25 October 2025 - Saturday Squiz

Next Friday is Halloween, which means only 7 sleeps until we start hearing Christmas music. Consider yourself warned… This weekend, if you’re feeling crafty, in the market for a cheesy vessel for veggies, or have anything else you’d like to share, hit reply.

⏱️ Reading time: 8 minutes

🎧 Listen to the Weekly Wrap with Larissa Moore and Jodie Speers

This week’s top 5 news stories

The week’s most mentioned news stories in Australia across TV, radio and print, according to media analytics firm Streem…

1. It’s a nice day for a White House meeting - He came, he saw, he came away with a lot of what he wanted… PM Anthony Albanese’s ‘highly anticipated’ meeting with US President Donald Trump went (largely) to plan. Encouraging noises on AUKUS - tick. A rare earth minerals agreement - tick. A warm reception for Team Australia - tick, except for former PM/current Ambassador Kevin Rudd, who got the tick off…

2. Down and out - Amazon Web Services has an important role in the digital world because it hosts heaps of businesses’ on-demand cloud computing platforms. Think of it this way - instead of a business buying and managing physical servers etc, they can rent virtual versions from Amazon over the internet. So when AWS went down early this week, creating one of the largest internet outages on record, you’d better believe it made news…

3. Ukraine talks grind to a halt - A planned summit in Budapest between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin was indefinitely postponed after preparatory talks between officials failed this week. Russia refuses to agree to an immediate ceasefire or abandon its demands for territorial concessions in the Donbas region, so that’s that - for now…

4. Shaking up the peace deal - On Wednesday, the Israeli parliament passed a preliminary, non-binding vote in favour of 2 bills on annexing parts of the occupied West Bank. There’s a long way to go before it means anything in practical terms, and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu's office called it a "deliberate political provocation by the opposition" to create friction. Long story short, analysts say it’s about far-right politicians in Israel destabilising the Gaza ceasefire deal.

5. Joyce makes a choice - And former Nationals’ leader Barnaby Joyce’s choice is to vacate his NSW seat of New England at the next election. What that means for his next steps is unclear, but it’s been floated that he could join One Nation and run for a Senate seat. For his part, Joyce says his future could be in morning TV…

It’s you against the news…

Reckon you know which famous art museum was targeted by jewel thieves this week? Test your knowledge with this week’s Squiz Quiz.

And if you aced that, try this…

We’ve got a new/extra serving of quiz goodness for you in our Weekly Squiz Quiz podcast and video, hosted by the quizalicious Andrew Williams. This week, it’s mat against mate with Larissa Moore and Nicoletta Hay taking on the 8-question challenge. If you can beat their scores, we’re all ears (and you can listen with yours here).

The Weekly Squiz Quiz is out each Wednesday - hit follow on News Club so you don't miss a drop, or subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Shot of the Week

Firecrackers, sparklers and candles were just some of the ways that millions around the world lit up their homes to celebrate the Festival of Light, aka Diwali. The 5 days are observed by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains, marking the triumph of good over evil, and while it sees a huge celebration in India, it’s also found a place here in Australia. Enjoy this carousel for some of that sparkle…

Your holiday shop just got 10x better

Skincare, perfume, gifts, whatever - Lotte Duty Free has 10x Qantas Points on online orders right now. Which means that the holiday shopping you were lining up is now working a lot harder for your next getaway. You can order from home or swing by any Lotte Duty Free location for the same duty-free prices - either way, the points stack up fast. Find out more here.

In the Kitchen

Eggplant is back in season, and we like ours served with a tomato-based sauce and all of the cheese. Eggplant parmigiana ticks those boxes, and this recipe is certified Italian-approved. Nonna would be proud…

What we Shortcut for you this week

What is the new R360 rugby comp? - The name has come up a lot in rugby union and rugby league circles lately, and it’s causing quite the stir. With multi-million dollar offers to lure star players to a new venture, we give you the rundown on what the comp involves and how it’s shaking up the rugby world. Read here or listen here.

The Oz-US minerals deal - As we’ve already mentioned, this was the headline item that came out of PM Anthony Albanese’s first face-to-face meeting with US President Donald Trump, and it's a deal that's worth billions. We take a look at what’s in the deal, how it’ll work, and what it means for our relationship with the US and China. Read that here or listen up.

Squiz the Week

Saturday - Celebrations will be held across Alice Springs for the 40th anniversary of the handback of Uluṟu to the Aṉangu people. In cricket land, at 2.30pm it's the third and final match in the men’s ODI series between Australia and India on 7+. And at 8.30pm, Australia plays South Africa in the women’s ODI World Cup on Prime Video. 

Sunday - Soccer fans rejoice - Sam Kerr returns to the field for the Matildas’ friendly against Wales in Cardiff at 12am our time, watch on Paramount+. And gert ready for another week of geopolitics - PM Albanese and President Trump will be in Malaysia for the 47th ASEAN Summit.

Monday - Both the Senate and House of Representatives are sitting until Thursday. Oscar Piastri is back in the driver’s seat for the Mexican Grand Prix, with the race at 7am our time, you can watch on Kayo. And Year 12 exams begin for students in Queensland.

Tuesday - …and exams start in Victoria - good luck to them (and their parents…). Tanzania heads to the polls for presidential and legislative elections amidst fears of voter suppression. And former Reserve Bank Governor Bernie Fraser will deliver the inaugural Bernie Fraser Oration, hosted by the Australia Institute.

Wednesday - Bright and early at 6am, the Matildas play England in a second friendly match in Derby, UK. WACE Year 12 exams begin over west. We’ll get data from the ABS on the Consumer Price Index. And the first female commissioner of the Australian Federal Police Krissy Barrett will speak at the National Press Club in Canberra.

Thursday - On with a couple of notable AGMs - Woolies has its annual shareholder meeting in Melbourne, while Wesfarmers’ gets underway in Perth. And for musical fans, it’s International Wicked Day.

Friday - Happy Halloween 🎃.. The APEC Leaders’ Meeting gets underway in Gyeongju, South Korea, with US President Donald Trump set to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping to talk trade. And the Aussie leg of Oasis’ reunion tour begins in Melbourne. Rock on…