On the final leg of her journey, Miriam hitches a ride to one of the most isolated parts of the country, the Gulf of Carpentaria.
Her travels let her see where the wealth of the Lucky Country comes from. Her destination is one of the largest zinc, lead and silver mines in the world – McArthur River Mine.
Miriam’s next stop is Borroloola, where she meets one of the region’s biggest landholders. Thanks to a massive stroke of luck, Frank Sadforth and his son, Clarry, are the owners of Seven Emu, a remote cattle station. These days Frank’s cynical about Australia being the Lucky Country. As he puts it, “I don’t think so – we’re selling it all to China now.”
Up North, Miriam is well outside her comfort zone, with the heat, flies and remoteness getting her down. But the beauty of the Territory more than makes up for it. Her experiences here make her realise “how small man is” and how much she has to learn.
Travelling over 4,500 kilometres, Miriam eventually exchanges the outback dust for suburban Brisbane and the comforts of a boutique hotel. Over dinner, she meets the hotel owners who happen to be one of the wealthiest couples in Australia. The Turner’s are self- made entrepreneurs whose fortune is derived from their travel businesses. But their passion is wildlife preservation and they invite Miriam to visit the family’s wildlife research centre, where they are trying to save one of the country’s most iconic animals – the koala.
Miriam’s final stop is Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast. A lot has changed in the forty years Miriam has been coming to Australia – but the golden beaches remain the same. At the local Surf Lifesaving club, she meets the Sutton family, who introduce Miriam to their beach way of life. The inclusive nature of the beach, and the embrace of the ocean for Australians of all ages, is for Miriam a true signifier of the Lucky Country.
After 8 weeks, and 10,000 kilometres, Miriam is finally back home in Robertson. Australia, she muses, has been a “Lucky Country” indeed for her, and as she reflects on all she has experienced, does she feel more Australian? Well, yes… Almost.
A Southern Pictures Production with principal production investment from Screen Australia in association with ABC. Financed with support from Screen NSW and Screen Territory. Series Producer Ross Wilson. Executive Producers Laurie Critchley and Aline Jacques. ABC Executive Producer Frances O’Riordan. Head of Entertainment and Factual Josie Mason-Campbell.
