Born in 1988

If you were born in 1988, Australia spent the whole year celebrating its 200th birthday. The Bicentennial was everywhere — the tall ships in Sydney Harbour on January 26th, the enormous parade, Bob Hawke with his enormous grin, the whole country in a slightly forced festive mood. Aboriginal Australians organised their own march — "We have survived" — and the complexity of what was being celebrated was visible to anyone paying attention.

The World Expo in Brisbane was a massive success, drawing millions of visitors, putting Queensland on the cultural map in a new way. The new Parliament House opened in Canberra in May, extraordinary architecture, controversial budget. The economy was still humming, though Paul Keating, the Treasurer, was beginning to talk about structural reform with the urgency of a man who could see something the others couldn't.

INXS were at their global peak. Kylie Minogue released "I Should Be So Lucky." *The Man from Snowy River* sequel was in cinemas.

The MCG Grand Final drew 94,000 people. The backyard barbie was on for the Bicentennial, the lamb was on the grill, and Australians were deciding, with varying degrees of honesty, what two hundred years actually meant.