Ulverstone is widely regarded as Tassie’s global city, so it makes sense they’d have a gigantic planetary globe on display. Built in the mid-80s, The Big Globe is looking a bit run-down these days, but remains a world-class attraction.
But here’s the best bit – it spins!
Sure, the whole thing feels a bit wonky, and I was worried it would fall off its spindle and roll into Bass Strait, but how many other Bigs can you rotate with the flick of a wrist?
The Big Globe can be found in the picturesque Shropshire Park, by the banks of the River Leven. The garden was built to honour the crew of HMAS Shropshire, and the globe details the activities of the Royal Australian Navy during World War II.
Informative, patriotic and impressively prop-orb-tioned. What a well-rounded Big Thing this is.
No doubt about it, this kitschy attraction has become a global phenomenon. If you haven’t organised a trip to Ulverstone, you should planet soon. Ooh, aren’t my jokes his-spherical!
Not surprisingly, I highly recommend seeing it, unless you’re a flat-earther!
It’s a small world after all… or is it?
Alright, pointdexter, I know what you’re thinking: “Bigs, the Earth has a circumference of 40,075km and this replica is, at most, about five or six metres around. Therefore it is much smaller than the real thing and, by definition, not a Big.”
That’s why I’m Australia’s foremost expert on Big Things and you – despite being a lovely person – are not.
The Big Globe is not a recreation of the actual Earth, but of a terrestrial globe. You know, the ones that are the size of a netball and usually sit on someone’s desk. Anyone who disagrees just has a bad latitude!
Plus, it’s called The Big Globe, so it’s right there in the name. Just like the nearby Big Penguin and Big Tassie Devil.
All Taswegians should be proud of their giant, geographically-correct recreation of a marginally smaller recreation of the Earth.
