Category Archives: Movies

Yarn May-June 2026

The new issue of The Southern Yarn is here, after some delays at the end of the production chain. Enjoy it in full colour here, or patiently await your glorious monochrome rendition through the post.

Here’s the editorial to get you started…

Winnipeg is home to an amazing diversity of nationalities, with over 100 different countries of birth. It is probably not unique in that respect. However, it is certainly near the top of the class in the extent to which so many of these various ethnicities strive to keep their culture alive. Evidence for this, on a large scale, is best seen in the number of cultural groups that participate in the annual Folklorama festival. This year there will be 45 unique ethno-cultural Pavilions throughout the city from August 2nd – 15th. Our DUCW is long past being able to join that list, but we do manage to stay true to our roots in other ways – Our Australia and Waitangi Days and ANZAC Day being the most public – not to mention this little newsletter. Continue reading →

Southern Yarn for March-April, 2026

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The March-April issue of The Yarn is ready for your online perusal, and the monochromatic analog version is entrusted to our ever faithful Canada Post, for those less likely to be reading these words on the web… and as usual, we start off with the wise words from our editor…

With all the bad news that bombards us these days, it’s a welcome break to spend time searching for and reading “other” news. And not just news – history, humour, member happenings and events also.

In this issue, there is some history concerning early emigration to New Zealand and Australia; there is some Tundra humour, some Footrot Flats humour courtesy of Murray Ball; there are snippets of all sorts of other interesting information and much more.

Thank you to Jenny, Judy, Peter, Brian and our advertisers for their contributions. Thank you, too, to Cherie at Echo Publishing in Sydney. After some back and forth with emails, we were granted permission to reproduce selected excerpts from Favourite Cricket Yarns by Ken Piesse (2016). You’ll find one of them somewhere further on in this issue.

Enjoy, Charlie

Southern Yarn for January – February, 2026

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The new issue of the Southern Yarn is now available for you to enjoy. To get you started, here is the editorial:

Due to Downunder House being closed over the Christmas and New Year period so that our hard-working staff could take a well-earned break and spend some quality time with family and friends, this issue of the Yarn is a slightly smaller version.

At least to start with, 2026 will see us still operating with a hybrid work arrangement to accommodate the different needs and preferences of our journalists. Some prefer to work from home while others find the office more suitable. So, most days it’s a compromise – home/office. Nevertheless, be assured, you, our valued readers, will always come first.

Continue reading →

Yarn September October 2025

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We recently had a road trip to Cleveland, Ohio, and enjoyed some great sights, sites and scenery going and coming. But in all seven states through which we passed, smoky skies reminded us of the northern Manitoba bushfires.

Over 2 million hectares are affected, making them the worst on record. Which is why it was heartening to learn of the assistance from Kiwi and Aussie firefighting teams [July 13, 2025]:

“Fire and Emergency New Zealand deployed an additional 43-person taskforce to Manitoba, Canada, to bolster the local response to more than 500 actives wildfires currently burning in the region.

Continue reading →

Southern Yarn – May June 2025

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25-Yarn_0506-MayJune The Yarn is once again ready for you to read.

At the risk of overdosing on folate, I have no plans to change my regular enjoyment of Vegemite and toast (p. 4). Hopefully the powers that be will take note of the nationwide, multi-generational “study” that has been in progress for more than a century down under with no warnings coming from the Australian medical profession, and add fortified spreads to their allowable imports.

In this issue, we also farewell a long-standing member (p. 3), offer some viewing ideas (p. 5) and get the low-down on the AFL (p. 7).

This resident ornithologist is taking a break this issue. And instead of my Birds I view column (p. 8), we share (with permission) Gord Mackintosh’s entertaining and informative bird tour of Manitoba. In case you’re of the Scottish persuasion, we have inserted an announcement for the upcoming Manitoba Highland Gathering (p. 3).

All this and so much more – for your reading pleasure.