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Wednesday 13 February 2013

Whatever happened to "ockers"?

It's a term you don't hear a lot now. Remember John Meillon's Wally Stiller character, Ted Bullpit - the urban ocker from Kingswood Country, Crocodile Dundee, Hoges & Strop or the female equivalent - the "You tell 'em love" housewife portrayed hilariously by the late and great Dawn Lake? Shit that's a long sentence - as an ex-teacher, I should be shot.
Ockerism is not about class, whereas the term bogan is. John Singleton (Singo is a Sydney ocker) and John Elliott (Melbourne) cultivated the ocker personae.
I recently watched The Adventures of Barry MacKenzie again. My, how we have changed. Now the Australian media is full of "new age guys" like Adam Hills, Wil Anderson and Charlie Pickering. Which is a good thing. Good role models for the Gen Y.
The satirical sting when out of Sir Les Patterson about a decade ago. No wonder Barry Humphries retired last year.


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