The Sydneyist

William Smart has designed some of Sydney’s most remarkable recent buildings, including Indigo Slam, Judith Neilson’s grand, curvaceous “habitable sculpture” in Chippendale, and Bundarra in Surry Hills. Would these amazing designs be possible without hand drawing, by hand, on paper? William Smart is a staunch defender of drawing, he joins Elizabeth Farrelly on The Sydneyist, [...]Read More... from DRAWING THE LINE

On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast Elizabeth Farrelly chats with former NSW planning minister,Dr Dr Rob Stokes, now CEO of The Faith Housing Alliance about power, politics, affordable housing and beauty. Plus local news tidbits about the changing face of our city. LISTEN UP, LISTEN IN! THE SYDNEYIST 6pm Thursday 21st May 2026 Eastside [...]Read More... from Make me a city

FACT OR FICTION?IS ARCHI-PORN A REAL THING? John Gollings is far and away Australia’s most celebrated architectural photographer. But he has never limited himself to architecture, nor hidden the fact that his images are artworks in themselves. What is the job? To tell the truth? Sell architecture? Or reveal something new about both? JOHN GOLLINGS [...]Read More... from John Gollings, Architectural Photographer

Step inside Victoria Barracks Paddington on an exclusive tour with Elizabeth Farrelly and Major General Fergus McLachlan, uncovering 200 years of Sydney’s military history. A rare tour of Victoria Barracks Paddington and discover why this extraordinary Georgian military landmark is one of Sydney’s irreplaceable treasures. [...]Read More... from ANZAC DAY: VICTORIA BARRACKS TOUR

What makes a better street? Architect Sara Stace on how to change local streets. [...]Read More... from How to make better streets

How can it enrich your life? Patrick Franklyn is a landscape architect and academic who spends his spare moments planting what he calls the ‘paddocks’ of his Tamarama street. Trees, herbs, vegetables feed the locals but also create biodiversity corridors through out our city, supporting everything from owls to insects. How to get started? What [...]Read More... from Street gardening as a shared purpose

The native eels that throng in Sydney’s waterways, including the ponds of Centennial Park, the Botanic Gardens and Victoria Park, compete eagerly for any scrap of food. But did you also know that there comes a time in every eel’s life when it feels the call to, well, mate. Then, it slithers out of the [...]Read More... from The Secret sex life of Sydney’s Eels

ROOFTOP CITY Could Sydney save itself, solve affordability, generate density, combat climate change, maintain heritage and create a whole new way of living just by adding a storey or two on top? Warren Livesey thinks so, and his argument is compelling. Livesey is founder of ARAD, the Association for Rooftop and Airspace Development with 15,000 members internationally and 75 rooftop developments [...]Read More... from Gentle Density

In NSW, unlike Queensland, Victoria and the ACT, there is no right to protest, protests must be approved by police and you can be jailed for climbing on ‘a structure.’ On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast with Elizabeth Farrelly speaks with Professor Simon Rice about our increasingly draconian protest laws in NSW. Are we [...]Read More... from Protesting the law of protest

Is Sydney becoming a ghetto for the rich? The Selwyn Street boarding houses have become a test case for affordable inner-city living. Mike Mannix has been leading the fight to save them, and the 30 people they house. Mike joins Elizabeth Farrelly on The Sydneyist podcast to give us the background to this battle for [...]Read More... from The Selwyn Street Boarding Houses

At long last New South Wales has a female Government Architect. At the same time, the Government Architect’s role has gone from making buildings, like the GPO on Martin Place, to offering Ministerial advice. As Government Architect, Abbie Galvin has promoted Design with Country, low-rise mixed-use development and is generating the much-debated NSW Pattern Book. Abbie Galvin joins Elizabeth Farrelly on The Sydneyist podcast to [...]Read More... from Abbie Galvin Government Architect

How desperate are we? Is Sydney ready for the mass rollout of tiny, sunless apartments, as recommended by the Productivity Commissioner? On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast from 2024, Elizabeth Farrelly is joined by Sue Weatherley MPIA (Fellow) and President of the NSW Planning Institute of Australia, about whether sunless apartments will help solve [...]Read More... from Are we ready for Slums?

Max McRuvie-Burns Sydney’s crime history is endlessly fascinating, not least because it was dominated by women. Hence the nickname, Pussytown. Where were the brothels, speakeasies and hideouts, exactly – and how many were right here in Paddington? On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast Sydney historian and tour guide Max Burns-McRuvie joins Elizabeth Farrelly to [...]Read More... from Sydney’s Crime History

On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast Elizabeth Farrelly is joined by the erudite and articulate Architect Tone Wheeler. The old three-storey walk-up is one of Sydney’s most despised traditions. But now, as the housing crisis deepens, many are asking whether it is less problem than solution? Architect Tone Wheeler is a big fan and [...]Read More... from The dreaded three-storey walk up

Architecture was once a noble profession. Now the Minns government proposes to abolish the Architects Act and make architects into ‘building practitioners.’ Elizabeth Farrelly chats with Australian Institute of Architects President-elect Adam Haddow about what this means for architecture and for Sydney. [...]Read More... from Abolishing the Architects Act

Should you buy an EV? Or maybe a hybrid? If so, which one? What about charging, range, batteries, rare metal mining? Are ev’s as clean as they seem? Inner-west electrification and EV advocate Sarah Aubrey has 71,000 Instagramfollowers and 1.9million views of some of her videos. On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast Sarah joins [...]Read More... from To EV or Not EV? Electrify this on Electric Vehicles

Has the Powerhouse been saved? Or is it actually under demolition? On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast from January 2025 Elizabeth Farrelly is joined by museums specialist Kylie Winkworth with updates on the latest developments in this long-running Sydney cultural drama. [...]Read More... from The Powerhouse Museum, Saved or Sacrificed?

What happened to our cities? Why are young people leaving in droves? Can affordability be fixed? On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast Elizabeth Farrelly is joined by the erudite and articulate Dr Tim Williams to discuss the housing crisis, its causes and solutions. [...]Read More... from Leaving Sydney: What went wrong?

On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast from December 2024 ‘Can Sydney learn from the Commonwealth?’, Elizabeth Farrelly spoke with Hugo Chan about what Sydney can learn from Global examples. Young Sydney architect Hugo Chan was recently elected Youth Representative to the Commonwealth Association of Architects. Hugo believes collaboration and shared learning amongst young architects [...]Read More... from Can Sydney learn from the Commonwealth?

150,000 NSW children now live in apartments. But very few apartments are designed with that in mind. On this episode of THE SYDNEYIST podcast, UNSW Professor Philip Oldfield joins Elizabeth Farrelly to talk about why this is, and what can be done. [...]Read More... from What’s wrong with Sydney apartments?

We all hate Sydney traffic, but we all love to drive. How to resolve this conundrum? [...]Read More... from Sydney Traffic Chaos

The extended interview with Gay Hendrickson, professional museum curator and the president of the Friends of the Female Factory in Parramatta. [...]Read More... from The Female Factory

What makes you want to walk, not drive? What makes a city walkable? [...]Read More... from Walkable Towns and Cities

On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast we discuss what makes Paris Paris? Sydney, facing housing, climate and affordability crises gets harder, meaner and more brittle. But Paris – facing the same big-city demands – becomes sweeter and softer, more accessible. What’s the secret? Elizabeth Farrelly spoke with architect Tim Williams about what can we learn [...]Read More... from Learning from Paris

On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast we discuss urban heat. How hot is too hot? How does heat affect your body and what can we do about it? Elizabeth Farrelly spoke with Ollie Jay, Professor of Heat and Health at the University of Sydney to talk about what you can do to stay cool. [...]Read More... from Urban Heat and Health

On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast we discuss if Sydney is becoming unliveable. The US-based Walk Score rated parts of suburban Sydney as low as 3% and Australia’s Place Score has found that Sydney’s liveability is declining. Are our cities becoming unfair, inhospitable, unliveable? Elizabeth Farrelly spoke with ‘Place Score’ founder and CEO, Kylie [...]Read More... from Is Sydney failing us?

KINGS CROSS is traditionally Australia’s centre of bohemia and sleaze. It is also our densest neighbourhood by far and a model of walkable urbanism. Now, it is being sanitised to death. What can be done? On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast Elizabeth Farrelly was joined by guest and cultural legend Warren Fahey AM to talk [...]Read More... from How to save Kings Cross

On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast ‘Protesting The Law of Protest’ Elizabeth Farrelly spoke with Professor Simon Rice about our increasingly draconian protest laws in New South Wales. Are we becoming a police state? In NSW, unlike Queensland, Victoria and the ACT, there is no right to protest, protests must be approved by police [...]Read More... from Protesting the Law of Protest

On this episode of The Sydneyist podcast we’re looking at trees. Urban heat is rather the topic du jour – as is climate change. And the tree is our best defence – yet still, when push comes to shove, we chop them down. Elizabeth Farrelly is looking quite specifically at the demolition of almost 600 [...]Read More... from Tree Massacre – Royal Sydney Golf Course

Does Sydney have theatres to spare? In this episode of The Sydneyist, host Elizabeth Farrelly sits down with investigative journalist and author Duncan McNab to discuss the cultural battle over saving the historic, Art Deco Metro-Minerva theatre in Sydney’s Potts Point. Originally opened in 1939, this prominent piece of Sydney’s architectural history faces an uncertain [...]Read More... from Murdering Minerva

Co-op housing in Sydney is something many fantasise about but few actually do. In many cities, though, it is a commonly accepted and thriving part of urban life. Why is it unusual here and what can be done? On this podcast Elizabeth Farrelly speaks with City of Sydney Greens Councillor Sylvie Ellsmore [...]Read More... from Co-op Housing

NORTH SYDNEY POOL is one of Sydney’s oldest and most beloved. The latest refurbishment is running years late and has blown out from $28m to possibly over $100m. On this episode of THE SYDNEYIST podcast, Elizabeth Farrelly speaks with North Sydney Mayor Zoe Baker about how this happened. [...]Read More... from North Sydney Pool Debacle

Creatives in Sydney have always done it tough. Now it’s worse than ever. Our artists are leaving in droves. On this episode of The Sydneyist Elizabeth Farrelly asks, can Sydney survive the loss of its creatives? Elizabeth Farrelly was joined by three artists: writer Mark Mordue, silk-screen artists Peter Bainbridge and actor Kate Mannix about surviving [...]Read More... from Squeezing The Creatives

The Cooks River is the most urbanised, concretised and polluted river in Australia. Now, it is being very slowly brought back to health. On this episode of The Sydneyist Elizabeth Farrelly asks should rivers have rights? Guests: Dr Andrew Thomas, Executive Officer and Jason L’Ecuyer from the Cooks River Alliance. [...]Read More... from How to Revive a River

At long last Sydney has its first queer history museum. From HIV to LOTL (Lesbians on the Loose) from the 1890s to the 78ers to Mick Fuller’s apology, it’s a story that needed to be told. In a delicious form of revenge-served-cold, the museum colonises the old Darlinghurst police station, a lovely arts and crafts [...]Read More... from QTOPIA: A tour of Sydney’s first Queer Museum

Would democracy work without elections? In fact, might it even work better (think Athens, which had no elections, think Trump, who revels in them) without the nastiness, lies and corruption that elections bring? This is the huge question I’ll be discussing on THE SYDNEYIST this evening with guest Luca Belgiorno Nettis from the New Democracy [...]Read More... from The Sydneyist with Luca Belgiorno-Nettis