BRISBANE, Australia — Bill Hauritz, the impresario who launched the Woodford Folk Festival, one of Australia’s largest and longest-running camping fests, and a treasure in the live events calendar, has died at 71.

The show began life as the Maleny Folk Festival in 1987, an end-of-year gathering on the Sunshine Coast hinterland. As word spread of its unique vibe, the festival outgrew its site and the party was relocated to the 500-acre cultural parkland, Woodfordia, the heart of which is the iconic, natural open-air ampitheater.

Today, the six-day fest rings in the new year with about 120,000 guests and 2,000 artists, and is said to be Australia’s biggest annual gathering of its kind. Former Australian prime minister Bob Hawke was a regular Woodford VIP, and gave his final recorded interv

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