Westbury residents opposed to the state government's proposed Northern prison have staged a satirical performance in the heart of the town, invoking the legend of Lady Godiva.
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Lady Godiva was an English noblewoman who was said to have ridden naked through the streets of Coventry to protest a tax imposed by her husband Leofric, the Earl of Mercia.
The Westbury Region Against the Prison group gathered on the Village Green on Sunday afternoon, garbed in colourful and outlandish costumes, to recreate Lady Godiva's story - with a local twist.
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Donning the flowing white dress of Lady Godiva was Westbury resident Anne-Marie Loader, while the Earl of Westbury was played by a woman who preferred not to be named.
"Oh, evil Earl!" Lady Godiva cried, as the performance moved up the street to the Town Hall. "The blight that you want to place on our beloved village - we plead and beg you to please remove this terrible prison."
"I shall run with my faux shamrocks all around Westbury, if you would only take us away from this evil thing.
"I have a petition from all the villagers."
The Earl then further raised the hackles of Lady Godiva and her supporters.
"I might have to do a survey," he said, to groans from the townspeople.
Ultimately, however, the Earl of Westbury left it up to his faithful dog Jack to decide whether the government should abandon its plan to build the Northern Regional Prison at the Valley Central Industrial Precinct on Birralee Road.
Wagging his tail, Jack prompted this response from the Earl: "When he wags his tail like that, it's a yes".
The townspeople then erupted into a spirited rendition of For He's a Jolly Good Fellow.
After the lighthearted performance, WRAP spokeswoman Linda Poulton - dressed as a "haggard medieval peasant" - adopted a more serious tone when addressing reporters.
"We were hoping to have something back from the phone survey [of Westbury residents] that was conducted recently," Ms Poulton said, referring to a survey gauging support for the prison that was carried out by SGS Economics on behalf of the government.
"[Corrections Minister Elise Archer] said it was going to be out in February [but] nothing's come out.
"She's heard everything we've had to say about it. We'd like to hear back from her."
Ms Archer said there was still a mail-out survey of the region to be conducted this month and that a final report on the findings of both surveys would be released publicly in April.
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Rob Inglis
Rob Inglis is a reporter with The Examiner, covering state and federal politics. He is based in Hobart.
Rob Inglis is a reporter with The Examiner, covering state and federal politics. He is based in Hobart.
