Good morning!

It’s fair to say the news cycle has felt particularly dark and heavy this week. It’s been a strange sensation having our attention dragged from one horrific story to another, with very little space to actually come to terms with what we’ve seen unfold.

So, for this weekend’s newsletter, we thought we’d bring you some of the more uplifting stories that you may have missed recently. 

Here’s some good news from around the world - as a reminder to us of the brightness that exists among the darkness.

Snook wins top award

We begin our good news journey with homegrown talent and all around superstar Sarah Snook, who this week won best actress at the prestigious Olivier Awards for her role in The Picture of Dorian Gray.

For those unfamiliar with this play, it’s a one-woman play where Snook plays an outrageous 26 (!!!) characters over two hours. It’s currently showing on London’s West End, but has its roots in Australia, where it was developed and originally performed at the Sydney Theatre Company a couple of years ago. The Olivier Awards are highly prestigious and are the top honour you can win if you’re an actor on the London stage.

Ever-the-humble winner, Snook said: "It's billed as a one-woman show but it's not. It's the crew who are on stage with me all the time every night and they are a vital and constant support and inspiration. So thank you to the crew for being there in this show with me.”

Kylie among world’s most influential

On the topic of Australian women doing us proud, this week saw our very own Kylie Minogue included in TIME Magazine’s Most Influential People list. The list, which is split into artists, icons, titans, leaders, innovators, and pioneers, celebrates the world’s most influential figures across a range of industries.

Kylie’s bio for the piece was written by Coldplay’s lead singer Chris Martin, who began it like this: “Kylie Minogue was one of the first people I ever met from TV. She was a pop star, and I had watched her in Neighbours every day for a decade. So when she came to an early Coldplay show, I’d already been her fan for nearly 15 years.”

He goes on to say that Kylie’s “star has never dimmed” and that she is “deserving of every good thing that happens to her”. Other than that being a genuinely lovely thing to say about someone, it’s just so nice to see artists supporting fellow artists.

Aussie Olympic team announced

From the high end of town to the Parisian track, this week saw Olympics fever well and truly kick off. With less than 100 days until the big dance, Australia has this week named its first competitors in track and field.

Among the lineup of 14 athletes is well-known runner Peter Bol, who will be making his third appearance at the Olympics after being cleared of doping charges last year. Bol will be joined by Olympic silver medallist Nicola Olyslagers and world champion Eleanor Patterson, both high jumpers. You can see the full list here.

The Australian team will eventually include over 60 track, field and road athletes, to be announced over the coming months.

Record breaking planker

Speaking of sporting prowess, there’s another athlete in the headlines: 58-year-old grandmother DonnaJean Wilde. Wilde recently broke the world record for the longest plank held by a woman. 

Terrifyingly, she held the plank for 4 hours, 30 minutes and 11 seconds, which is 10 minutes longer than the previous record. As someone who experiences violent shakes at the 20-second mark, I for one can’t relate. 

Speaking after winning the Guinness World Record, Wilde said: "I was so worried about losing my form and I think that's why my quads hurt because I was just really tense."

Vaccine to save lives

Ending today’s good news wrap in Nigeria, where the world’s first vaccine against meningitis will be rolled out.

Nigeria is a hotspot for the deadly disease in Africa, with 153 deaths recorded over the past six months. The vaccine is reported to protect against the five major strains that are prevalent in the country.

Speaking about the vaccine rollout, the World Health Organisation’s Director General Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus said: “Meningitis is an old and deadly foe, but this new vaccine holds the potential to change the trajectory of the disease, preventing future outbreaks and saving many lives.”

Take care!

I think it’s apt to leave this newsletter on a note of scientific genius and to remind everyone to get some fresh air this weekend.

We’ll be back with regular programming on Monday.

Until then, take care of yourself.

A message from our sponsor

Whether you’re just starting to save, looking to buy or ready to refinance, Up Home is designed to guide you through the entire journey to home ownership.

Up Home takes out the middle-man, removing the need for brokers, brochures and confusing buzzwords. You can start an Up Home Deposit Saver to get a timeline based on your savings patterns, or head straight to the Home Zone in-app to get an idea of how much you’re eligible to borrow right now.

Plus, if you’re new to this process, you can visit the Up Home Learning Centre for easy to understand explainers and answers to your most pressing questions. When you’re ready, you can apply straight from the app, leaving yourself more time to start packing.

Use code TDA10 for $10 on sign up!

T&Cs, fees, charges and lending criteria apply to all Up Home loans. Generate a key facts sheet at: up.com.au/home-loans/key-facts-sheet. Credit provided by Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited ABN 11 068 049 178, AFSL / Australian Credit Licence 237879.