This lighthearted newsreel story tells of a police raid on a Gold Coast pyjama party in 1959.

Bernie Elsey, a member of the Surfers Paradise Progress Association and owner of the Beachcomber Private Hotel, got the idea of staging pyjama parties from their popularity in London nightclubs.

They took place around the hotel's swimming pool; guests wisely wore swimming costumes under their pyjamas.The hotel was licenced for accommodation but not for the consumption of alcohol on the premises and complaints from neighbours eventually led to police raids.

The nightly raids at 10 pm soon became part of the fun for partygoers. Revellers threw bottles of beer into the pool to prevent confiscation by the police, who reputedly had to strip off their clothes to retrieve them. The controversy gave Elsey free publicity and led to bigger crowds.

This clip is from Cinesound Review No. 1425.