The Castle is back: Beloved Australian film coming to the stage after 30 years

‘A celebration of all we love about the Kerrigan family.’

By Smita Kunvarji

Beloved Australian comedy The Castle is heading to the stage, marking 30 years since the film’s original release.

The tale of underdog Darryl Kerrigan’s fight to save his home near Tullamarine Airport became a box office success in 1997.

The movie will now be reimagined as a major new theatrical play, with the film’s original creators returning as writers and producers.

The production will be co-produced by Michael Cassel Group and Working Dog, the team behind the original film.

The companies announced the news on Tuesday, revealing the play will premiere in Melbourne in March 2027.

“THIS ONE’S GOING STRAIGHT TO THE POOL ROOM,” the Instagram announcement said.

“Australia’s most loved film is coming to the stage in a new theatrical play packed with heart, humour, and plenty of Kerrigan charm.”

The tale of underdog Darryl Kerrigan’s fight to save his home near Tullamarine Airport became a box office
success in 1997. Credit: AAP

The Castle has captivated audiences for three decades, with its iconic one-liners becoming firmly embedded in Australian culture.

“Featuring all your favourite scenes and characters from the iconic film, this joyous production introduces new laughs and contemporary references ensuring The Castle will delight new and old fans alike,” the official statement said.

The original Working Dog team of Rob Sitch, Tom Gleisner, Santo Cilauro and Jane Kennedy said they had been working on bringing The Castle to the stage for more than 25 years.

“Not just a retelling of the story but a quarter of a century of funny updates!” the joint statement said.

“A celebration of all we love about the Kerrigan family. We wrote this new, fully updated show in the same way that we wrote the film screenplay all those years ago — the four of us in a room trying to make each other laugh.

“Our goal was to capture the warmth and humour (dare we say, ‘the vibe’?) of the original story in a way that will hopefully resonate with new and long-term fans alike.”

Speaking on Sunrise, Rob Sitch revealed what audiences can expect from the original characters and why the casting process has been so seamless.

“When we ask people to come in and do a workshop, they know the film,” Sitch said.

“So we keep thinking we have to direct them and in a weird way, they sort of do it better then I remember directing it.

“So that’s not a problem for us.”

Sitch also joked “fashion has come full-circle” and he wouldn’t be surprised if people were wearing ugg boots and puffer jackets to the opening night.

Producer Michael Cassel said he knew the adaptation had to happen as soon as he was approached with the idea.

“The film miraculously captures the specificities of Australian life and yet feels so universally true,” Cassel said.

“Family love, the challenges change presents, and the warmth and humour and dignity of ordinary people standing up for what matters.”

Challenging time for theatre industry

The announcement comes at a difficult time for Australian theatre, with productions including Waitress, Beetlejuice and Back to the Future all having their tours cut short.

Cassel’s theatre business took a hit in June when it cancelled the Sydney, Perth and Adelaide runs of the Broadway musical Beetlejuice e after advance ticket sales proved insufficient to cover rising operating and transport costs.

Cassel said The Castle is exactly what Australian theatre needs, giving audiences the opportunity to sit together and “feel the laughter, tears and pride in real time”.

“It makes you laugh, and then, before you know it, it makes you cry,” Cassel said.

“That is exactly what live theatre does at its best and why The Castle was always destined for the stage.

“To sit together in a theatre and feel the laughter, tears and pride in real time will be incredibly special.

“I cannot wait to share this story with Australian audiences in a completely new way with our extraordinary creative team.”

First published at 7 News, July 28, 2026

An up-close encounter with giant basking sharks in Ireland

By Camille Berry

(Credit: Alamy)

Basking sharks are one of the world's largest and most elusive fish species. But off the Irish coast, these gentle giants swim so close to the shore you can nearly touch them.

Word quickly spreads along the coast of Ireland each year when the giants arrive. Despite visiting their breeding grounds in County Mayo for more than a decade, I had never seen one myself until I was standing at a dizzying height on a wind-whipped hill on Achill Island.

Shielding my eyes from the Sun's glare, I followed the clear blue water away from Keem Beach and saw two basking sharks lazily cruising just offshore beneath the sweeping cliffs. From the moment I spotted the behemoths swishing through the bay from a distance, I knew I had to see them up close.

Fast-forward a week later and I'm peering over the side of a boat as it putters to a stop. My knuckles grasp the railing, and I steady myself as I lean forward and prepare to come face to fin with one of the world's largest and most elusive sharks.

Keem Beach is one of the best places in Ireland to see basking sharks (Credit: Getty Images)

Each year from April to early July and then again in August and September, hundreds of endangered basking sharks come to Ireland's western and south-western coasts to feast on copepods and plankton blooms so large they can be seen by satellites. In fact, the area from Donegal Bay to County Cork is arguably the best place on Earth to see basking sharks, as these temperate-water titans swim so close to the shore in shallow-water bays that you can almost reach out and touch them.

According to Dr Chelsea Gray, a researcher with the Irish Basking Shark Group (ISBG), "basking sharks are global citizens". But while the animals live in cold waters from Scotland to New Zealand, she notes that "Ireland is really unique in that they come so close to shore", making it easy to spot them from both the land and sea.

Basking sharks are the second-largest fish in the world and just one of three plankton-eating sharks. A closer relative of great whites than its fellow filter feeder, the whale shark, these slow-moving gentle giants can grow up to 10m (33ft). Their name comes from their propensity to swim along the ocean's surface to feed on zooplankton, making them appear to bask in the Sun's rays. As a result, the fish's local Gaelic name is liamhán gréine, or "sun fish".

Since Ireland's shallow coastal shelf attracts zooplankton especially close to its beaches, the island has become the place for travellers seeking a close encounter with the mammoth creatures.

Basking sharks are mammoth, elusive and endangered (Credit: Alamy)

Back from the brink

Basking sharks are longtime visitors to Irish waters. During the 1950s and '60s, Achill Island served as the world’s largest basking shark fishing and processing hub. 

Their one-tonne livers were harvested for oil and used for everything from cosmetics to commercial lubricants and as a medicinal treatment for healing wounds. Their fins were also highly sought after for shark fin soup.

Beyond Irish waters, Norwegian, Japanese, Canadian and other fishermen also hunted the massive fish extensively. As a result, basking sharks were nearly hunted to extinction across the globe by the late 20th Century.

Today, more than 40 years after the last basking shark was caught off Ireland in 1984, their numbers and sightings are up around Ireland. Globally, it's a different story, and as recently as 2018, the shark was added to the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List.

Ireland's breathtaking coastlines and diverse marine life have made it a popular spot for tourism since 1991, when Ireland became Europe's first recognised whale and dolphin sanctuary. With the steady growth of shark numbers over the last few decades, basking shark tourism has slowly transformed from a niche activity to one of the most memorable experiences visitors can have in Ireland.

An up-close look at giant sharks

Despite the May sunshine, it's breezy on the water as our group sets out on Blacksod Sea Safari’s tour boats along the Mullet Peninsula. I scan the waters as we head further from shore. Pods of dolphins leap between the waves. Gannets dive into the sea. Sometimes you can see minke whales, but we didn't see any on this trip. I'm more keen to spot that rare grey fin, and luck is on my side.

As our guide switches the engine to neutral, it's up to the sun fish to come to us. We wait, breathlessly hoping the giant will approach the vessel. Then all of a sudden, stark grey against the cerulean waters, there it is, easy to spot as it passes 9m (30ft) from the boat. Its tail swishes back and forth, slowly moving in our direction.

 

Measuring about 7m (23ft), the shark appears utterly uninterested in us. It's a marvel that a creature can grow to such an immense size while feeding on organisms too small to see. I've never seen anything like it.

Since 2022, basking sharks have been listed under the Irish Wildlife Act, and it is the only fish species that is illegal to hunt, harm or disturb their feeding and breeding areas in Irish waters. Scientists and conservationists like the researchers at IBSG are working towards codifying a code of conduct into law to add an additional layer of protection for the sharks.

For tour operators, this means maintaining a distance. The code of conduct states boats should avoid approaching the sharks and switch their engines to neutral when within 50m (164ft) of the animals.

Many tour operators report that the sharks appear to approach their boats (Credit: James O'Connor)

"Our priority is not to interfere too much with the animals. We tend to lie way back and let them come to us. If we can intercept their path at a safe distance, sometimes they come up and have a look, then move on," says Paddy Byrne, owner and skipper at Sliabh Liag Boat Trips, which offers basking shark excursions around Donegal's Sliabh Liag Cliffs. "They're wild animals, and we're privileged to see them."

Due to their unpredictable nature, basking shark encounters aren't a given, but even without spotting one, tours often pass by seals, dolphins, seabirds and the occasional minke whale. For those fortunate enough to see the sharks, the experience often stays with them forever. 

"We saw a baby basking shark before we even left the first bay," says Isle of Man resident Izzy Sharpe. Growing up, Sharpe could spot the sharks off the coast of her home, but she says her trip with Blasket Islands Eco Marine Tours in County Kerry proved better than she hoped for. "It was on the way back that suddenly hundreds of basking sharks appeared – every direction you looked in you could see them surfacing. It was incredibly special."

Longtime Achill Island visitor Hazel Keegan recounts how the sharks treated her group to a close-up during their trip. "They ended up just swimming around the boat. We could see the white of the inside of their mouths quite clearly. They constantly kept passing under the boat! Only then did I really understand the length of them."

Basking sharks swim especially close to the shore in Ireland (Credit: Getty Images)

Laura Brown had always wanted to see the basking sharks, and brought her family to Achill Island in the hopes of glimpsing one, but to their great disappointment, none appeared during their sea safari. "Our last day was a glorious sunny day, and we decided to take one last trip to Keem Bay. We looked down into the bay and there were around six to eight basking sharks! My son, his friend, and I raced down to get the stand-up paddle board in the water. They swam underneath us and around us. It was truly magical," she says.  

"We spent the rest of the day at the beach just watching them."

Seeing the basking shark up close from the boat renewed my appreciation for these glorious creatures' immense size, power and beauty. I can only hope we'll meet again here in Ireland.

First published at BBC, July 27, 2026

Rolling Stones match Beatles with 15th UK No 1 album

The Rolling Stones are still breaking records after more than six decades, (AP PHOTO)

The Rolling Stones have landed their 15th number one ‌on the UK Official Albums Chart with ‌their new record Foreign Tongues drawing them level ‌with The Beatles’ tally.

The band’s 25th studio album was released on July 10 and features guest contributions from Paul McCartney, The Cure’s Robert ‌Smith and ‌Red ⁠Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith.

It also features a special appearance by The Rolling Stones’ late drummer Charlie Watts from one of his final recording sessions before ⁠his death ‌in 2021.

The veteran rockers last reached number one in the ‌UK Official Albums Chart with their 2023 record Hackney Diamonds, which won the Grammy for best rock album.

At the Foreign Tongues launch party in London last week, Mick Jagger and ‌Ronnie Wood said they hoped to take the record on tour.

“Ronnie and I are really into that, so we hope to see everyone on the road,” Jagger, 82, told ⁠Reuters.

Published by AAP, at City News, July 18, 2026

New David Bowie album will feature 10 unreleased songs

David Bowie fans are gearing up for the release of 10 unreleased songs. AP PHOTO

By Pierra Willix in London

An upcoming album is set to share 10 unreleased David Bowie songs.

When starting out his career, the musician went by the stage name Davie Jones – with recordings from this period finally set to be shared with the public.

David Bowie: The Shel Talmy Recordings have been billed by his music label as “the most complete collection of tracks recorded by a nascent David Bowie” with the producer Talmy, best known for his hits You Really Got Me with the Kinks and My Generation by The Who.

The album features 10 previously unheard tracks, with contributions coming from guitarist Jimmy Page, a member of the Yardbirds who would go on to form Led Zeppelin.

It also features Nicky Hopkins, a pianist who also worked with The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Who and Jeff Beck.

Some singles from this period of Bowie’s career have previously been made available – including Can’t Help Thinking About Me and Do Anything You Say.

This new compilation – set to be released on September 18 – will bring together a range of unreleased material.

One of those singles includes I Want Your Love, which is available now.

Others set to be included are titled You’ve Got A Habit Of Leaving and Baby Loves That Way. The other unheard songs are Cupid, Leave Her to Me, You Gotta Tell Her, Certain Woman, Today, I Live in Dreams and I Do Believe I Love You.

Bowie and Talmy first encountered each other while frequenting London’s Denmark Street, which was the centre of the British music industry of the time, where songwriters sold their songs to the big publishers of the day.

The ex-pat American Talmy signed Bowie and the Manish Boys in December 1964 but the singer had already moved on and formed Davie Jones & The Lower Third.

The majority of the recordings Bowie made with Talmy featured The Lower Third or were solo demos.

The year after these songs were recorded, the singer changed his name to David Bowie to avoid confusion with Davy Jones of the Monkees.

Published by AAP at City News, July 16, 2026

Sir Anthony Hopkins to release debut album inspired by his childhood

By Holly Harrison and Danielle Herbert, BBC Wales

Life Is A Dream will be released on 21 August

Sir Anthony Hopkins will release his first album next month featuring a collection of classical pieces he has worked on for six decades.

The Oscar-winning actor said he had been composing music "all my life", and that "music was my first desire, my first wish".

The first single from the 88-year-old's album, titled Life Is A Dream, was released on Friday, and was inspired by his childhood memories of Margam in south Wales.

The Port Talbot-born star, who won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs, has written his own music since childhood, and began playing the piano at the age of four.

The single, Bracken Road from Hopkins' 1947: Suite For Solo Piano And Orchestra, was influenced by the streets, meadows, farmland and mountains that surrounded the star's family home in the 1940s.

Sir Anthony composed the music in 1963 when he was a young actor at the Liverpool Playhouse.

"Some of these pieces have lived with me for decades and I still find myself returning to them," Sir Anthony said.

"My whole life is a dream," he added, describing signing with the Decca Classics record label as "the honour of a lifetime".

Sir Anthony's music is performed by Grammy Award-winning conductor Gustavo Dudamel with the Philharmonia Orchestra, and will reflect on his life growing up in Wales and his family.

He said: "My deepest gratitude and respect go to Maestro Gustavo Dudamel, whose artistry is an integral part of this musical journey.

"With the graceful precision of his baton, he transformed each note with profound and indelible meaning, creating a pictorial landscape that invites the listener to feel and imagine something uniquely personal."

The Silence of the Lambs star has composed music since his childhood. Other pieces on the album draw on Sir Anthony's memories of childhood visits with his grandfather and the cinema that first caught his imagination. 

Laura Monks, president of Decca Classics, said the team had been "thrilled" to work with "such a legend".

"There has been a complete energy in the office, everyone buzzing with excitement because we are helping him deliver on a life long dream", she told BBC Radio Wales Drive.

Monks, who witnessed Hopkins recording the album said the team had goosebumps on their arms and his "life long knowledge" of classical music was clear to those in the room.

"He was listening to the music intently, he was giving notes, it was just really a special and unique thing to see," she said.

Sir Anthony continues to pay tribute to Wales on another of the album's tracks, My Fatherland.

He said he wrote the piece to "honour my humble beginnings", adding "I am the son of my father, the baker".

Other compositions on the album draw on memories of Port Talbot, childhood visits with his grandfather, the cinema that first caught his imagination, and the people closest to him.

Sir Anthony's portrayal of cannibalistic killer Hannibal Lecter in The Silence Of The Lambs won him the leading actor gong at the 1992 Oscars.

He went on to star in The Silence Of The Lambs sequel Hannibal (2001) and its prequel Red Dragon (2002).

The actor won a second Oscar in 2020 for his role in Florian Zeller's The Father which also starred Olivia Colman.

Published at BBC, July 11, 2026

Addendum by Tony Magee:

The signing with Decca has reportedly sent Deutsche Grammophon into a frenzy as they had somehow formed the impression that they had exclusive recording rights with Maestro Dudamel. Even the most cursory glance of the net reveals that Dudamel has previously recorded for Decca, as well as Sony Classical, Nonesuch and the boutique label Platoon. Anyway, I'm looking forward to it. Release date August 21.