1: The name (1917)

The name Surfers Paradise first appeared in 1917 when Brisbane real estate agent Arthur Blackwood began selling land in the beachside suburb of Elston. He dubbed it the “Surfers Paradise Estates”.

2: Surfers Paradise Hotel (1924)

Hotelier Jim Cavill bought up 10ha of land in the area and built his Surfers Paradise Hotel in 1925. It became the epicentre of the suburb’s activities.

3: Surfers Paradise Surf Life Saving Club founded (1925)

Mr Cavill teamed up with fellow local Charlie Walsh to found the area’s first surf club in December 1925.

4: The name change (1933)

The name Elston wasn’t popular with many locals and a name change was proposed. The state government wanted to call the area Sea Glint but Mr Cavill, after years of lobbying, convinced bureaucrats to select Surfers Paradise. A legend was born.

5: World War II (1939-1945)

US soldiers were stationed and quartered on the coastline throughout. Many frequented Surfers Paradise, sparking a love of the area which saw many Americans return with families after the war to live.

6: Quirky Characters (1948-present)

A US servicemen who returned to the city post-war became Surfers Paradise’s first quirky character. Cherokee Bill Mitter arrived in 1948 to operate American Indian-style tours of the Gold Coast. He was known for wearing authentic “Red Indian’’ outfits and war paint while riding his horse around. He once rode into the Surfers Paradise Hotel’s beer garden in full costume to celebrate Independence Day, ordering a bucket of beer for his horse. Other notable characters in the middle of the decade included hotelier Stan Elson and Johnny Catcher, known as “Catcher the nightwatchman”, who worked from midnight to dawn on a stool at Bruno Friedlander’s greasy spoon hamburger bar in Surfers Paradise and was known for telling less-than-credible tales of his life, including time as a film stunt man, a hobo in the US, and French foreign legionnaire. Their legacy lives on today.

7: The real estate boom (1949-present)

While Arthur Blackwood was the first person to see Surfers Paradise’s potential as a real estate hotspot, Laurie Wall was the agent who turned it into a must-live area and mentored future developer Norm Rix and real estate kingpin Max Christmas, a young carpenter who he taught the ins and outs of the property game. Starting his firm in 1949 with the slogan “Wall sells all”, he sold off land which went on to become Paradise Waters, Paradise Island, Chevron Island, Macintosh Island, and Isle of Capri.

8: The hotel’s revival (1957)

Jim Cavill died in 1952 and his family sold the Surfers Paradise Hotel five years later to developer Stanley Korman who dramatically expanded it and its facilities, adding the famous Birdwatchers Bar and Paradise Room, a ballroom which became a well-known function centre for decades.

9: Chevron Island (1957)

Mr Korman bought Goat Island, a small piece of land in the middle of the Nerang River, from Mr Wall and created Chevron and Cronin islands, which opened in 1960 and became one of the area’s first major housing expansions.

10: Kinkabool – The first high-rise (1959)

Surfers Paradise is known for its high-rises but none existed before Kinkabool was built in 1959 by J D Booker Constructions. At just 10-storeys tall, it began the wave of development continuing today.

11: Paradise Waters (1950s-1970s)

Originally part of Macintosth Island, it was bought in the late 1950s by future Mayor Sir Bruce Small with plans to build a housing estate. It was eventually developed from dredged land in the 1970s by developer Hooker Rex.

12: Pyjama Parties (1959)

Surfers Paradise businessman Bernie Elsey held risque “pyjama parties” around the pool of his Beachcomber Private Hotel where guests were illegally served alcohol. Police raided the parties nightly, creating publicity for the parties and bringing more revellers.

13: Meter Maids (1965)

Introduced by Mr Elsey and Surfers Paradise Progress Association in opposition to parking meters being installed. The girls in golden bikinis fed meters with coins to prevent people getting fines. They soon became iconic.

14: The Mine scare (1966)

A German World War II mine washed up on Surfers Paradise Beach on March 16, 166 carrying 2994kg of explosives. Among those who witnessed its arrival was ex-mayor Lex Bell, age 21. The mine was towed to the northern end of the Spit - 7km from where it rolled in - and detonated.

15: Beach destruction (1967)

In January 1967 Cyclone Dinah moved down the coastline off the Coral Sea.

While never crossing the coast, it caused havoc in Surfers Paradise where the Nerang River burst its banks. Streets flooded, beaches were heavily eroded and part of The Esplanade collapsed leaving a five-metre hole near Staghorn Ave. The damage to the Coast was significant, as photos went global showing the city’s ruined beaches, where old car wrecks were used as a makeshift seawall to halt the erosion.

16: Sir Bruce Small’s Meter Maid Tour (1967)

Sir Bruce Small, the Gold Coast’s mayor, launched a publicity drive to attract visitors. Teaming up with Meter Maids, he travelled Australia spruiking Surfers Paradise as a place to live and holiday, kicking off a big tourism boom.

17: The Sun Tan Man (1968-2004)

Beloved Larrikin Al Baldwin arrived in Surfers Paradise in 1968 and began a spray-tanning business next to the lifeguard tower at Surfers Paradise beach which he worked at for more than 33 years, spraying up to three million people. He continued until his 2004 death.

18: Putt-Putt (1969)

Opening on Friday September 19, 1969, the Gold Coast Putt-Putt was a first in Australia and founded by Tom Wykoff. Sir Bruce Small attended the opening of the course, ceremonially hitting the first ball. It relocated to its home in Mermaid Beach.

19: Floods (1974)

Tropical Cyclone Wanda hit, flooding 1500 homes, with more than 1250mm of rain fell on the Hinterland and the streets of Surfers Paradise. When the Nerang River broke its banks, floodwaters rose waist-high. Brisbane was flooded after more than 314mm of rain fell, the wettest day in the state’s capital since 1887. On the Gold Coast, the canals overflowed and the Nerang River rose, sending the waters flowing into the Glitter Strip’s streets.

20: The first Cavill Mall (1976)

The idea of a mall on Cavill Ave was proposed in the 1960s but it took until 1975 for a trial mall to be supported and created, opening in early 1976. The mall of the late 1970s and early 1980s featured plenty of dining and umbrellas as well as hanging plant baskets and a giant chess board.

21: Charlie’s (1976)

Before its recent closure, Charlie’s was a landmark in Surfers Paradise. It was founded as a sandwich shop in 1976 before becoming a restaurant which had the claim to fame of operating 24/7.

22: First generation of nightclubs (1970s-1980s)

Surfers Paradise became home to discotheques and nightclubs in the mid-1970s. Twains was the brainchild of Greek businessman Chris Xanthopoulos and was a feature of developer Bert Swift’s The Mark shopping centre while The Penthouse, on the opposite site of Orchid Ave, grew into a four-storey complex, with seven bars, two discos, a dining room and four dance floors. Twains and the Penthouse engaged in what was known as the “disco wars’’ as each venue attempted to dominate the fledgling nightclub industry. Twains closed in 1987 while the Penthouse lasted into the 1990s.

23: The Bombay Rock (1982-89)

Owned by the George brothers, the Bombay Rock opened in 1982 and became well known for its top-level entertainment and wild evenings, particularly for its live music. Among the big names who played there through the 1980s were New Order, The Divinyls and Midnight Oil. It closed in the late 1980s.

24: The Paradise Centre (1980)

The $58 million first stage of the complex, the brainchild of developer Eddie Kornhauser, opened its doors for the first time just days before Christmas 1980, with the bulk of shops opening in January 1981.

25: Grundy’s Amusement Centre (1981)

Grundy’s opened on Saturday, March 14, 1981, with the famous water slides opening a month later on April 11. They went on to become iconic attractions of the Gold Coast through the 1980s and were featured in the music videos for Australian Crawl’s 1981 single Errol and Time Bandits’ 1985 hit Endless Road. The slides closed in 1987.

26: Melba’s on the Park (1981)

Long before it became a beloved bar and nightspot, Melbas was well-known as a dining location. Founded by businessman Paul Allen, it opened in 1981 and became a landmark in Surfers Paradise, famous for its cuisine. By 1987 it marketed itself as having “a tropical garden atmosphere” and “one of the finest restaurants on the Gold Coast, with cane furniture and plenty of food. It would close and be reborn in recent years as The Cavill Hotel under new hospitality group Hallmark.

27: Monorails (1981-90)

In early 1981 the Gold Coast City Council unveiled bold plans for a $14m monorail system through Surfers Paradise which was hailed at the time as the solution to public transport issues. The project never went ahead while Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen proposed his own Gold Coast monorail system in 1986 and it was approved three years later before being abandoned in 1990.

28: Modern Cavill Mall (1982)

The success of the trial mall, the Paradise Centre and Grundy’s led to the Gold City Council voting in favour of a permanent mall. Construction of the $600,000 project began in May 1982. The seats, tables, giant chess set and many of the coffee shop facilities disappeared. The mall remains a central landmark of the city.

29: Surfers Paradise Hotel’s demolition (1983)

The six-decade history of the Surfers Paradise Hotel came to an end in 1983 when it was demolished to make way for the expansion of the Paradise Centre by developer Eddie Kornhauser.

30: Olivia’s Malt Shop (1984-88)

The Trickett Street 50s-style diner was famous for its soda fountain, waitresses who cruised between its booths on rollerskates and the large pink FJ Holden which was lodged in its roof. It closed in 1988

31: Brian ‘Shep’ Shepherd (1984-2000)

A perennial mayoral candidate, promoter and endless ideas man, “Shep” was a Coast icon in the 1980s and 1990s. He launched his first mayoral campaign in 1984, more than a year before the election to give himself an edge over fellow candidates Denis Pie, Roger Cox and incumbent Denis O’Connell. It was during this time he created his well-known catchphrase: “I’ve never seen the Gold Coast looking so bright”. Mr Shepherd proposed several additions to the region, including bus stops shaped like pineapples, a giant “Welcome to the Gold Coast” archway to be built across the M1, pelican-shaped public rubbish bins and cans of sunshine. He ran for mayor again in 1988 but was defeated by Lex Bell. Despite the defeats Mr Shepherd said he considered Cr Bell a good leader. He ran a final time in 2000 against Gary Baildon before retiring. He died in 2013.

32: Chevron Hotel’s fall (1987)

The pet project of Polish-born developer Stanley Korman, it opened its first accommodation in June 1957 and continued trading until the mid-1980s when it was demolished in 1987 to make way for a new project that never went ahead. The site remained empty in the early 1990s and was often the scene of markets and carnivals.

33: The Big Bikini Girl (1988)

Surfers Paradise Chamber of Commerce boss Brian Shepherd was never short of an idea. But in the late 1980s he spun his tallest tale with a proposal which raised plenty of eyebrows. He announced plans to build the world’s tallest bikini girl statue. Like the colossus of Rhodes, it was meant to stand across the Gold Coast Highway, with motorists to drive underneath it on their way into Surfers Paradise. Understandably the Gold Coast City Council under then-mayor Lex Bell was not keen to proceed.

34: Surfers tunnel (1988)

Gold Coast Plaza Pty Ltd, a local consortium mooted building a tunnel under Surfers Paradise for cars in August 1988. The $65m proposal would have seen a three-lane tunnel built between Elkhorn Ave and Hanlan St, with a landscaped public plaza built over the top. The company claimed the project would come at no cost to either the council or the Ahern Government.

35: Ripley’s Believe it or Not (1988-present)

One of the Gold Coast’s favourite tourist attractions of the past 35 years opened in 1988 as part of the Raptis Plaza development in Cavill Ave Mall. It survived that building’s demolition and remains open today.

36: Second generation of nightclubs (1980s-2000s)

The late 1980s and 1990s saw the rise of a new generation of nightclubs which formed the core of the city’s night-life for decades. They included The Rose and Crown, Shooters, Cocktails and Dreams and Billy’s Beach House. Cocktails is the sole remaining venue.

37: Tropicarnival (1990-2000)

It began in the 1980s but Tropicarnival and the Gold Coast Eisteddfod were hugely popular during the 1990s, with Surfers Paradise hosting the parade which ran through its streets annually. While the Eisteddfod continues today, the curtains came down on Tropicarnival at the end of the 1990s.

38: Michelle’s murder (1990)

One of Australia’s most infamous crimes of the early 1990s, South African student Michelle Joanne Cohn was found wedged behind the ground floor toilet of the Oak Lodge holiday apartments at Budds Beach on Boxing Day 1990. Burleigh man Shane Sebastian Davis was convicted and jailed for life for her murder.

39: Indy’s arrival (1991)

The Gold Coast’s biggest motorsports event arrived in 1991 and became the biggest setpiece of the year, bringing in celebrities and motorsports figures. Originally held in March each year, it rapidly became the centrepiece of the city's social and sporting calendar.

40: Double murder (1991)

One of Australia’s most famous open cases, the bodies of SP bookie Peter George Wade, 53 and his defacto wife Maureen Ambrose, 53 were found in a Wheelan Street unit in December 1991. Their alleged killer, John Victor Bobak remains at large more than 30 years later.

41: Surfers Paradise Marriott opening (1992)

The Surfers Paradise Marriott was one of the Gold Coast’s most high-profile hotels when it opened in 1992. It came at a critical moment for the industry as the Asian tourism boom continued.

42: Schoolies (1992-present)

While school leavers had been coming to the Gold Coast to mark the end of their primary and secondary schooling for decades, celebrations began to get out of control in the early 1990s. By 1994 police made more than 150 arrests and 67 minors were charged with drinking offences. Schoolies 1996 was declared by the Gold Coast City Council and State Government at the time to be a “watershed event” with the introduction of “chill out zones” and other safe features which continue today.

43: Mansell Fever (1993)

Formula 1 legend Nigel Mansell’s switch to Indycars and appearance on the Gold Coast in 1993 ignited a flurry of interest from motorsports. Fans travelled from around the world to see him drive on the Gold Coast at that year’s Indy in one of the most high-profile races of the series.

44: Grundy’s closes (1993)

The beloved amusement centre’s closure was announced in 1993 when its lease came to an end. Mayor Lex Bell declared the closure to be “something of a tragedy” because it had become an important part of the Gold Coast. Timezone took over the Grundy’s lease and continues to operate in the Paradise Centre today.

45: Paradise Beach (1993)

Plenty of film and television has been made on the Gold Coast but little has directly focused on Surfers Paradise. Paradise Beach was set on the Gold Coast and was released in mid-1993 to great fanfare, with a CD soundtrack and plenty of high-profile cast members including Melissa Bell, Manu Bennett, Melissa Tkautz and Ingo Rademacher. It was cancelled in 1994 after two seasons and just 260 episodes.

46: Amalgamation (1995)

The Gold Coast City Council merged with the Albert Shire Council in early 1995, creating a new “super council”. Former Mayor Lex Bell, who had previously represented Surfers Paradise in the 1980s, was re-elected to be the area’s councillor again.

47: A Surfers Paradise Premier (1996-1998)

Long-serving Surfers Paradise Member Rob Borbidge became Queensland’s first Premier from the Gold Coast in 1996 after the fall of the Goss government. He served in office until mid-1998 when his government was defeated.

48: Hard Rock Cafe (1996)

The popular venue opened in 1996 and had an incredible collection of music memorability, including a black sequined suit owned by Elvis Presley and the suede jacket owned by The Beatles’ John Lennon and worn on the cover of the 1965 album Rubber Soul.

49: Casino (1997)

Singapore-based developer Hotel Properties Limited announced plans for a $350m, 1570 hotel. The project, set to be the largest in Australia at the time, was proposed for the old Chevron Hotel site and was tipped to have a “spaceship-like’’ design. Among its features were set to be a Planet Hollywood cafe, shops, including the Brash’s music chain a rooftop helicopter landing pad and pool. HPL began negotiating with the Borbidge Government to gain a casino licence but were turned down.

50: The Millennium (1999)

The world’s biggest party went off without a hitch on the Gold Coast with tens of thousands of people packing into Cavill Ave and the beach to mark the end of the 20th century and the arrival of the new Millennium.

51: Olympic torch relay (2000)

The optimism of the Year 2000 came with the year-long celebrations leading up to the Sydney Olympics. The Olympic Torch Relay brought the community together, with events on Surfers Paradise beach and Evandale as it passed through on its way to Sydney

52: Goodbye Hoyts (2000)

Surfers Paradise’s last cinema closed in 2000 after years of entertaining local. The Hoyts, which was on the corner of Surfers Paradise Boulevard and Clifford St, opened in 1986 and was one of a new wave of cinemas from that era but it was unable to compete with the bigger theatres of the era at Pacific Fair, Australia Fair, Robina Town Centre and Harbour Town.

53: The Bell Tolls (2001)

Rob Borbidge exited politics in early 2001 after the crushing election loss that year. A by-election was held for the seat of Surfers Paradise which former mayor Lex Bell unexpectedly triumphed at. He served one term in state parliament.

54: Fatal crash (2001)

Carnage came to Surfers Paradise in August 2001 when a car ploughed onto the footpath of Surfers Paradise Boulevard, injuring 10 pedestrians and killing nine-year-old Brisbane child Teena-Lea Harris. The car’s driver, Christie Morgan, was later revealed to have been sniffing butane in the moments before the crash. She was later jailed.

55: The developer revolt (2001-2004)

Key property figures became increasingly disillusioned with Mayor Gary Baildon’s leadership and the lack of funding for rejuvenating Surfers Paradise. Sunland boss Soheil Abedian, real estate kingpin Max Christmas, developer Jim Raptis, real estate agent Gordon Douglas and retail boss Robin Wright en masse threatened to resign from the council’s Heart of the City task force unless city hall put $2 million into the suburb. Mr Christmas was elected to council in 2001 but by 2004 there was little movement. Mr Abedian in particularly was scathing in his public attack on Cr Baildon, who lost that year’s mayoral election just weeks later.

56: Chevron Renaissance (2001)

In the late 1990s the former Chevron Hotel land was bought by the Raptis Group which redeveloped it to become the Chevron Renaissance. The giant shopping centre opened in 2001 and became a popular landmark, while three towers were built above it.

57: Indy fears (2001)

The horrors of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack and the Afghanistan War were fresh in the minds as Indy rolled into town just six weeks later. A massive security operation was developed by police and the State Government to prevent incident. Despite this, threats were made. In the end, the event went ahead without a hitch, with the main race won by Cristiano da Mattta.

58: Marking the 9/11 anniversary (2002)

The 9/11 attacks was the most consequential global event of the 2000s and changed the world, including the Gold Coast. In September 2002, the city marked the one-year anniversary of the Twin Towers falling when more than 3000 people gathered on Surfers Paradise beach to form a human representation of the US flag. It measured 50m by 30m. Pictures of the tribute went global.

59: Gangster’s Paradise (2004)

Melbourne underworld criminal Carl Williams enjoyed his last holiday on the Gold Coast in early 2004, just months before his arrest. Williams flew in with his then-right hand man and hitman Andrew “Benji” Veniamin in January 2004 and were photographed having fun in the sun on Surfers Paradise beach. The group stayed in a $310-a-night room at the Outrigger Sun City Resort for a fortnight after a magistrate altered his bail conditions, allowing him to travel.

60: Secession (2004)

Surfers Paradise business leaders, including Tom Tate wanted to go it alone and divorce from the Gold Coast City Council in mid-2004. They sought legal advice on seceding from the local council, which it blamed for the tourist strip’s traffic, water, nightclub and carparking woes. The move never went ahead but it set the stage for Mr Tate’s mayoral ambitions.

61: Hard Rock fire (2004)

The Surfers Paradise Hard Rock Cafe was stuck by disaster on November 11, 2004 when the giant guitar burst into flames and was badly damaged. Flames leapt 10m into the air as a large crowd of tourists gathered to watch the rock ‘n’ roll inferno, understood to have been caused by an electrical fault. The sign was finally repaired by early 2006 just in time for the restaurant’s 10th anniversary.

62: Bruce Bishop Carpark’s future (2004-present)

City leaders have been debating the sale of Bruce Bishop carpark for nearly 20 years. The first proposal was made in 2004 before it was knocked back. Bruce Bishop, the complex’s namesake made a final political intervention to help halt the sale. Several further attempts to sell it have been made but none successfully.

63: Flooding again (2005)

Surfers Paradise again was inundated by water in June 2005 when the Gold Coast withstood one of the heaviest downpours in its history. The flooding brought the city to a standstill and saw significant erosion on the beaches.

64: Q1 (2005)

The Southern Hemisphere’s tallest residential tower, Q1 was first unveiled by developer Sunland Group in 2001, with construction beginning in mid-2002. It took more than three years to build and welcomed its first residents in October, 2005.

65: Shower switch off (2006-2008)

The Gold Coast was hit by drought through the 2000s which saw the capacity of Hinze Dam fall to just 17 per cent. Water restrictions came into effect and at its most dire, saw beach showers shut off entirely. They were switched back on in early 2008 after heavy downpours.

66: The great Surfers Paradise Mist (2008)

Surfers Paradise become enveloped in cloud on September 29, 2008. The fire brigade dealt with worried callers convinced a huge fire had broken out on the glitter strip while others just stood and watched as the tops of high-rises disappeared in the haze. It had been a warm day but as the mist moved in, the temperature in Surfers Paradise plummeted. For those on the QDeck observation platform at Q1, just the tips of the Gold Coast’s tallest high rises were visible for the 30 minutes or so the haze lasted.

67: GFC (2008-10)

The global financial crisis brought the Gold Coast’s property market to a standstill and saw several key developments and companies, including MFS/Octaviar collapse. The Surfers Paradise Hilton and Soul were among the many under-construction developments which were rescued and completed. It took more than five years for the property and real estate sectors to bounce back, during which time few major towers were proposed, let alone built.

68: The last Indy (2008)

The car race which put Surfers Paradise on the map for motorsports fans came to an end in 2008 amid a funding dispute with the state government. The last race weekend proved to be a success which is still fondly remembered today.

69: A1GP (2009)

While the loss of Indy was sad, the arrival of its replacement proved to be a disaster, with the A1GP organisation collapsing just weeks out from the Surfers Paradise race being run. The V8 Supercars were upgraded to become the main attraction.

70: The Surfers Sniper case (2010)

Hylton Miller was walking along Surfers Paradise foreshore with family on December 10, 2010 when hit by a stray bullet. It thudded into his guts and left him in a coma for four months. He contracted a severe infection requiring 30 operations costing $120,000-plus. Eventually, he came out of the coma and recovered from infection - but never recovered mentally from being randomly shot for no reason and no one being held accountable. The bullet was traced to a high-rise Circle on Cavill balcony party, resulting in Rick El Masri being charged with grievous bodily harm. Police alleged he’d fired two shots from a handgun at his former workplace Hollywood Showgirls but one missed and continued for a kilometre hitting Mr Miller. At the trial, El Masri and party host Hakan Altinoglu blamed each other, and two girlfriends denied seeing who fired the gun. El Masri was acquitted. A physically, financially and emotionally broken Mr Miller took his own life in the first week of December, 2015, five years almost to the day when he got shot. Ironically, he’d moved his family to the Gold Coast from South Africa to escape high crime and being shot four times in a home invasion.

71: Jewel (2011-22)

The $1.4bn, three-tower project was unveiled in mid-2011 and approved by the council that year. Less than a year later, however, there were fears the project would fail to be realised, as a group of wealthy Brisbane-based families had lodged objections against the project in the Planning and Environment Court. With more than 2500 jobs at risk, Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney in July 2012 used his rare “call-in” powers to give him the sole authority to approve the project, something that could not be appealed in court. Construction was dogged by years of delays and changes but the towers were finally opened to the public.

72: Surfers Paradise Geyser (2012)

Proposed in February 2012 by Gold Coast teacher Bill Ross, it was to be the world’s largest offshore water jet. It was expected to be built 300m off Surfers Paradise and would shoot water more than 150m into the air. It was conceived as a clock of sorts which would grow in size for short periods every 15 minutes, reaching its maximum height on the hour every daylight hour. It was expected to cost $15 million and had the backing of then-mayor Ron Clarke. However the Gold Coast City Council 2014 ultimately chose to not investigate the project any further.

73: Magic Millions Barrier Draw (2012-present)

While the barrier draw dates back to 1988, the modern event on the beach has only existed for 11 years, beginning in 2012. It was the brainchild of then Magic Millions boss Vin Cox who announced the “Australian first Melbourne Cup in shorts” in December 2011. Far from the crowd of horses seen during the modern-day exhibition on the sand, the Gold Coast City Council and Surfers Paradise Alliance boss Mike Winlaw pulled out the stops to allow two horses to gallop along the sand.

74: Justin Bieber’s party (2013)

Justin Bieber’s stay at the QT in Surfers Paradise in November 2013 proved infamous after he grabbed a set of spray paint cans and heading down to the QT’s tennis court where he spent 30 minutes vandalising the walls. His war of words with Mayor Tom Tate went global.

75: The light rail (2014-present)

In the plans since 1997, the light rail finally began construction in 2011 and saw much of central Surfers Paradise torn up to make way for the tracks. The work took more than three years before the first passengers boarded trams in July 2014. While the system has proven popular, memories of the chaos and the number of businesses which were forced to close remain strong.

76: Open-air urinals (2014)

Desperate to avoid a bad look, councillors in late 2014 voted to proceed with a solution – a three-month trial of open-air urinals which were installed in Cavill Ave Mall the week before Christmas that year. They immediately attracted criticism from business owners and tourists for disturbing the area’s amenity.

77: Coolio’s rap (2014)

The late rapper Coolio visited the Gold Coast in 2014 when he took a ride on the Gold Coast Slingshot in central Surfers Paradise. Video released online showed the rapper launching into his hit Gangsta’s Paradise while riding the attraction,

78: Hollywood Showgirls turns 10 (December, 2014)

The five-star strip club Hollywood Showgirls - with the tagline ‘nightclub with a difference’ - marked its 10th birthday in the midst of the party strip having been founded by ongoing owner Craig Duffy, a former snooker ace and Australian pool champion who former co-owner Jamie Pickering described as someone who has “done well from his background, he had a pretty tough upbringing - he’ll fight you for 10 cents”. Pickering added the eccentric, Elvis-loving Mr Duffy had a style cemented in the 1980s “and he’s never moved from it”. Mr Duffy describes the enduring club’s position in the tourism hub thus: “Surfers is a bit like Vegas and if you don’t like gambling, you don’t go. If we don’t have exciting night-life to frequent, then the Gold Coast would lose its edge. Part of what makes the Gold Coast what it is the night-life. People come for the night-life.”

79: The Pop-up urinals (2016)

Councillors voted in late 2015 to spend more than $150,000 on hi-tech toilets which rose out of the footpath nightly. They were installed outside the Sin City Nightclub in a move then-councillor Lex Bell said was “the best result we could have hoped for”. They were finally installed in 2017 and continue to operate as of 2023.

80: Jimmy ‘Mr VIP’ Ozturk (2016)

The VIP frontman for dozens of Surfers Paradise nightspots marked 35 years streetside as the city’s most high-profile host with the most. The always impeccably dressed Glitter Strip institution is in his 70s but still as fit and enthusiastic as ever about looking after locals and visitors. His mainstay venue in recent years is another icon of the strip, Hollywood Showgirls, but he has worked out the front of the Rose and Crown, Bourbon Bar, The Penthouse, Avenue, Cheerleaders, 21, Shooters, Cocktails & Dreams, Central. The list goes on. The married father of three continues to be presence in 2023 on party strip Orchid Avenue, once telling the Bulletin: “I love to come to work. I’m feeling alive, like a tiger. I love it man, I’m always in the lights bro.”

81: Amber Heard parties at Sin City (2017)

Aquaman and The Rum Diary star Amber Heard hit Sin City nightclub for a party night, throwing the VIP staff into a momentary panic when she ordered red wine. As then Sin City VIP host Ric Gibson explained at the time: “It’s not something we serve on a regular basis so it’s lucky we had some in the cellar. I had a good chat to her. It was quite surreal - I thought she would be stuck up given the status she has but she was very down to earth, very funny and stunning as well.”

82: Commonwealth Games (2018)

The Gold Coast Commonwealth Games was a triumph in 2018 and saw one of the city’s most joyful moments. On the day the Games began, swimmer Cate Campbell carried the Queen’s Baton onto the Surfers Paradise foreshore and held it aloft amid a huge crowd of fans. It was the perfect moment to kick off the event.

83: Usain Bolt lights up Surfers (April, 2018)

The world’s most famous sprinter hit the DJ decks at infamous nightclub Sin City on arrival to kickstart the Commonwealth Games week two party. The Games ambassador then proceeded to show for a sprinter he had a lot of endurance - partying six nights straight taking in 19, then Love nightclub and Sin City all six nights.

84: Meter Maids bar (June, 2018)

The owner of the Meter Maids Roberta Aitchison started a Meter Maids-themed bar - staffed by waitresses in the trademark golden bikinis - but it lasted barely a month. It ended in a spectacular falling out with her bar business partner John Sankey who said he was unhappy about the skimpy bikini uniforms and felt it make some customers and some staff uncomfortable. Ms Aitchison - who once posed up in her Meter Maid bikini for Penthouse and really put the brand on the global map - shot back: “I’m proud of everything I do.”

85: Fatal stabbings (December, 2019)

In a horror run, three people died within 12 months in Surfers Paradise in knife-related incidents. They included Jack Beasley, aged just 17, fatally stabbed in front of the IGA supermarket across the road from shocked diners of Nicolinis Italian restaurant in the early evening of a Friday night in December 2019 after a run-in with a group from out of town. A teen aged 15 at the time pleaded guilty to murder and another aged 17 admitted to manslaughter. It led to Jack’s Law allowing police to wand anyone of interest in public for bladed weapons.

86: Covid (2020)

The onset of the pandemic and the global lockdowns of March 2020 saw Surfers Paradise go into hibernation. Virtually all hospitality and tourism businsesses were shuttered, while offices were closed and abandoned. Photos of the completely empty streets still evoke feelings of sadness and memories of the fear as the disease cut its deadly swarth across the world.

87: Cali Beach Club launch (Sept, 2021)

The first multi-faceted bar, restaurant and nightclub with pools and a volleyball court launched on the roof of a central Surfers Paradise four-storey corner site, bringing what the operator Artesian Hospitality called “Ibiza” vibes to the Glitter Strip. Artesian partner Matt Keegan said: “Cali Beach marks the start of something special for hospitality and entertainment offerings in Queensland, and Australia.”

88: Hard Rock’s closure (2022)

The landmark rock restaruant closed suddenly in 2022, leaving staff out of work and locals shocked following a dispute with the Paradise Centre’s management. Despite promises of a relocation, HarD Rock never returned and its guitar was later removed.

89: Pacific AirShow (2023)

A new major event for 2023, it drew crowds of more than 100,000 to see planes crom across the world perform aerial wizardy above the beach, with four more years locked in.

90: Meter Maids exit (October, 2023)

The tradition of leggy bikini-clad bombshells strutting Surfers Paradise streets and saving visitors from parking fines started in the 1960s - and appeared to end finally in 2023. Roberta Aitchison, an ex-Meter Maid who once greeted Prime Minister Bob Hawke on arrival, privatised the brand and spent the past five years in a seeming running battle with council officials cracking down on her staff touting for merchandise sales and donations. She admitted in October she no longer put her girls into Surfers and was just “doing functions”. “You can’t sell your product in the street - they pretty much cut my throat.”