One of the Geelong traditions is Gala Day, it has been running for over a century and has brought joy to generations of people from Geelong and surrounds. Gala Day has been a day for the young and young at heart to celebrate.
Every year in November, thousands once flocked to the streets of Geelong to watch the huge street parade. The parade brought colour, sound and plenty of magic, plus the odd celebrity or some of our sporting heroes from down Kardinia Park, who were always crowd favourites.
The parade also featured many famous furry mascots, clowns and other performers that really thrill the crowd. Over the years Santa, Humphrey B Bear, Half Cat, Bob the Builder and the Lorax are just a few of the famous faces who have appeared in the Gala Day parade.
Many corporate and community groups spent hundreds of hours building elaborate floats, complete with performers in fancy costumes and fully choreographed routines. Highland Bands, military bands, horses, dance troupes and vintage cars. The Geelong people sure know how to put on a great parade.
For 91 years of its history, Gala Day was held on a Friday that was a public holiday for many of the schools around the Geelong region, but in 2008 the day moved to Saturday making it more accessible to many more people. Then a few years later moved to an evening time slot. The 2019 Parade evolved even further with a change of location to Eastern Park.
After the parade, the celebration continues in park lands around the city, with food, entertainment and other attractions topping off one of the most fun days on the Geelong’s event calendar.
Gala Day raised much needed funds for the Geelong Hospital Appeal, which is supported by dozens of community groups and businesses in the region. The first Gala Day was held in November of 1916 as a major fundraiser for the Red Cross Society’s World War 1 effort. The Geelong Advertiser at the time reported it as “the gayest spectacle, and the highest in patriotic purpose”; how words have changed over the years. The first event was a huge success, raising 5500 pounds for the Red Cross, which must be an enormous amount in today’s terms. The Geelong Hospital took over the festival in 1927 and has run it ever since.
During the 40s 50s, 60s and even into the 70s Gala Day was probably the biggest event on the Geelong Calendar, and crowds were enormous. After the parade Moorabool Street from Malop Street to the water transformed and jam packed with amusements, a side show alley and huge carnival rides, which ran into the late evening. In recent years, Gala Day had been scaled down to a more manageable size and to compete with the other events in the town.
Gala Day was last run in 2019, with smaller virtual events held during 2020 and 2021 thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic. While it was hoped that Gala Day would return post pandemic, escalating costs and diminishing sponsorships have seen Barwon Health officially cancel the event in 2023 and beyond. Hopefully one day, a rich sponsor can come forward and revive Gala Day to become a once again much loved Geelong tradition.
