- When Bonnie walked into a topless bar at 18 years-old, she had no idea it would set up her life’s career path
- But Bonnie had her heart set on becoming a stripper, even announcing it to her parents
- She quickly got a reputation around Rockhampton and was in demand for her stripping
- Later, she started doing XXX shows and was hired for gigs all over Central Queensland
- Bonnie Tonic, from Mackay, Qld., tells how she became known as The Outback Stripper
The scent of beer and cigarettes flooded my nostrils as I approached the front bar at the Savoy Hotel.
It was the main topless bar in Rockhampton, Qld, and for years I’d walked past, intrigued by the cheers coming from within.
Now I’d turned 18, I was old enough to see what all the fuss was about!
As the staff disrobed, they were met with ecstatic cries of approval.
I basked in the energetic atmosphere, admiring the confidence of these beautiful women strutting their stuff.
That looks like fun, I thought.
Read more: I’m a mortician by day and stripper by night!
My family had always been sex positive and nudity wasn’t taboo.
With the courage of a few beers, I spontaneously lifted my top and flashed the room.
Everyone cheered. For years, bullies called me tall, ugly, and flat-chested, so this was a confidence boost.
In school, I’d wanted to be a musical theatre star, but I was too uncoordinated to do the rigid choreography.
But strippers create their own moves and still get paid.
“I want to become a stripper,” I told my mum, Terese, the next day.
“If you do, I’ll disown you,” she blurted. But later, she explained her concern.
“Please don’t do drugs,” she said.
“I won’t,” I laughed. “I just want to perform.”
“As long as you stay true to yourself, I’ll support you,” she said, smiling.
I promised I’d stay my true-blue, bogan self.
That week, I answered an ad in the paper and was soon working as a topless waitress and accompanying other strippers to private events.
Before long, I felt like a local celeb around Rocky.
“Best boobs in Central Queensland!” one man called to me at the shops.
“Cheers mate, hope you had a good night,” I said.
At one buck’s party, I saw my first XXX show, where the naked performer used erotic toys in her routine. But she stayed in one spot and didn’t synchronise with the music.
I could do better than that, I thought and I had a go at XXX shows.
Channelling Liza Minnelli in Cabaret, I’d seductively remove clothing in time with the music.
Then, I’d use props like lollies which I’d hand out to an enchanted audience.
“Every good show needs a grand finale,” I’d declare to the crowd, before producing a bottle of bubbly.
I’d figured out how to sit back on a chair and squirt the champagne into the air without using my mouth. It always got a standing ovation. Before long, I was booked for gigs far and wide.
Strip shows are a rite of passage at buck’s parties and big birthdays, but rural communities miss out.
I was willing to drive hundreds of kilometres to provide this service. At times, my dad, Brad, came along to ensure my safety.
Often, the event would be held in a back paddock and I’d have to improvise a stage. And once I did my striptease on the back of a ute!
“Aren’t you cold?” one bloke asked.
“No darlin’, I’m the one moving around,” I laughed.
For decades, I was known as the Outback Stripper across Central Queensland.
It was a joy to bring a smile to so many faces.
I’ve now moved to Mackay to run an adult shop and manage the strip agency Delicious Entertainment, training younger girls in the art of adult entertainment.
“Bring your personality to the show,” I encourage them.
Now I’m in my 40s, my audience has become multigenerational.
“I performed for your dad once,” I told a birthday boy recently.
It’s nice that after all these years my show’s still highly sought after. I’m riding this outback train as far as it’ll go.
