The December 7 Edition
Jo Taylor is a grieving mother. She’s also an angry mother. She’s right to suspect that, in different circumstances, six people going missing from the same sparsely populated area, in less than half that number of years, would be big national news. As she points out, the hunt for four-year-old white girl Cleo Smith in another part of Western Australia occupied police for 18 days in 2021, and became a national talking point. Was it the colour of the skin of Taylor’s missing son, Wes Lockyer, that saw the initial search for him called off after only four days? Did rumours that his disappearance could be linked to drug-running and bikie gangs play a part? And what of the five other West Australian Indigenous men who’ve also gone missing in recent years? Are they linked to Wes’s case and, if so, how? Beyond exasperated, Taylor and her family hired private investigators to try to get to the bottom of it all. She wants her son – or his body – found. She wants the police, the politicians and the wider populace to care about where he might be. If foul play was involved, she wants those responsible charged. Underneath all this, she wants an end to the unknowing. Editor, Katrina Strickland.
Drugs, bikies, a serial killer: How did six men vanish from the outback without a trace?
Wes Lockyer is one of six Aboriginal men from WA’s remote north to have disappeared in recent years. His family want the police and pollies to do more to find them. And the public to care.
- by Tim Elliott
Is it still goodwill if you’re filming? Kindness in the era of social media
Worthy deeds are performed for a vast digital audience. Philanthropy, or charity porn?
- by Katie Cunningham
When trust goes bust: how we bind during a crisis and break in the aftermath
Australians back their governments at times of national peril, then dump them when it’s over. Who will they blame in 2025?
- by George Megalogenis
Two of Us
For subscribers
‘I was a mess’: How Margaret Pomeranz helped her son through the death of his twins
Film critic Margaret Pomeranz and her eldest son, Josh Pomeranz, on enduring the worst of times – and welcoming two blockbuster creations.
- by Fenella Souter
Dicey Topics
Dicey Topics
‘It does something to the soul’: Meg Washington on the power of singing en masse
The singer-songwriter discusses why she makes music, not being smart with money – and her hatred of leaf blowers.
- by Benjamin Law
The haircut
Vic’s decision to get a haircut while on holiday backfired when he was charged $80. “I thought it was going to be $30!” he later raged to his wife, Deb. “If you’d remembered your glasses…,” she began, but he cut her off: “Either way, it’s highway robbery!” Determined to recoup the “stolen” money, Vic invested in hair clippers. “After five haircuts I break even,” he explained. As he emerged from the bathroom five haircuts later, still looking the way he did these days, it was clear to Deb that his idea of breaking even and her idea of breaking even were entirely different things. Words by Paul Connolly. Illustration by Jim Pavlidis.
The podcast going deep with small talk: ‘What did you do yesterday?’
Plus: get ready for the weekend with these fresh diversions.
- by Paul Connolly, Louise Rugendyke, Katrina Strickland, Frances Mocnik and Melissa Singer
Blueberry pancakes with ‘irresistible’ whipped demerara butter
Dotted with berries, these light and fluffy pancakes are the stuff of weekend dreams.
- by Danielle Alvarez
Roasted spiced nuts with lime leaf and chilli
This sweet, savoury, spicy, rich and crunchy nut mix is a perfect party snack or homemade gift.
- by Helen Goh
Review
Baba's Place
How this converted warehouse became Sydney’s most trailblazing restaurant
The Good Food Guide’s inaugural Bill Granger Trailblazer winner is redefining its “suburban cuisine”.
- by Callan Boys
Review
Cognoscenti
Discover fluffy souffle near Puffing Billy at this local favourite in the hills
Cognoscenti, a bistro from an ex-Donovans trio, is worth building into a day trip or a Dandenong Ranges weekend.
- by Dani Valent
What’s the deal with oyster-shell gins?
Want to feel like a merman or mermaid? Do a “Shelly” and slurp down a martini.
- by Terry Durack
