Your guide to what's going on around the capital this weekend.
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Handmade Market Just in time for Christmas, the Handmade Christmas Market is on December 6 and 7 at the National Convention Centre. With 182 designers on display, this is their biggest market ever, and will flow onto a second level. 10am-4pm. Entry by gold coin donation to Bosom Buddies and Dragons Abreast.
CHRISTMAS IN THE CITY The lights are on at the SIDS & Kids ACT Christmas Lights in the City, where Petrie Plaza is filled with millions of lights which broke the Guinness World Record for the largest LED image display in the world. Entry by gold coin donation to SIDS & Kids ACT. Petrie Plaza and City Walk, Civic. Runs until January 1. Also on during December is Flip Out, Canberra's largest trampoline playground at $10 a session; camel rides, charity and food markets, live entertainment, caroling and more. For a full line-up of events, visit inthecitycanberra.com.au/events/christmas-in-the-city/.
WORLD OF CRICKET Just in time for the cricket season, the World of Cricket exhibition opens on Saturday at the Canberra Museum and Gallery. Featuring rare and captivating material from the Bradman Museum, as well as contemporary equipment from those teams that will compete at Manuka Oval in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, the exhibition will bridge the historical gap between Bradman and the contemporary game, and shed a light on Canberra's cricketing heritage. Free entry. Open weekdays 10am-5pm and weekends 12-4pm.
From 4.30pm REID OPEN GARDENS Five gardens will open in the suburb of Reid, as part of a special event presented by Open Gardens Australia. Finger food and refreshments, including wine and non-alcoholic drinks, available for purchase at two of the gardens. 4.30-7.30pm. $25 covers entry to all five gardens. Under 18 free. Tickets and maps available on the day at 46 Coranderrk Street, or 3 Currong Street, Reid.
From 5pm MURIEL'S WEDDING ANNIVERSARY The National Film and Sound Archive is celebrating the 20th anniversary of cult Aussie flick Muriel's Wedding with an exhibition and screening. From 5pm in the Arc Cinema there's an exhibition including Muriel's actual wedding dress from the movie and other artefacts. From 5.30-6.30pm, The Vinyl Lounge hosts a Muriel's Wedding special. And from 7pm, the film will screen in the Arc Cinema. Wear a bridesmaid or wedding dress to win prizes. Tickets for the movie $20; bookings on 6248 2000.
From 5pm ECO ELVES NIGHT MARKET Shop locally at the Canberra Environment Centre's Eco Elves Night Market, with 45 stalls, live music, food and local wine bar. 5-9pm. Canberra Environment Centre, Acton. Free entry.
5pm SCRAMBLED: 3 YEARS OF LA DE DA For the past last three years, La De Da has opened its doors to cultural instigators who keep their expectations absurd and pursue them with savage abandon. To celebrate our birthday, we're gathering all the eggs we've hatched over the past three years and are putting them in one basket. Then we're making like Jamie Oliver and whisking up the best street art, music, fashion and mixed-media talent Canberra has to offer. La De Da, Belconnen. Entry via donation. 18+
6.30pm SUNSET CINEMA Watch movies on the big screen under the stars throughout summer at Canberra Sunset Cinema at the Australian National Botanic Gardens. Tonight watch the classic Dirty Dancing (PG). Tickets Adult $20/Concession $17/Child $14 from sunsetcinema.com.au.
7.30pm BEHIND THE LINES GAME NIGHT Celebrate the opening of the Behind the Lines 2014 exhibition with a game night. Six of the country's finest cartoonists go head to head – David Pope, Mark Knight, First Dog on the Moon, Cathy Wilcox, Jon Kudelka and Fiona Katauskas – for the pain, for the glory. Drinks and caricatures from 7pm in King's Hall. Show starts at 8pm. Old Parliament House, House of Representatives chamber. Tickets $25 and $30 from trybooking.com.
8pm JOSH WADE At only 19, comedian and YouTube sensation Josh Wade is part of the new breed of media performers. A growing fan base and early success encouraged him to craft and adapt his online material into a one-hour solo stand-up comedy show. Transit Bar. Tickets $28.60 from oztix.com.au.
8pm SEGRESSION An Australian metal gargantuan in every sense of the word, Segression have shared the stage with the likes of Slipknot and Pantera throughout their lengthy career. Fresh off their tour supporting the mighty Prong (US), Chris, Sven, MK & Adz will be performing a killer set featuring new material and classic songs from their formidable catalogue. The Basement, Belconnen. Tickets $10 at the door. 18+
8pm GROOVIN THE ANU Groovin the ANU is a free alternative music event held each month. This month, The Sticky Bandits, Other Liquid Fires, Buck Et Al and Fricker will be performing for your auditory pleasure. ANU Bar. Free entry. 18+.
From 9am COLOR ME RAD Color Me Rad is a 5km fun run, or walk, where you get covered in a multitude of colours and emerge tie-dyed at the finish line. First wave at 9am. Lake Ginninderra Peninsula, Diddams Close, Belconnen. To register, visit colormerad5k.com.au/race/canberra.
From 9am SUPER SATURDAY Both Westfield Belconnen and Woden will hold Super Saturday – with hundreds of retailer discounts and other offers plus live entertainment, celebrity appearances and kid's activities. For more details visit westfield.com.au and select your nearest centre.
From 10am GOLD CREEK CHRISTMAS FESTIVAL Gold Creek Village will come alive with choirs, a petting zoo, live music, jumping castle, kids' activities, twilight markets and more. 10am-9pm. Gold Creek Village, Nicholls. Free entry. For more, visit goldcreek.com.au.
From 10.30am ANU GRAD EXHIBITION The work of this year's ANU School of Art graduates is on display, with students who have majored in wood, textiles, sculpture, print media and drawing, photography and media arts, painting, gold and silversmithing, glass and ceramics. The works are displayed in the School of Art Gallery, Foyer Gallery, Photospace and in workshop spaces throughout the school. Many of the works are for sale. Free entry. ANU School of Art. Open 10.30am-5pm. Runs until December 7.
2pm and 7.30pm CSO CHRISTMAS Herald in the festive season in style with the Canberra Symphony Orchestra. A mix of modern and traditional Christmas songs, plus special guests conductor Timothy Sexton, soprano Rachael Beck, and the Woden Valley Youth Choir. Llewellyn Hall. Tickets $45.11-$82.58 from ticketek.com.au.
CANCELLED - CRACE CHRISTMAS MARKETS In conjunction with Parties at the Shops, Crace will celebrate Christmas with an afternoon of events. Markets, food, entertainment, Christmas carols, plus an appearance by Big Brother contestant Jason Roses from 2-4pm and the Canberra United women's football team at 3pm. 2-6pm. Free entry. Crace Central Shopping Centre. Event has been cancelled due to upredictable weather forecast.
4pm FESTIVAL OF ABILITY Take your picnic blanket and celebrate International Day of People with Disability at a free community event. Children's activities, kick the ball with Brumbies players between 4-6pm, live performances , raffle and disco. 4-8pm. Lowe Street, Queanbeyan Park.
5pm CANBERRA UNITED MATCH The W-League's Canberra United play Perth Glory at Vikings Park, Wanniassa. Tickets from canberraunited.com.au/tickets.
6pm CAROLS BY BARRELS Carols by Barrels is the chance for you to sit on the grass in the vines and listen to the sounds of the Faumui Family with a glass of wine. Drinks and food available. Four Winds Vineyard, 9 Patemans Lane, Murrumbateman. Tickets $20 (under 5 free) from fourwindsvineyard.com.au.
6.30pm SUNSET CINEMA Watch movies on the big screen under the stars throughout summer at Canberra Sunset Cinema at the Australian National Botanic Gardens. Tonight, see the new Brad Pitt movie Fury (MA). Tickets Adult $20/Concession $17/Child $14 from sunsetcinema.com.au.
8pm DAILY MEDS Progressive four-piece rap/beats crew Daily Meds on tour for their sophomore album Sour Milk. Supported by Stik N Move, Suavess, Semantix and Ill Gato. Transit Bar. 8pm. Tickets $13.30 from moshtix.com.au.
8pm GOODBYE GHOSTS Canberra Repertory Society's production of the Noel Coward comedy Blithe Spirit has its final performance at Theatre 3. In it, a writer is haunted by the ghost of his first wife while married to his second, making for confusion and annoyance, as well as jealousy. Tickets $40/$35 at canberrarep.org.au.
8pm JACKIE MARSHALL Alt-country favourite Jackie Marshall is back with her new EP, The Good People. In Marshall's long career, she has supported Missy Higgins and Clare Bowditch, appeared on RocKwiz, and her music has been featured on TV and in film. She is no stranger to the Australian music industry with two successful albums, and is set to perform in Canberra. The Phoenix, Civic. $5 at the door. 18+.
From 7am SANTA FUN RUN Don red and white for the Variety – the Children's Charity Santa Fun Run. Reconciliation Place. Registration open at 7am, fun run kicks off at 8.30am. Entry is Adult $40/Child $25/Family of 4 $120. To register for the event, visit varietysantafunrun.com.au.
From 10am DENDY BIRTHDAY Dendy Canberra is celebrating its eighth birthday, and today all tickets will be $5 for any film, any session, all day. From noon, there will be live music, a birthday cake, balloons for the kids and DVD giveaways. Tickets on sale from dendy.com.au.
10am KNIFE SHOW The Canberra Custom Knife Show will showcase the latest work from local and regional knife makers including fine kitchen, hunting, fishing and utility knives. It's on at Tharwa Village Hall, Tharwa until 3pm. Entry is free.
From 11am SUNDAY BY THE LAKE Snowy Hydro SouthCare's Sunday by the Lake raises funds towards the region's aero-medical rescue helicopter service. The event includes a buffet lunch catered by the Hyatt Hotel, plus a cash bar. Tickets are available from $90 each, which includes a buffet lunch and glass of Chandon on arrival; or tables of 10 and corporate tables of 10 are available from snowyhydrosouthcare.com.au. Lennox Gardens, Yarralumla. 11am-5pm.
11am PADDINGTON SCREENING Event Cinemas Manuka will hold a special advanced screening of Paddington to raise funds for the Children's Hospital Foundations Australia. Adapted from Michael Bond's beloved books, featuring Nicole Kidman and an all-star cast, Paddington follows the comic misadventures of a young bear with an endearing talent for chaos. 11am. Tickets $10 from eventcinemas.com.au.
11.30am and 3pm PAINT DE CURE Release your artist within and contribute to a cause at Paint de Cure. Learn to paint a Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer in the morning session (11.30am-2.30pm) or a snowman in the afternoon session (3-6pm). All materials provided and no level of experience needed. Your painting will be in a calico shoulder bag which you take home. The Loft at The Duxton, O'Connor. Tickets $39.70 without food, $54.70 with food at trybooking.com.
1pm WORLDLY GOODS CHOIR Worldly Goods is a Canberra-based world music community choir which is non-auditioned, rarely uses scores and welcomes everyone to join. It began as a short-term project in 1998, is now 16 years old and still going strong. The choir's aim is to recreate the energetic and authentic sound of traditional songs from around the world, but it has been known to sing songs written by resident composer John Shortis. The choir performs at the High Court of Australia. Free.
3pm LUMINISCENCE Noel! A concert for the Advent Season is being performed by the Luminescence Chamber Singers, with guest soprano Louise Page. It features music by composers ranging from Praetorius to Sculthorpe. St Albans Church, 34 Chappell Street, Lyons. Entry by donation.
3pm PIANO RECITAL Pianist Margaret Legge-Wilkinson will perform works by Debussy and Ravel at the James O Fairfax Theatre, National Gallery of Australia. Tickets $40, $35 members/concession, $20 students, children under 16 free.
From 4.30pm TROPFEST The world's largest short film festival, TropFest, will be streamed live from Sydney, and Stage 88 Commonwealth Park will host the largest event outside of Sydney. Live music, food, drinks and the 16 finalist films of Tropfest Australia 2014. From 4.30pm. Free entry to general area. Reserved tickets also available from tropfestcanberra.com.au.
5pm MULTICULTURAL CAROLS Enjoy Christmas carols with community singing and choirs from the Chinese, Fijian, Indonesian, Korean and Samoan communities. The 11th annual Multicultural Christmas Carols will be held in Campbell Primary School Hall, Chauvel Street, Campbell. Carols followed by refreshments. All welcome. Free. For more information, canberracf.org.au.
7.15pm MAD MAX To close the Greek Film Festival, grab a deckchair to watch Mad Max in the A. Baker Courtyard with film writer and actor Nico Lathouris. In the event of rain, film will move to Palace Electric. Tickets $18.90 from eventbrite.com.au.