Spunk Alert 8...Frederic Michalak

Anyone who is a lover of 'Dieux Du Stade' will recognise this hottie Rugby player from France...and hotness factor of 42 out of 10...Get me Air France Reservations quick...C'est se Bon!

What happened to...the Beverly Sisters

Lordy...I have 3 friends in Sydney who are very close mates...and I have trying to think of a nickname for them...'three stooges' & the 'three amigos' too done and straight...and 'trio'='threesome'(especially in Gayland and in Sydney - which is basically the same)...I needed something a bit new but old...camp and fun...known but still off the wall...and it hit me...Britains answer to the Andrew Sisters... THE BEVERLEY SISTERS!
AND they were actual sisters........eldest sister "Joy" and the twins, "Teddie" and "Babs". Big in the 50's & 60's...their hits included the "Sisters"(how original!), "I Saw Mummy Kissing Santa Claus" &"Drummer Boy". Not only the first UK female group to break into the US top 10 but they were the highest paid female entertainers in the UK for more than a twenty year period.

(Hello soft focus & Vaseline lens !- this is what I want when Im older too )

These gals are amazing - entering to Guiness Book of records in 2002 as the World's longest surviving vocal group without a change in the line up! (Try that one Destiny's Child)and were awarded an MBE in the 2006 New Years Honours List

And they are still hoofing & singing today...and wowing crowds all over - so here's to the girls...and a little reminder to My Beverley Sisters in Sydney...

'God help the mister...that comes between me and my sister...And god help the sister that comes between me and my man!'

(The Song 'Sisters' from the movie 'White Christmas' 1954)

What about me....?

Here I am blogging on about Telly, Spunks and Chopper and nothing about me... So If I may be so BOLD (Ms Babs) Here's some nice pics(like I'm going to load the shit ones) of my life...

Andrew and I in the garden (Last Summer)...We have been together for over 6 years (feels like 60 - I say that with love) and I still love the Welshman v.much...he's still the funniest person I have ever met and makes me laugh everyday...though I think sometimes I only make him laugh when he points out my mentalness..ahhhh well...

Meet Rabbit- the other male in my life . We called him Tyson (after the hottie Tyson Beckford) however when he was a kitten he hopped everywhere then Andy called him 'Silly Rabbit' (aka Lucy Liu to Uma in 'Kill Bill') and the name stuck...and like Ms Lucy & Uma this cat has Hollywood attitude...and an appetite that makes Kirsty Alley blush at the buffet...

Here's some friends at the party we threw on NYE last year...I think they would all like this one as everyone so far away from the camera they look look fun and thin - which they are (of course)!

And my family...this snap was from our trip to Hong Kong (May)- Mum took my sister Rebecca & I so we could go to see Connie Francis(my mothers all time fav singer) - Dad didn't want to go..and my sister got a break from her husband and the kids (who are great)so Mum will hate the pic as we can see her stomach but Rebecca will love it as she looks good...

Will promise more snaps...and less text...

Spunk Alert 7 - The boys from brazil...

Other than Andrew & the cat, homewares, collecting glass, dirty disco & dance music, my friends, challenging architecture, travel, good food & wine ( god could I love enough shit?)....there is just something about the men from brazil....is this just me?



They just seem all to be hot!

You Tube: Homage to Chopper

The weather man

A skit from the Ronnie John's half hour...presenting Mr Chopper 'Fucking ' Reed...For those who haven't seen the film 'Chopper' this is a fair if not more amusing side of one of a very notorious Australian...

Oz TV (Final) - 2000 and beyond

So the millennium happened...so much for that bug everyone was yappin' about...a new wave of excitement started to sweep the globe...a new dawn as it were... and all the new Oz Telly that was out and about...even though I spent most of that year out and about...(but more on freakazoid in another post)...

...Technology was changing - we finally got Cable TV in the 90's - but, like the rest of the world already knew - same old shit but just repeated more...Digital TV offers more hope with high definition and more variety (but I suspect this will just be more of the same shit on many newer clearer channels too)...

...And like the rest of the world reality TV syndicates were here...I'll bunch the catergories so to make it easier...

Let's start with Music ...'Popstars' On 7 - told the story of 5 girls coming together to form a gal band aka Oz spice girls - the group 'Bardot' looked cute and had a few hits as well... the next group 'Scandal'us' a co-ed group didn't favour so good...neither the next series called 'Popstar' - Kane the winner, went to his first record signing with only less then a dozen people turning up...

...of course there is 'Idol' - Oz got its own version, finding (in the words of INXS) a new sensation(in singing) and 'X-Factor' - but I've mentioned that one twice so no more to that late unpleasantness...

So if Oz wasn't singin' the last few years - we've been dancin'...'Dancin' with the stars' no less - again an Oz version of a popular UK show idea sold globally - getting celbs on the dance floor - this has been suprisingly good- God knows when spunky carpenter Tom Williams got his top off we all licked the Telly...Channel 7 kicking big goals on that one...

...Channel 9 went in for another global reality cult 'Survivor' - although rating well initally interest wained...that also how many deserted tropical locations are actually left in the world?

...And, of course, reality TV Staple - 'Big Brother' - love it or loathe it - this show still rates through the roof all over the world...here in Oz it has been in much controversy - especially 'Adults only' - from innies & outies, to reverse kangas, to bunny ears, the raunchy rewards room, to dancin' doonas to frank honest discussions on life love and SEX SEX SEX...Oz again got shocked big time - even Oz PM spoke out, and made 'Number 96'(see 1970's) seem as tame as afternoon tea at gran's...(unless if gran is a swinger & that opens the door to many gross things so onwards I go)...

We did get our own reality TV show - "The Block' hosted by Jamie 'Manpower 'Drury - grab 4 couples and get them to renovate a Art Deco flat block in Bondi - the hook? Whoever's apartment sells for the highest price at auctions wins...Oz's love for Telly and real estate- a winning combination - well for the first season at least then no one was watchin'... ('Idol' was on the other network)...

Was reality TV the only thing we wanted and craved in Oz??? Were we, like the rest of the planet wanted more and more hits of BB fly on the wall life or celebrities dancing/singing, or surviving (Hey - wasn't that once called variety?)....

Thankfully great drama is still being produced...

'The Secret life of us' was a brilliant drama set in inner city Melbourne (St Kilda - my old stompin' ground) about a group of flatmates - their loves and hates and lives in general - a great OZ cast & script...I loved the fact they used real actual locations and made reference to real Melbourne landmarks and haunts...Channel 10 took a big risk with such a drama... and so did FOXTEL with a drama in the similar fashion 'Love my way'...

Unlike 7 with 'All Saints' - the updated drama in the hospital or 9 with & 'McClouds Daughters' the updated outback drama...

Thankfully Light Entertainment was changing - Rove McManus tonight show 'Rove' - really the only tonight show nowdays on Telly - a mix of comedy and old fashioned variety with a new twist...This golden boy Logie winner will, sorry, has taken the place of Bert and Gra Gra already...

...yes (groan) along with Eddy Maguire- who not only was hosting 'The Footy Show' & 'Who wants to be a millionaire', president of the Collingwood Football club but now is the head of Channel 9 - not bad for a boy from Broadmeadows...

..Yeah Oz TV got those global quiz shows too - 'Millionaire' & 'The Weakest Link' but also it's own 'Temptation' - a new take on the old 'Sale of the century' which was a take on the old 'Temptation'..hmmm Oz TV likes to be green and recycle ...Channel 7 has given us the lovely and dishy Andrew O'Keefe with 'Deal or no deal'... or is that just me on the dishy bit? And of course the dishy Adam 'everyone loves him' Hills 'Spicks & Specks' - a Oz music quiz show - a fresh take on music trivia...

And now for those other shows too hard to catergorise...'Enough Rope' Andrew Denton's interview show, 'Sunrise' with Channel 7 darlings Coshie & Mel - incredibly successful breakfast TV no less, 'At the movies' ( The old 'Movie Show') when Margaret & David moved from SBS to the ABC still giving HONEST movie reviews and 'Collectors' a cult show about collecting shit (yes it's one of my favorites)...

Comedy has been a bit disappointing at late - well when it comes to Oz comedy (overseas comedy has dominated OZ recently and has been better ) I honestly have to say the only really decent Comedy show has been 'Kath & Kim' - those crazy gals (see the 80's/90's) at it again in a reality show about suburban life in Fountain Lakes... another cutting jab at that Oz lifestyle we hold dear...and yet we still like to laugh at...thankfully...

...Overall Oz TV has managed to roll with punches pretty well, we have definitely come of age and moved beyond. I hope we can start to move away from the tide of synicated bland carbon copy reality programs the world is obsessed with - and stick to our own ideas...as they usually are not only successful but dear to our hearts..

So raise your tea cups & saucers, your wine coolers, punch glasses, mixed cocktails or tinnies and toast to a

'HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY, OZ TV'

The end.

Retro Spunk - Gil Gerald

Dear Eddy - after reading your entry about the 70's spunk Gil Gerald (nee Buck Rogers) I sent searching for nudie pics and the best i could find was a bare chest and a autographed publicity pic...

Yeah he was spunk...

...for more see (http://tummyguts.blogspot.com//)

ps - have seen more recent shots...one must learn not to eat the whole turkey in one sitting...

Oz TV continued - The 90's

Although the spend crazy 80's were over and networks had to start tightening their budgets, Oz TV took a good turn in this downsize, low key, back to basics decade...

Comedy there was plenty of - god we needed it to take our minds of the recession (the one we had to have)...that bunch of genius's which got together for 'D-Generation' in the 80's - all started to splinter off to new projects throughout the decade...

Rob Sitch stars as Mike Moore in 'Frontline'- a brilliant satire on the current affair shows that were plaguing Australia, it was really what happened behind scenes and how these shows got their stories on air - and also started to blur the actual current affairs shows with this very well written comedy...my favorite reporter was Brooke Vanderberg (Jane Kennedy)and her 'nodding' episode...

'Funky Squad' - A 1990's satire on the 1970's cop show... yeah it was like an extended D-generation skit that lasted about 8 episodes but was brilliant for those who wanted a 70's retro show...fav line was 'That's Sassy Cassie..'

'The Late Show' - Almost the next 'D-generation' generation skit show... Mr Mick Molloy and Miss Judith 'Im so sarcastic it even pisses me off' Lucey made their TV debut (ALL Hail Queen Judith..)

The original D-Gen girls went off to Channel 7's for 'Fast Forward' - Jane Turner, Marg Downey, Magda Szubanski and introducing my all time fav Miss Gina 'Boy can she hold a note' Riley - this was almost the commercial TV channel version of D-gen, generally satire on movies & tv but also great skits...especially Magda's 'Pixie Anne Wheatley', Marg's 'Jana Wendt', Jane's Olympic Hopeful Berylina Stumpie and Gina changing costumes and wearing too much make up to look like Shirley Bassey, Cher, Heart to Bette Midler...god I love Gina...'Fast Forward' later came back as 'Full frontal' with a mix of old and new cast, and continued it satirical way for a few more years...

Steve Vizard made his debut also on FF - and became so popular he also Hosted his own 'Tonight Show' on 7 - Although a ratings success, it turned out a complete rip off of the David Lettermen talk Show... and to think OZ TV had come so far...

Ok back to the girls, as they had the hour...'Big girls blouse' with Magda, Jane and Gina only lasted 1 season but jesus this was hilarious...whether taking off old movie stars, 'Lyn' from information, themselves, swingers from the 60's and the first TV debut of Kath, Kim in a skit called 'Kimmy's Wedding'


I have recently purchased the DVD and these girls are still way too funny... they went onto 'Something Stupid'- Marg joined them again - continuing the fun - this time 'Kimmy's Baby' was skit du jour...

Ok guys turn -'The Panel' - was a simple yet successful creation - a bunch of them sitting around the table talking about topics of the day in a humorous way, mix in a few celebrities and music...a new take on the talk show...

...Channel 9 just took a new take on an old talk show and revived 'IMT' for a bit..but better success with the 'The Footy Show' - a talk show with footballers and ex footballers talkin' footy drama on and off the field...(Yawn as no nude footy players - and you can't count Sam Newman - the man's now a reject from the wax works)...

Drama was also prevalent in big OZ mini series like 'Brides of Christ' showing the Catholic Church reforms in Oz in the 1960's..to 'Blue Healers' Channel 7's Cop drama and rival Channel 9 with 'Water Rats' about Sydney's water Police...and to 'Seachange' Channel 2 new take on the country drama, a high profile lady judge from the city moves to a beach town - and the quirky tale is set of her new lifestyle...

...Ten also started the 'lifestyle' genre with 'Healthy, Wealthy & Wise' - a prime time magazine program and Channel 9 had 'Burke's Backyard' - Australia's love for the house and garden on TV finally started to blossom...we wanted more 'noice' things around ourselves, a 'lifestyle'...'not just a house butta hoooemmmmm'...was Oz's tastes were changing...

...and we were pushing boundaries in 'alternative lifestyles' as well - 1997 saw the first screening of the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras...Gay was stopped being taboo and started to be 'du jour' in the 90's...and a new station was born through the 90's - Community Television or sometimes known as Channel 31 - opening up OZ TV to Bent TV and other diverse community groups to the average aussie... as long as you have a cam and a timeslot you get your 15 minutes on air...

...So as the 90's drew to a close, the economy was picking up and question asked was had OZ grown up? Were we getting to maturity? Were we ready for the millennium and further changes like reality TV and digital...

This is what I pose for the next and final installment of OZ TV...So put on streetwear and the designer sunnies, order an infused cocktail of exotic booze and hit the house tracks on the dance floor...2000 and beyond came on strong...

to be concluded...

Spunk Alert 6 - Poolside

More hotties in the pool for your enjoyment... no other reason...

Oz TV continued - The 80's....Part 2

Comedy was BIG BIG BIG in the 1980's... like most other decades for every gem there was a golden turd as well...'



'Hey Dad' comes to mind, an Australian sitcom (that's an expression you don't hear that often) about the everyday life of a single dad, his kids, the annoying mate 'Nudge' and the Dad's mental sech-a-terie...the catch phrase was the original 'Hey Dad!' Or my worst 'Mr kellllie!' - why the scriptwriters never won the Logie is beyond me?...oh another piece of trite was...

'Kingswood Country' another Oz sitcom (Bless Channel 7) set in suburban Australia centred around a racist sexist bigot who loved Holdens - a bit like an Oz Alf Garnet but worse (can you imagine?)

Channel 10 did create 'The Comedy Company'...a skit/satire show on Oz life - and it managed to win the national Sunday night slot for a while, but came back in 1990 after a 6 month break not half as good and died in the ass...

However the real comedian of the hour was dear ol' Auntie(ABC)which actually paved the way for New wave of OZ comedy shows like

'Australia you're standing in it'- a satirical show on oz society
'The Giles report' - Max Giles satire on Oz & world issues of the day, usually involved him in lots of make up and outfit changes...
'The big gig' - hosted by Wendy(Hairlip)Harmer - this was the first live comedian gig show - a mixture of stand up/skit/live music
'D Generation' - my fav - taking the satire step to another level...a new take on the skit show...and these comedy legends would continue onto bigger and better project (refer to 90's)...

The other BIG BIG BIG (did I say HUGE) news was the bicentennial....Oz turned 200 and in a year (1988) that seemed like a decade, given all the bloody going's on and celebrating that was going on...Oz networks got together and created 'AUSTRALIA LIVE' a four hour look of Oz, it's people, even Oz expats scattered all over the world...celebrating a nation's coming of age...the most amazing aspect was the show was simultaneously broadcasted on all networks - they finally got together on camera... it was enough to feel national pride...this was oz's year in the greed decade...and we made it all about us...everything the 80's stood for, the greed, the passion, the money, the excess - oz mimicked this in every way...even, unfortunately the bust as well...

In one of the most amazing deals of the century Mr Kerry Packer sells Bondy the complete Network 9 for over $1 billion dollars (now this is the 80's and that's a long lunch)...and then buys it back for only $200 million (after Bondy sells everything as he was broke)only a few years later...who was the lucky man there?...
(probably Bondy as he is still alive)...

Christopher Skase (Skasie) has no luck with Channel 7 either - After Quintex bought 7 Sydney...then later 7 Melbourne from Fairfax (as well as the other states) big plans were to be made as a new media empire...But Skasie's Quintex went broke so into receivership it went...same with Channel 10...

The 1990's started to look grim..no more parties and fluffy ducks or Bondy, Skasie, Pixie or the rest of the gang - they were off to court or Spain or jaol...no more fun at the fair it seemed...

So pack away the power suit and the cocktail cabinets...downsize to microfibre beige jacket & pant and buy good Oz cask wine...the understated 90's arrived...

to be continued...

AFL almost done...

Footy is almost over for 2006 (FINALLY)...I came 5th in the tipping at work (pretty good for someone who knows fuck all about AFL)...
My friend Mark in Sydney and I have an idea to spice up football...NUDE football...I mean they all have ace bodies and it will make the game far more interesting...No? Oh we can just hope it may catch on one day...maybe 'strip and tearing off clothes football' (like in the snap)instead?

Oz TV continued - The 80's....Part 1

Well the 80's hit OZ like a tsunami...and there was so much to do, and Oz had so much on... Bob Hawke is PM, Brisbane host the Commonwealth Games, Bondy wins the America's Cup, the Bicentenial, the billionaires bankroll, the Boom, the Bust(anything with B really)... Again TV reflected the times and the tastes...but where do we begin?

Ok so Variety was still a staple in Oz TV - 'Hey Hey It's Saturday' began as a kids morning TV show in the 70's - but grew into a talk/variety/game/comedy hour show - very much a jazzed up 80's version of IMT(see the 50/60's) - Hosts Darryl & Ozzie with darling co-hosts (through the years) Jacki/Ding dong/Lavina, as well as Plucker(the duck - yes again I'm not making it up)Molly, Red, Wilbur & the band, Mr Blackman and the rest of the gang, all became the one stop shop for a Saturday night - it was the show to watch for pure entertainment - for the kids or mum's & dads, or before the pub, or just a quiet night in...Touring bands, overseas acts and guests stars a plenty on what was a truly unique Oz Show...Not many can say that a show can last for almost 30 years...

Well except possibly news and current affairs shows - and boy if we saw one, we saw a ga-zillion in the 80's - '60 minutes','A current affair','Eyewitness News' and not forgetting for the early birds 'Today' and 'GMA'('Good morning Australia')...You could now watch the news around the clock, not just at 6'oclock anymore...

...But the hilarious thing was the 10.30 timeslot where the rating competition was the most mental - Channel 9 had Gra Gra back with 'Coast to Coast' vs Channel 7's Clive Robertson on 'Newsworld' vs Channel Ten's Ol' Mate of Gra Gra Don Lane with 'Late Night Australia' - Gra Gra was again King...Don Lane finally went back to the states for gridiron commentating ( on the ABC!)and Clive Robinson was just dry, sanguine and bored...as per usual...

...From the high drama of the news desk back to the high drama Oz soaps - this time involving medical staff...after 'The Young Doctors' ended, Channel 9 created another...'The Flying Doctors' - the lives of the royal flying doctors services set in a fictional 'outback' town...Channel 7 puts up a tough soap battle with their darlings...

-'CopShop' - the new generation of police drama
-'A country practice' exactly that - lives of hospital staff in the country... and yes before Channel 9...
-'Sons & daughters' - the premise being twin brother & sister separated by birth are reunited...so are their families years later...(sounds a bit dull now)...
-'Home and Away' - a family moves from the city to Summer bay for a change of life...still as popular today...

But not all the luck was 7's court...'Neighbours' created by Channel 7, then axed due to poor performance was then picked up by 10 and made it into the rating success of today...Poor 7 - Koshie & Mel were almost 20 years away!

Channel 10 finally dropped the 0 (imagine the meeting - 'Guys do we want to be known as a zero or a 10?')...SBS started to broadcast nationally bringing soccer, sex and subtitles into Oz homes as long as you had UHF reception... now there was 5 networks, some starting to broadcast 24/7...

But the best was yet to come...in comedy, 'the bicentennial' and network deals that would even make selling nukes to Al-qaeda amateurish...

Continued in Part 2...

You Tube: Farewell Mr 'Crikey' R.I.P.

It's funny I used to shudder but laugh all at once when he was on the box - mad bugger but great environmentist & biologist.

R.I.P. Steve.

Oz TV continued - The 70's....

' I'm livin' in the seventies...'
( Skyhooks from the album 'Ego is not a dirty word' 1975)

It was the 1970's...a decade of much change, Vietnam finally ended through much protest, Whitlam got elected then dismissed (Shame Kerr Shame), women's liberation movement was finally making progress, gays were protesting in the first Sydney Mardi Gras(yes community it's when we USED to be political), the fuel crisis was a hot topic for all, Flares were as common as Kath & Kim, music went from folk to rock to disco... and that's just Oz society... high DRAMA also hit the small screen too...

The two other major things happened in OZ TV during this decade..colour (1975)...and it started to get racey...(no-not that bad UK band)...

Lets start with Racey eh?

Pretty much, 'Number 96' summed up what Oz TV was about in the '70's...a soap opera about the residents in an unassuming Sydney flat block - which overnight became one of the most talked about show ever...well until Idol/BB/etc...

Served up a five nights a week on the '0/10 network', this soap opened the green door of taboo topics in the 1970's - sex, racism homosexuality, drugs- and that was just the first bloody show...plus lots of nudity...

Lordy - Highlights of the show included the knicker snatcher', the 'pantyhose strangler' the hooded rapist(seeing a pattern?), Duddles 'disco' and the bombing - blowing up the block (a cunning plan to rid the least popular characters but almost killed the show) and of course, garden variety crazies...

In the typical '0/10 network style' (Of course) they created 'The Box' in similar naughtiness but based in a television studio..not as good...(10 would do the same 30 years later after the success of 'Idol' with 'X Factor' - which flopped)...

But Drama didn't end in the flat block...Oz TV was Drama galore - Especially situational drama...top rating shows include:-

"Matlock Police" - Drama in the police station

"Chopper Squad" - Drama on the search & rescue team

"The Young Doctors" Drama in the hospital and

"Prisoner" Drama in the women's prison (will need to dedicate a whole blog entry to the dear Women of Wentworth) - It appears OZ TV needed a location - then a drama...

And if not a location - a location with a period...

" The Sullivans" - The much loved inter-war drama about your typical pre-war Oz family during the great depression...so popular it managed to go until the 1950's - you know what I mean - I think the show success (other than the great Oz cast & the opening credits with Kitty being chased down the lane by her larikin brother while 'Mam' and 'me Dad' got their picture taken - in sepia no less) it was a welcomed walk down nostalgia lane at a time where the world had completely changed...

And changes were all over - Gra Gra leaves Channel 9 ('after that crow call which sounded like he was saying Farrrrrrrrrrk') and off to 0/10 for 'Blankety Blanks' where Oz A List ,B List and Ugly Dave Gray Category List celebrities made lewd innuendo while drinking whisky and smoking cigars/cigarettes (I'm not kidding)...Quiz show entertainment mixed in with variety...Lordy who could forgot Peter the 'Phantom Puller' of the board...

Speaking of mixers - combine variety,Kids and 'stars in their eyes' and you get 'YOUNG TALENT TIME' - this show started so many little OZ performer careers - including Debbie Burnes, Jamie Redfern,Tina Arena and Dannii Minogue - performing covers of the day and hosted by Johnny 'make your skin crawl' Young...Yes I dreamed of singing 'Tie a Yellow Ribbon' Round an old (prop) tree on the 0/10 soundstage...

...But as I got older, I would have much prefered to sing a cover from the Hit Parade - sorry top 10 - from 'COUNTDOWN'...

Ian 'Molly' Meldrum can be attributed to late nights, love of ancient Egypt, taking more drugs than Sid Vicious (Molly I was at Freakazoid as well love) - and of course - this TV Gem - not a carbon copy of 'Bandstand' or another UK/US music show - this was Music Oz - live bands, interviews and the latest and greatest...surviving until the eighties and then reformed as 'Countdown Revolution' - not a patch on its former 'Muse-o' self...Countdown was watched by many...and now there is a revival tour going on in OZ!

...and yes to come full circle - the first 'COUNTDOWN' show was the first of many first's in 1975 - the first on the ABC not only shown in colour, firstly introduced by John('ny was lost as I want to be taken seriously') Farham and first showing Skyhooks playing 'Horror Movie' - high drama if ever I saw, heard or lived it...shockin' me right out of my brains...

But come 1979, the world was changing again - no more stacked heels and Donna Summer at the Disco, the new wave was coming, so was money and power and greed...(but more on Channel 9 later)...

So kids toss out those flares and forgot about the punch and fondue, shop for power suits and get the barman to bring us a couple of fluffy ducks at the club 'Inflation/Check Point Charlie/Rumours'(insert the 80's club name here)...The Eighties (and excess) have arrived...

...to be continued...