history of producing affordable and fun naked middleweight bikes. In fact, for many riders over 40, Suzuki’s 1996 Bandit 600 will be remembered as the original and possibly the best entry-level middleweight of them all. It was handsome, easy to ride, enormous fun and cheap – and a huge sales success across the world. In 1999 Suzuki, seemingly with a golden touch for nailing this budget market, introduced the SV650 V-twin. Like the Bandit, it was offered naked or faired and was as undemanding as it was satisfying to own and ride. In time, the SV morphed into the Gladius then, by popular demand, back to the SV – and it is still…

Flanked by his two leading ladies, Michael Douglas cuts a dashing figure on the red carpet at the Cannes film festival. The veteran of screen and stage was accompanied by his wife Catherine Zeta-Jones and their 20-year-old daughter Carys, who was making her debut at the French movie extravaganza. In a pink Elie Saab gown, the aspiring musician posed with her parents at the opening night gala as she and her equally glamorous mum Catherine – also in a dramatic gown by Elie Saab – planted a kiss on Michael’s cheek before the Fatal Attraction star, 77, received a special award honouring his lifetime in film. “Thank you Cannes!” he later wrote on Instagram. “I am so honoured to receive the honorary Palme d’Or for my career achievements. Catherine, Carys and…

WHAT’S it like to take on a long-distance pilgrim walk? How do you cope on cold wet days? What’s it like meeting other pilgrims? There are so many questions people ask before they do their first Camino and it would be easy to disappear down an online rabbit hole trying to get some answers. But fear not, Great Walks has spoken to a number of people who have walked a Camino (or in some cases five or six Caminos!) so you may well find many of those questions answered here. Ash Barker (53), Birmingham, UK Ash has walked the Camino Portuguese, completed four St Cuthbert’s Way pilgrimages (Scottish borderlands to Holy Island) and completed the Jesus Trail (Nazareth to Capurniam, Holy Land). How much preparation and training did you did do prior to…

JEEZ, THAT’S A serious bit of gear!” The booming voice carries across the service station forecourt and as we look up from refuelling the enormous, bright red RAM TRX, we see who it belongs to. Darcy the farmer is tall, with a decent beer belly and a bent nose covered in what looks to be freshly applied Band-Aids. “Hooooweeee, that’s a biggun!” he says and slaps the TRX’s tailgate like you would the rump of a horse. “Is this the V8?” Darcy is a LandCruiser 300 owner and he’s drawn towards the RAM like an eight-year-old at a monster truck show. Not once, during our five-minute exchange – “700hp!? Crikey, that’s a fair wedge!” – did Darcy cast an eye towards the Ford Ranger Raptor parked at the next bowser. Also…

Just two months before her death, Tina Turner revealed how she wanted to be remembered. “As the Queen of Rock'n'Roll. As a woman who showed other women that it is OK to strive for success on their own terms,” she said, voicing the thoughts of millions of fans who are now mourning the incredible life and work of one of music's most iconic stars. The American-born singer famous for her raw, powerful voice, incredible stage presence, empowering songs and iconic hairstyle broke through numerous barriers during her five-decade career. And she was triumphant to the end, telling The Guardian in the same interview that “nothing” frightened her about getting older. ‘This is life's full adventure… I embrace what it brings’ “This is life's full adventure and I embrace and accept every day…

‘You’d have loved Iris. She was academically gifted and morally unimpeachable. She was a special, sparkling girl’ One hot afternoon in July 2019, Ben Goldsmith was playing cricket with a group of friends when his world fell apart. His 15-year-old daughter, Iris, had been driving an all-terrain vehicle on the 300-acre family farm in Somerset when it overturned, trapping her underneath. By the time her father had arrived home and rushed to her side, she had died. It is an unimaginable horror that Ben, 42, is still trying to process as he recalls the beautiful, vibrant girl who was taken so suddenly from him. “You’d have loved Iris,” he says proudly of his red-headed, smiley child. “She was academically gifted, charismatically powerful, morally unimpeachable. “She worried about people and used her own popularity to lift…

There were plenty of pearls, pregnancy reveals and even a pinch of prosthetics at this year’s Met Gala, with stars pulling out all stops for the annual affair. This year’s theme, ‘Karl Lagerfeld: a Line of Beauty’, paid tribute to the late designer’s legacy, with attendees told to “dress à la Lagerfeld” for their run down the red carpet. As the most anticipated event on the fashion calendar, held annually on the first Monday in May, there was plenty of excitement as the red carpet kicked off with a flurry of feathers, courtesy of Gisele Bündchen’s archival Chanel gown and Florence Pugh’s eye-catching headpiece – which also showed off her dramatic hair transformation. While most stars don’t want to put a stiletto-clad foot wrong on the Met carpet, others prefer to take…

In May 1973 Jarno Saarinen was on his way to winning the 500cc world championship for the first time, and few doubted he would go on to cement his reputation as one of motorcycle racing’s all-time greats. In fact, by then Saarinen had already changed the sport, teaching ‘King’ Kenny Roberts to hang off his motorcycle to improve his lap times, a technique that became universal. If the Finn had lived longer, grand prix racing might have been very different for the rest of the 1970s; Yamaha probably wouldn’t have signed Giacomo Agostini and Barry Sheene would’ve had a harder time winning the 500 world championship with Suzuki. Of course, we will never know because Saarinen lost his life in an horrific accident during the 250cc Italian GP at Monza, on…

Access, AMCN, PO Box 6, Bittern, Vic, 3918 access@amcn.com.au WINNER LETTER OF THE ISSUE Motomuck Win five litres of Motomuck Motorcycle Cleaner to keep your ride as clean as a whistle. Valued at $59.95! Include your full name and address in your letter, via post or email. Long letters will be cut to fit, so don’t ramble. The views expressed by readers are not necessarily those of the editor. LETTER OF THE ISSUE Never stop I confess upfront I’m 76 now and my bike-riding days are over – at least I thought they were. My first bike after getting my license on my faithful BSA Bantam at 16 was a Norton 650SS. There have been lots of bikes and adventures in between, including trips to the Isle of man, culminating in a Triumph Tiger three-cylinder later last year. I…

THE NEWVW AMAROK HAS JUST GONE ON SALE IN AUSTRALIAcand heapestV6 version is currently the mid-spec Style variant, meaning you’ll need at least $70,990 before on-road costs to get the 184kW/600Nm 3.0-litre FordV6 diesel. However, VW Australia’s director of commercial vehicles, Ryan Davies, said it’s possible that the engine could be fitted to less expensive trim levels, perhaps as soon as early next year. When asked ifVW could offer more affordable AmarokV6 models, Davies replied: “That’s a good question and one that we have considered. And once we get over the hump of this launch period we will definitely be going back to the factory to see if there’s any opportunity to expand that engine into the Life range, for example.” IN STYLE The cheapest way to get a new Amarok V6 is the…

Jamie Oliver doesn’t have happy memories of school. “Cooking saved me when I was struggling with the writing stuff at school,” he says with a gentle sigh. “The life I was living at school was one of just being s*** at everything and then [being sidelined as] special needs, getting taken out of classes and stuck in an attic with three dudes, having a very analogue approach to our problems.” Jamie’s “problem” was that he was dyslexic, although at the time it wasn’t diagnosed or understood. When he looked at a collection of words in sentences they would dance around the page and mess with his brain. Jamie’s teachers assumed he was simply not very bright and his immediate response was to attempt to focus his mind by tapping on the desk,…

01_NATURAL REFRESH Local flora and fauna inform the design of Aesop’s rejuvenated offering in Parramatta. Confirming that art, culture and boutique retail are firmly on the agenda in Sydney’s west, the revamped store on the land of the Burramattagal people boasts a new look by the brand’s in-house design team. aesop.com/au 02_ATHENIAN STYLE Stellar interior designer and stylist Olga Lewis has unveiled her new collection of mythically inspired jewellery pieces. Taking traditional motifs from her parents’ home in Greece, Olga and a local artisan have reworked ancient jewellery into wearable statement must-haves. mercerandlewis.com 03_MODERN LOVE Architect Daniel Boddam’s new collection titled Booham is a fresh Australian take on primitive and modernist style with sumptuous upholstery, sculptural legs and generous proportions to suit classic or contemporary spaces. danielboddam.com 04_BELLA BRUTA Behind its handsome Brutalist facade the new Milano…

Noelle Martin was 18 years old when she first watched herself performing hard-core porn. Sitting idly in front of her laptop one night, the then law student decided to do a reverse image search of herself on Google. She was expecting to unearth an archaic MySpace profile or some old, cringe-worthy social media posts. Instead, Martin was met with hundreds of explicit images and videos of herself, including graphic scenes of her engaging in intercourse and oral sex. Except it wasn’t her. Martin is one of the hundreds of thousands of women who have been targeted by non-consensual sexual deepfakes. Meaning the image of her face was stolen and digitally mapped onto someone else’s body using AI technology. “I felt sick,” recalls Martin, now an award-winning activist and a researcher at…

"…THERE ARE A COUPLE OF PLACES WHERE YOU CAN PULL OFF THE ROAD AND ADMIRE THE VIEWS…" The flat paddocks you may have noticed beside the Federal Highway north of Canberra are actually Lake George (Weereewa), an endorheic lake, meaning it has no evident natural outflows. Used as paddocks when water is low, the recent heavy rainfalls across New South Wales have filled Lake George, so the wire stock fences now poking out of the water look weirdly out of place. The lake has passed its most recent highs of the mid-1990s and is approaching levels not seen since the mid-1960s. As a Canberra local, a lap of the lake offers and interesting ride. After weaving through the Canberra suburbs to the main roundabout where the Federal Highway enters Canberra, I head…

When the fashion revolution came, it was young, fun and six inches above the knee. With parrot-green tights and rubber shoes the colour of poppies, it emancipated women’s legs and spirits. The visionary who unleashed this era of liberation was Mary Quant, a slip of a woman with a geometric haircut that slashed daringly across her eyebrows and bared her neck. Shy of public attention, Mary nevertheless had a resolute self-belief and a vision so clear and unique she has been named alongside Coco Chanel and Christian Dior as one of the most significant designers of the 20th century. “I think the point of fashion is to not get bored looking at somebody,” Mary says in her characteristically soft voice in new documentary Quant. “I didn’t like clothes the way they…

HAVING ESTABLISHED HER LANDSCAPE design practice more than 15 years ago, Kathleen Murphy has finely honed her approach to creating beautiful green spaces across Victoria’s Macedon Ranges and beyond. She is known for designing personalised gardens with a strong focus on linking the built and natural environment. “I design a garden from inside the house looking out, taking into account the views from each window,” says the award-winning designer. In 2008, Kathleen, 49, and her husband Robert, 50, purchased a double-brick house on one hectare in Gisborne and moved in with their three children, Conor, Niall, and Niamh (now aged 17, 15, and 14, respectively). The sparsely planted lot on Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung land quickly became a testing ground for the designer’s work. “We commenced the garden way before we did…

Late last year, the mighty UNEMCC — that’s the University of New England Motor Cycle Club, established in 1978 and still wobbling — got together for another week of riding Tasmania. We’ve done Tassie before and no doubt we’ll do it again. Why? Because there’s nothing quite like pulling laps of the island. Great roads, endless corners, scenery that’d make a Hobbit stand tall and people who are so down to earth they’re still calling each other cobber. Talking cobbers, 44 years we've been riding together. I know that's not a record, but it's a good chunk of a life. When the club kicked off, the only thing we had in common was a love of motorcycles and living it up in Armidale. Over the ensuing decades the lads went off…

I HOPE MY CHARACTER HAS AN EFFECT ON PEOPLE— Julia Savage There was a moment while filming The Clearing that made Miranda Otto, a veteran actress with vast experience, stop and take stock. As she looked around at the cast and crew assembled for the shoot in rural Victoria, she thought, “Wow! Look at our team! We’ve got a female stunt coordinator. We’ve got a female DP [cinematographer] on-set today. We’ve got a female producer, female assistant, my sister, Gracie, directing and then we’ve got a female writer,” she recalls to WHO. “There was a really strong creative team of women involved with this that … really gave me a thrill.” What also lay before Otto’s eyes was a powerhouse of players brought together to film the first Australian series to launch…

MARY QUANT In the early ’60s, London designer Mary Quant began experimenting with hemlines. While thigh-baring garments had been seen before, such as Josephine Baker’s 1926 banana skirt, Quant is credited with bringing the look to the high street. She was said to have named the mini after her favourite car – and it was an instant hit. While young women embraced the daring style, others were appalled, among them Coco Chanel, who reportedly said in a New York Times interview, “Have they all gone mad?” The meteoric rise of hemlines coincided with a burgeoning second-wave feminist movement. As a result, the mini became an enduring symbol of women’s liberation. Quant died in April this year, aged 93, but she has forever made her mark on fashion and feminism. JEAN SHRIMPTON It was…

Having downsized from the family home, the owner of this 1848 cottage in Sydney’s inner east upsized her new spaces with some smart design moves, the first of which was engaging interiors firm Tom Mark Henry (TMH). With thoughtful craftsmanship and contemporary detailing, what was once a humble and cramped abode is now a desirable and commodious urban retreat. The owner bought the one-bedroom home, one of a row of heritage workers’ cottages, in 2020 and hired the studio soon after. “The cottage had been a rental for years, so it was tired and in need of care and attention,” says TMH lead designer Jed Murphy. “And, with a very small footprint of 44 square metres – including the courtyard – it was cramped and dark.” Luckily, for such an old…

For the voracious press in the late 1990s, it was front-page gold – pop superstar George Michael arrested in a public toilet for lewd conduct. As the news broke, a media maelstrom engulfed the singer’s Los Angeles home, paparazzi outside and news choppers overhead. Michael, who had carried the secret of his sexuality since finding fame as one half of Wham! at 19, chose to wrestle control of the narrative. Refusing to be shamed, the British singer appeared on chat shows and news channels to talk with candour and trademark humour about life as a gay man. Now a new documentary, George Michael: Outed, explores how the way he dealt with his outing in April 1998 inspired young men who followed in his footsteps. “He knew he had a voice and people would listen to…

The Mac mini now boasts an incredibly fast M2 or M2 Pro processor, and rivals even Apple’s most pro computers despite costing significantly less. However, as great as it is, there is a problem with the Mac mini—the upgrades are pricey, and after you buy one, it’s impossible to upgrade its internal components. However, we’re here to help. Apple doesn’t let you upgrade the Mac mini with inexpensive third-party components such as RAM or internal storage, and it prices its custom-build options at the very high end of affordability. Like the rest of the Apple silicon Macs, the Mac mini, Apple has fixed the RAM to the processor and the SSDs to the logic board, so they can’t be swapped out after you buy one. ADDING MEMORY Apple integrated the RAM right into…

THE Snowies Alpine Walk in Kosciuszko NP just got even more thrilling with the opening of Stage 3. This newly opened section spans 13km between Charlotte Pass and Perisher, and features upgraded trails, including the popular Porcupine walk. The Snowies Alpine Walk will ultimately stretch 55km through the stunning alpine region of Kosciuszko National Park. The final section, Stage 4, is already underway and will take you from Perisher to Bullocks Flat and is set to include 11.4km of new walking tracks, upgraded car parking facilities, and amenities. nationalparks.nsw.gosv.au ANGRY porters blocked the entrance to the Kokoda Track in early May protesting about losing work after the tour operator they work for had its licence to operate on the track revoked. Kokoda Tour Operators Association (KTA) President Mick O’Malley said porters from…

If it is possible to conjure the perfect blend of historic and contemporary, then this house on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula is just that. An 1860s property on an expansive cliffside site with beach access, it was purchased by the current owners in 2015. They approached interiors firm Mim Design, having worked with the team previously, to reimagine the look and feel of the old house and link it with its dramatic new extension conceived by Neil Architecture. Entranced by the four-bedroom home’s vaulted ceilings, double-hung leadlight windows, ornate timber fretwork and French doors opening to the verandah, the owners were keen to maintain these features while creating a calm and welcoming family home with contemporary appeal. The rambling garden – originally designed by influential landscape architect Edna Walling – was a…

Sleep well, dream big… the Beautyrest® Comforpedic West 28 Medium Queen Mattress is the secret to a good night’s sleep. Layers of Australian Made Memory Foam Plus conform to your body’s shape, providing excellent support, even weight distribution and essential pressure relief – exactly where you need it most. Advanced cooling technology – KulKote® Carbon – transfers excess heat away from the body so you have a cool and comfortable sleep. refreshing rest Rise and shine after a restful night on the SleepMaker® Botticelli Medium Queen Mattress. With advanced cooling technologies, this luxurious mattress is perfect for Australia’s climate. Fusion Gel Titanium is a Gel Infused Foam that helps regulate temperature as the gel particles disperse heat away from the body. Silk within the top panels makes the mattress deliciously soft yet…

It’s that time of the year again, when Hollywood’s A-list flock to Cannes’ Boulevard de la Croisette for a two-week whirl of film premieres, champagne-fuelled parties and super yachts. And this year, the glitz and glamour came in spades as stars stepped out for the 76th annual international film festival for some fun and festivities in the French Riviera. While one of the more respected film festivals on the circuit, Cannes has also become known as a bit of a fashion spectacle – often on par with the Oscars and the Met Gala. Along with actors showcasing their latest films, the invitation-only event was attended by the likes of models Gigi Hadid and Naomi Campbell, who used the red carpet like a runway as they sashayed down in designer gowns from…

Kawasaki's Ninja ZX-10R could stimulate the senses in a way just short of sticking scissors into an electrical socket. I should know — I've owned a couple of recent models. Incredible, awesome, seriously fast. Despite this (and like the rest of its ilk), it could be sub-optimal in a world of speed limits and potholes. Kawasaki has addressed this weakness with a variation of the 1000cc sports bike theme… the Ninja 1000SX. It's a track-capable bike with a public road focus. Although designed to be more civilised than the ZX10R, the 1000SX is, counterintuitively, faster in some situations. We found it's a machine of fine margins. When all the small design choices come together, the compound effect gives it an almost unique set of strengths as we'll explain later, but first we'll…

The desire to go off-grid is nothing new. In modern times, it goes back at least as far as Thoreau’s Massachusetts adventures, which began in 1845. I am sure a learned reader could take the concept back even further in the cultural record (the thirteenth-century Japanese classic Hōjōki springs to mind), but this time-honoured impulse has a particular relevance in almost-post-pandemic 2023. Off Grid House by Archier is situated in bushland at the foot of a hill in north-east Victoria. The privacy of the place, and the spirited disconnect from utilities and other societal entanglements, is a large part of the appeal for its owners. The family that occupies this special house has been in the area for generations, previously on farming land. One of the owners described visiting the site prior…

As sunny weather finally arrived, stars joined royalty in looking blooming marvellous as they toured the Chelsea Flower Show last week. Famous names from the worlds of TV, music and radio all dressed in their summer best as they mingled among the fragrant plants and flowers. Leading the arrivals at the official preview of the annual garden display were royal twins Lady Eliza and Lady Amelia Spencer. Newlywed Amelia wore a floaty dress from Zimmermann, while Lady Eliza went for a pink polka-dot outfit by Alessandra Rich. At the Natural Affinity Garden for Aspens, designed to highlight the therapeutic value of nature by helping visitors engage with their senses, musician and DJ Cerys Matthews was reading from her children’s version of Dylan Thomas’s Under Milk Wood. WINNING DESIGN Meanwhile, Dame Joanna Lumley, looking stylish…

Adventure tourers are the most versatile motorcycles you can buy. They can carry one or two people in comfort all day and yet can be faster up a winding road than many a sportsbike, happily kicking up dust if the surface gets loose. These bikes on the market aren't the hard-core adventure bikes that handle like oversized dirtbikes in the desert; rather, they're machines that are aimed at touring across roads and tracks marked on maps. Where hard-core adventure tourers take as little weight as possible to keep the handling of their bike as close to unloaded as possible, these are bikes designed to take everything you need for the long haul. Just a few years ago there was a lot of cross-over from the hard-core adventure machines to the adventure tourers,…

The ongoing revival of Britain’s historic motorcycle brands has saved the biggest, and in some ways the best, until last. Triumph, Norton, Ariel, Métisse, Brough Superior, Matchless, Hesketh and DOT are just some of the formerly defunct brands from all of Britain’s two-wheeled yesterdays which have already been resurrected at various times over the past three decades to join Royal Enfield, which never actually went away, in the born-again biking section of British motorcycling’s history store. But now it’s the turn of the biggest of them all back in the day, as for the first time in half a century, a BSA motorcycle is now once again available for customer purchase. Once the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer, and erstwhile owner of its smaller Triumph subsidiary, BSA went under 50 years ago…

On Triumph's website, there are no touring bikes listed: modern classics, roadsters, even a section devoted to the Rocket 3, but not tourers — however there are lots of bikes listed in the adventure section. Like many manufacturers, Triumph has responded to the rise in popularity of adventure bikes while dropping traditional touring motorcycles from its line-up, and the result is that the Tiger 1200 GT Pro is effectively the company’s offering to anyone looking for a touring machine. With more power, more torque, a lot less weight and a comprehensive redesign for this new generation, Triumph believes it has built the best shaft-driven big-bore machines around. For potential buyers, the knowledge it can not only eat miles on freeways comfortably but also take on gravel roads while offering excellent weather protection really…

THEY SAY adversity breeds innovation. For all of human history, the harder the situation, the more we fire up the grey matter to come up with a solution. In famine we build smarter farming practices, in war we build smarter communication equipment, and you best believe that rainy England is all over umbrellas compared to us here in sunny Australia. It might seem like a long bow to draw, but that innovation through adversity is also why we’re so bloody good at designing and building cars in Australia, and the engines that drive them. A world away from any of the traditional manufacturing powerhouses, we’re a land of limited population, wide open expanses, and very different needs to any of our neighbours. The Ford ‘Barra’ engine is the culmination of that…

‘I’m over the moon to meet Kate and be here. This is a memory of a lifetime’ Pictures of regal elegance, the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Edinburgh continued their support of the King and Queen last week and teamed up in shades of blue to host a garden party at Buckingham Palace. Joined by their husbands the Prince and the Duke – as well as fellow members of the “slimmed-down” monarchy, the Princess Royal and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester – the two women spent the afternoon mingling with 8,000 members of the public, who enjoyed tea and sandwiches on the palace’s manicured lawns. Kate, 41, recycled a blue embroidered tulle skirt and matching blouse from Elie Saab with a Philip Treacy hat that she had worn to Royal…

Welcome to the gorgeous 2023 Block of the Month designed by Natalie Bird. The design features 48, 8in blocks presenting a collection of pieced, appliqué and stitchery blocks —&from sweet little hexagons to Dresden Plates, Coff in Wheel blocks and lots of delightful elements. Each part will include a collection of the diff erent techniques to keep you engaged and challenged! This issue includes the full materials list for the entire project. The fabrics used are from Natalie's most recent fabric collection — Owl & Hare Hollow —and two previous ranges — Blume and Grow and Birdhouse Basics. You can make this quilt from your stash or perhaps some new purchases — whatever pleases you. If you wish to make it in the same fabrics that Natalie has used, including the…

With its grand wedding cake-style facade, generous setback from the road and manicured grounds, this landmark 1885 home in Sydney’s inner west could be dubbed the White House by passers-by. And, if its walls could talk, they would have some equally interesting tales to tell. “Our home’s story is deep-rooted, as it has lived many lives,” says the owner, who lives here with her husband and three sons, aged 16 and under. Now, thanks to interior designer Greg Natale, it embarks on a new chapter unlike any that’s gone before. A chapter that literally began in black and white, it respects the past while embracing the future. Attracted by the large garden and gracious Victorian architecture, the couple bought the two-storey pile in 2017. “The layout and easy flow, with its…

Before she was one of the most recognisable actresses on the planet – or conquering other realms in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania – Michelle Pfeiffer was one of four kids born to Richard, an air-conditioning contractor, and his wife, Donna, in Orange County, California. After finishing school, where she was bullied for her big lips, she was working as a cashier in a local grocery store when she won a Miss Orange County beauty pageant. In addition to the title, Pfeiffer scored an agent and, in 1982, landed her first lead role in Grease 2. Next up, her star-making turn as the cocaine-fuelled wife of a crime kingpin in 1983’s Scarface led to a dream run of roles, including 1987’s The Witches of Eastwick, and Oscar-nominated turns in 1988’s Dangerous…

MANIPULATION This month, we wanted to see your favourite images that explored a world beyond what the camera sees. From unique travel shots to curious Ps creations, these were our picks. KATHERINE DILLON Travel EDITOR’S COMMENT Katherine Dillon’s mind-bending image Travel is a great example of how with a bit of Photoshop magic you can transform something ordinary into something unique. The initial image was shot handheld on a boat on a cloud free day. The vastness of the ocean enabled a composition featuring only the ocean. She tells us that with Photoshop she copied the image onto a new layer, before rotating this layer 90 degrees clockwise, shifting it downwards over the original image until the “bend” in the water was sharp, and then reduced the size of the rotated layer. “Lastly, minor brush work was required…

My wife and I purchased our first house in 2013. We had been unsuccessful at several previous auctions, so when the hammer dropped and we were the successful bidders, we were elated – but later that evening, elation turned to overwhelming stress when I realized the extent of the work ahead. Together with Jade, who is a construction project manager, I negotiated a long settlement so I would have time to properly plan and detail our future home. What Jade and I had purchased was not a home, however, but a dilapidated weatherboard cottage in a back street of South Melbourne. It lacked lockable doors and windows; it had extensive termite damage and a sewer vent in the living room. Celebrated artist Greg Irvine had used it as a painting studio. I…

PROS • Comfortable ride • Approachable handling limits • More power than before CONS • Extra power offset by extra mass • Cabin feels old despite being new • Limited-slip differential only on upper trims VEHICLE LAYOUT Front-engine, RWD, 2-pass, 2-door hatchback ENGINE, TRANSMISSION 3.0L twin-turbo direct-injected DOHC 24-valve 60-degree V-6, 6-speed manual CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST) 3,519 lb (57/43%) WHEELBASE 100.4 in LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT 172.4 x 72.6 x 51.8 in ON SALE Now What’s old is new again? The 2023 Nissan Z takes that phrase literally, as it represents yet another rehash of a rear-wheel-drive platform dating back to the 2003 350Z. Nissan reanimated those old bones for the 370Z in 2010, and here they are again for the new, numberless Z. Next to its mashup of retro Z styling cues—the nose is pure, original 240Z, while the tail is more…

All good things must come to an end an. After almost six months with Harley’s Fat Bob 114 (affectionately known as Bob) it’s time for the cruiser to head home. I’m sad to see Bob leave AMCN’s long-term garage; we’ve had many adventures together and along the way I’ve had the pleasure of seeing it transform from a stocker into a Screamin’ Eagle-enhanced muscle machine. We’ve put the Fat Bob through the full gamut of riding experiences in that time: commuting, trips away, Saturday night cruises, and running down the quarter mile at Sydney Dragway. And he has proven to be a fun, surprisingly comfortable and hugely reliable bike. The Fat Bob has always been a favourite of mine with its unique looks, decent handling (as far as Harleys go) and reasonable…

With royal relatives, family and friends by their sides, Prince Ludwig of Bavaria and his bride Sophie-Alexandra Evekink beamed with delight after their wedding at the magnificent baroque Theatine Church of St Cajetan and Adelaide in Munich. Crowds of well-wishers dres sed in traditional costume cheered them on from the flower-wreathed cobbled streets as thousands of flags fluttered in the sunshine. Looking every inch a princess bride, Dutch-Canadian political and criminal scientist Sophie-Alexandra, 33, arrived on the arm of her father Dorus. She wore a fairytale full-skirted, scoop-necked white gown from Reem Acra, while over her ringlets lay an ethereal embroidered veil made by Ukrainian firm Woná Concept, which fanned out behind her as she glided down the aisle. FAMILY TREASURE Fulfilling the bridal tradition of wearing something old, new, borrowed and blue, Sophie-Alexandra…

Hong Kong is dead. Everyone’s left. It will never be the same again. I’ve lost count of how many times someone has whispered these solemn proclamations to me over the past 24 months. Every time I run into someone with a mutual connection to the city, the same utterances are repeated. Whether they are ex-pats, former residents, or just those who enjoy visiting the vibrant metropolis, the conversation is bleak and dispiriting. So when the invitation to revisit Hong Kong came through, I eyed it somewhat warily. Did I really want to see the city I love, my former home of 13 years, broken and bereft? What would I write? If what everyone says is true, how could I possibly suggest anyone spend their time or money returning to the city? Some research…