FOR decades, the Giant Murray Cod has stood proudly as one of Swan Hill’s most recognisable icons.
However not many know of the history behind how it actually got here, and how one Swan Hill resident is responsible for it.
Sitting off the Murray Valley Highway outside the Swan Hill train station, the gigantic fish has been a tourist magnet for more than 20 years.
Despite now being a household name in the town very few people actually know the history surrounding this extraordinary fish.
Coming to life in 1991, the Giant Murray Cod was designed and built as a prop for the movie Eight Ball.
Originally constructed out of steel and timber, the cod measured a whopping 14 metres in length and stood at three metres high when it was used as a key focal point in the ’90s movie.
Filmed in Melbourne in 1991, the movie Eight Ball followed an architect and a recently released prisoner working together to build a huge fish, a gigantic Murray Cod, the kind once found in abundance in the Murray River.
This big fish was intended to act as an eccentric tourist attraction to encourage tourists to visit the small outback Australian town of Swan Hill.
Upon the completion on the filming of the movie, it was set to be scrapped, however one man decided to save the big fish.
Knowing that the Giant Murray Cod could be repurposed, Swan Hill resident Chris Willox suggested the prop came back to Swan Hill with him.
“I was down on the site where they were filming the movie doing a job and I asked one of the blokes, what are you going to do with that big fish?” he said.
“He said they were just going to scrap it and I initially thought that would be a bit of a waste.
“I later thought that it’d make a good tourist attraction, so I came back up to Swan Hill and a mate of mine, Gary, was on the town council at the time. I gave him a ring and that is where my part ended.
“He went on and they agreed on the idea and the giant cod was hauled up to Swan Hill from Melbourne.
“That’s what I was thinking, the council could make something of it and advertise it as a tourist attraction for the town.
“I remember I was talking to someone over at the rotary club and you know just saying how much of a shame it would be for it to be scrapped.”
Many are still unaware of just how much of a part Mr Wilcox played in the saving and relocation of the Giant Murray Cod, as without his role it would not be here today.
As it was being prepared to be moved to Swan Hill, the Giant Murray Cod was nicknamed Arnold by the film crew, a name that has since stuck.
After being donated to the Swan Hill community, a variety of local clubs including the Lions, Rotary and fishing clubs as well as Swan Hill Promotion and Development, now known as Swan Hill Inc, donated money and resources to fibreglass the cod and erect it in the town.
When Arnold arrived in Swan Hill there were countless talks as to where would be a suitable place for him to stand, with VicRoads stopping the original proposal for Arnold to stand adjacent to the intersection of Curlewis and McCallum streets due to safety concerns.
This then led to Arnold being placed in his current location where he has stood since.
Following Arnold’s installation in the town, it officially opened in November 1991 to signify Swan Hill as the “Gateway to Inland Fishing”.
In the years to follow the Swan Hill Rural City Council installed a barbecue area next to the cod and a sign showcasing a bit of regional history of the river.
“That’s about it, that’s how the big fish became an icon in this town,” Mr Willox said.
Today, Arnold the Giant Murray Cod is more than just a remnant of cinema history.
Sitting outside of the Swan Hill train station and only walking distance to the Murray River, he serves as a reminder of Swan Hill’s connection to the river, its rich Indigenous and fishing history.
Locals and tourists alike go to admire the enormous cod that put Swan Hill on the map as he joins the list of “Big Things” alongside the Big Banana in Coffs Harbour, NSW, and the Big Pineapple on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland.
Arnold has even come as far as having a collectors dollar coin and stamp made with it printed on as a piece of cinema history.
Arnold, the Giant Murray Cod’s journey from a movie set prop to the star of Swan Hill showcases the power of creativity and community spirit.
Thanks to one man’s determination, a what would have been discarded prop found a second life while serving as a symbol within the Swan Hill community.
