Earl’s Court St Kilda 1959.
Inaugural annual Messinian Ball in Melbourne,
organised by the newly formed
PamMessinian Brotherhood “Papaflessas”
(Παμεσσηνιακή Αδελφότητα «Παπαφλέσσας»)

Pammessinian Brotherhood Papaflessas 8mm film footage film, showing the Messinian community in Melbourne from between 1959-1961

The Messinian community in Melbourne celebrating “23rd March 1821”, the Independence Day of Kalamata and the begining of a free Modern Greece, at the Malvern Town Hall, Victoria, in 1961. Hosted by the PamMessinian Brotherhood “Papaflessas”, founder of the Pan Messinian Federation of Australia and New Zealand.

Copacabana was a Greek Night Club on the corner of Sydney Rd and Phoenix St in Brunswick Victoria Australia.
Owned by migrants from the region of Kalamata Messinia in the Peloponnese, it quickly became a popular entertainment venue for the new migrants from the Peloponnese, living in Melbourne. The Pammessinian Brotherhood “Papaflessas” and the many others in the Messinian community held celebrations there, like this one from 1959. The venue continued with Greek nights till Friday 10th of March 1978, when it hosted Rock nights under the name “Bombay Rock”, that would become one of Australia’s most iconic live music venues that played host to bands such as INXS, Australian Crawl, The Angels, Cold Chisel, The Sunnyboys, Skyhooks, The Knack, Bo Diddley, Dragon, Australian Crawl, The Aliens, Lobby Loyde, Contraband, TMG, Men at Work, The Radiators, Mental as Anything, Divinyls, Models, Paul Kelly and the Dots, James Freud and the Radio Stars, La Femme, The Reels, The Scientists and JPY. The venue also played host to international bands such as The Cure, The Vapors, Major Matchbox, Magazine, The Knack, Graham Parker, George Thorogood and the Destroyers and many others. By the mid 80s it was once again filled with patrons of Greek heritage, when the children of the 60s patrons returned to boogie in the venues new ‘Disco’ era.