It’s been 50 years since fast-food powerhouse McDonald’s opened the doors to its first Australian restaurant in 1971 and the rest, as they say, is history. Childhood birthday parties, hashbrown-laden hangover feasts and drive-through sundaes – the golden arches of McDonald’s are forever etched into our collective memories as a true and constant mainstay. That’s why we are just a little bit excited to celebrate its half-centennial with Ronald and friends, who are kicking off three months of celebrations this week, launching a new range of never-before-seen promotions and menu items from June until the end of August.

The fun begins this Friday June 18, when Macca’s will be reduce the price of its grandest menu item – the Big Mac – to just 50 cents across all restaurants nationally. All you have to do to score a 50-cent Big Mac is order your burger on the MyMacca’s app and voilà, you’re living the dream. Fun fact – Macca’s has sold 1.1 billion Big Macs since opening its first store in Australia, along with 1.9 billion cheeseburgers, 1 billion hashbrowns and 1.4 billion fries. That’s a whole lot of chippies.

Image credit: McDonald’s