Luke Hemsworth doesn’t compete with his younger actor siblings Liam and Chris Hemsworth.
The 41-year-old actor admits he and his brothers like to “one-up” each other in “everyday life” and give out constructive criticism, but he would never pit himself against the pair when it comes to acting.
However, the former ‘Neighbours’ star quipped that the “gorgeous” hunks might think differently when it comes to each other.
Speaking to Men’s Health Australia, Luke said of Liam, 32, and Chris, 38: “I don’t compete with them for anything in acting.
“They might compete together because they’re both 6ft4 and knock down gorgeous.
“But it’s fun to be supportive.
Actors Liam Hemsworth (L) and Chris Hemsworth arrive at the premiere of Marvel’s “Thor: The Dark World” at the El Capitan Theater on November 4, 2013 in Hollywood, California. Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
“It’s fun to learn lines with them. It’s not like we’re not critical of each other, that’s for sure.
“But it’s criticism designed to take a performance to another level.
“In everyday life, we’re normal brothers. We definitely try to one-up each other. We like to have fun. We like to laugh.”
Meanwhile, Luke previously admitted he felt “stung” after being overlooked for a role in the ‘Star Wars’ franchise.
He auditioned for the titular role in 2018’s ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’, and he was devastated when he was overlooked for the part in favor of Alden Ehrenreich.
Luke shared in 2020: “I’ve definitely auditioned for Solo, Han Solo. I really wanted that. That one really hurt more than others because I wanted it so much.
“You develop a thick skin fairly quickly because more often than not you’re getting turned down.”
Luke also confessed he didn’t enjoy the experience of auditioning for the ‘Star Was’ movie, describing it as an “alien environment”.
He added: “The nature of auditions is you never get feedback. They’re usually pretty weird. You’re just in a chair. It’s really hard.
“Confidence is sometimes… It’s bull***t. It’s just bravado. You’re pretending, you’re just trying to get through a performance that doesn’t look like you’re s***ting yourself.
“Everyone is just sitting there waiting for you to do something cool.
You quickly have to develop a thick skin otherwise you fall apart.”
Australian Cameron Smith was penalized two strokes by US PGA Tour officials, dimming his chances of a victory at the St. Jude Championship to become world number one and putting a dent in his campaign to take out the $25m FedEx Cup playoffs.
World number two Smith started the final round in Memphis, Tennessee, four strokes off the pace instead of only two after the punishment was applied for improper ball placement.
Smith, who has deflected questions this week on reports he will jump to LIV Golf after the PGA playoffs, made the violation on the par-3 fourth hole in the third round at TPC Southwind.
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FINAL LEADERBOARD
S1 — Will Zalatoris (-15)
T1 — Sepp Straka (-15)
S3 — Lucas Glover (-12)
S3—Brian Harman (-12)
S5—Trey Mullinax (-11)
S5—Matt Fitzpatrick (-11)
T5 — Tony Finau (-11)
S5—Andrew Putnam (-11)
S5—Adam Scott (-11)
S5—Colin Morikawa (-11)
S5—Jon Rahm (-11)
Cameron Smith suffered a setback. Andy Lyons/Getty Images/AFPSource: AFP
Gary Young of the PGA Tour rules staff said that Smith plunked his tee shot into the water on the hole and when he dropped the ball outside the penalty area, it rolled back and came to rest touching the red hazard marking line.
Rules committee members reviewed video replays of the hole and brought in Smith to talk about the infraction.
“At that point, he said yes, my ball was definitely touching the line,” Young said. “He wasn’t aware that no portion of the ball could be touching the line.
“You have to take complete relief from that area.”
The two-stroke punishment boosted Smith’s score from a three-under par 67 to a one-under 69 that left him on nine-under 201 through 54 holes, four adrift of 54-hole leader JJ Spaun.
“He felt it was OK to play it from there but unfortunately the rules say differently,” Young said.
“The rules give the player, as long as the player has shown reasonable judgment in determining whether or not his ball was in or out of the penalty area in this situation with his own naked eye, I thought it was simply going to be a situation where I asked Cam the question and he was going to tell him that he was comfortable that his ball was outside the penalty area.
“When I asked him the question, unfortunately, he said to me, ‘No, the ball was definitely touching the line’. So at that point there’s no turning back. That was a moment where I know that the player has knowledge that the ball was touching the line, he just simply didn’t understand the rule that it requires the entire ball to be outside of the penalty area and in his relief area. So that was the tough part.”
“He just said to me, ‘The rules are the rules.’ I just accepted it and left the office.”
Elsewhere, fellow Australian Adam Scott’s four-under-par 66 took up to the top of the leaderboard at 11 under midway through the final round.
‘Ready to cop some heat’ Smith talks LIV | 00:49
Smith seeks his seventh career PGA title and his fourth of the year after the Tournament of Champions, the Players Championship and taking the Claret Jug last month at St. Andrews.
A victory would vault Smith over Masters champion Scottie Scheffler of the United States to the top of the world rankings for the first time in his career.
Smith said his game has not been affected by distractions this week such as numerous questions about his future and reports compatriot Cameron Percy said the Smith has already made a deal to join LIV Golf.
“My goal here is to win the FedExCup playoffs. That’s all I’m here for,” Smith said earlier this week. “If there’s something I need to say regarding the PGA Tour or LIV, it will come from Cameron Smith, not Cameron Percy.
“I’m a man of my word and whenever you guys need to know anything, it’ll be said by me.”
Police say the “rule books have been thrown out the window” after the deadly double shooting of two women in suburban Sydney on Saturday night.
Lametta Fadlallah, 49, and Amner ‘Amy’ Al Hazouri, 39, were killed after a hail of bullets were fired into a car in Panania, just before 9pm.
Watch the video above for the latest on the Sydney shooting
Watch the latest News on Channel 7 or stream for free on 7plus >>
Police believe the shooting occurred at Hendy Avenue, Panania, before the vehicle traveled to Weston Street, Revesby, where emergency services were contacted.
Local woman Rebecca, who was preparing her young kids for bed, said there was no mistaking the sound that rang out in the quiet street just before 9pm.
“My kids heard it; we all did,” Rebecca told The Daily Telegraph.
“Like bang bang bang, yeah, we knew straight away it was a gun.”
Lametta Fadlallah was likely the intended target, police said. Credit: 7NEWS
The vehicle with four people inside it then sped away for about a kilometer before coming to a stop in nearby Revesby.
Peter Aitkin was sitting on his veranda when the victims’ car pulled up directly outside.
“There was a lot of yelling, but I had no idea what it was all about,” the retired firefighter told The Daily Telegraph.
“I thought at first the woman in the back might have had a heart attack and that’s why the car has pulled up.”
The same commotion prompted a neighbor to call triple-0.
“The man was yelling at the woman to get back in the car,” the neighbor said.
“She was screaming, I couldn’t really understand what she was saying but she was hysterical, so I called the police.”
Emergency services arrived at the scene to find Fadlallah and Al Hazouri inside the car with gunshot wounds.
Two women were shot dead in Sydney. Credit: 7NEWSTwo other people were in the car at the time of the shooting. Credit: 7NEWSPolice canvassed several locations on Sunday. Credit: 7NEWS
Fadlallah, identified as a mother of two, could not be revived and died at the scene.
Al Hazouri was taken in a critical condition to Liverpool Hospital, where she later died.
A girl, 16, and man, 20, were also in the car at the time and were left shaken but physically unhurt, Homicide Squad commander Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said.
He said the other occupants were incredibly lucky not to have been killed or seriously injured.
“This is an appalling attack on two women, who lost their lives in a planned murder and assassination that’s happened in a public street in Sydney,” Doherty said on Sunday.
“It’s not acceptable by any standards. It’s unprecedented, really, and we’re determined to get the answers for the family.”
Crime editor of The Daily Telegraph, Mark Morri, told Sunrise there was a big difference between this murder and other gangland shootings in Sydney.
“To actually kill a female in public like this, like they are a gangland figure, I’ve never seen it in the 40 years I’ve been here,” he said.
“Not to say that women haven’t been killed, they have… but the big difference we have seen with this one is where the rule book has been thrown out.”
Burnt-out cars were found in nearby suburbs in the hours following the attack and police are investigating if the vehicles are linked to the shooting.
Security vision seized by police shows attackers in dark clothing pouring petrol on the cars before making off.
“These are the hallmarks of a planned attack,” Doherty said.
“It was methodical, it was planned.”
At least two burnt-out cars were found nearby. Credit: 7NEWSTwo burnt-out cars were found nearby. Credit: 7NEWS
Police were familiar with Fadlallah for having past connections to underworld figures, and one theory is that she was the intended target of the attack.
She had been in a long-term relationship with Halal Safi, a standover man and drug dealer found dead earlier this year.
Doherty said the three other people in the vehicle had no links to organized crime.
Al Hazzouri, a hairdresser known as Amy to her friends, is considered to have been an innocent bystander caught up in a barrage of deadly gunfire.
Amner ‘Amy’ Al Hazouri was caught in the crossfire and died in hospital. Credit: 7NEWS
He urged the public to come forward with information about the attack.
“The time is now. This is unprecedented,” Doherty said.
“We should be asking questions, how could this happen? How did we get to this point, where two women have lost their lives in Sydney, in a public street?”
Doherty said underworld figures used to operate by “unwritten laws” under which women and children were protected from being attacked – but it appeared these rules no longer applied.
“I think this has just demonstrated how low they’ve got at this point, where any person that may be associated with someone who they want to target … they don’t discriminate, whether you’re male or female,” he said.
“The rule books have been thrown out the window.”
Strike Force Laurantus has been established to investigate the incident.
Anyone who may have information, or dashcam or CCTV footage from the surrounding areas, is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
A Coles shopper has lost her court battle for compensation after she slipped on a piece of lettuce at the supermarket and claimed the fall caused her knee and spinal injuries.
Kanwaleen Bhelley claimed that she suffered a whole person impairment (WPI) of more than 5 per cent following the incident at a Coles store in the suburb Wyndham Vale in May 2020.
The Melbourne woman had told a medical panel that the lower back injury meant she experienced pain after driving for an hour and did not run out of “fear” of her knee and back becoming “painful”.
She said the spinal injuries had also “reduced her attendance at concerts, general socializing, and attendance at her temple, which requires long periods of sitting”, the court judgment noted.
She sought compensation from Coles after supplying a medical report from a sports physician. But the supermarket giant rejected the report and referred the matter to a medical panel who determined Ms Bhelley’s injuries did not meet the threshold required for compensation.
Instead, the panel found Ms Bhelley had suffered age-related degenerative changes to her spine and sacroiliac joints which was associated with rehabilitation treatment of her right knee.
“She can stand for about 10 minutes before she has to stretch her back,” the panel wrote in its report.
“She can walk for about 30 minutes, (but) after about 500m she notices mild right knee pain, so stops walking to sit or stand for about 10 minutes. She can traverse stairs without difficulty, using alternate stair treads for both ascending and descending, with no lower back or right knee issues.”
The panel also ruled her condition was stable.
The 43-year-old then lodged an appeal taking her case to Victoria’s Supreme Court, alleging the panel did not apply or misapplied the guidelines used to determine her impairment.
“Mrs Bhelley submitted that, absent such error, the panel would have determined that her degree of whole person impairment resulting from her spinal injury was 5 per cent, satisfying the significant injury threshold and in turn entitling her to claim non-economic loss damages, ” the judgment read.
But Judge Andrea Tsalamandris handed down her ruling on Friday finding the panel had not erred in its assessment and dismissed her appeal.
However, she acknowledged that Ms Bhelley could still experience pain or symptoms.
Welcome back to This Week In Games Australia! This week: rollerdrome leads another week of exceptional indies. We’ve got Animal Crossing likes in catizensstyle makeovers in Fashion Police Squad, Fall Guys antics in Kirby’s Dream Buffet, and much more! What are you playing this week? Let us know in the comments below.
August 16
catizens (PC)
If you played Animal Crossing and thought, this is great, but it would be better if everyone was a catthen good news. catizens is here to give that. Sort of. There’s more of a city-builder element going on here than there in AC, and I don’t remember my villagers having to defend against raids from rat people trying to take their stuff. Check out the trailer. You’ll know right away if this is up your alley or not.
Fashion Police Squad (PC)
One of my favorite demos from this year’s Steam Next Fest moves into full release this week. Fashion Police Squad combines the Build engine aesthetic of Duke Nuke and the camp drama of drag racing. You’re not shooting to kill, you’re shooting to slay. Every enemy you shoot with your weapons of high fashion takes their outfits from drab to fab, improving their lives and saving them from the menace of boring wardrobe. A fantastic idea, brilliantly executed. Get around it.
Monster Tribe (PC)
Monster Tribe is a hybrid of creature collector with a classic, SNES-era RPG. But also, there’s crafting and an element of dungeon crawling as well? This one is doing a lot, and I’m keen to check it out. With all these ingredients in the pot, can it carve out an identity for itself? I’m excited to see.
Way of the Hunter (PS5, XSX, Xbox)
I don’t like the idea of killing animals for sport. I think it’s a fucked up thing to embrace as a hobby, so I was never going to play this. If games like Call of the Hunter are your thing, no judgment, I’d rather you shoot digital animals rather than real ones.
August 17
rollerdrome (PS5, PC, PS4)
I think this one’s gonna be our game of the week. The latest title from Roll7, the creators of the excellent Olli-Olli series, is a game about skating around and shooting guys. I know people are going to make comparisons to Normal Jewison’s rollerball, and that’s fine. I’m keen to see if rollerdrome can stand on its own.
August 18
Kirby’s Dream Buffet (NS)
Ruby’s personal game of the week, and let me tell you: she cannot believe Nintendo is giving her twokirby games in the same year. It’s kirby meets Fall Guys, which is a very Nintendo way to approach the brawler royale space. This will be a digital-only release so unless Limited Run wants to get involved down the line, you’ll only be able to get it from the Switch eShop.
Robo Revenge Squad (PC, NS, PS4, XBO)
This looks like a combination of Robot Wars and tower defence. Should make for an interesting multiplayer experience, I think, but the trailers aren’t doing a great job of conveying what the game es. Keen to check it out and see what’s going on here.
August 19
The Ascent: Cyber Heist DLC (PS5, XSX, PC, PS4, XBO)
Throwing this one on the list because The Ascent is great, and I will take any excuse to reinstall and play more of it.
Cursed to Golf (PS5, XSX, PC, NS, PS4, XBO)
I know, for many people, myself included, golf can feel indistinguishable from being trapped in hell. The team at Chuhai Labs may feel similarly because their new game Cursed to Golf is all about golfing your way out of purgatory. Upgrade your little guy with abilities that let him defy physics, like adjusting the ball’s trajectory mid-flight, and get the hell out of hell.
Expedition Agartha (PC)
Expedition Agartha is a first-person dungeon crawler with Chivalry‘s sense of swordplay. There’s also a kind of Borderlands-like soft cel-shaded look to the visuals going on? I don’t know what that’s about in the context of its world, but it certainly looks cool. If you’ve been done with Kingdom Come: Deliverance for a while and craving more, maybe this will scratch that itch for you.
Madden 23 (PS5, XSX, PC, PS4, XBO)
Wait, wait, wait. I know we’re Australians and most of us don’t give a shit about American football, but don’t scroll past. Years of reviewing any game I could get my hands on taught me that sometimes, trying a game you don’t think you’ll enjoy can be beneficial. the Madden series was one of those games I found really enlightening. It taught me a lot about American football and how the game actually works, and it’s actually very, very good at this. Moreover? Getting to grips with this bizarre, mutant form of football was super fun. I’m just saying, if you’re partial to a sports sim, consider it. I think it’s generally a lot better than most Aussies give it credit for.
RPG Time: The Legend of Wright (NS)
Imagine being back in primary school and your friend drawing a kind of ad-hoc D&D campaign for you in their notebooks. That’s the thrust of RPG Time: The Legend of Wright. This one’s cute, and will be fun to play with your kids.
We Are OFK (PS5, PC, NS, PS4)
We Are OFK is an interactive narrative adventure game about a band putting an album together. You’ll have to bicker over lyrics, argue in texts, get to know each bandmate, and step through interactive music videos on your way to musical stardom.
August 20
Figment 2: Creed Valley (PC, NS)
This is one of the better trailers I’ve seen in a little bit. figure 2 is a very self-aware, puzzle-adventure game about imagination and musical boss fights. I really like the vibe of this one, I’m gonna be checking it out. There’s a demo on the Switch eShop if you want to get a taste before diving in.
Robyn Griggs, a television and film star best known for her roles on soap operas Another World and One Life To Live, has died at the age of 49 after losing her battle with cervical cancer.
The star’s official Facebook account announced the sad news in a statement over the weekend.
“Hi everyone, with a heavy heart, I am saddened to announce Robyn’s passing,” the post began.
Her account also shared some recent photos of Griggs, visibly ill but smiling, Page Six reports.
“However, she is no longer suffering and would want us to remember that and the good memories. I will never forget how open she was to telling her story about her, and accepting me helping her tell it.
“She wanted to help people and spread the word of her story to do it. I was honored to do so. RIP my friend, I love you and smile when I think of you.”
Griggs, who married golf pro Mark Wiley in 2013, was very transparent with friends and fans when it came to her health troubles, as she was diagnosed with stage 4 cervical cancer in 2020 and as recently as last month revealed that she had developed four new tumours.
“I have four new tumours. Two new tumors on my liver, one on abdominal muscle and large one on right side lymph node, ”Griggs posted to her account de ella July 7.“ So in pain and I go to chemo Monday am. I told them whatever it takes, I’m in for the fight.”
The account also confirms that on August 11 – just two days before her passing – the actress moved into hospice care.
“She has fought with determination, strength and grace that is nothing short of inspirational. Please continue to keep Robyn and her family from Ella in your thoughts and prayers at this difficult time.
Griggs played Stephanie Hobart on One Life To Live in a total of six episodes in 1991. She went on to play Maggie Cory on Another World for two years.
She later starred in films such as 2003’s Severe Injuries and 2010’s hellweek.
This story originally appeared on Page Six and is republished here with permission
Alyssa Healy has delivered a bit of brilliance in the field to run out Australian international teammate Beth Mooney and help inspire her Northern Superchargers side to their first victory in this year’s Women’s Hundred in England.
Key points:
Australia openers Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney were on opposing sides in the English Hundred tournament
Healy’s run out of Mooney off the 42nd ball of the innings was the first of two in two balls for the Superchargers
In the men’s tournament, Glenn Maxwell starred in the London Spirit’s win with 43 not out off 25, and 1-6 off 15 balls
Healy’s airborne dismissal of Mooney, who scored 97 not out in the London Spirit’s opener to the 100-ball-a-side competition, proved the turning point in the Superchargers’ five-run win at Headingley.
Spirit’s pursuit of 4-127 was going along smoothly enough at 1-54 with Mooney still looking in control when she had a mix-up in running with second-wicket partner Amelia Kerr.
Turning for the second run, Mooney was in trouble, but the throw from mid-wicket from Beth Langston looked to have reprieved her because it was wide and high to wicketkeeper Healy.
But the Australian World Cup star leapt high to her left and not only collected it but managed to flick an underarm throw that hit the stumps and left her international opening partner stranded, out for a threatening 30 off 20 balls.
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From that point, the run chase was always in trouble, especially when Danielle Gibson top-edged Alice Davidson-Richards to fine leg next ball.
Spirit ended up needing 13 off the final series of five and despite an excellent effort from Sophie Luff, the visitors fell five runs short.
Earlier, Bess Heath had been key for the Superchargers, with a blistering 57 off 34 deliveries featuring 10 boundaries digging her side out of trouble.
Healy had also played her part with the bat, smashing 22 off 16 including one huge six over long-on before she perished, seriously annoyed with herself, after plonking a juicy full-toss off Kerr straight into Alice Monaghan’s hands on the boundary.
Maxwell stars with bat and ball
In the men’s tournament, Glenn Maxwell shone with bat and ball to help London Spirit maintain their perfect record in The Hundred.
Englishman Adam Rossington took center stage with the competition’s fastest 50, smashed off just 15 balls, as Spirit made mincemeat of their 144-run target against the Superchargers at Headingley.
But Australian star Maxwell was similarly pivotal in wrapping up the seven-wicket win with 18 balls to spare, as the Lord’s franchise almost certainly earned a place in the knockout stages already by winning their fourth straight match.
The Victorian cracked an unbeaten 43 off just 25 balls to steer them home after earlier granting just six runs and taking a key wicket off 15 balls in a spell that helped strangle the Superchargers.
It may not have been an accolade he strove for but the oldest living Australian, Frank Mawer, says he’s enjoying each day.
Mr Mawer became the country’s oldest living person after the death of Dexter Kruger in July 2021 at the age of 111.
Celebrating his 110th birthday today, he says he’s seen it all — surviving two World Wars, two global pandemics, and the tragic deaths of loved ones.
But in between the tough moments, he has also experienced pleasure.
“I have six children, 13 grandchildren and 24 great-grandchildren,” he says proudly.
“I live day by day and take each day as it comes.”
As someone who has lived a challenging life for this long, his positive outlook is no small accomplishment.
Frank Mawer likes to display his birthday cards near his favorite armchair.(ABC South East NSW: Fatima Olumee)
tragedy and loss
Reflecting on his experience of living through two pandemics, Mr Mawer says he found them both to be highly “restrictive”.
But it was his first pandemic that led to a great tragedy for the Mawer family.
His brother died of the Spanish flu at the age of 20, which meant a young Frank Mawer had to “brush it off as young kids do”.
After his mother’s death, Frank Mawer was forced to earn a living aged just 14.(Supplied: Frank Mawer)
In the years that followed, his mother passed away, he left school, and was separated from his siblings.
“That broke up the home, as we became wards of the state,” he says.
Mr Mawer’s three sisters went into domestic service while he was sent to work as a 14-year-old laborer on a dairy farm near the Macleay River on the Mid North Coast of NSW.
Despite having to grow up so quickly, there were still moments he remembers fondly.
“I worked on the farm, rode horses, and did some stupid things like swimming in the sea on the horse,” he says.
It was during his boisterous adolescence that Mr Mawer met his Irish wife, Elizabeth.
He was an apprentice carpenter in Sydney working at the building where she was a secretary.
“Occasionally I would pass the office, put my gaze on her, and take her out to get some ice cream,” he says.
They were married before the outbreak of World War II in 1939.
champion of peace
After the wedding, as a conscientious objector, Mr Mawer refused to partake in World War II.
“I became interested in religion when I was about 18, and the concept was that you don’t take up arms or shoot anybody,” he says.
Instead of fighting overseas, he worked on the construction of a building to house ammunition for the Australian Army in North Queensland.
Frank and Elizabeth Mawer were married for more than 70 years before she passed away in 2012.(Supplied: Frank Mawer)
Mr and Mrs Mawer spent more than 70 years married.
Mrs Mawer was diagnosed with dementia shortly before she died of breast cancer in 2012.
In the years before her death, it was Mr Mawer who looked after her.
“She didn’t want to be cooped up in the unit and she would sometimes get out and I would find her in someone else’s house,” he says.
Losing his sweetheart was one of his great challenges in life.
“It was a big shock … I miss her, she was my life partner, we had a great marriage and I have no regrets,” he says.
Frank has been living with his son Philip Mawer on the NSW South Coast.(ABC South East NSW: Fatima Olumee)
Now, he lives with his 73-year-old son Philip Mawer in Central Tilba on the NSW South Coast.
Philip and his partner Stuart are his carers.
Some days are harder than others.
“He needs a lot of care and assistance, so that is a full-time job for the two of us,” Philip Mawer says.
Despite this, the younger Mr Mawer finds living with his father later in life to be a “privilege”.
“He’s remarkably stoic and he’ll put up with a lot of discomfort and he won’t complain as he’s an optimistic person,” he says.
“He wants to live. He just values the day and he lives for the day.”
Cobden Hayson Drummoyne selling agent Chad Egan said apartments in the block can sell for well above $1 million.
“Wolseley Street is a popular street and this is a 1970s red brick apartment, so the demographic will be young couples and investors,” Egan said.
Though Sydney’s property market is facing headwinds as interest rates rise, and the rising cost of living hits home buyers’ budgets, Egan said properties priced between $950,000 and $1.1 million were still seeing good interest from buyers.
In Melbourne, buyers can find a house on land closer to the city, if they are prepared to do a renovation.
A three-bedroom Victorian home at 118 Farrell Street in Port Melbourne is listed for $1.05 million to $1.15 million but needs renovating.
Chisholm & Gamon Property Port Melbourne associate director Jon Kett said the vendors had owned the property since 2010 as an investment.
“This home is ready to renovate,” Kett said. “It’s going to need a little bit of work to bring it up to modern standards.”
Buyers looking to get into the market with a budget of $1 million or just above could expect to buy a property that needed work, especially in areas closer to the city such as Port Melbourne, he said.
“Most people looking around the $1 million mark are looking to buy and add value [by renovating],” Kett said.
Better bang for buck is on offer further afield, such as this house in Dingley Village about 23 kilometers southeast of the CBD.
A modern five-bedroom family home at 27 Village Drive has been advertised for between $995,000 and $1.04 million. The house features an outdoor entertaining area and a heated, in-ground pool.
Brisbane buyers can find a house close to the city center in the low seven figures if they are open to giving their new home a facelift.
This three-bedroom ‘pink palace’ at 34 Michael Street, Bulimba, features street art by the current owner and is listed for offers over $975,000.
Just 4 kilometers from Brisbane’s CBD, it includes a pink facade and illustrations ranging from a bird to a Day of the Dead, Mexican folk-art inspired piece.
Inside, the home has a brightly decorated kitchen, but also needs some TLC.
Ray White Bulimba selling agent William Low said buyers were still interested despite the renovation work required.
“People are fearful of inflation and interest rates, so it is getting a little bit harder to sell properties that need renovation, but we’re expecting this one to sell by the end of the week,” Low said.
Just three kilometers from Adelaide’s CBD, another fixer-upper is for sale. Built in 1918, the property at 27 Cambridge Street, North Adelaide, is listed for sale with a $975,000 to $1.05 million price tag.
The semi-detached home has a “rare” backyard for that part of the city, and a car park.
It’s not the only historic home for sale, with a 1910-built property at 83 Carlton Street, New Town, about 4 kilometers from central Hobart, advertised for offers over $1,045 million.
The home includes some of its original stained-glass charm, has four bedrooms, and comes with stunning views.
Some of the best views at this price point are 5 kilometers from Perth’s CBD in Crawley.
There, buyers can find a modern three-bedroom apartment at 9W/4 Crawley Avenue which has views of the Swan River from one side, and Kings Park Botanic Garden on the other.
The apartment is listed with a price guide of $969,000 and for that money, buyers will get a renovated pad with separate laundry and a study.
Griffin is planning to raise another $5 million from philanthropy. Planning and development applications are with the City of Sydney council and, if approved, the theater will shut in late 2023, reopening in 2025.
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“We see this space as so important because these intimate spaces are what create vibrant, exciting cities,” Paris Neilson says. “A company like Griffin is able to be more experimental. They can push the envelope a bit more. They can be more agile and nimble than some of the bigger companies which is why it’s so important to support them. And there’s nothing like the experience you have of sitting in that theater when you almost feel as if you are part of the performance, that intimacy with the actors, with the story, is something you can’t reproduce anywhere else.”
Known as the theater of first chances, Griffin’s mission is to present new Australian works by emerging playwrights.
First-time plays that have gone onto success on mainstream stages include Meyne Wyatt’s City of Gold and Prima faciethe one-woman play by Suzie Miller, which has won over audiences in London’s West End.
Artistic director Declan Greene says the renovations will make all the difference to audiences and actors: “We’ve had shows in the theater with seven or eight actors rehearsing in the corridor. To enter or exit the stage you have to walk through a toilet.”
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Meagher says: “We don’t want to lose that sense of intimacy, we’re not all of a sudden going to be staging massive musicals. We do risky work. Everything we do is new, and not everything works financially. We know we won’t fill the house every night for every show. It would be great if more people are seeing our shows, but it’s never going to be an arena entertainment space.”
Griffin’s association with the Neilson Foundation began during the COVID-19 lockdowns that shut the theater in 2020.
Meagher received a call from Paris Neilson asking how the family foundation might help. “We almost fell off our chairs,” he recounts. The Neilson Foundation made two donations of $50,000 each.
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The SBW Foundation, set up by Dr Rodney Seaborn, purchased the site in 1986 for $200,000 after Seaborn stepped in to save the theater for Griffin when it was likely to be sold and redeveloped. Lowry says the SBW Foundation continues to own a nearby terrace house they are to lease to Griffin as offices.
“The sale will strengthen the foundation’s ability to continue assisting Griffin and supporting the performing arts more widely for decades to come,” Lowry says. “After years of nurturing Griffin, helping it financially care for its nest at the SBW Stables and watching the company develop and grow from strength to strength the foundation is delighted to see it stretch its creative wings and take flight.”
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