Australia Day

An extract from the book 40 Humourous British Traditions

The Northampton sheep thief, George Bellamy, was the first person to ever return from Australia after escaping from the penal colony in 1788. Despite his claims to have swum back, it’s thought that he stowed away on a Dutch East India slave ship from Indonesia to the Cape Province, from where he made his way back to England.

He brought back tales of strange animals such as the kangaroo and the wallaby that jumped around on their back legs. His impressions of these animals caused much mirth and led to many imitators, as did his description of the boomerang and the didgeridoo.