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‘Potentially dying waiting’: around 87,000 older Australians hit by delays to home care packages

‘Potentially dying waiting’: around 87,000 older Australians hit by delays to home care packages

Older people living unsafely, ending up in hospital or being forced prematurely into care as the waitlist for aged care home support balloons Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A year ago, Graham Paxton got government approval to receive aged care support in his home, but was told that due to the huge waiting list it could take up to two years for him to actually receive it. Around the time he found out he qualified for the highest level of home care package available to Australians over 65, Graham was told he had just one to two years to live due to a serious health condition. By the time the package finally comes through, enabling his wife, Kim, to look after him properly, he may no longer be here. Continue reading...

Baking soda, steam and vinegar: how to clean up secondhand furniture

Baking soda, steam and vinegar: how to clean up secondhand furniture

DIY expert Geneva Vanderzeil shares her tips for scrubbing up thrifted homewares, including restoring rusty metal to its former glory I love finding things on the street or in secondhand stores and bringing them into my home to upcycle. But that doesn’t mean I’m OK with bringing dirt, germs and dust from elsewhere into my space. When you’re upcycling or rehoming furniture, cleaning it properly is the first step. But cleaning thrifted pieces can be daunting, especially when you’re worried about damaging them, or don’t know where to start. Continue reading...

Olivia De Zilva: the 10 funniest things I have ever seen (on the internet)

Olivia De Zilva: the 10 funniest things I have ever seen (on the internet)

The Australian author shares what makes her laugh online, including a lot of Wendy Williams, Who? Weekly and Ice Cube’s 2025 take on War of the Worlds Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email As a perpetually lonely child in the planned suburbs of Adelaide, I grew up on the internet. The first memory I have of accessing YouTube was waiting three days for my dial-up internet to load Vanessa Hudgen’s music video for Come Back to Me . It cost my parents a lot of money, but I couldn’t resist the pull of funny cat videos, Sims 2 music videos and early era TMZ. Before I learned how to read novels, I read trash magazines back to front. I didn’t know what a verb was but I could detail a blind item from back to front. As a child, I was diagnosed with selective mutism and the only way I could communicate was through re-enacting celebrity drama I saw on the internet or television. I probably needed a therapist, but in the end, it all kind of worked out? Continue reading...

Tax breaks for investors unfair but there’s no quick fix, housing affordability boss says

Tax breaks for investors unfair but there’s no quick fix, housing affordability boss says

Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz says the best that can be hoped for is that prices stabilise and don’t grow in excess of wage growth Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Generous tax breaks for property investors are leading to “deeply inequitable” outcomes, the chair of the government’s National Housing Supply and Affordability Council (NHSAC) has warned. Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz, a former chief executive of property developer Mirvac, said there was no easy or quick fix to Australia’s housing crisis. Continue reading...

New Salvatore in town? Seal spotted in Yarra River brings good feel to Melbourne

New Salvatore in town? Seal spotted in Yarra River brings good feel to Melbourne

Frolicking seal surprises locals who caught a glimpse – and revives memories of visitor who appeared during lockdowns Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Recent sightings of a seal in the Yarra River have sparked excitement among Melbourne locals, and revived memories of “Salvatore” from the city’s prolonged Covid-19 lockdowns. Zaynab Malik, a resident of inner-city Melbourne, said she spotted the seal frolicking near Point Park along the River Esplanade in Docklands about 9.30am on Monday. Continue reading...

Isabelle Huppert to headline 2026 Adelaide festival in ‘astounding’ role as Mary, Queen of Scots

Isabelle Huppert to headline 2026 Adelaide festival in ‘astounding’ role as Mary, Queen of Scots

The French screen and stage legend will star in Mary Said What She Said, a one-woman show created by late theatre luminary Robert Wilson, in March French screen and stage legend Isabelle Huppert will bring her acclaimed performance as Mary Stuart, AKA Mary, Queen of Scots, to Australia in March as part of an exclusive season for the 2026 Adelaide festival. Mary Said What She Said, a one-woman show created by late theatre luminary Robert Wilson for Théâtre de la Ville in Paris where it premiered in 2019, stars Huppert as the ill-fated monarch and devout Catholic whose dispute over the English throne with her Protestant cousin Queen Elizabeth I cost her her life. Continue reading...

Scottish government trial of four-day week improves productivity and staff wellbeing

Scottish government trial of four-day week improves productivity and staff wellbeing

Employees at two public bodies reported less work-related stress and one organisation had drop in sick days Increased productivity and improved staff wellbeing were among the results of a year-long trial of the four-day week by the Scottish government. Two public bodies, South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE) and Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB), took part in the pilot, which was launched by Holyrood in early 2024. Continue reading...