Falling Stars

Just so relieved.

Anthony Albanese and Labor claim landslide election win as Peter Dutton loses seat

Kindness isn't weakness.

Referendums rarely succeed.

And I know it's not the end. There's still work to be done.

But it would have meant something. And I'm sad about that.

I never expected to love this show as much as I do.

I mean, I like Tim Minchin a lot: great songwriter, great singer. And the premise was intriguing enough: a musician goes on a road trip with a piano across Australia. But I never know what to expect with Australian drama: is it going to be bleak, is it going to be funny, is it going to be the kind of funny that's bleak underneath?

Turns out, Upright is funny and poignant and hopeful, and punches you in the heart with all the feelings.

Lucky is driving from Sydney to Perth to visit his estranged dying mother, and obsessed with taking this upright piano with him. Meg is a teenage runaway, headed west for her own reasons, and carrying her own demons. When their paths literally collide, they have to join forces to drive, hitchhike, and scam their way across the desert.

I already knew that one of my favourite tropes is life-changing road trips. Apparently another is the brash opinionated kid who shakes up the life of the cranky tired adult. These two misfits start off clashing wildly, become reluctant allies, and grow into unlikely friends. Their journey is full of revelations, as we learn the secrets driving them. I love, love, love stories about wounded people who heal each other.

Milly Alcock is amazing. The last time I was this impressed by a talented young actress was Dafne Keen in Logan and Sophie Thatcher in Prospect. I hope she goes on to great success just like they have.

And! One of the writers is Kate Mulvany, whose Bell Shakespeare performances I loved, and who is an acclaimed playwright herself.

And! As Lucky and Meg drive across Australia, you get to see the beautiful landscapes of desert and ocean, and meet the diverse and vivid people who inhabit the place.

The show is hilariously funny, but also deeply emotional. And Tim Minchin gets to sing! Turns out that Upright is the show where the song "Carry You" comes from, that Missy Higgins sings and Tim Minchin wrote. Anyway, here are two performances of the songs, with clips from the show, not really spoilery:


( Carry You - Missy Higgins )

( Carry You - Tim Minchin )


Oh yeah. They are making a Season 2!

So I was looking up musical trailers on YouTube, trying to figure out if Fangirls is something I want to see or not. While I'm browsing, the algorithm suggests an original song called "Hugh Jackman" by Vidya Makan.

She gave an awesome performance as Catherine Parr in the Australian production of Six. I had no idea she was also a songwriter. After watching this clip, I was like, "Somebody give her a musical to write!"



And then! Someone did!!!

"Hugh Jackman" is from a new show by Vidya Makan called 'The Lucky Country' that she is writing in collaboration with Sonya Suares. The show is currently in development for its professional debut in 2023. 'The Lucky Country' is a concept musical exploring Australian identity and belonging.



I'm still undecided about Fangirls. But I am so there for The Lucky Country.

Government spokesperson: "There's no need to worry. We've got a lot of eggs in our basket."

Me: "... Wait, that's not how that metaphor works."

Narrator: "It was exactly how that metaphor works."

'Stuffed': how Australia's 'unconscionable' gamble on Covid vaccines backfired

Posted 24 June 2010:

What the hell just happened

I was not expecting to find out this morning that we suddenly have a new Prime Minister. So Rudd hasn't been doing so great in the polls, but things were not that dire. Opposition leaders change all the time, but it's a big deal for a Prime Minister in office to step down.

I've had a lot of respect for Gillard and I'm keen to see what she'll do now, but I agree that we have wasted a perfectly good PM.

Damn. Three years. It went by fast.

---

If a week is a long time in politics, ten years feels like another lifetime.

I don't know if I have the energy or the heart to go back and review the past decade of politics. It's a lot. Most of us were there. Most of us remember.

There was a span of years when I was a lot more active, a lot more galvanised, than I have been in recent years. Going to protests, handing out how-to-vote cards, talking to my local MPs. You get tired sometimes - mostly tired of people choosing the path of fear or hatred or greed. And you wonder sometimes - how do you turn this ship around, when it feels like all you've got is a paddle?

The thing I have to remember is, it still matters. Things go on happening, whether or not you show up. So show up, and say something, and find those other angry passionate people with their own paddles, and maybe together we can steer this thing in a better direction.

Labor's bitter lesson: change is hard to come by in this country

Their greater sorrow will be the dreams lost, at least for now. A republic. Indigenous recognition. A higher minimum wage, and fairer taxation. More progress on climate change.

Depressing and infuriating, for so many reasons.

The complete series on iView (until 27 February 2018)

( Musings on Episodes 7-10 )

* I really love these characters! Their dynamic is super heartwarming, and I feel like we've just scratched the surface of the possibilities. I kind of want seven seasons and a movie. But I'll settle just for renewal.

* Bonus extras! The website has six short episodes of behind the scenes.

The complete series on iView

If you grew up in Australia in the 1980s, chances are you grew up with Monkey Magic. You know exactly who was born from a rock on the mountaintop, and that Gandhara, they say, it was in India.

So the proposed reboot of a beloved cult classic was met with some scepticism, especially when articles popped up about whitewashing the characters. But the trailer looked promising, so I decided to check it out. I'm very glad I did.

It reminds me of a cross between Monkey and Avatar and Xena. A cheesy fun adventure with a lot of heart. And I love hearing Australian and New Zealand accents in a fantasy show.

It's actually pretty multicultural: the main characters, the supporting cast, and the background extras. Tripitaka is played by a Tongan-New-Zealander (Luciane Buchanan), Monkey by a Thai-Australian (Chai Hansen), Sandy by a French-Australian (Emilie Cocquerel), and Pigsy by a Tongan-New-Zealander (Josh Thomson).

( Musings on Episodes 1-3 )

It's definitely a fusion, not a pure adaptation. But as someone who grew up in an immigrant family in a multicultural society - not completely fitting into either culture - a fusion speaks to me more than the original. It feels like a story made for me. I really like that this exists.

This is the moment Australia voted yes

The Yes vote "overwhelmingly" won the national postal survey to legalise same-sex marriage. Almost 80 per cent of Australians voted and 61.6 per cent of respondents said gay and lesbian people should be able to marry.

In the video clip of the celebrations, a man gets down on one knee to propose to his partner. I can't hear his answer amid the cheering, but I think I know what he said.