Moomba (also known as the Moomba Festival) is held annually in Melbourne, Australia. Run by the City of Melbourne, it is Australia's largest free community festival. The Melburnian tradition is celebrated over four days, incorporating the Labour Day long weekend, from Friday to the second Monday in March. Moomba is culturally important to Melbourne, having been celebrated since 1955, and regularly attracts up to a million people, with a record attendance of 3.8 million (2.3 million tourists) set in 2018.
In 2003, the event was renamed Melbourne Moomba Waterfest.
Traditional events include the Moomba parade, crowning of Moomba monarchs, fireworks displays, carnivals in the gardens along the river, river activities including watersports, water floats and the Birdman Rally, as well as live music and bands.
In 2021, the usual Moomba was cancelled by Melbourne City Council, for the first time ever, due to events and issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. However "Moomba 2.0" events were held on 5–8 March. In 2024, a forecast of extremely hot weather caused the Moomba Parade to be cancelled.
Origins In 1951, Australia celebrated fifty years of Federation with a parade and the staging of the theatre production An Aboriginal Moomba: Out of the Dark. In 1954, Queen Elizabeth II visited the city for the first time as reigning monarch, and the City Development Association and the Melbourne City Council proposed an autumn carnival to be called "Moomba".
A committee was formed in July 1954 to organise and fund the event, successfully allocating £10,000 to its inaugural running. Before the event's first year, controversy was created when Labor Councillor Frank Williams resigned from the committee, branding the planned carnival as a "Bourke street joke for the benefit of shopkeepers".pg4. The Argus Wednesday 1 December 1954 A promotional theme song "Come to Melbourne for the Moomba" was written by Jack O'Hagan.
Etymology The festival was originally named Moomba in the mistaken belief it was an indigenous word meaning 'a happy get-together.' Credit is usually given to Bill Onus, a unionist and member of the Australian Aborigines' League for proposing the term, which he used in a play, Aboriginal Moomba in 1951. In 1969 Luise Hercus glossed the word mum (rhyming with 'vroom') as meaning 'bottom, rump', and suggested mum-ba meant something like 'bottom and..', and had been introduced from Healesville usage as a joke. In 1981 Barry Blake analysed the word as combining as mum (anus) and –ba, a locative suffix meaning 'at, in, on'. This would give the sense of 'up your bum/arse'.
Onus himself, according to his daughter-in-law, who said she had heard the story from Onus's wife Mary, had picked up the word from a word list of indigenous terms. Some say he did it to get back at the city council for having deliberately upstaged the traditional Labour Day march with a popular carnival. Lin Onus, his son, stated that indeed his father had intended to play a prank in passing on the word with this sense.
Event history
The first Moomba was a 15-day festival officially opened on 12 March 1955 by the State Governor, Sir Dallas Brooks. The inaugural programme included a fireworks display, parade, vintage car display, Henley rowing regatta, river floats including a "Lord Mayor's houseboat", cycling race, tennis at Kooyong, concerts including performances by the Victorian Symphony Orchestra and Royal Philharmonic choir, crowning of the Queen of Moomba and riverside carnival. 25,000 turned out to watch the inaugural Moomba parade down Swanston Street. The first Moomba was heavily criticised by Melbourne's conservative establishment, including the Anglican Church, which at the time claimed it was hedonistic and embodying social decay. Council responded to the criticism citing that Moomba was intended to be a festival for families and as such is reinforcing family values in society.
One of the popular events associated with Moomba was the Herald Sun Outdoor Art Show in the Treasury Gardens.
After the 2016 Moomba festival fireworks there was a large-scale brawl in and around Federation Square in Melbourne's Central Business District, in which young people and the police fought each other. The violence was blamed in the press on the supposed Apex, and became a trigger for the African gangs moral panic in the lead up to the Victorian state election of 2018.
2021 – Moomba 2.0 In 2021, the usual Moomba events were cancelled by Melbourne City Council, for the first time ever, due to COVID-19 restrictions and Victoria's third lockdown in February. The Moomba Parade and the Birdman Rally were already cancelled.
Instead of the normal festival attractions, Lord Mayor Sally Capp said Moomba 2.0 will be: "... a series of fun, family friendly events and attractions across the city that will help bring the buzz back to Melbourne." There was ticketing and COVID-safe marshals at all sites. Moomba 2.0 was a COVID-safe event.
Events
Parade and floats A parade (or "procession") and floats through the streets of Melbourne have been a key part of the Moomba festival since its beginning. Each year it attracts over 100,000 people to Melbourne's city centre as well as being shown on free-to-air television in Melbourne.
The first Moomba procession was held in 1955. It was first televised in 1957, the year after the Melbourne 1956 Olympics.
The floats have an annual theme, usually an elaboration on "Let's get together and have fun", the avowed mission and vision statement of Moomba and are usually from sister cities (of which Melbourne has six), schools and community groups. They also promote some aspect of the arts, like singing, dancing, or design. Swanston Street is the traditional home of the floats and spine of the city and horse- or tractor-drawn floats use the tram tracks. Decorated trams are sometimes also featured.
In 2001, the parade came under media controversy when a French Troupe and Melbourne's Snuff Puppets had floats with naked people covered in body paint.
In 2024, the parade, in its 70th year, was cancelled due to a heatwave with forecast temperatures from the high 30s to low 40s°C.
Moomba monarchy The Moomba monarchy has been one of the most celebrated and controversial components of the festival over the years.Craig Bellamy, Gordon Chisholm, Hilary Eriksen (17 February 2006) Moomba: A festival for the people.: http://www.craigbellamy.net/images/moomba.pdf PDF pp 17-22
Queens of Moomba (1955–1987)
The first Moomba monarchs were the Queens of Moomba, awarded from the inaugural festival in 1955. The role was decided by a beauty pageant competition. It was awarded for the last time in 1987, as a new gender-neutral monarch position was established and the beauty pageant was abolished.
Notably, 1966 Moomba Queen Erica McMillan was killed in a car accident seven weeks after the festival, in the car which she had received as a prize for being voted Queen.
Year Queen 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Kings of Moomba (1967–1987)
Kings of Moomba were named beginning in 1967. The role was awarded to male celebrities. It too was abolished following the 1987 festival as the gender-neutral monarch was introduced.
Occasionally, a "court jester" was also named to accompany the king.
+Key Court jester
Year King Nationality Notability 1967 Actor 1968 Actor 1969 Opera singer 1970 Boxer 1971 Clown 1972 Singer Australian rules footballer 1973 Aboriginal Australian rules footballer and pastor 1974 Ballet dancer 1975 Entertainer 1976 Entertainer 1977 Disney character Entertainer 1978 Entertainer 1979 Entertainer 1980 Actor 1981 Australian rules footballer 1982 Actor 1983 Entertainer 1984 Australian rules footballer 1985 Music industry figure 1986 Racing driver 1987 Tennis player
Moomba Monarchs (1988–1998, 2010–present)
In 1988, a gender-neutral Moomba Monarch position was established. Winners are typically celebrities and may be any gender. The first was television presenter Jo Pearson. In 1999, the tradition ended when clowns Zig and Zag were appointed. After it was revealed that, years before, Zig (Jack Perry) had pleaded guilty to child molestation, they were dethroned. In 2010, the tradition was restored, with Molly Meldrum and Kate Ceberano being named King and Queen of Moomba.
On some occasions, non-celebrities have been named for various reasons.
+Key Non-celebrity
Year Monarch/s Nationality Notability 1988 Television presenter 1989 Character portrayed by Australian actor Mark Mitchell 1990 Taxi driver 1991 Australian rules footballer 1992 Politician 1993 Oarsome Foursome Australian representative men's rowing coxless four crew, consisting of Andrew Cooper, Nick Green, Mike McKay and James Tomkins 1994 Basketballer 1995 Sprinter 1996 Singer and actor 1997 Lano and Woodley Comedy duo, consisting of Colin Lane ("Lano") and Frank Woodley 1998 Entertainer 1999–2009 colspan=3 2010 Singer Music industry figure 2011 Australian rules football coach Model and television presenter 2012 Entertainer Soccer player 2013 Department of Sustainability and Environment community engagement facilitator Victoria Police family violence advisor Ambulance Victoria paramedic and St John Ambulance Australia chief commissioner Victoria State Emergency Service unit controller Country Fire Authority volunteer firefighter Metropolitan Fire Brigade firefighter Salvation Army commanding officer 2014 Actor Entertainer 2015 Actor Cricketer 2016 Jockey Michelle Payne's brother and strapper 2017 Chef Chef 2018 Children's entertainer Television personality 2019 Meteorologist and weather presenter Soccer player 2020 Comedian Entertainer 2021 Infectious diseases physician Cleaner Supermarket worker 2022 Radio presenter Television presenter 2023 Entertainer Entertainer 2024 Children's entertainer Comedian 2025 Sooshi Mango Comedy troupe consisting of characters Johnny, Sam and Vince, played by Joe Salanitri, Andrew Manfre and Carlo Salanitri respectively2026Caterina MeteChildren's entertainerSammy JComedian
Queens of the Pacific (1967–1977) The Queen of the Pacific was a title contested by representatives from various countries and administrations from the Pacific and South-East Asian regions. It was decided by a beauty contest. The title was awarded from 1967 to 1977.
Year Monarch RepresentingNotes 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 Runner Up of Ratu Indonesia (Queen of Indonesia) 1973 1974 1975 Winner of Puteri Indonesia (Miss Indonesia) 1975 1976 1977
Young Ambassadors (2003–200?) The title of "Young Ambassador" was awarded during part of the period during which no monarchs were named (1999 to 2009). It was first awarded in 2003.Mary Bolling & Matthew Schulz, (12 March 2007) Moomba thrills young and old: http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,21366832-421,00.html article from Herald Sun
Year Ambassador Notability 2003 Ultramarathoner supporting Beyond Blue (mental health) 2004 Australian Deaflympian basketballer 2005 Youth advocate 2006 Entertainer 2007 Boxing Day tsunami survivor and youth leader
From approximately 1981 to 1988 there were also instances where Moomba included a Prince and Princess of Moomba designation consisting of two children chosen through a competition held by local radio station 3KZ.
Fireworks Fireworks are a big part of the Moomba festival and large displays occur on every night of the festival. The fireworks are above the Yarra river.
Carnival A traditional carnival including a ferris wheel are held in the Alexandra Gardens along the river bank. In recent years, the carnival has extended to Birrarung Marr across the river. It is popular with children, and corn dogs and doughnut stands line the paths.
River activities