Australians have been surfing, in the modern sense of the word, for more than a century. In 1915, the Hawaiian surfer Duke Kahanamoku hoisted Manly girl Isabel Letham onto his shoulders on a wave at Freshwater Beach, and a national obsession ensued.
In this edition, we celebrate the sport, the art, the lifestyle, the community and, yes, the obsession, which, as Jock Serong writes, might just save the world!
Also:
• Seven-time world surfing champion Layne Beachley on quietening her inner control freak, growing up with boys, and getting in the water every day in her Letter to My Younger Self.
• Byron Bay surf-rockers Skegss on how 90-year-old actor Harry Dean Stanton – and beer – inspired their new album Rehearsal.
• Actor Benedict Cumberbatch tells us about playing a real-life spy in new film The Courier – and pondering his art during the pandemic.
