Latest news with #Mortein
The Age
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
The surprising stories and secrets of Sydney's City Circle line
'The governor used to come in with his horse and cart, straight into his train so he could go to his private residence in the Southern Highlands,' he says. 'General [Douglas] MacArthur [who came to Australia as Supreme Commander of the Southwest Pacific Area] in World War II was also known for using the trains at platform 1.' Near the station entrance is a notch on a marble pillar, which Cote says is damage from a bullet fired when military guards subdued rioting soldiers – shooting one dead – in what is called the Liverpool Riot in 1916. The soldiers, protesting poor conditions at an army camp, had been drinking in Liverpool before commandeering trains then rampaging through the city. Heading down towards the new Metro platforms there is a display – on a giant metal mural – of items unearthed on the site, including broken crockery, a horseshoe and a key. The tour is only in public areas, but Cote points out, from an elevator, Central's two so-called ghost platforms, 26 and 27, that were built for possible future lines but never required. Loading Taking in the station rather than rushing somewhere for a change, it is noticeable how stunning the redesigned Central looks now the Metro platforms are operating. 'They've done a really good job of not losing the old while making it look even better,' Cote says. After catching a train to Museum, he points out old ads lining the platform for the likes of Mark Foy's, Mortein and Bushells Tea. Apart from the addition of an elevator near the main entrance, 'it's pretty much the same as when it was built,' he says. The stop at St James takes in the displays around the station that include the old dead man's handle and a history of the ghost tunnels, built to future-proof the train network, that are due to be opened up for regular tours later this year. Cote notes they have been used for film and television shoots, an underground mushroom farm, an RAAF control room and air raid shelters during World War II. Circular Quay's big attraction is the view of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House and Wynyard's is Chris Fox's sculpture Interloop, made from treads of the station's old escalators. At Town Hall, Cote shows an old poster for an air raid shelter, halfway up a stairway, that was revealed after removing 70 years of paint in 2014. A sign says the State Government provided shelters for the travelling public when the perceived threat of war in Australia was at its highest in 1942. The tour finishes in a cafe back at Central that was once the booking office. Cote points out a frieze that covers the history of the state that was rediscovered after a 2015 fire in a Hungry Jack's outlet. 'No one would notice it unless they're told,' he says.
Sydney Morning Herald
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
The surprising stories and secrets of Sydney's City Circle line
'The governor used to come in with his horse and cart, straight into his train so he could go to his private residence in the Southern Highlands,' he says. 'General [Douglas] MacArthur [who came to Australia as Supreme Commander of the Southwest Pacific Area] in World War II was also known for using the trains at platform 1.' Near the station entrance is a notch on a marble pillar, which Cote says is damage from a bullet fired when military guards subdued rioting soldiers – shooting one dead – in what is called the Liverpool Riot in 1916. The soldiers, protesting poor conditions at an army camp, had been drinking in Liverpool before commandeering trains then rampaging through the city. Heading down towards the new Metro platforms there is a display – on a giant metal mural – of items unearthed on the site, including broken crockery, a horseshoe and a key. The tour is only in public areas, but Cote points out, from an elevator, Central's two so-called ghost platforms, 26 and 27, that were built for possible future lines but never required. Loading Taking in the station rather than rushing somewhere for a change, it is noticeable how stunning the redesigned Central looks now the Metro platforms are operating. 'They've done a really good job of not losing the old while making it look even better,' Cote says. After catching a train to Museum, he points out old ads lining the platform for the likes of Mark Foy's, Mortein and Bushells Tea. Apart from the addition of an elevator near the main entrance, 'it's pretty much the same as when it was built,' he says. The stop at St James takes in the displays around the station that include the old dead man's handle and a history of the ghost tunnels, built to future-proof the train network, that are due to be opened up for regular tours later this year. Cote notes they have been used for film and television shoots, an underground mushroom farm, an RAAF control room and air raid shelters during World War II. Circular Quay's big attraction is the view of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House and Wynyard's is Chris Fox's sculpture Interloop, made from treads of the station's old escalators. At Town Hall, Cote shows an old poster for an air raid shelter, halfway up a stairway, that was revealed after removing 70 years of paint in 2014. A sign says the State Government provided shelters for the travelling public when the perceived threat of war in Australia was at its highest in 1942. The tour finishes in a cafe back at Central that was once the booking office. Cote points out a frieze that covers the history of the state that was rediscovered after a 2015 fire in a Hungry Jack's outlet. 'No one would notice it unless they're told,' he says.
The Guardian
27-01-2025
- The Guardian
The kindness of strangers: I pulled over in hysterics – then a passing driver saved me from the spider
When I was about 19 or 20 I was driving through a genteel, leafy suburb on the north shore of Sydney when that most menacing of all Australian wildlife – a huntsman spider – raced across my windscreen. On the inside. My arachnophobia is so intense that I would have vastly preferred it if a great white shark had crashed through the window. I'm surprised I didn't lose the will to live immediately and simply died on the spot. Instead, I screamed, wrenched the wheel left and ran up the gutter, before hurling myself into a gasping panic on the kerb. I then proceeded to have what could only be described as a very loud, very visible breakdown. A few passersby asked if I was OK. I spluttered out the story and one by one they shrugged. 'Oh you'll be fine.' 'Just get in, stop being so ridiculous,' jeered one. I would not be fine. I would not 'just get in'. My only options were to walk home or accept this patch of grass as my new residence until I could arrange to have the car burned to the ground. Just as I was wondering, between sobs, exactly what sort of company I'd need to contact for 'car burning services', a woman pulled up in a pristine white Volvo. She had a perfectly coiffed blond bob and neat jeans and two young kids in the backseat who were no more than six years old. She got out of the car and asked me what was wrong, and I howled out the story, fully expecting her to recoil with a terror that matched mine and speed off in a cloud of Happy by Clinique. What happened next astonishes me to this day. Without missing a beat, she patted me kindly on the shoulder and chirped 'Let's have a look shall we?' She rolled up her crisp white shirt sleeves, jumped into the front seat and began feeling around the entire car – under the dash, under the seats, everywhere. I stood alongside and gaped, barely able to comprehend her bravery. I couldn't have been more impressed or relieved if she had produced two bazookas and full-scale body armour from her boot. After a few minutes of placing herself in the greatest of harm's way (what if it runs on to her arm?), the spider declined to appear. So she bundled me briskly into her car with the kids (who were staring wide-eyed at the weird, hysterical lady) and drove me to her house where she dropped off the children, before reemerging with a can of insect spray. She then drove back to my car and drenched every millimetre of the interior so thickly it formed a white fog over every surface. 'Maybe a bit more?' I squeaked. Her duty complete, she hugged me and sped off in a cloud of Happy by Clinique mixed with Mortein. And somehow, gathering every ounce of strength I had left in my body, I got back into my car and drove home. I never did find the spider and I was never comfortable driving that car again, but I knew on a practical level there was no way it could have survived that aerosol Armageddon. And to this day, I hold that valiant stranger up as one of Australia's greatest living heroes. Thank you for your service.
