1892: Jackie Howe sheared 321 sheep in 7 hours and 40 minutes at Alice Downs station near Blackpool, Queensland. It was the fastest time ever recorded by a shearer. He became famous for breaking the colony's daily sheep-shearing record. In October 2015, it was reported that Howe's record remained unbroken 123 years later.


1996: Tjandamurra O'Shane was just six years old when he was caught in a fire while playing at a school in Cairns, Queensland. The perpetrator doused O'Shane with fuel and set him on fire with a lighter. The attack and O'Shane's attempt to survive captured the attention of people across Australia, with millions of Australians following his plight through Australian media.


2009: A giant koala at DadsWells Bridge in Victoria had been renamed "Sam" in memory of bushfire victim Sam the koala. The giant koala has stood here since 1988 and is a famous local tourist attraction. The naming aimed to raise awareness of the life-threatening chlamydia disease while paying tribute to the hope Sam gave people during the horror of the Victorian bushfires.


2021: Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews had announced that 10,000 fully vaccinated spectators would be allowed to attend this year's Melbourne Cup on November 2. He described it as a "very, very detailed COVID-safe plan" and that attracting large crowds for the Melbourne Cup would "send a message" about Victoria's reopening after two tumultuous two years of long COVID-19 lockdowns.


2023: Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk had floated plans for a second desalination plant, possibly at Kawanna on the Sunshine Coast, to be implemented by 2035 as part of a long-term strategy to ensure water security in the region. The plan had raised concerns among experts and environmentalists, who said the state should first make full use of existing recycled water facilities.