Illawarra residents enjoy a laidback, relaxed lifestyle, thanks to living in one of the most beautiful parts of the country. Here are some of the year’s most popular stories about life in the Illawarra.
13. A Kiama dog walker shares the region’s best spots for a stroll with your pup
by Zoe Cartwright
After somewhere spectacular to walk your best mate? Kiama dog walker Kerry Geen shares her top spots. Photo: Kerry Geen.
It’s not easy to find the perfect place to walk the dog – from suburbs with nary a public bin in sight to sketchy narrow paths next to busy roads, dog owners can howl with frustration. But never fear, Kerry Geen has some solutions.
12. Meet one of the team behind Shellharbour Airport’s longest running passenger airline
by Michele Tydd
Link Airways’ Network Strategy and Development Manager Jeff Boyd is confident about the airline’s future at Shellharbour Airport. Photo: Supplied.
Jeff Boyd started in aviation at 17 – now he’s one of the most respected figures in Australian aviation, helping to establish Link Airways which has been successfully running out of Shellharbour Airport for seven years.
11. 130 years strong: How ‘The Eisteddfod’ has nurtured Illawarra’s artistic spirit
by Dione David
This photo, published in the Daily Telegraph on 21 May 1964, shows Jill Duncan from Corrimal and Tony Purdon from Bathurst, who were competing in the City of Wollongong Eisteddfod. Photo: Supplied.
As a nine-year-old, Tony Purdon made headlines with his Wollongong Eisteddfod performance – now he’s running the show. As the Eisteddfod turns 130, Tony says it’s more than the ribbons and trophies that bind him – and many like him – to it.
10. Corrimal’s own Jake Bennett and his badass lady love ride onto Mad Max set
by Dione David
Jake Bennett on the set of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. Photo: Jake Bennett.
Stuntman Jake Bennett, a former Corrimal coal miner, reveals what it was like working on Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, and how growing up in the Illawarra influenced his career choices.
9. The local charity targeting skin cancer with a ‘Silver Bullet’
by Dione David
Skin Check Champions founder Scott Maggs. Photo: Region.
A shiny new airstream – fondly named the “Silver Bullet” – can be spotted about the Illawarra, and inside is salvation for thousands of Australians at risk of skin cancer. Scott Maggs founded Skin Check Champions in 2010 after his best mate lost his life to skin cancer at the tender age of 26.
8. From an elusive emu to tales of the past, photographer Brad Chilby brings landscapes, history to life
by Zoe Cartwright
Have you ever seen the elusive Gerringong emu? Wollongong photographer Brad Chilby has been lucky enough to snap it not once, but twice. Photo: Chilby Photography.
Brad Chilby is one of the best landscape photographers in the Illawarra, combining his love of the natural environment with a passion for local history on his social media pages.
7. Why entertainer Scott Radburn has made his iconic magic and acrobatic props disappear
by Kellie O’Brien
Entertainer Scott Radburn is watching his iconic props from his time with The Four Kinsmen disappear. Photo: Supplied.
Wollongong entertainer Scott Radburn is hanging up many of the acrobatic chairs and magic illusions that created countless memorable moments with his long-running group, The Four Kinsmen.
6. The 1980s called – they want the new Hyundai Santa Fe back
by James Coleman
‘Pebble Blue’ is a $695 paint option for the Hyundai Santa Fe. Photo: James Coleman.
Hyundai’s seven-seat SUV has undergone a radical redesign for 2024, making it possibly the best family car ever.
5. From real estate to red carpets: How Melissa Gigliotti’s passion for makeup led to a dream career
by Kellie O’Brien
Melissa Gigliotti with the late Olivia Newton-John. Photo: Supplied.
Calderwood woman Melissa Gigliotti traded a well-paid career in real estate to step into cosmetics, never anticipating that one day it would lead her to doing the makeup of Olivia Newton-John, working at The Logies and being flown to Spain and Portugal for weddings.
4. Former NRL star Beau Ryan drives down memory lane in hometown Albion Park on Top Gear Australia
by Kellie O’Brien
Top Gear Australia hosts Beau Ryan, Jonathan LaPaglia and Blair “Moog” Joscelyne. Photo: Supplied.
Former NRL star and TV personality Beau Ryan admits to getting rather nostalgic driving his childhood dream car through his hometown of Albion Park in Top Gear Australia‘s latest season. Ryan visits the Oak Flats skating rink where he had his first kiss, Albion Park pub where the family ate once a week and the footy oval where he honed his skills.
3. Bright young Wollongong designer selected to star on Australia’s ultimate fashion runway
by Jen White
Renee Henderson is preparing for her first Australian Fashion Week show. Photo: Jez Smith @jezsmithphotography.
Wollongong’s Renee Henderson only graduated as a fashion designer late last year, but her Indigenous-inspired collection was on show at the prestigious Australian Fashion Week.
2. Wollongong family restores run-down Surfside 22 motel, once a honeymoon hotspot
by Kellie O’Brien
Nichole Karanfilovski outside Surfside 22. Photo: Kellie O’Brien.
Once a hotspot for honeymooners, Surfside 22 motel fell into disrepair over the years, but has been given a new lease of life by Wollongong couple Michael and Nichole Karanfilovski, now drawing strong interest from visitors to the region.
1. Spot Illawarra landmarks and locals on your tele in BBC’s Return to Paradise
by Dione David
Sea Cliff Bridge is one of the more recognisable Illawarra landmarks in Return to Paradise. Photo: Eileen Mulligan.
Return to Paradise is a homegrown spinoff of the popular British TV’s Death in Paradise, combining the DNA of the original global smash hit murder mystery series with instantly recognisable Illawarra locations.
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