Cockie Duggan Flies Again
While many people will be taking time off to mark the King’s Birthday this year, a small group in North Melbourne will be celebrating the long life of another mighty ruler – a sulphur crested cockatoo, known as Cockie Duggan, who reigned supreme at The Courthouse Hotel on Errol Street for many years. Cockie lived with the Duggan family, who were owners of the hotel from 1908 to 1960, and he spent his final years at Melbourne Zoo. By all accounts, he was a rebellious bird who imitated what he heard outside the men’s toilets at the hotel, and who liked to escape the confines of the yard by flying to the top of the flagpole on the town hall.
Cockie’s story came to light when local writer Brendan Gleeson was researching the history of the neighbourhood. Brendan wrote his ‘Ode to the King’ in memory of this notable bird, and the poem now hangs in a corner of The Courthouse, with a fine drawing based on early photographs. Brendan and a group known loosely as ‘The Friends of Cockie Duggan’ have initiated Cockie Duggan Day, an event which is enthusiastically supported by staff at The Courthouse. This year, there will be songs and poems to honour Cockie and other memorable birds. Melbourne musicians, The Taylor Project, will play a set of songs on themes of flight and freedom.
All Welcome at The Courthouse, Saturday, 14 June 2025, 4.00 pm to 5.30 pm.
Fly, Cockie, fly!
RSVP Stephen Regan (s.p.regan@icloud.com)