With so many switches, driving this car is like flying a plane
I disliked this car intensely at first, but then ended up driving more than 600km in it – after which it still had a third of a tank of fuel left, thanks to its clever hybrid set-up.
Columnists
Nine foals, 11 years: What sort of life did Black Caviar have as a broodmare?
In the life story of the champion thoroughbred we bear witness to a tale of astonishing sporting prowess, and big money, with something of The Handmaid’s Tale thrown into the mix too.
In a world of endless noise, silence is golden
Though I’m deaf, it’s a long time since I’ve heard utter, total, restful silence. Silence in which to think. Or not to. In a world of endless noise and relentless racket, humans seem afraid of it.
These bursts of creativity by older artists are inspiring
These men and women – who’ve had the courage and focus and grit to live a richly creative life – are still creating, well into their eighties.
Has our pride and love for Australia come to an end?
Gone are the prideful depictions of our sunburnt country via art, song and poetry. But the projection of Australian culture is always evolving.
Genius of Rolls-Royce engineers shines in world’s most excessive SUV
I should have known that something was amiss when Rolls-Royce invited me to drive its new Cullinan SUV on Ibiza … and mentioned that there wouldn’t be a lot of actual driving involved.
Straights, fixers or maddies: which is Keir, Albo and the Don?
‘All politicians, irrespective of place or time in history, come in one of three categories: Straights, Fixers or Maddies,’ once quipped Tony Benn. To which group does a new generation of world leaders belong?
Menopause stole my waist and my confidence
The grim fact: the new me feels like failure. I hate the flicker of judgment on the faces of people not seen for a while, that cannot be hidden; that look of, ‘Gosh, she’s let herself go’.
A Boomer’s advice for Gen Z employees
Take it from me. After four decades in the workforce I have gathered sufficient experience to have an opinion. My advice might surprise you.
Modern children are missing out on this vital life lesson
There’s something missing nowadays compared to the way things were during the 1960s when sports and games fitted into the broader backyard landscape.
The campaign I’m most proud of from my adman era
With the help of two truly raving geniuses, I was able to give Australians ‘Life. Be In It’, with its antihero Norm, and, soon after, ‘Slip! Slop! Slap!’. But one campaign was closest to my heart.
What is it that Australians want for themselves — and their kids?
We need to talk about the ways in which Australians can be united behind common goals, shared aspirations and, as old- fashioned as it may seem, a love of country.
Why Australians need to act more like Gina Rinehart
For a few bucks a week, we regular mortals could be helping struggling sports in dire financial need and contributing to the lift of the entire nation. And not just in the sporting arena.
Prepare for lift-off in Porsche’s electric grand tourer
The new Porsche Taycan needs a ‘Push to Pass’ button in the same way that I need an AI analogy generator, Ian Thorpe needs swimming lessons and sharks need more teeth.
Vale Ray Lawler, one of our greatest playwrights
Ray Lawler’s death should have been a day of national mourning as many in the know regard Summer of the Seventeenth Doll as one of the 20th century’s finest plays.
Magic number: why do people hit this age, and decide to separate?
The late forties and early fifties are turbulent years for anyone in the Australian life-cycle. But what is it about this particular birthday that makes people rethink their marriages?
A childhood spent immersed in nature sets you up for life
We do childhood differently now. Screen bowed, turned away too much from the natural world. Which is why I felt relief when my littlest took up a new hobby.
Is this the one EV that old men don’t hate?
This car is so eye-catching that I saw a motorcyclist damn near fall off while twisting his spine at traffic lights to turn around and gape at it. Children hoot in joy when they see it. What’s it like to drive?
The things I’ve collected all my life
Like bowerbirds decorating their sex dens, like squirrels gathering nuts for winter, humans are natural-born collectors. For some of us, the impulse becomes an addiction. I am one of them.
Think the internet changed Australia? How about sewerage
During an era of wealth generation delivered by gold, wool, wheat and export of refrigerated meat, a huge change lengthened Australians’ lifespans.
I expected this car to be dull. Boy, was I wrong
I expected something as invigorating as an unbuttered piece of white bread with a warm water chaser. But driving it was like discovering that your economy class seat has been upgraded to Private Jet.
This Lexus is so cramped, I felt like corned beef
The LBX is supposed to be small but it’s also supposed to be luxurious. They got it half-right, I suppose.
Women are galvanising behind Kamala Harris
The US Vice-President is a lightning rod for female rage and by voting for her women in America can finally vent.
If there’s one thing Aussies love, it’s an SUV with a Mazda badge
Mazda has outdone Toyota and even Hyundai in taking the upper ends of its range to a more premium, luxurious place without the need for an offshoot-brand marketing effort.
This is performative existence, and we’re all watching
The distressing powerlessness of Bianca Censori.
Is it time for an Australian state to have an Indigenous name?
Unlike Canada, we still don’t have a state or territory named for our first nations people.
The one negative about all these gold medals
It must have been tricky to pen an inspiring anthem when the only words that rhyme with Australia are regalia, genitalia and failure. But who the hell is this Gert who lives by sea?
’I have never, ever been censored in The Australian’
I remain free to write whatever I like. The question – perhaps you could call it a mystery – remains: Why do they keep me on? Perhaps it’s just that they haven’t noticed I’m still here.
Modern Australia has forgotten to laugh at it itself
For decades, Australians have explored their many cultures and suburban social mores through television and film. Why haven’t we found a modern-day Dame-Edna iteration for the 2020s?
Finding happiness at the supermarket checkout
This little supermarket doesn’t have a fancy cheese section or a bottle shop attached, but it has everything I need – a worker whose infectious joy exalts.
Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/weekend-australian-magazine/columnists/page/6