HelloPlus: Exploring Life & Philosophy.
-
Ballroom dancing with a twist!
‘The Dance’ is a ballroom dancing event with a twist! Picture Strictly Ballroom meets Bridgerton. A night of classy ballroom dances set to jazzy, New Orleans style soul and blues songs performed by live band The Scufflers. There will be ballroom lessons on the night, a wholesome supper, sparkling drinks and a dress code ‘fun…
-
Fundraiser garden sale
The Mount Alexander East Timor Friendship group, the Friends of Lolotoe, is having its annual fundraiser garden sale on October 18 from 9am to 12 at the Hub garden, behind the Hub building, corner Barker and Templeton Streets, Castlemaine. Enter via Templeton. The group has been going since 2008, linking with the region of Lolotoe,…
-
Demolition day arrives for skatepark
It’s been 11 years in the making and now works on a new Romsey Skatepark are finally under way. Lancefield Romsey Lions Club has been a key driver of project and celebrated the milestone last week as demolition works began. Long-serving Lions member Ged McLaughlin said the community began campaigning for a new skatepark in…
-
Garden-Variety gig at Newstead
Returning with a celebration of resilience, songstress Anna Smyrk has released a new single, Garden-Variety Grief, via Community Music. The first taste from Anna’s debut album, produced by Anna Laverty (Courtney Barnett, Nick Cave), Garden-Variety Grief is a song that celebrates the freedom of holding joy and pain together; a mix of comfort, sadness and…
-
The 100th Compost Conversation
This week we celebrate 100 editions of the Compost Conversation! From the start, our aim has been to lift compost literacy and composting skills in this community. But, just how many backyard composters are we writing for out there? Back in early 2023, I was door-knocking around the West End of Castlemaine with a new…
-
Podbury a shining example
Congratulations have been flowing in since Woodend-Hesket Football Netball Club’s co-president, Paul Podbury, was presented with a highly significant AFL Victoria Australian Football League award. Amid sustained applause at Ikon Park, he received the 2025 AFL Victoria Metropolitan Community Volunteer of the Year trophy. The man called ‘Pods’ by those who know him well accepted…
-
Gisborne, Macedon shine
Gisborne and Macedon were the A-grade scene stealers in the second round of McIntyre Cup cricket on Saturday. At Gardiner Reserve, Romsey looked to be in a strong position after Taylor Stevenson dismissed the prolific scoring Vernon brothers. From 3/57, Matt Barake 72 and Warren Kelly 61 seized the initiative and carried the score to…
-
To the limit
Kyneton ultramarathon runner Greg Wilson has pushed his body to its limit competing in the inaugural New Zealand 6 Day Ultramarathon in Christchurch to beat a Cliff Young record. The 73-year-old placed third among the male runners with a new Australian M70 record for 500 kilometres in four days, 16 hours, 35 minutes and 46…
-
Tiny Homes: The movement gaining rapid momentum
Bentley Building Group Tiny Homes is a family owned and operated building company run by Scott and Prue Bentley and based in Ballarat. In 2023, Bentley Building Group entered the world of building Tiny Homes with excitement. It had been a dream of Scott’s for a few years. Taking over a factory for this very…
-
Mass murderer relocated to Castlemaine
Notorious Hoddle Street killer Julian Knight, 57, has been moved from maximum-security incarceration into the medium-security Loddon Prison in Castlemaine. On August 9, 1987, the then 19-year-old Knight fired a semi-automatic rifle on Hoddle Street, Clifton Hill, killing seven people and injuring 19. The former Australian Army officer-cadet pleaded guilty and was sentenced in 1988…
-
Hall of Fame honour
“Wow!” was the first word that came to mind when Lancefield local and Edgar’s Mission founder, Pam Ahern, learned she had been inducted into the Garryowen Hall of Fame, announced at this year’s Royal Melbourne Show. The Hall of Fame, established in 2009, recognises riders, horses and individuals who have displayed outstanding commitment to the…
-
Deer control to begin
The impact of increasing feral deer populations has put control of numbers in the spotlight. Parks Victoria will, this week, begin its night deer control program in Macedon Regional Park with licensed and professional shooting contractors. Deer are an introduced species and Parks Victoria recognises they “pose significant risks to native biodiversity, water quality, public…