Category Archives: Melbourne

Audience member dies during opening night of Melbourne international comedy festival

Posted on by

A man watching a comedy gig has died after suffering a medical emergency in a packed theatre on the opening night of a major festival

A crowd of ticketholders watched on in horror as good Samaritans rushed to help a man who died on the opening night of a major comedy festival.

An audience member suffered a medical episode at the Palais Theatre in St Kilda on Wednesday night, organisers of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival said in a statement.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Melbourne teenager charged with murder after machete attack

Posted on by

Police allege victim, 24, was ambushed by up to 10 men and stabbed to death near Marriott Waters shopping centre on 14 March

An 18-year-old has been charged with murder following the fatal stabbing of a man by an alleged machete-wielding group amid plans to ban the weapon.

Timothy Leek was stabbed to death near the Marriott Waters shopping centre in Melbourne’s south-east on the night of 14 March.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

‘Disgusting’ antisemitic tactics used to threaten exiled Hong Kong man in Adelaide, Jewish group says

Posted on by

Exclusive: Ted Hui and Melbourne resident Kevin Yam are both subjects of anonymous letters and pamphlets mailed from Chinese-controlled territories

A prominent Jewish group has condemned a “disgusting” attempt to intimidate an exiled pro-democracy campaigner who fled to Adelaide from Hong Kong, with the federal opposition accusing a foreign actor of weaponising antisemitism.

Human Rights Watch said a separate attempt that encouraged people to inform on another dissident, Kevin Yam in Melbourne, was designed to make critics of the Hong Kong government feel “unsafe and hunted, no matter where they are in the world”.

Continue reading...

Victorian man charged for allegedly making death threats and antisemitic comments to federal MP

Posted on by

Man allegedly contacted the MP using social media multiple times between 7 January and 19 February this year

A Victorian man has been charged for allegedly making death threats and antisemitic comments to a federal member of parliament.

The 41-year-old was charged on Tuesday afternoon after the Australian federal police conducted a search of his home in the Melbourne suburb of Officer, the AFP said in a statement.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Melbourne residents receive letter offering $200k for information on Hong Kong pro-democracy activist

Posted on by

Exclusive: The anonymous ‘wanted’ letter contained a photograph of Kevin Yam, a lawyer who has criticised the crackdown on dissent in the territory

A small number of Melbourne residents have received anonymous letters purporting to offer a police bounty of $203,000 if they inform on Kevin Yam, an Australian citizen and pro-democracy activist wanted for alleged national security crimes in Hong Kong, linking him to two nearby locations.

A spokesperson for the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, told Guardian Australia the letter was “deeply worrying” and that the matter would be raised directly with officials from China and Hong Kong.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Woman who planned to sell human toes regurgitated by dogs avoids jail in Melbourne court sentencing

Posted on by

Joanna Kathlyn Kinman, 48, was working at an animal shelter when she found body parts of dogs’ owner who had died of natural causes

A woman who planned to sell human toes on an online black market after dogs regurgitated them has avoided jail “by the barest of possible margins”.

Joanna Kathlyn Kinman was employed at a Victorian animal shelter as a ranger when two dogs vomited up the toes and other remains in February 2024.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Affluent suburbs targeted in Victorian government move to seize planning controls to build more homes

Posted on by

South Yarra and Windsor among 25 new ‘activity centres’ identified by Labor for higher-density housing

The Victorian government has announced affluent suburbs such as Prahran, South Yarra and Windsor are among the final 25 areas where it will seize planning controls in an effort to increase housing density.

Two local government areas – Melbourne and Yarra – have also been named “city-wide activity centres” to allow for the rezoning of under-utilised areas.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Man allegedly behind Melbourne’s ‘Pam the Bird’ graffiti bailed to live with ‘no nonsense’ grandmother

Posted on by

Jack Gibson-Burrell, 21, released after flagging he will fight more than 50 offences and being accused of painting on Melbourne landmarks

A Melbourne man alleged to be the creator of the prolific “Pam the Bird” graffiti has been released back into the community to live with his grandmother in Geelong, who has warned it is “my house, my rules”.

Jack Gibson-Burrell’s legal team successfully argued for their client to be granted bail under strict conditions including not possessing abseiling-related equipment or graffiti implements, a night-time curfew, $30,000 surety and residing with his grandmother.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Bold or a ‘capitulation’? Victoria’s premier claims Labor’s reworked building goals are still on target

Posted on by

The final state housing targets have seen a reduction in numbers, but the overall goal of refocusing growth to Melbourne’s inner core remains

Reading the headlines, you’d be forgiven for thinking the Victorian government has capitulated again – this time on its bold housing targets.

But for the well-heeled residents of Brighton and Boorondara – some of whom who had sought to quash any changes amid cries of “shame, premier, shame” – it’s full steam ahead, at least in their suburbs.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

All fores! Miranda July among artists to create feminist mini-golf course in Melbourne

Posted on by

Swingers, which aims to celebrate the sport’s feminist history, will take over the Flinders Street station ballroom as part of the 2025 Rising festival

The acclaimed author and film-maker Miranda July is among a group of artists who are building a mini-golf course in Melbourne to celebrate the sport’s little-known feminist history.

Swingers: The Art of Mini Golf will take over the Flinders Street station ballroom, an abandoned space above the busy Melbourne railway station, as part of the city’s annual Rising festival.

Continue reading...

Arson attack that killed innocent Melbourne woman linked to tobacco wars, police say

Posted on by

Katie Tangey, 27, died after arsonists hit the wrong address while she was house-sitting her brother’s home in Truganina in January

A house fire which killed a “completely innocent” woman is a case of mistaken identity linked to Melbourne’s tobacco wars, police say.

Katie Tangey, 27, died after arsonists hit the wrong address while she was house-sitting her brother’s home in Truganina, in the city’s west, in the early hours of 16 January.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Melbourne zoo investigating shock death of Kimya the western lowland gorilla

Posted on by

Vets are undertaking a necropsy to determine why beloved 20-year-old animal suddenly died on Saturday morning

Vets at Melbourne zoo are investigating the sudden death of 20-year-old western lowland gorilla, Kimya.

In a statement, Zoos Victoria said the gorilla’s death was “unexpected” and that staff were “devastated” at the news.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

‘Like finding gold’: plains-wanderers spotted in Melbourne’s west for first time in 30 years with help of AI

Posted on by

Critically endangered bird detected after analysis of tens of thousands of hours of song meter recordings

Critically endangered plains-wanderers have been found living in Melbourne’s west for the first time in more than 30 years.

Notoriously elusive and difficult to spot, the rare birds were detected on two pockets of remnant grassland by Zoos Victoria, with the help of AI.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Victoria byelections: Liberals claim Greens seat as Allan pledges to ‘do more’ after vote dives in Labor heartland

Posted on by

Greens concede loss to Liberals in Prahran and ALP on a knife-edge in Werribee

The Greens have conceded the loss of the Victorian state seat of Prahran to the Liberals, while the result in the once-Labor stronghold of Werribee remains too close to call.

The Greens leader, Ellen Sandell, said on Sunday the result in the inner-Melbourne seat was close but that it was clear the minor party will “fall just short” when counting resumes on Monday.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Alleged ‘Pam the Bird’ graffiti creator denied bail as court hears of social media-driven reoffending risk

Posted on by

Jack Gibson-Burrell, 21, to remain behind bars over concerns the prolific design would continue across Melbourne if he was released

A Melbourne man alleged to be the creator of the prolific “Pam the Bird” graffiti will remain behind bars, with a magistrate saying there was a risk of him continuing to target prominent locations to boost his social media notoriety if released.

Jack Gibson-Burrell, 21, appeared in the Melbourne magistrates court on Wednesday morning where he was denied bail over concerns he would commit a serious offence if released.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

‘Intensely hot’ weather continues in south-eastern states as Victoria battles bushfires

Posted on by

Heatwave not expected to end until Tuesday or Wednesday as fires burn in multiple national parks

South-eastern states sweltering in a heatwave may be waiting until late Tuesday or Wednesday for a cool change to bring some relief.

On Monday, temperatures in Melbourne peaked at 37.8C just before 4pm, after a high of 38C on Sunday.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Peter Dutton and home affairs department cleared of wrongdoing in case involving Melbourne terrorist

Posted on by

No potential breaches found by independent inquiry into former Coalition government’s handling of Abdul Nacer Benbrika case

Peter Dutton and the home affairs department have been cleared of wrongdoing over what a judge described as “a serious interference with the administration of justice” in a court case involving Melbourne terrorist Abdul Nacer Benbrika.

But the independent review clearing Dutton and his former department will not be released publicly, Guardian Australia has confirmed.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Man allegedly behind ‘Pam the Bird’ graffiti on Melbourne landmarks applies for bail

Posted on by

Victoria police say Yarraville man, 21, is accused of vandalism on Flinders Street station clock and other prominent locations

A man accused of being one of Australia’s most prominent graffiti artists has faced court after allegedly causing thousands of dollars’ worth of damage with his cartoon-like bird murals.

Jack Gibson-Burrell, 21, sat in the Melbourne magistrates court dock on Friday afternoon and smiled at times as the allegations against him were read out.

Continue reading...

Teen fighting for life and another injured after Melbourne street fight shooting

Posted on by

Detectives believe the boys, aged 15 and 17, were shot in a targeted attack during a Collingwood brawl involving up to 50 youths

Two teens are lucky to be alive after a targeted shooting during a street fight that embroiled dozens of youths, police say.

A 17-year-old boy is fighting for his life in hospital while a 15-year-old has been hospitalised with serious injuries after both were found with gun shot wounds on Vere Street in Collingwood, inner Melbourne, about 1am on Friday.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Kyle & Jackie O Show drew nearly half of all decency complaints on Australian radio in last financial year

Posted on by

Exclusive: Kiis FM show promises to ‘behave’ in 2025 as regulator reveals 146 complaints made to broadcaster about material in 2023-24

Almost half of all complaints made in the last financial year about decency standards on Australian radio were about The Kyle & Jackie O Show, the Guardian can reveal.

In the 2023-2024 financial year, 321 complaints were made to radio stations across Australia about “material not suitable for broadcast”. Of these, 146 complaints (45%) were about The Kyle & Jackie O Show.

Sign up to get Guardian Australia’s weekly media diary as a free newsletter

Continue reading...