page_title: List of drive-in theatres in Australia
section_title: Queensland
hierarchical_section_title: List of drive-in theatres in Australia / By state / Queensland
caption_attribution_description: English: Boondall Drive-In May 1958. (St Joseph's Nudgee College at bottom of image). (use of aerial Images was approved by the Department Natural Resources and Mines, Queensland)
context_page_description: Drive-in theatres were once very popular in Australia. Although considered an American invention there is evidence of outdoor cinemas in Western Australia where some patrons attended in their cars as far back as 1938, and it is possible that these facilities may even predate the first American-style drive-in theatre.
context_section_description: Queensland had at one stage over fifty drive-ins. Now all of the suburban Brisbane drive-in theatres have closed leaving the Tivoli Drive-In in Ipswich, and the Gold Coast's Yatala as the closest drive-in theatres to Brisbane. In rural Queensland however, there are still a number of drive-in theatres operating.
  Brisbane's first drive-in was the Capalaba which opened in 1955. The Boondall Drive-in opened on 8 February 1956, at the time it had the largest  screen in Australia. Kids were well catered for with a Merry-Go-Round, miniature Cobb & Co coach and Shetland Ponies to ride (Brisbane Telegraph, 6 Feb 1956).  The site of the Boondall Drive-In has now been developed into housing.
  The Burleigh Heads Drive-in was one of Queensland's first drive-ins when it opened in 1957 with a 500 car capacity. It was followed by the Starlight drive-in at Aspley, which was opened in January 1957 (at a cost of £100,000). Fourth to open, in April 1957, was Hoyts Skyline Drive-in located at Coopers Plains at a cost of £200,000. It could hold 650 cars on its 17 acres and also had a children's railway line, putt putt, badminton facilities and a dance floor.
  The Starline Drive-In opened near Ipswich in the early 1960s. Other drive-ins opened in and around Brisbane in the late 1960s, early 1970s. These included the Keperra, the Western at Oxley, the Galaxy at Cannon Hill and the Redcliffe Drive-In on the city's northern outskirts.
  In 2002 a small boutique drive-in was opened in Wonga (north of Gympie), with a second screen added in 2004, increasing it to a 250 car capacity. A third screen was subsequently added; however in January 2010 the drive-in closed, when its owner went into receivership. In September 2010 a new owner took over the operation of the drive-in reopening in December that year. The drive-in has recently closed.
  Ayr Stardust Drive In, Ayr
  The Stardust drive-in was opened in September 1964, with a capacity of 360 cars. Built within the grounds is a hardtop cinema, so patrons can choose between outdoor and indoor movies.
  Yatala 3 Drive-In (3 screens), Yatala
  The Yatala Drive-In is the Gold Coast's last open-air drive-in theatre (in an area which formerly had over 20 drive-in theatres), formerly Beenleigh Drive-In, it opened on 27 October 1974, and in 2000 the theatre was renamed Yatala Twin Drive-In when a second screen was added. A third screen was added in 2013.
  Charters Towers Tors Drive-In, Charters Towers
  The Charters Towers Tors drive-in was opened in 1966 and has two screens with capacity for 300 cars.
  Jericho Drive in, Jericho
  The Jericho drive-in is the smallest public drive-in located in Australia, and possibly the world, with a capacity for 36 cars. It was opened in 1969. Movies are screened once a month.
  Rodeo Drive In Mareeba,  Mareeba
  The Mareeba Rodeo drive-in was built by Far Northern Theatres in the 1960s. Far Northern Theatres had a circuit that extended right through far northern Queensland and into Papua New Guinea. The circuit was sold to Birch Carrol & Coyle in the 1970s. In the mid-1980s, Birch Carrol & Coyle pulled out and the Rodeo was sold to Norm Janke. Janke operated the drive-in until 1998 when it closed. It subsequently re-opened in 2002, with a 300 car capacity.
caption: Boondall Drive-In, May 1958
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