The City of Port Phillip has officially opened Seekers Way in St Kilda. The new street name honours The Seekers, the Melbourne group that started more than sixty years ago and went on to win fans around the world. Patrick Donovan and founding member Bruce Woodley spoke at the ceremony, reflecting on the band’s roots in the area.
Donovan spoke on behalf of Keith Potger, who could not be there. Potger remembered the group’s first performance in 1961 at the Treble Clef Coffee Lounge in South Yarra. He also talked about arriving in Australia as a child in 1948 and living only a short walk from what is now Seekers Way. St Kilda Park was where he played and went to school. The nearby streets, cafes and music spots helped shape the band’s beginning.
Watch the speeches by Bruce Woodley and Patrick Donovan here
Bruce Woodley grew up less than a kilometre from the new street. He said music was everywhere in St Kilda when he was young and that the local scene pushed him to explore it further. He remembered long rehearsals, meetings and plenty of laughs at Judith Durham’s office. Those sessions helped define the sound that later made The Seekers the first Australian group to break through internationally. Woodley thanked the City of Port Phillip for recognising the band’s place in music history.
The ceremony highlighted how much the area meant to the band. It has been 63 years since Judith Durham joined Keith, Athol and Bruce. A building near the new street once held their management office and served as a space for rehearsals, contract talks, birthday gatherings and planning. Potger said that place helped keep the group moving forward.
Local singer songwriter Jess Hitchcock performed The Carnival Is Over at the dedication. Her version of the classic touched the crowd and tied the band’s past to the present. It served as a reminder of why The Seekers remain loved in Australia and beyond.
Speakers said St Kilda gave the band a place to grow. In the 1950s and 1960s, cafes, pubs and early jazz clubs gave young artists room to experiment. Folk, blues and gospel found audiences. Four people with different goals met through that world and created music that reached across the globe. The new street name connects their success back to the neighbourhood that shaped them. It also nods to the group’s immigrant story, their friendship and a career that has lasted generations. As Potger put it, everyone deserves a path built on respect and care.
Stay updated with your free Noise11.com daily music news email alert. Subscribe to Noise11 Music News here
Be the first to see NOISE11.com’s newest interviews and special features on YouTube. See things first—Subscribe to Noise11 on YouTube
Follow Noise11.com on social media:
Bluesky
Facebook – Comment on the news of the day
