Author: Larry Heath

As we enter the second half of the annual Ottawa Bluesfest in Canada (running until 17th July), we’re bringing you the second half of our feature on a summer’s weekend in Canada’s capital city. A couple of weeks ago we filled you in on the places to eat, drink and shop, and now this week…

This week we’ve been given the first taste of the new film from Mud and Midnight Special director Jeff Nicols, Loving. Due out at the start of next year, the film is a love story set amidst one of the most racially charged periods on American history, and reunites Nicols with Australian actor Joel Edgerton, who…

This time last year, I flew from the Calgary Stampede to Ottawa Bluesfest (both happening right now!) on board Air Canada‘s regular service between the two cities. Lucky enough to get bumped up to Business Class on the flight, here’s a look back at that journey. Airline: Air Canada Route: Calgary, Alberta to Ottawa, Ontario – AC118 Seat:…

Adventure doesn’t come any bigger with Big Trouble In Little China kick starting the new In The House season next Friday! Catch John Carpenter’s energy-filled classic up on the big screen at Event Cinemas George St in Sydney on July 22 with martial arts, feuding demons, action-adventure and comedy! Join David “Quinny” Quinn from Supanova…

It’s been a whirlwind few weeks for Sydney based production trio True Vibenation. Upon landing in the UK ahead of their appearance at Glastonbury Festival and debut Europe Tour, their new song ‘The World Is Ours’ started gathering some serious steam, peaking at #1 on Spotify’s Viral chart for the UK and #4 globally. The stage…

It’s one of the oldest adages of the stage, but Singin’ in the Rain’s Sydney run – which officially kicked off on Saturday night – has put “the show must go on” very much into practice. The show’s headline star, Adam Garcia, who sustained an injury during one of the final Melbourne performances, won’t be appearing in…

The city of Calgary in Alberta is a bustling and vibrant place, no more so than during the 10 days of the Calgary Stampede; the iconic event which is happening right now, through to July 17th. But with the city a short drive away from the Rocky Mountains, and full of amazing activities to enjoy…

P&O Cruises have announced the details they have planned for the multi-million dollar upgrades set to be made on the Princess Cruises’ liner Dawn Princess, when they transform it into their newest ship Pacific Explorer next June. Among the most exciting inclusions are a chilled barefoot bowls green, a new supper club with cabaret-style entertainment and P&O’s…

Later this month, the 65th annual Melbourne International Film Festival will kick off an incredible season of over 345 films*, spanning 22 venues across the Melbourne CBD, from 28 July to 14 August. It’s near impossible to narrow down the list, but today, with tickets to all screenings currently on sale, we’re going to do our best, bringing you…

The Iris’ Larry Heath recently caught up with John Cho, Karl Urban, Zachary Quinto, Chris Pine & Justin Lin on the silver carpet at the Australian premiere of Star Trek: Beyond. We find out about how things have changed for the cast across three films, what they think their characters have gotten up to in between the…

Yep, you read that title correctly. Superstar comedian Amy Schumer is set to tour Australia and New Zealand this December for the first time*, playing massive indoor arenas around the country. We’d probably be able to make some crude joke here, but we’re sure she’ll have that more than covered in December, as the Inside Amy Schumer and…

2016 is already a mammoth year for Disney, with 4 of the 6 top grossing films a release from the studio. With another Marvel film (Doctor Strange) and a Star Wars Story (Rogue One) still to come, it’s sure to take the lion’s share of the top ten come year’s end. One of the films already released is their…

Tonight, the world’s first public screening of the highly anticipated film Star Trek Beyond was held at the Australian premiere in Sydney. The event launches two weeks of promotions around the world for the cast, leading to its July 21st release date here in Australia and 22nd in the USA. The film is the third in the…

April brought us some sexy, hilarious and goddamn captivating music videos – from the likes of George Maple to NGAIIRE, through to City Calm Down and West Thebarton Brothel Party, there definitely was a diverse bunch of clips we were vibing on. Hit ‘play’ and revisit! Playlist 1. George Maple ft. GoldLink “Sticks and Horses” 2. NGAIIRE “Diggin” 3. Alex…

It’s a game of “spot the cameo” in the latest video from Melbourne based Courtney Barnett, who overnight dropped her finest music video to date, for her track “Elevator Operator”. The genius clip, directed by Sunny Leunig (whose famous father is one of the clip’s many cameos), features an onslaught of famous faces – starting…

This week, the Calgary Stampede returns to Calgary, Alberta. Last year, I was lucky enough to attend the long running event, and while there I stayed a short drive from the event in South East Calgary at Hotel Blackfoot. The privately owned, contemporary hotel offers incredible views of the Rocky Mountains, as well as the…

Did you know that the largest operator of comedy clubs in the world is a cruise liner? On each of Carnival Cruises‘ 25 ships, they feature the Punchliner Comedy Club, which offers up to 20 performances on an average 7-10 day voyage. This comes to about 25,000 comedy shows a year across the fleet. That’s a…

Set for release on July 21st, Australia will be welcoming the stars and director of the highly anticipated film Star Trek Beyond onto our shores later this week. And in the lead up to this, Paramount Pictures have snuck out an entertaining clip from the film. In the clip, “Spock learns that matters of the heart…

Following its acclaimed appearance at Cannes, as part of the Un Certain Regard section, the film Hell or High Water was picked up by Madman Entertainment for Australian distribution – which is expected later in the year. And today they’re teasing this release with the first trailer for the film. The film comes from the…

The numbers are from the US July 4th Holiday Weekend box office and for the third week running, Finding Dory keeps on swimming faster than its competition, bringing in an estimated $41.9 million from Friday to Sunday. By the end of Monday, it’s expected to pass the total box office achieved by the original film, and become the…

Reggie Watts – former”band leader” on IFC’s Comedy Bang! Bang! and now actual band leader on CBS’ The Late Late Show with James Corden, caught up with us a while back to chat about a bunch of things. During our conversation we brought up this hilarious faux retro game feature for the hilarious “Grandma’s Bath”: This developed into a general…

Australian Absolutely Fabulous fans have plenty to celebrate at the moment. The iconic characters are not only back for a special big screen adventure, but the stars behind the film are going to be coming to Australia. Patsy and Eddy (Joanna Lumley and Jennifer Saunders), will be walking down a fabulous red (or perhaps gold,…

Hobbiton. It’s a real place. You want to know why? Because I totally went there. Hobbits are real, end of discussion. And they’re beautiful. OK – well, sort of real. Alexander Farm is a 1250 acre property in Matamata, New Zealand, and is home to the set of Hobbiton from the Lord of the Rings…

Those who have travelled to places like Los Angeles and New York in recent years may have come across a service called uberPOOL, an option within the Uber app that allows you to share your journey with strangers to reduce the cost of your trip. You save around 25% on your journey, with the only…

Over the past few months on AU Abroad, we’ve been taking you in and out of the West Coast Canadian city of Vancouver, from a look at the Airport’s incredible Fairmont Hotel, to reviewing our flight from Vancouver Airport back to Sydney with Air Canada. We filled you in on the airline’s expansion to Brisbane, and…

Yesterday we took you to the beaches of Santa Monica, and now today we take you to the other end of the new Expo Line – the revamped, revitalised and culturally vibrant Downtown LA. At the heart of this is the Ace Hotel, an old United Artists Theatre turned Church (“Los Angeles University Cathedral”) turned 13…

Australian Business Traveller reported this week that Australian airline Qantas will introduce the ability to purchase single entry lounge passes for most of its international lounge network. Domestic Qantas Club lounges will cost $49 (or 7,000 Qantas Points), while International Business Class lounges will be $69 (or 9,990 Qantas Points). Their new single-class Premium International lounges in…

On July 7th, the annual music festival Ottawa Bluesfest will take over Canada’s capital city for 11 days, attracting some of the worlds finest bands (including our very own DZ Deathrays and The Paper Kites, among many others). But with many days of the festival not taking place until the evening – and some days…

How many times have you been promised an “Ocean View Room” only to find out your hotel is miles away from the Ocean and you can only see it with a pair of binoculars (BYO, of course). Well we have found at least one hotel that proves itself worth every buzz word in the brochure. Say…

Fresh from playing (and being evacuated from) Hurricane Festival in Germany and the iconic Glastonbury in the UK, Perth rockers Tired Lion are currently conquering Europe and the UK with a string of festival dates and headline shows. The tour continues later this week at Bravalla Festival in Sweden, before heading to Switzerland for Open…