GOING, GOING ...

LORD ARTHUR SAVILE'S CRIME

Odd spot

An accident-prone shepherd had to be rescued after he followed his flock into a live minefield in Croatia. Philimon Zandamela, 34, has also survived accidentally drinking sulphuric acid, and stabbing himself in the stomach because a fortune-teller told him it was time to die.

Highlights

ARMY WIVES Southern Cross Ten, 8.30pm IF Wisteria Lane was a cul-de-sac on a military base, then it might look something like this.

Memories, Like The Corners Of My ... Something

THE other day I was in the bank explaining to the teller that, due to moving house, I had lost my passbook somewhere. She looked at me as if I were insane. Strive as I might, I couldn't explain anything. I told her many things, among them the fact that a payment of a considerable amount was coming to that passbook number. I politely produced a lapsed passbook that had the word "expired" stamped violently upon every page.

Movies

The Moustache (2005) SBS, 1pm The Magician (2005) SBS, 10.30pm The Last Days Of Pompeii (1935) ABC1, 1.35am (Thu)

In Short - Fiction

THE GRIFT By Debra Ginsberg Allen & Unwin, 360pp, $23.95 WE KNOW By Gregg Hurwitz Sphere, 320pp, $32.99 LUUURVE IS A MANY TROUSERED THING By Louise Rennison HarperCollins, 272pp, $14.99 LATE CONNECTIONS By Aileen la Tourette Ilura Press, 312pp, $26.95

Fairtytale Razzle Dazzle A Snug Fit

CINDERELLA ON ICE The Imperial Ice Stars, State Theatre, August 5. Until August 10 Running time: 140 minutes www.imperialicestars.com

The Hardest Sell

David Rollins's first novel was rejected by publishers 78 times, Heather Jacobs reports.

Realism Masked In Verdi Libretto

UN BALLO IN MASCHERA By Giuseppe Verdi. Opera Australia, State Theatre, April 16 until May 10. Running time: 170 minutes www.opera-australia.org.au

Column 8

From a year 5 kid on the train, reports Andrew Tiedt, of Sydney: "I can't wait to do chemistry. In chemistry, there are no wrong answers." "That's certainly not my recollection of chemistry," Andrew says, "but perhaps times have changed." If so, it could be an improvement. Column 8 well remembers almost killing itself by getting an answer wrong in chemistry, when a pile of powdered magnesium exploded in its face.

A Triumph Of Viennese Seduction

ARABELLA Opera Australia. Opera House March 7. Until March 25

Layers Of Subversion Create A Sumptuous Dramatic Feast

? OPERA A MASKED BALL Opera Australia, Opera House. February 20. Until March 29. Reviewed by Peter McCallum

Rewind

Born in Perth in 1908 with blonde hair and blue eyes, it would seem Mary Ann Evans was destined for a life of pigtails, cups of tea and child-rearing. Instead she became Fearless Nadia, the Lady with the Whip - one of Bollywood's biggest stars and stuntwomen.

Chinese New Year

Catch the Year of the Rat with this action-packed agenda, writes Joel Meares.

Fortune Smiles On Medieval Wedding

Saturday's dreary weather forecast posed no threat to a Wollongong couple determined to wed out in the open in true medieval style - they had their own fortune teller on hand to ensure no rain would spoil their big day. According to groom Paul Griffiths and his bride Debbie McCulloch, it was Deb

Deaths Followed Fortune Teller Visits

A young father shot dead his three-year-old daughter then himself at the Airport Hilton Hotel last year after a fortune teller told him his wife would divorce him, a Sydney court was told yesterday. Sam Yiu Chi Law , 31, was found dead on the floor in room 227, with a rifle next to him, on