Supermoons are the closest to earth. Photo Greg Higgins. The moon was 30 percent brighter than normal. Photo: Sis Higgins. SKYWATCHERS across the region looked to the heavens last Tuesday night as the biggest and brightest moon of 2025 rose over the horizon. Amateur Mid North Coast astronomer Dennis Hughes explained to News Of The […]

Nambucca Heads RSL sub-Branch President Denis Lane (centre) was pleased with the large attendance at the Nambucca Heads Remembrance Day service. Photo: supplied. Soldiers from the 41st Battalion, The Royal NSW Regiment, provided the Catafalque Party at the Macksville Remembrance Day service. Photo: supplied. The Nambucca Heads Remembrance Day service was attended by over 130 […]

SOPHIE Lien has been recognised for her creativity and passion at this year’s Phoenix Art Prize 2025, held in Bowraville. The 22-year-old local artist won the Youth Category with her striking ceramic works of “Superstar Stacy” & “Windy Wendy.” The Phoenix Art Prize celebrates artists of all ages and abilities, providing an inclusive platform to […]

MEMBER for Oxley Michael Kemp says the CSIRO’s National Koala Monitoring Program (NKMP) has revealed a staggering leap in koala numbers that “upends years of alarmism”. The 2025 report estimates the listed population across NSW, Qld and the ACT is between 398,000 and 569,000, a dramatic rise from the 2024 estimate of just 95,000 to […]

RENTAL vacancy rates across NSW remain critically low, deepening the housing crisis and leaving tenants competing for limited homes. New analysis from the Real Estate Institute of NSW (REINSW) shows that in September, many regions recorded vacancy rates below two percent. The Mid-North Coast sat at 1.6 percent, by comparison Coffs Harbour is at 1.5 […]

Stranded camper, Joel, was rescued by SES and Forestry staff. The state forest has been closed due to the impacts of severe storms. NEWRY State Forest, south-west of Urunga, was impacted by a severe thunderstorm on Friday, 10 October that left roads blocked by fallen trees and branches. Once the damage was assessed, a Forestry […]

Lead volunteers Sam and Kristi Petrassi, along with Brian Liddell (not pictured) are no longer able to manage the Talarm Hall on their own. Photo: supplied. Talarm Hall, a community asset with an uncertain future. Photo: supplied. AFTER four years of dedicated service, lead volunteers Sam and Kristi Petrassi have officially stepped down from their […]

MEMBERS of the Coffs Harbour and District Banana Growers Association have expressed concern over the potential import of fresh Cavendish bananas from the Philippines. Last month the Federal Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) announced a review of quarantine arrangements following demands from the Philippines to allow banana imports into Australia. Australia does not […]

IF YOU have ever wondered what it takes to make an enthralling documentary, then Bellingen is the place to be on the weekend of 1 and 2 November. A group of Australia’s award-winning documentary editors (all women) formed a loose group over the past few years to talk through work issues and decided they wanted […]

FIGURES released by the Australian Electoral Commission this week show a candidate’s donations and marketing spend are no guarantee of success. Financial disclosure return information shows that Cowper Independent Caz Heise spent $2 million on her Federal Election campaign – more than any other candidate in the country. Ms Heise received $2.1 million from 55 […]