Friday, 3 October - It's me, hi

October 03, 2025

Good morning, it’s Friday, 3 October. In your Squiz Today…

  • Our northern neighbour becomes our military ally

  • A terror attack in Manchester against Jewish worshipers on their holiest day

  • And an oven pancake to jazz up your weekend 🥞

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Squiz the Weather

Before we get into it….

We wanted to put up here, front and centre, that we’re taking the public holiday on Monday - that means we’ll be back for a news chat on Tuesday. Don’t miss us too much…

Squiz Sayings

“Too bad, I like that one. That’s what we’re calling it.”

Said dour comedian Larry David about the name of his show, Curb Your Enthusiasm, after it received no votes from a test audience, as revealed in his newly released memoir. Other options included Dead Inside and Regrets Only. In fairness, the one he picked was prett-ay, prett-ay, prett-ay good…

Pukpuk and away

The Squiz

Papua New Guinea has approved Australia's landmark defence treaty - our first new military alliance in 70 years - after an awkward delay that left PM Anthony Albanese empty-handed during last month's neighbourly visit. PNG's PM James Marape confirmed yesterday the Pukpuk Treaty now has cabinet backing and could be signed during his Sydney visit for the NRL Grand Final this Sunday.

What does this treaty cover?

It'll mean PNG becomes Australia's third official military ally, joining New Zealand and the US. The 2 countries agree to defend each other if attacked, with plans for up to 10,000 Papua New Guineans to serve with the Australian Defence Force. On the geopolitical front, the deal counters China's growing influence in the Pacific - in fact, Beijing's embassy in PNG warned the country against compromising its independence after Albanese's visit... The signing speedbump came hot on the heels of a similar situation in Vanuatu. But PNG is now sorted, leaving the Vanuatu deal to linger on the to-do list.

Will that deal get done?

It seems shaky… It’s called the Nakamal Agreement, and it would see Australia invest $500 million to help Vanuatu with climate and security issues in return for being the country’s main security partner. That one is still up in the air after Vanuatu got cold feet over fears it would put China offside and result in a loss of infrastructure funding. Vanuatu Government member Andrew Napuat said yesterday that Australia “must respect the wishes of smaller nations like Vanuatu”, and while Defence Minister Richard Marles called it "challenging and difficult”, he still believes it'll get done. Note: Vanuatu signed a Memorandum of Understanding with China for policing assistance last week - so it seems like there’s still some schmoozing to be done...

Helping out on World Smile Day...

Every 3 minutes, a child is born with a cleft condition, and in developing countries, many won't get the surgery they need. That means they'll struggle to eat, speak and smile - and about 10% won't make it to their first birthday. Today is World Smile Day, and there's a push to raise $30,000 for 100 life-changing surgeries that can transform a child's entire future. Today, you can gift a smile and help reach that goal.

Squiz the Rest

A holy day’s deadly disruption

A terror attack at a Manchester synagogue during Yom Kippur prayers has left 2 worshippers dead and 4 others in hospital. The attacker drove his car at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation and attempted to storm the building armed with a knife. Quick-thinking security staff and congregants barricaded the door before he was shot dead by police. UK PM Keir Starmer left a European summit early to chair an emergency meeting and deploy extra security to synagogues nationwide. Also in the news, 6 Aussies were detained by Israeli forces yesterday after their aid flotilla was intercepted 70km off the Gaza coast - they say they faced drones and water cannons in an aggressive takedown. The group of about 400 foreign nationals will be deported from Israel in the coming days. 

Erin Patterson appeals her conviction

The triple murderer’s lawyer Richard Edney made the announcement at Victoria’s Supreme Court yesterday - although the documents haven’t been formally lodged yet… That means that we’re waiting to learn what the grounds for appeal are. A quick recap of where we’re up to: Patterson was found guilty by a jury in July of murdering her in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, and of attempting to murder Heather’s husband Ian. She did that by serving them a now-infamous beef Wellington lunch laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms… The 51yo has always denied any wrongdoing. Last month, she was sentenced to life in jail with a non-parole period of 33 years, and her legal team has until 3 November to file the appeal.

The computer says no...

CommBank’s service outage was a pretty big one - impacting payments, ATMs and online banking access for a couple of hours in the middle of yesterday. The bank is yet to say what caused it or how many customers were impacted, but at least 7,000 people reported their services were down on the monitoring site DownDetector. There were plenty of customer complaints on social media too - including from those who were caught unawares during grocery/petrol runs… The bank has apologised for the “inconvenience” in a statement online. Ironically, it happened on the same day the Reserve Bank warned that banks’ complex digital networks were increasing the risk of service disruptions. Oops… 

A footy feast

It’s going to be a long/exciting day on the couch for Brisbane rugby league fans on Sunday, as both the men's and women's teams are in the running for the title. You can see an exhaustive list of festivities surrounding the big event in Sydney here, but the main action kicks off at 4pm AEDT (yep, we’ll be back on daylight saving time…) with the Broncos taking on the Roosters in the NRLW Grand Final. These 2 have been the best teams all year, so it’s no surprise to see them at the pointy end - Brisbane will go in as slight favourites. After that, headline entertainment Teddy Swims will take the stage, and then at 7.30pm AEDT, it’s the NRL Grand Final between the Melbourne Storm and the Brisbane Broncos. The Storm are favourites there, but only just - after the AFL Grand Final result, it might just be a Brisbane-themed year… 

It’s time to roll up…

…because at 2pm (AEST), Taylor Swift’s new album - The Life of a Showgirl - is due to drop on streaming services. From then on, it's probably not going to be a super productive Friday afternoon for Swifties, who’ve been psyched up by Swift herself this week as she teased it on social media and at pop-up events in the US before its release. The 12-track album, which Swift worked on during the European leg of her mammoth Eras Tour, has been described as her return to the pop genre - with producers Max Martin and Shellback (partners on some of her biggest pop bangers…) back on board. No surprise - the album’s already breaking records as the first to surpass 5 million pre-saves on Spotify. So don’t be surprised if you/your Swiftie friends go MIA from mid-arvo…

Friday Lites - 3 things we liked this week

Mary Fowler was kicking goals as the first athlete to walk in Paris Fashion Week for L’Oreal, but she wasn’t the only famous face on the catwalk… The French fashion event runs until 7 October - here’s a wrap of some of the best shows (puffy/frilly trends and all…) so far.

We mentioned it last week as an Oscar frontrunner, and we can confirm that the new Leonardo DiCaprio flick One Battle After Another is a great movie - for Leo’s slapstick comedy chops alone, it’s worth a watch… 

It’s a long weekend where we are (remember, no Squiz ‘til Tuesday…), and that means pancakes at some point. We know there’s no logic to that sentence, but go with it… Whip ‘em up in a skillet and put into the oven for 30 mins = fluffy delightfulness. This recipe calls for blueberries - we chuck some frozen ones into a bowl the night before and leave in the fridge to defrost. 

Squiz the Day

Friday
6.00am (AEST) - A coronial inquest begins into the Whakaari-White Island volcano eruption in December 2019, resulting in the deaths of 22 people including 16 Australians - Whakatāne, New Zealand

8.00am (AEST) - The Deni Ute Muster begins - it’s a 2-day event finishing up on Saturday - Deniliquin, NSW

9.00am (AEST) - The Wiggles' new album, The Tree of Wisdom, will be released across Australia

9.00am (AEST) - AGL will hold its annual general meeting - Sydney

9.00am (AEST) - AFL’s Free Agency period begins

10.00am (AEST) - A decision will be handed down in Tony Mokbel’s appeal of his drug trafficking conviction from the Lawyer X case - Melbourne

10.30am (AEST) - The AFL Draft Combine begins, with 64 players invited for physical assessments and interviews in the lead-up to the actual draft later in the year (until 5 October) - Melbourne

10.15am (AEST) - An appeal hearing will take place as the bus driver in the Hunter Valley bus crash seeks to overturn his 32-year jail sentence on the grounds that it was “manifestly excessive” - Sydney

11.00am (AEST) - The Australian Federal Police will farewell retiring Commissioner Reece Kershaw at a ceremony held at the AFP Headquarters - Canberra

2.00pm (AEST) - Taylor Swift's new album, The Life of a Showgirl, will be released on all major streaming platforms. Gasp…

7.30pm (AEST) - Basketball: The NBL’s Melbourne United will take on the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans in an NBA pre-season game, the first time one has been played in Australia - Melbourne, watch on Ten or Prime Video

Rapper Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs will face sentencing in New York after being found guilty back in July of 2 counts of transportation to engage in prostitution - New York, US

The Czech Republic will head to the polls for its parliamentary elections

ABS data release: National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey, 2023

South Korea’s National Foundation Day

Birthdays for musician Lindsey Buckingham (1949) and rapper A$AP Rocky (1988)    

Anniversary of: 

  • the premiere of TV series The Mickey Mouse Club (1955)

  • the reunification of East and West Germany, now known as the Day of German Unity (1990)

  • former NFL star OJ Simpson being found not guilty of the murder of Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman in Los Angeles, California (1995)

Saturday
9.30am (AEST) - Royal Australian Navy training ship Young Endeavour arrives in Geelong after an 11-day voyage from Adelaide

2.00pm (AEST) - Australia's largest outdoor music festival, the Knockout Outdoor Festival, takes place at Sydney Olympic Park - Sydney

5.45pm (AWST) - Rugby: Wallabies v All Blacks in the second of 2 Bledisloe Cup game - Perth, watch on Channel 9 or Stan Sport

7.30pm (AEST) - Cricket: Australia v Sri Lanka in the Women's ODI World Cup - Colombo, Sri Lanka, watch free on Prime Video

7.30pm (AEST) - Netball: Australia v South Africa in the first of a 3-match series at Red Energy Arena - Bendigo, watch free on Kayo Freebies

7.40pm (AEST) - Soccer: Heidelberg United FC v Newcastle Jets FC in the Australia Cup final at Lakeside Stadium - Melbourne, watch on Paramount+

Start of World Space Week (until 10 Oct)

Birthdays for actors Susan Sarandon (1946), Alicia Silverstone (1976), and Dakota Johnson (1989)

Anniversary of:

  • the deaths of Dutch painter Rembrandt (1669), Henrietta Lacks, the woman whose cancer cells provided one of the most important cell lines in medical research (1951), and musician Janis Joplin (1970)

  • the Soviet Union launching Sputnik I, the first artificial Earth satellite (1957)

  • the launch of WikiLeaks by Julian Assange (2006)

Sunday
2.00am (AEDT) - Clocks jump forward an hour from 2am to 3am as daylight saving begins in the ACT, NSW, Tasmania, Victoria and South Oz

7.00am (AEDT) - The Olivia Newton-John Walk for Wellness gets underway - Melbourne  

10.00am (AEDT) - Soccer: Australia v Cuba in the FIFA Men’s Under-20 World Cup - Santiago, Chile, watch on SBS On Demand

2.00pm (AEDT) - Basketball: The NBL’s South East Melbourne Phoenix will take on the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans in the second of 2 NBA games played in Australia - Melbourne, watch on Network 10 or Prime Video

3.55pm (AEDT) - NRLW Grand Final: Brisbane Broncos v Sydney Roosters - Sydney Olympic Park, watch on Channel 9 

7.30pm (AEDT) - NRL Grand Final: Brisbane Broncos v Melbourne Storm - Sydney Olympic Park, watch on Channel 9 

11.00pm (AEDT) - F1: It’s lights up in the Singapore Grand Prix on the Marina Bay Street Circuit - Singapore, watch on Kayo

Birthdays for former Pakistani PM Imran Khan (1952), astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson (1958), and actors Guy Pearce (1967) and Kate Winslet (1975)

Anniversary of: 

  • the premiere of the film Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), and the first James Bond film, Dr No (1962)

  • the release of The Beatles' first single, Love Me Do (1962), Elton John's album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973)

  • the publication of Stephenie Meyer's novel Twilight (2005)

  • the death of Steve Jobs (2011)

  • the New York Times publishing investigations into sexual harassment behaviour by Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein (2017)

Monday
It’s a Public Holiday in the ACT, NSW, South Australia, and Queensland (and that means a sleep-in for Team Squiz…)

Schools go back in Victoria and the Northern Territory

9.00am (AEDT) - VCE exams begin - Victoria

9.00am (AEDT) - The AFL trade period begins when all 18 clubs can exchange players and draft picks (until 10 October) - across Australia

7.30pm (ADT) - The Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine will be announced at The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institute - Solna, Sweden

Anniversary of:

  • the opening of the Moulin Rouge in Paris (1889)

  • inventor Thomas Edison showing his first motion picture, Monkeyshines (1889)

  • the High Court of Australia sitting for the first time (1903)

  • the release of the first film with a soundtrack, The Jazz Singer, signalling the end to the era of silent films (1927)

  • the launch of Instagram (2010)