Larry, the Big Lobster.

The story

The Big Lobster — known to absolutely everyone as Larry — looms over the northern entrance to Kingston SE in South Australia. He is 17 metres tall, 15.2 metres long, 13.7 metres wide, weighs 4 tonnes, and is constructed of steel framework coated in styrofoam and fibreglass. He has been here since 1979, and he is one of Australia's most beloved roadside icons.

The idea came from a local lobster fisherman, Ian Backler, who'd seen something similar in the United States in the mid-1970s and wanted to build a visitor centre to attract people to Kingston SE — a small coastal town in the heart of South Australia's rock lobster industry. He partnered with Rob Moyse, brought in builder Ian Hannaford, and commissioned designer Paul Kelly (not the musician — the same Paul Kelly who'd designed the Big Scotsman in Adelaide back in 1963).

Kelly approached the brief with characteristic thoroughness. He bought an actual lobster, had it taxidermied, and used it as the model. The full structure took six months to build in a warehouse — steel frame, then styrofoam carving for the details, then fibreglass shell. The pieces were transported to Kingston and reassembled on site. The Big Lobster was officially opened on 15 December 1979 by David Tonkin, the Premier of South Australia.

For decades, Larry presided over a thriving complex — restaurant, gift shop, small theatre. By the 2010s, though, he was looking the worse for wear. Paint peeling, claws fading, and there was talk of demolition. In 2016, radio hosts Hamish Blake and Andy Lee launched the #PinchAMate campaign on their national radio show, calling on Australia to save Larry. The publicity worked: enough money was raised to restore him to his original bright red glory.

"Larry the Lobster is the kind of Big Thing that you don't fully appreciate until you see him from a few hundred metres away on the Princes Highway. He is genuinely enormous, and he is genuinely red, and the whole thing is genuinely brilliant." — Adapted from Limestone Coast tourism commentary

Today Larry is owned by Casey Sharpe and Jenna Lawrie, who bought the property in 2007. The on-site complex is now home to Janet's Takeaway, serving everything from full breakfasts to seafood platters, fish and chips, and (despite the Big Lobster's name) no actual lobster on the menu. The original restaurant and theatre inside Larry's body have been variously open and closed over the years; the current configuration uses the structure as a striking visual centrepiece rather than a functional building.

Visiting the Big Lobster

Larry sits at the northern entrance to Kingston SE on the Princes Highway, roughly three hours' drive south of Adelaide along the Limestone Coast. He's impossible to miss; the structure is visible from a kilometre away. Stopping for the photo is free and takes 10 minutes; combining it with a meal at Janet's or a quick swing into Kingston SE itself can easily fill a half-day.

What's at the site

• Larry himself — 17 metres of bright red spiny lobster. The detail is genuinely impressive, especially up close.
• Janet's Takeaway — café with breakfast, seafood platters, fish and chips, burgers, schnitzels. The local café for the region as much as a tourist stop.
• Gift shop — small selection of Larry-themed souvenirs and South Australian regional products.
• Photo opportunities — multiple angles work, but the classic shot is from underneath his raised claw, looking up.
• Rest stop — convenient half-way point for the Adelaide–Mount Gambier drive, with toilets and parking.

What else is nearby

Kingston SE is the gateway to South Australia's Limestone Coast — a stretch of coastline that includes Robe, the Coonawarra wine region around Penola, the Naracoorte Caves (UNESCO World Heritage), and Mount Gambier with its remarkable Blue Lake. See our full Limestone Coast travel guide for the recommended 3–4 day itinerary; the Big Lobster is a logical first stop on a multi-day exploration of the region.

For other Big Things, the closest is the Big Rocking Horse at Gumeracha (3 hours northwest, near Adelaide) — at 18.3m, the only Big Thing taller than Larry. The Big Galah sits at Kimba, 6 hours north on the Eyre Highway.

Trivia worth knowing

• Larry is technically a southern rock lobster — not a true lobster — but "Big Crayfish" never quite caught on.
• The Big Lobster appeared on a 2007 Australia Post commemorative 50c stamp alongside the Big Banana, Big Pineapple, Big Merino, and Big Prawn.
• In 2023, the Royal Australian Mint featured Larry on a commemorative $1 coin in their Aussie Big Things series.
• Designer Paul Kelly used a real, taxidermied lobster as his model — and is also the designer of the Big Scotsman (1963) in Adelaide, the very first Big Thing.
• Larry's #PinchAMate restoration campaign in 2016 was led by radio hosts Hamish Blake and Andy Lee — the campaign raised enough to repaint and restore him to his original colour.
• For nearly 35 years, Larry held the unofficial Guinness record for the world's largest crustacean sculpture — until a 100-tonne crayfish was built in Qianjiang, China in 2015.
• Janet's Takeaway, the current café on-site, doesn't actually serve lobster.

When to visit

The Limestone Coast has a Mediterranean climate — warm summers, cool wet winters. The best months for visiting Larry are October to April, when the days are long and the coast is at its prettiest. The Kingston SE beach is excellent for a swim if you're stopping for any length of time. Avoid Christmas/January if you don't like crowds — the South Australian coast gets busy with holidaymakers, and the Princes Highway service stops fill up.