Royal Easter Show Flashback: 1998 (First Show at Sydney Olympic Park) - Part I

Source: Royal Agricultural Society of NSW. 1998. "Say Hello to the Show at Homebush Bay" (Advertisement). The Sun Herald, April 5: 14. 

Thursday marks the start of the annual Royal Easter Show at Sydney Olympic Park, and it is also 25 years since the Show moved from Moore Park to Sydney Olympic Park.

Like last year, I will split this into three entries. This week focuses on the key facts and show bags, while for the following fortnight, I will post a selection of feature articles each week. 

Date:         3 April to 18 April 1998

As it was the first Easter Show at Sydney Olympic Park, it ran for 16 days like the previous year, to the farewell Moore Park.

Admission

Adults: - $15.00
Pensioners & Tertiary Students - $11.00    

Children: - $7.50

$6 after 6pm tickets were also on offer. 
 
Showlink tickets were also available and could be prepurchased at train stations for use on any one day of the show, including show buses. 

In 2023, ticket options are broader, but the general prices are listed below:

Adults - $ 47.00

Concession - $30.50

Child - $29.50

A person with a Disability - $29.50

Early bird tickets are available with discounts of up to 20% available, with further discounts if entering after 4pm.

Tickets in 2023 include free return travel on public transport on the day of the visit, and date of the visit must be pre-booked. 

Transport

 

Source: Olympic Roads and Transport Authority. 1998. "Where to hop on a train or hop on a bus" (Advertisement). The Daily Telegraph, April 3: 34. 

The Olympic Roads Transport Authority (ORTA) oversaw transport arrangements. The Easter Show was the first test event for Sydney's Olympic Transport network. Sydneysiders were introduced to a network of designated bus routes linking Sydney suburbs with Sydney Olympic Park and direct rail services to Sydney Olympic Park. Selected services on the Western, Southern, and North Shore lines were re-routed to service Sydney Olympic Park. Those on other lines or not directly served by Olympic Park trains could join direct services at Central, Redfern, Strathfield, Lidcombe, Granville, Clyde, Parramatta, Westmead and Blacktown. 

To deter showgoers from driving, a flat $25 fee per vehicle was introduced for parking at designated carparks with the Sydney Olympic Park Precinct, with parking restricted to two hours in streets in nearby suburbs. 

Source: Olympic Roads and Transit Authority. 1998. "Hop on a train or hop on a bus and get to the show without any fuss" (Advertisement). The Sunday Telegraph, March 22: 34. 

Showbags
In 1998, showbags ranged from $2 to $12. This year it will range from $3 through to $35. 

The scanned content in this section is from the official preview magazine that was published in The Sun Herald on 29 March 1998.

Bensons

Cadbury showbags (a popular favourite each year) were $5 and included the choice of a novelty. In 2023, it's $6 but no choice of novelty. Other Cadbury bags also came with a novelty. A quarter of a century later, Cadbury bags have evolved around budgets and options, e.g. smaller bags vs. big bags.

Mega Showbags

I will confirm that the Mega bags are still sold, but I cannot identify the distributor. The 2023 Easter Show guide lists 24 of them on offer. Unfortunately, Mega Sumo will not be on offer this year.

 

The Showbag Factory

In 2023, they are confined to regional or smaller shows. The unanswered question is why they are no longer present at the Easter Show? For fans of cheap lollies, these were your bags loaded with them and the obligatory novelty.

Nestle World of Showbags

 

Triple M Showbag

A consistent best seller. 

 

Coca Cola

They offered a satchel bag and I remember regretting the fact that I didn't get one because those bags were in trend at the time. Sadly, no bag on offer in 2023.

   

Candy World

Next week, I will do my second entry focusing on the show itself and its first week.