If you’re in the West Australia town of Broome this Wednesday, you can ‘honour’ Queen Elizabeth II by partaking in a wet t-shirt contest.
As per news.com.au, The Roebuck Bay Hotel, the town’s oldest watering hole, weirdly announced this week that it was deciding to “celebrate the life of Queen Lizzie” with a wet t-shirt contest. It’s what she would have wanted.
“Join us Wednesday night for a special Wet T in Oasis Bar,” the pub said in a social media post. Even if you’re not mourning the royal, it might be worth entering the contest, with $750 up for grabs. DJ Sam T will also be playing tunes from 8pm onwards.
While many took to social media to voice their disapproval of the event, this is nothing new for the Roebuck, which regularly hosts wet t-shirt contests, which feels slightly out of place in 2022.
For those who don’t know, a wet t-shirt contest involves women being drenched in water in ill-fitting t-shirts with nothing underneath, and feels like a relic from the early 00s.
If you prefer your mourning, well, mournful, Australians will be given a day off this week to mark the Queen’s death. A National Day of Mourning has been declared for Thursday, September 22nd, the day after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese returns from the funeral in London (and the day after the Roebuck’s wet t-shirt contest of course).
The PM told the ABC it will be a one-off national public holiday. “That’s to allow people to pay their respects for the passing of Queen Elizabeth,” he said. “I spoke to all Premiers and chief ministers yesterday and I’m writing to them formally this morning, they will have received their letters by now. They have all agreed that it’s appropriate that it be a one-off national public holiday.”
The Queen’s funeral will also be shown today on ABC News at 8pm AEST, with full coverage beginning from 5pm.
