The Watchlist
Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees.
Life in the ’Burbs
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The Morning Edition podcast
Start your day with expert insight into the stories that drive the nation.
Liberal powerbroker’s ally quits amid reported links to neo-Nazi content
Western District farmer Susanne Marro has withdrawn from a Liberal preselection battle after the party was alerted to allegedly troubling activity on her social media.
Dubai by the bay: Push to transform this Melbourne suburb into a tax haven
As council looks to trebling property rates for commercial landlords, property taxes for new developments could be slashed.
Opinion
Middle East at war
Let’s not adopt drongo economics to deal with high-priced fuel
High oil prices are painful. But ideas to make life easier - from ending excise to free public transport - would just make the situation worse.
Shane Wright
Senior economics correspondent
Trump team examines what $200 per barrel oil would mean
Follow our live coverage of the conflict in the Middle East and related developments in Australia.
Latest live posts
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Trump's America
Trump feels the pain as his war becomes a liability in the heartlands
Voters are growing increasingly anxious - they believe Trump’s war is going to last a long time, and Republicans are likely to pay the price.
Cory Alpert
Former White House staffer
Israel thought it could spur rebellion inside Iran. That hasn’t happened
Donald Trump’s hopes that an Israeli plan to ignite an internal uprising against Iran’s theocratic government could bring the war to a swift end have so far been dashed.
Cycling to work, staying home, cutting school hours: How the world is handling the fuel crisis
Australia is considering “light touch” ways to conserve fuel, while other nations are already taking drastic measures to curb their use of petrol.
Breaking
Aviation
Qantas steps up flights to Europe as travellers scramble for options in Iran war
The airline taps into strong demand for tickets after the war in the Middle East has led to thousands of flight cancellations by airlines using the Persian Gulf as a transit hub.
Analysis
Social media
The walls are closing in on Mark Zuckerberg
Juries in two US states this week found Meta liable for harming children. With 2000 more cases pending, Zuckerberg’s nightmare is just starting.
From highs to lows, this special moment lifted Michelle Payne’s spirits
Michelle Payne made history when she won the 2015 Melbourne Cup. Now she’s part of another very rare group of just five at Flemington Racecourse.
Gout’s rival had one advantage over him. So the 18-year-old went to work
Lachie Kennedy crashed the Gout Gout party in Melbourne last year. Can he do it again?
Club bosses told when AFL players have serious drug issues – but coaches stay in the dark
The senior coach remains out of the loop for those players who are under drug treatment and have continued to use illicit drugs.
Koala towed behind ute in alleged act of animal cruelty
Witnesses to a disturbing act of alleged cruelty have been urged to go to police, after the incident in a rural Victorian town.
Opinion
Aviation
Qantas’ turbulence shows why Warren Buffett was wary of investing in airlines
Investors in airlines around the world are bracing as they attempt to assess the earnings carnage of the war in the Middle East.
Elizabeth Knight
Business columnist
Why your weather app often gets it wrong – and which apps are best
Many loads of washing have fallen prey to an inaccurate forecast, but whose fault is it? Meteorologists, algorithms, weather apps – or those who use them?
Five key plot points the new Harry Potter series should have (that the films didn’t)
The new teaser trailer has given fans hope that key parts of the novels will find new life in HBO Max’s upcoming series.
★★★★½
Europe
You can take Italy’s ‘red arrow’ fast train even if you’re not in Italy
A business class trip passes in a blur of bucolic French countryside and Italian food and wine.
Pixar’s wildly entertaining return plus other new movies to watch this week
Welcome to our weekly wrap of what’s new in cinemas.
shorts
War in the Middle East
Tony Wright’s Column
In a world maddened by blood, has death lost its meaning?
It is the paradox of numbers. Lost amid the carnage of war and its endless casualties are personal grief and shattered lives.
Updated
Iran rejects ceasefire plan as more US troops head to the Middle East
On another day of mixed signals from the US president, analysts are far from convinced that a peace deal between the US and Iran is achievable.
Victoria
Exclusive
Education
Victoria’s school zones have changed. Here’s how it affects you
Students in two regional towns will be able to access a popular Daylesford school as part of 11 new school boundary changes announced this week.
115 stations and counting: The areas hardest hit by Victoria’s fuel shortage
Independent fuel retailers are struggling to secure reliable supplies of petrol and diesel, causing a significant number of local outages at Victorian service stations.
Exclusive
Schools
Pay gap for classroom assistants emerges as flashpoint in Victorian teacher dispute
Education support workers have been offered a lower pay rise than their teaching colleagues.
Ex CFMEU official’s ‘demolition company’ a front for secret bikie clubhouse, police fear
An accused building industry extortionist has been banned from associating with a bikie employee after police suggested Joel Leavitt’s company was a front for the Bandidos.
‘Deeply distressing moment’: Palestine flag to be lowered from city hall after fiery debate
Shouting erupted during a vote to remove a Palestinian flag from a northern suburbs council chamber where it has flown for more than two years.
See & Do
Not all kids in ‘special schools’ had bad experiences – but this writer absolutely did
Kath Duncan draws on her own experience for her play, Specials. “I hated it,” she says. “It was a torture chamber.”
A response to the Port Arthur massacre, this is not an easy play to watch
Beyond the Neck underscores the importance of memorialising, reflecting upon, and grappling with the terror and the trauma of public violence at scale.
Politics
Exclusive
Middle East at war
Emergency measures on the table as PM calls fuel crisis national cabinet
Talks are under way inside the federal government about bringing the states together to create a consistent message on light-touch ways to save fuel.
Business
Opinion
World markets
The insider trading shadow hanging over Trump’s sudden backdown
A burst of unusual activity in markets this week has raised suspicions about insider trading.
Stephen Bartholomeusz
Senior business columnist
World
Melania Trump takes robot as plus-one to White House event
The first lady said the robot was the White House’s first American-made humanoid guest and used its appearance to promote AI for teaching in schools.
Opinion
Too ‘dumb’ to be president? No, Mr Trump, he’s dyslexic – like Einstein and me
Geoff Lee
Deputy vice chancellor
The GST is broken, and two states are hurting more than the rest
Shane Wright
Senior economics correspondent
Explore
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Property
Melbourne’s property market just weakened, and these homes are the worst hit
Some properties are struggling to attract interest as mortgage costs rise and buyers fret about the health of the global economy.
Five luxury homes we love that are for sale right now
From a double-fronted period home with a contemporary overhaul, to a peninsula retreat that seems to float, here are our top picks.
Good Food
Lifestyle
Worse than birth or postpartum: The anxiety of trying for a baby
A new survey suggests anxiety around trying to conceive is more common than fear of pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding. So why isn’t it being discussed?
Opinion
Sunday Life
My partner is perfect. But scratch the surface and these things bug me
Kerri Sackville
Columnist and author
Culture
★★★
Review
True crime has never been so daggy. This is NZ’s answer to Only Murders in the Building
Much like other awkward Kiwi comedies, Small Town Scandal will be an acquired taste, but it’s worth sticking with.
Traveller
Drivedrive
From Our Partners
Sport
Club bosses told when AFL players have serious drug issues – but coaches stay in the dark
Every AFL and AFLW player will be hair tested twice per year and the identity of players with ongoing serious drug issues will be known by the relevant club’s chief executive, president and football boss under the league’s heavily revamped illicit drug policy.
Opinion
AFL 2026
Like Merrett, I tried to leave my club. This is why I’m proud of it, and he should be too
I faced a similar situation to Zach Merrett halfway through my career. Here’s how it played out, what I learnt and what Merrett should do now.
Wayne Campbell
Age columnist and former Richmond captain
Gout’s rival had one advantage over him. So the 18-year-old went to work
Lachie Kennedy crashed the Gout Gout party in Melbourne last year. Can he do it again?
She’s lived soaring highs and devastating lows, but this special moment lifted Michelle Payne’s spirits
Michelle Payne made history when she won the 2015 Melbourne Cup. Now she’s part of another very rare group of just five at Flemington Racecourse.
Breaking
AFL 2026
Dons to unleash No.10 pick as Scott stands by Caddy comments
Under siege Essendon coach Brad Scott insists he remains “optimistic” about the club’s on-field future as he ruled out a “knee-jerk” reaction at the selection table ahead of Saturday’s clash with North Melbourne.
Updated
American Football
A final at Marvel? NFL match could force 15-year first for AFL
The regular season game between the Los Angeles Rams and the San Francisco 49ers will take place on Friday, September 11, 2026 – which could cause a disruption to the AFL’s semi-final plans if more than one Victorian team hosts a match that weekend.
This Socceroos legend wants to keep the door open for Volpato despite snub
Cristian Volpato is “waiting for Italy” over the Socceroos. But an Australian great says he would welcome the attacker back should he ever change his mind.
Have Your Say
The premiership Cat who had heads turning and tongues wagging in church on Christmas Eve
This is the story of Mark O’Connor’s last-minute return to Ireland during AFL pre-season, his teammates’ mega effort to join him and why it was an emotional trip for the entire town of Dingle.
