New Ekka attractions A family favourite in America for decades, Funnel Cakes finally make their debut at the Royal Queensland show. Similar in molecular composition to a doughnut, funnel cake batter is poured into super hot rice bran oil in a squiggly circular fashion, and cooked until crispy on the outside but fluffy on the inside. Assorted toppings such as cream, ice-cream, strawberries and hot chocolate fudge add to the fun. "It's amazingly delicious," says co-owner Christina Prater, who grew up on funnel cake treats at local shows during her childhood in Orlando, Florida. Prater and her crew are Ekka veterans, but their "World Famous Funnel Cakes" stall is a brand new addition - the stall was in fact only built three weeks ago. It's a glorious throwback to old circus days, with staff in costume, performing tricks, and vintage movietone footage projected on the back wall. "We just want to entertain and make it a real show," Prater says. Peppa Pig delighted the littlies last year, but her new show features little brother George for the first time. "It's all about play," says director Troy Sussman, who says children just adore the mischievous porcine and her friends. You get a mix of kids who are stunned, and can't move because they cannot believe they're in the same room as Peppa. Then you get the really energetic child who runs up to the stage and hands her drawings. But parents of Peppa proteges need to be proactive - the CommBank Auditorium will fill up, so make sure you get in line early to bring home the bacon. The RNA has spent big bucks on its huge new night program, Ekka Ignites 360, in an effort to draw more punters. Singer Ricki-Lee Coulter is the big drawcard, performing a specially choreographed show on five stages in the main arena. But executive producer Jack Ellison, who ran stunts on the James Bond film Quantum of Solace, says every aspect has the audience in mind. "Everything's designed to give a 360-degree experience," he says. It's probably one of the biggest multi-media productions in Australia. Backing that up are the stats: a technical crew of 40, 15 firing points for fireworks; four motorised moving fire points; 20 stunt kites with fireworks; six human pyrotechnicians; six pyrotechnic and laser equipped water fountains, 40 movable lights, 24 fire jets around the arena and a sound system used at the London Olympics. The 23-minute spectacular will also feature Iron Man and a jet pack flyer. "We hope to blow everyone away," says Ellison. For the first time, Sam Xuereb is bringing his self-made monster truck "The Devil's Taxi" to the main arena. "I'm the mad scientist, I like coming up with new acts," he says. His party piece for the entertainment program is doing a 150 metre wheelie, a trick that's set a Guinness Record. Xuereb says he's getting better at doing the wheelie slower, giving more time for people to take it in. I'll make it last a good five seconds, I hope. Dennis the Sandman started sand sculpting to play with his young son. Twenty years later, he's a world champion in both the soft-pack and hard-compaction strands of sand sculpture, creating beautiful art out of the simplest of materials. This year, people can head to the Stockman's Rest chill-out zone to see Dennis at work, or to take a workshop with him. "There's no limitations to what you can build with sand... although you need a little bit of creativity," he says. Dennis says sand-sculpting shows personality types quite quickly. There's two types of people, builders and destroyers, and it's quite evident from kindy age which ones they are. Would you have to be nuts to spend $220 on a showbag? Maybe, but you sure get a lot of nuts for your dough. Bob King from Morish Nuts says their $220 Decadent Showbag was deliberately put together to reclaim the title of "The Most Expensive Showbag." It features 32 food products - nuts, popcorn, nougat and chocolates - plus non-alcoholic wine and its own wheelie esky, with a retail value of $330. "We'll be happy to sell 10 or 12 across the show," King says. Nut fans shouldn't fear - Morish have other bags from $15 to $40. At the other end of the scale, you can still pick up some small bags for $1, including the old faithful, Bertie Beetle. Bertie's actually celebrating 50 years at the show this year, and to celebrate you can buy a special $15 Bertie bag, containing... you guessed it, 50 Bertie Beetles.