Shedshaker turns 10!

Legendary Melbourne disco-funk heavyweights Vaudeville Smash will headline Saturday's 10th Birthday Bash.
Legendary Melbourne disco-funk heavyweights Vaudeville Smash will headline Saturday's 10th Birthday Bash.

Shedshaker Brewing is turning 10 and is going to party the only way it knows how – with great live music and free beer and pizza this Saturday evening April 25!
Brewery owners Doug Falconer and Jacqueline Brodie Hanns are inviting the community along to help the brewery celebrate hitting the 10-year milestone by throwing a huge golden themed party headlined by legendary Melbourne funk rockers Vaudeville Smash led by brothers, Marc, Dan, and Luca Lucchesi, and friends James Bowers and Ash Griffin.
Formed in 2009, the group have released three studio albums, three EPs, and brought their electric energy and showmanship to audiences around the globe.
The band will be joined by local star Jo Huf, DJ Rich Spanning Time (Rich Moffat) spinning the party tunes, free Golden Ale all night, free pizza and half price drinks.
“It has been a rollercoaster 10 years!” Jacqueline said.
“From very humble beginnings in the old venue in 2016 with a tiny pizza oven and a handful of beers to our new venue with a full kitchen,
much larger brewery making a wide range of beers entirely on site, we have come a long way,” she said.
Doug said they joined the business not long after the original Taproom opened and since then, have refined the business to focus on its core tenets of community, collaboration and creativity.
“As producers of alcohol, it has always been important to give back to the community, and then some, which is why we sponsor or support so many organisations, clubs, schools and more, as well as help out at many events around the region,” Doug said.
“This also goes to our collaborative approach – we believe we succeed if everyone around us succeeds as well, be they suppliers, customers and other breweries, pubs and restaurants. We are all stronger if we work together to produce the best products with the best customer service we can deliver.”
Jacqueline said highlights along the 10 year journey include the long term relationships with beer customers and Taproom regulars, the wide range of fantastic music and events the venue has hosted, being acknowledged as an employer of choice for young people, opening the new larger venue at The Mill Castlemaine in November 2024, being part of the growing Town Folk Festival and most recently, hosting a Harcourt fundraising gig with nearly 500 people to see Hunters (featuring members of Hunters & Collectors and Paul Dempsey from Something For Kate) play a rare show.
“Of course, there have been tough patches– the pandemic obviously stands out, the never-ending rising costs of simply being a producer of any kind and losing 90 per cent of our stock in the Harcourt fire in January was also a difficult time.
“But we do what we always do – double down on serving the community, and in the case of the fire, we concentrated on raising money for the recovery alongside rebrewing all our beers and starting again,” Jacqueline said.
“We raised over $100,000 through a series of benefit gigs, a collab beer and donated beer sales and we’ve been actively working to support winemakers who lost stock in the Harcourt fire. It’s been a very busy year to date!”
Tickets for the Shedshaker Brewing 10th Birthday are just $50 each and available now at https://events.humanitix.com/shedshaker-turns-ten

Shedshaker Brewing owners Doug Falconer and Jacqueline Brodie Hanns look forward to celebrating the 10 year milestone with the community.

Rice Two Bowl Triples champs crowned

Rice Two Bowl Triples champions Rod and Libby Harris. Absent: Brett Jenkinson.
Rice Two Bowl Triples champions Rod and Libby Harris. Absent: Brett Jenkinson.

The Rice Two Bowl Triples Tournament provided an enjoyable end to the bowling season at Harcourt Bowling Club last Saturday.
Add a perfect sunny Autumn day; the green running well; and the sound of happy bowlers keen for a win; and you have the recipe for a successful day and season end.
This annual event is held in memory of long-time members Ben and Amy Rice who many of the current members have bowled with. Bowlers competed over three games of 12 ends, breaking halfway for the usual delicious afternoon tea.
After the 36 ends, there were two three game winners – The winners of the day on 54 points were Brett Jenkinson, Libby Harris and Rod Harris. Runners-up on 50 points being the team of Gary Maddern, Brian Leech and Cheryl Maddern.
End of season presentations
The tournament was followed by the end of season presentations. President Gary Maddern thanked the organisers of the day and acknowledged the contributions of all members who have volunteered throughout the season and contributed to the success of the Harcourt Bowling Club.
The effect the recent fires has had on the community; and the strength and resilience of the club was noted. Also highlighted was the valued camaraderie of the bowling community.
Presentations made to the Winners from 2025-2026 season were as follows:
Ladies
Singles Champion Winner Wendy Chaplin; Runner-up Diane Marsh; Champion Pairs Winners Diane Marsh and Kathy Harding; Runners-up Mary-Anne Doyle and Fran Corstorphan; Drawn Pairs Winners Carrol Frost and Fran Corstorphan; Runners-Up Vinka Maltby and Jean Pogue; 100-Up
Winner Jude Ewing; Runner-Up Fran Corstorphan.
Men’s
Singles Champion Winner Rod Harris; Runner-up Mark Swain; Champion Pairs Winners John Kays and Carl Roberts; Runners-up Gary Maddern and Steve Douglas; Gough Drawn Pairs Winners Les Harding and Alan Taylor; Runners-Up Barry Marsh and Ray Dejong; 100UP not contested this
season.
Mixed
Grant Pairs Winners Ian McMillan and Jean Pogue; Runners-Up Steve Douglas and Chris Anderson; Rice Triples Winners Brett Jenkinson, Rod Harris, Libby Harris; Runners-Up Gary Maddern, Brian Leech, Cheryl Maddern.
The day was made complete with a delicious meal of Indian food.

Rice Two Bowl Triples runners-up Cheryl Maddern, Brian Leech and Gary Maddern.
Competition winners for the 25/26 season were celebrated at the end of season event.

Aged care reform upheaval continues

Mount Alexander Shire resident (credit: Penny Ryan)
Mount Alexander Shire resident (credit: Penny Ryan)

Jade Jungwirth

Mount Alexander Shire Council says major aged care reforms are putting increasing pressure on local services, with staff stretched, clients facing higher costs, and wait-lists continui...

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Reunion and celebration at Parkrun

Adronis receiving his milestone momento from Run Director Jane Harding.
Adronis receiving his milestone momento from Run Director Jane Harding.

The first sign of winter greeted parkrun participants at event #515 last Saturday, with 149 finishers making the most of the fresh conditions.
Once again, the event hosted visitors from near and far, with representatives from Cairns, Bendigo, Melbourne and Christchurch.
One of those visitors provided a special cause for celebration. Adronis Ndihokubwayo, a name that needs no introduction to members of this community, returned to Castlemaine for his 100th milestone.
Now based at Point Cook parkrun, Adronis and was accompanied by his brother, Clovis Karabagega (also a former Castlemaine participant), along with their wives, cousins, friends and children for this momentous event. His achievements at Castlemaine are impressive, with 52 parkruns completed and a first finisher in 40 of them. What a record!
Adronis and Clovis, came out to Australia in 2016 from Burundi, Africa, and settled in Castlemaine in 2017 following Adronis’s clinical nursing placement. By all accounts, parkrun contributed to lasting friendship bonds. It was terrific to see so many of his family and friends out in support and heartwarming to welcome him back to his unofficial ‘home’ parkrun in the tunnel of love.
Keeping it in the family, cousin Blaise Nishimwe, a junior under 18, was the first finisher in a time of 18:04 at his first event in Castlemaine.
Well done to Katherine Taylor, the first female finisher, with a new PB of 21:26.
There were many achievements of note. Congratulations to the 13 participants who set a new personal best, including Dhi Singh (23:35), Mark Johnstone (24:00) and Alexa Duke (27:23). Alexa also claimed the highest age grade of 80.47%, with her time recognised as a national class performance.
Thank you to all the volunteers who set up every week without fail, rain, hail or shine.
Led by run director Jane Harding, the team was Alicia and Aureen as timekeepers, Gary who completed the course check, Geoff on finish tokens, Imogen as token sorter, Robyn and Sally, in her first parkrun volunteer appearance, as barcode scanners, Shana as report writer and Ronder (plus her pooch) as the tail walker.
If you are interested in joining the parkrun community by participating as a volunteer or finishing the 5km course at the Botanical Gardens, all individuals of all abilities and age groups are welcome. You can run, walk or jog your way through the 5km distance at your own pace. Walking is also popular and the tail walker is the final finisher and helping to ensure the gardens remain safely shared with members of the public.
Simply register at parkrun.com.au for a barcode and join the event at 7.50am where you can see the event flags near the BBQ and playground area. Do rug up as we head towards the cooler months and hope to see you at an event soon.

Brothers Adronis and Clovis, their cousins David and Blaise (who are also
brothers) are joined by Adronis’ wife Damalice and their three children, Clovis’ wife
Sonia and their two babies, friend Akot with her children, with regulars David and
Donna Petrusma and their grandson are pictured at Saturday’s event.

Climate change: setting the record straight


Trevor Scott, Castlemaine


I was glancing through last month’s newspapers and came across Cheryl Antonio’s letter ‘Anomaly Haaa’ (Opinions, March 13). You claim Cheryl, that John Lewis said “multiple periods of very hot weather going back to the 1800’s, are nothing but an anomaly”. You attempt to disprove this and you present us with a lot of statistics from the BOM, but you don’t seem to be able to produce any records before 1968. I think that John was trying to show that overall the weather has been much warmer since 1968. You seem to be trying to discredit the existence of climate change so I feel like I need to step in and set the record straight.
Only 20 years after this, in June 1988, Dr James Hansen, NASA scientist, addressed the US Congress. Firstly he told them that already the excess amount of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere was contributing to a greenhouse effect, and that there was already evidence that this was adversely affecting our climate.
Secondly, he told the government leaders gathered before him that the observed warming was caused by human-produced greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide.
Thirdly he told them that the greenhouse effect was already increasing the frequency and the severity of extreme weather events such as heat waves and cyclones. This was all backed up by former vice president Al Gore in 2006 when in his scientifically-based film ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ he told the world that the Earth is gradually warming and the most effective way to stop this is to stop producing the greenhouse gas, that is, we need a rapid and very extensive reduction in carbon pollution. Storing it in the ground doesn’t work, carbon credits don’t work. The only way to fix this problem is to transition as quickly as possible to renewable sources of energy and leave the remaining fossil fuel in the ground. There is already almost 40 per cent green power in the grid. What we need right now is the political will to get this to 100 per cent by 2050, if not sooner.

Wilkinson to visit

Lisa Wilkinson is coming to Central Victoria for two literary events.
Lisa Wilkinson is coming to Central Victoria for two literary events.

Media identity Lisa Wilkinson will be visiting the local region for two book events host by Castlemaine's Northern Books to celebrate the launch of her new book.Northern Books Kristin Gill said they a...

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Public artwork commission to celebrate Loddon riverbanks

Artist Kirsten Moegerlein, and Patrick Kavanagh and Asha Bannon from Newstead Landcare are excited about the new project.
Artist Kirsten Moegerlein, and Patrick Kavanagh and Asha Bannon from Newstead Landcare are excited about the new project.

A new public art work by local artist Kirsten Moegerlein celebrating the Loddon River is to be installed at Newstead.
The work has been commissioned by Mount Alexander Shire Council and will be a wrap–around mural on Panmure Street in Newstead on the soon-to-be refurbished toilet block.
Kirsten is an emerging artist, experienced designer and researcher living on Djaara Country, based in Yapeen.
She paints landscapes, has a PhD in participatory design and has exhibited work locally, including at Artpuff and in Melbourne.
Kirsten will work in partnership with Newstead Landcare to design and paint the mural over the next three months, celebrating over 30 years of revegetation work on the Loddon riverbanks.
Mayor Toby Heydon said that council is proud to support a local artist and celebrate the natural beauty of the river.
“Kirsten is a wonderful artist and brings great skills in collaborating with the community. We look forward to seeing how she commemorates the transformation of a degraded river habitat into an oasis of plant and animal life.
“We’re delighted that Kirsten will celebrate Newstead Landcare’s hard work restoring the riverbanks and create this mural to brighten up a well-used corner of Newstead.”
Kirsten was selected from a pool of 26 artists who responded to an expression of interest in early 2026.
The commission follows community engagement where Newstead residents showed strong interest in telling the story of the Loddon River and revegetation.
Kirsten’s artwork will connect with wider community celebrations of the river.
On the other side of the riverbank, Newstead Arts Hub has developed ‘Weaving the River’, a program which includes a month-long exhibition and the River Story Day on April 26, in the lead up to the creation of a public artwork on the arts hub fenceline.
Together, both the council mural and Newstead Arts Hub’s fenceline artwork will create a cohesive, collaborative celebration of the river on both sides of the Loddon.
Kirsten will be sharing her concept design for the Panmure Street mural at the River Story Day Sunday April 26, 10am to 3pm, at the Newstead Arts Hub, 8A Tivey Street Newstead.

Threads Along The Silk Road

Screenshot

A stunning exhibition of photographs Threads Along The Silk Road by Chewton photographer Aaron Keith is currently on show at Castlemaine Contemporary Arts Space (CASPA).
Aaron said this collection of photographs was taken over a few months travelling through Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Georgia.
“They form a journey of documentation of the complex cultures and histories of these countries, which grew as crucial regions of influence along the silk road over many centuries, and much more recently as former members of the Soviet Union,” he said.
“As such, I want to present fleeting snapshots of how these vastly different periods of history and ways of life coexist in the modern day, through the lens of candid moments of the people I came across crossed while traversing the ancient trade route from east to west.”
The exhibition runs until April 30.
You can catch the exhibition and enjoy a chat with Aaron about his travels until 3pm today, 11-4 Saturday April 25 and Sunday, April 26, and 11-4 Wednesday April 29 and Thursday April 30.
CASPA is located above Stoneman’s Bookroom and is accessible via the laneway on Hargraves Street.

Friday, April 24, 2026

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Castlemaine Junior Magpies ready to take flight


Footy season is just around the corner for Castlemaine Football Netball Club Juniors (CFNCJ) and the club is primed for a big year ahead. The Under 12s will be the first team to get things started, scheduled to play in the afternoon on ANZAC Day, while the Under 14s & Under 16s will have their first games the following day on April 26. The Under 9s and Under 10s have to wait a little longer, starting their campaigns on May 9.
Vice-President of the CFNCJs, Mekaal Hassan, says the club is ready for the season ahead. “We’ve had lots of excitement from our new and returning players who are now just keen to get the games started. Our volunteer coaches have been running training sessions for some time and all is ready-to-go.”
One change followers of the Juniors may notice is the club referring to their home ground at Wesley Hill as ‘Castlemaine Fresh Oval’. This is in recognition of long-time club sponsor, Castlemaine Fresh, who have continued their support for junior football in Castlemaine into a 30th year. Mekaal says, “When the opportunity came up to continue our association with Castlemaine Fresh we jumped at the chance. We’re
also pleased to have a new connection with Grainger Legal who have come on-board with a focus on our volunteers.”
Excitingly, the club will also have a new clash jumper to unveil this season that has been created by local First Nations artist, Daikota Nelson. The club is seeking to launch the design as part of a round of home matches early in the season and Mekaal hopes negotiations with the Bendigo Junior Football League about this are finalised shortly. “All fans of junior sport are welcome to any of our games. Our kids love having supporters there to play in front of. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for fixture updates.’ Anyone interested in playing or being involved is welcome to contact the club via email (cjfc@outlook.com) or the see the club Facebook page for further information. The Castlemaine Mail looks forward to keeping our community updated on the progress of our young Magpie stars.

Community invited to attend Anzac Day services

The parade will commence at the Castlemaine Town Hall at 9am to the cenotaph in Mostyn Street.
The parade will commence at the Castlemaine Town Hall at 9am to the cenotaph in Mostyn Street.

RSL Castlemaine invites community members to attend their Anzac Day services this Saturday morning, April 25.
The dawn service will take place at the cenotaph outside the RSL Hall in Mostyn Street, Castlemaine from 5.45am followed by a gunfire breakfast.
The Lions Club of Castlemaine will also have their coffee van alongside the Market Building if you want a cuppa.
The main service will take place from 8.45am with marchers to gather outside the Town Hall in Lyttleton Street. The march will head towards Hargraves Street and down to Mostyn Street to the cenotaph.
The crowd will be welcomed by RSL Castlemaine vice president Owen Scott who will be the MC on the day.
The guests will include mayor Cr Toby Heydon, special guest speaker Lieutenant Colonel Neil James, and two students from Sacred Heart College in Kyneton.
Four representatives from the SES, Police, CFA and Ambulance will again form the catafalque party around the cenotaph.
Scouts and Guides and various other community groups will attend to lay tributes on the cenotaph.
The Sporting Globe Bar & Grill in Bendigo will also be supporting RSL Castlemaine by donating the proceeds of their Two Up Games on the day.
All are welcome to attend.

Exhibition opens at Grist

An exhibition by up and coming young artist Liam Muir launched at Grist Bakery at Wesley Hill last Friday April 17
The neurodivergent artist loves to play with colour. The exhibition is a collection of pieces he has been working on for the last 18 months with the support of mentor Scottie Charalambous at Lot 19 art space.
“Painting gives me a wide and well-rounded landscape of pleasures ranging from accomplishment, peace, purpose, something to start a conversation about, complex skill and escape from the outside world,” Liam says.
He is super excited to be able to share his work with you! The exhibition runs until April 30 so be sure to pop in and check it out.

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