Hi there! Here are some uplifting news you might've missed out on this week ✨
🏰 Story 1: From post-war Jewish refugees, who arrived with nothing but hope, to the bohemian artists and performers who took over in the 1970s, historic Melbourne mansion Labassa has more stories than its 35 lavishly-designed rooms. The mansion is also surrounded by 6 hectares of manicured gardens featuring tennis courts, stables and a conservatory.
🍇 Story 2: An Australian researcher has introduced the Cypriot white wine grape known as Xynisteri to Australia for the first time. It is reducing growers' water consumption by 75 per cent and withstanding heatwave events above 45 degrees Celsius.
🐸 Story 3: Melbourne Zoo has released 200 Watson's tree froglets and 1,200 tadpoles in East Gippsland following a successful breeding program. The species is native to Victoria and NSW and lost 80 per cent of its habitat in the Black Summer bushfires.
👗 Story 4: The NGV's newest exhibition Mother draws extensively on works from existing collections, as it celebrates and explores what it means to be a mother. Among the few new acquisitions are works by Melbourne artist Kate Just, Toscani's Madonna, and Child to First Nations weaving.
🤖 Story 5: Students are using tiny, programmable robots to code in a bid to encourage them to consider careers in renewable energy due to predicted skill shortages. The robots called Ozobots are programmed to teach students how to apply critical thinking to real-world challenges.
🖼️ Story 6: in 1901, Melbourne artist and illustrator Charles Nuttall was commissioned to paint the opening of the first Australian parliament in Melbourne's Royal Exhibition Building. 125 years later, First Nations photographer Tiffany Garvie has been commissioned to recreate Nuttall's iconic work.
#ABCNewsVic
Your Monday night footy fix is here.
AFL Monday with Corbin & Ben is a one-hour deep dive into the weekend’s biggest AFL stories, live from 6:30 - 7:30pm on ABC Radio and ABC listen.
Corbin Middlemas and Ben Cameron break down the key moments, test their theories with 300-game champion Marc Murphy, and open the lines for fans who’ve got plenty to say.
📻 6:30–7:30pm on 774 ABC Melbourne
(Final 30 minutes across ABC Victoria)
📲 Stream live on ABC listen, via our link in bio, or catch up via the AFL Daily podcast.
Here are some of Sunday's headlines from across Victoria 🗞
🗞 Story 1: A mother and daughter duo have taken the only known photographs of the Myrmeleon houstoni insect species in the wild.
The photos, taken near Mildura, have given new insight into the distribution of the species across Australia.
🗞 Story 2: A cold case of an armed robbery at a Melbourne shopping centre in 1994 has been reopened.
Police say "new intelligence" has prompted the reopening of the case, which left three men with gunshot wounds. (Link in bio)
🗞 Story 3: Protesters have marched in cities across Australia to mark the Nakba, a day that recognises the mass displacement of Palestinians during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.
About 500 people attended a rally to commemorate the Nakba in Melbourne on Sunday, marching from the State Library to Flinders Street Station.
#ABCNewsVic
The 2026 National Driving Bahaviour Report found that 25 per cent of Victorian drivers are most likely to check their phones, minutes after receiving a notification.
The report also found that 63 per cent of Gen Z drivers admitted to reading messages while waiting at a red light, while 40 per cent of Millennials take photos and videos while their behind the wheel.
Tune in to Drive with Ali Moore on 774 ABC Melbourne or on ABC listen via the link in our bio.
#774ABCMelbourne
Hello, there. Here are some top stories for you this Saturday 🗞
🗞 Story 1: Annie Ashton's husband took his own life after suffering from a gambling addiction. Since then, she's campaigned for stronger regulation of the gambling industry and greater awareness of gambling harm. (Link in bio.)
🗞 Story 2: The owner of the Porepunkah property where Dezi Freeman shot two police officers says he filmed the entire incident, but that his phone with the footage was confiscated by police.
Victoria Police would not comment on the video as an inquest into the incident is due to commence later this month.
🗞 Story 3: A 14-year-old boy has been killed and two other teenagers have been injured after the vehicle they were in struck a tree in Victoria's north-west near Charlton.
Investigators believe the vehicle was stolen from a Mildura address overnight.
#ABCNewsVic
A rally has been held for Isla Bell in Melbourne after murder and manslaughter charges were dropped against the man accused of killing her.
Friends and family of Ms Bell were joined by hundreds of others, with Ms Bell’s mother addressing the rally.
People at the rally said they had been left devastated after prosecutors dropped the charges earlier this week.
#ABCNewsVic
The education union has reached in-principle agreements with the state government that would see public school teachers receive pay rises of between 28 and 32 per cent.
The deal is a significant step towards ending the wages stand-off, which saw tens of thousands of teachers and staff take part in their first statewide strike in 13 years in March.
#ABCNewsVic
Marine experts are calling for greater education on aquatic life following the death of a seal believed to be known by Mornington Peninsula locals as Sammy.
On Wednesday, Zoos Victoria said the Marine Response Unit was called to a rescue on the peninsula, south-east of Melbourne, where they found a deceased seal.
Zoos Victoria said it could not confirm whether the seal was Sammy as it did not have any original DNA samples for testing, but locals believe it was.
How the animal died is not yet known, but the zoo said tests were being conducted and could reveal a cause in the next few weeks.
#ABCNewsVic
Experts have recommended that two to three washes a week is enough for children until they reach puberty.
Dermatologist Dr Chris Quirk joined Ali Moore on Drive to explain why you don't need to wash your young kids as often as you think.
Tune in to Drive with Ali Moore on 774 ABC Melbourne or on ABC listen via the link in our bio.
#774ABCMelbourne
