Kenny and Tom talk to Tarsh Jago about Cherub, her show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

Cherub is the debut solo stand-up show from Palawa comedian Tarsh Jago. Inspired by a tweet that read, “You don’t look Aboriginal, you look like the cherub from the Pears soap”, this hour blends razor-sharp comedy with heartfelt storytelling about race, queerness and identity. Tarsh takes audiences on a hilarious and confronting journey through the contradictions of being Blak and queer, with punchlines that sparkle and stories that linger. Bold, cheeky and deeply personal

https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/cherub/

The post Sat, March, 2026: Tarsh Jago Cherub, Melb. International Comedy Festival. appeared first on Saturday Magazine.

Tom and Kenny talk to Melbourne Comedian Alex Ward.

Alex Ward is a comedian, writer, and presenter, best known for her whip-smart punchlines and regular appearances on Network Ten’s Have You Been Paying Attention? As a QLD’er living in Melbourne, Alex is always cold, which makes the warmth she brings to the stage all the more impressive. Alex is known for her personal, engaging and punch-line heavy comedy.

Alex has appeared on Have You Been Paying Attention?, The Project, Melbourne International Comedy Festival Gala, Upfront, ABC Comedy’s Up-late, Audible’s 2019 live stand-up series, Tonightly with Tom Ballard, Triple J’s Good Az Friday, and performed at Splendour In The Grass.

Alex has written for various TV shows including The Project, Guy Montgomery’s Guy Mont-Spelling Bee, Monday’s Experts and more.

https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/literally-anyone/?return=%2Fbrowse-shows%2F%3Fpage%3D2

The post Sat, March, 2026: Alex Ward, Comedian, Literally Anyone; Melbourne International Comedy Festival. appeared first on Saturday Magazine.

Kenny and Tom are joined live on air by Nicholas Reece, Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Latest from Melbourne Town Hall

First elected as a Councillor in 2016, re-elected as Deputy Lord Mayor in 2020 and then elected Lord Mayor in 2024.

As of March 2026, Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece is championing the retail resurgence in Melbourne’s CBD, reporting a 40% increase in Bourke Street Mall foot traffic in 2025. Key initiatives include strengthening city safety, supporting the new “Make Room” homelessness project, and driving renewable energy for data centres.

Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece is the portfolio head for Infrastructure and portfolio deputy for Finance, Governance and Risk and Aboriginal Melbourne.

He is Council’s representative on the following committees and external bodies:

• Delivery Unit Advisory Committee
• Chief Executive Officer Employment Matters Advisory Committee
• Melbourne Art Trust
• First Nations Committee
• Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation
• Council of Capital City Lord Mayors
• Shrine of Remembrance
• C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group
• Melbourne 9 (M9)
• Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV)
• Royal Humane Society of Victoria
• Royal Victorian Association of Honorary Justices

The post Sat, March, 2026: Nicholas Reece, Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Latest from Melbourne Town Hall appeared first on Saturday Magazine.

Kenny and Tom are joined live in the studio by Aiv Puglieli, MP Greens Nth Eastern Metro.

The Victorian Greens are calling on the Allan Government to make public transport in Melbourne free for the next month to provide immediate relief from cost of living pressures as petrol prices soar.

The Greens say this petrol price spike is exactly why the government should be helping people shift away from expensive petrol cars by making public transport cheaper and more accessible, investing in bike lane infrastructure, updating bus networks, running more frequent public transport services and helping people switch to electric vehicles.

The Greens say that making public transport free for the next month is something the government could do right now to provide immediate cost-of-living relief, while working on longer term measures.

According to a PBO costing, making public transport free for a month would cost the government approximately $79.4 million but could save a commuter household up to $500 from their family budget for the month.

Public transport has continued to get more expensive in Victoria. In other places like New Zealand and Western Australia, public transport fares have been slashed significantly and Queensland offers 50c fares.

https://greens.org.au/vic/news/media-release/greens-call-government-make-public-transport-free-next-month-fuel-prices

The post Sat, March, 2026: Aiv Puglielli – MP Greens, Nth Eastern Metro Greens Call for Government to Make Public Transport Free appeared first on Saturday Magazine.

Kenny is hosting this week with Australian and International, Melbourne based comedian, Tom Ballard as they discuss the news, views and reviews of the week that was.

Tom Ballard is returning to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF) in 2026 with a new stand-up show, “Be Funny Challenge (Impossible)”, running from March 26 to April 19, 2026, at Trades Hall.

After a year away, Ballard’s new 2026 show is described as a “relentless whirl of opinion, silliness, and increasingly bad-taste jokes,” focusing on politics, social issues, and current events.

Nominee 2023 Melbourne International Comedy Festival Award for Most Outstanding Show

As seen on Fisk, Deadloch, Tonightly, Guy Montgomery’s Guy Mont-Spelling Bee and Deal Or No Deal (for some reason). As heard on podcast Serious Danger.

After a year away from touring, doing nothing but being very nice and uncontroversial, Australia’s Special Envoy For Comedy Tom Ballard returns in 2026 with a new show packed with heaps of jokes about all the stuff.

https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/be-funny-challenge-impossible/

The post Sat, March, 2026: Weekend Wrap Up with Kenny Hill and Tom Ballard appeared first on Saturday Magazine.

Our last guest today, John Cook, Senior Research Fellow, Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, The University of Melbourne

Do Middle‑earth and Westeros make sense? Climate scientists modelled them to find out….

https://theconversation.com/do-middle-earth-and-westeros-make-sense-climate-scientists-modelled-them-to-find-out-277232

“For a world to be truly immersive and believable, readers apply what is known as the “principle of minimal departure”. This assumes anything not explicitly magical, such as a planet’s weather or gravity, must adhere to the laws of the real world.

In this spirit of rigorous worldbuilding, we just published a new study where we merged the disparate disciplines of literary worldbuilding and climate modelling.

We used complex computer programs – the same ones used to forecast Earth’s future warming scenarios – to simulate the climates of famous fantasy settings such as Tolkien’s Middle-earth, the continents of Westeros in the Game of Thrones, and the far-future Earth in The Wheel of Time series. We also built a model for a fictional world developed by one of us.”

John Cook is a research assistant professor at the Centre for Climate Change Communication at George Mason University. He has a PhD in cognitive psychology from the University of Western Australia. He founded Skeptical Science, a website which won the 2011 Australian Museum Eureka Prize for the Advancement of Climate Change Knowledge and 2016 Friend of the Planet Award from the National Centre for Science Education. J

ohn co-authored the college textbooks Climate Change: Examining the Facts with Weber State University professor Daniel Bedford. He was also a co-author of the textbook Climate Change Science: A Modern Synthesis and the book Climate Change Denial: Heads in the Sand. In 2013, he published a paper analysing the scientific consensus on climate change that has been highlighted by President Obama and UK Prime Minister David Cameron. In 2015, he developed a Massive Open Online Course at the University of Queensland on climate science denial, that has received over 25,000 enrolments.

He currently co-hosts a podcast Evidence Squared on the science of science communication

The post Sat, 21st March, 2026: John Cook, Snr Research Fellow, School of Psychological Sciences, MelbUni; Do Middle‑earth and Westeros Make Sense? appeared first on Saturday Magazine.

Sean Kelly, Amy Remeikis, Don Watson with Brendan Donohoe

At a time when political pundits are questioning the Liberal -National Party alliance and its capacity to win government, our panel dissects the past, present and future of conservative politics in Australia.

http://From Menzies To Pauline, Turnbull To Taylor: What is an Australian conservative?

The post Sat, 21st March, 2026: Brendan Donohoe, Fmr State Political Editor, 7 News Melbourne; From Menzies To Pauline, Turnbull To Taylor: What is an Australian Conservative? appeared first on Saturday Magazine.

Nevena and John talk to Guy Morrow, Assoc Prof, Arts & Cultural Management, Uni of Meb, Is Spotify’s AI ‘killing’ Australian music?

Guy Morrow is an Associate Professor of Arts and Cultural Management at the University of Melbourne, Australia. His research interests include artist‑centred approaches to cultural management and the impact of digitalisation, datafication and artificial intelligence on music artists within music ecosystems. His work combines academic rigour with arts sector collaboration to develop actionable insights for artists, managers and cultural organisations. He is also the current president of the International Music Business Research Association (IMBRA).

Guy’s current contract research project is examining digital platform interactions to assess the performance of Australian artists on Spotify’s algorithmic playlists for the Victorian Music Development Office. One of his previous research contracts explored the shifting ground beneath music artist manager remuneration for the Association of Artist Managers in Australia while another developed an impact framework for the Science Gallery Network. Guy is also part of a project that has received AU$100,000 in proof-of-concept funding from Research, Innovation and Commercialisation at the University of Melbourne, ArtCert, which is developing an innovative response to shortcomings in current artwork authentication practices. The project aims to use blockchain and computational methods to validate the authenticity of painting collections.

Guy also has a vast record of achievement in the creative and cultural industries and has worked with many of Australia’s best-known musicians within various popular music scenes through direct management, and also through music and design work. Guy was the founding co-manager of the band Boy & Bear and in this capacity received five Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Awards, as well as Gold and Platinum Awards from ARIA.

https://theconversation.com/is-spotifys-ai-killing-australian-music-what-we-found-from-analysing-more-than-2-million-tracks-276984

“The objective of streaming platforms is to maximise user engagement. Spotify does this by allowing users to discover new music in various ways, including through manual search and exploration, editorial (human-made) playlists, and AI-recommended playlists.

Algorithms have been criticised for amplifying the influence of superstars – and the corporate interests that support them – while also potentially narrowing listeners’ musical preferences.

Spotify’s AI does have a significant influence on the listening habits of its subscribers. But is this a problem?”

The post Sat, 21st March, 2026: Guy Morrow, Assoc Prof, Arts & Cultural Management, Uni of Meb, Is Spotify’s AI ‘killing’ Australian Music? appeared first on Saturday Magazine.