(courtesy Paddington the Musical) Is there such a thing as too much Paddington Bear? Well, of course not, what a very strange thing to even contemplate! The truth is we can never have enough of Michael Bond’s wondrously sweet and insightful creation who has found heartwarming expression in 29 books Continue Reading
Movie review: Predator: Badlands
(courtesy IMP Awards) When you’re a pop culture junkie, one of the most satisfying things imaginable is when a threadbare but entertaining franchise embarks, sometimes decades in the making, on super substantial world-building and elaborate exposition, enlarging and enriching its storytelling in the process. It can take a franchise that Continue Reading
Book review: Tusk Love by Thea Guanzon
(courtesy Penguin Books Australia) There’s a good reason the enemies-to-love trope is so prevalent in romantic literature. While we all accept on some level that not everyone will like us and that conflict is all inevitable despite our best efforts, there’s a deep-rooted part of us that wants to believe Continue Reading
Sunny days are back again for Sesame Street as it debuts on its new home
(courtesy First Showing) SNAPSHOT‘Season 56 reimagines Sesame Street, inviting children into the action and bringing them hand-in-hand through high-stakes stories, powerful learning moments, and laugh-out-loud surprises. And, as always, Sesame Street’s curriculum is designed to meet children’s most pressing needs — so our focus this season is on kindness and Continue Reading
We’re so back … Thoughts on Nobody Wants This S2
(courtesy IMP Awards) It will surprise precisely no one that relationships are HARD. But, asks Nobody Wants This in its brilliant second season, does it have to be this hard? Exactly what level of hard is acceptable sits out in the landscape of the nebulous and oblique and one of Continue Reading
Book review: Frankie by J. M. Gutsch and Maxim Leo
(courtesy Penguin Books Australia) If you have ever travelled through the valley of the shadow of death of grief – and yes, that is some prime-grade Psalms-level language there but being plunged into grief often feels quite Biblical – you will know that it feels like it is sucking all Continue Reading
Retro Christmas movie review: Haul Out the Holly
(courtesy IMDb) There’s a strange disconnect that can emerge when you’re consuming festively themed pop culture – for instance, you might be perfectly fine with reading endlessly escapist, coincidence-full rom-com novels but find their Hallmark equivalents to be a Christmassy bridge too far. You know there’s a strange kind of Continue Reading
Halloween book review: Alice by Christina Henry
It’s quite the thing these days to take a classic novel as inspiration, or even an ancient one in some cases, and take it to new and exciting places that honour the original work and author but explore new territory. In many cases, it’s done brilliantly and originally well, as Continue Reading
The spirit of Halloween future: Teaser trailer for 2026’s Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom
(courtesy IMDb) SNAPSHOTShaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom sees the residents of Mossy Bottom Farm looking forward to Halloween – until the clumsy Farmer trashes the Flock’s beloved pumpkin patch! When Shaun turns into mad scientist to help fix the problem, things rapidly spiral out of control… With Continue Reading
Halloween retro animated movie: Coraline
(courtesy IMP Awards) There’s often admittance by people that they are “late to the party”, as if watching or reading or whatever something long after it’s come out – or sometimes, mere weeks, such is the frantic and unforgiving pace of the modern digital age which eats its newly-released young Continue Reading