World Expo 1988Print Page

The plaque commemorates the 25th anniversary of World Expo '88 and pays tribute to Sir Llewellyn Edwards, who was the Chairman of World Expo ‘88, and to the work of the Expo ‘88 Foundation Committee in planning what was a turning point in Brisbane’s history. The plaque was erected by the Queensland Government and the Brisbane City Council.

World Expo 88, also known as Expo '88, was a World's Fair held in Brisbane, during a six-month period between Saturday, 30 April 1988 and Sunday, 30 October 1988. The theme of the Expo was "Leisure in the Age of Technology", and the mascot for the Expo was an Australian platypus named Expo Oz.

The A$625 million fair was the largest event of the 1988 Bicentennial celebrations of the European settlement of Australia. Expo 88 attracted more than 15,760,000 visitors who bought tickets worth A$175 million. The event achieved both its economic aims and very good attendances, was successfully used to promote Queensland as a tourist destination and it spurred a major re-development at the South Brisbane site.

The Commissioner General for World Expo 88 was Sir Edward Williams (who was also the Chairman for the also very successful XIIth Commonwealth Games). The Chairman and Chief Executive former State Government Minister, Sir Llewellyn Edwards was appointed in February 1984. The General Manager was Bob Miniken and the Entertainment Director was Ric Birch. Landscaping at the site was done by Brisbane landscape architect Lawrie Smith. The landscaping was based on nine precincts and used more than 150,000 temperate and tropical plants.

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