“Oh my cod, isn’t he big!”
Visitors to the river village of Tocumwal have been exclaiming this for almost six decades, and this water-dwelling dreamboat has lived a life most of us would be en-fish-ious of.
This bulky baby boomer’s story starts in the swingin’ 60s, when three of the more rebellious members of the local Chamber of Commerce decided the town needed something exciting to draw in tourists. They looked northward to Ploddy the Dinosaur, who was luring streams of Big-ficianados into Gosford, and a fish of epic proportions was soon on the carps… uh, sorry, make that the cards!
Big Thing visionaries Kathryn Moore, Alice Johnson and Lorna Nash held dozens of dances and sizzled sufficient sausages to raise the £3000 required to build the aquatic amigo. He was designed by Melbourne’s Duralite Company, and made from fiberglass with a steel skeleton. His outer details – such as his suave scrap metal fins – were lovingly added by volunteers and admirers.
The Big Murray Cod was o-fish-ially unveiled at a gala ceremony and quickly became a symbol of Berrigan Shire’s burgeoning counter-culture movement. His arrival ushered in a summer of love, with long-haired hippies, flower children, beatniks and other assorted delinquents rolling into Tocumwal to smack him right on the lips!
Carping on and on and on… When will this fin-ish?
The 70s saw bell-bottom pants and safari suits find favour, but the Big Murray Cod wasn’t a slave to fashion trends and, aside from a few repaints, barely changed his look. Perhaps his greatest moment came in 1983 when he was cited as the inspiration behind Australia’s historic America’s Cup victory. Maybe he taught the crew how to move through the water so fast!
Flannelette and a sullen attitude were the fish’s forte in the 90s, and he was ahead of the tech curve by opening his own MySpace page in the 2000s. His family expanded when the world was introduced the the equally lovable Murray the Cod in 2019. The younger fish has grown up to be a respected member of his community, much like his old man, so he obviously wasn’t cod-dled as a child.
This Big has settled down in recent years and is content, like most his age, to spend his days reading Aldi catalogues and preventing younger Bigs – such as the nearby Big Strawberry – from owning real estate. After so many years and such wild adventures, there are still a gill-ion reason to visit, and it feels like Woodstock whenever one spends time with this fish. It’s safe to say things are going swimmingly for the Big Murray Cod!
Please note; the plaque beneath this fish erroneously identifies him as the second oldest of the Bigs, but this honour actually belongs to the Big Banana, with Ploddy being the OG Big. Upon discovering this sickening glitch, I raced straight to the mayor’s office and was assured that the plaque would be corrected as a matter of urgency. I’m sorry, but there are some fins that I just can’t let go!
