Author Percival Everett wants Waititi to stop the film version becoming too earnest.

Anna Murdoch-Mann, the former wife of Australian media mogul Rupert Murdoch, has died at the age of 81.

A former director of News Corp, her death was announced by one of its websites, the New York Post, which said she died on February 17 surrounded by her family at her Florida home.

A cause of death was not revealed.

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Murdoch-Mann was born Anna Torv in Glasgow, Scotland, on June 30, 1944, moving to Australia with her family as a child.

She began a career in journalism when she was 18, working for the now-defunct Daily Mirror, as well as the Daily Telegraph.

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She later met Rupert Murdoch, with the pair marrying in 1967. During the marriage, she reportedly played a key role in News Corp's growth in Australia and around the world, sitting on the board of directors.

She had three children with Murdoch – Elisabeth, Lachlan and James. Lachlan is now the Chairman of News Corp.

READ MORE: New study debunks theory on why sharks fled Aussie islands after vicious attack

Their marriage ended in 1997 after Murdoch had an affair with Wendi Deng. It was reported Murdoch-Mann received $1.7 billion in the settlement.

She later reported she was forced off the News Corp board after the split, and claimed her ex-husband was "determined" to see the separation through.

Murdoch man remarried just six months after the separation, to William Mann. They remained married until his death in 2017.

She then married Ashton dePeyster in 2019.

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After six orcas were filmed viciously killing a great white shark off South Australia's Neptune Islands in 2015, sharks disappeared from the waters for over two months.

Their abnormally long absence was attributed to the incident, as a study in South Africa suggested similar instances along their coast caused sharks to abandon their habitat. 

But now, new 12-year research in Australia has debunked that theory.

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Dr Isabella Reeves, a postdoctoral researcher from Flinders University, led the study and said her team identified six instances when sharks left the Neptune Islands for weeks at a time.

"These were more than 42 days, and only one of them had this killer whale predation, which was the event we had in 2015," she said. 

The encounter that started it all

A cage diving company based in Port Lincoln took a group out to get up close with sharks at the Neptune Islands on February 2, 2015.

But just 20 metres from their vessel, they witnessed six orcas going in for the kill.

Three orcas appeared to fence in a shark, while the others rammed it with their heads.

They pushed the shark underwater and an oil slick appeared on the surface, indicating the liver had been consumed.

The footage of the encounter went viral and gained national interest.

Reeves said it was considered very rare at the time but has been recorded more over the years, particularly in Australia, South Africa, California and Mexico. 

"The fact that killer whales had rocked up to the Neptunes, which is a really small island group that's offshore, and someone was there to actually document it, it was a really rare opportunity to try to dissect the situation more once we had gotten more data over the years," she said.

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Sharks disappear from Neptune Islands

Sharks disappeared from the waters in the Neptune Islands for the next 69 days after the orca attack.

Andrew Fox from Rodney Fox Shark Expeditions said he saw an increase in sharks at the Neptunes from the early 2000s, but that changed in 2015.

"It's been very much more patchy since then, and in the last two years, it's been really slow," he said. 

"It seems like there's a lot more than there is, but I'm worried that there has been a bit of a slow decline, and we're certainly seeing a lot less in the last two years than we've ever seen."

There have also been environmental changes in recent years, including record oceanic upwellings and a toxic algal bloom. 

Fox has only seen orcas at the Neptune Islands a handful of times in his 50 years in the business.

"We had a really big Orca, a big male with an extremely tall dorsal fin, come up to the back of our vessel and smash its tail up and down repetitively and scare away a big white shark we knew, a formidable, five-metre male we know as Dragon," he said.

"We haven't seen Dragon since, so I'm a bit worried about what happened to him. But other white sharks did come back a week and a half or 10 days later."

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Twelve years of research

The research team used acoustic telemetry data, based on listening stations that ping once a tagged shark is near, and sightings from tourism companies to track sharks over 12 years to understand whether the 2015 absence was exceptional or behavioural.

They identified six instances of prolonged absences, including a brief five-day departure during an orca sighting in October 2024 and a four-day absence during the death of a tagged whale.

But they found that not every orca encounter or shark death led to these absences.

Reeves said movement patterns of great white sharks in the Neptune Islands were highly variable. 

"There's definitely long gaps in their presence, which can happen with or without killer whale activity," she said.

"It's really hard to say. There's so much going on in our oceans right now, which could be contributing to this.

"But I think the main takeaway is that it's not the killer whales at the Neptunes that are causing the prolonged absences."

Another study is currently under way to understand what causes prolonged shark absences.

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A man has been charged with murder following the death of a woman in Melbourne's north last night.

Police responded to reports that a woman had been hit by a car on Seston Street at Reservoir at about 7.40pm yesterday.

The woman who is yet to be identified died at the scene.

READ MORE: What happens next after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested

A 44-year-old man was arrested at the scene and has been charged with one count of murder.

He will appear at Melbourne's Magistrates' Court today.

It is believed that the pair were known to each other.

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Despite recent controversy, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor remains the eighth person in line to the British throne, however the UK government has confirmed it is considering removing him from the path to becoming king.

UK Defence Minister Luke Pollard told the BBC that regardless of the outcome of Andrew's arrest, wiping his chances of being a successor to the throne is the "right thing to do".

Pollard confirmed on BBC radio that the UK government had been working alongside Buckingham Palace to stop Andrew from "potentially being a heartbeat away from the throne".

He said that the decision would be "something that I hope will enjoy cross-party support, but it's right that that is something that only happens when the police investigation concludes".

In October last year, Downing Street said it was not planning on introducing any legislation to alter the line of royal succession.

Before the former prince's birthday arrest yesterday, momentum had been growing in some quarters to follow the stripping of the 66-year-old's titles with his removal from the line of succession.

But even if that push reaches a tipping point, the ex-duke's removal would be a complicated process and Australia, for which the reigning monarch is head of state, would play a critical role.

In the meantime, Mountbatten-Windsor, who has not been charged with any offence and has denied any wrongdoing regarding his links to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, remains in line for the throne.

He could technically even serve as regent for Prince George, who is third in line, if the King and Prince William were both incapacitated.

Labour MP for York Central, Rachael Maskell, is one of the most prominent voices to call for the King's brother to be removed from the line of succession and his role as a counsellor of state.

"All of these titles and positions need to be addressed, so we are just left with Andrew the citizen, and a citizen that is fully accountable," she said earlier this week, before the arrest.

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How to remove a royal? It's 'complicated'

University College London professor of government and the constitution Robert Hazell said removing Andrew would be "really complicated".

"It will require legislation, not merely by the British parliament of Westminster, but the other 14 countries around the world, where King Charles is currently their head of state," he told the BBC in the hours after the arrest.

"Countries known as the realms, countries like Australia, Canada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, half a dozen islands in the Caribbean."

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He said the last time the Law of Succession was changed, to make it gender neutral, took two years "to get everyone's ducks in a row".

"I really don't think either the British government or the governments of those other 14 countries want to spend two years trying to do that," he said.

"It would be a complete waste of everyone's time."

Could Mountbatten-Windsor serve as regent?

In November, UCL said if the worst were to happen to King Charles and then Prince William, Prince Harry would be next in line to be named as regent but only if he returned to the UK.

Were he to refuse, Mountbatten-Windsor would be next in line, although he was "unlikely to be considered suitable following his fall from grace".

The experts' FAQ noted the government was likely keen to avoid legislation to remove the former prince, in favour of other legislative priorities.

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"A person can only be removed as a counsellor of state by legislation," it said.

"Because seven people can now be called upon to act as counsellors of state, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is very unlikely to be called upon again."

A counsellor of state can be called on to represent the monarch if they are temporarily incapacitated but don't need to be replaced by a regent.

Palace sources told The Times earlier this month there were no plans to remove him as a counsellor of state as he was unlikely to be called upon.

What does it mean for the royal family?

Commentators were divided on what impact the arrest would have on the royal family.

Hazell said he thought people could "distinguish between the individual and the institution", a line echoed by Charles' biographer and friend Jonathan Dimbleby.

"If you think of the Prince and Princess of Wales, the Princess Royal, the Duke of Edinburgh, they are all doing their duties," he said.

"They will individually have feelings about this. I do not see that because one member of the royal family has been arrested … that that brings the institution in this respect. 

"On the contrary, it demonstrates that the institution is functioning."

Graham Smith, chief executive of anti-monarchy group Republic, said Dimbleby's comments were "absurd" and called on William and Charles to face the media for questioning.

"This is a very, very serious crisis, the worst serious crisis that has hit the monarchy in living memory, in the democratic era," he told the BBC.

"And you know, we have an institution that is already losing support quite rapidly. We have an institution that most people under the age of 50 are not that bothered about, and now they are exposed to quite serious accusations.

Mountbatten-Windsor had been reported to police by Republic following the release of more than 3 million pages of documents relating to Epstein, who was convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008.

Those files suggested Mountbatten-Windsor had in 2010 forwarded to Epstein reports about Vietnam, Singapore and other places he had visited on official trips.

The former prince has not responded to the release of the files but has always denied any wrongdoing linked to Epstein.

The arrest follows a ratcheting up of allegations against Mountbatten-Windsor in the wake of the release of the US Justice Department's document dump.

Many of the recent allegations centred on claims of sexual impropriety, including those alleged by Australian-based Virginia Giuffre, but he was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, and was yet to be charged.

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Police have charged two people, including a 15-year-old, as the alleged driver and gunman in the shooting of former NRL player Matt Utai outside his home in Sydney's west earlier this week.

The ex-Bulldogs and Wests Tigers winger is now in a stable condition after he was shot multiple times outside his family home in Greenacre, at about 6am on Tuesday, as he was leaving for work.

"We will allege in court that the 25-year-old man was the person who did the shooting while the 15-year-old was the person who drove the getaway car," Detective Acting Superintendent Brad Abdy said.

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"Ordinarily, criminals like to have a degree of anonymity when they're committing crimes, and now they seem to want to be Facebook or other social media influencers."

Abdy said the pair were known to police before their arrest.

The 25-year-old was arrested at about 6.50pm in Marsden Park, and the 15-year-old boy was arrested shortly after.

The pair were taken to Mt Druitt Police Station.

They were charged with shooting with intent to murder and participating in a criminal group in relation to the alleged shooting in Greenacre.

The 25-year-old was also charged with possession of a prohibited drug.

They were refused bail and remain before the courts.

The arrests came a day after officers executed six search warrants in Riverwood, Guildford, Lilyfield, Villawood and Auburn.

Police later seized three vehicles, 1kg of cocaine, knuckle dusters, electronics and clothing.

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Four males, aged from 16 to 19 years old, were arrested and charged with crimes in relation to the alleged firebombing and shooting.

They all remain before the courts.

Authorities said they believe some of the alleged offenders are acting "as part of a criminals-for-hire group".

"It's quite disgusting to be honest, that criminals who are overseas and now recruiting young people into Australia and essentially consigning them to a particular lifestyle and then while they remain offshore," Abdy said.

"We believe there are at least another two people who were involved in the shooting of the premises at St Clair, and possibly a third offender for the firebombing at Guildford West."

Abdy said police have spoken with Matt Utai briefly and are waiting for his condition to improve before speaking to him in the coming days.

A short time after the shooting on Tuesday morning, a black Toyota was found burnt out in Wiley Park, believed to be connected to the attack.

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The following night, at about 12.45am, shots were fired at a house in St Clair.

A woman in her 50s was uninjured inside.

A second burnt-out car discovered a short time later in Colyton was seized by police for forensic examination.

The early morning following the second shooting, a fire erupted at a Guildford West home and a nearby car was found well alight.

Firefighters extinguished both blazes, and no one was injured.

Police say there is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by Matt Utai, and he is not involved in any criminal activity.

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Police are investigating whether Utai's son, Iziah's, alleged links to the Alameddine crime network could have been the reason behind the alleged attacks.

9News understands 24-year-old Iziah is currently overseas.

Police say the younger Utai is currently wanted for "criminal group offences".

NSW Police set up Strike Force Halesowen to investigate the incidents, all of which are believed to have been targeting Utai's family.

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Exclusive: Australia's reading rate is dropping, especially among young men, but hope is not lost according to a nine.com.au reader poll.

Of 480 respondents*, more than 60 per cent said they had already read at least one book in 2026.

Close to a third had read four or more books in the first seven weeks of the year, but nearly 40 per cent said they'd not finished a single book.

LIVE UPDATES: Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested

More than one in three respondents also said they read every day for leisure, while 14 per cent said they did it weekly.

Some people said audiobooks and e-books had made it easier for them to make time to read in their busy lives.

"I no longer read physical books, I prefer to use audio books," one said.

"There's nothing better than lying in bed in winter snuggled up listening to a good book and earphones mean you can enjoy a good 'read' almost anywhere."

Have you got a story? Contact reporter Maddison Leach at our breaking newsletter here

A construction industry veteran is helping women fleeing domestic violence, addiction or homelessness to find jobs in the booming sector.

Canberra mum Annalisa Fox has spent 25 years working in the mostly male-dominated industry and has observed how female employees – if given the chance – can really thrive.

It was her long career in high-vis that sparked Fox's bright idea to launch a social enterprise helping struggling women land a job in traffic control.

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"Our real philosophy is that we want these women to have an independent income," Fox told nine.com.au.

"We don't want the women who come to us to be limited by the fact they may have never had a job before."

After over two decades as a foster parent, Fox is painfully aware of how women can become trapped in a "horrible" situation without money or any experience on their CV.

Fox said she has seen abusive partners drain funds and spend years chipping away their partner's agency and independence.

That's where Fox Traffic Control steps in.

Traffic control jobs are both well-paid and in abundance, particularly in a growing city like Canberra.

Fox realised it could be a valuable launching pad for someone needing gainful employment who may be overlooked because of a gap in a resume, recent incarceration or a lack of skills.

"What a lot of people don't get is… you might see a person who is homeless or is on Centrelink and you think, 'Why don't they just go and get a job?'," she said.

"If you've never had a job before… it's not that easy to do it."

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Since launching last September, Fox Traffic Control has helped around a dozen women find a stable job.

Fox and her former husband run Jonox, a crane, forklift and labour hire company in Canberra, and offer shifts holding stop signs at construction sites.

Employees work for Fox Traffic Control on a contractual basis and are sent out to sites around Canberra.

They are paid an award wage and, in best case scenario, only stay with Fox for a few months before getting full-time jobs elsewhere.

Fox also helps the women to write their CV and earn their White Card.

"We will tell them, if you've had 15 jobs in three months because everyone sacked you after two days, you don't have to write that on your resume," Fox said.

"Or explain to them what a tax return is or a pay slip.

"It really is such a life changer for people."

Fox is at capacity right now but is hoping to ramp up hiring ahead of Easter.

The goal is to partner with the federal government to form a pathway program available for the one in four Australian women who experience violence by an intimate partner or family member.

Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732)

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The tenant says he was concerned a plum tree he liked was going to be cut down.

She paid $5500 for an operation in Turkey after being priced out of local options.