History Week: Swimwear over the centuries

Image: Olga Johnson (nee Larkin) with friends at Collaroy Beach, 1952

From leaders in budgie smugglers to Gold Coast meter maids, Australian identity is tied up with what we wear in and around water.

The History Week 2025 theme is 'Water Stories'. Join the History Council of NSW for a presentation delving into stories of how Australian attitudes towards modesty and our bodies have changed over time and how this has shaped swimwear over the centuries. 

Presented by the History Council of NSW.

Tuesday 9 September, 1 - 2pm at Manly Library

Free, booking essential.

This presentation is aimed at ages 18 years and over.

Enquiries: 8495 5028 or libraryprograms@northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au

Fiona Reilly is a designer, producer, and historian who works across the theatre, film, television, events and museums sectors. As a life-long researcher she brings the past alive – whether in lectures, in the documentary and film worlds or by staging events that enliven locations and the past.

History Week is the annual, state-wide celebration of History organised by the History Council of New South Wales. History Week is a fantastic opportunity to engage and educate the community about the vitality, diversity and meaning of History and its practice. The theme for 2025 is Water Stories.