It must be said from the top that we did not expect to encounter a UFO on our trip to the MICF (Melbourne International Comedy Festival). But isn’t that just Melbourne?

We were very excited to collect Finn at Melbourne Airport for the start of our semi-yearly MICF visit. Our first night was dinner at Ca de Vin, a lovely Mediterranean restaurant in Postal Lane. The restaurant is actually in the lane so you can brush past the old external GPO building signage as you move to your seat. Very cool.

After dinner, we saw Bronwyn Kuss at the Town Hall Regent Room (audience of around 40 people). She’s a very funny, very dry, kind-of newish Australian comedian from Ipswich, Queensland. That might explain a few things. Anyway, I think she was fantastic and I hope she goes places. Here is a clip from Bronwyn’s 2023 MICF opener:

Night 2 of the MICF, we saw UK comedian Fern Brady at the Rydges Ballroom (audience size around 80-100). Fern might be best known for her season on Taskmaster UK. She is a Scottish-Irish autistic funny person who takes the audience on a big old ride. Another very funny night for us. If you’re a Fern fan and like baking, look out for her in the next season of The Great British Bake-off in which she appears as the token autisic person and, as a result, filming didn’t always go according to the producers’ plans.

Both comedians got a tick from Finn, especially Fern Brady.

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Now, onto the best part of our Melbourne trip!

While in Melbourne, Finn was keen for a visit to Westall, an ordinary suburb of Melbourne with an extraordinary story. If, like me, you have never heard of the Westall UFO sightings of 1966, it’s Australia’s most famous UFO sighting with around 100 witnesses, including high school students, teachers and local residents. Read more on the State Library Victoria blog or the Wikipedia entry.

Lucky for us, we had an expert guide on hand – Finn has been interested inn the case for years and gave us heaps of background info. If you’re not lucky enough to have a personal guide, there is an information board at the Grange, where the object had hovered before leaving the scene.

The Grange is now a playground with a very cool UFO-themed centrepiece.

In 1966, the area between the first sightings at Westall High School and the Grange, where the UFO eventually descended, was mostly open fields. Today, it is covered with 1970s era housing estates. We drove between the school and the Grange playground, to trace where and how the students followed the UFO, running down through the fields as it made its descent. Some of the students reported seeing flattened or burned grass where the UFO had hovered at the Grange.

It’s a fascinating piece of Victorian history, with many witnesses still alive and still maintaining their version of the events of 6 April 1966. (Coincidentally, we visited the site on 5 April, just one day off the 58th anniversary of this extraordinary event.)

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Other marvellous Melbourne moments included:

• retail therapy on Time Out’s ‘coolest street in the world’ (me) Fitzroy vintage shops (Finn) and bookshops (Rob)
• a trip to the NGV, which was hosting the Triennial with contemporary works displayed among contrasting paintings from the regular collection
• a catch-up with lovely friends (but, sadly, no visit with Miss Jane who was out with Covid – next time, Jane!)
• a visit to Hosier Lane for the graffiti art
• a naughty rat about to thump an unsuspecting cat.