A GIANT Australian lily flower in the palm garden at Beleura has been monitored over the past month by aficionados. The gardens surrounding the elegant mansion, built in 1863 with interesting antiques and structural features, are open for tours and events. Like an alien Triffid, the Doryanthus palmeri is related to the better-known Gymea Lily (Doryanthus excelsa), whose torch-like, red flower heads dominate many of Melbourne’s roundabouts. Head gardener Richard Smith said the single flower head “just kept expanding” in size so that, now, several kilos of orange-red flowers are close to drooping on the ground under their own weight.…
Author: MP News Group
PENINSULA Chamber Musicians will perform their final two concerts for the year at Rosebud and Mornington next month. The first is 2pm Saturday 11 November at All Saints Anglican Church, Rosebud, and the second at their regular venue 2pm Sunday 12 November at Mornington Community Theatre. The subject pieces are Britten’s Simple Symphony, Bernstein’s Waltz from Divertimento for Orchestra, Bartok’s Romanian Dances and Mendelsohn’s Italian Symphony. PCM performs under musical director Andrew Hall (Melbourne Symphony Orchestra) and president Anthony Pope (Orchestra Victoria). Formed in 2013, they provide an opportunity for classical musicians to play in a high-quality chamber orchestra, as…
Police are currently searching for a fisherman who failed to return home after a trip to Blairgowrie yesterday. Investigators have been told the 78-year-old from Wantirna left to go fishing off rocks at the Blairgowrie back beach about 9am. When he did not return home last night family members raised the alarm and police searched the area around 10pm last night. The man’s car has been found in a car park on Number Sixteen Access Road but the man is yet to be located. The search will continue at first light with assistance from other specialist police and the SES.…
TWO men who smashed their way into a Rosebud jewellery store early Monday morning got away with dress rings and less expensive jewellery items from racks and display cases, police said. Detective Sergeant Jason Hocking, of Mornington Peninsula CIU, said the men used an angle grinder to cut through two padlocks on a metal grill then smashed through double doors to Paul’s Fine Jewellery, Point Nepean Rd, 3.15am, Monday 23 October. Once inside they smashed two cabinets and grabbed trays of rings and bracelets of an unknown value before driving away west in a late model black hatch. Substantial damage…
A BITTERN cattery has won a Mornington Peninsula Heritage Award. Windrest Cattery, in Myers Rd, won the Creative Reuse of a Heritage Place award for turning its 1920s dairy building into a cattery. The judges’ citation said the work “retained the original fabric of the building and converted the original layout into individual cattery suites and office space”. Owners Dennice and Robert Breeschoten completed the renovation and opened their cattery in April after owning the building for 25 years. “It had been used for storage,” Mr Breeschoten said. “Then we realised the potential of this lovely building, which now houses…
A WALK by 18 women from Safety Beach Yacht Club to the Sorrento Hotel on Sunday 29 October will raise funds for the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation (OCRF). And they will stand out, too, as all the women will be wearing red Wonder Women t-shirts helping create a “sea of red” on the foreshore near the sailing club at 8.30am. Organiser Helen Powell said she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer four years ago and has been “living with the disease ever since”. “Throughout this time I have worked and continued to raise a family through treatment,” she said. “I have…
A SILAGE wrap recycling program being trialled on the Mornington Peninsula aims to reduce the number of used silage bags going to landfill. Farmers are being encouraged by Mornington Peninsula Shire, the Victorian Farmers Federation and Solo Resource Recovery to bring used silage wrap to the Mornington Resource Recovery Centre where it can be exchanged for a full bag of wrap for free. Farmers use the bags because hay wrapped in airtight layers of plastic retains feed value than unwrapped hay. VFF branch vice-president Geoff Coghill approached the shire seeking a better recycling scheme. He met with waste services operations…
STREET art event Voices To Be Heard will be held at the Rye fairground between Christmas and the new year to focus community attention on youth suicide. The event will be held at the Wittingslow Carnival by the Sorrento Activity Centre and Studio Sorrento in conjunction with Rosebud Secondary College. Money raised will go towards the college’s Youth Wellness Pavilion. Organiser Pat Watt said she hoped a diverse group of young artists would create street art which will be hung and at times worked upon on the fencing around the fairground by young artists. They will have been provided with…
TOORAK College, Mt Eliza, will next year begin building a new science and technology centre where its students can learn the skills needed for Australia’s fastest growing industries. Over the next decade the school believes 75 per cent of jobs will require skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), despite enrolment in these subjects declining across Australia. “Currently, females are significantly underrepresented in STEM careers and make up only 16 per cent of STEM qualified professionals,” Toorak College Principal Kristy Kendall says. “Only one in four IT graduates and fewer than one in 10 engineering graduates are women.” Ms…
COMPUTER users are being advised to watch out for scammers who call to say that “some issues with your computer” mean they must have access. Computer repairer pcplanIT, of Diane St, Mornington, warns that the caller usually claims to be from Telstra but might also say the Australian Taxation Office, or a big company. “We have already had four computers in for servicing after a phone scammer gained access,” the company’s Richard Okill said. “The best solution in these cases is for a full back-up and reinstallation of Windows to make sure there are no traces of any keylogging software.”…
THE best 30-40 Flying 15 class yachts in Australia will contest a major sailing event at Mornington Yacht Club in the new year. Flying 15s are a 6.096 metre (20 feet long with 15 feet waterline length) performance yacht with a two-person crew. They have remained a popular racing class yacht all over the world for years. Planning for the 1-4 January regatta began 12 months ago with a practice race on 31 December and the presentation dinner on 4 January. Entries close in five weeks with interest already from several Western Australian competitors. “This is a major summer event…
AUTHOR Fran Henke realised the need for a book outlining the latest expert advice for polio survivors after attending a conference in Sydney last year. “Experts from around the world were speaking on the main areas of concern for us and I wanted to get that new information to the often isolated people who need it most,” Mrs Henke said. “The exchange of ideas on management for polio survivors in the second round of the fight with the polio virus has proved vital in the absence of wide understanding of post-polio syndrome in the medical profession.” Mrs Henke, of Hastings,…
AN application for a planning permit to rebuild the fire-ravaged Somerville Recreation and Community Centre is being advertised in the lead up to works starting next year. The Mornington Peninsula Shire planning application is for a four-court indoor multi-sport facility to replace the two-court building destroyed by fire in May last year. The rebuild will include refurbishing the damaged community area, amenities for players and officials and better public areas in the recreation centre. The shire in August committed up to $3 million next year for the rebuild – subject to it receiving a $1.5 million grant from Sport and…
AN outdoor seat with plaque dedicated to the memory of Joan Backhouse was stolen from lawns outside St Mark’s Church, Balnarring, overnight Wednesday 4 October. The jarrah three-seater, with the plaque mounted in middle, had been bolted onto concrete between the vicarage and the church on the Stumpy Gully Rd side of the property. Senior Constable Travis O’Donnell, of Hastings police, said the seat was valued at about $1200 but had a greater sentimental value. First published in the Western Port News – 17 October 2017
CUTTING power costs and cleaning up the marine environment are on the agenda of the Mornington Peninsula branch of the Australian Greens. “So many residents on the peninsula are struggling to make ends meet with increased power prices,” co-convenor of the peninsula branch Paul Saunders said after a public meeting at Dromana Community Hall on Saturday (7 October). “It was refreshing to hear [MP for Melbourne] Adam [Bandt] speak about the future vision of the Greens to solve this crisis through decreasing costs by using an effective mix of renewables and storage.” About 60 people were at the meeting to…
CANADIAN Bay Calisthenics College Masters has won the Victorian state championships in Division 1 – the highest division. The team members – all aged over 26 – won four items and placed second in the other two. The 16 women aged 28-41 are coached by Sarah Fortnam, a teacher at John Paul College, who also performs with them on stage. Most competed for Canadian Bay in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. “It’s just like the Blues Brothers getting the band back together,” member Elspeth Dove said. “We now all have careers and most are mothers, but once a week we…
THE power needs of some local businesses are becoming cheaper and greener – thanks to a partnership with Mornington Peninsula Shire. Boneo Maze is one of five businesses to sign an environmental upgrade agreement (EUA) to install solar panels. Others on board are the Rye Hotel, One four Nelson, Hussey’s and Co and Paringa Estate Winery. The installation of a 14 kilowatt system at the maze takes the total solar power installed through EUAs on the peninsula to 230kW. Maze owner Michael Wittingslow said the EUA was an opportunity to further the environmental sustainability of his business. “EUAs presented a…
Police are appealing for public assistance to help locate missing Rosebud man Tristan Davis. The 25-year-old was last seen at an address on Rosemore Road in Rosebud about 11am on Saturday (7 October). He is described as being 175cm tall, with blue eyes, long dark curly hair, and a slim build. Tristan also has a distinctive tattoo on his right wrist of angel wings. Police and family have concerns for his welfare as he has an existing medical condition and his disappearance if out of character. Police have released an image of Tristan in the hope someone recognises him and…
AN elderly man was lucky to escape serious injury when his car ran into the back of a truck under the Skye Rd bridge on Peninsula Link, Frankston, Thursday 5 October. Roadworks up ahead had slowed traffic at the accident site and only one lane was getting through. Leading Senior Constable Greg Wolfe, of Somerville Highway Patrol, said the 83-year-old, of Carrum, passed out before running into the truck. He was alone in the car. His 1993 Toyota Corolla was extensively damaged and he was taken to Frankston Hospital for observation. Leading Senior Constable Wolfe said drivers aged over 80…
WHILE thousands of cyclists were pedalling along the level bitumen roads between Sorrento and Dromana in Sunday’s Around the Bay ride, hundreds of hardy riders were hurtling towards them from Arthurs Seat. But for the riders on the hill there was no stopping for lattes or riding alongside another cyclist for a chat. There was certainly no break aboard the ferry taking riders across from one peninsula to another. Before they even reached the start of the steep, winding downhill bike trail near the Arthurs Seat summit competitors in the Red Hill Gravity Enduro faced a one kilometre hill climb.…
THE thrill of the flying fox proved irresistible to 82-year-old Shirley Bolim, of Hastings, during Seniors Week activities at Camp Manyung, Mt Eliza, on Friday. HER bravery was said to have inspired other participants to take part in a range of outdoor adventure activities. Shire team leader, transport, Dial-a-Bus service, Janine Tresize, said those who attended “had a terrific day. Another lady, who is 94, said Shirley was courageous”. The camp in Sunnyside Rd is run by the YMCA. Seniors took the opportunity to learn about clubs and social groups, such as University of the Third Age and…
Police are appealing for public assistance to help locate missing Bittern man Mark Anderson. The 38-year-old was last seen at a residence in Bittern about 11.15am on Sunday (1 October). Police and family hold concerns for Mark’s welfare as his disappearance is out of character, and he has a medical condition that requires medication. He is described as 180cm tall with a thin build. He is known to frequent the Bunyip State Forest, Toolangi State Forest, Yarra Junction, Yarra Ranges, Kinglake, and Marysville areas. It is believed he may be travelling in his vehicle, a 2000 model Holden Rodeo Utility,…
YOUNG Aboriginal children participated in a ceremony at Rosebud last Wednesday that has not been held on the Mornington Peninsula for hundreds of years. The Welcome Bubup [baby] to Country ceremony at the Rosebud Southern Peninsula Arts Centre was attended by more than 70 parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, children and guests. Families walked through sacred smoke and were welcomed onto country by Boon Wurrung elder N’arweet Carolyn Briggs. This was followed by a ceremonial dance and didgeridoo performance. Each child was painted with ochre and presented with a certificate and cultural gift. Deb Mellett, Mornington Peninsula Shire’s Koolin Balit Aboriginal health…
LESS than half of the grape growers on the Mornington Peninsula have registered with Agriculture Victoria to be notified of threats to their crops. The department and the Mornington Peninsula Vignerons Association (MPVA) say registering for a property identification code (PIC) will enable growers to “get the jump on pest and disease threats in their region with faster access to biosecurity information”. Growers with 0.5 hectares or more grapes must register with the PIC program. “PICs are the best option for receiving fast and accurate biosecurity information; however, less than 45 per cent of peninsula grape growers have registered for…
TWO brothers aged 13 and 15 have been interviewed and could face charges over 11 alleged burglaries in the Portsea area. Detectives say they expect to speak with three more teenagers over alleged thefts from sheds at holiday houses and residential properties. Detective Senior Constable Clayton Beckhouse, of Mornington Peninsula CIU, said the charges would relate to allegedly stolen power tools, a kayak, bikes, a motor scooter, and even the attempted theft of a car. He will allege the stolen items were stored in a vacant house in Wattle Grove, Portsea. “We did a warrant at a house where the…
Off the back of sold out shows across the USA, Kasey Chambers is bringing her 2017 “Dragonfly Tour” to the peninsula. “Dragonfly” is being described by music critics here and in the USA as her best ever. It is Kasey’s 5th number 1 album and proves, that one of Australia’s most loved and accomplished performers’ is unquestionably at the top of her game. The Dragonfly double album is out now and features guests including Paul Kelly, Ed Sheeran, Grizzlee Train, Harry Hookey, Vika and Linda Bull, Keith Urban and Foy Vance. The first disc of Dragonfly was produced by ARIA…
The Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery has over 1600 works in the collection from the 18th century through to the present day. It contains a selection of old master prints and drawings, modern works by Arthur Boyd, Russell Drysdale, Charles Blackman and a growing body of contemporary works by established and emerging artists. A strength of the collection is its focus on the cultural heritage of the Mornington Peninsula, which has been a haven and source of inspiration for artists since the 1850s, including Fred Williams and Albert Tucker. Two new exhibitions at MPRG celebrate works in the collection. Character Traits…
Direct from London, THE BOOTLEG BEATLES, the world’s first and finest homage to the Fab Four will be performing at the Frankston Arts Centre on Sunday November 5. Now in their 37th year, THE BOOTLEG BEATLES have performed over 5,000 shows worldwide. Their stunning authenticity coupled with their musical credibility has seen them perform at some of the world’s best-known venues such as Wembley Stadium, the Royal Albert Hall, Knebworth, Glastonbury Festival and the Budokan Stadium in Tokyo, where The Beatles originally played. They also performed on “The Graham Norton Show” in London. The legendary English Record Producer/Arranger/Composer Sir George…
Andrew De Silva from 90’s R&B sensation CDB and winner of Australia’s Got Talent, along with some of Australia’s finest touring stars lead a Purple Revolution. Celebrate life with music in loving memory of our Purple Prince. Whether you know Andrew as the Winner of Australia’s Got Talent 2012, or from the Multi-Platinum ARIA Award-Winning band CDB, or simply heard him sing with his acoustic guitar, well respected Producer/Artist Andrew is the “real deal”. Humble, yet with a wealth of experience in the industry Andrew is a seasoned performer. Opening for mega stars like Mariah Carey (Etihad Stadium 2013), Boys…
Peninsula Film Festival is thrilled to announce its new naming rights partner Cobs popcorn and together we are calling on filmmakers across the world to enter their masterpiece for PFF 2018! Enter your short film in the Cobs Peninsula Film Festival and you could win a share in up to $30K of cash and prizes and have your work seen by Industry heavyweights! 20 short listed films will be judged live on Saturday February 10, 2018 by top industry professionals with the winner taking out $5K in cash, second place $2.5K cash and third place scoring $1250 cash! There are…