LOCAL CELEBS FLASHBACK
Gold Coast stars have opened up their photo albums to share their memories of when they went to their respective formal bashes
EMILY JADE O’KEEFFE Radio personality RYAN JAMES Gold Coast Titans player ANA JAMES
Ana’s nan made her dress for her. “She copied a dress from a red carpet event that I saw in a magazine,” Ana recalled. “Nan also made a tie for Ryan to match my dress ... how cute (laughs).”
High school sweethearts Ryan and Ana started dating in Year 8 at Tweed River High before they moved to Palm Beach Currumbin where they graduated in 2009 and later married in 2015. “In the pink is my Year 10 Leavers dinner when I was 15. In Tassie you leave your school in Year 10 ... I made this dress myself. The op shopped blue dress cost $5 and I cut it short, I had a cape! That was in Year 11, I was 16, and my boyfriend at the time was in Year 12, so I went as his date. And in the cream is my Year 12 Leavers Dinner dress at 17. Cream after I loved a lot of cream doughnuts and the start of my wedding obsession ... I had no date, I got chubby.”
JOHN-PAUL LANGBROEK Member for Surfers Paradise JESSICA GREEN Actress and model
Jessica said her formal was an “amazing night with memories” she will cherish forever. She went to Palm Beach Currumbin (PBC) but because she was filming TV series Lightning Point in her final year, she finished her last six months of school on set. So to regroup with her school friends for the school formal made it even more special. “It was 1978 and long hair was a thing, as you can see by my
Michael Jackson afro. I remember I went with a girl I quite liked, but she left me on the dance floor. Formals have definitely gotten a lot bigger since then. Ours was out at the Archerfield Aero Club and tickets were $10. Afterwards there wasn’t an official afterparty, it’s not like we were old enough to go clubbing, we just went to the school oval and I think somebody brought some tequila. We probably went home around 2am but we were 17 and felt all grown up.”
CHARLI ROBINSON Radio personality
“My formal was amazing but at the time I knew I was doing the Hi-5 pilot so I couldn’t wait to graduate. I felt like a disco queen in a silver sparkle dress. But I’m not sure why I dyed my hair red for the night. I went to a performing arts school so for me, it was just about dancing all night. It was a really big school so there were people I met that night who I hadn’t spoken to before. That’s what I remember about the night – forming new friendships. It was the late ’90s and my look really summed that up.’’
JESS HARDY Radio personality and Big Brother star
Looking back on her formal Jess says crimped hair was “cool” at that time. She graduated in 1994 at Marymount College. The formal was at Twin Towns Services Club. “At least I was keeping to form, as I liked to be original, and keep the gang laughing,” Jess said. “No one was surprised I ended up on TV as I was always performing. Although we all did that night!’’