Loading
Just sayin’…

February 4th, 2025Just sayin’…

Like many, our first Radio Springs experience was during their first week.  Ken and Jackie had opened during Easter and it was a disaster.

By Donna Kelly  

Like many, our first Radio Springs experience was during their first week.  Ken and Jackie had opened during Easter and it was a disaster.  

Service was crap, food was late, no one seemed to know what was happening…  But still, it felt like our kind of place.  

So we gave it another try. And then another try. And then finally it was our place.  

We were Radio Springers.  What caught our eye was the fun, the eclectic experience, the bar where anything could, and would, happen.  

Ken was the maestro, Jackie was the perfect host, people like Simon, Julian and then Graeme, were the perfect bar people. Great with bar banter and great with whatever drop you preferred.  

The kitchen was always pumping. Chips from local spuds, my favourite of all time, the scallop salad reigned supreme, and Kyle found his best scotch fillet with multiple gravy and jus combinations. And plenty more.  

The late, great, David Wellings called it the Centre of the Universe, and it was.  We filmed a fun little piece, I don’t know why now, with some Daylesford locals  chanting: “Time travel, when do we want it? It doesn’t matter.” I kid you not.  

Strange things happen at that pub. Magic perhaps.  

Thanks to Radio Springs you are still reading The Local. It was early days and the cost of our print bill was killing us.  

We sat at the bar and wondered how we would continue. Then I looked down the  bar and slowly said: “You’re not Tony, are you?” And the guy said: “Donna?”  And we realised we had worked together on the Frankston Standard, before Leader days, in the 1980s.

And we told Tony about our printer issues and he told us about an affordable printer and we were away again. The magic of Radio Springs.  

Another time we were sitting there and Kyle said to some bloke: “You’re not Grubby (from radio) are you? and he said:”That’s my brother.” And it turned out to  be my late uncle’s best friend whose daughter had just bought in Glenlyon. Talk about the six degrees of seperation.  And so much more.  

Kyle spent many days over many months working with the late Don Breen,  another great bloke. They worked on the generator and Don shared plenty of  knowledge with Kyle. Slowly changing him from his usual “rip, shit, bust” to a more  methodical way of working.  

He also taught Kyle to worry less. Kyle called Don his “Daylesford Dad”. Sweet.  

With The Local we have covered so many events from car club gatherings to the longest lashes, from the opening of the Henri Langlois Screening Room to Toga parties. Always wild and wacky.  

Of course, not everyone got Radio. You could sit at the bar and watch people come in and they were either in the “I love this” camp or the “how odd” camp.

The lovers lingered and came back again and again, the odd ones drank up their wine or  beer as quickly as possible and drove off in search of a pub with televisions, perhaps  pokies, and maybe not someone behind the bar, looking a little like Tim Finn,  wearing a suit with a vest and tie.  

But despite all the big memories I think most of all I will miss just heading over on a Thursday or a Sunday arvo, pulling up a chair or a barstool and just shooting the breeze with whoever is behind the bar, whichever local has turned up, or one of  the “lovers” who has pulled in on a whim and randomly found the Centre of the Universe. And get it.  

Radio Springs is just one of those magical pubs where things happen. And you never know if you will end up friends with the republicans but it has happened. And that is just lovely. Ken and Jackie are now our friends, and we feel very lucky to have them in our lives. Even though they went and closed our favourite pub! Just sayin’..  

More Articles

Back to top