Happy International Women’s Day, frankerinos. While every day is a good day to gobble up something made by women and non-binary folk, today we’re spotlighting all the rad stuff the frankie team have been enjoying lately. From reads to movies, pods to tunes, we hope you fall in love with this lot of cool things as much as we have.

LETA KEENS, ACTING EDITOR

IWD for me is going to be a soundtrack from my CD pile along with my favourite female-hosted podcasts… with a little excursion or two thrown in.

PODCASTS AND MUSIC I’ll start the day with Desert Island Discs, which has been around pretty well since islands started popping out of the ocean, and is now hosted by the lovely Lauren Laverne, ex-singer for the alternative band Kenickie. Laura Jean or Laura Marling will be around over breakfast, and I’ll wake up properly by re-listening to an episode of Don’t Ask Tig, the advice podcast by the adorable and always hilarious Tig Notaro, who’d be a whole load of fun to spend IWD with, I reckon. My exercise will be via Ramblings with Clare Balding – she’ll be on some misty hillside in the middle of nowhere, and I’ll be heading up the road to get some fruit and veg. During the rest of the day, I’ll listen to My Brightest Diamond, Aldous Harding, The Unthanks, Kate Bush, Claire Edwardes, Joanna Newsom, Courtney Marie Andrews and Charm of Finches.

BOOKS At the same time, I’ll be reading – not sure whether it will the hugely undervalued Barbara Comyns, or Laurie Colwin, Sayaka Murata, Laura Cumming, Carys Davies or any of the other hundreds of women writers I love.

A FEW MORE RECOMMENDATIONS For more recommendations, I’ll listen to A Good Read, hosted by Harriett Gilbert, who seems to like more or less the same books as me. I’ve just found out about Famelia in Sydney/Warrane’s Newtown, a wine bar that only stocks wine made by women – I’m pretty excited about dropping in there (hope they’re not totally booked out on the day). When I’m ready for bed, I’ll put on the most comforting podcast on the planet – Melissa Harrison’s The Stubborn Light of Things. I’ve heard all the episodes before – they helped me (and millions of others, I’m sure) survive lockdowns – but I expect to keep listening to them for the rest of my life.

ELIZA WILLIAMS, DESIGNER

THE FLOOR IS LAVA BY MEISIE I have been loving Meisie’s debut EP that came out last week and have been listening to it on repeat. Her music is a cocktail of indie, folk and pop, exploring friendship, nuances of love and issues of biodiversity loss and climate anxiety. Truly something we can all relate to!

WILD GEESE BY ANNA CORINNE The Wild Geese podcast by Anna Corinne is something I have also been listening to! Anna does deep-dives on creativity, community organising, activism and more! I always feel so inspired listening to her talk and always buzzing with ideas after I finish an episode. I have a few episodes to catch up on, so will be doing a binge listen this IWD.

THE SUMMER BOOK BY TOVE JANSSON Originally, I gave this book to my friend as a birthday present, but I was so intrigued by the story and Tove Jansson (who is the artist behind the moomins!) that I really want to read it myself! It’s about an elderly artist and her six-year-old granddaughter, Sophia, spending a summer on a tiny, secluded island in the Gulf of Finland. I am definitely setting some time aside to read it this IWD!

JULIETTE SALOM, DIGITAL COPYWRITING STRATEGIST

PLASTIC BUDGIE BY OLIVIA DE ZILVA I’ve been churning through a handful of books over the last few months that have either been a little on the heavy side in content (see: The Mushroom Tapes by the holy trinity of ladies – Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper and Sarah Krasnostein) or in language (yes, I re-read Wuthering Heights in the lead up to the film – no, I shouldn’t have). Olivia De Silva’s debut novel Plastic Budgie caught my eye in the bookshop after chatting to the clever ladies behind Pink Short Press a few months ago – the indie publishing house behind Olivia’s book – and boy, is it a delight. Funny and heartbreaking, smart and silly – basically, everything you could want from a book. Can’t wait to keep on gobbling it up.

LAMBRINI GIRLS My best pal and I went along to the Lambrini Girls’ sold out Melbourne/Naarm show the other week and it was hella awesome. The English duo dislodged my ear canals (I forgot my earplugs) and lit a fire in my belly. Some of their tunes include masterpieces like “Cuntology 101” and “Big Dick Energy”, which I’ll be listening to today. If you’re a fan of Amyl and the Sniffers, you’re going to froth these lasses. Plus, we stole a few minutes of their time to throw some “this or that”s at them – spy the chat here.

RENATE REINSVE The 2026 Academy Awards are but a week away and you bet I’ve seen (almost) all the major nominations. The film I keep coming back to, though – both in the cinema and in my own head – is Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value. Specifically, I keep coming back to Norwegian actor Renate Reinsve. I was first introduced to the talented lady in 2021’s The Worst Person in the World (aka The Best Film in the World) and haven’t fallen out of love with her since. Renate captures the fragility of human complexity on screen like no other, and the photo of her and her co-stars having the best time while a grumpy Stellan Skarsgård eats his sad little dinner is the funniest thing that’s ever happened. If I don’t get around to re-watching the film today, I’ll be happy enough just giggling at that picture instead.

CLAIRE MULLINS, PARTNERSHIPS DIRECTOR

This International Women’s Day coincides with a long weekend here in Victoria, so I’ll be heading down the coast with a tote bag full to the brim with books by my favourite Aussie female authors, and little else on my to-do list but read!

THE TRUTH ABOUT HER BY JACQUELINE MALLEY Top of my pile is The Truth About Her by Jacqueline Malley. This book was published in 2021 (I devoured it on my first read back then) and is a truly excellent book. It looks at the modern female experience, the portrayal of women in social media, along with themes of motherhood, guilt, shame and relationships. It’s serious, tender and really funny in parts. I highly recommend!  

CHOSEN FAMILY BY MADELINE GRAY Next, I’ll be diving into Madeline Gray’s new novel, Chosen Family. I absolutely loved her first book Green Dot, so I can’t wait to get stuck into this one. It’s a tale of messy friendship-feud-unrequited-queer-love-affair set in Sydney across nearly a couple of decades, with two quirky, funny, brilliant female leads.

ON NOT CLIMBING MOUNTAINS BY CLAIRE THOMAS Book number 3 on my list is a new release by Melbourne/Naarm author Claire Thomas, On Not Climbing Mountains.  This is a gentle lyrical story that follows our narrator Beatrice as she travels through Switzerland after her father’s death to connect with his heritage. The story meanders through actual historical events, science, art and artists that are linked to the areas she travels. Reading it feels like a meditation in itself.

 

 

 

 

 

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KATE PULLEN, ART DIRECTOR

MY BRILLIANT CAREER Last week, I saw Melbourne Theatre Company’s performance of My Brilliant Career, a musical based on the novel of the same name. Although I am an avid musical goer, this was a production that had completely passed me by (it had actually already toured through Aus back in 2024). The novel also drew a complete blank. I’d booked my ticket following a friend’s recommendation, and my excitement only grew after realising the lead was played by Kala Gare (I’d previously seen her as Anne Boleyn in the musical Six and was already a big fan). Well, going in blind turned out to be a magnificent treat, because the whole thing blew me away. I laughed (a lot!), I cried (an embarrassing amount), and again I was in awe of Kala Gare's incredible talent. Her energy is truly infectious. 

It’s only since seeing the production that I’ve realised I probably should’ve known much more about My Brilliant Career already. The original text was written by Miles Franklin (as in the massive literary award Miles Franklin). And did you know that Miles Franklin was in fact Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin? Ahh YUH. My Brilliant Career was her debut novel, a semi-autobiographical text WRITTEN AT AGE 16 and first published in 1901. It follows 16-year-old Sybylla, growing up in rural New South Wales in the 1890s but dreaming of a life more refined, more adventurous, more meaningful. Franklin also penned a follow-up, My Career Goes Bung, but it wasn’t published until 1946 as it was thought to be too audacious for its time. Oh, and this was after losing and rediscovering the manuscript after the First World War. Truly ​iconic behaviour.

Now I have to apologise, because after all that hype, the current Melbourne season of the musical has already ended. But! It’s coming to Canberra Theatre March 7th to 15th, Sydney Theatre Company’s Roslyn Packer Theatre March 21st to April 26th, and Illawarra Performing Arts Centre in Wollongong May 8th to 17th. For everyone else: watch clips on YouTube, go and support Kala Gare on social media, and chuck a reserve on the novel at your local library.

MIA LILLIS-MAYNARD, MARKETING AND CONTENT LEAD

ASK THIS YOURSELF BY FLEX MAMI Ask Yourself This by Flex Mami (the prompt queen herself) is a journal that pushes you to say the things you might be too afraid to say out loud. As someone who thinks a bit too much and has a habit of repressing emotions, having a place to unpack those thoughts feels equal parts confronting and exciting. It’s full of prompts that make you stop for a minute and actually sit with yourself – which not always easy, but probably very necessary if you want to start listening to the voice in your head that makes you feel honest and alive (and not the big meanie one). 

HAMNET I’m planning to rewatch Hamnet, directed by Chloé Zhao – only the second woman ever to win the Academy Award for Best Director. It’s a gut-wrenchingly beautiful film about motherhood, grief and family, with Jessie Buckley delivering a performance that completely wrecked me the first time I saw it. When I watched it in the cinema it was mostly sold out, so I ended up stuck in the front row, my head tilted at a very questionable angle – one that allowed half of my choc-top to land on my chest but didn’t quite allow the tears to flow properly. This time I’ll be watching it at home, cosy on the couch with tissues at the ready.

We hope you enjoyed these rad recommendations from the frankie team. To have a squiz at what we were all enjoying last year, head this-a-way. Plus, sign up to our newsletter to never miss these ripper recommendations.