Ekka Wednesday *

The Ekka holiday is normally the 6th day of The Royal Queensland Show and is a public holiday for people living and working within Brisbane city. It is also known as Ekka People’s Day and Brisbane Show Day. In 2026, the Ekka public holiday falls on Wednesday 12 August. The holiday will be on Wednesday 11 August in 2027. *Note: Brisbane only. The Royal Queensland Show is more popularly referred to as “the Ekka Show,” “Ekka” being a kind of abbreviation for “exhibition.” The show is held annually for 10 days straight in early to mid August. It was originally called “the Brisbane Exhibition,” and it is still held on the Brisbane Exhibition Ground in Bowen Hills, a suburb of Brisbane only about a kilometre from the city centre. The first Ekka Show was held in 1876 as an Australian equivalent to the International Exhibitions being held in the UK at the time. It drew around 17,000 visitors, rather high numbers for its day but nothing compared to the 500,000 or so who come to the Ekka Show nowadays. Originally, the show’s purpose was to display agricultural and industrial products of the city and region. This is still a major element of the show, but in reality, it has burgeoned into an event with many different aspects to it. Probably the most important competition is the cattle judging, in which over 1,000 head of cattle compete for the coveted blue ribbon and the grand status of “Champion of Champions.” You can see hundreds of different kinds of animals at the show-grounds, including: milk and beef cows, cats, dogs, fish, chickens, turkeys, horses, ponies, goats, sheep, ducks, pigs, alpacas, and more. There are animal parades, an “animal boulevard,” and an animal nursery. There are numerous “non-animal” competitions as well, including in wood chopping, in whip cracking, and a fashion parade. There are educational, agricultural, equestrian, and flower and garden exhibits. There are live musical performances, a sideshow alley with numerous carnival-style rides, school bands and choirs, demonstrations of farm and wilderness survival skills, cheese making workshops, and fireworks displays every night. Besides what was already mentioned above, some other worthwhile things to do at the Royal Queensland Show in Brisbane include: Anyone visiting Queensland in August should try to put the Royal Queensland, or “Ekka,” show on their itinerary. There is no other experience quite like it, and it only comes once a year.