The Nation

WENDELL HUSSEY | Cadet | CONTACT In some sensational news out of the Southern city of Melbourne, Austrian up and comer Dominic Thiem is reportedly considering a sensational code switch. The World Number 5 who went down to Novak Djokovic in a heartbreaking manner over 5 sets last night in the Australian Open final is set to be weighing up a mid-career sporting change....

TRACEY BENDINGER | Culture | Contact A local father who’s no mechanic but doesn’t mind changing the odd spark plug or two has today insisted on his adult children popping the hood of their cars, just so he can see how she’s running. Terry Branaghan (65) is a retired police officer who moved his family to a small property in the wider Betoota area about 5 years ago. Since then...

LOUIS BURKE | Culture | CONTACT Facing one of the toughest droughts on record, grassroots initiatives (whatever the fuck that means) have been popping up around the nation as communities inspire one another on how to conserve water so our thirsty cotton farms can get their refreshing fill. Leading the charge in Betoota’s French Quarter are members of a sharehouse known as The Quack-Haus who...

ERROL PARKER| Editor-at-large | Contact Despite it being nearly 50 out here on the fringe of the Simpson Desert today, a young carpenter is down in the French Quarter this afternoon enjoying a few cold ones in his ski gear after a long hard week of having a go. Dennis Harvey has just returned home from Hong Kong on business and...

ERROL PARKER| Editor-at-large | Contact A Betoota Heights publican is fighting back against proposed changes to local laws regarding poker machines which could see them phased out altogether. A new local government bylaw introduced by Mayor Keith Carton today aims to impose new taxes and levies on poker machines within the Betoota Shire Council boundaries. In addition to that, local publicans will...

ERROL PARKER| Editor-at-large | Contact The Super Rugby Marketing Pigeon can put his little feet up on his little desk this afternoon and flap himself on the back because all his hard work promoting the game in the offseason is about to come to fruition. Super Rugby begins its 25th season tonight somewhere in New Zealand, there's also a game somewhere...

ERROL PARKER| Editor-at-large | Contact The Betoota Heights Bakery has long claimed to have the most famous pies in town as well as the best ones. Our reporters here at The Advocate decided to put that to the test. Last week, we went around town and bought a stock standard meat pie from six local bakeries and sent them off to...

ERROL PARKER| Editor-at-large | Contact Her Majesty The Queen's representative in our parliamentary system has wasted no time in adding two marijuana plants to his garden this morning as the ACT becomes the first state or territory to legalise the possession and cultivation of the plant. From today, Capital Territorians are permitted to possess up to 50 grams of cannabis and...

ERROL PARKER| Editor-at-large | Contact The Remienko Memorial Airpark is often the scene of tearful goodbyes but one particular farewell today put the others to shame. Wendy Clover, of Betoota Grove, could only cry as she waved 'tar tar' to her youngest child as they embarked upon their overseas gap year. As per the tradition, students from our town's most exclusive school...

ERROL PARKER | Editor-at-large | Contact With all his useless children now braving the seas of our town's brutal rental market, a local father has repurposed a spare bedroom into a 'mancave' complete with items such as an IKEA poang recliner, a stack of old Bulletin magazines from the mid-1990s and a print of a pack of dogs enjoying a...