Unseen hands that signed the papers

A NSW couple who lost their fortune in the collapse of Storm Financial said some of their home-loan documents had been witnessed by bankers they had never met, working from an office in Nambour, Queensland, that they had never visited.

Try This On For Size

Charles Purcell suggests 40 things to have a crack at in 2009. You know you want to . . . If you're an unreconstructed male, take your better half to compete in the Australian Wife Carrying Championships.

The Wunderkind

Phillip Hudson has been asking around about Alister Jordan, who wields more power and influence than politicians a generation his senior.

Pineapple Coup Is The Fruit Of Fertile Northern Minds

QUEENSLANDERS tend to become puffed up with such provincial self-esteem they're in danger of bursting when sons and daughters of their state gain notoriety.

The Unfunny Lament Of The Library Dork

Questioned on his salute of George Bush at last weekend's NATO summit, Kevin Rudd issued the classic library dork's lament: "Not everyone understands my slightly quirky sense of humour." Well, Kevin, help is at hand. In a world exclusive, The Big Bluff can reveal some of the comic routines the Prime Minister plans to unveil over the next 12 months. For ease of understanding, I have included a line-by-line explanation for each.

Books

Reading between the lines PEOPLE OF THE BOOK Geraldine Brooks HarperCollins, $32.99

Nervous Batsman, Sticky Wicket

Wayne Swan is Treasurer because Kevin Rudd has confidence in his schoolmate colleague. But is the Treasurer confident in himself? Annabel Crabb and Phillip Coorey report.

No Room Left For Left In Kevin's Revolutionary Talk About Education

KEVIN Rudd has been talking about an education revolution since January. In fact, the self-confessed nerd of Nambour High's class of 1974 has claimed his one wish for his future is to be the country's "education prime minister". Federal Education Minister Julie Bishop says the education revolution is a "sham". She says Labor has "vacated the field of ideas".

Pat And Lara's Beautiful Boy

DOTING PARENTS: Pat Rafter and Lara Feltham cuddle their new-born son Joshua. Lara presented Pat with the bouncing baby boy after a long labour, according to Pat's father Jim. The baby was born at the Selangor Private Hospital at Nambour on the Queensland Sunshine Coast. Feltham is believed to have favoured a water birth.

Ladies And Gentlemen, Meet An Australian No.1: Patrick Rafter

Before he became a highly paid professional tennis player, Patrick Rafter was a scruffy little country kid with an oversized racquet. He used to have lessons at the local tennis club in Nambour, Queensland.

Ridgy-didge, It's The Big Didgeridoo

Coffs Harbour has the Big Banana, Nambour the Big Pineapple and Goulburn the Big Merino.

Farmers Lose A Long-time Friend

Legendary long range forecaster Lennox Walker, who supplied vital weather information to farmers around Australia, has died. Mr Walker, 75, died on Sunday night in the Selangor Hospital at Nambour on Queensland's Sunshine Coast after a battle with cancer. Born in Sydney, Mr Walker was a ja

Surf Tragedy

Two women drowned and a man was taken to hospital yesterday after getting into trouble in the surf on Queensland's Sunshine Coast. Paramedic Paul Shaw said the man in his early 40s was taken to Nambour General Hospital suffering from exhaustion after almost drowning in surf at Discovery Beach. <

(sex, Sex, Sex)

As Josef Christianson prepares to be beastly in the Sydney Dance Company's Beauty and the Beast, he tells STEPHEN DUNNE that strange beds make him happy. Josef Christianson is calling from somewhere in the wilds of Queensland. "I'm in Gladstone. It's north, north of Nambour. We've got

Martin's Hungry For Fifth Open

MICHELLE Martin has bounced back from a mystery form slump confident she can win her fifth straight British Open squash title in April. In a bid to regain the No1 ranking she held for three years, Martin has enlisted the help of another former world champion, her brother Rodney. Nambour, north

Valley Views Lend A Real Country Air

TEMPLESTOWE. $350,000-plus. 12 Nambour Road, Templestowe. Brick, 11 rooms. Land: 0.4 hectare approx. Auction: 11am, Saturday 30 March by Philip Webb (9842 1477). ``A stylish colonial-style home with character and charm." - Peter Kaikos, Philip Webb. Best features: rolling lawns and

Jockey Badly Hurt In Four-horse Fall

BRISBANE jockey Jamie Bayliss was rushed to Nambour Hospital unconscious after a horror four-horse fall at Caloundra yesterday. Bayliss suffered head injuries when he crashed from Satan's Landing at the half-mile mark in the sixth race. A helicopter was on stand-by at Nambour to fly

Curry-kenny Races Again

LISA Curry-Kenny, 31, is poised to bid for 1994 Commonwealth Games selection. Curry-Kenny, who has been in training at Nambour with former top Sydney coach John Rodgers for several months, will compete in 50m freestyle and 50m butterfly events at Brisbane's Chandler Pool today. Since

A Little Stir

SIR: Sometimes little men like to have a play with us, to "stir up the women". However, Gordon Matheson (Letters, December 26) may not realise that simple folk from places not so sophisticated as Nambour, Queensland, do not always understand the joke. A couple of points should b

A Puerile Attempt

SIR: In response to "Strange creatures" (Letters, December 26) by Gordon Matheson, of Nambour, I say strange creatures, indeed | While he ponders the mystery of Western women and their use of make-up, and the suggestion that the lack of representation in the art world is due to t