{"id":9167,"date":"2025-10-19T23:40:54","date_gmt":"2025-10-19T13:40:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bardonnews.com.au\/index.php\/2025\/10\/19\/the-oct-19-show\/"},"modified":"2025-11-03T18:46:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-03T08:46:08","slug":"the-oct-19-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bardonnews.com.au\/index.php\/2025\/10\/19\/the-oct-19-show\/","title":{"rendered":"The Oct 19 Show"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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It was the kind of Sunday that only Macca could conjure \u2014 a cross-country chorus of voices, stitched together by warmth, wit and a weather report or two. From the sunny banks of the Noosa River to calls from Vietnam, the morning rippled with stories of horses, bells, buffalo, fiddle tunes and quiet acts of generosity.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Horses, Hopes and 100-to-1 Chances<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The day began on the grass at Noosaville, where Macca met Deb from Bellye Park and her red cattle dog, Chilly. Deb spoke fondly of the thoroughbreds she still tends on her farm, saying that when one dies she digs a big hole and plants a tree over it \u2014 a living memorial in the paddock. The talk drifted naturally to the Caulfield Cup. Macca had thrown ten dollars on a roughie at a hundred-to-one that almost came through, and they shared a laugh about the joy of a flutter when fate smiles. Deb, who grew up on a stud with the Freedman boys, reckoned the thrill of racing isn\u2019t about favourites at all \u2014 it\u2019s about heart, luck and the stories that stay with you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Bell That Rang Again<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A few minutes later the conversation turned from horses to hand-bells. Bell-maker Peter Oz had restored a cracked ship\u2019s bell, and when he struck the new casting a visitor cried. \u201cA good casting\u2019s as sound as a bell,\u201d Peter told Macca \u2014 a line that felt like a proverb for craftsmanship and care. In that clear tone, Macca heard the echo of security once offered to sailors far from home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Little Miss \u2014 Big Stories<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Then came a call from Melbourne and a voice brimming with pride. Filmmaker Angelo reported that Signorinella (Little Miss)<\/em>, his documentary on Italian migrant women, had secured a national cinema release. He spoke of his mother, a seamstress at thirteen, who dared to tell her boss she deserved an adult\u2019s wage, and of women such as Carla Zampatti and Tina Arena whose success grew from the same grit. The film, he said, honoured \u201cthe unsung heroes who came here with no language, no safety net \u2014 just determination.\u201d Macca agreed that migration is stitched into Australia\u2019s DNA. As they talked, Angelo reflected on prejudice, persistence and the patience it takes for a culture to make room. \u201cEverybody just wants a better life for their kids,\u201d he said. \u201cGive them time to show what they bring.\u201d It was one of the morning\u2019s longer conversations \u2014 warm, thoughtful and deeply Australian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buffalo at Maleny<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Back in the park, mother-and-daughter team Margaret Thompson and Steph described running Queensland\u2019s only buffalo dairy on the hills near Maleny. Dairy deregulation had pushed them to rethink everything, so a spontaneous cheap flight to Darwin became a $20 000 plunge into buffalo farming. Their Mediterranean-bloodline herd now produces rich, low-cholesterol milk for boutique cheesemakers from Byron Bay and Brisbane to Sydney. The animals, they said, are docile as long as you keep the bad-tempered ones out of the gene pool. Their laughter carried across the crowd \u2014 proof that innovation in farming still begins with a leap of faith and a good sense of humour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Greg the Dentist \u2014 Forty-Eight Years Bent Over<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Among the listeners sat Greg, a dentist from the Gold Coast who has rung Macca for decades. After forty-eight years bent over patients, he\u2019s ready to hang up the drill. \u201cThat\u2019s a long time to be hunched over,\u201d he said, rubbing his neck with a grin. He\u2019s watched the trade shift from handmade crowns to computer-milled precision and marvels at how expectations have changed. Macca reminded him of old-timers who\u2019d told stories about brides having their teeth out before marriage \u2014 a strange ritual from a world that no longer exists. They laughed, grateful for progress and for the lightness that comes when you can finally straighten your back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fiddles, AI and Singing Mushrooms<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Later, fiddler Phoebe called in with a yarn from a gig that went sideways. The lead singer, she said, kept insisting he\u2019d written thousands of songs \u2014 \u201call in the key of Steve.\u201d Every one sounded the same. She and Macca riffed about the flood of AI-generated music and even a study claiming mushrooms could make melodies through their electrical pulses. \u201cThe mushrooms are making a song,\u201d Phoebe insisted. Macca laughed, half-believing her, half-delighted by the idea that creativity sprouts wherever curiosity does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skies Wide Open<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Under the All Over News<\/em> banner, Macca crossed to Perth pilot and teacher Graham McGinn, who said the aviation industry was taking off again. Airlines, he explained, were desperate for trained staff, from engineers to flight instructors. The trick, he said, was \u201cstickability\u201d \u2014 the discipline to hold an aircraft steady and the persistence to stay the course through lean years. It\u2019s a lesson, Macca noted, that fits almost any trade in Australia today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spud\u2019s Garden and the Music of Birds<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

From planes to plants, the next voice belonged to gardener Spud Carroll in Western Australia\u2019s hills. He compared the east\u2019s fussy waratahs with the west\u2019s hardy kangaroo paws and described a landscape so diverse that a single kilometre in the Darling Range hosts more species than the whole of the UK. He spoke tenderly about magpies, butcherbirds and cuckoos, the bush alive with music. \u201cIt\u2019s all about observing,\u201d he told Macca. \u201cYou learn something new every day.\u201d They lingered on that thought \u2014 the patience of gardeners and radio hosts alike, both listening for what blooms next. For Spud, the bush is teacher, workplace and orchestra all at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diving Into Another World<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Back by the river, English-born Richard from Narangba had come after a scuba trip was cancelled. He told Macca he\u2019d rediscovered diving after decades away and now spends weekends exploring reefs and the scuttled HMAS Brisbane<\/em>. \u201cYou look underneath and there\u2019s a whole new world,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd no TikTok down there.\u201d \u201cOr Macca,\u201d came the reply, \u201cblessed relief.\u201d The exchange was quick but memorable \u2014 a reminder that wonder often hides just beneath the surface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maureen and Mike\u2019s Heliconias<\/h3>\n\n\n
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Photo Credit: Earth Creation Landscapes<\/a> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Long-time Noosa market growers Maureen and Mike brightened the stage with talk of their heliconias and gingers \u2014 tropical exotics they\u2019ve cultivated for decades. Their flowers have taken them to conferences in Panama, Colombia and India, yet it\u2019s the early-morning regulars at the markets they cherish most. Retirement, they laughed, is only half-retirement when you still have fifteen acres and a lifetime habit of nurturing things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those Folk from Gympie<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The morning found its rhythm again when Claire and Lawrence, the Americana duo Those Folk<\/em>, took up guitar and mandolin. They met at a Scottish festival, fell in love and now call Gympie home. Their song about springtime in south-east Queensland drifted out across the Noosa River, harmonies rising like sunlight through trees \u2014 a small concert in a park that felt like the heart of Australia All Over<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Maestro Remembered<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

From Sydney, Vicki Tico phoned to talk about Tico Beyond the Baton<\/em>, the new documentary on her father, conductor Tommy Tycho. She recalled how he arrived in the 1950s with nothing and went on to orchestrate the national anthem and accompany many of the nation\u2019s greats. Macca remembered hearing Tycho\u2019s arrangements for Mary Schneider\u2019s Yodelling the Classics<\/em> and mused that migration and music share the same rhythm \u2014 people bringing their sound and their soul to new shores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bread, Bills and the Cost of Living<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The tone shifted when bakery owners Peter and Jocelyn from the Sunshine Coast spoke about running a small business in tough times. Staffing, red tape and rising prices, they said, have worn people thin. \u201cEveryone thinks it\u2019s easy \u2014 open your doors and make money. It\u2019s not.\u201d Macca agreed that the official inflation figures don\u2019t match what families feel at the checkout. It was a grounded chat \u2014 real, relatable and just a bit exasperated \u2014 before the show turned to something gentler.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therapy Dogs and Quiet Lessons<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Christian and Kerry arrived with their dogs Bear and Kelvie, therapy companions who visit aged-care homes. Kerry said Kelvie always seems to know who needs him most, curling up beside lonely residents until a smile returns. Watching them work, she\u2019s learned a kind of forgiveness. \u201cThey have a blue, then two minutes later they\u2019re playing again,\u201d Christian said. Macca nodded: lessons in loyalty and letting go, straight from four-legged teachers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fraser and Baby Maggie<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A few metres away sat Fraser, a form-worker from Torquay, cradling five-month-old Maggie while his ranger partner fetched a hat. He spoke about concrete work, Queensland humidity and the novelty of hearing the show live. Macca joked that Maggie might be his youngest listener yet \u2014 a quick, sweet moment that said as much about continuity as any sermon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mike McClellan\u2019s Last Long Tour<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As the sun climbed, singer-songwriter Mike McClellan took the stage to announce that, at eighty, he\u2019s embarking on his final long tour. He still finger-picks with the finesse that made his name and is finishing both a memoir and an acoustic album. \u201cI\u2019m lucky,\u201d he told Macca. \u201cThe voice still works, the fingers still work.\u201d The two musicians swapped thoughts on practice, pain and the persistence that keeps art alive long after fashion fades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n