The exterior walls of the Sydney Opera House were inspired by the sails of the pleasure craft on the nearby harbour.

Australian entertainer Rolf Harris sings a self-penned tribute to the SOH while he does a painting of it. We see him in make up, preparing for the first performance in the concert hall.

The 'Popularity Cup’ air race is contested between planes from all around the world, including the crowd favourite from Australia – Bertie the Jet. Broadcaster Ken Howard calls the race from his elevated podium. As the …

A title card announces the arrival of Amy Johnson in Brisbane after her ‘wonderful flight from England’. As crowds wait for her arrival, and crowds are shown arriving in cars, there is a shot of …

This black-and-white silent story from an Australasian Gazette newsreel shows opera soprano Dame Nellie Melba accompanied by John Lemmone, Lady Pamela Vestey as a child and others, walking along the deck of the passenger liner …

Once the sedan body has been completed, the final assembly takes place. Front and rear axels are fitted. New parts are constantly added as the car moves along the assembly line – the six cylinder motor …

This animated colour cinema advertisement for Bushells tea starts with a map of the world and a voice-over that invites the viewer to 'the world of the future’. International travel is shown using fast planes …

Scenic shots of Uluru as the voice-over speaks of the 'geological timescale of the continent and its growth and ageing’. Then, we see Uluru weather a storm. As rains cascade down over the rock, the …

Dame Nellie Melba walks along the veranda of the house, puts up an umbrella and walks into the garden. She then dances and sings beside a cockatoo.

Leslie Francis Farey films his first walk across the Sydney Harbour Bridge in 1932 and the panoramic view he enjoyed of Sydney Harbour. Farey has captured other curious pedestrians inspecting the newly-built bridge, the tramlines …

This advertisement for the 1969 Holden HT Kingswood sedan features voice-over narration and an accompanying jingle about the 'new generation Holden’. It begins and ends with typical scenes of friends at the beach. The Kingswood …

A young family climb into their Holden and drive through the suburbs as the voice-over narration describes the car’s suitability for a family. A close-up of the internal steering mechanism demonstrates the re-circulating ball …

The ad features a montage of Australian outdoor scenes including the beach, sporting events (yachting, golf, cricket and football), the Australian flag and native fauna. These are intercut with 1970s Holden models. The advertisement employs …

A man walks out of a house and gets into his 1966 Holden HR sedan. We see a pack of galloping horses as the narrator describes the 'thundering power’ of the HR’s 145 horsepower …

This is a vox pop style interview with Hawthorn winger John Fisher about his Holden. 'Fish’ is interviewed by TV sports commentator Tony Charlton in a parking lot outside an AFL venue …

This advertisement for the 1968 Holden HK Premier, narrated in voice-over by John Laws, features young people and city life over the course of a day and evening. Beginning with shots of city buildings and …

This advertisement for the Holden Monaro HK begins on the racetrack amongst sleek sports cars, champion drivers (including Norm Beechey) and adoring female fans. A sequence of still images of foreign sports cars and sophisticated …

A woman lies on a beach, dreamily relaxing under her hat. A Holden HR sedan is parked on the sand nearby. The woman runs to the car, which is filmed from different angles to show …

A family of six walk out of their house to the car. One of the sons helps his father pack the luggage into the boot as a voice-over narrator describes the spacious interior of the …

This clip shows the whole advertisement minus the opening and closing titles. A curtain parts to reveal the new model Holden FE on display on a turntable in a car showroom. As the car spins …

Donald Bradman’s bats are a reminder of how this cricket legend played himself into the record books, earning the status of Australian icon.

A small lifeboat, retrieved from the shores of Gallipoli, is a direct link to the first Anzacs and the day that helped forge Australia’s identity.

In the 1930s, a New Zealand-born horse called Phar Lap won the hearts of Australians and became one of our most loved and enduring icons.

Norman Lindsay’s The Magic Pudding is one of our best-loved children’s books and the central character one of our great Australian antiheroes.

Dame Nellie Melba sings the national anthem, God Save the King, on the steps of Parliament House (now Old Parliament House), in Canberra at the official opening in 1927. The camera pans across the official …

Just after the First World War, Charles Kingsford Smith (Ron Randell) secures the backing of the Blackburn Aviation Co for his entry to the inaugural England to Australia Air Race, but he is dismayed when …

Kingsford Smith and co-pilot Charles Ulm (John Tate) are nearing the Australian coastline, after a history-making flight across the Pacific from San Francisco. A violent storm has engulfed their plane, the converted Fokker now known …

After mechanical failure stops them from taking part in the Centenary Air Race from Australia to Britain, Kingsford Smith (Ron Randell) and PG Taylor (playing himself) decide to attempt the Pacific crossing to the US …

While reporter Mark Bowling sits back in air-conditioned comfort, the story cuts to archival footage to remind us of the history of transportation in the outback, from the Afghan camel trains to the earliest train …

This fragment from The Story of the Kelly Gang shows Constable Fitzpatrick visiting the homestead of Kate Kelly. Fitzpatrick attempts to kiss Kate Kelly and in the scuffle Ned Kelly shoots Fitzpatrick in the wrist …

This clip shows the troopers outside the Glenrowan hotel. Joe Byrne is shot. Steve and Dan shoot each other rather than be caught. The police set fire to the hotel and Father Gibney runs into …

This clip shows a re-enactment of the bushranger Ned Kelly being shot and captured by police. It has severe nitrate damage.

(Elizabeth Taggart-Speers)

Australian playwright David Williamson recalls meeting his wife, Kristin, at La Mama Theatre Company where they were both performing. Kristin also recalls the tall awkward young David. Williamson talks about Australian plays being popular with …

A child sits on the grass next to a miniature cricket kit with stumps, bat and ball, as the narrator explains that a love of cricket is inherent to 'every Australian’. Children play the game …