SYNOPSIS
What happens when two of Australia’s best-known women, Olympic champion Catherine Freeman and actor Deborah Mailman, go bush across the top end of Australia together? One hell of a lot more than a straightforward road trip. Going Bush takes you beyond the cliché of the outback and into the hearts, minds and country of indigenous Australians. This four-part series has ‘Deb’ and ‘Cath’ as road buddies, exploring terrain that is as unfamiliar to them as it is to the average armchair traveller. From Cape York to Coober Pedy, from Byron Bay to Broome, this is adventure travel at its best.
GOING BUSH PREMIERED ON SBS IN 2006
In Depth.
In chronicling the experiences of these two self-confessed city girls, Going Bush is a rollicking ride that captures the quintessential tourist experience of outback indigenous Australia.
It is a journey of physical, cultural and personal exploration and not just for Deborah and Catherine. Going Bush is about discovering our own backyard and at the same time, learning what makes us who we are as Australians. “Many Australians have expressed a desire to experience Aboriginal culture in some form or other, but hardly any of us ever get beyond looking at Aboriginal art in a gallery because it always falls into the too-hard basket,” says Lonely Planet Television’s Executive Producer Laurence Billiet. “But with Aboriginal tourism ventures now open and ready for business, it’s becoming something everyone can do. The idea behind Going Bush was to show how accessible, welcoming and mind-blowing it can be”.
The four episodes show Deborah and Catherine’s experience for what it is; fun, spontaneous and captivating. Going Bush punctures the myth that outback indigenous Australia is inaccessible to mainstream Australians. It shows that successful small-scale Aboriginal tourism ventures are emerging and that Aboriginal people are as keen to learn about the lives of their visitors as they are to share their traditional way of life.
One of the main aims of the show is to emphasis the diversity of Aboriginal Australians – from rodeo riding teenage girls to octogenarian artists in Italian suits. It looks behind the political smokescreen and shows Aboriginal people for who they are, as individuals.
“It was a real awakening for both of us to realise how progressive Aboriginal culture actually is,” Deborah says. “Often city people like us get hung up on Aboriginal culture being so old. But everywhere we went it was dynamic and evolving. The classic was seeing kids learning about traditional culture at the same time as listening to 50 Cent.”
Above all, the series reveals the enriching effect ‘going bush’ can have on us all. “It was one of the few times I’ve slowed down in my life,” Catherine says. “Normally there’s too much to do, somewhere to go, someone to ring or email. It was almost unnerving to stop and just enjoy doing nothing at first. Then I discovered the joy of bush baths. Soaking out there under the stars is pure heaven. I think every Australian should go bush at least once in their lives and explore their own backyard – thankfully in Australia, it’s not your average backyard either!”
