DEBATES - Wednesday 14 October 1998

actors Ian Alexander, Mark Bunnett, Robert be in a production where you can say that the McDonough and Patrick Mitchell. audience thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment. There is no doubt that Banjo Paterson’s poems have It was the mix of characters and talents of the lost none of their magic: The Man from Iron Bark, players that made the evening. And just to say who which was beautifully presented by ; those characters were: Daryl Manzie played Vaibin Tom Pauling doingClancy of the Overflow, Paul Solomon, who was a pioneering Territory Stewart with just an incredibly dramatic and businessman who came here in 1873 and who, after sensitive renditionof How Gilbert Died; Daryl that, represented the Territory in the South Manzie with Mulga Bill’s Bicycle; Australian and federal parliaments between 1890 and with The Bush Christening-, The Idyll o f Dandaloo, 1908. Victor Brown was played fortuitously by by Austin Asche again; Kirsty Veron cracking her George Brown. In 1898 Victor was clerk to the whip and doingThe Geebung Polo Club; and The Palmerston District Council, and the Brown family Man from Snowy River, which is not the first time first came to Darwin in 1869 and is still here today. it’s been performed with the Army Band and Peter Charles Dashwood was played by Austin Asche, a Forrest, but an absolutely riveting renditionThe of most appropriate matching because Charles Man from Snowy River. And then that poetic duel I Dashwood was the NT government resident, or the referred to before between Henry Lawson, played by GR, and a judge between 1892 and 1905. Ken Conway, and Banjo Paterson, played by Tom Pauling. Banjo Paterson was played, again appropriately, by Tom Pauling. Paterson in 1898 was a All I spoke to enjoyed the evening enormously, solicitor and, at that time, had already published saying it was great to have Banjo Paterson and his most of the poems that we know. Yet he yearned to poetry and his Darwin connection brought to life. I write full time, came to Darwin to try and start doing think Peter Forrest is on notice now to produce a that or at least give it a kick along, and ended up follow-up, and I can fairly certainly say that all the giving up the law in 1902. George Mayhew was actors will be keen to go again. played by Paul Stewart and George Mayhew was, at that time, the editor of the NT Times newspaper. Motion agreed to; the Assembly adjourned. Mayhew had just returned to Darwin after a trip to the Douglas Hot Springs, where he took the waters so he could recover from his poor health.

Henry Lawson made a cameo appearance, and was very effectively played by Ken Conway. Henry Lawson, during those years, had a literary and very celebrated poetic duel with Banjo Paterson about their various views of the bush and . On stage that night, Ken Conway and Tom Pauling, playing Banjo Paterson, did it just wonderfully. They threw lines of poetry at each other and certainly entranced the audience.

Kate Warrington-Rogers was played by Kirsty Veron. Kate was one of the pioneers of Territory pastoral stations and was a bom stockman, wonderful rider and a crack shot. Judge Sally Thomas played Ellen Ryan, who built the Vic Hotel and then, in 1898, was the licensee of the Club Hotel which was on the Hotel Darwin site. Ellen Ryan was also a noted organiser of local entertainment. I was able to play Mary Pickford. Mary’s family had a hotel in Smith Street roughly opposite where the Christ Church cathedral now stands. Mary married later buffalo shooter Paddy Cahill, with whom Paterson became very friendly during his Territory visit - went out buffalo shooting and then proceeded to wax lyrical in the Bulletin about the joys of being a buffalo shooter.

The audience had a really good time. It is nice to

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