Author: Amanda Stewart

‘Culture Collective’ charity event bringing pop up bars, art, and music to Kings Cross Hotel (Sydney)

In collaboration with Sailor Jerrys, Young Henrys and Gasoline Motor Co., Kings Cross Hotel will be hosting an event on Thursday 12 May, celebrating fast and loud local culture in the name of charity. Donations will go towards supporting the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, a not-for-profit organisation that aims to document, expose and prevent illegal…

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May Dinner Series to be held over three evenings at BLACK by ezard, Sokyo and Osteria Balla Manfredi (Sydney)

Recently announced, The May Dinner Series will be hosted by three of The Star’s signature restaurants: BLACK by ezard, Sokyo and Osteria Balla Manfredi over three evenings this month, featuring exclusive seasonal menus that have been designed to showcase the innovations of the restaurants’ top chefs. “We can’t wait to launch the May Dinner Series, and reveal the sensational…

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Tasmanian Comedy Series Rosehaven Starts Production

Production of ABC comedy series Rosehaven has begun in Tasmania. The creators and stars of the show are well-known Tasmanian comedians Luke McGregor (Luke Warm Sex, Utopia) and Celia Pacquola (Utopia,The Beautiful Lie). Tasmanians also feature prominently among the cast, which includes Tasmanian-based Kris McQuade, Anthony Morgan, Katie Robertson, and Noela Foxcroft, alongside mainlanders David Quirk…

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“Equality Needs You”: Annual New York City Pride Celebration kicks off on June 19

Equality Needs You is the theme of the 2016 New York City Pride celebration, which will be held from the 19th to the 26th of June at various events and venues across the city’s five boroughs. LGBT rights have come a long way in recent years, but as Chris Frederick, Managing Director of NYC Pride, notes, the theme of…

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Aussies Abroad: Ella Fence announces tour dates in Canada and UK

Ella Fence, whose debut EP Wanderlust garnered international attention, is touring the US, Canada and the UK with her all-female Folk/Pop band. This week the artist has already performed at Nashville’s Bluebird Cafe and last night at New York’s The Bowery Electric, before travelling to Toronto for Canadian Music Week through the first week of May, and…

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Stephen Amell and Will Arnett will make appearances at Australian screenings of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Sequel

Stephen Amell and Will Arnett, who play Casey Jones and Vern Fenwick in the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles sequel, will make appearances at two upcoming Australian screenings of the film in Sydney and Melbourne. Stephen Amell and Will Arnett, along with producers Andrew Form and Brad Fuller, will walk the red carpet at the…

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Discount offered to hotel guests travelling to both Calgary and the nearby Rocky Mountains (Canada)

Independent Canadian hotel groups, Hotel Arts Group and Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts are jowning forces to offer guests who stay at hotels owned by both companies a 15% discount. Hotel Arts Group own two urban hotels in Calgary – Hotel Arts and Kensington Riverside Inn (pictured and reviewed HERE) – whole the three Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts…

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RivaReno opens a gelato parlour in Barangaroo (Sydney)

RivaReno Gelato, the award-winning Italian gelateria first based in Darlinghurst, has opened a new store in Sydney’s rapidly expanding Barangaroo precinct. With a commitment to serving authentic Italian gelato and imports its single origin Valrhona chocolate, caramelized pecans, mascarpone, pistachios, hazelnuts and almonds from Italy directly, the brand seeks to expand on their popularity down at…

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Get a first look at The Girl on the Train in this new trailer

The teaser trailer for the thriller The Girl on the Train, adapted from Paula Hawkins’ novel of the same name, features plenty of mystery and intrigue. The film stars Emily Blunt as Rachel, who is apparently the last person to see Jess (played by Haley Bennett) alive. Rachel’s initial account is called into question, as she admits to…

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Bryan Cranston takes on Pablo Escobar in this new trailer for The Infiltrator

A new trailer has been released for the crime-thriller The Infiltrator, based on the autobiography of the same name by Robert Mazur. Bryan Cranston stars as a DEA agent who goes undercover in Pablo Escobar’s notorious cartel. Diane Kruger plays alongside Cranston as Kathy Ertz, an inexperienced agent who poses as Cranston’s fiancée. From the…

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#TweetTheBeat Unites Twitter, Music and Television

Television meets Twitter in the new show Tweet the Beat, a collaboration between [V] HITS and Twitter Australia, which is set to launch on Monday May 16. The show will run from 4pm – 5pm on Foxtel every weekday, and offers a platform for viewers to tweet about their favourite music, and the best tweets…

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Little Georgia to join Ryan Bingham on his Australian Tour!

It has been announced that Little Georgia, an indie/alt-country duo, will join award-winning Ryan Bingham on his upcoming Australian tour. Ashleigh Mannix and Justin Carter are the force behind Little Georgie, which they launched for the first time at the 2015 Tamworth Country Music Festival. They’ve spent the past year touring Australia and North America, and…

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Bixel Boys’ Clothing Line to be Introduced on their Australian Tour!

From 70’s rock and experimental bass music to bouncy house and Berlin techno, the Bixel Boys’ distinct approach to future house is difficult to pin to one specific genre. Along with their musical diversity, the Bixel Boys are introducing their new clothing label on their upcoming Australian tour. Their brand has become a familiar presence…

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Culture Club announce Australian tour dates!

Culture Club are returning to Australia this June for the first time in more than 15 years. With their single “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me”, Culture Club became an international phenomenon, and went on to produce their debut album Kissing to Be Clever, and hits such as “Karma Chameleon”, “I’ll Tumble 4 Ya”…

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The Wizarding World of Harry Potter Opens at Universal Studios Hollywood

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a real-life incarnation of the fictional wizarding world we all know so well, opens to the public today at Universal Studios Hollywood. The park’s opening was celebrated on April 5th and featured a three-dimensional digital lighting projection on Hogwarts Castle, accompanied by music from the LA Philharmonic, conducted by…

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Virgin’s Velocity Points are now redeemable across the Tigerair Network

In pretty major news for the local frequent flyer programs – of which Virgin and Qantas are the two major players – members of the Velocity Frequent Flyer Program are now able to redeem their points towards any Tigerair flight purchased from the Tigerair website or the Velocity Membership Contact Centre. To redeem points, members are instructed to log in…

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Groupon wants you to have a four year island holiday if Donald Trump is elected

We’ve all been following Trump’s rise with bated breath. Scanning the news headlines (“Donald Trump: Women who abort should be punished”), we might come to feel that if Trump were to be elected, we’d need to get even further away. Thankfully, Groupon, in partnership with Majestic Trans-Pacific, are offering the chance to retreat to a beautiful,…

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Christopher Walken Features in new Qantas Assure Ad Campaign

Qantas‘ ad campaign for their new health insurance program makes good use both of Christopher Walken’s acting range and his highly pun-able surname, as he gets on stage to demonstrate how one might earn points by runnin’, dancin’, climbin’, and – of course – walken’. The health insurance and wellness program will allow its members…

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Scorsese Retrospective set to screen during film festivals in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra

Curated by David Stratton, co-host of The Movie Show and At the Movies, Essential Scorsese will be screened at the Sydney Film Festival (8-19 June), ACMI in Melbourne (27 May-12 June), and the NFSA in Canberra (1-23 July). The collection of 10 films will include Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Raging Bull, and The Age of Innocence.  …

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Gang of Youths reveal European and American tour details!

Sydney’s Gang of Youths has announced the dates for their May/June tour of Europe and America. Their debut album The Positions received five ARIA nominations in 2015, and won Live Act of the Year and Best Domestic Tour at the AU Live Music Awards last year. Along with all the praise and accolades, the boys have released…

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SXSW Interview: John Lee on Directing Pee-wee’s Big Holiday

Pee-wee’s Big Holiday, released on March 18 on Netflix, stars Paul Reuben’s Pee-Wee Herman alongside Joe Meganiello as himself in an adventure written by Reubens and Paul Rust. The Iris caught up with director John Lee (Wonder Showzen, Inside Amy Schumer, The Heart, and She Holler) at SXSW to talk about the challenges of re-imagining such a well-known and…

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Luke Snellin to Direct John Green’s Let It Snow

Let It Snow, an anthology of short stories written by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle, follows three teenagers, who each find love during a snowstorm on Christmas Eve. The rights to the YA collection were picked up by Universal in 2014, and the screenplay is set to be revised by Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber,…

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Richmond’s Meatmother reopens with a new menu inspired by BBQ techniques from around the world

Meatmother in Melbourne has been relaunched and reinvented. The restaurant remains dedicated to the importance of ethically-raised, quality produce, but the menu and cooking techniques have seen some changes. Previously well-known for its American BBQ, the new Meatmother now draws upon BBQ techniques from around the world, and will be grilling, smoking, roasting and barbecuing over premium white charcoal….

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Willy Wonka-inspired Chocolate Factory set to open at Universal Studios in Orlando

Although The Toothsome Chocolate Factory  carefully avoids official affiliation with Willy Wonka, this chocolate factory and “savory feast emporium” is planned to bring an “out-of-this-world” dining experience to the CityWalk at Universal Studios, Orlando. The factory incorporates the surrealism of Steampunk, including “smoke stacks, funky gadgetry, and staff wearing unique Steampunk fashion”, along with the dream-like…

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Nova and the Experience wins grand prize at the ANZ Blue Stage Series

Nova and the Experience has been awarded the grand prize at the ANZ Blue Stage Series, a six-heat competition for up-and-coming Australian artists ran as part of the recent Spectrum Now festival. For the group, who got started in early 2015 busking, playing at university parties and touring up the East Coast, the career mentorship session with an industry…

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‘Feast of the Senses’ Coogee Foreshore Festival returns to the pavilion (Sydney)

The Coogee Foreshore Festival returns to Coogee Pavilion on Sunday the 20th of March. The festival is part of the eighth annual March into Merivale, the popular five-week food and drink program bolstered by dozens of Merivale’s restaurants and bars to showcase the work of their group chefs. Food and drink stalls, live performances by The…

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STRIKE A POSE! After-Hours Pop-up Fashion Party to be held at Madame Tussauds (Sydney)

Have you ever wanted to compare outfits with Lady Gaga? Have a drink with Marilyn Monroe? Or perhaps attend an outrageous party with Andrey Hepburn à la Breakfast at Tiffany’s? Sydney’s fab Hijinks is returning to let you do just that STIKE A POSE! is the latest in the events series down by the harbour,…

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Second trailer released for Ghostbusters with a nod to the controversy of the first

The international trailer for the Ghostbusters remake includes more footage, which seems to allude to the race and gender controversy the anticipated film has attracted since the release of the first trailer. New footage includes a scene in which Patty (played by Leslie Jones) attempts a stage dive, but the crowd parts and she falls to the ground. Lying on her…

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Nike Sportswear’s Air Max Lab pop up to open in Surry Hills (Sydney)

To celebrate the 29th anniversary of the Nike Air Max 1, the  Air Max Lab is set to open in Surry Hills, where Nike Sportswear will hold a month-long program of footwear-related events. The Lab will open on the 12th of March with a Q&A session with local sneaker-heads like Christopher Kevin Au, Jazz Bonifacio and Sneaker Freaker…

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Australian release date announced for Jesse O’Brien’s Sci-Fi thriller Arrowhead

If.com.au reports that Arrowhead, the sci-fi thriller described as “an interstellar Jekyll & Hyde”, has been picked up by StudioCanal for a release in Australia and New Zealand on June 9th. The film follows Kye, a prisoner of war who becomes stranded on a desert moon after a crash landing. Earlier this week, it was announced that Jesse O’Brien’s screenplay…

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