Author: Larry Heath

In today’s Flight review on AU Abroad, we take you on Singapore Airline‘s A380 service from Hong Kong to Singapore – with an ongoing connection back to Sydney, as well as one of the handiest check in services you’ll find in the world… Airline: Singapore Airlines Route: Hong Kong to Singapore, SQ861 (Virgin Australia codeshare…

In our recent article looking at the Hawker centres of Singapore, we outlined a few of the places to get some of the best and cheapest food in the city. But to eat some of the best food in the city, you may have to venture away from these areas… still, none of the items…

We should expect it by now, but the masters of the one-take music video have gone and done blown our minds once again. For their new single “Upside Down & Inside Out”, the US quartet have convinced a S7 Airlines to send them weightless. In an actual aircraft. For a perfectly time, free-floating, magnificent adventure. I…

Perched dangerously close to the edge of the stage, Battles‘ signature skyscraping cymbal lingered precariously over the crowd as the New York band’s fans eagerly awaited their long anticipated return to Sydney. Guitarist and bassist Dave Konopka emerged first, busy looping his effects on the ground, a guitar draped over his shoulder. There was a slow build as guitarist/keyboardist Ian Williams came on and then, finally,…

Among many trailers to premiere today during the Super Bowl was our first look at Matt Damon’s fourth turn as Jason Bourne in the arguably lazily titled Jason Bourne. The 30 second clip did everything that a first film teaser should do – spoils little of the plot, but get’s us pretty excited about its…

The Martian is the much anticipated adaptation of Andy Weir’s acclaimed debut novel of the same name – a book which is as fascinating in its rise to notoriety as the content itself. Released in 2011 as a self-published, free-to-download ebook by the author (he released it chapter by chapter on his website before sticking it…

In the country to tour his third studio record Vestiges and Claws, which was released a year ago this month, Sweden’s José González made his Sydney Opera House debut last night, accompanied by a four piece band. José, who is no stranger to our shores either in solo or Junip mode (the project that preceded…

Though plenty of international festivals, including the Calgary Stampede which we will feature later in this article series, still embrace our most basic culinary appetites – fried, salty, greasy carnival food – the popularity of the modern, often “gourmet” food truck has undeniably changed the landscape of what we eat at festivals and how we…

When we first met Bombay Bicycle Club, they were a young group relatively unknown outside of the UK. We came across them in Canada, during their first trans-Atlantic trip and were immediately caught by Jack Steadman’s impressive vocals and their solid arrangements. And though this was 2011, they already had two albums under their belt….

It’s been the moment fans have been waiting for for five years – after going on an indefinite hiatus in 2011, Canadian heroes Wolf Parade are back! It’s been reported that the band will be releasing new music in 2016, and they have already announced a pile of shows in May! 5 nights at the…

Steve Jobs is the highly anticipated and Oscar nominated film based on the life of the late Apple CEO and co-founder of the same name. It’s the second take at a biopic on the iconic entrepreneur since his death – the first, Jobs (2013) starring Ashton Kutcher was widely panned, and didn’t see the support of…

Last month, I had the chance to speak with the legendary frontman of The Flaming Lips, Wayne Coyne, just before he arrived in Sydney for his free Sydney Festival show. You can read the first part of our chat HERE. In the second part of our conversation, we turned to the 20th anniversary of Clouds Taste…

Ahead of the Courtyard Sessions at the Seymour Centre (kicking off this weekend), Sydney’s own Ed Saloman takes some time out ahead of his gig as part of the series to answer some of our questions! Citing the likes of Thom Yorke as inspiration for his music and giving us some hints as to what’s…

Best known for co-writing on Sasha Baron Cohen projects (Borat, Ali G), Dan Mazer’s 2013 directorial debut I Give It A Year was a crowd-pleasing, fairly underrated romantic comedy, that brought together a stellar cast and showed Mazer as a Director to watch in the commercial sphere. Fast forward three years and Mazer’s follow up film,…

Last night, Sydneysiders were treated to the first screening of Zoolander 2 anywhere in the world, as part of the Australia Day Ridiculously Fun Fan Screening at the State Theatre. And there to walk the red carpet with fans was Zoolander himself – the film’s star, co-writer and Director Ben Stiller. Stiller spoke to the…

In a move that has the potential to shake up the Australian subscription streaming scene – Nine & Fairfax’s Stan has – according to The Hollywood Reporter – signed a deal with CBS to become Australia’s official home for US Network Showtime. Under the deal, Stan will have official and exclusive streaming rights to all…

Given my past experiences with the horrific disease, I’m one person that finds the deus ex machina of cancer unbearable. It is often done tastelessly, depicting it’s sufferers as people without autonomy or regarded with the self-respect that they deserve – cancer patients are people, not pawns that should be used to explain a protagonist…

It’s been promoted for months, anticipated for years, and now the day has arrived… The X-Files is back! Well… if you live in America that is. And it seems that Australian fans of the popular series are understandably perplexed as to why Channel Ten are making them wait almost a week before screening the first…

This week’s Sydney Festival performance from Joanna Newsom marked the third time the acclaimed US artist has performed in the iconic Sydney Opera House, and her first time on our shores in five years. Her first ever performance in the Concert Hall was back in 2008, when she performed her second record Ys in full…

Though relatively unknown in Australia, Key and Peele have one of the biggest comedy series in the US on Comedy Central and have become some of the country’s most popular comics. Aside from their series, both actors – Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele – have appeared in TV series and films separately and in rare instances…

In what is increasingly becoming one of the best viral campaigns for a film in recent memory, the upcoming non-MCU Marvel film Deadpool – starring Ryan Reynolds as the iconic comic book character – has released a special message just for Australian fans. In commemoration of Australia Day 2016, let’s watch how Deadpool tries to connect…

A huge festival announcement dropped this week, with the artists set for Barcelona’s Primavera Sound being unveiled. Headlined by Radiohead (set to present their new album at the event), the festival will see the likes of the recently reformed LCD Soundsystem, PJ Harvey and Sigur Rós and more international names taking part. Continuing their world…

The Ritz Cinema in Randwick – who recently received a surprise visit from Quentin Tarantino and Samuel L Jackson – is hosting the Australian premiere of the anticipated film Noma: My Perfect Storm next month (Monday 8th February), featuring a special Q&A with world renowned chef René Redzepi – the subject of the film. And we…

Following past sell out runs at Mixology Lounge, Love, Tilly Devine and Barrio Chino, America’s famed burger chain In-N-Out is coming back to Sydney tomorrow afternoon between 12pm to 4pm at Dead Ringer (413 Bourke Street) in Surry Hills. Though doors will open at 12pm, and they promise to produce anywhere between 300 and 500 of what many…

Sunday night in California, the winners of the 21st Annual Critics’ Choice Awards were announced – as voted by the BFCA (Broadcast Film Critics Association), a group made up of approximately 250 television, radio and online critics. Like the Golden Globes, which is voted by the relatively smaller Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the event recognises the…

Sydney Festival’s late night programming at their Festival Village in Hyde Park has always been impressive. A mix of paid and free gigs that start close to midnight and remind Sydneysiders of the sort of nightlife and entertainment that this city does so well, yet seems so intent to take away from us. As the…

The Hateful Eight is (fittingly) iconic auteur Quentin Tarantino‘s eighth film, which this week opened in Australian cinemas for a limited 70mm Ultra Panavision release – the first film to do so since 1966’s Khartoum and the first Western since The Hallelujah Trail (1965). For cinephiles around the world, the day couldn’t have come soon enough,…

In the third and final part of our interview series, The Iris’ Larry Heath sits down with Kurt Russell and Samuel L Jackson to talk about what makes Quentin Tarantino a great filmmaker – both from the perspective as actors and film goers. We also find out where they think The Hateful Eight will rank among…

One of the most anticipated events of this year’s Sydney Festival was the special screening of the film Birdman: Or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), with a live, mostly improvised score from Mexico’s Antonio Sanchez – the acclaimed jazz drummer who delivered us the original and unique soundtrack from the Oscar winning movie. So what…

This Australia Day, Zoolander himself (Ben Stiller) will be making his way to Australia to appear at a special fan screening of the highly anticipated film Zoolander 2 at Sydney’s State Theatre – and tickets are on sale now. Tickets are $35 and include complimentary sparkling wine, beer, or water on arrival, with fans able to walk…