Townsville’s local legends: From WWI boots to ballet shoes, Town Cobbler Gary Brodie’s done it all

Bullet holes, blood stains and a lot of mud. That’s what Townsville’s iconic local cobbler had to deal with while restoring century-old boots worn by soldiers in the trenches of Gallipoli.

Townsville's Town Cobbler Gary Brodie has been on Flinders St for almost 50 years. Picture: Natasha Emeck

Saving shoes may be a dying profession, but for Townsville’s town cobbler, there’s nothing else he’d rather do after almost half a century working on Flinders Street.

The Town’s Cobbler, Gary Brodie, has been a well-known face on Flinders Street since the 1970s, first setting up shop in the old Cat and Fiddle Arcade before relocating to where he is now opposite City Lane.

In that time, he’s worked on tens of thousands of shoes, ranging from cowboy boots to shoes for ballet or boxing.

@tsvbulletin Meet Townsville’s town cobbler Gary who’s been working on Flinders St for almost 50 years now. #locallegends#townsville#talesoftownsville#cobbler#shoes#nq#northqueensland#ww1history#ww1#galipoli#anzac#shoecheck♬ original sound - Townsville Bulletin

The experienced cobbler says his most memorable job was restoring shoes worn by actual Aussie soldiers in World War I for the movie Beneath Hill 60.

“Some of these boots were actually at Gallipoli; they’re over 100 years old,” he said.

“It was a bit eerie working here on the weekends, working on them by myself and thinking about where they’d been and what the blokes had been through.

“One of them had a bullet hole in the heel and a blood stain on it.

“That’s what made it eerie working on them. I’m thinking, how did he get this?”

Mr Brodie helped restore shoes worn by WW1 soldiers for the movie Beneath Hill 60. Picture: Natasha Emeck

Mr Brodie said Flinders St had changed “greatly” since the 1970s when he first set up shop.

“I think it was sad when they pulled the mall out. A lot of people left after that, and it’s never really recovered,” he said.

“It used to be bustling. You’d have people come into town because they’d like to walk in the mall. They would enjoy it, sitting under the shade of the trees and having lunch.”

Mr Brodie said his passion for his craft had stayed the same despite the passing decades.

“I like putting a smile on their faces when they get their shoes back,” he said.

“Sometimes they’re just shocked, you know, they think they’re better than new. Which is good for me.”

Gary is our local legend of the week. Know someone doing awesome things in our community? Send us an email with a few details about who you want to nominate to [e-mail]

Originally published as Townsville’s local legends: From WWI boots to ballet shoes, Town Cobbler Gary Brodie’s done it all