Seven years after it got the axe, the street parade many locals believed was the heart and soul of Campbelltown’s Fisher’s Ghost Festival will return in 2026.
On Tuesday night, Campbelltown Council voted overwhelmingly in favour of bringing back the parade for the 70th anniversary of the festival.
It will also be the 200th anniversary of the sighting of Fred Fisher’s ghost which gave birth to the legend behind the second biggest festival in Australia.
However, the future of the parade after this year remains uncertain as it has only been given the green light for 2026.
Community First Totally Independent Party leader Josh Cotter, who moved the amendment to have a parade this year, says it’s very important the parade is a success this November in order to secure its future.
“Best thing that could happen is have thousands of people line up in Queen Street, and thousands of people involved in the actual parade itself,’’ he says.
“If you have that nobody can turn a blind eye to having the parade as part of the festival for a long time into the future.’’
Cr Cotter and his Community First colleague Warren Morrison went to the 2024 council promising to bring back the parade.
Both were elected, along with a third councillor, Seta Berbari, who is also an enthusiastic supporter of activations such as the festival and indeed the parade.
Cr Cotter said the decision was a win for people power, and in particular for long time Campbelltown resident Paul Borg, who has been campaigning to bring back the parade for years.
“This a win for the people of Campbelltown, a win for people in general – people power is important and when people are passionate about something and they have their voices heard, things like these can happen,’’ Cr Cotter said.
“We’re just elected to represent the people of Campbelltown, and in this instance I feel that’s what we have been able to do.
“I also want to pay tribute to Paul Borg and the Fisher’s Ghost Advisory committee for their wonderful contributions. It’s going to be really exciting the festival this year.
“Paul was instrumental in leading a whole group of the community, not just leading but him physically going and visiting people, handing flyers, talking to them about nostalgia, and the history of the parade.’’
Mr Borg said the parade should never have been stopped in the first place.
“If we keep throwing our historic events away, we’ll have nothing left,’’ he said.
“We’re talking about the second biggest festival in Australia, and the parade was always a massive part of it.
“That’s why it was a very important decision by council on Tuesday night.
“But we should get it back permanently; the people want it, it’s part of our history.’’