With its unofficial ‘no dickheads’ policy, the 500-capacity room has been a safe space in the heart of Fortitude Valley
Joc Curran, who ran the Zoo between 1992 and 2016, at the back stairs of the venue. Photograph: David Kelly/The Guardian
Since then it’s gone through a couple of sets of hands. Pixie Weyand bought The Zoo from Curran and, with the latter’s help, staged a 25th anniversary celebration in late 2017. But the Covid pandemic wrought devastation, despite Brisbane initially escaping almost unscathed: in 2020 the city played host to a packed AFL grand final, normally held in Melbourne.The largesse afforded to major sporting events wasn’t extended to music.
Fortitude Valley had been ruled by a vicious alliance of criminals and crooked cops who ran a protection racket they codenamed The Joke. The Fitzgerald inquiry destroyed them, along with Bjelke-Petersen’s government. Along with the recession of the early 90s it turned the old red-light district into a wasteland. Practically every shopfront was for lease.
The venue would go on to host many more celebrated shows. Forster joined forces with his old songwriting partner, the late Grant McLennan, to form a new lineup of the Go-Betweens which first played The Zoo in December 1995. A month laterThe Zoo also hosted the famously fractious Pixies, who played one overflowing night in 2010. Curran remembers only good vibes: “It was just Pixies and myself in the room and they did a two-hour soundcheck.
Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Brisbane News Live: Labor losing votes left and right; Brisbane’s significant next 48 hoursThe latest news in and around Brisbane.
Read more »
LNP's Brisbane Metro Plan to Improve Bus CommutesMore than 54 per cent of bus commuters will have faster journeys under a radical shake-up of Brisbane’s buses – already approved by Translink – if the LNP wins City Hall on March 16. A further 33 per cent of commuters will be of the same duration on more efficient routes, while 13 per cent of bus commuters will have slightly slower bus trips, but have more suburban buses. The LNP’s plan introduces “two-seat” bus trips to Brisbane, where commuters take a suburban bus to a Brisbane Metro hub, and then travel by Metro through the CBD. Under the LNP’s $1.4 billion Brisbane Metro plan, the 60 three-car mega buses will collect passengers from suburban hubs - such as this one at University of Queensland -and carry them through the CBD on a five-minute frequency.At the 19 Brisbane Metro hubs, the suburban buses return to extra suburban bus services, while the passengers hop on to Metro rapid transit buses to travel every five minutes to the CBD
Read more »
Brisbane's Olympic venue dispute the inevitable result of two dramatically different visionsMonday's dramatic about-face by Premier Steven Miles was arguably the inevitable result of two totally different visions for the Games that have been on a collision course for about a decade.
Read more »
‘Embarrassed?’: Backflip over Brisbane Olympics venue slammed‘Embarrassed?’: Backflip over Brisbane Olympics venue slammed
Read more »
IOC backs Brisbane 2032 Games preparations amid political turmoil over changes to venue planningMembers of the IOC Coordination Commission and the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee held a virtual meeting overnight to discuss Olympic preparations.
Read more »
Brisbane News Live: Busy Brisbane road being redesigned; How (and why) Labor dumped key call of its 2032 venue reviewThe latest news in and around Brisbane.
Read more »