Coming up in the new year, ‘Fun Night Only’ offers the chance to laugh yourself silly at Her Majesty’s Theatre in Ballarat.

The evening show happens Friday, January 31 and offers the chance to spend a good chunk of your evening in a state of mirth catching a line-up that features some of the finest comedians this country has to offer.

There’s Alex Ward, Sez, Tom Ballard, Zoë Coombs Marr and Dilruk Jayasinha …  

The show is aimed at over 16s and contains occasional coarse language and adult themes with more details available  from Her Majesty’s website.

Her Majesty’s Theatre Ballarat will come alive for its 150th birthday with a spectacular musical takeover set for  Saturday evening, February 1.

The city’s iconic theatre means a lot to the people of Ballarat, so the venue’s management is inviting the wider community to help celebrate the historic occasion.

Participatory arts company Everybody NOW! have brought together dozens of local community groups, artists, and musicians to take over the whole building and show that “the old girl still knows how to party”.   

It’s advised that those who get along “expect the unexpected as you explore music, song, and stories woven throughout our beloved Ballarat icon”.

From brass bands to punk pop, choirs to classics, Birthday Party! is a genre-bending, community-led celebration starring over 100 local legends.  

More information is available on Her Majesty’s Theatre website.

The Gordon Gypsies are a quartet of talented young musos from Gordon, Victoria playing a lively eclectic mix including Gypsy-jazz,  Irish, folk and Middle Eastern melodies.

Armed with violin, guitar, tin whistle, harmonica, bodran and vocals they’re aiming to get NYE revellers singing and dancing with their toe-tapping tunes as part of Daylesford’s NYE Parade and Gala event that’s set to see out the final hours of 2024 this Tuesday December 31.

The band formed in early January of 2023 from a group of young musicians who all had one thing in common – a love of Irish music. 

Throughout 2024 they’ve performed at various markets, festivals, and private events throughout the Hepburn Shire and surrounds, expanded their set list and even started writing original music of their own. 

They are inspired by artists such as Loreena McKennit, The Dubliners, and Django Reinhardt. 

Revellers who get along to see out  2024 in Daylesford on New Year’s Eve will be able to get up and dancing to the tunes of these talented young musos at the Community Bank Daylesford District Kids Corner from 6pm.

Words: Eve Lamb

Police have arrested four people after a vehicle with allegedly stolen number plates was located at a service station in Wyndham Vale earlier this month.

Patrolling police located the vehicle at the service station on Ballan Road about 8.45pm on 19 December.

A 38-year-old Wyndham Vale man, 45-year-old Werribee man, 38-year-old Riddells Creek and a 43-year-old Wyndham Vale man were arrested at the scene and were to be interviewed.

Police also seized a machete and a quantity of methamphetamine from the vehicle.

Investigations remained ongoing and anyone with information that can assist investigators was urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au

The Maryborough Highland Gathering is readying to return for its 162nd instalment this upcoming New Years Day.

Maryborough’s Highland Gathering was originally formed by Scottish squatters and businessmen in an attempt to recreate the New Year celebrations of their native home.

Today, the Highland Gathering attracts people from all across the country – athletes, dancers, musicians, and those who just want to soak up the incredible atmosphere of piped bands and traditional Scottish culture.

Organisers say the program set for the first day of the new year will have something for everyone: “a piped band street parade, all-day athletics, highland dancing on two stages all day, Highland games and traditional strongmen event”.

Track events on the day range from 70-metre sprints to middle-distance races over 1500 metres.

There are events for men and women, including veterans and the athletics program culminates with the running of the $15,000 Max Martin Memorial Maryborough Gift, contested over 120 metres and now one of the country’s most prestigious footraces.

Anyone who’s attended the event over the past 35 years will likely have a lasting memory of the Girl on the Drum feature that’s become a highlight of the New Year celebrations.

It features a highland dancer atop a base drum, lifted to the shoulders of three burly Scots.

Flanked by a full piped band and other traditional dancers, it’s a sight and sound spectacular well worth catching.

Organisers also say there’ll be plenty to keep the kids entertained too, with games, sideshows and rides happening throughout the day.

The day concludes with a free evening concert and a fireworks display to help usher in the new year ahead.

Entry to Princes Park is $18 for adults, $10 for seniors, with children under 16 free.

Words: Eve Lamb

Australia’s world-renowned entertainer and International Magician of the Year, Cosentino (pictured above) is bringing his brand new 90-minute live show Decennium to Ballarat.

Coming up Tuesday evening January 14, Her Majesty’s Theatre in Ballarat will host Cosentino as he performs death-defying escapes, mind-boggling stage illusions and cutting-edge street magic.

His trademark blend of dance and magic with a touch of hilarious audience participation will take you on a journey that will captivate fans, new and old, until the very last mind-bending moment.

 Cosentino has spent the last four years touring to packed houses and rave reviews around the world, while his prime-time TV specials have been seen by over 100 million people across the globe.

More information about the upcoming show can be found on her Majesty’s Theatre’s website.

The City of Greater Bendigo has approved a planning permit for the development of an organics processing facility in Huntly.

The planning application from Western Composting Technology’s (WCT) is for a 6.2ha development with access from Wallenjoe Road.

The company has already received an approved Development Licence from the Environment Protection Authority (EPA).

The organics processing facility proposes to process the recycling of a maximum 30,000 ton of organic waste per annum primarily from domestic food and garden organics and commercial garden and food waste.

The application states organic material would be held in a semi-enclosed building and shredded before being placed in climate-controlled vessels to undergo pasteurisation (a heating method to eliminate pathogens).

The material would then be transferred to long rows where it would mature for up to 16 weeks prior to being screened, and the final compost product being dispatched for agricultural and domestic use.

A Biosecurity Impact Assessment with the application was considered by the EPA. It concluded that proposed biosecurity controls would adequately manage amenity risks in the surrounding area, including the Bendigo Livestock Exchange which is on the same site.

Under the EPA’s approved Development Licence, the facility’s operations would continue to be regulated to ensure it meets its licence conditions. These processes rely on the opinion, research, and advice of qualified experts.

Mayor Cr Andrea Metcalf thanked councillors for carefully considering all of the technical documents and the planning application before making their decisions at the council’s December meeting.

“The use and development of the site is suitable for the organics processing facility. It is zoned correctly under the Industrial 1 zone, and land within the site that is subject to bushfire or flooding is not being developed,” Cr Metcalf said.

“There are appropriate buffers in place as determined by the EPA to alleviate amenity issues such as noise, dust and odour.

“WCT has also identified extra processes that will be put in place to manage dust on windier dry days.

“The main operational activities will be restricted to daytime hours and proposed reduction in car parking are reasonable changes to the application.

“There were 141 individual objections received, and many concerns raised were unrelated to the planning permit.

“The main concerns around biosecurity issues sits with the EPA which is responsible for these matters.

“These objections will be dealt with at a forthcoming VCAT hearing as objectors have appealed the recent EPA decision to give a Development Licence.

“VCAT would assess the planning application at the same time should the council decision also be appealed by objectors.

“The development of new landfills, or transport of waste to other locations, is not in line with the Council, State or Federal government policies.

“The WCT organics facility will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, create local jobs and reduce double handling of materials.

“A facility dealing mainly with domestic food and organics and green waste would replace the need for the City to cart its organic waste out of the region for treatment.

“The establishment of a privately-owned local composting site within 25km of Bendigo to process up to 30,000 ton of food and garden organics each year is expected to reduce emissions by around 16.3 per cent, in comparison to current kerbside organics disposal arrangements.”

This story based on a City of Greater Bendigo report

The Circus Workshop will be a new addition to Daylesford’s upcoming New Year’s Eve Gala. 

The workshop will be provided by NICA, a national nor for profit arts training institute, primarily funded by the Australian government through the Department of Communications and the Arts.

 NICA is the only training institute of its kind in Australia and they are one of eight elite arts training organisations that comprise the Arts8, and members of the Federation of European Circus Schools (FEDEC).  

As part of the annual Daylesford New Years Eve  Parade and Gala event set for  Tuesday December 31,  NICA will have a marquee where kids  – and adults – can learn juggling, hula hooping, plate spinning and diabolo.

Locals and visitors to the region alike are being encouraged to check out the Robert Clark Conservatory at Ballarat’s Botanical Gardens this summer.

The conservatory is in full bloom with a vibrant showcase of seasonal flowers, creative arrangements and vibrant colours that celebrate the summer – and festive – season.

The colourful display showcases triangle garden bed displays in a geometric pattern with three water features.

The highlight of the showcase is three living collections of pelargoniums, fuchsias and hydrangeas.

Foliage plants complimenting the main display include hostas, heuchera, canna lilies, coleus and lamium plus an assortment of hanging baskets with ferns, ivy and chlorophytum.

City of Ballarat Mayor Cr Tracey Hargreaves said this and other attractive displays bring the conservatory and Ballarat to life.

“Throughout the year, the City of Ballarat’s talented gardeners grow the spectacular floral centerpieces for the conservatory that never fail to delight residents and visitors,” she said.

“The collections are grown in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens’ Nursery, and records show they are some of our oldest collections dating back to the late 1880s.”

The conservatory, which first opened in 1995 at the Ballarat Botanical Gardens, reopened its doors to visitors earlier this month after four weeks of maintenance, including a complete internal and external clean as well as repairs to roof vents.

The conservatory is renowned for hosting the sensational autumn display of beautiful and rare tuberous begonias for the annual Ballarat Begonia Festival.

It is also home to a year-round series of displays.

The conservatory display changes to the begonia display in March. In May, to coincide with Mothers’ Day celebrations, the conservatory showcases the chrysanthemum collection.  

In winter, the conservatory features cyclamen, cineraria and primula and in spring it features schizanthus and spring bulbs.  

The conservatory is open 9am-6pm daily and the Ballarat Botanical Gardens are open seven days, from 7.30am-9pm in Daylight Savings and 7.30am-6pm AEST.

The Summer display is on show until Friday, 7 February 2025.  

This story based on a City of Ballarat media release

Following four sell-out Australian tours and two smash hit seasons in London’s West End, Dr Chris and Dr Xand are back with their epic ‘Quest for the Jurassic Fart’ and they’re headed to central Victoria with two live shows at Ballarat. 

Coming up January 12, 2025, there’s a chance to join the twins on a dino-mite adventure to unearth the most dangerous, most powerful, most important fart in history—the Jurassic Fart.

Their “roarsome” shows aimed at kids are set for  Ballarat’s Civic Hall and will be packed with all-new crazy experiments that will take audiences back to the age of the dinosaurs as the doctors explore the fascinating world of science like never before.

There’s a 1pm and a 4pm show scheduled for the Ballarat venue which promises to “make you laugh-a-saurus and gross you out all at the same time”. 

Dr Chris and Dr Xand van Tulleken are Oxford University trained doctors and still work in medicine.

Dr Chris is an infectious diseases doctor at UCLH, one of the BBC’s leading science presenters and a New York Times bestselling author.

Dr Xand’s main interest and expertise lie in Public Health Medicine, Humanitarian Aid and Anthropology.

Xand is the resident doctor on BBC’s Morning live and presented on many flagship Health & Science programmes. 

More information about the upcoming Ballarat sessions can be found through Her Majesty’s Theatre, Ballarat, website.

Animals and nature come together for a lively collection of artworks in the latest free exhibition at Bendigo’s Living Arts Space.

WILDLIFE presents a selection of illustrative works nestled within a live botanical installation inspired by wild and natural surroundings.

Exhibition curator Amy Carr-Bottomley said exhibitors contributed a diverse range of creative styles from digital illustrations to highly detailed painted works and textural explorations.

“Each artist has delivered exceptional real and imagined interpretations based on the WILDLIFE theme,” Ms Carr-Bottomley said.

Visitors and residents can enjoy the greenery and interpretations from the animal kingdom with stunning works from Lorena Carrington, Isstra Bevilacqua, Lesley Rosochodski, Tony Worland, and Elizabeth Wright.

WILDLIFE is the final exhibition for this year and an example of how the Living Arts Space provides a platform to promote the work of creatives living or working in Bendigo and central Victoria.

Across the past year, the Living Arts Space has showcased seven exhibitions, together with workshops and artist talks.

“All of the exhibitions are free, and I encourage you to visit and be inspired by works from local creatives firsthand,” Ms Carr-Bottomley said.

WILDLIFE is open until Sunday February 9, 2025 (open 9am to 4.30pm daily). The Living Arts Space is in the Bendigo Visitor Centre.

Two free fireworks displays are set to return to the Geelong waterfront this New Year’s Eve to farewell 2024 and welcome in the new year ahead.

There’s a family-friendly hour at dusk n the city’s waterfront featuring a 9:30pm fireworks display, and also the traditional midnight display to usher out the year that was. 

The City of Greater Geelong is urging pet owners to keep their pets safe during these times.

The annual floating Christmas Tree has also returned to the city’s bay for the festive season with Sound and Light Shows being staged nightly from 8.30pm.

The shows are approximately six minutes in length, play every 15 minutes and will keep happening right up to January 7.

The complete replacement of the synthetic turf at Ballarat’s Prince of Wales Park is now complete, heralding the start of a new smoother era for sport at the popular local  venue.

The $2.04 million project required a full replacement of more than 6000 square metres of pitch including the stabilisation of the sub-base, a compacted gravel layer, an asphalt base, a shock-pad, and a new playing surface.  

Design work to refurbish and extend the existing changerooms is now under way, ensuring the facilities provide for male and female participants fairly and equally.  

The new changerooms are currently being designed to support the City of Ballarat’s Active Women and Girls Strategy, with construction to begin late next year which will allow for an uninterrupted 2025 hockey season.

City of Ballarat Councillor, Cr Des Hudson joined the Hockey Ballarat athletes to celebrate the completion of the project on Wednesday, inspecting the state-of-the-art upgrade.

“We know there is increasing demand for enhanced hockey infrastructure in Ballarat, that’s why this upgrade was so important,” he said.

“The new pitch looks incredible and from what I’m already hearing after the club started accessing the pitch again, is great to play on.

“We thank Hockey Ballarat and all hockey players in Ballarat for their patience while we undertook this vital upgrade.”

Hockey Ballarat president Jo Shepherd welcomed the project’s completion.

“Hockey Ballarat and the local hockey community are thrilled to play on the newly resurfaced Prince of Wales pitch,” she said.

“We extend our gratitude to the facilities working group and the City of Ballarat for their dedication in completing this important project.  

“Moving forward, Hockey Ballarat is focused on further strengthening community participation, encouraging players of all ages to get involved.”

The City of Ballarat expects to tender for construction of the new changeroom facilities in the 2025/26 financial year. 

This story based on a City of Ballarat media release

Growing up in Sydney’s Pittwater in the 1960s, Bill Barry-Cotter and his family regularly sailed the family yacht – Katwinchar, a Watney Circa 1904 build.

The 32 foot Canadian red cedar yacht was built in London, England, at Watney Brewery. 

The family sold Katwinchar, but it was never far from Barry-Cotter’s mind. Years later, Barry-Cotter, founder of Maritimo (an Australian boat manufacturing company), started to search for it. In 2017, by happenchance, he found it for sale on the Australian online marketplace Gumtree. 

Without hesitating, the Queenslander bought it and spent two years on a $2 million restoration, led by the Maritimo team at Hope Island Marina, Queensland. 

According to Sydney Hobart veteran Michael Spies, who helped restore the yacht, even as a youngster Barry-Cotter knew it was one-of-a-kind: “Bill said there was something special about the boat. It was faster than the boats of the day. 

“When we rebuilt it, there was only the top plank of wood needed to be replaced.”

An incredible 14000 man hours was dedicated to the restoration but, Spies said, “Structurally the bones are still there, the DNA is still exactly the same.”  

Spies and five others, including Barry-Cotter’s brother Kendal, who skippered the yacht, went on to race Katwinchar in the 2019 Sydney Hobart, her first since 1951. 

The yacht went missing during the ’51 Sydney Hobart until the then owner E. J. Mossop (who’d sailed her from England to Sydney), sailed into Hobart on January third, retired from the race. 

When Kendal and crew raced the yacht in 2019, they placed second in division.  

The 120-year-old yacht, now called Maritimo Katwinchar, will participate in the Double Handed division for its third Sydney Hobart, with co-skippers Spies and Peter Vaiciurgis. It remains the oldest yacht to have competed in the race. 

“It was ridiculous having to carry six [crew],” Spies said of the previous races. 

Maritimo Katwinchar leaving Sydney Heads during the Bird Island Race – Credit: RSHYR | Vito Feremans

Spies, who has competed in 45 Sydney Hobarts, was heavily involved in the double handed modification process of the yacht. Modifications include a new carbon fibre rig, tiller steering instead of her wheel and the removal of the mizzen mast to minimize weight.

Spies first sailed with Vaiciurgis on Maritimo the TP52. Although this will be Vaiciurgis’ second Hobart, the Coffs Harbour school teacher has a raft of national titles to his name in the NS14 dinghy. 

“He doesn’t suffer fools and doesn’t rant on,” Spies said of Vaiciurgis. “We’ve become very tight friends.”

It’s been a learning experience for the duo, who have had several highs and lows on the journey to the RSHYR start line. 

“I’ve always tried to do too much on the boat,” Spies said. “I always get too hyped and that’s probably where we failed in the Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race. We weren’t disciplined enough and I think we’ve overcome that. 

“It’s not like you can turn off. You try to do two hours on, two hours off. But for two hours off, there’s never two hours off. Someone’s still got to do the radio skeds, someone’s still got to get some food up. We’ve since become quite disciplined. We seem to complement each other pretty well.” 

Maritimo Katwinchar went on to win the inaugural Gold Coast City Marine Gold Coast Mackay Yacht Race (520 nautical miles) on IRC, PHS and ORC, beating the fully-crewed yachts.

With its low handicap rating, upwind conditions and the assistance of the East Australian Current, Spies said he believed the yacht had a chance at contending with the bigger yachts for the win. 

“If [those conditions] happen in the Hobart, you’re normally in with a shot. It’s been quite a while since a smaller boat’s won.”
 
Spies, who has in the past taken Line Honours and won the race Overall in separate years, said he was looking forward to taking on the Sydney Hobart for his first shot in the Double Handed division. 

“It’s a freak boat,” he said. “It’s a gift that just keeps on giving.”

Sean Langman during the Overall Contenders press conference- Credit: RSHYR | Ashley Dart

Sean Langman swaps the mini maxi for Kismet
 
Another serious competitor is Sean Langman’s Illingworth/Penrose 30 Kismet. Last year the yacht was found half submerged in Sydney Harbour. Langman and team at his marine company Noakes Group, meticulously restored it. Langman said he was drawn to the yacht because of its rich history and connection to Tasmania.

The Tasmanian-built yacht was designed by Captain John Illingworth, who won the inaugural Sydney Hobart in 1945 on board the yacht Rani. In fact, it was Illingworth who suggested a cruise to Tasmania in 1945 become a race instead. The rest is history.

Kismet was originally destined to be a one design offshore race boat for the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. She didn’t make the Olympics but placed sixth overall in the 1957 Sydney Hobart for her then Tasmanian owner. 

Words: Greta Quealy/RSHYR Media

Langman’s involvement in the Rolex Sydney Hobart spans 32 races. He has sailed on some of the biggest and smallest yachts in the fleet, including the 9.5m Huon pine, gaff-rigged yacht Maluka, which scored a best place of eighth Overall in 2006. 

Langman has always had a passion for smaller, older yachts like Maluka and Kismet. Last year, he and the crew, including his 2024 Sydney Hobart co-skipper Peter Inchbold, raced Muluka in the Rolex Fastnet Race in the UK.

Although this year’s Sydney Hobart marks Langman’s first Double Handed race, he often sails Maluka double handed and will be sailing her from Scotland to Iceland double handed next year.

“It’s far more comfortable,” Langman said. “That’s sort of what’s really got me going, because of the intimacy of sailing – just two up and the connection to the sea. That’s what I’m really searching for in a Hobart race.”

Langman also found the perfect co-skipper in Inchbold, who also has 32 Sydney Hobarts to his name. Like many in the sailing community, Inchbold was deeply affected by the loss of yachtsman Roger Hickman in 2016, who died shortly after the 2016 Hobart after being diagnosed with multiple brain tumours. 

Inchbold was Hickman’s Sailing Master on Wild Rose when it won the race in 2014.

“Pete has sort of been lost since Hicko died. Initially I thought, ‘I should do this for Pete’. And then I overhead him having a conversation and he said, ’Sean’s had an up-and- down year, I’m doing this for Sean’. So, I figure we’re doing this for each other.”

Langman is no different from Spies in his aspirations for this year’s Sydney Hobart. He said Kismet could be the first double handed yacht to win the race, dependent on the wind and current.

“I actually want an upwind start,” he said. “It sorts boats out, it sorts people out, but it gives us more of an opportunity to stop the big boats getting further away.” 

Ironic given Langman skippered his RP69 to third place Overall last year.

He and Inchbold will be keeping an eye on Maritimo Katwinchar and three-time Sydney Hobart winner, the S&S 47 Love & War, to be skippered by Phillip Kurts.

“They’re absolutely our benchmark,” Langman said.

The seasoned sailor said he was confident of Kismet’s potential to win the 2024 Rolex Sydney Hobart: “I’m giving her the best chance she can have,” Langman said.

“On Maluka it was always about the journey, always about getting there. This time it’s two handed and trying to win.”

Greta Quealy/RSHYR Media

There were 578,762 criminal offences recorded in Victoria in the twelve months to September 2024 – an increase of 68,536 offences or 13.4%, the latest crime statistics released by Victoria Police reveal.

The crime rate when population growth is considered is 8,305.8 offences per 100,000 people – a 10.9% increase from the year before.

However, this remains lower than the highs of 2016 where the rate was 8,798 per 100,000 people.

With crime increasing, Victoria Police arrested 26,640 people a total of 70,863 times – the most arrests since 2005.

This equates to 194 arrests per day. These individuals were charged with a total of 268,142 offences.

For comparison, Victoria Police made 64,975 arrests last year and 56,330 arrests a decade ago (12 months to September 2015).

The top five offences to record the greatest year-on-year increase were:

• Theft from motor vehicle (68,042 offences, +13,924) reached record highs and remains the most common criminal offence.

More than a third of theft from motor vehicle offences relate to number plates being stolen (24,257 offences).

Power tools were the second most targeted item. 83% of all theft from motor vehicle offences showed no sign of forced entry.

• Theft from a retail store (35,951 offences, + 9,635) recorded the largest percentage increase of the top five crimes (+36.6%), with inflation, cost-of-living pressures and high interest rates driving record levels of grocery and alcohol thefts.

Meat, fresh produce, cosmetics, and vitamins are among the items most frequently stolen.

Police are running a series of retail theft operations across the state, surrounding clothing stores in South Yarra, supermarkets in Port Melbourne, large department stores in Melbourne’s CBD, hardware stores in Shepparton and even street markets selling stolen meat in St Albans.

It is anticipated this will remain an issue as cost-of-living pressures bite and first-time offenders turn to stealing.