Yes, there really was a brand called Billy Tea. And what a great advertisement. The company was established by James Inglis in the 1880s. ICON OF OUR COLLECTIVE MEMORY We are an increasingly urbanised society, but the image of the Aussie swagman watching his billy boil will
Read more →
Most Australian women have responded to the request. ‘Ladies, bring a plate.‘ Of course there has to be something on the plate. but more of that later. Oh my word, it’s amazing how much just four words can convey The phrase is part of our social history,
Read more →
In the 1930s the general public still regarded an X-Ray plate with incomprehension and wonder. When a 65 year old coal miner underwent an X-ray of his lungs at Lithgow Hospital the bizarre result only increased that feeling. Beside Thomas Jackson’s ribs was a clear picture of
Read more →
THE LITTLE WEBSITE THAT GREW! Recently this website clicked over to 550,000 visits. Maybe not a great deal by some standards, but amazing to me. When I began in late 2012 I had no idea about SEO (search engine optimization), effective tags or stop words. It must
Read more →
Unlike my ancestors, I have never thought of England as ‘home’. However, I did grow up a little confused about my national identity. At primary school in Tasmania we stood before the flag on Empire Day and sang God Save the Queen before being handed a packet
Read more →