Notebooks

Notebooks are snapshots from our writers, reflecting on current affairs and underappreciated aspects of culture and history.

Australian Premier John Curtin talks with Flight Sergeant Harry Tickle, responsible for maintaining Lancaster bomber G for George, 1944, RAF. Credit: piemags/ww2archive

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Australia needs a tragic statesman

Throughout Australian history, few leaders have understood geopolitical tragedy. The optimism-bias of the 'lucky country' leaves it ill-equipped to deal with an increasingly volati..

Iain MacGillivray July 2, 2026

Rinus Michels after his team triumph in Europe.

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A World Cup in Rinus Michels’ image

The Dutch master's revolution has conquered football so completely that almost every major footballing nation aspires to play in his style.

Paul Lay July 1, 2026

An Italian drone dog moves across the field during NATO exercise Steadfast Dart 26.

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Drone warfare with a moral code

Recent innovations in artificial intelligence may make it possible to train autonomous weapons systems to act with a moral compass on the battlefield, but human oversight must be m..

David Omand June 30, 2026

Austrian Federal President Kurt Waldheim, captured in a studio of the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (ORF) in Vienna on March 19th 1987.

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Hubertus Czernin put Austria on trial

Through his rigorous archival work and sense of moral duty, the Austrian investigative journalist Hubertus Czernin was able to confront his country's complicity in the horrors of t..

Katherine Simms June 29, 2026

William Pitt the Younger and the British House of Commons in c. 1793-1794. Oil on canvas by Anton Hickel

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Britain’s other age of instability

The late-18th-century British political system was shaken by a series of domestic and imperial crises, unleashing a period of turbulence only settled by a prime minister who combin..

Max Skjönsberg June 29, 2026

A stained glass of Jesus multiplying loaves and fish.

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On the craze for eating God’s way

The new craze for biblical eating has roots in two centuries of American Christian food culture.

Zoe Strimpel June 26, 2026

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When chat shows were worth watching

The archive of 'The Dick Cavett Show' is a reminder that chat show interviews were once conducted with wit and intelligence.

Paul Lay June 24, 2026

The War of the Pacific or Saltpetre War. Credit: Album

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The geopolitics of fertiliser

Time and again the global supply of usable nitrogen has driven conflict, a pattern brought back into view by turmoil in the Middle East and the green transition.

Mara Balasa June 23, 2026

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The case for South Korea to join the G7

Seoul's economic dynamism, shrewd diplomacy and strong record of co-operation with NATO countries in trade and defence has positioned it as a natural addition to the Group of Seven..

Edward Howell June 22, 2026