The maverick British billionaire is one of modern history's great adventurers, with many world record attempts on the sea, in the air and now up into space.

From RNZ Stranded New Zealanders in New South Wales are waiting to hear just how high – or how low – they will be placed on the priority list for mercy flights.Managed return flights will start bringing people home on Tuesday…

Booming prices are forcing first home buyers to seek more financial help from their parents, in a trend threatening to widen the gap between the property haves and have nots.Figures from Australia show 60 per cent of first home…

A man has been arrested after he allegedly seriously assaulted a 25-year-old man at The Albany bar and restaurant on Auckland’s North Shore on Friday night.Police were notified of the incident at 11.45pm that night and found the…

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The Perth and Peel regions have returned to normal after the lifting of the last post-lockdown restrictions.

There are no more mask requirements and an end to a limit on crowds.

Service restrictions have been axed, along with the cap on hospital or aged care visits.

READ MORE: 'Meant to be graphic': New ad shows impact of COVID-19

Dancing is back on the cards and major events can return to the state.

"We're all just relieved to open our doors and let people back in," Windsor Hotel manager Max Fox-Andrews said.

Group classes at gyms are now freed from the two-square-metre rule and WA will open its border to the Northern Territory, but New South Wales and Queensland remain blocked off.

READ MORE: Health authorities concerned over tradies working at multiple sites

The lockdown was a relatively short one but small businesses were once again hit hard.

"It's a hard enough business as it is already," Mr Fox-Andrews said.

"And to have to close down for two weeks and notify all of our staff that they can't come to work has been really tough."

Vaccinations are key to ending the need for lockdowns, Premier Mark McGowan has said.

Just 8.8 per cent of WA's population is fully vaccinated, significantly less than the rest of the country.

Thrill-seeking billionaire Richard Branson has reached space aboard his own winged rocket ship and returned to earth safely in his boldest adventure yet.

The feat vaults the nearly 71-year-old past fellow billionaire and rival Jeff Bezos, who is planning to fly to space in a craft of his own nine days from now.

With about 500 people watching, including Mr Branson's wife, children and grandchildren, a twin-fuselage aircraft with his space plane attached underneath took off in the first stage of the flight.

Aboard were Mr Branson and five crew mates from his Virgin Galactic space-tourism company.

READ MORE: It's Bezos vs Branson in the billionaire space race

The space plane then detached from the mother ship at an altitude of about 13km and fired its engine, reaching the edge of space about 88km up.

After a few minutes of weightlessness for the crew, the space plane is began its decent, set to end with a glide to a runway landing.

The weather at Spaceport America delayed the historic flight by 90 minutes but TV host Stephen Colbert kicked off the livestream shortly after 12.30am on Monday (AEST).

Soon after, it was revealed the VMS Unity had already taken off with the "mothership" VMS Eve, from where it blasted into space.

Then, about 1.30am, Mr Branson and his crew reached the peak of their flight, almost 90km above the earth.

Roughly 10 minutes later, the Unity glided to a safe touchdown back on Earth.

Ever the showman, Mr Branson dramatically counted down the days to lift-off via Twitter.

https://twitter.com/richardbranson/status/1413832885086343168

"It's a beautiful day to go to space," he tweeted hours before the flight, posting a photo of himself with fellow billionaire and space-tourism rival Elon Musk.

Mr Branson views the brief up-and-down trip as a confidence builder — not only for the 600-plus people already holding reservations and waiting in the wings, but potential space tourists willing to plunk down a few hundred-thousand dollars for a shot at space.

https://twitter.com/virgingalactic/status/1414229297267503107

READ MORE: The 82-year-old woman flying into space with Jeff Bezos

The London-born founder of the Virgin Group, who turns 71 in a week, wasn't supposed to fly until later this summer.

But he assigned himself to an earlier flight after Blue Origin's Jeff Bezos announced plans to ride his own rocket into space from West Texas on July 20.

Virgin Galactic doesn't expect to start flying customers before next year.

READ MORE: Why the US-China rivalry is extending from Earth into space

Blue Origin has yet to open ticket sales or even announce prices but late last week boasted via Twitter that it would take clients higher and offer bigger windows.

Unlike Blue Origin and Elon Musk's SpaceX, which launch capsules atop reusable booster rockets, Virgin Galactic uses a twin-fuselage aircraft to get its rocket ship aloft.

Virgin Galactic reached space for the first time in 2018, repeating the feat in 2019 and again this past May, each time with a minimal crew.

It received permission from the Federal Aviation Administration last month to start launching customers.

Victoria has closed its borders to NSW and the ACT, with the entire region becoming a "red zone".

Health authorities made the decision after NSW recorded 77 new COVID-19 cases yesterday.

When midnight struck travellers from NSW and the ACT were no longer permitted to travel to Victoria, with some exceptions.

READ MORE: 'Much worse' to come as NSW records 77 new infections

Victorian residents can obtain a red zone permit and return home but they will be required to immediately isolate, get tested, and quarantine for 14 days.

Exemptions are also available for essential workers, while border community residents can cross over in a limited capacity but must carry proof of address.

Anybody attempting to enter Victoria illegitimately will be fined up to $4957.

READ MORE: Elderly Sydney woman dies of COVID-19 hours after testing positive

Travellers from existing orange zones in NSW and the ACT were able to enter Victoria until 11.59pm yesterday tonight if eligible, including on flights.

But they must isolate on arrival, get tested within 72 hours, and stay isolated until they return a negative result.

Visit the Vic Health website for more information on the state's travel permit system.

A man has been charged with murder over the death of a woman in Mount Gambier, South Australia.

The body of the 44-year-old woman was found in Chestnut Close in the town near the Victorian border, about 7.30am on Sunday.

A 34-year-old man, also from Mount Gambier, has been arrested and charged with murder.

He was refused bail and will appear in court on Monday.

Perth is bracing for yet another monster storm, while frantically trying to repair the damage from Friday's weather event.

The ceiling at Deahnn Fanderlinden's Stratton home came tumbling down after a crack appeared during that storm.

Her 13-year-old daughter, Jasmine, only narrowly escaped disaster.

READ MORE: Perth smashed by severe storms

"I got a call so I stepped outside, went to the couch and then bang, everything fell," Jasmine said.

And now the family are fewer than 12 hours away from another superstorm.

It will be the fifth to batter Perth in the past eight days, and, authorities have warned, the biggest of the season.

People are even sandbagging their houses in an effort to prevent flooding.

The storm is set to hit at about 5am on Monday, and last up to 48 hours.

READ MORE: Thousands without power after storms smash Perth

The potential damage zone could stretch more than 770km, from Jurien Bay to Albany.

Winds of more than 100km/h and rainfall of up to 50mm are expected, alongside 8m waves.

People have in particular been warned to be careful of trees, with all the recent rain meaning some may not be as firmly rooted as normal.

It has been the wettest start to July in 56 years, with 117mm already recorded, 82 per cent of the monthly average.