Australia

Thursday, September 26th, 2013

Who’s Been Sleeping in My House?

South African television is fascinating. Every evening, as part of an ongoing anthropological investigation into the workings of the South African national consciousness, I take my dinner with an episode of 7de Laan (7th Avenue), a popular Afrikaans soap opera. The show is captivating in that it models a post-apartheid world around an expansive consumerist imaginary. So,

Monday, February 6th, 2012

JM Coetzee’s Cricketing Life

It was with some intrigue that my J.M. Coetzee google alert recently informed me that the elusive author had published something new; this time, apparently, in a contribution to a book celebrating, of all things, Australian cricket.

Friday, July 22nd, 2011

Colonialism

A satirical film made by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1986. Worth seeing again. It should also be the dvd you pop in at your colonial-themed wedding.

Monday, June 6th, 2011

‘The Most Phenomenal Finale’

I don’t watch much rugby these days, but the final moments of the cup final the 2011 Edinburgh IRB Rugby Sevens Festival between Australia and South Africa a week ago is worth reliving.

Sunday, December 12th, 2010

Blinded by Red Ribbons

And what has Mr. Bono been doing lately? Here he is, frolicking with a gala-flawless red satin ribbon. (Caption:”U2 front man, Bono, middle, poses with fellow band member, The Edge, left, Australia’s Prime Minister Julia Gillard, right,...

Monday, July 19th, 2010

G’day Mate

“The thing that overwhelms most is the level of professionalism of native Africans in knowing how to serve a bottle of wine properly,” said Philip Crawford, a designer of luxury homes from Noosa, Australia. From a story...