Remember When

GOLD COAST BULLETIN FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2006

Where the bloody hell is the Gold Coast? That was the question on the lips of civic and business leaders after Tourism Australia released its longawaited $180 million television campaign which snubbed the nation’s most popular holiday destination.

Images of Sydney, the Great Barrier Reef, Ayers Rock, the Outback, Aborigines and kangaroos dominated the ads, which were to be aired throughout the world.

But there was no sign of the Gold Coast’s famous beaches or skyline, despite the city attracting four million visitors a year. Adding insult to injury, a shot of what appears to be our skyline in an unrelated section of the Tourism Australia website was identified on a map as Sydney.

Everyday Australians starred in the new and controversial television ads, aimed at luring more international i l travellers to our shores.

But as the Gold Coast prepared to host 800 of the country’s most senior tourism executives at its annual industry awards evening, the new overseas television campaign was already under fire. Prime Minister John Howard and Federal Tourism Minister Fran Bailey were forced to defend the use of the term `bloody hell’ in the promotion.

The campaign sought to lure international travellers Down Under by posing the question `Where the bloody hell are you?’

The question followed a sequence of footage in which everyday Australians were shown saying: ``We’ve poured you a beer, we’ve shampooed the camel, we’ve got the ‘roos off the green, we’ve got the sharks out of the pool and we’ve saved you a spot on the beach.’’

But on the Gold Coast the swear words were being directed at Sydneycentric Tourism Australia.

Mayor Ron Clarke said it was obvious that the new ad `has been done by someone in Sydney or Canberra’.

``I’m disappointed that they’ve got all the icons there but they haven’t got the beaches and the surf of the Gold Coast, which is what Australia is renowned for,’’ he said.

``I’m also disappointed at the use of the swear words. That’s taking ockerism too far.’’

Surfers Paradise Traders Association spokesman Stuart Cowen said Tourism Australia `needs to have a look at itself on this’.

``They’ve overlooked the one part of the country that brings in four million people a year,’’ he said.

``That’s inexcusable.’’

The `bloody hell’ ads, which follow a series of flawed attempts to sell Australia to the world, will be shown in key tourism markets in the next few week, including China, Japan, the USA, United Kingdom, India and Germany.