Skippy visits Canberra

In 1968 a furry kangaroo named Skippy made her debut on Australian television and, by 1969, was a much-loved Australian and international star. She visited Canberra on 4 September 1969 with her handler Scott Denholm and crowds lined the streets around Monaro Mall to see her arrive on the back of a Freebodys Toyota Ute ('Be like Skippy – jump into a Toyota’).

Those lucky enough to find a place inside the mall were treated to a question and answer session with Denholm and CTC 7 newsreader Brian Smith. Skippy had attracted a crowd of around 20,000, one of the largest crowds ever in Canberra to that date; a rather successful promotion for Waltons, Freebodys Motors and CTC 7.