Books

The whole cast and crew were in on Brenton’s secret, writes Clare Rigden, when he planned a proposal, with all the bells and whistles, to his longtime love Cheryl. She’d been hinting for years that she wanted a ring, and now it turns out The Block star Brenton was just biding his time, waiting for […]

They’ve impressed Australia with their culinary competence on the show, now the two finalists share their hopes for the future – along with their favourite recipes. Isabella’s dream Isabella, who’s been described as an “adult chef in a little body”, now has a legion of fans around the country. “Everyone wants me to cook for […]

X Factor duo Luke and Joel O’Dea almost didn’t make it to their first audition because Joel “couldn’t be bothered getting up”. Luckily older brother Luke “very assertively” got him out of bed because the siblings managed to rock their way right into the top five. “The night before [the audition],”Joel says, “I was out […]

Our favourite chippies are mates off-screen too, and their wives and eight kids – four each – get along like a house on fire. Between Mark’s four daughters and Duncan’s four sons, it’s easy to see why the lovable TV larrikins were quickly dubbed The Brady Bunch by fellow contestants on reality renovations series The […]

Woman’s Day Psychic Ann Ann, has the answers to readers’ dilemmas. ANN REPLIES Sell, definitely! If you wait too much longer, you will lose a lot more financially than you can recover. November is a brilliant time to look at selling. You will have no regrets once you have done it. Woman’s Day Psychic Ann […]

The veteran TV chef and artist tells Jackie Brygel the secret to his 50 years of marital bliss … humour helps! Visitors to the sprawling rural property that Peter Russell-Clarke now calls home could be forgiven for immediately asking, “Where’s the cheese?” After all, for many years the iconic chef and artist had the entire […]

In 30 words or less, tell us what is great about a book you are reading at the moment. The best critique will be printed in the January issue of The Weekly and the writer will win The AWW Cooking School cookbook, valued at $74.95. COCO CHANEL: THE LEGEND AND THE LIFEBy Justine Picardie, Harper […]

The judge hopes for a little MasterChef of his own. Being surrounded by smiling children on the set of Junior MasterChef has got judge George Calombaris hankering after a family of his own. “I definitely want to have kids,” he says. Watching the pint-size cooks whip up complicated delicacies has been a thrill for George, […]

Instead of having much needed surgery, Cheryl has chosen to follow her TV dream. You’d never guess it by looking at her as she polishes and paints on The Block, but contestant Cheryl is hiding a deadly secret. Just days before entering the house, the 28-year-old real estate agent from Melbourne was diagnosed with an […]

I Came To Say Goodbye, By Caroline Overington, Bantam Australia, $32.95. The reality of the often hidden child welfare system is revealed by this powerful story of a broken family in an Australian country town. The themes in this brilliant book are played out on news bulletins across Australia every week. A young woman in […]