Independent Australian news and analysis across politics, business, technology, world affairs and culture
James Mitchell When Nova Peris sprinted across the finish line at the 1998 Commonwealth Games, she already had an Olympic gold medal in hockey — and a nation was starting to realize that the young woman from Darwin was rewriting what it meant to be an Indigenous Australian athlete. Her journey from the hockey field to Parliament … Read more
Few fictional teenagers have spent six decades refining a look of pure, glorious disdain. Wednesday Addams—the deadpan daughter of the Addams Family—has gone from a single-panel cartoon in 1938 to a global Netflix phenomenon, played most recently by Jenna Ortega in 2022. First appearance: 1938 (New Yorker comic) · Original TV actress: Lisa Loring (1964) … Read more
Few rugby league officials carry as much authority—and as many headlines—as Ashley Klein. The NRL referee has been a fixture in the middle of the field for over 16 years, but his name now appears in news stories for reasons far beyond the 40-metre line. Years as NRL referee: over 16 · Known gambling loss: … Read more
Ariana DeBose didn’t just win an Oscar—she shattered a glass ceiling while doing it. The actress, singer, and dancer went from a reality dance competition to earning an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Anita in West Side Story. In this profile, we’ll walk through her career milestones, her ethnic background, … Read more
He was the quiet, soft-spoken Irishman who became one of the most decorated soldiers of World War II — yet the TV version of Paddy Mayne is a hard-drinking, foul-mouthed warrior. The real man behind the SAS legend was far more complex than any dramatization can capture; the historical record tells a different, and in … Read more
Alisha Weir didn’t just play Matilda — she became her, and that performance launched a career spanning musicals, horror, and blockbuster cameos. Born in Dublin on 26 September 2009, the Irish teen has already built a filmography that includes a vampire horror, a musical, and a cameo in one of the year’s biggest blockbusters. Born: … Read more
It’s not every day that a Bollywood debut gets shelved before cameras even roll, and for Shanaya Kapoor, the daughter of actor Sanjay Kapoor and jewelry designer Maheep Kapoor, the path to the big screen took detours that sparked as much curiosity as her family name. Here’s what we actually know about her age, career, … Read more
For millions of viewers, Xolo Maridueña first appeared as Miguel Diaz in Cobra Kai — a scrappy teenager with a heart as big as his roundhouse kicks. A decade later, he’s headlined a DC superhero film and voiced a beloved pirate in One Piece. Full name: Xolo Ramirez · Born: June 9, 2001 · Height: … Read more
Few American authors spark as much debate as Cormac McCarthy. Depending on who you ask, he’s either a genius who redefined the novel or a writer whose relentless violence is too much to stomach. The Road won the Pulitzer Prize in 2007, yet some readers never make it past the first chapter of Blood Meridian. … Read more
James Marsden has built a career on playing characters that feel both approachable and memorable — even when he’s wearing a ruby-quartz visor. In this profile, we’ll separate the confirmed facts from the whispers about his personal life, career, and relationships. Full Name: James Paul Marsden · Born: September 18, 1973 (Stillwater, Oklahoma) · Occupation: … Read more