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Australia’s Forgotten Showman

 The Days of Martini’s Buckjumping Show

©  Chris Woodland


NOTE: Thanks to Chris for the opportunity to present his book here.

CONTENTS
  1. Introduction
  2. Family – Early Days
  3. Singleton – Texas Jack
  4. Queensland – Ipswich – Cairns – Sydney – Melbourne
  5. Return to Queensland
  6. Tasmania – Victoria – Brisbane – South Australia – Victoria
  7. Lance Skuthorpe – Mrs Martini
  8. Martini’s Buckjumping Show 
  9. Dargan’s Grey – Queensland again
  10. Billy Waite – Far North Queensland – Thursday Island – Outback
  11. Martin’s New Outstanding Bucker
  12. Heading South -Return to NSW and down the coast
  13. On to Parramatta
  14. Sydney – Martinis longest running show – Dargan’s Grey re-joins
    the show
  15. Skuthorpe accepts the challenge
  16. Farewell Sydney Town – On the Road Again
  17. Peak Hill to Albury
  18. The Stockwhip Case – The Newsboy’s Association
  19. Waite and the Dempseys Go into Business –
    End of the Road for Martini
  20. The Show Goes On
  21. ‘Mrs Martini’ Reclaims the Show
  22. Death of Dargan’s Grey
  23. Martini’s Buckjumping Show to be sold
  24. Epilogue
  25. Acknowledgements

About the author

Chris Woodland has had a life-long interest in Australian folklore. While his hair was still brown he worked on outback cattle and sheep stations and maintains those earlier associations.

For many years he has made field recordings (housed in the National Library of Australia) of many bush personalities, including (Aboriginal and white) drovers, shearers, isolated women, poets, songwriters singers, veteran soldiers etc. Over the years Chris has been an active member of the Sydney Bush Music Club and Monaro Folk Music Society. He has been a presenter over many years on community radio 2XX in Canberra.

He retired to a few acres near Termeil on the South Coast of NSW in 2002 and then a few kilometres away to Bawley Point in 2015. For several years he ran a course called Wallaby Stew at the Milton-Ulladulla University of the Third Age.

Chris produced a book of historic photos with text on the old gold town of Araluen for the Braidwood & District Historical Society, which has sold well. It was published in 2015, followed by another book published in the same year titled Billy the Blackfella from Bourke, relating the fascinating life of his deceased mate.

Chris now spends most of his time with grandchildren and singing and playing with friends. His group is called AusSongs.