HelloPlus: Exploring Life & Philosophy.

  • Composting advocate hails rare opportunity

    Composting advocate hails rare opportunity

    A leading Australian community composting advocate says Mount Alexander Shire has a rare opportunity to build on an already thriving grassroots movement rather than replacing it with a one-size-fits-all waste solution. Churchill Fellow and community composting researcher, Clytie Binder, visited Castlemaine last week to learn more about YIMBY (Yes In My Back Yard), the volunteer-run…

  • Truly a winter sport!

    Truly a winter sport!

    The tenth round of Riddell League football on Saturday had more than its share of wet and cut-up grounds, mud and conditions that brought out the best in many players, and proved others would much prefer a dry day. In the match of the round at Riddell, the Bombers asserted their superiority by restricting Kyneton…

  • Bombers stop Kyneton’s run

    Bombers stop Kyneton’s run

    Kyneton A-grade netballers’ five-game winning streak came to an end at Riddell on Saturday, the fourth-placed Bombers winning 50-47 to enhance their overall improvement. Round 10 results were significant with reigning premiers Woodend-Hesket beaten in a low-scoring battle against Macedon, and Lancefield ousted from top position by Wallan. The battle to earn a spot in…

  • Yet another Chloe triumph

    Yet another Chloe triumph

    Kyneton Bowling Club is in celebratory mood after its greatest-ever player Chloe Stewart combined with superstar Selina Goddard to win the Australian Women’s Pairs Championship for the second year in a row on Friday. Stewart’s extraordinary record in lawn bowls was further enhanced after winning the final with Goddard at Broadbeach Bowls Club. They beat…

  • Death enters election race

    Death enters election race

    Former Macedon Ranges Shire mayor Annette Death has been announced as Victorian Labor’s candidate for the seat of Macedon at November’s state election. The Riddells Creek resident, a Labor Party member for almost 20 years, will contest the seat following the retirement of incumbent MP Mary-Anne Thomas. Ms Death served as a Macedon Ranges Shire…

  • Creative couple make mixed media show

    Creative couple make mixed media show

    Local Macedon Ranges creatives, Darcy Prendergast and Josie Mackerras, have long been tinkering away on a gentle kids show concept, but now that dream takes one step closer to our screens, securing production funding from both Screen Australia and the Australian Children’s Television Foundation. Pit Pats is a gentle mixed media show, combining the duo’s…

  • Build yourself a banjo

    Build yourself a banjo

    Renowned luthier Nick Carpenter, founder of Wildwood Instruments, is introducing a brand-new Banjo Making Course, adding to the range of popular instrument-making workshops he has on offer. Based in the foothills of Mount Franklin, Wildwood Instruments is a boutique workshop dedicated to the craft of instrument making. Nick’s hands-on courses are designed to introduce people…

  • Castlemaine Documentary Festival: Three top picks

    Castlemaine Documentary Festival: Three top picks

    It’s midwinter. The nights are long. So the Castlemaine Documentary Festival has filled them with films that nourish, challenge and bring us together. Running from Friday June 26 to Sunday June 28 at the Theatre Royal, this year’s festival is built around a simple idea: Love – the antidote. Across three days and nights, the…

  • Residents devastated as historic church listed for sale

    Residents devastated as historic church listed for sale

    Riddells Creek residents say they are devastated by the decision to sell the town’s historic St John’s Anglican Church, arguing the 100-year-old building is an irreplaceable part of the community’s heritage. The church, which closed last year amid declining congregation numbers, has been listed for sale by the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne with a price…

  • Tiny book makes epic journey

    Tiny book makes epic journey

    A small book has made an unexpected overseas journey and returned to its original purchaser’s family in Castlemaine more than a century later. It is believed a member of the Tingay family, who lived in Castlemaine at the time, purchased The Illuminated Scripture Text-Book For Every Day from a book store in Victoria in 1881.…

  • Car ploughs into geese

    Car ploughs into geese

    Witnesses were horrified at the scene of a car ploughing into a flock of geese, killing and injuring many, at Malmsbury last Thursday evening. About five of the geese were killed instantly and two were left injured on the road. Witnesses say the driver of the car made no attempt to stop, slow down or…

  • Showdown at Bomberland

    Showdown at Bomberland

    There was plenty to like about the way Kyneton and Riddell senior footballers won their ninth-round matches on Saturday — now these two sides clash at Bomberland in the match of the round this weekend. Kyneton’s playing coach Ethan Foreman turned back the clock by kicking nine goals against Gisborne Giants as his side piled…