By Stephen Brook and Kishor Napier-Raman
Penny Fowler, the Herald and Weekly Times chair and niece of Rupert Murdoch, and Seven sports commentator Hamish McLachlan are two prominent Melburnians.
Their families are also neighbours in a pretty part of South Yarra near Toorak Road West and not far from the Royal Botanic Gardens, an organisation Fowler also chairs.
The South Yarra mansion which Penny Fowler sold to Hamish McLachlan.
Fowler is a feature on many Melbourne boards, also chairing the Good Friday Appeal for the Royal Children’s Hospital, and the National Portrait Gallery.
McLachlan, a fixture of Seven’s AFL coverage, is taking a year off and living his best life with his family in Europe.
The pair and their families are friends as well as neighbours, which explains how they came up with a novel and thoroughly Melbourne solution to their changing housing needs – they decided to swap houses.
Hamish McLachlan.
In 2022, Fowler and her husband, empty-nesters after their adult children moved away, sold their grand five-bedroom family home with a three-story turret to McLachlan for nearly $9.6 million.
And about the same time, McLachlan sold his nearby three-bedroom terrace for about $4 million.
Well, technically he didn’t sell it to the Fowlers, but to a company which lists as a director Stirling David Pitt, whose LinkedIn profile says he acts as “an adviser, confidante and friend” to private family clients.
That year was also an active one for McLachlan on the property front, as he scooped up a nearby three-bedroom brick home for $4 million. Nice work.
Penny FowlerCredit: Jesse Marlow
“Penny and Grant had four kids who had all left home, and Soph and I have three kids who were outgrowing our home,” McLachlan told CBD.
“Neither of us wanted to leave Fawkner Park, and one morning at the coffee shop we threw the idea around. Sometimes things work out well.”
Only in Melbourne folks.
Budget functions
Forget the Met Gala. For CBD’s subjects – politicians, lobbyists, random Canberra grifters – the second Tuesday in May is the night of nights.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ federal budget is both a piece of political theatre and a chance for big business to beef up the Labor coffers as we head towards an election.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers takes a light-hearted moment before he hands down the budget.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
As we reported in March, tickets to the big sit-down dinner with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, now sponsored by VISA after previous hosts PwC cancelled themselves for good, are going for $5000-a-pop.
But it’s the more laid back $1500-a-head stand-up event over at the National Press Club that has emerged as the hottest ticket in town – already sold out, with hopeful punters on a waiting list. That’s high demand for an event where you don’t even get a proper meal, just ghastly nibbles.
Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton.Credit: John Shakespeare
Or maybe even the donor class are starting to feel the cost-of-living crisis, eschewing the formal dinner for a more low-budget affair.
The big end of town certainly seems unwilling to fork out for the Liberal Party. CBD hears the opposition is struggling to fill tables for its own fundraising event after Peter Dutton’s reply speech next Thursday.
We anticipate a similarly lacklustre affair for the Moderate faction’s Bradfield dinner hosted by that NSW electorate’s MP Paul Fletcher at Old Parliament House. Last year, it drew about 45 people, and insiders are anticipating a similarly weak turnout. For contrast, 400 showed up in 2022, just months before the Liberals were voted out. How times change.
Take a Chance on Me
The plans to bring 3D virtual concert ABBA Voyage to Melbourne remains a hot topic, with promoters including impresario Paul Dainty and Geoff Jones of TEG Entertainment inching towards a deal with the state government, despite the budget revealing that Victoria has no Money, Money, Money.
Total spending on creative industries tourism and major events plunges from $447.8 million for the coming financial year to $316.9 million in 2025-26, with the tourism market people at Visit Victoria meeting their Waterloo, having to spread out a single year’s funding across three years next time.
Victorian minister Steve DimopoulosCredit: Getty
Meanwhile, Minister for Fun Steve Dimopoulos is being a real Super Trouper about the whole thing, with his office issuing the following holding statement.
“As Australia’s major events capital, we’re always looking at new opportunities and events for our calendar,” a Victorian government spokeswoman said.
Meanwhile, behind the scenes, during a visit in late April, Melbourne begged London-based ABBA Voyage chief executive Michael Bolingbroke to Lay All Your Love On Me.
Is ABBA Voyage set for an arrival in Sydney or Melbourne?
Speculation about location of the 90-minute concert’s purpose-built arena includes Rod Laver Arena, Docklands, Birrarung Marr and even Albert Park. But Flemington Racecourse is the firm favourite for The Winner Takes It All.
Now CBD hears the government has also courted the ultimate granddaddy of stadium acts, the Rolling Stones. The department of fun issued the same non-committal statement.
The Stones are touring the United States again for the first time since the death of Charlie Watts in 2021. Mick Jagger still has the moves, even with his 80-year old knees, and the tour is sponsored by the American Association of Retired Persons. But the Stones at the ’G could be just the thing the moribund state economy needs to Start Me Up.
Night at the opera
The closure of Melbourne’s State Theatre is having a knock-on effect with productions sometimes finding themselves in odd locations
Such as Opera Australia’s big-budget production of Tosca, which is heading for the novel venue of Margaret Court Arena on May 24.
This week, Melbourne Opera’s terrific production of Lucia di Lammermoor opened at its favoured venue, The Athenaeum, in front of an opening night crowd including Bruce Beresford, Lady (Primrose) Potter and winemaker Hans Henkell.
Melbourne Opera has announced an extra night, while Opera Australia’s big production of Tosca at a much bigger venue is advertising a two-for-one Mother’s Day ticket special.
Perhaps the venue is not to the taste of opera lovers. Overheard in the Athenaeum box office queue was one old stager declaring: “I’m not going to a tennis court.”
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