X-Nico

11 unusual facts about Australian Bicentenary


1988 Adelaide Bicentennial Carnival

Australia was celebrating its Bicentenary in 1988 so the carnival was known as the 'Bicentennial Carnival'.

1988 NSWRL season

1988 was the year of the Australian Bicentenary celebrations, and on 4 March, the season opened with the first game of rugby league played at the newly built Sydney Football Stadium.

Adelaide Botanic Garden

As part of Adelaide's celebration of the Australian Bicentenary the conservatory was constructed in 1987 and opened in late 1989.

Bicentennial Park, Homebush Bay

Bicentennial Park was created by the state and federal governments during the 1980s, to celebrate Australia's Bicentenary in 1988.

Centennial Park, New South Wales

The Federation Pavilion, designed by Alexander Tzannes, was erected around the 'Commonwealth Stone' as a permanent monument to Federation, in the Bicentennial Year of European Settlement in 1988.

Central Plaza 1, Brisbane

Construction was completed in 1988 and it became synonymous with Australian Bicentenary and World Expo '88 Brisbane.

Rockdale Bicentennial Park

Bicentennial Park was opened in 1988 and was named in honour of Australia's Bicentenary in that year.

Scott Ollerenshaw

Ollerenshaw played in the 1988 Gold Cup in Sydney, which marked the Australian Bicentenary and included a shock 4–1 victory over Argentina.

Sydney University Musical Society

SUMS has performed many great works over its lifetime, including the Australian premiere performances Bach's Mass in B minor and St Matthew Passion in 1880; premiére performances of Martin and Peter Wesley Smith’s Songs of Australia for the Australian Bicentenary in 1988, the world premiére of Nicholas Routley’s Mycenae Lookout in 1998, & world premiére of Anne Boyd’s carol, A Lullaby of the Nativity, written for SUMS in 2003.

The Australian National Dictionary

With the collaboration of Oxford University Press – publisher of the Oxford English Dictionary – the Australian National Dictionary was begun by William (Bill) Ramson in 1978 and published ten years later in 1988 to coincide with the bicentenary of Australia’s settlement.

V/Line A class

In 1988 A66 which was painted in a green and gold livery to celebrate the Australian Bicentenary, later appearing in a second special livery to advertise the Melbourne bid for the 1996 Olympic Games.


John Christian Vaughan

Among his other credits, he is the national spokesperson for the Australian National Flag Association and was employed as an expert commentator by Channel 7 for the First Fleet re-enactment during the Australian Bicentenary in 1988.

John Molony

During the course of his career, Molony has published a number of scholarly works on subjects as diverse as the encyclical of Pope Leo XIII and Ned Kelly to the bicentennial history of Australia, as well as numerous newspaper and journal articles, chapters in books and literary reviews.

Mount Lofty Fire Tower

On 1 January 1988 the Mount Lofty Fire Tower was beamed live around Australia on Channel 9 television as part of the Australia Live broadcast to celebrate the Australian Bicentenary.