Warrnambool’s wombat street art is a happy accident : Jimmi was testing out a temporary street art design on the bridge next door, only to find it had been made permanent by the guy who used to get rid of graffiti. This is the story of how the town of Warrnambool wound up with its distinctive new art, that’s gone viral, with over 58 million views on the Facebook video.
The YouTube video has had over 102,000 views…video by Emily Bissland @ ABC South West Victoria
This is the funny story of the temporary wombat artwork by Jimmi Buscombe, which unexpectedly became a permanent piece of street art, due to Phil Hoye secretly preserving it forever, in Warrnambool, Australia, and now going viral around the World.
This real-life comedy of errors brought together two unlikely friends that were divided by the wall of the railway bridge, between their homes. Now they are great mates due to this wombat.
The Facebook video had over 16 million views in the first 12 days…video by Emily Bissland @ ABC South West Victoria
The “Accidental wombat mural in Warrnambool” video was uploaded by ABC South West ViC on Wednesday 1st August 2018, and had over 12 million views within the first week of being uploaded, and over 21 million views in the first 3 weeks, and a total of 38 million views in 2 months. The video now has over 58 million views (December 2019).
Featured on Sunrise TV on Sunday 12th August 2018 :
Where is the wombat mural in Warrnambool?
The wombat mural by Jimmi Buscombe can be seen at the Otway Road rail overpass bridge.
The Google Street View of the bridge location (before the wombat mural appeared on the left side)
About the artist ~ Jimmi Buscombe
aka The Wombat Man of Warrnambool
Jimmi Buscombe is a professional artist based on the Great Ocean Road in Victoria, Australia. He specialises in highly detailed portraiture, utilizing various methods and mediums, which include pencils, paints and pastels, creating stunning life like artworks. Read more about Jimmi
visit Jimmi Buscombe’s art website : JimmiBuscombe.com
Jimmi Buscombe’s art for sale :
BlueThumb.com.au/Jimmi-Buscombe
Jimmi Buscombe on social media :
Facebook.com/JimmiBuscombeArtist
over 16,000 people liked the Jimmi Buscombe Artist page, and over 17,000 people are followers (July 2019)
instagram.com/jimmi_buscombe_artist
over 3000 followers (December 2019)
About Phil Hoye
The man that preserved the Warrnambool wombat art forever
Phil Hoye lives in Warnnambool, originally from Gooroc near St Arnaud, in Victoria. He was once the graffiti removalist contractor for Warrnambool City Council. Phil is a involved in a local business, Country 2 Coast Painting Services.
Facebook.com/Country-2-Coast-Painting-Services…
About Emily Bissland
The wombat mural video producer
Emily Bissland is the Senior Features Reporter for ABC South West Victoria, based in Warrnambool. Emily produces feature stories across multiple platforms including video, audio, photography and ABC Online articles. more about Emily Bissland at Open ABC & ABC.net.au | Facebook.com/Emily.Bissland.abc
More about the wombat mural
Warrnambool’s popular wombat mural a happy accident ~ ABC South West Vic By Emily Bissland and Matt Neal (2nd August 2018)
Wombat Bridge Mural ~ WarrnamboolStreetArt.com : Warrnambool Street Art is an initiative of the Warrnambool City Council
Warrnambool Wombat Street Art ~ Animated video by Shaun on Youtube (user/Films789) This is a homemade cartoon animation about the Warrnambool wombat mural…
Talk about the Warrnambool wombat in America
HiS Morning Crew’s Rob Dempsey, Alison Storm and Jim Mann discuss the Warrnambool wombat mural on HiS Radio in USA.
Notable people connected with Warrnambool
- Dave Hughes the comedian, radio & television presenter was born in Warrnambool in 1970, where he attended Christian Brothers’ College. Hughesy co-hosts Hughesy & Kate on the radio, and hosts Hughesy, We Have a Problem on TV.
- Tom Ballard the openly gay comedian, radio & television presenter was born in Warrnambool in 1989, where he attended Brauer Secondary College. Tom is best known as host of Tonightly with Tom Ballard, a news and culture TV program on ABC Comedy channel, since 2017.
- Alex Dyson the radio presenter was born in Warrnambool in 1988, where he began his radio career on Warrnambool community radio station, 3WAY FM with Tom Ballard. Alex isbest known as a host on Triple J
- Smoky Dawson the country music performer briefly lived in Warrnambool.
- Ben Barber the actor on Neighbours grew up in Warrnambool.
- Paul Jennings the children’s author lives in Warrnambool.
- Sir John Eccles the Nobel Prize winner in physiology or medicine attended Warrnambool High School (now College).
- Brian Fitzpatrick the author, historian, journalist, and one of the founders of the Australian Council for Civil Liberties, was born in Warrnambool.
- Danielle Green a Member of Victorian Parliament was raised and educated in Warrnambool.
- Sally Walker the Law Professor, Vice-Chancellor & President of Deakin University studied at Warrnambool College.
- Airbourne the hard rock band formed in Warrnambool in 2003.
- Jono Pech the author and podcast host from Warrnambool.
- Jimmi Buscombe the artist that drew a wombat on a bridge in Warrnambool.
- Phil Hoye the bloke that saved Jimmi’s wombat art on the bridge in Warrnambool.
About Warrnambool
Warrnambool is a large town on the south-western coast of Victoria, Australia, with a population of 34,618 (June 2016). Warrnambool is located at the western end of the Great Ocean Road on the Princes Highway, and at the southern end of the Hopkins Highway.
The word Warrnambool originates from the local indigenous Australian name for a nearby volcanic cone, and also interpreted to mean land between two rivers, two swamps or ample water.
The first documented European discovery of Warrnambool was in 1800, by Lieutenant James Grant, a Scottish explorer who sailed the Lady Nelson along the coast and named several features.
Visit Warrnambool
I Am Warrnambool video : Warrnambool offers spectacular beauty and wild nature of the raw Southern Ocean, beside the city lifestyle experience. This combination offers a great variety of opportunities for relaxation, refined refreshment, adventure and rejuvenation, as you’ll see on this video…
Visit Warrnambool website “I am Warrnambool”
The website by Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism provides a main menu featuring : Where to stay, What to see & do, What’s on, and Getting there. Plan your visit with suggested itineraries that cover local coffee spots, beaches and lookouts. The Holiday Blog helps you discover the hidden secrets of Warrnambool from other holiday makers, with tips on trips with kids, the best eating spots, and things to do on rainy days.
Flagstaff Hill @ Warrnambool ~ experience history…
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ABC News links
ABC News website : abc.net.au/news
ABC News YouTube Videos : YouTube.com/user/NewsOnABC
ABC Twitter account: Twitter.com/ABCnews
ABC Facebook page : Facebook.com/ABCnews.au
ABC instagram : instagram.com/ABCnews_au
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About wombats
Wombats are a stumpy muscular marsupial, with short legs, and a small stubby tail. They are native to Australia, and found in forested, mountainous, and shrubland areas. Wombats are approximately 1 meter (40 inches) in length, and weigh between 20 and 35 kilograms (44 to 77 pound).
10 Things You Didn’t Know About Wombats by Wicked Wildlife (video uploaded in April 2019 ~ over 2300 views)…
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Jimmi will keep you posted about the wombat happenings on Facebook…
Jimmi painting an emu art mural on this Facebook video uploaded on Sunday, the 29th December 2019
Phil Hoye commentating about Jimmi’s painting performance on Sunday 29th December 2019
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This page was last updated on the 30th December 2019
