Meet Gold Coast’s iconic local legends the Nerang Gatekeeper, Supercheap Auto worker, 10 Cent Tom and more
The Glitter Strip is known for its quirky and loveable identities who don’t always make headlines, but make an impact in their communities. HAVE YOUR SAY >>
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The Glitter Strip is known for its quirky and loveable identities who don’t always make headlines or make headlines for the right reason - but make an impact in their communities.
There’s so many that after revealing cult icons of the Gold Coast part one and two, we were flooded with requests to add some other notable and zany local characters to the list.
Without further ado, we introduce 10 more iconic figures:
Supercheap Auto worker
A Gold Coast Supercheap Auto worker stood down after he was seen confronting an alleged shoplifter with a pram has been described as a “hero”.
In the bizarre viral video, a woman can be seen clutching a pram covered with a blanket while screaming “don’t take my baby” outside Supercheap Auto at Ashmore.
When staffer Darren Woolfe tried to take control of the pram, the woman could be heard yelling: “Let my baby go”.
Police are now looking to speak with the woman.
Mr Woolfe’s actions were backed by Bulletin readers, who leapt to his defence on social media.
“This employee is a hero in my eyes,” one Facebook user wrote.
“That man should be rewarded,” another said.
Mr Woolfe has since accepted a job at Autobarn Burleigh Heads.
Gavan McGuane
A footy hero in the late 70s and 80s, Gavan McGuane hoisted the QAFL premiership cup as captain of Southport Sharks in 1983.
The ruck-rover captained the Sharks to the 1985 grand final before he left the club to be the captain-coach of Coolangatta in 1986.
He returned to the Sharks as a member of the 1987 premiership side and coached the club to back-to-back flags in 1989-90.
Sadly, McGuane’s life changed forever during a workplace incident in 1994 when he was just 36.
He lost all vision in his left eye and 80 per cent of vision in the other after he tripped and fell onto a beer keg, resulting in an alkaline substance mixed with gas spraying into his face.
But McGuane is facing another devastating hurdle in his 28-year health battle, with his right eye “slowly deteriorating”.
Family and friends have started an online fundraiser to pay for expensive surgery in an effort to save his vision.
Nerang Gatekeeper
This local legend is known for sitting at the intersection of Hinkler Drive and Alexander Drive at the entry to Highland Park and has been doing it for well over a decade.
The residents love him so much that they have dubbed him the ‘Gatekeeper’ and humorously credit him for keeping their suburb safe.
For a brief, shining moment in time, he even had his own shout out on Nerang’s Wikipedia page.
“Nerang … is kept safe rain, hail or shine by the Nerang Gatekeeper.”
The icon has a Facebook fan page which is going strong with more than 2000 followers.
According to posts, the Gatekeeper’s real name is Jesse, he has family here on the Gold Coast and he’s a local resident who mows lawns.
John Cunningham
One of the first professional lifesavers on the Gold Coast, John Cunningham served as the city’s chief lifeguard for decades.
He earned the distinction of being the personal lifeguard for former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam.
He served the city for more than 40 years before retiring in 1994.
Mr Cunningham was held in such high regard that the council’s Coolangatta lifeguard centre was named in his honour after he retired.
Sadly, he died after a lengthy illness at the age of 89.
Ron McDougall
Another iconic Gold Coast lifesaver - Ron McDougall - was immortalised as the Surfers Paradise SLSC flag bearer in a giant picture displayed on the Esplanade.
He is seen leading the beach march for the 1947 Australian Surf Life Saving Titles in the famous picture, which adorns the Hanlan St Pavilion.
Mr McDougall, a father of five, was secretary of the club from 1946 to 1951.
He passed away peacefully at a nursing home in Buderim in April, a day after laying the wreath at the home’s Anzac Day ceremony.
10 Cent Tom
Young entrepreneur Tom Pirie collects and cashes in recycled bottles every weekend and dreams of starting a recycling depot to employ people with disabilities.
The Robina resident has collected recycling from friends and neighbours for years to help the environment, make some coin and meet “new smiling faces”.
At 15, Tom was diagnosed with severe scoliosis and is living with an intellectual impairment.
To support his business - 10 Cent Tom - you can request a container collection bin which will be collected for free and exchanged for cash.
Peggy and Molly
Almost 150,000 people follow Juliette Wells’s Instagram page chronicling the life and times of her pet Staffordshire bull terrier Peggy and a magpie called Molly.
The pair formed an unlikely bond after Ms Wells found the young magpie wandering “lost, weak and frightened” while out walking her dog in September 2020.
After being unable to find the bird’s parents, Ms Wells brought it home, where Peggy and Molly soon became inseparable.
“The bond between these two very different species grew so strong it was nothing short of a miracle,” she said.
“We watched them snuggle, fall asleep together and groom each other. They were inseparable.”
Javon Johanson
It was the tackle that stopped the nation.
Gold Coast Titans NRL match pitch invader Javon Johanson got her 30 seconds of fame, or infamy, after security tackled her so hard that the incident had to be reviewed.
The Gold Coaster sprinted on to the field from the stands at Cbus Stadium in April, wearing just a bra and jeans.
It was the not the first time Ms Johanson found herself in the media spotlight.
The former junior footballer was a pioneer for females in male-dominated sports 16 years ago.
She beat 300 boys to be judged the Gold Coast’s best and fairest second runner-up 2006 in under-14 Bs Aussie rules – a feat no other girl had achieved at the time.
During Johanson’s appearance before court over the pitch invasion, it was revealed the 28-year-old hotel reservations officer had written a personal apology to the security guard.
She was issued a three-month good behaviour bond.
Phil Temperton
Gold Coast rugby union pioneer Phil Temperton passed away in May, leaving behind a lasting legacy that will forever remain etched in the sport’s folklore.
The man who the Glitter Strip’s top 15-man code competition trophy was named after lost his battle with cancer.
If it were not for Temperton, Palm Beach Currumbin rugby president Jim Benny said the code on the Gold Coast would never have taken off.
He had been suffering from various cancers — including in his liver — after a career in the game that spanned more than 40 years.
- Additional reporting from Nick Wright, Jeremy Pierce, Greg Stolz and Keith Woods
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