Queenscliffe Maritime Museum

01/09/2026

SEA-TEMBER ~ BLUE PHAROS IS UNDERWAY

The countdown is on!

SEA-TEMBER is underway, and nominations are rolling in for the Top 10 Sea Songs and Top 10 Sea Books.

The sea connects us all — through shores, stories, songs and generations.

On 24, 25 and 26 September, the lighthouses at Point Lonsdale and Queenscliff will light up blue from 6:45 pm to 10:00 pm, creating a spectacular maritime beacon across the entrance to Port Phillip Heads.

And they won’t be alone.

Major buildings across Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale will also light up blue in support of SEA-TEMBER, transforming the towns into a sea of blue.

Behind the scenes, preparations are already underway.

Liam from Studio All Lighting, working with Ports Victoria and the Port of Melbourne, has been on site inspecting locations and preparing for the installation.

Lighting architecture — complete.
Site inspections — underway.
The lighthouses — getting ready to turn blue.

THREE NIGHTS.
TWO LIGHTHOUSES.
ONE SEA OF BLUE.

Don’t miss the big SEA-TEMBER celebration at the Gil Allbutt Boat Shed on Thursday 24 September from 7:30 pm.

The evening will feature the reveal of the Top 10 Sea Songs, The Sea of Ukes and Shedding the Blues.

Music. Stories. Boats. Books. The sea.

Go to comments
Tickets are limited — book now via the links to secure your place!

SEA-TEMBER | 24–27 SEPTEMBER

📸 Kerri Erler — Studio All and Ports Victoria Point Lonsdale site inspection.

01/09/2026

SEA-TEMBER — MARITIME LEGEND NOMINATION

Garry Stewart — Port Fairy boatbuilder

With a lifetime shaped by wooden boats, fishing vessels and Port Fairy’s working harbour, Garry Stewart is a true Maritime Legend.

Part of a long-established Port Fairy boatbuilding family, Garry has built, restored and worked on traditional wooden vessels, helping preserve the skills, stories and seafaring spirit of this coastal community.

For Garry, the sea is more than a workplace — it’s part of who he is.

His choice for our Top 10 Sea Songs is:

“Into the Mystic” — Van Morrison

A song capturing the ocean’s pull, the spirit of adventure and the irresistible call of the sea.

Thank you, Garry, for sharing your story — and your SEA-TEMBER song.

Into the mystic we go.

Nominate your favourite Top 10 sea songs and sea books via the link in the comments.

Join us to celebrate SEA-TEMBER at the Gil Allbutt boat shed Thursday 24th September 2026 from 7:30pm featuring the Sea of Ukes and Shedding the Blues. Link to tickets in comments.

Don’t miss it!
SEA-TEMBER 2026 - SEA-TEMBER — BLUE PHAROS

Photo Garry Stewart Port Fairy.

31/08/2026

PULSE FM — SEA-TEMBER IS ON THE AIR!

The sea connects us — and SEA-TEMBER brings the community together.

Tune in to Pulse FM from 3:00–4:00 pm on Wednesday, 2 September 2026, for ‘Connecting Through Music’ with Shedding the Blues, hosted by Alastair McCallum.

What do sea songs, historic lighthouses, blue-lit buildings and a “museum without walls” have in common?

They’re all part of SEA-TEMBER.

Hear Jane Rodwell from Sea of Ukes and Andrew Scorgie from Queenscliffe Maritime Museum explore:

• The Top 10 Sea Song and Sea Book nominations
• The spectacular Lighthouses in Blue project
• Local maritime history and stories
• The “museum without walls”
• The people, places and traditions that connect our community to the sea

From music and literature to lighthouses and local history, SEA-TEMBER celebrates the many ways the sea brings us together.

Nominate your favourite sea song and sea book via the link in comments.

Join us to celebrate SEA-TEMBER at the Gil Allbutt boat shed Thursday 24th September 2026 from 7:30pm featuring the Sea of Ukes and Shedding the Blues. Link to tickets in comments.

Don’t miss it!

SEA-TEMBER 2026 - SEA-TEMBER — BLUE PHAROS

Photo Jane from Sea of Ukes and Andrew from the QMM.

31/08/2026

SEA-TEMBER | MARITIME LEGEND NOMINATION

FROM NORFOLK TO QUEENSCLIFF

Some songs don’t just tell stories about the sea.

They carry the sea within them.

Robert Smith MBE, Harbour Master of Wells-next-the-Sea in Norfolk, England, has nominated:

“Home From The Sea” — Liam Clancy
Written by Phil Coulter

A haunting song of boats disappearing beyond the horizon, danger at sea, families waiting on shore — and the hope that every voyage ends with someone coming home.

Robert knows that world.

For 27 years, he served with the Wells lifeboat, answering the call when the sea turned dangerous.

Now his song travels from Norfolk to Queenscliff.

Two coastal communities.
Two sides of the world.
One shared connection to the sea.

Because the ocean doesn’t separate us.

It connects us.

Add “Home From The Sea” to your SEA-TEMBER playlist and vote for your favourite sea songs.

Nomination links for the Top 10 Sea Songs and Top 10 Sea Books are on the QMM website.

Fair winds. Following seas.

31/08/2026

SEA-TEMBER — BLUE PHAROS

Behind the blue glow is a great deal of careful planning, technical expertise, approvals and teamwork.

These lighting calculations by Studio All mark an important step in bringing Blue Pharos to life. The design will illuminate Point Lonsdale Lighthouse while protecting its essential navigational function as a working lighthouse.

A huge thank you to Studio All and Liam for their expertise, and to Ports Victoria and the Port of Melbourne for their support in making this special maritime illumination possible.

See the comments for everyone involved in bringing Blue Pharos to life.

SEA-TEMBER — 24–26 September

The Queenscliffe Maritime Museum link to SEA-TEMBER, along with the names of everyone who helped make this project happen, is in the comments.

30/08/2026

Great work Kerri, listen in on link.

On Thursday Kerri Erler from the Queenscliffe Maritime Museum joined us to talk about the celebrations of Lighthouses in Queenscliffe and Portarlington last weekend which was International Lighthouse weekend, and the upcoming events in September. We learned about the history of the lighthouses and how the heritage listed foghorn has been made operational again for some celebratory soundings.
To listen to our chat just click here:
https://soundcloud.com/tim-carr-20/kerri-erler-queenscliffe?si=47a6af5aaef14ba18066194a658a8faf&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

30/08/2026

SEA-TEMBER MARITIME LEGEND NOMINATION

For Ross Haldane, the sea is a family story.

Born in Port Fairy and now based in Port Lincoln, Ross grew up surrounded by fishing, boatbuilding, working harbours and coastal traditions.

His family built the historic Tacoma, linking Port Fairy craftsmanship to Australia’s Southern Bluefin tuna fishing story. Today, Ross serves as President of the Tacoma Preservation Society, helping preserve the vessel’s maritime legacy.

Ross has nominated “Rocky Isle” by Ron Higgins—a song celebrating fishing life and the people who make their living from the sea.

What’s your sea song or sea book?

Nominate yours now and help shape the SEA-TEMBER Top 10!

30/08/2026

SEA-TEMBER — SOUNDTRACK OF THE SEA: JAWS

“Dun… dun… Dun… dun…”

Cr Di Rule is on patrol aboard the pilot boat Mavis III, searching for the all-important scuba tank in a playful nod to Jaws!

At Queenscliffe Maritime Museum, Di discovers a Greener Light Gun—a maritime signalling gun of the type used to fire flares and signalling cartridges at sea. These guns helped vessels communicate, attract attention and call for assistance.

The gun is also linked with the explosive finale of Jaws: in the film, Chief Brody shoots a scuba tank with a rifle, causing it to explode. While the museum’s Greener Light Gun is not the weapon used in that scene, it offers a fascinating maritime connection to the film’s dramatic use of signalling fi****ms and life-saving equipment.

Is the Jaws theme the ultimate “Soundtrack of the Sea”? What song belongs on your SEA-TEMBER playlist?

Share your favourite in the comments!

29/08/2026

SEA-TEMBER — THE DAY A TANKER CAME ASHORE AT QUEENSCLIFF

What book or song does this photo remind you of?

On 30 August 1984, the 39,000-tonne oil tanker Golden Gate Sun ran aground at Shortland’s Bluff, off Queenscliff Back Beach.

Inward bound in ballast, the tanker missed the required turn towards the South Channel and came ashore near the entrance to Port Phillip.

As part of the response, local divers John and Len Rogers were sent down to inspect the tanker’s hull and check for damage.

It was a dramatic sight for the Queenscliff community: a huge ocean-going tanker sitting hard aground on the beach.

Were you there?

Do you remember seeing the Golden Gate Sun, the salvage operation, or hearing about John and Len Rogers going down to inspect the hull?

Share your memories, stories or photographs in the comments.

For all the details of maritime history and shipwrecks, call into the Queenscliffe Maritime Museum.

SEA-TEMBER — celebrating our sea, our stories and our maritime history.

29/08/2026

SEA-TEMBER — TOP 10 SEA SONGS and SEA BOOKS

A ship, a storm and the open sea — Daff’s striking photograph captures the Spirit of Tasmania sailing out of Port Phillip into gathering weather.

What sea song would you play as she heads towards the horizon, or which sea book would you take along for the journey?

Share the song or book this scene brings to mind, and tell us why it belongs on your voyage.

VOTE NOW
Visit our website and cast your votes today. Link in the comments.

Help create Australia’s ultimate sea-song and sea-book lists!

SEA-TEMBER — celebrating Australia’s maritime heritage through songs, stories and our enduring connection with the sea.

Photo Daff Wallace.