The project that brought Aussie star Jacob Elordi back home

SPOTLIGHT / The railway man

In The Narrow Road to The Deep North, Elordi plays a young doctor sent to work on the Burma Railway.

It’s always interesting to see what actors choose to do next after they’ve had a major hit. The usual path was always a superhero movie or three but for Jacob Elordi, that route brought him home to film the TV adaptation of Richard Flanagan’s 2014 Booker Prize-winning novel, The Narrow Road to the Deep North. For the uninitiated, Elordi is the 27-year-old Australian actor who starred in Emerald Fennell’s wild, 2023 queer thriller, Saltburn, and had the dubious pleasure of having a candle – “Jacob Elordi’s Bathwater” – named after him (if you’ve seen the scene, you know). While Saltburn required Elordi to swan about a grand English manor, The Narrow Road to the Deep North is an altogether different proposition: a World War II prisoner-of-war drama set in the brutal conditions of the Burma Railway camps. Directed by Snowtown’s Justin Kurzel and adapted by Shaun Grant, it’s a devastating story about regret, lost love and survival. Elordi plays Dorrigo Evans, a young doctor who’s captured in the Battle of Java and sent to work on the railway. The deeply affecting, five-part series, which premiered at February’s Berlin film festival to great acclaim, screens on Amazon Prime Video from April 18. Louise Rugendyke

READ / Creature comfort

An absurd premise … that works: Maggie Su’s sharp and witty debut novel.

What would you do if you could mould your own soulmate? Maggie Su’s sharp and witty debut, Blob: A Love Story (Sceptre; $33), begins with a down-on-her-luck woman who discovers a sentient blob in the garbage outside a nightclub. She takes him home, names him Bob and starts shaping him into her perfect man. It’s an absurd premise, but Su uses it brilliantly to explore modern relationships and the pressures of young adulthood. Beneath its charm lies a darker critique of the damage caused by the desire to “have it all”, particularly when those desires are given to us by others. Blob shouldn’t work – but it does. Melanie Kembrey

LISTEN / Cop this

From gangs to slavery rackets: Empire City examines the skeletons in the NYPD closet.

The NYPD is the largest police force in the US. Its motto is Latin for “Faithful until death”, but, dig deeper, and there are skeletons. Chenjerai Kumanyika, whose Uncivil podcast won a Peabody Award, reveals the force’s hidden history in Empire City: The Untold Origin Story Of The NYPD – from rival police gangs at war with each other, to cops in the 1800s kidnapping free, black Americans and selling them into slavery. Kumanyika has skin in the game: his father was a civil-rights campaigner who, he discovers, was under surveillance after organising protests against police brutality. At a time when US citizens’ rights appear to be in danger and trust between the people and the authorities is eroding, this podcast provides a sobering history. Barry Divola

WEAR / Penguin looks

A new (navy) tux sold with real penguins in mind.

For decades, the name given to a waddlesome, flightless bird has been synonymous with male evening attire – and now it’s payback time. This year, Australian tailors MJ Bale will donate $25,000 of its tuxedo sales to the little-penguin preservation hotspot, Fairyland, on Tasmania’s Bruny Island. We suggest a slim jacket in navy merino wool (MJ Bale “Saunders” navy tuxedo jacket, $749, and “Mauricio” bow tie, $70) with a shawl collar to avoid any avian – no matter how irresistible – comparisons. Damien Woolnough

SHOP / Go with the slow

Brass keyring with secure screw closure, made in Japan.

When Tara Bennett opened Provider Store in Sydney’s Surry Hills in 2014, she had a singular vision: to bring artisanal, slow-made Japanese ceramics and homewares to an Australian audience. Since then, Provider Store has remained true to that vision, stocking a sublime range of Japanese and locally crafted wares, from bowls, plates and the bestselling “Chips Stacking Mug” to wooden bath stools, chopstick holders and these super-cool brass keyrings ($48 each). Bennett has also been in an expansive mood with the recent opening of Provider House, a wooden holiday cottage in Lenah Valley on the outskirts of Hobart, where subdued Japanese aesthetics meet pristine Tassie nature to create a minimal retreat with maximum appeal. Deborah Cooke

RELAX / The X8 factor

The Ecovacs robot vacuum and mop.

I used to think robot vacuums were just pricey, furniture-dodging gimmicks that maybe cleaned a room. Then I met the Ecovacs “Deebot X8 Pro Omni” vacuum and mop ($2499). The industry-first Ozmo Roller cleans itself as it works, the TruEdge 2.0 technology ensures reach into corners, while the AIVI 3D 3.0 navigation feature dodges obstacles (including pets). Suction? A beastly 18,000 pascals (typical suction power is 2500-5000 Pa), though ZeroTangle 2.0 prevents hair tangling peskily around the brush. The roller auto-lifts 10mm for deeper carpet cleaning. You’ve basically got next-level hoovering power while you … read a book. Did I mention I’m in love? Frances Mocnik

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