A new book suggests the Australian accent was forged in the first forty years of the colony, by the children of convicts and free settlers. Dr Bruce Moore says new research in New Zealand on the formation of accents has shed light on how Australia's own accent may have been generated. He also says what's known as strine was not as strongly influenced by the English, Scottish and Irish who first came as settlers to Australia as might be assumed. LESS

Our banking system is undergoing some rapid consolidation. Westpac is buying up St George for $18 billion and the Commonwealth is stumping up $2.1 billion for BankWest. Next on the table, albeit at a price of around $6 billion, could be Suncorp's Metway banking brand. Ever since Westpac moved on St George five months ago, economist Ian Harper has been calling for another 'comprehensive review' of Australia's banking system. LESS

Alastair Campbell, former press secretary to British prime minister Tony Blair, last year published his diaries The Blair Years. That book was a huge success, a number one bestseller in Britain, earning its author a six figure sum from the sales. Well, Alastair is about to publish a new book. This time it's a novel and it has nothing to do with politics but, rather, psychiatry. But, having been out of politics proper since 2004, he is nevertheless about to return to the fray, taking on the role of a key election adviser to Gordon Brown. He will join the inner circle around UK prime minister in the run-up to next year's council elections in Britain, and might well stay on for the 2010 general election campaign. Alastair Campbell is currently in Australia as a keynote speaker at the Public Relations Institute of Australia's national conference in Fremantle next week. LESS

All Australians know the story of the First Fleet. But for the first time a documentary series attempts to tell the colonial history from an Indigenous perspective. The seven part series took six years to make and, this Sunday, part one of First Australians will screen on SBS. LESS

He started playing to audiences of parents and students when he was 12. His debut album only came out last year and won three ARIAs, there was an ARIA nomination for a track of an EP from 2005. His new album shows a level of writing maturity beyond his collective works to date. So let's enjoy Chimney's Afire. LESS

Treasurer Wayne Swan is in Washington getting a bird's eye view of the global financial crisis, as all the major economies prepare to sit down this weekend for an emergency meeting of the G20. Back home, the Prime Minister is again reassuring Australians that our banks are safe and our economy sound, but Opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull says the PM is only sympathetic to and supportive of the biggest banks, standing by and watching as they gobble up their smaller competitors. LESS

Analysts say the slide in the value of the Australian dollar is unprecedented. In mid July, the Australian currency was trading at 98 cents to the US dollar. Now almost four years of gains have been wiped out in four short months. So, where to for the Australian currency? LESS

After claiming the scalp of dozens of banks and financial institutions around the world, the financial crisis could be about to bring down an entire country, with Iceland now facing bankruptcy. Trading on its stock exchange has been suspended until Monday. The government bought the country's largest bank today, the third major Icelandic bank to be nationalised in a week. LESS