Albert St used to pass between City Hall and the statue until 1969, when the Square was redeveloped and Albert St was closed off at Adelaide St. The statue of the King was shifted closer to City Hall, and it was turned around as a result of the Queen, when she saw the statue on a visit here, asking "Why is Grandpapa retreating?" The following photograph, from 1972, shows the repositioned statue, with King George V now majestically leading his subjects into battle.
Later, some additional statues were added. Bronze statues that had been part of Expo were added in and around the rectangular fountain that was a feature of the Square (see below) and Speakers' Corner was established with bronze portrayals of Steele Rudd, Emma Miller and Sir Charles Lilley (bottom photograph).
(Photo: Courtesy Brisbane City Council; # BCC-T120-1054)
(Photo: © 2009 the foto fanatic)As a result of the construction of the Northern Busway, King George Square has had to be redeveloped again. Gone is the grass and gone are the water features. Instead we have lots of bland granite paving and a few token trees.
(Photo: © 2010 the foto fanatic)Summer days will be as hot as Hades here - a temperature of 50 degrees Celcius was recently recorded by a television reporter trying to determine how citizen-friendly the Square will be. Perhaps that is a deliberate design flaw to discourage people from gathering here for demonstrations, as happened frequently in the sixties and seventies - or am I just a conspiracist? ;-) Check this article in Brisbane Times for a recent photo and more news on the heat. Edit 19/01/2010: Brisbane has just experienced a scorcher, and the temp in King George Square was measured at 56.3 Celcius!
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tff
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