Latest news with #JohnLyons

ABC News
5 hours ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Atmosphere at LA protest after first night of curfew
ABC Americas editor John Lyons describes the tensions between authorities and protesters outside a federal detention centre in Los Angeles.


Khaleej Times
20 hours ago
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Dubai: Dirham drop helps British, European, Indian property investors save millions
Dubai's booming real estate market has become even more attractive to foreign investors, as the UAE dirham has weakened against major international currencies such as the British pound, euro, and Indian rupee. This currency shift has significantly reduced property acquisition costs for buyers from the UK, Europe, and India — potentially saving them millions of dirhams compared to earlier this year. According to John Lyons, managing director at Espace Real Estate, the depreciation of the US dollar, to which the UAE dirham is pegged, has played a key role in making Dubai real estate more affordable for international buyers. 'In simple terms, for many international investors — especially from Europe and the UK — Dubai property has just become significantly more affordable,' Lyons explained. 'We recently listed a Dh59-million villa in Palm Jumeirah. Back in January, a British buyer would have needed just over £13.2 million to purchase it. Today, that same villa would cost around £12 million — a saving of more than £1.18 million (Dh5.86 million) purely due to exchange rate differences, without any reduction in the asking price.' Stronger currencies drive investment Since January 2025, the British pound has strengthened from 4.47 to nearly 5 against the dirham, while the euro has risen from 3.76 to 4.22. This appreciation means investors can get more dirhams for their home currency, increasing their purchasing power in the Dubai market. 'The euro has appreciated nearly 10 per cent against the dirham since the start of the year. A Dh1-million property that would have cost around €265,800 in January now costs approximately €239,200 — saving the buyer €26,600 (about Dh111,500) without any change in the local price. British investors have also benefited, though the pound's movement has been more modest,' said Farooq Syed, CEO of Springfield Properties. Syed noted that the strengthened foreign currencies are fuelling renewed buying momentum in Dubai, particularly in the prime and upper mid-market segments, where transaction volumes have recently surged. Selling in UK to buy in Dubai The favourable currency environment is even prompting some UK residents to sell their properties back home to invest in Dubai instead. 'There's a clear uptick in cross-border activity from regions where currency appreciation has enhanced purchasing power — particularly from the UK, eurozone, India, and Pakistan,' Syed said. 'Interest from Russian buyers also remains consistent. These investors are focusing on well-connected communities, branded residences, and ready-to-move-in units.' Lyons added that his firm has seen a rise in UK buyers since January, with a shift in behaviour. 'We're seeing more clients who initially planned to buy in Dubai while continuing to lease their homes in the UK now deciding to sell their UK properties outright,' he said. 'This shift is driven by two key factors: an improved UK property market and the fact that British buyers now get nearly nine per cent more value when purchasing in Dubai due to the stronger pound. 'Real estate markets don't adjust overnight, but the currency gap is real. Historically, property prices tend to catch up. Since January 2025, the US dollar – and by extension, the dirham – has dropped by just under nine per cent against both the euro and the pound. That might sound abstract, but the impact on buyer behavior is very real,' he added.


ABC News
3 days ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Soldiers deployed to quell Los Angeles riots
Woman's voice: ABC Listen, podcasts, radio, news, music and more. Isabella Higgins: Good morning. Welcome to AM. It's Monday the 9th of June. I'm Isabella Higgins coming to you from Gadigal Land in Sydney. Hundreds of soldiers are on the streets of Los Angeles where riot police and demonstrators have clashed after the arrest of suspected illegal immigrants. Trump administration officials say their deployment is necessary to maintain and ensure law and order but California's governor says the move could escalate tensions. America's editor John Lyons is in Washington. John, what's the latest with this deployment? John Lyons: Isabella, at the moment it's relatively calm. President Trump has ordered those 2,000 National Guard into Los Angeles following two days of protests over the illegal immigration rounding up of people allegedly who are overstaying their visas or are in America illegally. Now Pete Hegseth, the Defence Secretary, has said that he has Marines also on standby. There is some sense though from some of the authorities in California that this is much of an overreaction, that this could have been handled by the Los Angeles Police Department but so far while there are crowds and some protests at the moment the National Guard are standing around various places in Los Angeles and things are relatively calm. Isabella Higgins: John, the deployment of the National Guard is rare. How are Americans reacting? John Lyons: Look, I think that those Americans who support President Trump and this was one of his signature election campaign promises of course was illegal immigrants. His base, his supporters think it's excellent. They like to see this sort of tough action. Those who are not supporters of his worry about the civil liberties implications. It's interesting that usually the National Guard are deployed in America at the request of a governor. What makes this particularly different and in a way quite dangerous is that it's believed to be the first time since 1965 when President Lyndon Johnson ordered National Guard into the streets of Alabama that a president has deployed National Guard against the wishes of the governor. The California Governor Gavin Newsom, who President Trump routinely and provocatively calls Gavin New Scum, has said that he doesn't think the National Guard should be deployed, that it is an inflammatory move by the president. Isabella Higgins: John Lyons in Washington. The co-author of a strategic review into Australia's defence capability says the federal government risks angering Donald Trump if he doesn't convince the US it's doing enough to increase the defence budget. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is facing pressure to boost defence spending as he prepares to head to the United States after the Trump administration insisted Australia should lift its spending to 3.5 per cent of its gross domestic product. But the government is pushing back, saying it's doing enough already. Isobel Roe reports. Isobel Roe: Donald Trump claims America's allies rely too much on them and aren't prepared to sufficiently fund their own defence programs. Looking at the numbers, some experts think that point is worth considering. Peter Dean: Pretty much since the end of the Vietnam War there's been a steady trajectory for Australian defence spending going backwards and going down. Isobel Roe: Professor Peter Dean from the United States Studies Centre was the co-lead of the Australian Strategic Defence Review, a document produced in 2023, which recommended the government substantially increase the defence budget. Peter Dean: It's started to rise recently with the investments of the Albanese government and the previous governments but it's still on a very slow trajectory. Isobel Roe: Defence spending is back in the spotlight after the election, following a request from the US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth last week for Australia to increase defence spending to 3.5 per cent of Australia's gross domestic product, or GDP. Anthony Albanese may come face to face with some of that pressure if he meets with US President Donald Trump at the G7 summit next week. On Sky News, Trade Minister Don Farrell maintained the government's line that it won't have its defence policy dictated to it by Washington. Don Farrell: All of our defence capabilities are as strong as they can be and as strong as they need to be. We're focused on what Australia needs to do and we'll make our decisions based on what is in our national interest. Isobel Roe: What Australia spends on defence has emerged as a policy difference between the government and the opposition. Shadow Finance Minister James Paterson told the ABC on Sunday the coalition's election commitment of 3 per cent still stands. James Paterson: In the last five weeks, I don't know about you, but I don't think the world has become a much safer place. So we are committed to reaching that 3 per cent of GDP target. Isobel Roe: And members of the defence establishment here in Australia think 3 per cent of GDP is a price worth paying for defence. One of them is Professor Peter Dean. Peter Dean: I think what 3 per cent is, is a guideline for the amount of money that's needed in an initial investment. The Prime Minister is correct, we should figure out the capabilities we need and fund them appropriately. Isobel Roe: As for the US's demands of 3.5 per cent of GDP on defence, how does Anthony Albanese stand up to Donald Trump while keeping Australia's military alliance with the US strong? Peter Dean: It's become a proxy for allies and partners to make comparisons about that relative investment that each country makes into its own sovereign defence capabilities. Isobel Roe: What does Australia risk by not doing what the US recommends? Peter Dean: The US has long had a bipartisan position going back decades that its allies and partners such as NATO, Australia and others, should spend more money on defence. But I think the risk we have to take into account, that is that Donald Trump's behaviour for instance towards NATO and its European allies may well be replicated towards Australia. Isabella Higgins: United States Studies Centre Professor Peter Dean ending that report from Isobel Roe. A former Prime Minister, a top film director and leaders in science are among the more than 800 Australians being recognised in today's King's Birthday Honours list. Many of the recipients have spent decades of their life working to improve their communities or to help give those less fortunate a leg up. Gavin Coote reports. Scott Morrison: I have always believed in miracles. Gavin Coote: After winning an election he'd been projected to lose, Scott Morrison went on to lead Australia through a generation-defining pandemic and economic downturn. The former Prime Minister is today being appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia, or AC, for eminent service to Australia and Parliament and his leadership of the national COVID-19 response. Scott Morrison: We were hit with pretty much every crisis you could imagine, from natural disasters to a global pandemic once in a hundred years, and of course the threats we faced in our region and a recession caused by that global pandemic. And through all of this Australians were just incredible. Gavin Coote: There's a total of 830 people on the Honours list, including some big names in entertainment and the arts. Movie clip: All you need is love. Love is just a game. Gavin Coote: Baz Luhrmann, the famed director behind the films Moulin Rouge and Strictly Ballroom, and his wife, costume designer Catherine Martin, are both being appointed an AC for eminent service to the arts and the development of artistic talent. Businesswoman and feminist leader Wendy McCarthy is also being appointed an AC and says she's proud of her achievements in advocating for women. Wendy McCarthy: But if I had to pull out the most significant, it would be leading the reproductive rights campaign in New South Wales and to take, with my friends and colleagues, abortion off the criminal code after 80 years is for me one of the most fantastic things to be engaged in. Gavin Coote: Another AC appointee is former broadcaster Phillip Adams, who hosted Late Night Live on Radio National for more than 30 years after a career in film and advertising. Phillip Adams: But I've headed oodles of government bodies like the Australian Film Commission, then of course journalism, books. So, yes, I've been a busy little lad since I left school at 15. Gavin Coote: The honours list includes many who've dedicated their life's work to tackling complex challenges and improving society. Former ABC journalist Matt Peacock, who died in October last year, is being posthumously appointed a Member of the Order of Australia, or AM, for his work in the media, which included decades of reporting on the health impacts of asbestos. And Distinguished Professor Vasso Apostolopoulos is being appointed an AM for her pioneering work in developing treatments for cancer and other diseases. Vasso Apostolopoulos: Over the years I've wondered, you know, what do you have to do to achieve these awards? These people must be amazing that receive these awards and there I am today being named as one of the recipients. So it was very unexpected and it's very exciting. Gavin Coote: Also being appointed an AM is Bronwen Dalton, an academic and the founder of the charity Ruff Sleepers, a service that washes the dogs of homeless people, while also advocating for improved housing options for homeless people with pets. She says it's been a privilege to work right across the not-for-profit sector. Bronwen Dalton: I was working with the sex workers, I've worked with undocumented migrants, Indigenous groups, North Korean women, they're pretty high on the oppressed scale as well. Gavin Coote: And there are more than two dozen recipients who are being honoured for their service in Indigenous communities, including Bangerang-Wiradjuri Elder Aunty Geraldine Atkinson and prominent NT advocate Olga Havnen. Isabella Higgins: Gavin Coote with that report. Israel's Defence Minister has issued a warning to the crew of an aid ship trying to sail to Gaza, turn back now or face the force of the Israeli military. The Madleen set off from Italy a week ago, crewed by humanitarian activists including Greta Thunberg, and is trying to deliver supplies to the war-ravaged territory. Middle East correspondent Matthew Doran is in Jerusalem. Matthew, where is the ship now? Matthew Doran: Isabella, good morning. The ship is off the coast of Egypt in the Mediterranean, about 150 to 170 nautical miles off the coast of Gaza. It's been en route since last week when the ship run by the Freedom Flotilla set off from Sicily. And while the discussion around how Israel would respond to the voyage has been simmering away for a few days now, as it gets closer to Gaza, the rhetoric from Israeli authorities is certainly sharpening. We've heard from Israel Katz, the country's Defence Minister. He's firing a warning shot on social media a couple of hours ago. Alongside a photo of him sitting down with Israeli defence officials, Mr Katz announced he'd instructed the IDF to use whatever means necessary to stop the ship reaching Gaza. And he singled out the activist Greta Thunberg who was on board, labelling her as anti-Semitic, saying she was a Hamas supporter, along with the other members of the crew, and that the ship should turn around. Now, Greta Thunberg has knocked back the claim that she is anti-Semitic. She has returned serve on her own social media accounts, saying that the voyage is not about her, it's not about the crew or the ship. It is, in her own words, about highlighting Israel's genocide in Gaza, an accusation the country has repeatedly rejected. Now, the Freedom Flotilla had charted another ship, which a couple of weeks ago was hit by what the crew said was an Israeli drone attack. Israel hasn't commented on that. But back in 2010, Israeli commandos intercepted another ship bound for Gaza with some aid on board and 10 people died. And that's why there's a lot of focus on what's going on here. We're seeing in the Israeli media reports that the military plans to intercept the ship, take it to Ashdod Port north of Gaza, and then arrest and deport the crew. And earlier today, one of the crew, Brazilian activist Tiago Avila, he posted on his Instagram account a video where he said that Israeli forces were already trying to scramble the ship's GPS signal. Thiago Avila: And we just received some very weird news. That according to our tracker we are no longer 162 nautical miles from Gaza - which is where we are - but according to him that we are at Jordan Airport. And we know what that means, when they start jamming our communication, when they start messing with our devices, it means they are preparing for an interception. Or an attack. Isabella Higgins: That was Tiago Avila on board the aid ship. And Matthew, the aid situation in Gaza is what has prompted this voyage. What's the latest on how the population is accessing supplies? Matthew Doran: Well, Isabella, the situation on the ground remains incredibly dire. There's been another wave of shootings nearby. One of the aid sites in southern Gaza, another four people killed and dozens more injured, according to local health authorities. This follows a series of attacks last week, which has fuelled a sense of chaos around these sites. The IDF blaming Hamas for that, but also conceding firing warning shots at Palestinians approaching some of these aid sites. And then Hamas and Palestinians accessing their aid, accusing Israel of firing upon desperate people just trying to get their hands on some food there. Israel is insisting that enough aid is entering the strip through those distribution sites and also through trucks making deliveries. There are 350 which have crossed the border in the last week or so. But humanitarians say it's just a drop in the ocean compared to what's really required to solve the crisis, Isabella. Isabella Higgins: Matthew Doran in Jerusalem. After a tense weekend in Ukraine, Russia says its forces have made gains in both the east and northeast of the country. In recent days, the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Kharkiv have come under intense air attacks, some of the most powerful during the war. Tim Swanston reports from London. Tim Swanston: Following an intense missile and drone barrage in Kharkiv on Saturday, emergency crews worked frantically to clear rubble and find survivors in a nine-storey residential building. The city in eastern Ukraine is being hit regularly as the war escalates. But this weekend's bombing, which killed at least four, has been described by the city's mayor, Ihor Terekhov, as the most powerful attack since the start of the war. Just a day earlier, Russia launched a massive strike on Kyiv and cities in Ukraine's west. Ukrainian officials said more than 400 drones and more than 40 missiles were used in the intense attack. Three first responders were killed. These significant aerial attacks come as Russia makes territorial gains within Ukraine. Moscow says its forces have reached the western frontier of Ukraine's Donetsk region in the country's east and are making gains near Sumy in the northeast, a region Ukraine had reclaimed in 2022. Ukraine's military says Russia's forces are building a position for an attack on an important logistical hub for the Ukrainian army. Professor Vlad Mykhnenko from the University of Oxford says Russia is pushing hard early in a summer offensive. Vlad Mykhnenko: I think the Russian summer offensive will continue until about October. They might have some gains. They will probably occupy one or two settlements in the Donetsk Oblast. Perhaps they will take a few villages in other provinces. They will definitely terrorise Sumy and Kherson and their civilians with large drone attacks. They will definitely terrorise Ukrainian cities with drone attacks. Tim Swanston: According to pro-Ukrainian open source maps, Russia now controls almost one fifth of Ukrainian territory. Talks last week in Istanbul yielded very little, except for an exchange of prisoners of war and bodies. Amid the escalation, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Kyiv is planning more operations, like its strike on Russian airbases last weekend that destroyed part of Moscow's strategic bomber fleet. Volodymyr Zelenskyy: We have to prepare such plans and we are not stopping. We have to prepare such plans because Russia can't, because we don't know, we don't really know if they will stop this war. They don't want, they don't want to stop the war. Tim Swanston: US officials say they believe Russia's retaliation has not begun yet in earnest and will likely be a significant multi-pronged strike. Further peace talks are expected later this month in the shadow of this bloody escalation and likely months of intensified fighting. This is Tim Swanston in London reporting for AM. Queensland's tropical island resorts were once the playgrounds of the rich and famous, but now many are falling into ruin. The state government is moving to take back control from owners who have neglected their valuable tourism assets. National tourism reporter Kristy Sexton-McGrath reports. Kristy Sexton-McGrath: Queensland's island resorts were once the ultimate getaway, jewels in the state's tourism crown, but today many lie crumbling, overgrown and forgotten. Premier David Crisafulli says the decline can't continue. He's issued a stern warning to owners to either invest or lose their leases. David Crisafulli: It's pretty simple. They are assets that belong to the people of Queensland. They're a Queensland asset and I'm just not comfortable that in many cases international corporations come in, buy the rights, sit on it and just see an appreciation in its value without doing anything for Queenslanders. Kristy Sexton-McGrath: At the top of the government's list is Double Island near Cairns, once a celebrity hideaway. Now buildings are collapsing, pools clogged with sludge and weeds have taken over. Last year the Queensland government stripped the Hong Kong owner of the lease, converted the land to freehold and recently launched a lengthy expression of interest process to find the right buyer. The ABC understands more than 30 parties have shown interest, but the government wants someone with the funds and commitment to properly revive the island. Further south, Keswick Island off Mackay has long faced stall development and restricted public access, frustrating residents like Adrian Hayne. Adrian Hayne: This goes back probably more than 20 years. Based on a grand master plan that was released back in the 90s, a lot of people had bought land on the island with the promise that they would develop the island. There was supposed to be a marina, a jetty, resorts. Since then I think we've had four separate head leases take over the island and four failures. Kristy Sexton-McGrath: Island broker Hayley Manville says the interest in Queensland's tropical islands has never been higher. Hayley Manville: Billionaires, multi-millionaires, they're looking for some kind of tourism investment, but then you also have mixed interest from different groups like not-for-profit, be it wellness or a facility for rehabilitation. You get a lot of con artists. Kristy Sexton-McGrath: Businessman Christopher Morris, who's invested tens of millions of dollars reviving run-down resorts in North Queensland, say island ownership is no easy ride. He purchased Orpheus Island and then Pelorus Island off Townsville more than a decade ago and spent tens of millions of dollars redeveloping them. He agrees with the government's crackdown on shonky leaseholders but says not all islands are suited to resort development. Christopher Morris: There's some islands that basically should just stay national parks, right, and people can go and walk there and everything else can't, but there's a limit to how many islands you can support. Isabella Higgins: Businessman Christopher Morris ending that report by Kristy Sexton-McGrath. And that's AM for today. Thanks for your company. I'm Isabella Higgins. Sam Hawley: Hi, it's Sam Hawley here, host of the ABC News Daily podcast. Woodside is on a winning ticket. It's had the life of its massive gas project in Western Australia extended by 40 years. Today, Joe Lauder from the ABC's climate team on why the Albanese government has approved the extension, even though we're meant to be going renewal. Look for the ABC News Daily podcast on the ABC Listen app.


The Advertiser
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Advertiser
Movie star opens up about the accident that nearly killed him
What's new: Adelaide's Georgia Rose Phillips dares to fictionalise the early life of notorious cult leader Anne Hamilton-Byrne, while Australian journalist John Lyons details the "extraordinary efforts of ordinary Ukrainians" trying to save their country. Jeremy Renner. Simon & Schuster. $34.99. On New Year's Day, 2023, actor Jeremy Renner needed to clear mountains of snow from his Nevada driveway to enable his visiting family to go skiing. So the star of The Hurt Locker fired up a snowcat to bulldoze the road. The accident that followed should have killed him. Renner was run over by the six-tonne machine, and his account of the calamity is bloodcurdling. "I can promise you this much at least: The sounds of being crushed are just as terrifying as the visual," he writes. Renner's injuries were catastrophic. This is the story of his survival and recovery. Candice Chung. Allen & Unwin. $34.99. "A meal is a shape. It is a container into which we pour our cravings." At 35, when a 13-year relationship with her first love ends, food journalist Candice Chung must decide if she wants her retired Cantonese parents to join her as she reviews restaurants. Will they eat together in polite silence as the children of immigrants might traditionally expect? Or will this be her opportunity to finally broach the reasons they have drifted so profoundly apart over the years? This tender, intimate but brave memoir has a meditative tone and structure and should delight lovers of food who treasure its sacred place in family and culture. John Lyons. ABC Books. $34.99. Australian journalist John Lyons has made three trips to wartime Ukraine. The first two were on assignment with the ABC. The third was on his holidays, which allowed him to absorb what was happening in the country without the need to file daily news. It was on this trip that he learned the most, doing what regular Ukrainians do and, most importantly, taking the time to talk to everyday people. He found that resourceful civilians from every walk of life are doing their part. This is a story about the "extraordinary efforts ... of ordinary Ukrainians" trying to save their country. Mark Lilla. Hurst Publishers. $44.99. Humans are driven by the need to know, right? We are curious, we want to discover, look around the corner, explore over the horizon. Or do we? Mark Lilla examines the opposite compulsion: "the will not to know, the will to ignorance". This is not about those who are indifferent to learning, who simply don't want to expend the energy. This is about people who have "developed a particular antipathy toward the search for knowledge, whose inner doors are fastened tight against anything that might cast doubt on what they believe they already know". Starting to sound familiar to anyone? Sinead Stubbins. Affirm Press. $34.99. Apparently work doesn't have to define your life and corporate programs to build team bonds and boost employee engagement might not always deliver healthy outcomes - especially for those of us with messy bits in our personalities and our personal lives (you know, the bits that make us individuals). This wicked little satire of white-collar workplace culture follows Edith and a select group of her co-workers at ad agency Winked as they are sent to an elite three-day work retreat in the remote mountains, run by an outfit called Consequi. She hopes to impress her bosses and escape a looming restructure. But so do her, um, work friends. Madeleine Cleary. Affirm Press. $34.99. Inspired by what she has described as her own family's secret, salacious past - "my great-great-great grandmother was a colonial 'common prostitute'" - Melbourne-raised former Canberra diplomat Madeleine Cleary threads fictional mystery and romance into a grim but fascinating chapter of Australia's hardscrabble past, bringing to richly detailed life the women so often overlooked by history. It's 1863 and a serial killer stalks the notorious red-light district of the goldrush-rich city of Melbourne, endangering poor Irishwoman Johanna Callaghan who hopes to make a living at the glamorous Papillon brothel, and respectable journalist Harriett Gardiner who is intent on unmasking the murderer. Cynthia Timoti. Macmillan. $22.99. Think Crazy Rich Asians meets Always Be My Maybe and you'll get the Asian rom-com gist of this sweetly flirty debut novel about Ellie Pang, a young woman fed up with the meddling of her overbearing parents after she is diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Ellie sets out on her own to open her dream bakery - selling sugar-free treats, of course - but needs help to renovate. The man for the job is none other than Alec, the childhood crush who broke her heart - and it just so happens he needs a fake girlfriend to seal a business deal. But can they fake that they're in love? Georgia Rose Phillips. Picador. $34.99. Family is everything to Anne. And Anne demands everything from her family. That's because Anne knows how devastatingly easy it is to lose your family. The debut novel from Adelaide-based Georgia Rose Phillips dares to fictionalise the early life of Anne Hamilton-Byrne, notorious founder and leader of the cult known as The Family. What formative traumas during her 1920s childhood shaped her later abuse of illegally adopted children through the 1960s and '70s at Lake Eildon in Victoria? Where the author's imagined psychological portrait of Hamilton-Byrne and the disturbing facts of The Family diverge may require further reader research. Love books? Us too! Looking for more reads and recommendations? Browse our books page and bookmark it so you can find our latest books content with ease. What's new: Adelaide's Georgia Rose Phillips dares to fictionalise the early life of notorious cult leader Anne Hamilton-Byrne, while Australian journalist John Lyons details the "extraordinary efforts of ordinary Ukrainians" trying to save their country. Jeremy Renner. Simon & Schuster. $34.99. On New Year's Day, 2023, actor Jeremy Renner needed to clear mountains of snow from his Nevada driveway to enable his visiting family to go skiing. So the star of The Hurt Locker fired up a snowcat to bulldoze the road. The accident that followed should have killed him. Renner was run over by the six-tonne machine, and his account of the calamity is bloodcurdling. "I can promise you this much at least: The sounds of being crushed are just as terrifying as the visual," he writes. Renner's injuries were catastrophic. This is the story of his survival and recovery. Candice Chung. Allen & Unwin. $34.99. "A meal is a shape. It is a container into which we pour our cravings." At 35, when a 13-year relationship with her first love ends, food journalist Candice Chung must decide if she wants her retired Cantonese parents to join her as she reviews restaurants. Will they eat together in polite silence as the children of immigrants might traditionally expect? Or will this be her opportunity to finally broach the reasons they have drifted so profoundly apart over the years? This tender, intimate but brave memoir has a meditative tone and structure and should delight lovers of food who treasure its sacred place in family and culture. John Lyons. ABC Books. $34.99. Australian journalist John Lyons has made three trips to wartime Ukraine. The first two were on assignment with the ABC. The third was on his holidays, which allowed him to absorb what was happening in the country without the need to file daily news. It was on this trip that he learned the most, doing what regular Ukrainians do and, most importantly, taking the time to talk to everyday people. He found that resourceful civilians from every walk of life are doing their part. This is a story about the "extraordinary efforts ... of ordinary Ukrainians" trying to save their country. Mark Lilla. Hurst Publishers. $44.99. Humans are driven by the need to know, right? We are curious, we want to discover, look around the corner, explore over the horizon. Or do we? Mark Lilla examines the opposite compulsion: "the will not to know, the will to ignorance". This is not about those who are indifferent to learning, who simply don't want to expend the energy. This is about people who have "developed a particular antipathy toward the search for knowledge, whose inner doors are fastened tight against anything that might cast doubt on what they believe they already know". Starting to sound familiar to anyone? Sinead Stubbins. Affirm Press. $34.99. Apparently work doesn't have to define your life and corporate programs to build team bonds and boost employee engagement might not always deliver healthy outcomes - especially for those of us with messy bits in our personalities and our personal lives (you know, the bits that make us individuals). This wicked little satire of white-collar workplace culture follows Edith and a select group of her co-workers at ad agency Winked as they are sent to an elite three-day work retreat in the remote mountains, run by an outfit called Consequi. She hopes to impress her bosses and escape a looming restructure. But so do her, um, work friends. Madeleine Cleary. Affirm Press. $34.99. Inspired by what she has described as her own family's secret, salacious past - "my great-great-great grandmother was a colonial 'common prostitute'" - Melbourne-raised former Canberra diplomat Madeleine Cleary threads fictional mystery and romance into a grim but fascinating chapter of Australia's hardscrabble past, bringing to richly detailed life the women so often overlooked by history. It's 1863 and a serial killer stalks the notorious red-light district of the goldrush-rich city of Melbourne, endangering poor Irishwoman Johanna Callaghan who hopes to make a living at the glamorous Papillon brothel, and respectable journalist Harriett Gardiner who is intent on unmasking the murderer. Cynthia Timoti. Macmillan. $22.99. Think Crazy Rich Asians meets Always Be My Maybe and you'll get the Asian rom-com gist of this sweetly flirty debut novel about Ellie Pang, a young woman fed up with the meddling of her overbearing parents after she is diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Ellie sets out on her own to open her dream bakery - selling sugar-free treats, of course - but needs help to renovate. The man for the job is none other than Alec, the childhood crush who broke her heart - and it just so happens he needs a fake girlfriend to seal a business deal. But can they fake that they're in love? Georgia Rose Phillips. Picador. $34.99. Family is everything to Anne. And Anne demands everything from her family. That's because Anne knows how devastatingly easy it is to lose your family. The debut novel from Adelaide-based Georgia Rose Phillips dares to fictionalise the early life of Anne Hamilton-Byrne, notorious founder and leader of the cult known as The Family. What formative traumas during her 1920s childhood shaped her later abuse of illegally adopted children through the 1960s and '70s at Lake Eildon in Victoria? Where the author's imagined psychological portrait of Hamilton-Byrne and the disturbing facts of The Family diverge may require further reader research. Love books? Us too! Looking for more reads and recommendations? Browse our books page and bookmark it so you can find our latest books content with ease. What's new: Adelaide's Georgia Rose Phillips dares to fictionalise the early life of notorious cult leader Anne Hamilton-Byrne, while Australian journalist John Lyons details the "extraordinary efforts of ordinary Ukrainians" trying to save their country. Jeremy Renner. Simon & Schuster. $34.99. On New Year's Day, 2023, actor Jeremy Renner needed to clear mountains of snow from his Nevada driveway to enable his visiting family to go skiing. So the star of The Hurt Locker fired up a snowcat to bulldoze the road. The accident that followed should have killed him. Renner was run over by the six-tonne machine, and his account of the calamity is bloodcurdling. "I can promise you this much at least: The sounds of being crushed are just as terrifying as the visual," he writes. Renner's injuries were catastrophic. This is the story of his survival and recovery. Candice Chung. Allen & Unwin. $34.99. "A meal is a shape. It is a container into which we pour our cravings." At 35, when a 13-year relationship with her first love ends, food journalist Candice Chung must decide if she wants her retired Cantonese parents to join her as she reviews restaurants. Will they eat together in polite silence as the children of immigrants might traditionally expect? Or will this be her opportunity to finally broach the reasons they have drifted so profoundly apart over the years? This tender, intimate but brave memoir has a meditative tone and structure and should delight lovers of food who treasure its sacred place in family and culture. John Lyons. ABC Books. $34.99. Australian journalist John Lyons has made three trips to wartime Ukraine. The first two were on assignment with the ABC. The third was on his holidays, which allowed him to absorb what was happening in the country without the need to file daily news. It was on this trip that he learned the most, doing what regular Ukrainians do and, most importantly, taking the time to talk to everyday people. He found that resourceful civilians from every walk of life are doing their part. This is a story about the "extraordinary efforts ... of ordinary Ukrainians" trying to save their country. Mark Lilla. Hurst Publishers. $44.99. Humans are driven by the need to know, right? We are curious, we want to discover, look around the corner, explore over the horizon. Or do we? Mark Lilla examines the opposite compulsion: "the will not to know, the will to ignorance". This is not about those who are indifferent to learning, who simply don't want to expend the energy. This is about people who have "developed a particular antipathy toward the search for knowledge, whose inner doors are fastened tight against anything that might cast doubt on what they believe they already know". Starting to sound familiar to anyone? Sinead Stubbins. Affirm Press. $34.99. Apparently work doesn't have to define your life and corporate programs to build team bonds and boost employee engagement might not always deliver healthy outcomes - especially for those of us with messy bits in our personalities and our personal lives (you know, the bits that make us individuals). This wicked little satire of white-collar workplace culture follows Edith and a select group of her co-workers at ad agency Winked as they are sent to an elite three-day work retreat in the remote mountains, run by an outfit called Consequi. She hopes to impress her bosses and escape a looming restructure. But so do her, um, work friends. Madeleine Cleary. Affirm Press. $34.99. Inspired by what she has described as her own family's secret, salacious past - "my great-great-great grandmother was a colonial 'common prostitute'" - Melbourne-raised former Canberra diplomat Madeleine Cleary threads fictional mystery and romance into a grim but fascinating chapter of Australia's hardscrabble past, bringing to richly detailed life the women so often overlooked by history. It's 1863 and a serial killer stalks the notorious red-light district of the goldrush-rich city of Melbourne, endangering poor Irishwoman Johanna Callaghan who hopes to make a living at the glamorous Papillon brothel, and respectable journalist Harriett Gardiner who is intent on unmasking the murderer. Cynthia Timoti. Macmillan. $22.99. Think Crazy Rich Asians meets Always Be My Maybe and you'll get the Asian rom-com gist of this sweetly flirty debut novel about Ellie Pang, a young woman fed up with the meddling of her overbearing parents after she is diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Ellie sets out on her own to open her dream bakery - selling sugar-free treats, of course - but needs help to renovate. The man for the job is none other than Alec, the childhood crush who broke her heart - and it just so happens he needs a fake girlfriend to seal a business deal. But can they fake that they're in love? Georgia Rose Phillips. Picador. $34.99. Family is everything to Anne. And Anne demands everything from her family. That's because Anne knows how devastatingly easy it is to lose your family. The debut novel from Adelaide-based Georgia Rose Phillips dares to fictionalise the early life of Anne Hamilton-Byrne, notorious founder and leader of the cult known as The Family. What formative traumas during her 1920s childhood shaped her later abuse of illegally adopted children through the 1960s and '70s at Lake Eildon in Victoria? Where the author's imagined psychological portrait of Hamilton-Byrne and the disturbing facts of The Family diverge may require further reader research. Love books? Us too! Looking for more reads and recommendations? Browse our books page and bookmark it so you can find our latest books content with ease. What's new: Adelaide's Georgia Rose Phillips dares to fictionalise the early life of notorious cult leader Anne Hamilton-Byrne, while Australian journalist John Lyons details the "extraordinary efforts of ordinary Ukrainians" trying to save their country. Jeremy Renner. Simon & Schuster. $34.99. On New Year's Day, 2023, actor Jeremy Renner needed to clear mountains of snow from his Nevada driveway to enable his visiting family to go skiing. So the star of The Hurt Locker fired up a snowcat to bulldoze the road. The accident that followed should have killed him. Renner was run over by the six-tonne machine, and his account of the calamity is bloodcurdling. "I can promise you this much at least: The sounds of being crushed are just as terrifying as the visual," he writes. Renner's injuries were catastrophic. This is the story of his survival and recovery. Candice Chung. Allen & Unwin. $34.99. "A meal is a shape. It is a container into which we pour our cravings." At 35, when a 13-year relationship with her first love ends, food journalist Candice Chung must decide if she wants her retired Cantonese parents to join her as she reviews restaurants. Will they eat together in polite silence as the children of immigrants might traditionally expect? Or will this be her opportunity to finally broach the reasons they have drifted so profoundly apart over the years? This tender, intimate but brave memoir has a meditative tone and structure and should delight lovers of food who treasure its sacred place in family and culture. John Lyons. ABC Books. $34.99. Australian journalist John Lyons has made three trips to wartime Ukraine. The first two were on assignment with the ABC. The third was on his holidays, which allowed him to absorb what was happening in the country without the need to file daily news. It was on this trip that he learned the most, doing what regular Ukrainians do and, most importantly, taking the time to talk to everyday people. He found that resourceful civilians from every walk of life are doing their part. This is a story about the "extraordinary efforts ... of ordinary Ukrainians" trying to save their country. Mark Lilla. Hurst Publishers. $44.99. Humans are driven by the need to know, right? We are curious, we want to discover, look around the corner, explore over the horizon. Or do we? Mark Lilla examines the opposite compulsion: "the will not to know, the will to ignorance". This is not about those who are indifferent to learning, who simply don't want to expend the energy. This is about people who have "developed a particular antipathy toward the search for knowledge, whose inner doors are fastened tight against anything that might cast doubt on what they believe they already know". Starting to sound familiar to anyone? Sinead Stubbins. Affirm Press. $34.99. Apparently work doesn't have to define your life and corporate programs to build team bonds and boost employee engagement might not always deliver healthy outcomes - especially for those of us with messy bits in our personalities and our personal lives (you know, the bits that make us individuals). This wicked little satire of white-collar workplace culture follows Edith and a select group of her co-workers at ad agency Winked as they are sent to an elite three-day work retreat in the remote mountains, run by an outfit called Consequi. She hopes to impress her bosses and escape a looming restructure. But so do her, um, work friends. Madeleine Cleary. Affirm Press. $34.99. Inspired by what she has described as her own family's secret, salacious past - "my great-great-great grandmother was a colonial 'common prostitute'" - Melbourne-raised former Canberra diplomat Madeleine Cleary threads fictional mystery and romance into a grim but fascinating chapter of Australia's hardscrabble past, bringing to richly detailed life the women so often overlooked by history. It's 1863 and a serial killer stalks the notorious red-light district of the goldrush-rich city of Melbourne, endangering poor Irishwoman Johanna Callaghan who hopes to make a living at the glamorous Papillon brothel, and respectable journalist Harriett Gardiner who is intent on unmasking the murderer. Cynthia Timoti. Macmillan. $22.99. Think Crazy Rich Asians meets Always Be My Maybe and you'll get the Asian rom-com gist of this sweetly flirty debut novel about Ellie Pang, a young woman fed up with the meddling of her overbearing parents after she is diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Ellie sets out on her own to open her dream bakery - selling sugar-free treats, of course - but needs help to renovate. The man for the job is none other than Alec, the childhood crush who broke her heart - and it just so happens he needs a fake girlfriend to seal a business deal. But can they fake that they're in love? Georgia Rose Phillips. Picador. $34.99. Family is everything to Anne. And Anne demands everything from her family. That's because Anne knows how devastatingly easy it is to lose your family. The debut novel from Adelaide-based Georgia Rose Phillips dares to fictionalise the early life of Anne Hamilton-Byrne, notorious founder and leader of the cult known as The Family. What formative traumas during her 1920s childhood shaped her later abuse of illegally adopted children through the 1960s and '70s at Lake Eildon in Victoria? Where the author's imagined psychological portrait of Hamilton-Byrne and the disturbing facts of The Family diverge may require further reader research. Love books? Us too! Looking for more reads and recommendations? Browse our books page and bookmark it so you can find our latest books content with ease.


Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Drama at the ABC as shock favourite emerges out of nowhere to replace Laura Tingle on 7.30
A clear favourite has emerged in the hotly-anticipated race to replace Laura Tingle in one of the national broadcaster's most prestigious positions. Staff at the ABC expect the coveted role of political correspondent for the broadcaster's nightly current affairs program 7.30 will go to the ABC's chief digital political correspondent Jacob Greber, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Greber is ahead in what was tipped to be a multi-headed race to fill the gap left when Tingle announced earlier this month she would replace John Lyons as the broadcaster's outgoing global affairs editor. Earlier rumblings suggested the role might have gone to any number of Canberra bureau insiders including chief David Lipson, national affairs editor Melissa Clark and Insiders host David Speers. Q+A host Patricia Karvelas and ABC Radio Melbourne host Raf Epstein ruled themselves out of the running when contacted by the Herald. Tingle, a double Walkley-Award-winning political journalist, will start new position mid-year while Lyons packs up to become the ABC's Americas editor. Among the nation's best respected political journalists with more than 40 years experience including six years in her latest post, Tingle leaves big shoes to fill. 'The job was advertised, and I applied for it,' Tingle told The Australian last week. 'It's the best job in journalism, I reckon, other than the one I have already got.' A fellow Financial Review alum, Tingle will spend the next two years travelling the world reporting on events 'that also shape our nation'. Despite publicly advertising its shift away from television towards digital, the flagship promise of former managing director David Anderson's five-year-plan, 7.30 remains the jewel in the broadcaster's crown. Presented by former Four Corners host Sarah Ferguson, the program boasted an average nightly viewership of 756,000 in the 2023-24 financial year according to ABC's annual reporting. A dip from Covid-era highs of the three previous fiscal years, the program nonetheless retained its popularity, despite fears of a fallout following the 2022 departure of the inaugural presenter Leigh Sales. Despite being lesser known than Karvelas or Speers, Greber would bring decades of broadcast and print experience and some cachet as a reliable face on News Breakfast, Insiders, Afternoon Briefing, Weekend Breakfast and, of course, 7.30. The more front-facing role brings with it a greater possibility for controversy of the brand Tingle has found herself mired in in recent years. Last year, she was accused of dropping the veil of journalistic impartiality when she accused then Opposition Leader Peter Dutton of stoking racism by raising immigration caps as a possible salve for the housing crisis. She said Mr Dutton's rhetoric had sent a 'terrible chill running through me' before, at the same Sydney Writers Festival event, describing Australia as 'a racist country'. ABC news director Justin Stevens later said Tingle's comments, albeit not made in a work capacity, had prompted the broadcaster to remind her of the 'application' of her 'conversational' rhetoric to 'external events'. Before Tingle's six-year stint on 7.30, the coveted role was something of a hot potato having passed through the hands of four presenters in the six years between 2012 and 2018. She replaced Andrew Probyn who was more recently made redundant as the broadcaster's political editor in 2023. Internal ABC documents reportedly said the move was part of a calculated efforts to reform the Canberra bureau's 'outdated, top-heavy structure still largely focused on linear television broadcast'. Greber's appointment to the newly-minted role of chief digital political correspondent was widely considered a de facto planting of the flag in the broadcaster's 'digital-first' strategy. Whether he will be picked for the plum nightly news role is not year clear but could suggest the digital transition has yet to unseat the prestige of broadcast television.