Feel-Good Friday: 14 March – Countdown to Race Day

It feels like March only just started, and yet we’re already halfway through. Thankfully, this is the moment we’ve been waiting for: the 2025 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix has kicked off, and it’s probably going to be all any of us do this weekend. Still, there’s more to life than motorsports, and there’s plenty else to be excited about this weekend – so here you go, this week’s Feel-Good Friday to the rescue.

Get Ready for a Weekend of F1

We hope you don’t have any plans for the next few days, because we’re counting down the hours until the 2025 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix kicks off. While there have been events running since Thursday 13 March, the main event isn’t starting until 1pm on Sunday, where the world’s best will descend on Melbourne’s Grand Prix Circuit to fight it out for the title.

While we’re all stoked to watch the likes of Max Verstappen, Sir Lewis Hamilton, and Charles Leclerc hit their stride, there are also quite a few locals on the track, McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Alipine’s Jack Doonan, as well as Kiwi Liam Lawson, who races for Red Bull. Each of these racers have extensive experience with the AusGP track, and hopefully the home-field advantage delivers them the goods.

If you can’t go to the actual event, there’s the F1 Melbourne Fan Festival at Melbourne Park Oval on all weekend, from 10am to late. You’ll be able to watch the races along with other rev heads, dig into some delicious foods, and enjoy some good times – all for free.

If you’re interested in watching the full programming, it’ll be on Fox Sports, as well as streaming platform Kayo Sports and Foxtel Go. Or, you can go to probably any pub across the country.

Go Green and Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day

Speaking of pubs, while St. Patrick’s Day is technically on Monday, 17 March this year, you can expect many bars to kick the celebrations off early this year to provide weekend punters the opportunity to Split the G.

In fact, Taphouse Darlinghurst is getting in on the action starting Sunday, 16 March, hosting a full-on St. Paddy’s Day rooftop party from midday. You’ll get access to a $34 banquet meal, including vegetarian spring rolls, salt and pepper fries, egg fried rice, both chilli and sweet and sour chicken, and McDonnell’s curry sauce.

If that doesn’t sound delicious enough, there’ll also be $12 Guinness and Kilkenny pints, $14 Aperol Spritz, and three cocktail specials: Five Spice Bloody Mary, Frozen Lucky Orange, and Cold Irish Coffee.

Not in Darlinghurst? No stress. You can also drop into Forrester’s in Surry Hills or BrewDog in South Everleigh for a ‘Irish Spice Bag with Curry Sauce’ (and a pint, obviously) to celebrate the patron saint of Ireland. Sounds like the perfect Sunday arvo sesh, honestly.

Prefer something a bit more ‘open air’ than indoors? I get it, and you’ve got options. In Sydney, The Rocks have kicked off its annual transformation into the go-to place for all things St. Patrick’s Day. The air will be filled with Irish music, while suitably Celtic food and drink will be available for consumption. There’ll even be a parade on Sunday, from Martin Place to Circular Quay, and a Paul Mescal and Saorise Ronan look-a-like competition. It’s probably a more family-friendly operation, so take your kids to the Quay and have a craic-er of a time.

Record Results for Captive-Bred Endangered Parrots

Critically endangered species are very rarely considered ‘good news’, but this week almost 30 captive-bred orange-bellied parrots have been released into the Tasmanian skies, which should go a long way in helping the species to repopulate.

The orange-bellied parrot breeds in Tasmania, and then migrates to South Australia for the winter – but these migrations have been getting smaller and smaller as the bird continues to face habit loss and disease.

According to ABC, the orange-bellied parrots population hit as low as 17 birds just a decade ago, but, after years of work by wildlife experts to help the species grow in numbers, it’s expected this year’s migration will be made up of over 200 parrots.

It’s a positive development in the fight against biodiversity loss, and a sign that the orange-bellied parrot is on the road to recovery. Love that!

M.J. Bale Helps Protect Bruny Island’s Fairy Penguins

Is there anything cuter than a small penguin? If there is, we’re yet to find it. Sadly, these adorable creatures’ future might not be so rosy, but not if Australian menswear label M.J. Bale has anything to say about it. 

Enter ‘Penguin Suit’, an initiative from the B Corp-certified brand that’s designed to assist in the survival of the fairy penguin colony at Fairyland. This is an invaluable biodiversity hotspot on Tasmania’s Bruny Island where the birds nest from late spring to summer each year in rookeries hidden within the area’s sand dunes and salt bushes.

Verified and administered by the Gum Tree Lane Foundation, Fairyland is a 330-acre ecological ‘ark’ containing wetlands, forests, and rookeries. In addition to the penguin population, it boasts an abundance of near-extinct fauna, such as swift parrots, forty-spotted pardalotes, Australasian bitterns, mutton birds, and eastern quolls.

The ‘Penguin Suit’ project will see M.J. Bale this year donate AUD$25,000 from sales of its tuxedos (aka penguin suits) to Fairyland’s ecological efforts. Having recently worn one of these very tuxedos to a black tie event in Melbourne, I can attest that there’s no more stylish way to help ensure the survival of our tiny feathered friends. 

Sonos is Bringing Immersive Listening Back to Sydney’s Inner West

Listening to music with intent is an art that seems to be waning, thanks to our modern culture of streaming, shuffled playlists, and podcasts. Having the time to immerse ourselves in the sonic experience of listening to an album from start to finish as the artist intended is a gift we all too often ignore. 

Happily, the Inner West Ale Trail and Sonos are partnering to bring us ALL EARS, a series of listening sessions designed to have you putting down your phone and immersing yourself in music, while sharing the experience with those around you. 

Throughout March and April, this series of events will transform five of Inner-West Sydney’s finest breweries into sonic spaces for Australian-first deep listening experiences. Inspired by Tokyo’s legendary vinyl bars, these events will showcase iconic vinyl albums played in full, just as the artist intended.

The first event took place last night at Mixtape in Marrickville and we were present to hear Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon played in full while The Wizard of Oz was projected on a large screen attached to the brewery wall. The effect was mesmerising as a network of Sonos’ wireless speakers delivered Pink Floyd’s classic with impressive volume and clarity. 

Details for the rest of the series’ events are as follows:

• March 19 – Future Brewing | Outkast – Stankonia 
• March 26 – Chuck and Sons Brewing Co| INXS – Kick 
• April 3 – Wayward | Radiohead – Kid A 
• April 10 – Wildflower | Mulatu Astatke – Mulatu of Ethiopia

You can purchase tickets via the link below, each of which secures you a welcome drink and snack before you give yourself over to an enriching listening experience.