Tuesday, 26 May - Unforgettable, that's what you are

Good morning, it’s Tuesday, 26 May. In your Squiz Today…

• Tributes flow following the death of AFL great/Motor Neurone Disease fundraiser extraordinaire Neale Daniher

• ASIO boss Mike Burgess has fronted the Royal Commission into Antisemitism

• And the king of chasing cheese down a steep hill is crowned in the UK 🧀

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🙋🏻‍♀️ This newsletter was written by Andrew Williams, Claire Kimball, Larissa Huntington, Anna Pykett and Sophie Felice

Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

Said federal Independent MP Helen Haines, channelling Bob Katter while ruling herself out from joining a proposed party of Teals. Unfortunately, she didn’t randomly pivot to the issue of crocs tearing people to pieces in North Queensland like her behatted colleague, so it’s not quite the same…

Vale Neale Daniher

The Squiz

The AFL great and last year’s Australian of the Year died yesterday at 65yo after living an incredible 13 years since his diagnosis with Motor Neurone Disease (MND). If you’re from an Aussie Rules state, you’ll likely know of the work Daniher did to raise awareness of the disease via a big annual event in June (so the next one is just a couple of weeks away…). The ‘Big Freeze’ sees players and celebs barrel down an ice slide (which symbolises the ‘freezing’ effect the disease has on a person's muscles) at the MCG. It’s a hoot - and it’s highly effective… Since 2014, FightMND (the organisation Daniher co-founded) has raised more than $130 million, giving much-needed funds to researchers. 

Why is he such a big deal? 

He was AFL royalty, along with his 3 brothers who all played at the sport’s top level from the late 1970s to the 90s. Neale’s playing career at Essendon was injury-ridden, but he went on to coach the Melbourne Football Club from 1998 to 2007, and after that, he was head of football operations at the West Coast Eagles until his diagnosis in 2013. From there, he turned his ‘move forward’ mentality towards supporting MND research efforts. When he accepted his Australian of the Year award last year, he summed up his outlook: “I hope to leave a legacy that says this: no matter the odds, no matter the diagnosis, we all have the power to choose to fight, to choose our attitude, to choose to smile, and to choose to do something.” Daniher’s family have accepted Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan’s offer of a state funeral - date TBC. 

So MND is a cluster disaster… 

Sure is. There’s no known cause, limited treatments and no cure for the disease that attacks the nerve cells that carry messages from the brain to the muscles, leaving sufferers unable to move, talk, swallow, or breathe and with about 2 years to live. Daniher’s case demonstrates that timeline is not always the case. And if it’s ringing some bells, that’s because we talked about MND just last week when 30yo NRL star Jai Arrow confirmed his diagnosis… In Australia, about 800 people a year die from MND, and rates are climbing. In March, researchers at Macquarie Uni (which is globally recognised for the work they do on MND) called for a national register of cases and more funding. “It’s totally unsatisfactory that we still don’t know the cause,” said Professor Dominic Rowe. 

Investing in the future

When it comes to regional and remote communities across Australia, services can be stretched thin, and that’s where BHP reckons it can play an important supporting role. An example of BHP’s investment in regional Western Australia is the Pilbara Education Partnership, which is focused on improving school readiness and employment outcomes for local kids and young people. It’s the kind of long-term program that can make a difference for generations…

Squiz the Rest

The Antisemitism Royal Commission continues

The second block of public hearings kicked off yesterday, this time focusing on the 2 alleged shooters in December’s Bondi terror attack and the timeline of events leading up to it. In his opening, Counsel Assisting the Commissioner Richard Lancaster said 10 of the 15 victims were shot and killed within the first 30 seconds - which he described as a “surprise attack”, saying neither police nor intelligence agencies had information pointing to an imminent threat. ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess also gave evidence - he said there had been a “pivot” for the agency’s attention from counter-terrorism to espionage/foreign interference. He said they are “stretched” but resources and funding are “sufficient”. Up today is NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Peter McKenna…

New allegations against fugitive Dezi Freeman…

…were heard in the Victorian Coroner’s Court yesterday ahead of an inquest into the killing of police officers Neal Thompson and Vadim de Waart-Hottart, who were shot dead by Freeman in August 2025. The court heard that the officers went to the Porepunkah property where he was living to carry out a search warrant in relation to allegations he’d sexually assaulted a child and was attempting to produce child abuse material. He opened fire on them before escaping, and managed to evade police for 7 months before he was shot and killed on 30 March at a remote property, around 150km from the crime scene. A separate hearing was also held ahead of an inquest into Freeman’s death. The Coroner will set dates for the inquests later this year.
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Investigating the Top End’s diphtheria outbreak

Federal Health Minister Mark Butler says an investigation will be held into the outbreak after a man in his 60s became the second person to die from the disease in the Northern Territory this month. The Minister announced $7.2 million for a vaccine program last week, with reported cases growing to 242 this year. Of those, 146 are in the Northern Territory and 89 in Western Oz, with a few in Queensland and South Oz. It’s the first outbreak of the highly infectious disease since the 1990s - but questions are now being asked about why it’s taken so long to get word out about it to remote communities. Indigenous program coordinator Julie Watson called the NT Government’s response “disgraceful”, saying “there’s been absolutely no information”.

An Abdo-cation

The National Rugby League is hunting for a new chief exec after Andrew Abdo stepped down following 6 years in the gig. It’s been an eventful 6 years, too - the NRL announced 2 new sides in Perth and Papua New Guinea and started opening its seasons in Las Vegas. It’s also enjoying record crowds and TV ratings, so Abdo has left big shoes to fill. The man filling those shoes, at least for the time being, is current Australian Rugby League Commission Chair Peter V’Landys, who will take on both roles until a replacement is found. And as for Abdo, he’s off to Tennis Australia - taking on the role Craig Tiley vacated earlier in the year. It’s like a game of CEO musical chairs…

Nobody does it feta

Thousands of people have rocked up to Cooper’s Hill in the UK for the annual cheese-rolling races - where competitors run/tumble down a steep hill chasing a 3kg wheel of Double Gloucester cheese. It might sound quaint, but it’s actually quite dangerous - competitors are often taken to hospital, and cheese rolling is technically classified as an extreme sport. The danger didn’t deter competitors like German YouTuber Tom Kopke, who won his third title on the trot. Along with the other winners, he’ll take home - you guessed it - the same wheel of cheese he chased down the hill in the first place. And if you’re wondering if it still tastes gouda good after rolling down a hill at 112km/h, the makers say you betcha - it’s cheese, after all…

Apropos of Nothing

Aussie baseball player Travis Bazzana hit a massive 125m home run for his team, the Cleveland Guardians, in their game against the Philadelphia Phillies. Bazzana was the top pick for the MBL’s 2024 draft, proving Oz is stepping up to the talent plate on the big stage.

Not so stoked with his performance on the world stage was Aussie swimmer James Magnussen, who finished last in his 100m and 50m freestyle events at the Enhanced Games after 2 years on performance-enhancing drugs. It was, some said, a (belly)flop…

And the Ballarat Beard and Stache competition celebrated its 10th year over the weekend… You can check out this photo gallery to see all the magnificent mos. At 90cm+, some of those beards need a full-time stylist…

Squiz the Day

9.00am (AEST) - Commonwealth Bank's inaugural AI conference is on, featuring CEO Matt Comyn, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Coles boss Leah Weckert and Canva co-founder Cliff Obrecht - Sydney 

11.00am (AEST) - Plea hearing for Joslene McCormack, the first teen to be sentenced in the County Court under the Victorian Government's 'adult time' legislation - Melbourne 

12.30pm (AEST) - US President Donald Trump's former chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and Australia's former US ambassador Joe Hockey will address the National Press Club - Canberra

This arvo - reports this morning say the remaining so-called ‘ISIS brides’ and their children will arrive back in Australia - Sydney and Melbourne

The Quad Foreign Ministers Meeting is on in New Delhi. That’s the forum that brings Australia, India, Japan and the US together to chat about all things strategic…

ABS data release: Great Barrier Reef ecosystem accounts, 2022-2023 financial year;  Business conditions and sentiments, May 2026

National Sorry Day

Independence Day in Georgia and Guyana

Chardonnay Day… And another day of us wondering why there is no white wine emoji 🤷‍♀️

Birthdays for musicians Stevie Nicks (1948) and Lenny Kravitz (1964), actor Helena Bonham Carter (who turns 60yo…), and musician Lauryn Hill (1975)

Anniversary of:

• Alse Young becoming the first person executed as a witch in the American colonies (1647)

• The release of The Beatles' Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in the UK (1967)

• Uluru Statement of the Heart being released from Uluru (2017)

• Ireland voting to repeal their 8th amendment to legalise abortion (2018)