Dear readers, footy season is finally here as the distraction we need from, well, pretty much everything else – even if the quality of commentary is not what it used to be. Sadly, war is unavoidable, even for Five Great Reads, but in the middle of this week’s selection is a very good boy to help restore your faith in the universe.
1. Superstar DJ, here we go
Pete Tong is the English dance music equivalent of the venerated John Peel via his 35 years as host of BBC Radio 1’s Essential Mix. But his many, many hours behind the decks at clubs and festivals have come at a cost. It’s not burnout (Tong is not one for hedonistic excess) but hearing loss in one ear.
Now Tong is encouraging relapsed ravers to look after their ears “so they can rave for as long as possible”. He talks Emine Saner through his storied career and the “special forces training” needed to survive multiple seasons in Ibiza.
Life imitating art: In the 2004 mockumentary It’s All Gone Pete Tong, the superstar DJ Frankie Wilde, played by Paul Kaye, goes deaf.
How long will it take to read: Six minutes.
2. The former CIA asset who runs Libya
This week I learned Libya is split between two governments – one in the west and one in the east. But neither of them really governs. The man actually running things is Khalifa Haftar, an 82-year-old military commander whose influence extends beyond domestic affairs to Europe’s migration crisis and Sudan’s war.
Anas El Gomati details 50-plus years of machinations by the former CIA asset who has survived a prison camp, a failed revolution and the 2011 Nato-led overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi.
A timely reminder: “Every intervention makes the same promise: remove the dictator and the people will be free. Libya is what happens when the dictator is removed and the people are forgotten.”
How long will it take to read: Eleven minutes.
3. From guide dog school dropout to cancer carer
Marcus is proof you can teach a good dog new tricks – and that you’re never too old for a career change. He was being trained as a guide dog before his report card came in: Marcus was “a bit slow” and “a sloth with a low drive to work”.
But he was affectionate, friendly and polite, which made him a perfect therapy dog for cancer patients. Kate Leaver meets Marcus at work, where if someone is upset he is by their side in moments.
No shame in being ‘reclassified’: In 2025, only 39 dogs made it through guide dog training and 93 were placed as therapy dogs across NSW and the ACT.
How long will it take to read: Three minutes.
4. The teacher who exposed Putin’s primary school propaganda
When Russia rolled out a patriotic education program designed to mould primary schoolchildren into Putin enthusiasts and supporters of the war against Ukraine, teachers had to upload footage as proof they were fulfilling their mandate.
Pavel Talankin, one of said teachers, was simultaneously sending video from his tiny school to US director David Borenstein. The ensuing documentary, Mr Nobody Against Putin, is up for an Oscar. And Talankin, now in exile, can never return home.
Becoming an unperson: When Karabash officials became aware the film had been widely viewed in the town, intelligence operatives visited school leadership to tell them Talankin “did not exist and does not exist”.
How long will it take to read: Three minutes.
5. Christina Applegate: ‘I’ve become an honesty missile’
The Married with Children and Anchorman star Christina Applegate has faced myriad health challenges: body dysmorphia, a double mastectomy and a 2021 multiple sclerosis diagnosis that has left her mostly bedridden.
Now the Emmy-winning comedy star has penned her memoir, drawn from the box of her journals that was supposed to stay locked until she died. In this extract, Applegate discusses her battles with illness, the last time she felt part of Hollywood and the bittersweet experience of receiving a Walk of Fame star.
“I like to watch TV – the worse the better, usually reality shows such as Real Housewives – because with TV I get to escape. I don’t want narratives, art, investing in some antihero across seven brilliant seasons. I want rich women screaming at each other.”
How long will it take to read: Eight minutes.
Sign up
If you would like to receive these Five Great Reads to your email inbox every weekend, sign up here. And check out out the full list of our local and international newsletters.
