The History of the Manningham Eisteddfod

The Manningham Eisteddfod Society (formerly the Doncaster & Templestowe Eisteddfod Society) was founded in 1969 by a group of local music teachers, including Mrs Benson (the society’s first President), Mrs Joan O’Callaghan (who is still a Committee member today), Mrs Val McKenna, Mrs Mary Corboy and Mrs Gwen Dermody. The group wanted to provide an opportunity for young, local musicians to perform and compete in a friendly environment.

Over the Eisteddfod’s history, the Society has always been run by a team of dedicated volunteers. In recent times, there have been between 10 and 15 people help out every year. Not once has anyone been paid to assist in the running of our program (except of course, adjudicators and accompanists). With all the work planning and running the Eisteddfod, it is estimated that over 600 volunteer hours goes into each annual Eisteddfod!

Over the years, quite a number of famous faces have come through our Eisteddfod and gone on to bigger and better things. Julie Nihill (the publican in Blue Heelers) was quite a star in a number of our speech & drama sections before she forged her successful acting career. As for musicians, Rebecca Chambers, Julie Haskell, Magella Drew and Glenn Riddle are all well-known performers who at various stages graced the Manningham Eisteddfod.

About the Eisteddfod