We have some pretty awesome Aussies, who’ve done some pretty special things – enough to be awarded the Australian of the Year. So why not honour them with a geo-series that starts at The Australian of the Year Walk, then visits a relevant place of interest for each group of Aussies and finally a short walk to GZ.
For our group of Solo Singers, we have a Country Singer, a Pop Rock Singer and an Opera Singer.
2008 Australian of the Year – Lee Kernaghan OAM
State: Queensland
Country Music Legend
The son of a country singer and truck driver, Lee Kernaghan was born in the Victorian town of Corryong and raised in southern New South Wales. In 1986 Kernaghan travelled to the United States with his father Ray to represent Australia at the Nashville ‘Fan Fair’ country music festival. In 1993 his debut solo album The Outback Club won an ARIA award for Best Country Album and his hit single ‘Boys From the Bush’ topped the Australian country music charts. Kernaghan became a dominant figure in Australian country music; he subsequently released nine albums and claimed more ‘Golden Guitars’ at the Tamworth Country Music Festival than any other artist except the legendary Slim Dusty.
The Australian of the Year 2008 is well known for his support of rural and regional Australia; his ‘Pass the Hat Around’ tours have raised more than a million dollars for rural communities during a challenging period of drought.
At the posted coordinates (or WP1A), you will see a plaque of our first AOTY. Look next to the photo - there are four lines.
For K = Second Line, Second Word, Eighth Letter (convert letter to a digit, where A=1, B=2…J=0).
For L, from the description above, in 19L6, Kernaghan travelled to the US with his father.
Now wander along the Australians of the Year Walk. It should be rather obvious where to walk, but you can confirm with the included waypoints.
1987 Australian of the Year – John Farnham AO
State: Victoria
Singer and Musician
English-born John Farnham immigrated to Australia with his family as a ten-year-old. He was an apprentice plumber and part-time musician before signing a recording contract with EMI in 1967. Performing as teen pop idol ‘Johnny Farnham,’ his early hit singles included ‘Sadie the Cleaning Lady’ and ‘Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head.’ After considerable early success his career slowed in the late 1970s. He subsequently teamed with manager Glenn Wheatley and revived his career as an adult contemporary singer. He replaced Glenn Shorrock as lead singer in the Little River Band in 1982, but his greatest success came in a renewed solo career launched by the hit single ‘You’re the Voice’ (1986). The song topped the charts in Australia and several European countries, while the associated album, Whispering Jack, sold over one million copies.
Farnham was named Australian of the Year ‘for his outstanding contribution to the Australian music industry over twenty years.’
Here you will see a plaque of our second AOTY. Look next to the photo - there are four lines.
For M = Third Line, First Word, Fifth Letter (convert letter to a digit, where A=1, B=2…J=0).
For N, from the description above, Farnham was an apprentice plumber before signing with EMI in 196N.
1961 Australian of the Year – Dame Joan Sutherland OM, AC, DBE
State: New South Wales
Leading Opera Singer
Joan Sutherland was born in Sydney and studied piano and voice with her mother from a young age. In 1951 she won Australia’s pre-eminent opera competition the ‘Sun Aria’ before moving to London to study at the Royal College of Music. Sutherland’s breakthrough performance came at London’s Covent Garden in 1959 in the title role of Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor. Her critically acclaimed performance quickly attracted invitations to perform the role in Paris, Milan and New York.
When the Australia Day Council Chairman Sir Norman Martin named her the 1961 Australian of the Year, he proclaimed: ‘She is the Nellie Melba of our time – no doubt about that. Joan Sutherland has restored Australia to the glittering centre of the musical world.’ Dame Joan was a leading international soprano for three decades before her retirement in 1990. Luciano Pavarotti once described her voice as ‘certainly the greatest voice this century’.
Here you will see a plaque of our third AOTY. Look next to the photo - there are four lines.
For P = Second Line, Third Word, Second Letter (convert letter to a digit, where A=1, B=2…J=0).
For Q, from the description above, after three decades as a leading international soprano, Sutherland retired in 199Q.
WP2 = S35 K(M+P).LM(K+N) E149 QN.MK(N+Q)
Relevant Place of Interest
At WP2, you will be standing at a building. All three AOTYs sung at a building of this name: one in London, one in Launceston and this one in Canberra. Near you, there is a plaque.
Use (paragraph, line, word, letter) to find a letter, then convert to a digit, where A=1, B=2…J=0. Ignore the plaque title.
R=(2,1,4,5) S=(1,2,10,1) T=(2,1,7,7) U=(2,1,6,1) V=(2,2,4,1) W=(1,3,7,6)
GZ is at S35 17.RST E149 07.UVW
Checksum S36E32