This one day event has the community of Ingham gearing up for what will hopefully become one of the biggest annual festivals in the region. The Pub with No Beer Festival is just one week away and school groups, local entertainers and community leaders are excited to come together for this 70th anniversary remembrance festival, which will help revitalise the town.
The highlight of the festival is sure to be the historical re-enactment of the American convoy of serviceman who gave the town its iconic status after drinking the pub dry during World War II.
“The song The Pub With No Beer was a rewrite of the poem by local poet Dan Sheahan in 1943, who penned the famous words after discovering the American servicemen had drunk the Day Dawn Hotel (now Lees Hotel) dry,” explains Mary Brown, president of the Hinchinbrook Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Tourism. "It was also the inspiration behind Slim Dusty's and Australia’s first number one hit song."
Lees Hotel, which was awarded Queensland iconic status in 2005, will be a central part of the festival with the first historical re-enactment on the day being the American convoy arriving at the pub and pretending to drink it dry.
This jam-packed festival will kick off at 10.30am with buskers and street entertainers until the official opening at 11.30. It will be followed by school choirs, The Townsville RSL Pipe Band and then the first re-enactment, which will begin at 2pm with Dan Sheahan's descendants arriving on horseback as part of the cavalcade.
The second re enactment will take place at 4:30pm. Entertainment will then continue on into the evening with plenty of activities for families and visitors to enjoy with country and western music until 10pm and then DJ Rock until 2am.
For more information, visit www.hinchinbrookchamber.com.au or www.thepubwithnobeer.com.au
