This is the town of Silverton.
I love what they've done to the place.
Not a soul in sight but I think the population doubled when we descended upon the township.
In the height of its mineral wealth in the early 1880's, Silverton was home to 3,000 people but the larger mines of nearby Broken Hill opened up so by 1899 everyone had literally taken their homes and carried them by Camel and Donkey in search of greater wealth in Broken Hill. The population is reportedly less than 50 now but has a thriving Arts culture with visitors from around the world attracted to its rich History and vibrant Art Galleries.
In the height of its mineral wealth in the early 1880's, Silverton was home to 3,000 people but the larger mines of nearby Broken Hill opened up so by 1899 everyone had literally taken their homes and carried them by Camel and Donkey in search of greater wealth in Broken Hill. The population is reportedly less than 50 now but has a thriving Arts culture with visitors from around the world attracted to its rich History and vibrant Art Galleries.
If the scenes above look vaguely familiar it's because Silverton is the location for countless commercials and many films such as Dirty Deeds, Mad Max 2, Mission Impossible 2 and Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.
It has also been the backdrop for some great Australian Miniseries like the 1987 Dirtwater Dynasty and my favourite, the 1981 Mini-series A Town like Alice based on Neville Shute's novel of the same name and starring Bryan Brown and Helen Morse, which if you ask me has one of the best on screen kisses of all time.
While we are on the topic of Bryan Brown, anyone else with a thing for country boys? I'm a huge fan of his and usually think of him as the father of the young Rebecca Smart in The Shiralee but he was quite the spunk in the early 80's wouldn't you say? I'm thinking a cross between Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal.
The kids were busy fossicking for more rocks but the Whippet was more than happy to visit the sights with me and pose for the camera.
Don't worry about the Whippet. The Whippet is loving the adventure as much as us. He gets lots of attention. There aren't many Whippets in the Outback. He gets lots of treats because people think he's too skinny. He keeps quiet because he likes the treats and doesn't talk.
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| Bryan Brown and Helen Morse in "A Town Like Alice" source |
Mel, I've been known to swoon over Bryan Brown as well. Loved A Town like Alice, and must see if it's available, would love to watch it again. Also thought he was a bit of a knock-out in The Thorn Birds, although the whole thing was somewhat lacking.
ReplyDeleteHope to see the photos of your whole adventure featuring the whippet.
Gad to hear the whippet is having a good time.
ReplyDeleteMy whippets salute your whippet. They are in awe of Remy's outback adventures and like the idea of a place where whippets are not often seen and so fed lots of treats. They want to know was he too hot, did he have sunscreen on his ears, and is it true what they say about the spiders? ;D
ReplyDeleteDon't know if you saw it but I wrote a knitsofacto post featuring Griff whippet last week :D