T. rex Gus sells for record US$50.1m at Sotheby's
An anonymous phone bidder paid US$50.1 million for the 67-million-year-old fossil, an auction record for a dinosaur, and palaeontologists want it in a museum.
16 articles by Zoe Mercer
Sam Neill dies at 78, months after beating cancer
The Jurassic Park and My Brilliant Career actor died in Sydney surrounded by family, less than three months after announcing he was cancer-free.
Music industry agrees its first AI labelling standard
The global recorded music industry has agreed a voluntary standard marking tracks as AI-Generated or AI-Assisted, and ARIA has welcomed it. The test case is already on Australian radio, where a rework of Madonna's Like A Prayer with no credited vocalist sits at number two.
Muse cracks ARIA top five with Wow! Signal debut
Muse's "The Wow! Signal" entered the ARIA albums chart at number two this week, behind Olivia Rodrigo's "you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love," which held number one for a third straight week on the chart dated 6 July 2026. Muse's tenth studio album has also topped the UK chart and reached number one in several other countries since its 26 June release.
MSO cleared over pianist's cancelled Gaza concert
The Federal Court dismissed every claim Jayson Gillham brought against the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. The case turned on a protection gap between employed and contracted artists.
Bieber joins first World Cup final half-time show
Justin Bieber will join Madonna, Shakira and BTS for the first half-time show at a men's World Cup final, an 11-minute set at MetLife Stadium on July 19.
Aussie box office hits record third $100m month
Australian cinemas cleared $100 million for a third straight month in June, the first such run on record, while Pixar's Toy Story 5 held the national number one for a third weekend.
Dosanjh film pulled from Indian streaming in two days
Diljit Dosanjh's Satluj was pulled from ZEE5 in India two days after its uncut premiere. The film, and its censorship fight, keep streaming everywhere else.
Swift-Kelce wedding guests break the silence
Three days after Taylor Swift married Travis Kelce at Madison Square Garden, guests have begun posting about the night, while the couple themselves have released no photos and no statement.
Harvest Rock takes second 'fallow year' in three
Adelaide's Harvest Rock will not be held in 2026, with promoter Secret Sounds calling it a 'fallow year' (the festival's second skipped year in three).
One Australian song in the ARIA top 10 at the year's halfway mark
Halfway through 2026, Tame Impala's 'Dracula' is the only Australian single to reach the ARIA top 10, and no local act has topped the singles chart all year. Just four Australian songs have entered the top 40, according to a mid-year review by music site Noise11.
Is Tinder a mistake? We asked the people who gave up and the ones who found a husband.
Fifteen years after it launched, Tinder has produced weddings, wasted years, and everything in between. The app did not change whether people find love. It changed what the search costs them.
The hostel Perth travellers keep coming back to
Spin Off Hostel on Fitzgerald Street in West Perth holds a 9.4 on Booking.com and earns the kind of reviews most hostels never see. It was built for the guest, not the operator.
Sydney Film Festival wraps record-breaking 73rd edition with Zvyagintsev's Minotaur taking top prize
Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev accepted the Sydney Film Prize in person for Minotaur at the 73rd Sydney Film Festival, which screened 248 films from 81 countries and recorded one of the strongest international lineups in its history, including 19 films direct from Cannes.
Melbourne's RISING festival closes after 13 nights with Lil' Kim, 376 artists, and a reopened ballroom
RISING 2026 ran from May 27 to June 8, transforming Melbourne landmark venues across 13 nights with 100-plus events, seven world premieres, and a program that included the reopening of the Flinders Street Ballroom as a public dance venue for the first time in years.
Launceston's Albert Hall hosts 40-plus events as Australian Musical Theatre Festival cements its home
The 2026 Australian Musical Theatre Festival ran May 20 to 24 at Launceston's recently refurbished Albert Hall, with a program spanning a new work by composer Carmel Dean, a Sondheim centrepiece, and an intimate evening tracing the career of director Delia Hannah.
