Rachel Griffiths This month, the multiaward-winning actress and director stars with Deborah Mailman in the second series of political drama Total Control on ABC TV. Here’s what’s keeping her absorbed...

I’m reading...

I started a cultural competency course through the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, which I highly recommend. I had a very old-school Catholic education in which First Nations history was not taught at all but it’s no longer enough to say, “I wasn’t taught it”. So I’ve just read a wonderful book on black feminism called Talkin’ Up to the White Woman by Aileen Moreton-Robinson. Much of middleclass feminism has been centred on the experience of white women and less cognisant of the different experiences of First Nations women and women of colour, who’ve had to bear an extra burden because of it.

I’m streaming...

My new favourite heroine is Julia Haart from My Unorthodox Life. I’m not a realitytelevision-show girl but this chick – she’s so inspiring! She’s positive, kind of wonderfully eccentric and has an incredible story.

The podcast I’m listening to...

Where Should We Begin, hosted by Esther Perel. She’s amazingly insightful about relationship dynamics and I love that she kind of pushes people forward, helping them grow with each other, whether it’s your husband, your kids or your co-worker, without shame of their own failings. It’s the opposite of cancel culture.

The last production I went to...

In the brief moment before lockdown I saw Harry Potter and The Cursed Child when it opened in Melbourne. I get chills every time I go to the big shows, the curtain goes up and the orchestra starts. I took my daughter, a mad Harry Potter fan, and I spent a lot of the show looking at her – the joy on her face. I got quite emotional. It was a beautiful experience.

A great article I read...

I’m finding people’s resistance to vaccinations interesting. I read this article in The New York Times, Vaccine Skepticism Was Viewed as a Knowledge Problem. It’s Actually About Gut Beliefs. It’s that weird thing where you need psychologists and sociologists – not scientists – to really understand the point of view. I get that it’s a fearful time for everyone so it’s a matter of reaching out [to people who are anti vaccinations] with empathy and saying, “Look, we’re both afraid”, because we are.