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<\/p>\nI was four years old in 1973, when the Gympie Gold Rush Festival was first held.<\/p>\n
The parades down the main street were legendary.<\/p>\n
The floats would generally lean into the theme of celebrating the Queensland city’s mining history of the late 1800s, but often wouldn’t miss the chance for a bit of self-promotion.<\/p>\n
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For little kids in Gympie, nothing could top the honour of being Gold Rush Queen. (Supplied)<\/p>\n
There, nestled between the Rotary Club and the local taekwondo teams, there’d be Bluey’s Mechanics and Davo’s Insurance, with staff tossing lollies to the kids as they motored slowly past.<\/p>\n
When our primary school marching band was invited, we thought all our dreams had come true. We practised our steps for months. I played the recorder, while my friend Robynne led the band and twirled that baton like an Olympic gymnast.<\/p>\n
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Lisa Millar’s primary school marching band \u2014 without the woman in question, sadly. (Supplied)<\/p>\n
Stream Back Roads on ABC iview <\/a><\/p>\n Take a road less travelled to the small towns and communities that make Australia special.<\/p>\n For little girls in the region there was just one thing that could top that: becoming Gold Rush Queen.<\/p>\n The Queen was glamorous, sparkling, adored. She sat on a float and offered her fluttery fingers to the doting crowd as she drifted by, adorned in silk and organza and glitter and (fake) gold.<\/p>\n Neither Robynne or I ever became Gold Rush Queen, although my school pal did win the Miss (Agricultural) Show Queen competition in 1988. And she got double the kudos by also being named Miss Personality \u2014 something that surprised none of us.<\/p>\n Lisa Millar’s friend Robynne (centre) AKA the 1988 Miss (Agricultural) Show Queen. (Supplied)<\/p>\n Those shows and festivals are a calendar highlight for country towns. My older brothers and sister used to plan trips home from Brisbane to coincide with the Gympie Gold Rush. They’re a chance to catch up with friends and celebrate something that feels uniquely small-town Australian.<\/p>\n I was thrilled to learn the Gympie Gold Rush is returning in October this year after a lengthy hiatus forced on them by COVID and financial struggles.<\/p>\n The big cities might have their Easter shows and Ekkas. But it’s the small-town festivals that offer a window into a community’s spirit.<\/p>\n The man who forever changed Myf Warhurst’s perspective on poo<\/a><\/p>\n When Myf Warhurst rocked up to the sleepy little town of Eldorado to film the latest episode of Back Roads, she didn’t anticipate she would be touching compost made from human waste.<\/p>\n ‘How hard is it to throw an orange?’<\/p>\n We often time our filming on Back Roads to coincide with festivals around Australia, and this season we’ve been to South Australia’s Copper Coast for the Cornish Festival, Queensland’s Darling Downs for the Heavy Horse Festival and to Victoria’s Eldorado for the Off-Grid Living Festival.<\/p>\n I ended up in Gayndah, two hours north of Gympie, for their celebrated Orange Festival. It delivered all the warm, feel-good vibes you’d expect \u2014 and a lot of citrus.<\/p>\n Citrus is the lifeblood of the Gayndah community. (ABC iview: Back Roads)<\/p>\n There were fiercely fought mandarin-eating competitions, often ending with the swallowed mandarins being regurgitated to cheers from the crowd.<\/p>\n So many people signed up for the orange-throwing competition they held heats to narrow the field.<\/p>\n Gayndah’s iconic mascot is called Gay Dan. (ABC iview: Back Roads)<\/p>\n How hard could it be to throw an orange?<\/p>\n Well, that’s what I thought until I nearly dislocated my shoulder and only just avoided a foul by landing the fruit missile too close to the sideline.<\/p>\n Loading…<\/p>\n A muscly blond backpacker from Estonia thought he couldn’t be beaten. He and his girlfriend were living in a van, working their way around Queensland, hoping for a bit of unexpected prize money.<\/p>\n But he lucked out too, losing to a local called Andrew who’d competed in the last few festivals.<\/p>\n Another local, Tegan, won the women’s competition and even us losers left with a smile.<\/p>\n Protecting the beauty of Shark Bay<\/a><\/p>\n Lisa Millar meets those who call the World Heritage-listed Shark Bay home, and are fighting hard to protect it.<\/p>\n There is something fundamentally wholesome about a country festival. Perhaps it’s the nostalgia; perhaps it’s because they’re run by locals, for locals.<\/p>\n They’re happy to welcome outsiders, of course, but there’s a sense that you’re looking in, being allowed to observe this event where these towns and the people at their heart are encouraged to simply celebrate themselves.<\/p>\n They can look around at the floats and the festival queens and the money that’s been raised to go back into the community and say, “We did this and we’re proud.”<\/p>\n![\"Robynne](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/e44cebd50403a0201de7fed4525f6382.jpeg\")
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