Once again the bi-annual pilgrimage out to the rolling pastures of Meredith has come around again, and Golden Plains Festival has delivered once more. Between two near-perfect days of music, community, and hours and hours of dancing in the Supernatural Amphitheatre, folks gathering for a big campout at Aunty’s place were genuinely treated to a festival for the history books.
Though there were some slight technical hiccups during General Levy and Sampa The Great‘s sets – the latter giving me enough time to run over to Sunset Strip and cheer the sun as it dipped below the horizon – it delivered oodles of goodness. From doof sticks made of toilet paper boxes and reminders to wash your hands (you detty pigs), the group costumes were, as always, a bloody highlight.
If there’s anything that the ‘Sup brings out in people, it’s the absolute commitment to a costume, especially big group ones.
Without further ado, here are the ones that stood out to us, as we travelled through the realms of partying in the supernatural.
First up, a wonderfully-fruity selection of humans that I found sitting up the hill. Carmen Miranda stans or a very specific call back to that terrifying Soup Opera show that used to be on the ABC? You decide.
A bonus; there was a human Scrabble situation going in here, with our two non-fruity friends down the bottom there, as well as some of the fruit bowl friends getting in on that too. Double costuming, now that’s a feat.
Next – like, literally next to them – was this very-well-done group of Team Zissou from The Life Aquatic. They told me that there were actually like 20 of them but all the others were AWOL. They still recreated the iconic and upsetting submarine scene that absolutely made me piss tears. You know the one.
Not long after, I came across a cult. I mean, if there’s any festival that’s going to involve an elaborate cult that dresses in all white, it’s either Golden Plains or Meredith, right?
They called themselves the ‘Sailors of the Floating Temple’, which apparently heralded a friend of theirs at the leader – entirely without his knowledge. When I spotted them here doing…this, two people were standing in the middle reading from the cult’s texts.
Yep, they were SO dedicated to the bit (which they were planning on using to trip out their friend later in the day) that they made up pamphlets for the cult.
This is just…incredible.
Not too sure if these folks were part of the aforementioned Sailors of the Floating Temple but there’s definitely some kind of we-started-a-commune vibe going on here.
In the middle of the night, in the middle of the crowd, I came across the group of people who were playing a live-action version of Cluedo. They’d printed out this big sheet with every character on it, the weapon, and where around the Golden Plains site the crime was committed. I didn’t trust Colonel Mustard with his little bubble pipe, but apparently he didn’t kill anyone in the Ecoplex Cinema with a revolver.
One of the more disturbing group costumes was this collection of Bootleg Homers, which were so horribly done I’m about 98% certain they were lifted straight from someone’s night terrors.
I stumbled upon a collective of Scots fighting for independence, or maybe just the warriors of Golden Plaids. Either way, that guy on the right was hell-bent on showing me what was under his kilt which is…a choice. Nice socks though.
Oh wait, no here is the Golden Plaid party. That’s more like it. Well plaid, indeed.
And then, there were these two. I’m not too sure if they’re a father-son combination here but everything about this in incredible. What seems entirely unassuming and business-as-usual from the front…
…from the back is a whole other story. The knickers! The garter belts! That guy’s face on the left that has no idea what is standing next to him!
INCREDIBLE.
To all of those who are thinking about doing their own group costume for Meredith this year, this is where the bar is set. Good luck, see you in the ‘sup.
