Great Dates.

08 Dec to 30 Mar

Andy Warhol, United States b.1928
d.1987 Judy Garland c.1979
The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh
Founding Collection, Contribution
©The Andy Warhol Foundation for the
Visual Arts, Inc

BRISBANE
Andy Warhol Exhibition
Catch Australia’s first major exhibition of pop art maven Andy Warhol exclusively at the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane. More than 300 pieces are on show, including iconic images of Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley and the Campbell’s soup cans. Kids have their own admission-free program in The Silver Factory: Andy Warhol for Kids. Tel: +61
(7) 3840 7303.

14 Dec

VICTORIA
Christmas Break Up Race Day on the Mornington
Gather the troops for a day of horse racing on the Mornington Peninsula. The Mornington track has its challenges, as horses face a steep uphill run on the straight. However, all you have to worry about is booking a marquee and dining package. Marquee tickets from AU$130 per person (min’ of 30), general admission is AU$8, children under 18 years free, tel: +61 (3) 5975 3310.

26 Dec

SYDNEY
Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race
In its 63rd year, this iconic race from Sydney Harbour to Hobart’s Battery Point through Bass Strait is still considered one of the world’s most challenging courses. More than 25 contenders are lining up at the starting line alongside the current record time holder, Bob Oatley’s Wild Oats XI; skipper Mark Richards says they are “fully turbo-charged for line honours”. Get yourself to a good vantage point for the start or finish.

’til 03 Feb

Sidney Nolan (1917 – 1992),
Self Portrait, 1945
Collection Art Gallery of New
South Wales
© The Trustees of the Sidney
Nolan Trust

SYDNEY
Sidney Nolan ‘A New Retrospective’
This is the first major posthumous exhibition for renowned contemporary Australian artist Sidney Nolan. With a large number of rarely seen pieces and in strict chronological order, the exhibition creates a new appreciation for audiences. “…his name is synonymous with Australia. And yet he remains something of an enigma,” says director of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Edmund Capon. Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, tel: +61 (2) 9225 1744. Touring to National Gallery of Victoria (22 Feb to 18 May) and Queensland Art Gallery (6 Jun to 31 Aug).

29 Dec to 04 Jan

PERTH
Hyundai Hopman Cup XX
Make your way to one of the most prestigious invitation tennis tournaments in the world. The Hyundai Hopman Cup in its 20th year will see the current Australian Open champion Serena Williams, VIP guest Martina Navratilova, Serb top seeds Jelena Jankovic and Novak Djokovic, plus Aussie champ Alicia Molik lending star dust to the event. Burswood Dome, Perth. Call Ticketek 132 849.

16, 23 & 24 Dec

AUSTRALIA
Carolling Across the Country
Choral groups are spreading good tidings this month, singing out across Australia.

Adelaide’s Carols by Candlelight are on 16 December in Elder Park, starting at 8pm and ending with fireworks.

In Melbourne, Myer presents Vision Australia Carols by Candlelight – a fundraiser for Vision Australia at Sidney Myer Music Bowl on Christmas Eve. The rehearsal is the night before and tickets are available at a reduced rate. Tickets from Ticketek 1300 136 166. The concert will also be beamed live to a Federation Square TV screen, for what is a free event.

Simultaneous carolling events are taking place in the Tasmanian cities of Launceston (Carols by Candlelight, City Park, Launceston) and Hobart (Carols by the Bay, Sandown Park Hobart) on 16 December, starting at 6.45pm.

mid-Dec to Jan

PERTH
Clipper International Round the World Yacht Race
The third leg of this yacht race sees 10 teams race from Durban, South Africa, to Perth, Western Australia, across the Southern Ocean. Welcome the Australian team westernaustralia2011.com, currently placed eighth on the Salvador to Durban leg, into
Fremantle harbour where all the teams are spending Christmas.

27–28 Dec

CHRISTCHURCH
New Zealand Air Games
Try not to get a crick in your neck at the “largest aviation sports event in the Southern Hemisphere” as you catch the action with 10 aerial programs including paragliding, sky diving, helicopter stunts and hot-air ballooning – all set against the alpine landscape of Wanaka, one of New Zealand’s top ski areas. Tickets at NZ$18 (AU$15.25) adult, children under 16 years free.

BOOK NOW!

05–28 Jan
The Hi-5 Circus Stageshow
The Logie-winning Hi-5 entertainers turn circus performers as they bring the best of their colourful songs and fun to children. Featuring the flying trapeze, tightrope walking, juggling and tumbling, it promises to be their most exciting show yet. Tour starts in Sydney on 5 January and heads to Melbourne, Newcastle, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Adelaide and Perth.

11 Jan to 16 Feb
St George Open Air Cinema
A giant three-storey screen with the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge as a backdrop and more than a thousand movie goers at every film, make this the hottest outdoor cinema in the world!

18–27 Jan
Tamworth Country Music Festival
Get your feet tapping in Australia’s country music capital, where a Who’s Who in this genre will be putting on a rocking good show. Musicians expected include Tommy Emmanuel, Gina Jeffreys, Beccy Cole, Sara Storer and Lee Kernaghan.

26 Jan
Australia Day
Expect sausage sizzles in Hyde Park, vintage cars on Macquarie Street and speeding ferries on Sydney Harbour; special events at all the museums and parks in Melbourne; family activities centred on Southbank in Brisbane; a parade and concert in Adelaide; regattas and barbecues in Hobart and a fun run and sports carnival in Launceston; and sports events in Darwin. It’s a great day to be in Australia!

THE FUNNY THING ABOUT SUNBURN

A Mix FM radio presenter and a regular on Channel 7’s Morning Show, Tom Gleeson has just returned from entertaining the troops in Iraq. We tracked him down before this month’s gig at Sydney Opera House.

When did you realise you could make people laugh?
When I was a kid I had red hair and freckles. The only way I could get attention from pretty girls was to make them laugh. So I had this feeling that I was funny. Years later, when I was in a band, I berated the audience for not clapping enough. The angrier I got, the more they laughed. I thought: there might be something in this.

Is being good at what you do just about saying funny things?
Pretty much. It’s saying funny things but also saying them in the right order. Making up the funny things is the hardest bit! Making up funny things that haven’t already been made up by someone else, that’s even harder again.

Some comedians are only funny when performing. Do you have a split personality?
I’m still funny off stage. I think I might actually be at my funniest while around friends and family but that’s with everyone joining in. I’m not funny all day long. I don’t think anyone would find me funny while I’m packing my dishwasher or folding undies.

Tell us about visiting the troops in Iraq.
It was an amazing experience. I’m not for the war but I found out that not everyone in the army is for the war either. Australia is at war at the moment and, instead of burying my head in the sand and pretending it’s not happening, I became more informed.

You’ve performed internationally, what is a common thread of humour?
All around the world, even where English is a second language and even in war zones, people find redheads getting easily sunburnt hilarious.

How big is your gig in Sydney?
Pretty big. It sold out at the Melbourne Comedy Festival this year so I wanted to bring it to Sydney, which is where I started in comedy. It’s about entertaining the troops, starting bushfires, scaring my mates and buying a Monaro.

If you hadn’t taken the funny road, what would you have been?
There really never has been a back-up plan… maybe a mathematics teacher.

Tom Gleeson – Tom On at The Studio, Sydney Opera House, 11–22 Dec. Tickets from AU$29.90, tel: +61 (2) 9250 7777.