19 April 2025 - Saturday Squiz

We wish you a merry Easter and a happy 10-day holiday if you were smart enough to extend your arrangements past Anzac Day. We weren’t… This weekend, if you have an award-winning happy snap, an Easter Sunday lamb recipe you swear by or anything else you’d like to share, hit reply.

⏱️ Reading time: 8 minutes

🎧 Get your elbows out for our extra special Easter podcast episode - go head to head with your nearest and dearest with Team Squiz and our Federal Election Quiz…

Speaking of the election…

We’re past the halfway mark in the campaign to win the hearts and minds of Australian voters. It’s easy to get lost in the day-to-day combat of it all, so we decided to take a helicopter view of the party leaders and who’s gobbling up the headlines so far.

1. Peter Dutton - Winning the coverage stakes in an election can be a boon - if it’s showcasing positive things… The Coalition leader has had a bumpy ride, as this profile in the Sydney Morning Herald/Age outlines this morning.

2. Anthony Albanese - Seeking a second term, commentators far and wide say the Labor leader is running a steady race. This profile in The Guardian this week offers a glimpse into his political personality.

3. Adam Bandt - The Greens’ success last election in taking 3 seats in Brissie means it’s a target in this election. And that’s put a lot of focus on Bandt’s leadership style, with some critics saying his take-no-prisoners approach is a turn-off for voters.

4. Pauline Hanson - Nearing 70yo, the One Nation leader has turned her mind to what happens to her party on her retirement. She’s recruited her daughter Lee to run for the Senate in Tassie, and they hope to be the first mother-daughter combo to be elected to the federal parliament.

5. Jacqui Lambie - The Tassie firebrand says “people don’t seem to give a bloody stuff” about this election. In classic Lambie fashion, she’s blaming both major parties for not being candid enough about the nation's challenges, but this message has not been widely disseminated in the media to date.

Squiz the Election Quiz

Reckon you’ve been keeping up with the Aussie election campaign? Have a crack at the Squiz Quiz.

Shot of the Week

You’re up, then you’re down - back on earth after an 11-minute flight to the edge of space, Katy Perry expressed her love for the great green planet with a kiss. Flying with Blue Origin’s all-female team of 6, the pop star said the mission was “about making space for future women” and cheered "Space is going to finally be glam!" The theatrics inspired a bit of a pile-on…

Searching high and low for childcare

If you know what we’re talking about when we say “childcare desert”, you might be one of the 25% of Aussies who are living in parts of the country where it’s impossible to secure a place… If you want to know where the major parties stand on that issue, The Parenthood’s Early Learning Scorecard sheds some light. It’s also the focus of episode 2 of At What Cost? - a podcast by The Parenthood exploring our childcare crisis and offering up solutions. You can listen here.

In the Kitchen

Lookin’ for some lamb-spiration as we head towards Easter Sunday? One theory we have is that the producer industry groups have some of the best recipes for cooking their products - and that is true on the Australian meat scene. This one from Australian Lamb for a slow-cooked shoulder is a winner (note: a leg works well, too, but make sure it’s still on the bone…). And it takes away the guesswork in the rare-well done stakes - just stick to the time required and you’ll have something special.

Pretty as a picture

We’ve confessed our love for Galah before - it’s the triannual magazine that captures what’s great about living in regional Australia. A subscription is our go-to gift for people we really like…

But Galah is so much more than that, including its annual Regional Photography Prize. And this year, The Squiz is one of its arts patrons for the prize, which we, as country girls ourselves, think is super cool.

The only problem is we can’t get to the 2025 exhibition party in Armidale, NSW on the evening of Friday 2 May. It’s the night before the election, and you know what a flurry of activity that will be as we source the cocktail onions, Jatz and cabanossi for the count…

If you’re a local and would like to represent us on the night, we have 2 tickets going. Just email us at [email protected] - and if there are more than 2, we’ll draw names from a hat.

And if you’d like to buy tix to the party, you can do that here.

What we Shortcut for you this week

Week 3 of the election campaign - In the words of the great Bon Jovi, we're halfway there (to polling day that is)... And we reckon there'd be more than a few candidates livin’ on a prayer as we get into the business end of the election campaign. This week we looked at the major parties’ housing initiatives, debate #2, and why Russia has entered the chat… You can read up on that here or listen to the podcast here.

South Korea’s political turmoil - Months of political upheaval in South Korea have come to a head with the impeachment and removal of President Yoon Suk Yeol from office, following his attempt to invoke martial law last December. A snap election has been called, but the country’s challenges mean the crisis is far from over. You can read more here or listen to the podcast here.

Squiz the Week

Saturday - The Powercor Stawell Gift starts up - it’s Australia’s richest footrace, and this year Gout Gout and Lachie Kennedy go head to head

Sunday - It’s Easter Sunday - time for hot cross buns and a good dose of choccy…

Monday - A public holiday for Easter Monday, and it’s also World Creativity & Innovation Day

Tuesday - Early voting opens for the federal election

Wednesday - It’s debate central… Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Coalition Treasury spokesman Angus Taylor will be getting down to business at a COSBOA and BCA joint event in Melbourne. And Health Minister Mark Butler and Liberal Senator Anne Ruston go head-to-head at the National Press Club in Canberra

Thursday - Leader of the Nationals David Littleproud will address the National Press Club in Canberra

Friday - To wrap up another short week, it’s ANZAC Day. The traditional AFL ANZAC Day match between Collingwood and Essendon kicks off at 3.20pm at the MCG in Melbourne

Double-Tapping

We quite enjoy the emerging stand-up comedy genre where an act is based on a message exchange displayed on the screen for all to see. And gee, this one from the Melbourne International Comedy Festival delivered…