MINI: Big Things

0:10Speaker 1:iHeart Podcast. Hear more gold podcasts, playlists, and listen live on the free iHeart app. Got anything good?

0:20Speaker 2:Hey, this is the Christian O'Connell Show Podcast.

0:28Speaker 1:Day three on Pastor Pete, and yesterday he took in the delights of the big banana. And thanks to Shane Crawford, who introduced him to the delights of a big banana. The thing I didn't know, the big bicycle. Wow. And this country really loves a big thing. I remember when the show turned eight years old in June this year, I wrote eight lessons that I've learned over eight years of living here. I never got to do them.

0:54Speaker 2:No.

0:55Speaker 1:Number six was your love of big things. Do you want to hear what I wrote?

0:58Speaker 3:I would love to hear.

0:59Speaker 4:All right.

0:59Speaker 1:This was lesson six from my eight years of living here and eight lessons of watching Australians. Lesson six, they love giant things and they will make you stop and look at them. Here's something I had to learn about Australian road trips. You'll be driving for hours and hours and hours, the whole family packed in. And then your partner will say the most dangerous sentence in the world. Oh, apparently you can go and see something called the big banana.

1:22Speaker 1:You then have to take a detour. You always take the detour. You will add 90 minutes to a journey you're already three hours into. You will drive off the actual route to a different town so that you can stand next to, and you have to have your photo taken beside, a very large piece of fruit. That's the thing. That's the whole event. You drive there, you look at it, and you go, it is big. Day made. And it's not a one-off. There are, and I checked this because I didn't believe it, there are hundreds of them. Over 150 of them. Some say over 600. What? Yeah, an entire country dotted end-to-end with enormous objects. And once you start, you can't stop. There's a big banana and a big pineapple, which you can actually go inside. The big merino, the big prawn, the big lobster. He's got a name. He's called Larry. The big mango, the big orange, the big melon, the big potato, which, and I'm being kind, is just a large brown lump. Then there's the big golden guitar, the big gumboot, the big easel, a giant painting easel.

2:18Speaker 3:Big easel?

2:19Speaker 1:Wow. A giant painting easel in Emerald for some reason. Go figure. The big wine bottle, which is just a water tower that some locals looked at and went, you know what that means? To be a 36-meter-high bottle of wine. And you know what? They're right. Then there's the backstories. The big banana, original 1964, was modeled on a real banana. A man and engineer went out and searched for the shapeliest, most attractive banana he could find and built a giant monument.

2:48Speaker 1:He went looking for the sexiest banana in Australia. That was his job. The Big Merino, 97 tons of concrete sheep, is based on a real ram.

2:57Speaker 3:We did a school excursion to the Big Merino.

2:59Speaker 1:Did you? It's a stud. It's a champion stud ram.

3:02Speaker 3:I didn't know that.

3:04Speaker 1:And his name? Rambo, of course.

3:07Speaker 3:Good name.

3:07Speaker 1:Then there's my favourite one, the big prawn in Ballina. They built it in 1989. They built it with no tail originally. Oh. For reasons no one has ever explained, they made a giant prawn and just left its arse off. A tailless prawn for decades. Then it fell apart. It was about to be demolished. Who rode in to save it? Bunnings. Of course, it's Bunnings. They spent $ 400, 000 restoring lovingly the prawn. They finally gave it the turn. It never had it.

3:35Speaker 1:Just get you. Right in the field. So somewhere in New South Wales, there's a giant prawn that has waited 30 years for its own ass. And a hardware store paid for it. It's the most Australian sentence you can ever say. And then there's the big mango. Someone nicked the giant mango. How do you do that? Turned out it was Nando's as a stunt. They were forced to apologize. Nando's then built the town a second smaller mango as an apology. So now there's the big mango and a mini mango. I've worked out what it is. It's a little town shouting we matter too. It's a bit of fun and a long road trip. Australia was never too cool to start for a giant prawn. And a big thing isn't a gimmick. It's a beacon. It's a town building something huge to make passing strangers slow down, stop and feel just a tiny bit of joy. It's a lighthouse.

4:24Speaker 1:It's a big concrete lighthouse. Sometimes maybe shaped like a banana. And after eight years, I wouldn't have it any other way. Take the detour. Always take the detour. So everybody this morning, let's try and nail the definitive top 10 of big things of Australia. It's the prawn for me. Okay. What's it for you, Rio?

4:42Speaker 3:Mine is in Perth in Western Australia.

4:44Speaker 5:They've got a big goon bag, which I think is a great tribute to Australia's cultural fabric.

4:50Speaker 1:Absolutely. You know, champagne invented by monks in France, you know, Trappist monks, and now you've got the Goomba.

4:57Speaker 3:Yes, and it's like champagne. Like, if it's not made in Australia.

5:00Speaker 1:You can't call it a Goomba. No, I'm literally right. It's not from the Goon region. Yes, which is Australia. Patsy, what's your favourite giant thing?

5:07Speaker 6:Oh, it's got to be the big koala. Pete could pop in there if he gets to Adelaide. He could go on the way. It's at Dadswoods Bridge near Stawell. Big 16 metre high koala.

5:16Speaker 1:I tell you what, you ever see it at night time and it's got a strange, one of the eyes, it's got a bung eye and so it looks haunted at night. It's like the Wicker Man movie but it's a koala.

5:30Speaker 6:And you walk into his tummy and you can go in there, there's a gift shop, exit through the gift shop.

5:34Speaker 1:There is.

5:34Speaker 6:Yeah, and it's named after a koala. It's in memory of Sam the koala apparently in 2009 and just to highlight our dwindling koala population. So it's more, you know, it's got real significance.

5:46Speaker 1:Best way to highlight dwindling things is erect a giant version with a bung eye. What should go in the top 10? A definitive top 10 of the best big things of Australia. Christian, at Glenrowan, there's a giant Ned Kelly that has to be high in the top 10. Pretty sure Glenrowan is where the final seed draws for the Kelly gang. Yeah. Christian, I love the big trout. I didn't know there's a... Bloody hell, that is huge. Catherine, thank you very much for the photo. There really is a giant trout. Christian, there's a big bogan. Do you guys know about the big bogan? Is that Carl Sanderlands? Christian, the giant pheasant... Did you just point at Pat? No, no, I was stretching.

6:31Speaker 3:How dare you?

6:32Speaker 1:He pointed a thumb your way. The cat was dumb. He went like, oh, mate. He's got a kink in the arm. No, I don't like that. What about the giant pheasant at Gumby's Park? It was blown up at one stage by some vandals.

6:43Speaker 3:What's a pheasant?

6:44Speaker 1:Patsy would remember this. What, were you one of the gang? The Jonesy gang?

6:48Speaker 3:It's a bird, isn't it? Yes, it is. It's got beautiful feathers, hasn't it?

6:52Speaker 1:Yeah, it does. What a pretty bird. People hunt them. It's game.

6:54Speaker 3:Yeah.

6:56Speaker 1:Christian, what about the giant potholes on Victoria? Good point. It is like driving on the moon these days. Good morning to you, Higo. Does a brilliant show after us on Gold. Amazing photo of the big galah at Kimber. Marks a halfway point across Australia. No finer way to do it than a giant galah. It makes sense. Christian, who doesn't love an eight-meter tall galah? You're right. Wowee, someone just sent me a photo. Good morning, Darren. That's you.

7:25Speaker 1:of a giant tennis racket. Location undisclosed. Dan, we're going to need a little bit more detail about that, but it is a massive old-school wooden tennis racket. I love it. Christian, what about the giant Bunderburg in Bundy? I've been there. I've seen that. The giant Brussels sprout. I wasn't aware of that. Did any of us know about the giant Brussels sprout in Coldstream? Christian, I heard you talk about the people that blew up the bird, the pheasant at Gumbayah.

7:54Speaker 1:my best friend's ex was one of the people who blew it up. He got community service.

7:58Speaker 3:Oh, no.

7:59Speaker 1:We were doing it this week. Add that to the phone in us today. Have you blown anything up? These are incredible, these giant things of Australia. Let's do some calls now. Morning, Steve. Welcome to the show, mate.

8:12Speaker 4:Good morning.

8:13Speaker 2:Happy Wednesday, everybody.

8:15Speaker 1:Morning, Steve. Good morning, Steve.

8:17Speaker 2:Out in the southeast of Melbourne, in Clyde North, we have got the giant wheelbarrow.

8:24Speaker 4:And it's gigantic.

8:25Speaker 2:It's 6.5 metres high by 15 metres long. And I'm surprised it hasn't been World Heritage listed, quite frankly.

8:33Speaker 1:Yeah, you're quite right. Yeah. Someone has missed a sitter there.

8:38Speaker 4:It's got everything.

8:39Speaker 2:It's got like a wheel and a barrow and everything.

8:42Speaker 4:Wheel and a barrow.

8:43Speaker 1:What more do you want in a wheelbarrow? It's got everything. Come on, UNESCO. That is incredible. It really is a huge wheelbarrow. Steve, thank you very much for that one, mate. Always a joy chatting to you. Have a good day.

8:56Speaker 4:Thanks, guys. Have a great day.

8:58Speaker 1:Colin, good morning, Colin. Hi, Christian.

9:00Speaker 4:Hi, everybody else.

9:02Speaker 1:And welcome to the show. And everybody else says hi. Let's put that on the posters, please, if you don't mind. Christian and everybody else. Now, listen, Colin, what about the giant thing?

9:11Speaker 4:The giant oyster in Taree, New South Wales.

9:13Speaker 1:Hmm. Giant oyster. Now, how big is the oyster, do you reckon?

9:17Speaker 4:It's 20 metres high and 27 metres wide.

9:19Speaker 2:Wow. Oh, wow.

9:20Speaker 1:That is huge.

9:22Speaker 3:This is huge. I'm looking at it now.

9:24Speaker 1:I can't believe none of us know about the giant oyster.

9:27Speaker 4:Yeah, it's been there since the 90s, which I always remember when it first got built as a kid going up to Taree for holidays.

9:34Speaker 5:Incredibly, Colin, I'm looking at it, so it seems like it's on top of a car dealership.

9:38Speaker 3:So could you get any more Aussie than that?

9:41Speaker 5:And the mouth of the oyster appears to be, is it a restaurant or what's inside?

9:45Speaker 4:It used to be a restaurant and a souvenir shop, and then they went bust, and now they've got car yards in it. I guess that's progress.

9:51Speaker 1:LAUGHTER That's a brilliant one. That's incredible.

10:01Speaker 4:Could you imagine the kill Patrick he can make with that?

10:05Speaker 1:Rio loves an oyster. I do, I do. But you're already a heaven. Colin, brilliant call. Thank you very much for calling us, mate. We'll send you a prize.

10:14Speaker 4:Have a great day.

10:14Speaker 1:Thank you very much. Right now we're searching for the best giant things of Australia. Christian, do you know about the giant penguin in Penguin, Tasmania? Of course. It was right there. Right there. Genius. Christian, I don't know if it's still there, but I remember about 35 years ago, we saw the Big Bull in New South Wales. Our seven and three, our boys, had a great big laugh. Laughing, it's huge, swinging. Yeah, we get it. Thank you. Christian, my husband has a photo album of him with big things. Wow.

10:47Speaker 1:I love it. Put it on your bucket list.

10:49Speaker 3:I hope it's a big album.

10:53Speaker 1:Prize photo is the big dairy cow. Now, this one is on private property. You can't really get near it.

10:59Speaker 3:Exclusive access.

11:00Speaker 1:Yeah, the big kahuna. He took our young son on an adventure to find it.

11:05Speaker 3:Oh, I love that.

11:06Speaker 1:He managed to get a photo over his shoulder with the cow at least 2K away. There were signs warning people it's private property. But he risked it all, Christian, for the photo and his son. We're going to find out more about that. I've always wanted to do a thing of every month we give away Money can't buy prizes. Now I've found one. That cow on that private property.

11:30Speaker 3:It will smuggle you in.

11:31Speaker 1:No signs for you. His favourite is the big Scotsman in SA. My favourite, if you're asking, I am, is the giant Murray Cod in Swan Hill.

11:42Speaker 5:Beautiful.

11:45Speaker 1:Christian, there's a fair field in Victoria has a giant, just a giant dog, just a random giant dog next to the train station. Christian had a guess. Six to eight meters tall. Thank you for eyeballing it for us this morning. Christian, one of my favorite big things. It's the big rolling pin.

12:03Speaker 3:Wow. For the nonnas of Australia.

12:06Speaker 1:Pass me the bippy. Guess where it's above. A big rolling pin. No, no, no. Think about it.

12:14Speaker 3:A flower factory?

12:15Speaker 1:You're so close. Be literal. We're in Australia. A past of? Bakery. It's above a bakery. I love it. We need a giant microphone above this radio station. Anthony, thank you very much for that. We've got some calls now. Greg, good morning. Greg, welcome to the show.

12:33Speaker 2:And a very good morning to you all.

12:34Speaker 1:Greg, what have you got for us then? What giant thing have you seen?

12:38Speaker 2:Two wonderful ones. The first one would be the giant magpie in Uroa.

12:43Speaker 1:Mm. You were in a row. Rio was in a row recently, and you got attacked by, swooped by magpies.

12:48Speaker 3:Yes, mate. Yes, by three magpies.

12:51Speaker 1:Are you sure it just wasn't a giant fibreglass one?

12:54Speaker 2:No, mate. It was a feed ink, and if it swooped you, you know about it. And the other one is the giant trout in Coyola, just before you get into Shepparton.

13:08Speaker 1:Ah, right, yeah. I mentioned the giant trout, but we couldn't work out where it is. But it's in Shepparton.

13:14Speaker 2:Yep, or quail on a tail just before shipping, yeah.

13:17Speaker 1:Do you know what we're going to release next year? A calendar.

13:20Speaker 3:Oh, yes.

13:21Speaker 1:12 of our favourite. We'll let listeners vote for the big things. Each month, you turn it over, you've got another drink, another giant thing right here in Australia.

13:29Speaker 5:And is it like a fireman's calendar where we're posing in front of it, or is it just the.

13:34Speaker 4:No.

13:34Speaker 1:There's only one star on the photo. The giant fibreglass thing. Greg, thank you very much for your call. We've got Lindell here. Morning, mate. Welcome to the show.

13:45Speaker 2:Good morning.

13:46Speaker 1:Good morning. And what giant thing should go on our top ten?

13:50Speaker 2:The big prawn?

13:52Speaker 1:Yeah.

13:53Speaker 4:Yeah, it's at Cragen Bay near Catherine Hill Bay on.

13:55Speaker 2:The central coast.

13:57Speaker 1:So there's another giant prawn.

13:59Speaker 2:Yeah.

14:01Speaker 4:It's currently missing its head and legs because about three years.

14:05Speaker 5:Ago, somebody got an angle grinder and chopped it off.

14:09Speaker 1:Chopped it off?

14:10Speaker 2:Yes.

14:13Speaker 1:Patsy, where was that in the news three years ago?

14:15Speaker 3:Oh, no.

14:16Speaker 1:What were you doing that day? You must have been off sick. They took his head off. I know you do that to enjoy them.

14:24Speaker 2:In the next, but... And never to be found again.

14:27Speaker 3:Oh, no.

14:28Speaker 1:Someone knows something. Let's pick up the cold case. This is a true crime podcast I've always wanted to do. What happened to that prawn's heads and legs?

14:38Speaker 3:Half.

14:40Speaker 4:Don't know.

14:40Speaker 1:Do you know what, though? You know what the thing is? People know who did this.

14:44Speaker 3:Someone knows.

14:45Speaker 1:Someone knows. Someone knows. I'm going to put a reward up. Thank you for giving me this cold case, okay? Thanks for calling in.

14:55Speaker 2:No worries.

14:56Speaker 1:Thank you very much, all your giant things, Australia. I didn't know there was a giant spaceship. I've never seen that one. It's like a scene from Star Wars. Big chainsaw? Classy. Why not? Yeah, beautiful. Gisborne? Giant Chuck, Mount Vernon, Sydney. Wow. I'm just looking at lists. Someone's put together a list of just some of the ones we haven't mentioned. They've been writing down over the last half an hour. I mean, I've got producers for that. Wait, they've done nothing. Could you send me that list, actually, Marie?

15:27Speaker 3:You got any time wasters for me?

15:28Speaker 1:Can you start tomorrow at 5am? Northern Territory. Anyone seen the big boxing crocodile in Humpty Doo?

15:36Speaker 3:I've been to Humpty Doo, actually. I've been to the pub at Humpty Doo.

15:39Speaker 1:You not seen the big boxing crocodile?

15:41Speaker 3:I don't remember the boxing crocodile.

15:42Speaker 1:How many beers did you have? Adelaide River. There's Charlie the Buffalo. Big Kev. The dinosaur.

15:49Speaker 3:Oh, I thought they meant Bimmer Big Kev Patsy, the guy from TV.

15:53Speaker 6:Yeah, they sell all these chemicals and stuff, cleaning products.

15:57Speaker 1:WA, the big ram, the big apple, the big banana, the big crocodile, the big bobtail, the big lollipop, the world's tallest bin.

16:04Speaker 3:Now that. Now we're talking.

16:07Speaker 1:What a flex.

16:08Speaker 3:What a bin.

16:09Speaker 1:Wowee. Suddenly WA looked at everyone and they went, hold my bear. Get me a giant bin. Tasmania, we've heard about the big penguin, or penguin. The big Tasmanian devil in Mole Creek. There's this, the big coffee. South Australia, the big lobster, big rocking horse, the big galah, the big orange. The big kangaroo, the big olive, the big miner, the big oyster, the big winch. The big Scotsman. And the big clock. I was worried about pronouncing that. One of the different sources. Why this Scotsman is called the Big Scotsman. Queensland, the big pineapple, big mango, golden gumboots, big barramundi, big cow, big crab, big peanut, big pie, big kangaroo, big stubby. Of course, there's a big stubby.

16:51Speaker 1:But when we break it down state by state, and the giant things of Australia, the power rankings, Northern Territories, 23. Tasmania, 39.

17:00Speaker 2:Okay.

17:04Speaker 1:South Australia, 56, moving up the power rankings of the states and who has the most big things. WA, 87. Wow. We're in the big three. Victoria in third place, 121.

17:17Speaker 3:Queensland, 128.

17:17Speaker 1:But at number one, Goat Goat.

17:19Speaker 3:New South Wales, over 150.

17:20Speaker 5:Wow.

17:32Speaker 1:Okay, team, I'm going to set a goal for next year on this show. 2027, June the 4th, this show will mark nine years of us. It's a Friday. We're going to be unveiling our big thing of Australia.

17:51Speaker 2:Yes.

17:52Speaker 1:I don't know what it is, but it's big. It's out there.

17:56Speaker 3:It's waiting for us to find it.

17:58Speaker 1:It has to be big. I reckon we ask the bright side is to submit pictures and plans for what the big thing could be.

18:06Speaker 3:Like I did for the upper house.

18:07Speaker 1:Yeah. Only cheaper and paid for by clients. Get ready for the giant chemist wells. Get ready for the big library. A dispensary in the mouth.

18:20Speaker 3:Get ready for the big library. June the 4th, 2012, 2027.

18:24Speaker 1:Date for diary, guys. The Christian O'Connell Show. Go on. Podcast.