The story of the road

Against insurmountable odds, how one man’s vision to build the longest war memorial in the world on the shores of Australia, became a reality.

From a wild idea to a concrete reality; the “ANZAC’s Highway” met with much opposition when the idea was first floated, but this year marks one hundred years since construction began on Australia’s iconic Great Ocean Road. The project of the road was designed to provide employment for returned soldiers of World War One and to commemorate the lost diggers, making it the longest war memorial in the world.  Built over twenty years under perilous conditions, it was backbreaking work that took both physical and mental strength. Labourers endured a life of hardship living amongst one another in camps along the Western coast of Victoria.

Winding its way along 243 kilometers of one the most beautiful stretches of coastline in the world, the Great Ocean Road connects towns like Apollo Bay and Lorne, that were once only accessible by boat or through treacherous terrain. The road transformed the Victorian region into one of the most popular tourist locations in Australia.  Attracting over 22 million travellers per year, visiting landmarks like the 12 Apostles and Bells Beach, festivals, restaurants and international sporting competitions, none of which would have been possible without this iconic stretch of bitumen.

The road holds many stories. Some that have never been told.

Clothesline Content have produced the thirty minute documentary, ‘The Story of the Road.’ It will take you on a journey of the construction of the Great Ocean Road, removing the layers of myth surrounding the lives of the Indigenous Australians, women and ex-soldiers who built it.

‘The Story of the Road’ screens on SBS 4pm, Friday 24th of April.