A 21-year-old man of no fixed address is arrested by detectives over the alleged sexual assault of a woman in a park in Thornbury in Melbourne's north on Saturday night.

We all know the importance of blood donations to save lives, but have you ever thought about what happens when a pet needs a transfusion?

Brisbane woman Layla Chen messaged her WeChat community after she was woken in the night by a loud bang she is one of tens of thousands of Chinese-speaking residents who use social media groups to get help when they fear for their safety.

A man appears in a Melbourne court charged with raping a 32-year-old woman who was walking a dog in Thornbury on Saturday night.

Police arrest dozens of young suspects in crimes such as carjackings and aggravated burglaries as they admit street gangs have "absolutely" become a problem in Melbourne.

The headmaster of St Kevin's College in Melbourne has labelled the behaviour of his own students "offensive" and "misogynistic", after a group were filmed screaming an offensive song during the weekend.

Victoria's one-stop shop for all things to do with fines has been crippled by serious IT issues. So what's behind the multi-million-dollar problem, and what does it mean for people facing a payment deadline?

Prince of Arran came third in last year's Melbourne Cup, and now the English racehorse who loves Australia wins the Geelong Cup, but a Flemington start is still up in the air.

A man accused of threatening his former wife before allegedly shooting her in the head has been granted bail because it took more than a decade to charge him.

Airport authorities are calling for a crackdown on drivers touting their services at the the terminal but one driver says it is the only way he can earn enough money to pay his bills.

Six formerly homeless women bring their stories to the stage in Melbourne in a play they hope will galvanise the community to demand politicians invest more in social housing.

An outreach worker linked to a medically supervised safe injecting room in Melbourne's inner east is among a group of people now charged with trafficking the drug heroin.

Plastic cutlery, paper bags and plates overflowing in bins have become a thing of the past for a Melbourne primary school with a tough stance on waste.

Andrew Nabbout scores the winner as Robbie Fowler's Lang Park welcome ends in a meek 1-0 defeat for a misfiring Brisbane Roar.

Noor Maasarwe, the sister of murdered exchange student Aiia Maasarwe, says she does not feel safe in Melbourne, as she returns to the city to launch a fellowship in her sister's honour.

The sister of murdered exchange student Aiia Maasarwe says she does not feel safe in Melbourne, as she returns to the city of her sister's death to help launch a fellowship in her honour.

One of three peregrine falcon chicks that hatched, in front of thousands of online fans, has died in a nest perched high on a Melbourne skyscraper, marking the third year in a row the nest has suffered such a loss.

Police horses charged through demonstrators protesting an international mining conference

Police arrest more than 40 demonstrators who were blockading the entrance to an international mining conference in Melbourne, while two officers who were injured during an arrest are taken to hospital for treatment.

Furious connections demand answers from Racing Victoria after two fancied horses were withdrawn from the Melbourne Cup over fears they have incomplete leg fractures.

Rather than Michelle Payne's 2015 win being the game-changing moment it seemed, female jockeys still beg for the crumbs from the tables of owners and trainers who remain dubious about their capabilities, writes Richard Hinds.

Melbourne City beats Western United 2-1 in the season's second Victorian derby, while Perth Glory enjoy a win over Phoenix by the same scoreline in Wellington.

Another international raider grabs the last automatic spot in the Melbourne Cup, with the Joseph O'Brien-trained Downdraft earning his spot with a win in the Hotham Handicap on Derby Day.

Japanese Caulfield Cup winner Mer De Glace is the new favourite for Tuesday's Melbourne Cup after the barrier draw is completed at Flemington.

High-density developments are cropping up in almost every Melbourne suburb and local resident groups have had enough.

Benalla man Joseph McDonald is charged with one count of murder after handing himself into police on Saturday evening.

Betting on horse races has taken a dive amid a slew of scandals that hit the industry this year, but racing experts say a combination of factors are coming together at the wrong time for Racing Victoria.

A court hears Harold Mitchell was "pushing" for Tennis Australia to sign a contract for the broadcast rights of the Australian Open with Channel 7 when he was the sports body's director in 2013.

Whips will likely be banned from horseracing in the next 10 to 15 years, the CEO of Racing Victoria says, as rain and animal activists dampen the annual Melbourne Cup parade.

An 11-year-old boy who was missing since Sunday night on a 150-acre farm north-west of Melbourne returns home safe and well. Police say he was checked out by ambulance officers and was given the all clear.

Are you feeling torn about celebrating the Melbourne Cup today? We asked our ABC Messenger audience how they felt about the race that stops the nation and what they loved (and hated) about it.

In the closest of finishes, jockey Craig Williams rides the winner but an upheld protest sees a change to the final placings in the race that stops a nation. Look back on how it unfolded at Flemington Racecourse.

Pastels and bold patterns are in this year, but is racing out? As the industry deals with issues around the treatment of horses, punters continue to embrace the Cup in dazzling style.

The 2019 Melbourne Cup has been won by Australian-owned, trained and bred horse Vow And Declare in a dramatic finish at Flemington, but last-placed Rostropovich is taken to Werribee with a pelvis injury.

As Vow and Declare stormed to his thrilling Melbourne Cup victory, a group of novice part-owners in the Queensland town of Gympie were celebrating a dream come true.

The long-term boyfriend of a Dutch woman who died in Melbourne last year after a hit-and-run tells her killer's court hearing that he feels completely alone and mourns the children they would have had.

Spring and summer are the busiest times of year for dog attacks, so what should you do to avoid your pup becoming a victim, and who's to blame if it's attacked?

NAIDOC Week celebrations at the Ration Shed Museum in Cherbourg were filled with mixed emotions. They were a bright and exciting celebration of Indigenous culture, but also solemn and respectful for the sacred ground we all stand on. Here are some images from the 2015 event.

Gippsland residents are enjoying conceptual and abstract art from Melbourne and revelling in local artist contributions along the way, in the exhibition Synthetica.

If you were in the Albury Wodonga area and felt extra cold on Wednesday, you would have been right. The Bureau of Meteorology has confirmed it was the coldest day on record in twenty years.

If you were at Albion Park on March 8 this year, you'll never forget the sight of the enormous Qantas 747 flying over the crowds and landing on the small regional airstrip. Now it's comfortably retired and on display, what does having a 747 jumbo jet do for tourism?

Splendour in the Grass was unofficially rebranded 'Splendour in the Mud' this year as thousands of music lovers donned gumboots for the festival in the Byron Shire's Yelgun.

Family and friends have gathered in a Toowoomba park to unveil 'Roger Guard Lane' named after the avid runner and popular doctor who was killed along with his wife Jill twelve months ago in the MH17 disaster.

In the early hours of Friday morning when most people were waking and getting ready for work or school, 200 military personnel in north Queensland were close to finishing 24 hours of hard work.

Hundreds of people descended on Rollingstone in north Queensland this weekend to celebrate the humble pineapple. Among them were dozens of international visitors who organisers hope will spread the word of the Rollingstone Pineapple Festival around the world.

While their families celebrated back home, Papua New Guinean students marked the 40th anniversary of their country's independence from Australia with a colourful performance at TAFE Queensland North in Townsville.

From late August every year, wildflowers blanket the south west corner of Western Australia. The ABC Great Southern's wildflower photo competition showcases the most beautiful blooms of the season, submitted by audience members.

Finding the point of tension in the 'contour' of the landscape