‘Oxenford nearly died’
IT’S hard to imagine now, but long-lost footage has revealed how locals feared Oxenford would be wiped off the map when the Pacific Highway was completed in 1971.
The footage, uncovered by Channel 7 as part of a new series called Gold Coast Uncovered, shows workmen putting the finishing touches to the four-lane highway, which would later become the M1.
A man behind the bar at the Oxenford Hotel tells reporter Larry Homerton that the opening of the new road has already crushed his business.
“Last Tuesday night, between seven and 10, we had one customer,” the barman says. “On the Thursday night we had three.”
Mr Somerton reported that the road had “brought ruin” to Oxenford and businesses, including a petrol station, were closing down.
“Probably by the end of the year (1971), most locals agree, the township (Oxenford) will cease to exist,” he said.
Other video shows Meter
Maids working in Surfers Paradise in 1971 amid a campaign to get the council to scrap parking meters, and an interview with a local man in 1973 about the damage that bikini-wearing was doing to the Gold Coast’s reputation.
“It cheapens the area, it’s shoddy, to have bikinis coming into stores,” the man says.
“How is that going to sell the Gold Coast? You can get those (bikinis) in any pub.”
Gold Coast Uncovered premieres 7pm, Saturday, June 26 on Channel 7 Gold Coast and Brisbane and 7plus. The second episode airs on Saturday, July 3.