Across
- 2. Nickname of Paul Vautin, former Australian rugby commentator and player (5)
- 7. Former professional rugby league footballer who famously had the 'shortest political career on record' with less than a minute between the beginning of his announcement to his 'resignation' (3,7)
- 8. Surname of Magda, inducted into the TV Week Logie Awards Hall of Fame in August (9)
- 12. In 1991 Susan Sarandon played Louise and Geena Davis played who? (6)
- 14. Colour people often claim to have turned to describe extreme embarrassment (4)
- 15. In a frenzy (4)
- 16. John O'Reilly's DJ name while on the Biig BoyZ (9)
- 18. Group of Italian restaurants, gelateries etc that was the go-to place in Leichhardt 2002-2007 (5)
- 19. Named after George Mears Bowen, this town was the first settlement in the 1830s to service travellers along the new road to Bathurst, and pre-dates Lithgow by 40 years (9)
- 21. A furnace or oven for drying, baking, often used in pottery (4)
Down
- 1. Trend of plush toys taking adult Australians by storm, drawing people to queue outside Pop Mart stores in the early hours (6)
- 3. Double barrel surname of this Alexandria, born in the Bronx, and the youngest woman ever elected to US Congress (6-6)
- 4. A pasta shaped like grains of rice, frequently used in soups (4)
- 5. An emperor of Russia (before 1917) and of some South Slavic kingdoms (4)
- 6. Birthplace of John Doyle, best known as Rampaging Roy Slaven (7)
- 9. Surname of this James, American crime fiction writer who wrote The Black Dahlia, LA Confidential etc (6)
- 10. Completely fascinated or absorbed by what one is seeing or hearing (4)
- 11. Acquired by JB Hi-Fi in November 2016 for AU$870 million (3,4,4)
- 13. Jazz or swing music (4)
- 17. Variant of "no" (4)
- 20. Jerry Seinfeld's arch-nemesis, a recurring character in the TV series Seinfeld (6)