Leanne’s on a roll with dream role
From Indy girls to working with Max Christmas and cuddly koalas, PR queen Leanne St George has seen it all. Now she’s headed for the beach and a cause that’s close to her heart – and plans to break a world record.
“DON’T ever let the roller skaters follow the elephants.”
In a career spent planning, plotting and managing some of the biggest events in the history of the Gold Coast – from IndyCars to Polo by the Sea to Bikini Parades – Leanne St George learned this crucial lesson early.
Working with the legendary Paul ‘Mr Entertainment’ Sharratt and Judith Ferber on the iconic street parade for Tropicarnival – an 80s sort of incarnation of our modern-day Bleach Festival – Leanne watched in horror as the pachyderm poop hit the wheels on the streets of Surfers.
“The girls were literally rolling in it, and dragging it down the road in front of hundreds of spectators. You only make that mistake once, let me tell you,” laughs Leanne.
But there’s a greater lesson here for the parade called life … it’s all about putting the crap behind you.
And for the Gold Coast, there’s been a lot of that in the last year. That’s where Leanne rolls in, hoping to help our city move forward.
As the organiser of the Gold Coast Beach Parade, she sees the event as a ‘coming out’ for the Coast, but also as an opportunity to give back to the city that has given her so much. The May 16 event will showcase the Gold Coast’s pristine beaches while doubling as a world record attempt – in the very specific category of ‘greatest number of people wearing koala ear visors involved in a beach parade’ – and a charity fundraiser, with all entrance fees going to the Currumbin Wildlife Hospital Foundation to support the region’s koalas.
“I just felt that we needed something to give our city a boost … to remind the world what an amazing city we are, while reminding residents what a caring community we are,” she says.
“It’s been a tough time for the city, our tourism industry and small businesses really got smashed by COVID, and at the same time there is a lot of unrest among residents about who we are and where we’re going.
“But I think where we can always find common ground is our beaches and our koalas … it’s hard not to love them both, and this event is about bringing everyone together and focusing on what we share in common while boosting the profile of the Coast, which is what our businesses need.
“The beauty and character of this city is that we’re constantly growing and changing … but that’s not always easy.”
Born in Papua New Guinea, where her father salvaged planes post-World War 2, Leanne moved to the Gold Coast in 1974 – and has grown up with the city.
As the youngest of seven, and the only girl, Leanne lived near Bermuda and Rudd streets in Broadbeach Waters, in what was then a sleepy suburban corner.
“I used to ride my horse across where Pacific Fair is now, across where the Star casino is now, on to the beach and up to The Spit and back,” she says. “It was a different town then, but I’ve loved every iteration of it.”
While she originally planned to study science, a stint working at the Broadbeach International hotel convinced her a white lab coat was not in her future. Instead, she switched her university path to study public relations and journalism, carpooling to QUT with now City of Gold Coast acting CEO Joe McCabe.
But it was at age 19 when she began working with Paul Sharratt and Judith Ferber, now general manager of the Gold Coast Eisteddfod, that she found her calling.
“I loved promoting the city, I loved creating that party atmosphere and seeing everyone enjoy it,” she says.
“I was incredibly lucky to be taught by two of the best.”
And her run of amazing mentors didn’t end there, with Leanne going on to work with Max Christmas – the chippie turned champion surf lifesaver turned property titan who rode the Glitter Strip’s rollercoaster real estate cycle better than anyone else.
Leanne says as Max’s righthand woman, she saw the city hit huge highs through the 1980s.
“Max was a cheeky bugger. He told me he liked my style and gave me a job as his PR and media rep,” she says.
“Working in his office I saw things you wouldn’t believe. There was an endless procession coming through his door – Alan Bond, Christopher Skase, Rene Rivkin. That would be one lunchtime.
“In a small office below us there was a young man who was starting his career as a developer who’d sometimes come in to see Max too … that was Soheil Abedian.
“I remember Skase would fly everyone up to Cairns to try to sell some of his Mirage condos and if we hadn’t finished drinking the Moet he’d tell the captain to circle a little longer.
“That’s when I knew PR was the life for me.”
Even after she left Max, the good times continued to roll … with no era more colourful than the days of the IndyCarnival.
Working with the Miss Indy girls, Leanne found herself extremely popular – even among the A-listers.
“We had Jason Priestley here one year from 90210 … oh, he was so naughty. They were all so naughty – but there was no social media, no camera phones, they could get away with it.
“I had the singer of the Goo Goo Dolls ask me to arrange a meeting with the Miss Indy girls, and a request from the actor David Wenham.
“I had no idea who he was so I had to look him up and I was like, ‘Seachange, Lord of the Rings … uh yeah, he’s in!’
“It didn’t matter how big a star you were, Indy Girls were Indy Girls and everyone loved them.”
In fact, the Gold Coast Beach Parade is something of a throwback to former glory days of the GC … although not quite so long ago.
In 2011, as the city was struggling with the fallout from the GFC, Leanne helped organise the Gold Coast Bikini Parade – an event that set the world record for the number of bikiniclad women in one place and saw the city take centre stage.
“(Manpower founder and entertainment boss) Billy Cross called me from America and he said amid all the doom and gloom on CNN, suddenly there was this vision of Gold Coast girls in bikinis – viewers ate it up,” she said.
“We had coverage literally around the world and it was a real boost for the city. That’s what we’re trying to emulate again with the Beach Parade – although the bikini is optional this time.
“I want to make this an annual event, something where the city can really celebrate itself – and the support already has been incredible.”
From corporate supporters like John Howe’s IEDM company, GemLife, Raptis and Sunland as well as dozens of local businesses and celebrities, Leanne says the community spirit has been amazing – and will be more than meaningful for the city’s koala population.
Ultimately, Leanne says the Gold Coast Beach Parade is a celebration of who we are as a city and where we are going.
“This is a city where the more you put in, the more you get out.
“I think we’ve reached that point now where we know we don’t need to apologise for who we are any more – we’re big and colourful and entertaining.
“This city will always keep changing but our heart remains the same.”
With any luck, the worst of the crap is now behind us.
This city will always keep changing but our heart remains the same.