EVENTS
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Swansea Carols Saturday. Hear Carols from The Voice contestant Emily Rex, Kahibah Funky Brass Band, Matt Purcell, Rich and Famous Duo and the Combined Christian Churches band and singers. Other entertainment includes the Jolly Pirates Show, twilight market, amusement rides, face-painting and fireworks. Thomas Humphreys Reserve, Dobinson Drive, Swansea. 5pm to 9pm. Free.
Christmas Light Spectacular Saturday and Sunday. Hunter Valley Gardens are putting on their light show once again, this year boasting more than 1½ million lights, entertainment, roaming performers, amusement rides and Santa. 7.30pm to 10pm. Hunter Valley Gardens, Broke Road, Pokolbin. $25 Adult, $20 Child, Kids under 3 free.
Water Park Saturday and Sunday. Waterworld Central, a portable water park, will splash down at Oakdale Drive, Port Stephens, from this weekend, featuring a variety of pools and slides. 10am to 4pm. $20 to ride for 3 hours.
Christmas Crafternoon Saturday. Children 8 and older are invited to explore what the festive season means to them while they make a set of cards, wrapping paper and gift bags. Lake Macquarie City Art Gallery, Booragul. 1.30pm to 3.30pm. $15. 4965 8260
Charity Christmas Trees Saturday. See 16 Christmas trees decorated by local businesses, vote for your favourite, and donate to help the charities the trees represent. Hamilton Wesley Uniting Church, Beaumont Street. 10am to 3pm.
Wallsend Carols Saturday. Originally scheduled for last weekend, the carols - featuring dancers, a magician, barbecue and more - will now kick off this weekend. 6pm to 10pm. Federal Park, Wallsend.
Kids Craft Sunday. Kids are invited to take part in Artcart, the Newcastle Art Gallery's popular hands-on art activities program. 10.30am to 12.30pm. Laman Street, Cooks Hill. Free.
ENTERTAINMENT
A Christmas Tale Saturday. A lively team of storytellers get together to defy a dictator's ban on celebrating Christmas in this new musical presented by the Grainery Theatre Company. Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle. 2pm and 7.30pm. 4929 1977.
Season's Greetings Saturday. Chaos results in Alan Ayckbourn's comedy when family members gather in a house to celebrate Christmas and Boxing Day. Newcastle Theatre Company, at the NTC Theatre, Lambton. 8pm. 4952 4958.
ART
Art Systems Wickham You'll Fest: Christmas Exhibition, to December 20.
Back to Back Galleries Christmas Takeaway, to December 21.
Cooks Hill Galleries Rod Bathgate: Golden Haunts New Visions, to December 21.
Lake Macquarie City Art Gallery Wild Side: The Animal In Art, to February 1; Animal Sanctuary, to February 1; A Tribute: Uncle Jim Ridgeway, to February 1.
Lovett Gallery, Newcastle Library Newcastle Printmakers Workshop: a beginning, to January 17.
Newcastle Art Gallery Kilgour Prize, $50,000 prize for figurative and portrait painting, 19 finalists and winner on show, to January 25; Beards, Mos & Bros, a celebration of the hirsute in art, to January 25. Like Us, Patricia Piccinini, to February 22.
Newcastle Art Space Life Drawing exhibition: Drawn Upstairs 4, The Naked Truth, to December 21.
Timeless Textiles Taste of Textiles, to December 24.
MARKETS
Hamilton Clocktower Saturday, 8am to 2pm. Beaumont Street, Hamilton.
Healing Haven Saturday, 9am to 2pm. Dudley Public School.
Maitland Harvest Saturday, 8am to 1pm. Maitland Showground.
Newcastle Farmers Sunday, 8am to 1pm. Newcastle Showground.
Olive Tree Saturday, 9am to 3pm. The Junction Public School.
Sacred Tree Sunday, 9am to 2pm. Station Street, Branxton.
Wallsend Market Saturday, 8am to 1pm. Wallsend Park, Cowper Street.
MUSIC
5 Sawyers Saturday, Sean Andrews. Sunday, DJ Tone.
Absolute Thai Saturday, The Dreamcatchers.
Anna Bay Tavern Sunday, Ian Henry.
Argyle House Saturday, The Argyle Christmas Party with Komes.
Avon Valley Inn Saturday, Brazilian Brothers.
Bar 121 Saturday, Troy Kemp.
Bar Petite Saturday, Scott Day-V. Sunday, Crocq.
Beauford Hotel Saturday, John Larder.
Belmont 16 Footers Saturday, The Years. Sunday, Cool Change Duo.
Belmore Hotel Saturday, Incognito.
Beresfield Bowling Club Saturday, Wicked.
The Bradford Saturday, Ash Mountain. Sunday, Jumpin Jukebox.
Cambridge Hotel Saturday, Benjalu. Sunday, Phil Jamieson + Scott Russo.
Cardiff Rsl Club Saturday, GenX.
Catho Pub Sunday, Four To The Floor.
Caves Beachside Hotel Saturday, Jarard And Bree.
Central Charlestown Leagues Club Saturday, Dane Fitzsimmons.
Central Hotel, Stroud Saturday, Lennie Live.
Cessnock Ex-Services Club Saturday, The Gunswingers.
Cessnock Rugby League Supporters Club Saturday, Karaoke Klubhouse. Sunday, Kids Disco & Karaoke, Ruby The Clown Face Painting with HicCups.
Charlestown Bowling Club Saturday, Pete Hibbert. Sunday, Scratch.
Clarendon Hotel Saturday, Jason Bone.
Club Forster Saturday, Rock Oz.
Club Lemon Tree Saturday, Arley Black.
Colliery Inn Saturday, Pete Sneddon. Sunday, Music from 4 to 7.
Commercial Hotel Morpeth Saturday, Zac And Ben.
Cricketers Arms Saturday, Mick Boogaard.
Criterion Hotel Carrington Saturday, Extreme Mobile Entertainment. Sunday, Troy Kemp.
Croatian Club Wickham Sunday, Marriah.
Customs House Hotel Saturday, AdzDrumz. Sunday, Ben Woodham.
D'Albora Marina Saturday, Damien. Sunday, Darren.
Denman Hotel Sunday, Graeme Mills.
Dora Creek Workers Club Sunday, Troy.
Duke Of Wellington Saturday, Mark Wells Duo. Sunday, Guitar Masters with Steve Cowley & Guest.
East Maitland Bowling Club Saturday, Loose Bazooka. Sunday, Dave Tavender.
Edgeworth Tavern Saturday, Loko.
Exchange Hotel Saturday, Hornet. Sunday, Damien.
Finnegans Hotel Saturday, Midnight Mojo, Resident DJs.
George Tavern Saturday, Twinsanity.
The Grain Store Saturday, Scotty Gelzinnis with Harry Gelzinnis. Sunday, JJ King.
Grand Junction Hotel Saturday, The Gin Club. Sunday, Locals Christmas Party with Alby Pool.
Gunyah Hotel Saturday, Sundays Record. Sunday, Mick Jones.
Hamilton Station Hotel Saturday, King Shakey, Live It Up Karaoke, Scattered Order, Xylocaine (Bloody Fist), De-Koder, Men64. Sunday, Annie O'Dee & The Hot Shots.
Hexham Bowling Club Saturday, Cool Change Duo.
Honeysuckle Hotel Saturday, Kylie Jane. Sunday, Kylie Jane.
Hotel Delany Saturday, The Urge.
Iron Horse Inn Saturday, Tom Buckley.
Kent Hotel Saturday, Cool Muppet. Sunday, Lead Bellys.
King Street Hotel Saturday, Let's Get Ill: Kid Kenobi vs Alex Preston.
Kurri Kurri Workers Club Saturday, Bernie Ayrton.
Lake Macquarie Tavern Saturday, Karaoke.
Lass O'Gowrie Saturday, Beefweek, Snelvis & the Rancheros, Siren Lines, Lachlan Morris. Sunday, Dog Collar, Lonesome & Earnest, Ian Curtis Alive, One Irection.
Lizotte's Newcastle Sunday, The Black Sorrows.
Long Jetty Hotel Saturday, Graeme Mills. Sunday, Open Mic Day With Casho.
Mark Hotel Saturday, Phil McKnight. Sunday, Hornet.
Mary Ellen Saturday, Hey Poncho. Sunday, Bobby C.
Mattara Hotel Saturday, Showtime Disco & Karaoke.
Mavericks On The Bay Saturday, Troy. Sunday, Zane Penn.
Metropolitan Hotel Maitland Sunday, Unloaded Duo, Jez Ashman, Layth Gunn.
Nag's Head Hotel Saturday, Overload.
Nelson Bay Diggers Saturday, GenR8. Sunday, Marissa Lee.
Newcastle Cruising Yacht Club Sunday, Karen Soper.
Old Pub Woy Woy Saturday, Four To The Floor.
Orana Hotel Saturday, The V Dubs.
Oriental Hotel Saturday, Kirsty Larkin.
Pearl Beach Cafe Saturday, Jack Dawson.
Pedens At Cessnock Saturday, Giant.
Pippis At The Point Saturday, Janey's Alibi Duo. Sunday, Howard Shearman.
The Pourhouse Saturday, Dexter Moore.
Premier Hotel Saturday, Bobby C. Sunday, Moose Preservation.
Prince Of Wales Saturday, Lauren Arms. Sunday, Bearded Gents.
Queens Wharf Hotel (The Brewery) Saturday, Dean Kyrwood, Jon-T. Sunday, Frets With Benefits, Timmy Coffey.
Racecourse Hotel Saturday, Karen O'Shea.
Railway Hotel, Cessnock Saturday, Kelly Hope.
Regal Kurri Hotel Saturday, Full Throttle.
Royal Federal Hotel Saturday, The Viper Creek Band.
Royal Hotel Denman Saturday, Damage Brothers.
Royal Hotel Singleton Sunday, Tiali.
Royal Inn Waratah Saturday, Jack Daniels.
Royal Motor Yacht Club Sunday, Kelly Hope.
Rutherford Hotel Saturday, Silverhair.
Salamander Shores Sunday, Jack Daniels & Co Duo.
Searock @ Shoalbay Saturday, Ben Woodham. Sunday, Open Fire.
Settlers Arms Saturday, Casho.
Seven Seas Hotel Carrington Saturday, Garth Prentice Band. Sunday, John Larder.
Shoal Bay Resort Saturday, Failed Rockstars.
Soldiers Point Bowling Club Saturday, Deuce.
Spinning Wheel Hotel Sunday, Mike Horbacz.
Stag And Hunter Hotel Saturday, The Firemen.
Stockton Bowling Club Saturday, DJ Symon. Sunday, Dan Beazley.
Summerland Sporties Sunday, Kirsty Larkin.
Swansea RSL Club Saturday, Cover 2 Cover.
Swansea Workers Club Saturday, Mardmax.
Sydney Junction Hotel Saturday, The Flicks.
Taree Aquatic Club Saturday, Gerry Anderson.
Tilligerry RSL Saturday, Kim.
Toronto Diggers Saturday, Gary Davidson.
Vues On The Bay Saturday, Mick Jones.
Wallsend Diggers Saturday, Cruisers.
Wangi District Workers Club Saturday, Jim Overend.
Wangi Hotel Sunday, Darren Rolling Keys.
Warners At The Bay Saturday, The Rumour.
Wests Leagues Club New Lambton Saturday, Warren Hunter, Phonic. Sunday, A Fairytale Christmas.
Wickham Park Hotel Sunday, Helen & Friends, H Bent.
Windsor Castle Hotel Saturday, Good Company.
MOVIES
ADVANCED SCREENING
Night At The Museum: Secret Of The Tomb (PG) Museum security guard Larry (Ben Stiller) travels the globe to unite favourite characters (including the late Robin Williams, in one of his last films) in an epic quest to save museum magic. (Glendale)
Penguins Of Madagascar (G) Before it opens on January 1, see this spin-off of Madagascar starring penguins Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private. Voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch, John Malkovich and Werner Herzog. (Glendale)
St Vincent (M) A young boy whose parents have just divorced finds an unlikely friend and mentor in the gambling, alcoholic veteran (Bill Murray) who lives next door. (Tower)
The Water Diviner (M) Four years after his sons are reported missing in action in Gallipoli, Australian farmer Connor (Russell Crowe) travels to Istanbul to discover their fate. Chicks at the flicks.
NOW SHOWING
Alexander And The Horrible No Good Very Bad Day (PG) Alexander wakes up with gum in his hair, and things just get worse as his day progresses. Stars Jennifer Garner. (Majestic Singleton, Event Glendale)
Bolshoi Ballet: The Legend Of Love Watch the famous Bolshoi Ballet as they perform live from Moscow. (Avoca)
The Christmas Candle (G) In a small town in the English countryside, a miracle happens every 25 years after an angel touches a Christmas candle. But, with the invention of electric light, the miracle is in jeopardy. (Avoca Beach)
Exodus: Gods And Kings (M) Moses (Christian Bale) rises up against Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses (Joel Edgerton), setting 600,000 slaves on a monumental journey of escape from Egypt and its terrifying cycle of plagues.
Finding Vivian Maher (PG) The life of street photographer Vivian Maher, whose thousands of pictures were unearthed by a historian at an auction, is explored through never-before-seen photographs, films, and interviews with those who knew her. (Tower)
Frozen Sing-A-Long (G) Fearless optimist Anna teams up with Kristoff in an epic journey in a race to find Anna's sister Elsa, whose icy powers have trapped the kingdom in eternal winter. (Avoca Beach)
The Good Lie (M) Feisty employment agency worker Reece Witherspoon takes on the challenge of helping the so-called "Lost Boys of Sudan" immigrate to the American Midwest. An inspiring true story. (Regal)
Horrible Bosses 2 (MA15+) After trying to kill their bosses, Dale, Kurt and Nick start their own business. But, when things don't go to plan, the trio to pull off a harebrained and misguided kidnapping scheme.
The Hundred-Year-Old Man (M) Dynamite expert Allan Karlsson's life, and the unlikely events following his escape from the old folk's home on this 100th birthday. (Regal)
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (M) After escaping the last Hunger Games, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) wakes up in the mysterious District 13 with Gale (Liam Hemsworth) as the rebellion against the Capitol intensifies.
Interstellar (M ) A group of explorers make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage. Matthew McConaughey, Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway. Michael Caine
Jimmy's Hall (M) In 1932, Jimmy Gralton builds a hall in rural Ireland where people can come to learn, argue, dance, dream and have fun. But the idea isn't embraced by the whole community. (Avoca Beach)
The Love Punch (M) When divorced couple Pierce Brosnan and Emma Thompson discover their superannuation has been stolen by a French financier, they concoct a plan to get it back that takes them from London to Paris to the French Riviera. (Avoca)
Mr Turner (M) William Turner, one of Britain's most prominent and influential 19th century painters, is brought to life by Timothy Spall. (Avoca; Tower)
My Old Lady (M) When an American man (Kevin Kline) inherits an apartment in Paris, it comes with an unexpected resident (Maggie Smith).
Nightcrawler (MA15+) Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a crime journalist in Los Angeles who films crashes, fires, murder and other mayhem. He enters the cut-throat world of nightcrawling, where each police siren wail equals a possible windfall.
Paddington (G) The Brown family take in Paddington, an optimistic and polite young bear from Peru who travels to London in search of a home and a family. Based on the famous books by Michael Bond.
Pride (M) A Welsh mining community struggling to make ends meet during the 1984 miners' strike finds a group of unlikely allies in gay and lesbian activists. (Lake; Regal)
Scrooged (M) A selfish, cynical TV executive is haunted by three spirits bearing lessons on Christmas Eve. Stars Bill Murray, Karen Allen and Carol Kane. (Regal)
Testament Of Youth (M) After winning a scholarship to Oxford, Vera Brittain (Alicia Vikander) falls in love with a fellow student (Game of Thrones' Kit Harrington) who is soon sent to fight in WWI. (Avoca)
Two Days One Night (M) Sandra, a young Belgian mother, discovers that her workmates will get a bonus if she's fired. She has only one weekend to convince her colleagues to give up their bonuses so that she can keep her job. (Tower)
What We Did On Our Holiday (PG) Former Doctor Who star David Tennant, Gone Girl's Rosamund Pike and Billy Conolly star in a fun-loving film about life, love and what we hold most dear. (Avoca)
White Christmas (G) In this classic 1954 musical, a male song-and-dance team (Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye) become romantically involved with a sister act (Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen) and team up to save a failing Vermont inn. (Regal)
Winter Sleep (M) Aydin runs a small hotel in central Anatolia with his young wife and his recently-divorced sister. As snow begins to fall, the hotel turns into a shelter but also an inescapable place that fuels their animosities. (Avoca Beach)