Yesterday
Lin-Manuel Miranda on Mufasa and the secret to a Disney hit
The Hamilton creator, who crafted the soundtrack for the new prequel to The Lion King, reflects on writing songs that have universal appeal.
- Sarah Bahr
This Month
The best TV shows of 2024
The New York Times picks English Teacher, My Brilliant Friend, Shogun, Babylon Berlin and Somebody Somewhere among the series that stood out this year.
- Updated
- James Poniewozik, Mike Hale and Margaret Lyons
The podcast all of federal parliament is obsessed with
Australia’s political leaders have ambitious reading and streaming plans for the summer break, but one audio program is winning bipartisan support.
- Tom McIlroy
- Opinion
- Review
Five streaming Christmas movies that are so bad, they’re good
“Brain rot” was the Oxford English Dictionary’s word of the year. Here’s some holiday drivel to help you join the trend.
- Rachael Bolton
It’s the end of Eras: How Taylor Swift changed pop forever
After 149 shows over almost two years, the singer’s blockbuster, career-defining show has come to an end. She could be music’s last truly monocultural figure.
- Alim Kheraj
November
How a cute Japanese icon turned into a $6b industry
The Japanese icon, celebrating her golden jubilee, is emblematic of a global craze for child-like things that has grown in troubled times.
- The Economist
September
The 10 most culturally powerful people in Australia in 2024
What does it mean to be Australian right now? These 10 people made the biggest mark on our national culture this year.
- Michael Bailey
August
The weird, weird world of Japanese cosplay
If you thought break dancing was an odd sport, it turns out being a superfan is also competitive.
- Jessica Sier
July
Why people are still solving Rubik’s Cube, 50 years on
On the 50th anniversary of the bestselling toy’s invention, there is still a passionate fan base for Erno Rubik’s magical and mathematical cube.
- Siobhan Roberts
May
How this comedian built a career while working for PwC
His bosses thought he’d just popped out for a moment, but he was actually working at the ABC.
- Aaron Weinman
April
As graffiti moves from eyesore to amenity, landlords cash in
From Berlin to London to Miami, graffiti is attracting developers and companies looking for hip neighbourhoods, as well as brands keen to spruik their products.
- Isabella Kwai
February
From Barbie to Baby Yoda: why we’re trapped in the cult of cute
Anything that reminds us of a baby triggers intense emotions and a willingness to spend money.
- Stuart Jeffries
Kylie Minogue’s ‘Padam Padam’ delivers her first Grammy win since 2004
The Australian singer’s song has been described as a “hypnotic electro”-inspired dance pop.
- Maria Sherman
January
How retailers adapt to the crunch
Charles-Eddy Vitry shut down his record store’s physical shopfront in December to go online only after sales plummeted and his rent increased by 20 per cent.
- Gus McCubbing
The building of the decade is a giant blob in Vegas
Sphere is the building of the year, the decade, possibly the century – an inescapable gravity well of viral content, vivid imagery and vast sums of money.
- Kriston Capps
- Opinion
- Marvel
Is this the endgame for the age of heroes?
Who wants to watch 30 films and 10 TV series to engage with a franchise that continues to spread itself too thin at the expense of quality filmmaking?
- Maya Phillips
Elite chess players keep accusing each other of cheating
Top chess players cannot seem to stop getting into disputes about the integrity of the game.
- Dylan Loeb McClain
December 2023
What is ‘rizz’ - and do you have it?
The Oxford University Press word of the year for 2023 was first coined on social media - and actor Tom Holland admits he’s got no rizz.
- Melissa Twigg
Shane MacGowan, hard-drinking poet of The Pogues, dies
The singer melded punk with Irish traditional music and wrote huge hits in the 80s and 90s – but was also known for his on-stage meltdowns and drug abuse.
- Conor Humphries
November 2023
- Opinion
- Opinion
Thank Nicholas Moore for ‘NCIS: Sydney’ which you’ve already paid for
An Australian version of the popular US show debuts on Friday. Why has it been funded by the federal government?
- Aaron Patrick