Gary Murphy was a boxer in Roy Sharman's show, before working at Ashton's circus, putting up tents. Murphy spent time in the Collarenbri area taking on shearing work and any other odd jobs he could find. In 1970, he moved to Walgett with his family where he became involved with local politics and was the treasurer of the Walgett Aboriginal Lands Council from 1993-1995.
Murphy's great-grandfather Ted Murphy was an Irishman who came to the Walgett area with the first explorers in around 1850.
(Main source: Zagar, C., Goodbye Riverbank: The Barwon-Namoi People tell their story, Magabala Books, 2000).
