In early convict settlements swimming was a functional way to bathe and cool off, and Chain Baths offered a women-only space to remove restrictive corsets and petticoats.

The parents of an Australian man detained in Bulgaria are calling on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to intervene and help secure his release.

The family of volunteer firefighter from New Zealand who was killed in a hit-and-run in the NSW Hunter Valley has issued an emotional plea for someone to come forward.

Up to 100,000 litres of water is being used each weekday by a regional New South Wales council to keep drivers safe on its gravel roads all 954 kilometres of them.

The National Party wants urgent changes to the NSW Independent Planning Commission, fearing there is little certainty for investors following the rejection of the proposed Bylong Valley coal mine.

If you suffer from trypophobia, or an aversion to the sight of clusters of small holes, you might want to take a deep breath before laying your eyes on a Suriname toad.

Oliver Scales-Copeland, who is accused of stabbing two police officers at a service station north of Sydney yesterday, represents himself in court and becomes emotional when his bail application is refused.

The victim of a violent home invasion in Newcastle has described his ongoing suffering and lifelong trauma after half his face was shot off in December 2017.

A transport company seeking lucrative contracts to run Adelaide's public transport networks has shared fake quotes of former Labor ministers in an apparent bid to assist the South Australian Liberal Government press its case for rail privatisation.

A man who previously admitted to the kidnap and sexual abuse of an 11-year-old girl in Newcastle has pleaded guilty to three further offences.

The former Anglican Dean of Newcastle Graeme Lawrence is sentenced to a maximum of eight years over the rape of a 15-year-old boy in 1991.

A man who raised a sawn-off shotgun to his victim's head and pulled the trigger during a violent home invasion has been sentenced to a maximum of 11 years' jail.

A man who denied knowing anything about $245 million worth of drugs onboard a catamaran he skippered from Tahiti faces life in jail after being found guilty of the crime.

A recent Harvard study found Australia's economy is less complex than Kazakhstan or Uganda, but is the assessment fair? And, if it is, what can be done to diversify the economy away from its mining dependence?

The New South Wales Supreme Court has heard a man accused of killing a knife-wielding intruder was annoyed but had no intention of killing the man after a chase and struggle.

Have you ever wondered what happens to lost and stolen items when the police can't find the owner?

A food technology company has patented a process it claims can keep 100 per cent natural milk fresh for at least 60 days without additives or preservatives.

When Bennett Powell was a child, doctors thought he might never walk but now he's running, cycling and swimming as part of his third Ironman Australia race.

Brenda Marney, 73, is charged with animal cruelty offences after a mutilated magpie is found at her home on the NSW mid-north coast police believe she lures animals with food before capturing and torturing them.

Five men are charged over the murder of a Queensland man who was beaten to death with a steel bar before his mutilated body was dumped, set alight and eventually found by firefighters near Taree.

Three women, inspired by the revelations in The Teacher's Pet podcast, have come forward with allegations of sexual abuse by teachers at a NSW high school.

The Country Women's Association is set to take on Wicked Campers after one of its members took direct action and painted over of slogans on one of its vans.

The reliability of roadside drug testing for cannabis is in question after new research reveals a "concerning" proportion of the tests are inaccurate, while a driver argues the 'passive smoking' defence and has charges dismissed.

A coastal paradise town becomes a safe haven for refugees, despite being outside of a government-supported resettlement zone.

A French agriculture student wants her family to consider introducing buffalo on their Charolais operation after a stint on a NSW dairy.

A University of Melbourne academic and a little school in NSW are stressing the importance of students learning a second language as the school hosts the Indonesian Consul General.

Barrington Tops is receiving its first winter dusting as cold conditions hit the east coast of New South Wales.

Free martial arts classes being offered to victims of bullying could have a major impact on the mental health of young people, experts say.

Stories of struggle, the Stolen Generations, mission communities and the death of a traditional language: how would you vocalise three generations of Indigenous history?

A NSW court hears 81-year-old David Allen Esling, charged with the attempted stabbing murder of his wife of 54 years in April, had formed a suicide pact with her.

Chief the bison was killed with a high-powered rifle on a rural NSW property and it is believed the culprits can sell the animal's hide for thousands of dollars.

The Mini Minor car was a symbol of the Swinging Sixties and now it is helping one veteran dairy farmer keep a perspective on the rigours of family life and work.

Honey from Australian native stingless bees is not technically honey and moves are buzzing around to change that.

Residents at a retirement village in New South Wales say life is becoming more like science fiction as an automated vehicle changes the way they stay connected.

Relatives visiting the gravestones of their family in a NSW town, who found the gravestones razed, thought it was the work of vandals.

There are calls for better police training in mental health after a man was shot dead following a nine-hour stand-off at his home on the NSW Mid North coast.

A research project is underway to determine the impact of the controversial Lord Howe Island rodent eradication program on a threatened currawong species and wider ecosystem.

Toddler William Tyrrell, who vanished from his foster grandmother's home in the sleepy town of Kendall almost five years ago, was likely abducted by someone who chose to "act on their desires", an inquest into his disappearance hears.

The former chief investigator who led the investigation into the disappearance of three-year-old William Tyrrell on the NSW mid-north coast is accused of misleading a neighbour during a police interview two years ago.

Whitegoods repairman Bill Spedding tells an inquest into the disappearance of William Tyrrell he was having coffee with his wife on the day the toddler vanished, before revealing the "devastating impact" of the police investigation on his life.

Today the Macleay Valley is suffering unprecedented drought, but 70 years ago it was inundated with "mighty waves as high as telegraph poles" that flooded the region and left 2,000 people homeless.

Washing machine repairman Bill Spedding is seeking up to $1 million in compensation after accusing NSW Police of causing him "reputational damage" by wrongly linking him to the disappearance of William Tyrrell.

The number of homes lost to three fires in northern NSW rises to nine as strong winds continue to hamper the efforts of firefighters to bring them under control.

Young, adventurous and enterprising couple Jess Davidson and Andy Hoffman quit their jobs to follow a dream more than a year ago.

Farmers along Australia's normally green east coast are reeling from the worst drought they have ever seen and face a tough summer if it doesn't rain in the next few months.

Members of a NSW rugby league club who were photographed at an airport wearing offensive t-shirts emblazoned with a topless mermaid look set to face the wrath of the sport's officials.

NSW Police confirm two men, reported to be father and son, died in a plane crash west of Coffs Harbour.