Oatmeal sloshes out of pots and into stovetop flames as contestants frantically fumble with their finishing touches. The timer is ticking down but spectators clap and cheer, their whoops ringing through the rafters of Pearl Beach memorial community hall before a voice cuts through the chaos: “please make way for the porridge carriers”.The five cooks step back, glance at each other’s mess, and hope they’ve done enough.This is the first heat of Australia’s inaugural porridge-making championship.For 32 years, Carrbridge in Scotland – approximately 17,000km away – has been home to the world porridge-making championship, called the Golden Spurtle.But the competition has received renewed international attention thanks in part to the 2025 documentary The Golden Spurtle, directed by Australian Constantine Costi, which follows a cast of eccentric yet passionate competitors at the 2023 contest.The Pearl Beach memorial hall was filled for the inaugural Pearly Spurtle Porridge festival. Photograph: Rémi Chauvin/The GuardianWhile watching the film, Pearl Beach local Mark Gibbins noticed similarities between his hamlet on the NSW central coast and the Scottish town. After a wine-heavy dinner with friends, the Australian competition was born.“I didn’t think anyone would turn up,” Gibbins says on competition day on Saturday, as he scans the packed hall.