Surly squinters and other quirky nerds

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has condemned a Russian air strike on a maternity hospital in the port city of Mariupol, Australian flood victims will be given up to $3000 in emergency payments and the Morrison government wants to grow defence...

Lloyd Clark Fletcher was jailed for life for the murder of Manly schoolgirl Janet Phillips, and was later sentenced to an indefinite sentence for attacking a teenager at Wynnum railway station.

While they are desperately worried about loved ones overseas, members of a Ukrainian dance group have resolved to express their pride in their culture and identity by performing in the Moomba parade on Monday.

Coronavirus cases are projected to soar again in Victoria, fuelled by the lifting of restrictions and a new Omicron strain that is fast becoming the state’s dominant variant.

Experts warn of a rise in mosquito-borne diseases, and spider and snake bites as health authorities consider expanding a Japanese encephalitis vaccination program in NSW.

A woman has told a Melbourne court that former Essendon footballer Andrew Lovett caused her nothing but torture and heartache.

Modelling suggests daily COVID-19 cases in NSW could hit 20,000 to 30,000 in early April, with a more transmissible version of the Omicron variant becoming dominant.

Jurors have been instructed to guard against the strong emotions of the case and approach their task “dispassionately, but also fearlessly”. 

A former SAS soldier has contradicted evidence by war veteran Ben Roberts-Smith that no Afghan men were taken from a tunnel during a mission in Afghanistan in 2009.

A man who was arrested at Sydney International Airport will be extradited and appear in a Brisbane court on Friday.

The NSW transport agency is in talks about the “option of a mixed fleet operation” for the inner west and the CBD and eastern suburbs light rail lines.

Mr McGowan alerted the media magnate that the government was about to introduce monumental legislation, one minute before it was actually read into Parliament.

A Brisbane nurse has been praised for his quick actions in carrying a child suffering a seizure outside a major hospital and racing her to the emergency department.

A cosmetic doctor accused of posing as someone else to leave a fake review about another practitioner denies being a “commercial competitor”, a court has heard.

There are two kinds of people: those who remember names and those who don’t. Those who do won’t always escape social embarrassments.

Schools affected by COVID-19 teacher absences say they are burning through cash for casual relief teachers, and a shortage of relief staff is making it hard to plug holes.

Scott Morrison says Queensland rejected offers of dam funding, but Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says the Commonwealth won’t even fund the Bundaberg flood levee.

Ed Craven has emerged as the mystery buyer of a lavish home sold by property developer William Deague.

WA Health Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said of the 80 people now in hospital, three were in intensive care. 

Fitzgerald undertook a dive on an atomic bomb test site, despite being told it would make him sterile for five years.

With our attention focused on COVID-19, one of Asia’s commonest causes of viral brain infections, Japanese encephalitis, has found its way to Australia.

The ABC’s breakfast co-hosts Loretta Ryan and Craig Zonca have come out on top of the Brisbane radio rankings.

Taking out 13.6 per cent of audience shares in Perth, 96FM has seen a jump in listeners across shows in every timeslot.

Police said the woman somehow gained entry to the home, and began throwing petrol around.

Author and feminist commentator Clementine Ford has launched Federal Court defamation proceedings over comments alleging she engaged in “vile and personal attacks” on journalists and editors at the Herald and Age.

Cody Reynolds asked another person for their “perfect number” in terms of the age of young boys, stating that his ideal is “11″, police have alleged in court.

Mr Langker was accused of stalking or intimidating former deputy premier John Barilaro, which he denied and indicated he would defend in court vigorously.

The legal regulator said it did not find sufficient evidence to substantiate the allegations made at the royal commission against Victoria Police legal chief Findlay McRae.

Fred Hollows’ doctor son Cam treated people in a flood-ravaged town in northern NSW as the flood crisis unfolded. He says the real disaster has been the lack of planning and failed response from government.

The pandemic has once again stood in the way of Western Australia’s biggest Anzac Day dawn service at Kings Park, which is set to be an invitation-only event this year if level two restrictions remain in place.

The ACT’s Supreme Court Chief Justice has warned the more people keep talking about a rape allegation involving former parliamentary staffer Brittany Higgins, the greater the risk the case will be halted.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has praised the south-east Queensland flood recovery and noted there were more ADF personnel helping than in 2011.

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WA’s close contact rules mean those with important events run the risk of a last-minute cancellation if someone close to them contracts COVID-19.

Bryce Williams and Christopher O’Brien have been charged with the murder of Mejid Hamzy at Condell Park in 2020.

Fossil fuel corporations’ power has held back climate and environmental progress in Australia for so long, maladjusting our politics, economics, law and society.

WA’s ‘anti-Palmer’ legislation was so secret not even Mark McGowan’s cabinet knew about it until an hour before it was tabled. But another billionaire got the heads-up moments before other MPs and the public.

Sotrovimab, a treatment administered via intravenous drip to patients considered to be at risk of severe disease from the virus, has been widely used at hospitals.

Sydney Trains said flooding, landslip and trees on tracks have been the main contributors to the delays.

Unforeseen changes in the past two years have demanded a rethink of priorities that have shaped teacher education in Australia for more than 30 years.

The university and pharmaceutical company have joined forces to produce mRNA vaccines to combat some of the world’s most deadly diseases.

Watch out Alan, you’ve got competition.

I’m sure the statement meant something to someone in the council. But the rest of us were left to guess what on earth the speaker was trying to say.

The Australian meat industry must be losing confidence in its products when it seeks to ban plant-based alternatives from being displayed on the same supermarket shelves as meat from animals.

Sarah Richards, who’s standing for the country’s most marginal federal seat, will seek the Prime Minister’s support to raise the Warragamba Dam wall.

The state’s 24-Hour Economy Commissioner says Sydney’s bars and restaurants are increasingly geared towards Generation X and Baby Boomers.

A higher dam would not solve all the flood problems, but it would significantly reduce property damage and save lives.

The federal government will assess whether to protect one million ancient rock engravings in WA’s Pilbara region where Woodside and Rio Tinto operate and further development is planned.

State Auditor-General Andrew Greaves is facing court action from a former director who claims he unlawfully made her position redundant after she had a mental breakdown due to an excessive workload.