AFLW games have bigger venues and bigger crowds. Aiofe Cunningham asks can the league build an that growing popularity? AFLW have celebrated their biggest crowds in the opening two rounds of the 2026 season at major stadiums in four double-header games. A stunning 66,996 fans attended the games and the AFLW now face the challenge of turning increased exposure into a lasting audience. The season began in April, with four AFLW games played at major stadiums across Victoria and

Amelia Myles reports on H5 Bird flu in Victoria, and what the future holds for native Australian wildlife With 94 confirmed cases of Avian influenza found in the state since early July, concern is high for the future of Victoria's bird life. H5N1 Avian Influenza, commonly known as bird flu, is a highly contagious and fatal illness that causes severe neurological problems and mortality in bird species. The virus has never been detected in Australia until July, 2026, and is now

By Aoife Cunningham Teams walk through the banner together for the Good Friday Appeal’s SuperClash (Daniel Pockett/Getty Images) North Melbourne have continued their dominant run through the 2026 AFLW season, handing Carlton their first defeat with a 33–23 victory at Arden Street Oval. The Blues entered the clash unbeaten after four rounds but faced their biggest test yet against the reigning premiers, who were looking to extend their remarkable winning streak. Carlton got

(Photo: ABC.net) By Abbie Gargett New research from Deakin University has found the education system still shows a bias towards white Christian perspectives. In a paper published January 5, 2026, two sociologists of religion - Dr Anna Halafoff and Dr Ruth Fitzpatrick - published a paper published called, "The myth of a white, Christian nation versus Australia’s diverse worldview reality: rectifying post-truth Christian privilege in the Australian curriculum." They analysed th

Aoife Cunningham kicks off a new weekly column rounding out the highlights ifrom each AFLW round. Round 4 of the 2026 AFLW Season saw a wide array of results around the weekend, a double-header at Princess Park resulted in wins from both Fremantle and Carlton, who continued their unbeaten run. Carlton have continued their impressive start to the season with a commanding 68–29 victory over Collingwood at IKON Park on Sunday, establishing themselves as one of the competition’s

By Lily Nicolitsopoulos Petition promotion (Photo: Richard Welch, MP website) After a year-long battle to scrap the Blackburn Station activity centre project, residents have been handed a partial win as amendments and budget-funding address their key concerns. Blackburn Station is one of 60 train and tram activity centres proposed by the State Government in 2025. Activity centres are a designated zone for increased development, centred around public transport activity hubs.

By Abbie Gargett Nigel Farage has won the Clacton-on-Sea seat with 63.3% of the votes, ending one of the strangest by-elections in British history. Despite the absence of all major parties, there were 34 candidates, including many satirical candidates and serious independents. Most notably, one with the alter-ego ‘Count Binface’, who came second with 26.9% of the vote. Farage triggered the by-election last month when he resigned from parliament, amid inquiries into a £5 milli

Charlotte Sanderson reports on Victorian women's football teams finally getting a fair go The growth of local Victorian women’s football teams has contributed to building a more equal and fair environment for women of all ages in local AFL clubs. North Ringwood Saints Football Club - in one of Melbourne’s eastern suburban football leagues - has shown a drastic increase in the number of female players since the 2019 debut of their women’s team. North Ringwood Saints Footb

Hayley Price reports on a short documentary to raise awareness, shot by Swinburne student Emerging filmmaker Luke Pafumi has directed a trailblazing short documentary on the Victorian Deafblind Community in conjunction with Swinburne University. The World in Your Hands is a short documentary Pafumi has been working on since March, 2026, as a second-year Film and Television student at the university. Pafumi, who experiences colour-blindness, says the documentary aims to sp

Mark Lucas reports on a new challenge facing Melbourne engineering students hoping to win a top F1 race. Melbourne engineering students compete in SAE race Melbourne university students will be facing a new challenge in their quest to win the internationally-recognised SAE-A (Society of Automotive Engineers – Australasia) car race. After 20 years based in Melbourne, this December the race moves to the South Australian desert. Over 1200 engineering students from Australia, Asi

After eight years hosting local and touring musicians, Brunswick’s Stay Gold shut its doors, writes Daniel Jones Beloved Brunswick venue, Stay Gold, shut its doors on June 21 as the cost-of-living crisis dealt another blow to Melbourne’s live music scene. The venue on Sydney Road announced the closure in a Facebook post on April 29. Bookings assistant Hannah Hopwood said with their lease ending, the general cost of living led to the tough decision to close down the club inste

Leila Cochrane reports on a community that banded together to save a dog Redgy the Runaway Dog (courtesy of Maureen Fielding) Two months after being abandoned on the side of the road and sparking a community-wide search, a red heeler dog has found a loving home and become a familiar face around town. The dog was allegedly dumped from a black ute before spending 32 hours on the run, evading concerned residents who were determined to bring him to safety. What began as a dis

Amritha Raviprasad reports on a new cafe offering vinyl listening access to customers Inside Sabi Sounds (photo: Amritha Raviprasad) Sabi Sounds - Melbourne’s first listening cafe and record lounge - is reshaping cafe culture with unique vinyl and community events at its Hawthorn location, attracting music enthusiasts, fitness lovers and Swinburne university students alike. Opened in December 2025, the cafe has already cemented itself as a Glenferrie Road hotspot. Customers c

James Sykes reports on a new music model that could save Melbourne musicians. An iconic Melbourne venue is backing emerging musicians through guaranteed payments and multi-show residencies. As similar live music venues face closure, Fitzroy’s Punters Club is offering an alternative for gig-goers and musicians alike with unique free gigs. According to Punters’ audio production manager, Kaelan Edwards, “Punters’ unique offering of artist guarantees and residencies has launche

Abbie Gargett reports on the major cybersecurity breach that shut down education platform Canvas in universities around the world On May 5, Canvas shut down its services due to a major cybersecurity breach, impacting thousands of students across Swinburne University, the University of Melbourne, RMIT (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology) and over 9,000 other institutions worldwide. According to public statements from the universities, the hackers accessed the names and em

Daniel Allen reports on the new upcoming sequel to the 1995 classic heist movie Heat and whether it’s a good time to revisit the original. Following its release over 30 years ago, the high-stakes heist drama Heat, directed by legendary filmmaker Michael Mann, is getting a much-anticipated sequel, not surprisingly titled Heat 2. Based on Mann’s own script - adapted from his 2022 best-selling novel, Heat 2 – the new film will function as both prequel and sequel to Heat as it

Reporter: Beyonce Kariuki. Australians living with trauma and psychosis could be missing out on effective talk therapy because too few psychologists are trained to provide it, a Swinburne researcher says. Psychologist Dr Leila Jameel worked on an international trial that found trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy improved symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder and some symptoms of psychosis when added to usual care. “We can never change the things that have happen

Reporter: James Ohis-Kummer. A sea bird infected with H5 bird flu has been found dead in Melbourne’s north. This is the first case confirmed in the Merri-Bek council area, roughly 15 kilometres from the bay. Deakin University Professor and Chair of Ecology Marcel Klaassen says the inland location of the bird was “extremely weird" but given the prevalence of Crested Terns in Port Phillip Bay the finding was possible. “It’s not an ordinary place for a Greater Crested Tern to ha

Reporter: Charlotte Dyer. As spring arrives in Melbourne, Indigenous students have deepened their connection to culture through an art project exploring the seven Wurundjeri seasons. Wurundjeri Country is currently shifting from Guling (orchid season) into Poorneet (tadpole season), and the work of 18 students capturing that seasonal change was exhibited at Swinburne University's NAIDOC 2026 celebration on 2 September. The exhibition, Hidden Worlds on Wurundjeri Land, was cre

Reporter: Molly Davis. Local and independent theatre companies are becoming increasingly reliant on community support and volunteer work to keep productions running. The Victorian Government has introduced funding initiatives to support the creative industries. But where does this leave smaller theatre companies? Tegan DeClark, director of Warrandyte Theatre Company’s Boeing Boeing production, says support from the local community is vital. “We wouldn’t be able to function wi

Reporter: Ruby Taylor. Online fitness coach James Fox has built a social media following of over 15 thousand people by sharing fitness and training advice. The 22-year-old’s Instagram page (@jimmygymin) is also being used to counter some of the toxic messages many young men come across online. With a large part of his audience made up of Gen Z males, Fox says that he is aware of how influential social media can be in shaping attitudes and beliefs. “I’m still young myself and

Reporter: Loosh Fisher. One of Melbourne’s longest-running markets celebrated a major milestone over the weekend, with the Camberwell Sunday Market marking 50 years of bargain hunting, vintage finds and iconic jam donuts. The anniversary brought together the usual mix of much-loved stallholders and food vendors, alongside DJs and live performers throughout the market. Opening in 1976, the Camberwell Sunday Market has become something of an institution for Melburnians. For gen

Tamsyn Riddle reports on the struggles facing Geelong commuters as their access to reliable public transport deteriorates.

Young artists are abandoning social media in favour of real ideas in real life at a popular spoken word event in Melbourne’s inner north. Story by Tia Triantafillou Five years after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted, bars and clubs across the city are still struggling to attract crowds but one bar continues to draw big crowds hosting Spoken Word weekly poetry nights. Writer and performer Hamish Brown believes the event hosted by Bar Oussou is important for many reasons. “I be

AI is stealing clients from Melbourne photographers and they're fighting back. Zeke Ashby reports.

MIFF Awards Ceremony, The Rydges Hotel. Photo: Alex De Paulis Alex De Paulis attended the closing night awards ceremony at the Melbourne International Film Festival on August 29 and reports. Champagne flowed and filmmakers networked at the city's theatre district hotel The Rydges for the announcing of the MIFF (Melbourne International Film Festival) filmmaking winners. Deliberating on the Bright Horizons Award and the Blackmagic Design Australian Innovation Award is an esteem