Ekka offers bags of fun

Your family Bug presents a guide to the best sample bags on sale at this year's Brisbane RNA Show.

The Saddam Hussein Bag - $9.50

Kiddies! Have fun disguising yourself, just like the evil, bloodthirsty former Butcher of Baghdad (pictured below) is doing to evade capture by the US military.This year the Saddam Hussein Showbag includes:
o selection of false moustaches
o selection of false beards
o make-up kit
o selection of military uniforms
o range of headwear including berets
o rifle for firing into the air.

PLEASE NOTE: Bag contains no weapons of mass destruction.

Coalition of the Willing Bag - US$75 billion and counting

et your friends together and have hours of fun playing soldiers fighting an evil enemy.
The Coalition of the Willing Showbag includes:
o life-size inflatable George W Bush doll
o life-size partially deflated Tony Blair doll
o life-size fully puffed-up John Howard doll
o one-size-fits-all flak jacket
o your own spin doctor kit
o your choice of life-size inflatable Koffie Annan or Hans Blix punching bags
o oil rig keyring
o unlimited body-bag vouchers

PLEASE NOTE: Rain checks available on Weapons of Mass Destruction

The Uday & Qusay Hussein Bag - $8.50

The stacks of goodies in the Uday and Qusay Hussein Showbag will have you laughing your head off, along with other body parts.
This year's must-have showbag contains:
o 182 kgs of mince
o a Polaroid camera
o two body bags.

The Peter Beattie Premier Bag - $8.50

This year's Ekka is your chance to get the new Peter Beattie Showbag (pictured) that contains:
o a copy of the Sunday Mail
o red face make-up
o super-absorbent sponge
o a easy-to-use vulcanising kit
o book of bon mots including "to be serious for a moment", "to be perfectly honest", "is there a shark tank nearby?", "no comment - just joking!".
PLEASE NOTE: Contents of bag may leak prior to purchase.

John Howard's Bag

John Howard's Other Bag - $9.50

Plot your very own federal election campaign with the John Howard Alternate Bag. It boasts the world's only boardgame where you can be trailing hopelessly at the end and still win with your special "terrorist bombing in Indonesia", "Aussie casualty in the Solomons" or "WMDs found in Iraq at last" trumpcards
This year the bag contains:o khaki t-shirt (small men's)
o small packet of welcome-home parade confetti
o scale model of MV Tampa
o small packet of Chico babies
o pack of race cards
o dog whistle
o asylum seeker punching bag
o Man of Steel comic
o George W Bush buttock-shaped lollipop.

From our archives....

The first edition of The Bug hits Brisbane streets in July 1989. The previous year Brisbane residents had welcomed the world to their city during the six months of Expo 88 held on what is now the site of South Bank, across the river from the CBD.
The excitement of Expo 88 was such that many locals suffered withdrawal symptoms when it was over.
In a bid to ease the pain, in August 1989 The Bug announced that Brisbane would once again be the focus of world attention when it staged Expo 89 - a thinly disguised annual RNA Show, or Ekka as it is lovingly known locally.
Of course Expo 88 had its own mascot - Expo Oz, a platypus wearing a safari suit and slouch hat.
So it was only fair that Expo 89 also had a mascot.
We came up with Expo Excreta, and here reprint his story from the August 1989 edition of The Bug.

Expo Oz became a familiar face throughout the world as Expo 88's well-loved mascot. Now, hot on his heels, comes an equally loveable character, Expo Excreta!
Popular Brisbane busker, Cyril the Cowpat, has been selected to be the public faece of Expo 89.
Through a range of merchandise, Expo Excreta is set to delight children around the world.
"By the time our world fair finishes, Brisbane and Excreta will be synonymous," the Expo Authroity said.
"Visitors will be able to see Excreta all over the Expo 89 site."
Reprinted from The Bug, August 1989