Tag Archives: oceania

‘Detention’: UK PM leads class in banned meme dance

2025-11-26 FreeNews

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has apologised after inciting a rebellious uprising in a primary school class with the viral "6-7" meme dance.

Starmer visited Welland Academy in Peterborough earlier this week to promote a new free school lunches program.

While there, he sat in on a classroom's reading time and spoke with a young girl finishing her book.

"I'm looking at page six – seven," the girl said with a grin.

"Oh, six – seven!" Starmer replied, before performing a juggling hand gesture associated with the viral meme that nobody old enough to drive seems capable of understanding.

The class promptly broke out to join the brief moment of activity.

In a video Starmer uploaded to his Instagram, he then apologised with a smile to a teacher who informed him the 6-7 dance had been banned at the school.

"I think I just got myself put in detention…" Starmer wrote in the caption.

The 6-7 meme, which can be as simple as saying "6-7" in any context whatsoever, has been largely regarded as a generation "in" gesture.

Attempts to understand any deeper meaning are likely not only to be frustrated, but per se indicate the seeker of answers is too old to be grappling with youth culture.

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Macquarie Dictionary reveals its word of the year

2025-11-25 FreeNews

The Macquarie Dictionary has announced "AI slop" as its word of the year for 2025.

The term refers to low-quality content created by generative AI which often contains errors.

Every year, the Macquarie Dictionary brings together a select committee to discuss new words and definitions that have entered its dictionary over the year.

AI Slop has been named the Macquarie Dictionary Word of the Year.

The committee this year was comprised of the Macquarie Dictionary editorial team, radio host and writer David Astle, and language research specialist Tiger Webb.

"We understand now in 2025 what we mean by slop, AI-generated slop, which lacks meaningful content or use," the committee said.

"The question is, are the people ingesting and regurgitating this content soon to be called AI sloppers?"

The committee's honourable mentions included "clanker", a usually derogatory term used to describe an AI-driven robot that completes tasks normally performed by a human.

Medical misogyny was also nominated, which is the entrenched prejudice against females in the context of medical treatment and knowledge, especially in the area of reproductive health.

The word of the year often reflects societal change throughout the year.

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Catastrophic fire danger warning issued for parts of NSW ahead of hot, dry and windy conditions

2025-11-25 FreeNews

A catastrophic fire danger warning has been issued to residents in the NSW lower central west plains for tomorrow due to hot, dry and windy conditions.

The NSW Rural Fire Service issued the catastrophic warning for the first time in any part of NSW since September 2023.

"Catastrophic is the highest level of bush fire danger and the most dangerous conditions for a fire," the RFS said in its warning.

Catastrophic fire danger is forecast for the Lower Central West Plains on Wednesday 26 November 2025, due to forecast high temperatures, low humidities and strong winds, making conditions dangerous.

"Your life may depend on the decisions you make, even before there is a fire."

Due to dangerous weather conditions, 11 areas across the state will be under a total fire ban.

Large areas of the state are also forecast to experience extreme fire danger.

This includes the Greater Hunter, Greater Sydney, Illawarra, Shoalhaven, Central Ranges, North Western, Upper Central West Plains, Southern Slopes, Eastern Riverina, Southern Riverina and Northern Riverina.

The NSW RFS said the fire danger ratings were based on weather advice from the Bureau of Meteorology.

The advice is subject to change as forecasts are updated.

https://twitter.com/NSWRFS/status/1993178779271766455

Extreme fire danger is also likely to continue into Thursday for parts of the state.

The NSW RFS said residents in areas of catastrophic fire danger should plan ahead.

"For your survival, leaving a fire risk area is your safest course of action," the NSW RFS said.

"Stay safe by going to a safer location early in the morning or the night before.

"A safer area may be a large town or city, shopping centres or facilities well away from fire risk areas.

"Stay out of paddocks and bushland areas during the hottest parts of the day.

"Homes cannot withstand fires in these conditions.

"You may not be able to leave and help may not be available.

"Schools in identified high risk areas may be closed. Schools will notify affected students."

Residents should keep up to date with the latest advice and warnings on the NSW RFS website.

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Severe thunderstorm and hail warnings across NSW

2025-11-25 FreeNews

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe thunderstorm warning to parts of NSW as weather conditions are set to produce damaging winds, large hailstones and heavy rainfall.

The warnings stretch across the Mid North Coast, Northern Tablelands and parts of Northern Rivers, North West Slopes and Plains and Central West Slopes and Plains forecast districts.

The heavy rainfall may lead to flash flooding in warning areas over the next several hours, with locations set to be affected including Coffs Harbour, Port Macquarie, Armidale, Moree, Tenterfield and Narrabri.

Severe thunderstorms are likely to produce damaging winds, large hailstones and heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding in the warning area over the next several hours. Weather warnings are in place in parts of NSW.

Tamworth residents described the winds as a mini tornado after the strong gusts destroyed trees and tangled roofing in power lines.

In the Hunter region, Muswellbrook was hit with gusts of up to 100km/h.

Tamworth Airport recorded winds as powerful as 124km/h.

The Bureau of Meteorology has said that a warm and humid airmass mixed with a trough and west to south-westerly change has resulted in the thunderstorm warnings for this afternoon and evening.

Locals are being urged to stay vigilant and monitor conditions.

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Police find no trace of missing boy Gus Lamont after first day of mine shaft search

2025-11-25 FreeNews

Detectives have failed to find any trace of missing four-year-old Gus Lamont after spending the day searching mine shafts near the remote South Australian property where he went missing.

Police this morning began a three-day search of six mine shafts near Oak Park Station, about 43 kilometres from the town of Yunta.

Officers said they didn't know about the shafts before.

Missing four-year-old Gus

Gus was reported as last seen playing on a mound of dirt about 5pm on Saturday, September 27 by his grandmother at the family's Oak Park Station homestead.

By 5.30pm, Gus – who has been described as shy but adventurous – had vanished and a full-scale ground and air search of the property and surrounding area was launched.

The fresh search involves STAR Group officers and Task Force Horizon officers using specialised equipment to search six mine shafts in the area.

About a dozen detectives overcame hot and windy conditions today to scour the shafts, lowering cameras into the mines in search of the little boy.

The uncovered, unfenced shafts are between 5.5 kilometres and 12 kilometres from the Oak Park homestead, in areas not searched on foot by police.

Police Deputy Commissioner Linda Williams said the new searches were part of ongoing investigations.

Missing four-year-old Gus Lamont in SA

"We are determined to explore every avenue in an effort to locate Gus Lamont and provide some closure for his family," she said.

"These searches will either locate evidence or eliminate these locations from further investigation by the Task Force."

Last month police drained a large dam on the property and eliminated the possibility Gus may have drowned.

This followed extensive ground and air searches of the area surrounding the Oak Park Station homestead.

The ground search has now extended to 5.5 kilometres from the homestead.

This equates to 95 square kilometres searched on foot.

This area searched with the help of aircraft and mounted officers has been estimated at 470 square kilometres, with no sign of the child.

Police stressed that no part of the investigation had turned up any suggestion of foul play.

Detectives will return to the area tomorrow.

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Hero resident helps apartment complex evacuate during 4am fire

2025-11-25 FreeNews

An Adelaide man has been hailed a hero after he alerted his neighbours to a fire in their apartment complex and got them to evacuate.

Ross Greig went door-to-door to wake about a dozen of his Brooklyn Park neighbours after the fire broke out at a unit in the Constance Street complex.

Greig was jolted into action about 4am when the ablaze unit's tenant woke him.

Ross Greig reacted quickly when his Brooklyn Park, Adelaide apartment complex went up in flames.

"'I've set the flat on fire', he said and ran out panic-stricken. He ran out of the streets here and I said, 'what are you doing?' He said, 'I'm going for the fire brigade'," Grieg said.

"People were sleeping and it took a while to get them all out. And some people didn't come out, maybe thought it was a hoax."

Residents had noticed a concerning accumulation of items both inside and outside the apartment where the fire originated, and believe these materials contributed to the intensity of the blaze.

The Brooklyn Park Adelaide apartment fire began at around 4am.

While the fire spread to an adjacent unit, firefighters successfully contained the major damage to the initial apartment.

The building's owner said she has offered support to the tenant.

The cause of the fire is undetermined.

This article was produced with the assistance of 9ExPress.

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Accused Melbourne CBD stabber attempts bail despite safety fears

2025-11-25 FreeNews

A woman accused of randomly stabbing a worker walking along a city street has pledged to clean up her act despite facing eviction from her community housing over safety fears.

Lauren Darul is seeking bail after she was charged with recklessly and intentionally causing injury and committing an offence while on bail for allegedly stabbing Wan Lai as she was on her way to work in central Melbourne.

It was revealed in Melbourne Magistrates Court hearing today that Darul's housing provider Unison had issued her with an eviction notice if she was granted bail, citing the risk of danger to community, other tenants and staff.

Lauren Darul is accused of a terrifying random attack on October 2, where she allegedly knifed a woman in the chest as she walked to work on Little Bourke Street.

Darul, who has been homeless or living in unstable accommodation throughout her life and experiences bipolar and schizoaffective disorders, had a long history of substance use, including alcohol, methylamphetamine and ice.

Constable Damian Elliott told the court these drug and alcohol dependencies would likely contribute to future offending.

"I want to clean up my life and stay off the drugs," Darul told the court over video link.

"I don't intend on going back on the ice."

But the crown prosecutor opposed her bail application, citing an unacceptable risk to the community if she was released and her history of alleged bail breaches.

The victim and her family were also extremely distressed by the possibility the accused would allowed back into the community.

Lai had been walking on a footpath about 7.35am on October 2 when Darul allegedly ran up from behind and stabbed her in the upper body.

A capture from the CCTV footage of a random stabbing attack in Melbourne's CBD in October

Emergency services arrived to find an extremely distressed Lai, who was taken to hospital with a punctured right lung and bleeding around the lung, Const Elliott told the court.

Darul, 32, was arrested 90 minutes later after officers tracked her down at her housing provider Unison, where she revealed a 10cm silver kitchen knife allegedly used in the attack.

Lai has been discharged and was getting better, but has relocated due to the ongoing psychological trauma she experiences from living near the location of her alleged stabbing.

Const Elliott said he believed the accused posed too great a risk to the community to be bailed, citing the brazen and unprovoked nature of the alleged stabbing and her propensity to flout bail.

The court was told Darul was subjected to bail or summons on 19 outstanding matters at the time of offending and had a criminal history that dated back to 2016, including multiple charges of motor and shop thefts and failing to comply with bail conditions.

But Darul's lawyer argued that she had a range of services on hand to support her if she is released on bail which can ameliorate the risk of reoffending.

Deputy Chief Magistrate Timothy Bourke will hand down his bail decision tomorrow.