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GRAND YEARS.
Human interest and entertaining tales of yesteryear with respected journalist Frank Morris
12 July 23
Dogs, dogs, dogs: They will do anything for you … even protect you from strangers
I’m a dog that will strain at his leash if danger threatens. Taurus seems to have an acute sense of smell. Generally, if this is the case with your dog, you can bet the animal has detected a herd of dogs being taken for a walk a kilometre away. But that’s not ...
12 July 23
Film Greats: Diggers tale of epic gallantry - the last cavalry charge in history!
These cavalry boys were on the threshold of making history! The multi-million dollar Australian film, The Lighthorsemen, is a story of courage and comradeship during the First World War. Described as “an epic film in the classic tradition,” The Lighthorsemen focuses on a little known incident involving a band of ordinary Australians ...
28 June 23
TIME 100th Year: Spaceman, movie star and comedian – it’s all here!
Yuri Gagarin has shown the right stuff. In Russia, more than 55 years ago, Yuri became the first man in space. It was the greatest victory of Soviet science. This human horizon is still remembered by Russians as “their finest hour”. As the space race gathered momentum the Soviets had an ace ...
28 June 23
Great Aussie First: The ‘Black Box’ tells all!
An invention called the ‘Black Box’ made the world sit up when it was first developed. Not even Einstein could have imagined that a ‘Black Box’, holding the secrets of a plane disaster, would come to the fore. Dr David Warren had suggested his theory to a meeting and was told, ...
14 June 23
‘Mo’ Flashback: Night of gold as Johnny comes up a winner, again!
Johnny Farnham has bounced back as one of Australia’s greatest entertainers. At the 1981 gala MO Awards night at the Regent Theatre, Farnham walked off with the gold Mo for the year’s best male vocalist. He later capped that off by being named Entertainer of the Year. Farnham was lost for words. “There’s ...
14 June 23
The legend of Cobb & Co was up and running!
The biggest byword of Australian Coach history was Jim Rutherford who ran it for 58 years. The rumble and rattle of coaches, the fast clip of strong horses, and the rigours of an arduous journey were under the pilotage of hard-bitten, raucously cheerful coachmen. This is the raw stuff of the biggest ...
31 May 23
The Champs: In memory of Donald Campbell, Aussie takes water speed record
Warby had nerves of steel! Australian Ken Warby, became the fastest on water after he cracked a new official record of 464.46 kph (288.6 mph) at Blowering Dam, Tumut, in 1977. He had another go at his own world-shattering record at Blowering Dam 1978. Forty five years later, his time on the ...
17 May 23
Up in the Air: Passengers missing – plane went down!
It was distressing and horrendous at what was found when the plane crashed at the bottom of the mountain. Australian newspapers and the disappearance of a Stinson airliner in early 1937, gripped the nation. The plane had been missing for some weeks and was found on Lamington Plateau in the MacPherson Range ...
17 May 23
Up in the Air: A photo gallery of Bert Hinkler, “airman extraordinaire”
Hinkler set out to construct a glider of his dreams. His efforts paid off. Bert, only 19 at the time, flew his glider to a height of 30 feet. A beach, 12 miles from Bundaberg, was the staging place for this epic flight. Everybody turned up. Travelling shows and carnivals ...