Friday 7th February

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Hello Canberra,

📆 Today: The French Film Festival + Bookclubs in Canberra.

⛈️ Weather: 34°. A sunny morning. 60% chance of showers in the afternoon and evening. A possible severe storm.

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Coming Up: The French Film Festival

The Alliance Française French Film Festival is coming to Palace this March. The festival opens on March 6 with the Australian premiere of one of France's biggest hits of the year, Monsieur Aznavour. At the opening gala, enjoy drinks on arrival, cheese, live music, and food boxes during the film. And after the movie, there will be French canapés, wine, and a DJ set.

Personally, I'm looking forward to the highly acclaimed new adaptation of Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo! Details here.

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Around Canberra: Bookclubs

The NFSA Book Club In partnership with the Canberra Writers Festival, the National Film and Sound Archive is hosting a year-long program of film screenings followed by discussions on the films and the novels that inspired them. Screenings include Romeo + Juliet, Battle Royale, Strangers on a Train, The Color Purple, and to kick things off, Jurassic Park. Tickets are available for individual screenings, or you can buy a discounted pass for all 11 films in the program. Details here.

Bookcow Clubs: The Bookcow bookshop in Kingston hosts three regular book clubs: Translations, OzLit, and the Rainbow Holstein Book Club. The Bookcow describes these as low-stakes social gatherings, perfect for meeting new people. Details here.

Silent Book Club: If you just want a quiet space to sit and read with other book lovers, the Cafe Stepping Stone Silent Book Club is for you. It runs every fortnight on Sundays. Details here.

Start Your Own Book Club: And if you're looking to start your own bookclub, ACT Libraries lends out sets of up 12 copies to bookclubs with over 380 titles to choose from. Details here.

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Looking Ahead: 🤣 Melbourne Comedy Festival Roadshow

The Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow rolls into Canberra in July. There's no word on the lineup of this year's show, but expect a dynamic lineup of comedy legends and fresh faces. Details here.

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Stage: 🏴‍☠️ Pirates of Penzance

The Gilbert & Sullivan classic gets a fresh, joyful spin in Hayes Theatre Co's production of Pirates of Penzance. The story is brought to life by just four bold performers, including Jay Laga'aia and Brittanie Shipway. Details here.

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👉 This Weekend in Canberra

Fingers crossed the forecasted rain doesn't spoil the National Multicultural Festival! Along with the festival, there's the Lifeline Bookfair, a record fair at Capital Brewing, and the UC Capitals are playing at AIS.

Get the full rundown of weekend events here.

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Classifieds

EPIC $1 Sale! Hannah's Treasures is working to reintegrate $1 dollar shopping back into our lives! We are coming up to our 8th $1 sale this Sunday, February 9, from 12-2pm @ 8 Turriff St Chisholm. It's like a garage sale, only with thousands of items all only $1 each! Follow Hannah's Treasures on FB for further information. Details here.

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Classifieds support Canberra Digest

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Canberra Eats

And some news on a couple of popular local spots:

Four Winds Up for Sale: One of the Canberra region's standout wineries—and a popular spot to enjoy a glass of wine with delicious pizza—Four Winds has been put up for sale. The winery was awarded 5 stars in the 2025 Halliday Wine Companion and recently took home five major trophies at the Melbourne Royal Wine Awards.

Sweet Bones Closes: The Sweet Bones vegan cafe in Braddon has announced they are closing to focus on their Scullin location. The cafe operated just off Lonsdale Street for more than a decade. More.