A first-of-its-kind pill testing service has officially opened in Fitzroy, giving partygoers free and confidential advice on what’s really in their drugs. The Victorian Pill Testing Service will operate out of 95 Brunswick Street, right in the thick of one of Melbourne’s busiest late-night strips. Staffed by health professionals, the site offers non-judgmental conversations and on-the-spot testing of pills, capsules, powders, crystals and liquids—including screenings for dangerous synthetic opioids like fentanyl and Nitazenes, which have been linked to fatal overdoses. Open three days a week—Thursdays (12–4pm), Fridays (3–7pm) and Saturdays (1–7pm)—the fixed site provides more access hours than any other…
Author: Melbourning
Thirty years since its release, one of Australia’s most enduring funk-rock anthems is heading back on tour. This October and November, Skunkhour will celebrate the milestone anniversary of their 1995 single Up To Our Necks In It with a national run fittingly titled Up To Our Necks In It (For 30 Years). The track, lifted from their sophomore album Feed, became a cult classic on release—earning a spot in triple j’s Hottest 100, breaking through radio boundaries, and helping seal a UK record deal. “Up To Our Necks is a fairly unique track,” the band shares. “It was very different to the heavier, darker sound we…
Following its sold-out 2024 premiere, Melbourne Theatre Company has announced the return of its smash-hit musical My Brilliant Career for a special five-week encore season in 2026. The 2024 run captivated audiences and critics alike, scoring five-star reviews and picking up five Green Room Awards, including Outstanding Production—no small feat given it was up against some of the year’s biggest commercial musicals. Leading the cast once again is Kala Gare (SIX) as Sybylla Melvyn, joined by much of the original ensemble of actor-musicians. Set in 1890s Australia, this bold reimagining by Sheridan Harbridge, Dean Bryant and Mathew Frank reframes Miles Franklin’s heroine as a headstrong singer-songwriter, unapologetically…
Ballarat is set to welcome a vibrant new art experience with Sunnyside, a large-scale installation series created by award-winning studio The Social Crew. Each year, an internationally renowned artist will take the reins, bringing bold and unexpected visions to life through community collaboration. For its inaugural year, celebrated UK artist Morag Myerscough will transform the historic Ballarat Mining Exchange with Chasing Sunbeams from 6–23 November 2025. Known for her kaleidoscopic patterns and joyful use of colour, Myerscough will present her first major regional installation in Australia – an uplifting, playful work that invites visitors to engage with art in a dynamic new way. Beyond the central…
Spring is about to paint the Yarra Valley pink with CherryHill Orchards rolling out a series of dreamy cherry blossom experiences you won’t want to miss. From daytime picnics to sparkling night lights, this is your chance to wander through rows of blossoms and soak up the season in style. The fun kicks off with Bloom & Graze in Coldstream over two weekends, 6-7 and 13-14 September. Think 100 acres of cherry trees just beginning to bloom, paired with a bustling makers’ market, live acoustic sets, and hands-on workshops. Browse stalls from The Botanical Brothers, Four Pillars, Yarra Valley Dairy and more,…
Melbourne Museum is once again set to thrill and chill this Halloween, transforming the iconic cultural landmark into a hub of spooky fun for all ages. On 31 October, the museum offers a unique blend of family-friendly adventures and eerie adult thrills, making it the city’s ultimate Halloween destination. Halloween at Melbourne Museum is all about offering a unique mix of family-friendly fun earlier in the evening, before our late night grown-up focused programming. We’re blending our scientific expertise with the excitement of Halloween to create a one-of-a-kind celebration,” said Lynley Crosswell, Museums Victoria director & CEO. Families can enjoy…
Melbourne’s iconic Arts Centre Theatres Building is digging deep, quite literally, as part of the city-shaping Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation. The project has just reached a major milestone with the completion of its underground excavation. Enough to fill six Olympic swimming pools, 15,644m³ of earth has been removed, reaching 14 metres below ground and creating additional space that will expand the Theatres Building by around 16 per cent. The new basement will house an expanded loading dock – twice the size of the current dock – with two new scenery truck lifts, allowing crews to bring sets, costumes and equipment…
Melbourne’s iconic Rialto Tower is set to bloom once more as it hosts its annual breathtaking Daffodil Day floral display in support of Cancer Council Victoria. On 20 and 21 August, the Plaza will be transformed into a sea of 38,715 vibrant daffodils, each one representing a Victorian diagnosed with cancer every year. At the heart of this floral spectacle floats a striking 6-metre-high hot air balloon, a nod to Melbourne’s famous skies, hovering above the dazzling daffodil field. The public are invited to purchase fresh daffodils, with all proceeds going to Cancer Council Victoria to fund life-saving research and…
At Manningham Art Gallery this spring, photographer Katrin Koenning is inviting Melburnians to look a little closer. Her new exhibition, Mirrors, brings everyday moments into focus through a deeply personal lens, weaving themes of connection, belonging, love and loss. Drawn from more than 20 years of her photographic archive, the collection spans people, places and the natural world – intimate glimpses that together form a meditation on how we live and relate to one another. “The picture is such a tiny part – the value lies in the act of relating and how these relations live in the world,” says Koenning.…
Melbourne’s summer just got turbo-charged. Hypersonic, a neon-bright, multi-genre festival with deep roots in the Stereosonic legacy, is set to debut at the Melbourne Showgrounds on Sunday 30 November 2025. Fresh from its Australian launch in Sydney on 29 November, this is shaping up to be a full-send, come-as-you-are rave with seriously high expectations. Promoted by Hardware Group and Symbiotic – the folks behind Stereosonic, Dreamstate and Transmission – Hypersonic promises “the ground-breaking multi-genre festival you need in your life.” The vibe alone has EDM heads buzzing, with whispers that this might just be the spiritual reboot of Stereosonic. Adding fuel to…
Melbourne motorsport fans will soon be able to cheer on hometown hero Oscar Piastri from a grandstand bearing his name, with the rising Formula 1 star to be permanently honoured at Albert Park. From the 2026 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, the Piastri Grandstand will take pride of place opposite pit lane and the team garages, cementing the local champion’s legacy in his home city. “’I’m very excited by the news that I’ll have my own grandstand at next year’s Australian Grand Prix,” Piastri said. ” It feels very surreal, and I never thought this would happen but the support…
Red Stitch Actors’ Theatre is set to deliver a knockout this spring with the Australian premiere of Job, a psychological thriller that made waves in New York with its razor-sharp take on internet culture and workplace burnout. Opening 17 September for a month-long run, the play promises a gripping night at the theatre. Written by rising American playwright Max Wolf Friedlich, Job places its audience inside a tense showdown between Jane, a Big Tech worker sidelined after a viral workplace incident, and her therapist Loyd, the man holding the keys to her career. As their sessions unfold, questions of power,…