Tag: Burnie

  • The Giant Freshwater Lobster, Parkside, Tas

    Scuttle over to Parkside’s picturesque Burnie Park to find The Giant Freshwater Lobster – an eight-tonne love letter to Tassie’s favourite crustacean.

    The colossal crayfish beckons the adventurous. Sitting happily beside a well-appointed playground, it’s not unusual to see little nippers – and not-so-little nippers! – clambering all over him.

    But make no mistake, with his manicured mosaic pincers and mildly vexed expression, this four-metre-long yabbie is more than a jungle gym – he’s a work of art-ropod.

    Legendary mosaic artist Tony Woodward, that doyen of the Taswegian art scene, created The Lobster in 2002. Tony’s mosaic masterpieces span the length and breadth of the Apple Isle, from the beloved Waiting Room in Rosny to the controversial Mountain Man in Deloraine.

    I guess you could say he’s quite versa-tile – teehee!

    Tony, sadly, passed away in 2021, but his myriad of mosaic marvels continue to mesmerise the masses. His sister, Margaret, maintains the artworks, ensuring they’ll enthral and delight future generations.

    Hopefully The Giant Freshwater Lobster will be on display for many more-nay years to come!

    Still A Crayfish After All These Years

    I met the Bardot family in Burnie last night
    Bigs seemed so glad to see me, I just smiled
    Bigella talked about some old times
    And Peter Poppins drank all the beers

    Still a crayfish after all these years
    Oh, I’m still a crayfish after all these years

    I’m not the kind of aquatic invertebrate who tends to socialise
    Sometimes people won’t climb on me for days
    But the Bardots sang me love songs
    That they whispered in whatever crustaceans have instead of ears

    Still a crayfish after all these years
    Oh, I’m still a huge crayfish after all these years

    Four in the morning
    We were yawning
    The Bardots finally went on their way
    I’ll never worry
    Why should I?
    They’ll be back one day

    Now I sit by my playground, and I watch the cars
    I feel better about my crabby little life today
    I now know the world adores me
    And will greet me with happy cheers

    Still a crayfish after all these years
    Oh, still a crayfish
    Still a crayfish
    I’m still an enormous crayfish after all these years

  • Callum & Murray, Burnie, Tas

    Callum and Murray, Burnie, Tasmania

    They’re cute, they’re cuddly, they’d probably taste great with tartare sauce and a slice of lemon – please put your tentacles together for the bubble-headed bad boys of Burnie, Callum & Murray.

    Wait a sec. Callum and Murray. Callum, Murray. That almost sounds like calamari. How clever!

    Cal (the pink one) and Muz (the blue one) live in the water play area next to the surf club. But watch out, they’re armed and fabulous!

    Now I know what you’re thinking: “Bigs, these cephalopods – although sufficiently large and oh-so-adorable – only have six legs apiece. Was the local council ripped off by the artist, or were the remaining legs stolen by some local tough guys?

    Neither, my ink-wisitive friend. Callum and Murray are in fact hexapi, mythical six-legged sea beasties with fantastically fashionable shells, who are said to frolic in Burnie’s crystal-clear waters. Apparently they sashay out of the brine in pairs at dawn and squirt people who are just going about their business.

    In a town like Burnie, that seems like a good way to get a punch in the head, but these festive fellows don’t seem too worried about it.

    Despite spending all their time together, I should point out that these swingin’ sea studs are not a couple. They’re just inverte-great mates!

    Weekend at Burnie

    Callum and Murray may have boyish good looks, but they’re hardly new squids on the block. They started out life in 2011 as a relatively milquetoast installation known simply as Burnie Water Sculpture. Created by Arterial Design, the boys were originally plain white, without their handsome faces. They looked exactly the same.

    You might even say they were i-tenticle – teehee!

    Yes, they lit up at night – in a variety of colours, no less – but the mundane molluscs failed to wrap their suckers around the hearts of Tasmanians.

    So in 2023 the council whipped out the sparkly paint to revamp them, and local wordsmith Gabrielle Mundy won a competition to give them a proper name.

    I would’ve called them Squid Rock and Wiggles McGee, but what do I know?

    Now this octo-passionate pair bring a little joy to the world – joining The Big Penguin and The Red Robin as darlings of Tassie’s windswept north coast.

    Forget about hexapis, these guys are more like cutie-pies!