The Ocker Shocker
Kangaroos skipping playfully through the bush, a barbie on the beach, a brace of surfers waiting for the first big wave of the day, a local pub "where everyone's your mate," a sea plane skimming over the Great Barrier Reef, an Aborginal elder stood in front of Uluru, a ferry carving through Sydney harbour, with the Opera House and bridge in the background, and, of course, the mandatory koala. All to the bouncy refrain of a catchy new song, "There's Nothing Like Australia".
I speak, of course, of Tourism Australia's long-awaited new global advertisement, where no cliché and stereotype is left un-reinforced. It appears to have been cobbled together by Paul Hogan and Barry "Bazza" McKenzie after a long night on the grog, with the occasional idea hurled in by Sir Les Patterson and pictures gleaned from the past 10 years of Qantas in-flight advertisements. Needless to say, I think it's brilliant.
I've long thought, and have written before, that Tourism Australia could save itself a lot of money by simply re-running Paul Hogan's "C'mon Say G'day" campaign, which was such a smash hit in the 1980s. The reason is simple: the rest of the world loves the very clichés which make many Australians cringe. Regular readers of this blog already know how sophisticated, fashionable and up-to-moment I think you all are. But that discovery comes as an added bonus for visitors. When most tourists touch down in Australia they want to have caught sight of a koala, and ideally a kangaroo as well, by lunchtime.
"Stone the crows, are they fair dinkum about this flamin' ad?" asks the Sydney Morning Herald, in which the writer Rick Feneley suggests the new ad "casts us as a nation of tone-deaf bogans caught in a '70s time-warp." On the blogosphere some have already described the ad as "bogan pride at its best", and "cringeworthy". Another commentator asks: "When will we shake these dowdy, 50-year-old stereotypes?"
My take, for what it's worth, is that you have already shaken many of them, but when it comes to global advertising campaigns it is worth taking the self-inflicted hit. After all, playing to your strengths means playing to your clichés. Previous campaigns, which have asked people to take a fresh look at a modern, thrusting Australia, have bombed. So while the new ad may be an "ocker shocker", it arguably might work precisely for that reason.
The problem seems to arise when people start equating a 90-second tourism advertisement with our old friend, a complete summation of Australia's national identity. But if it looks like a tourist ad, and sounds like a tourism ad then the chances are it is just that - a tourism ad.
UPDATE: Advertisements, of course, are much in the news in this part of the world, because the Rudd government has decided to bend its own rules, and spend $A38.5m ($32.5m, £22.4m) promoting its tax reforms - or, more accurately, countering the media campaign from the resources sector to block the super tax on super profits. Before the last election, Kevin Rudd declared government advertising as "a sick cancer within our system...a cancer on democracy." Your comments please.....
UPDATE: Many thanks for your comments on the new Tourism Australia advertisement. This may be a complete beat-up from the Brisbane Times, but it is running a story about the musical similarities between the song, There's Nothing Like Australia, and Disney's Mickey Mouse Club theme tune. It comes, of course, in the wake of the Men at Work legal spat over Down Under, which a judge decided sounded too much like that kindergarten classic, Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree.
As for the cringe factor, this is a good piece from the ABC's Jonathan Green which presents the counter-argument to many of your comments.
I meant to mention my favourite comment about the new ad campaign, which came from talk-back radio. On caller said he was convinced "There's Nothing Like Australia" was a late Antipodean entry into this year's Eurovision Song Contest.
Back to the mining tax.......
I'm 
~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~50~RS~)
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One of the best unofficial one liners concerning promotion of Australia that I heard a few years ago was;
"Australia, you're standing in it."
In view of the fact we are about to go into a Federal election with tweedle dee and tweedle dum in opposition, I think this one liner best sums up where we are at the moment.
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Some of the lyrics to the ad are a bit "cringey" however the positioning is spot on.
The boat people will love it.
Regarding the Government's campaign to put its side of the Mining Super Profits Tax of course they have to do it to counter the mega misinformation campaign by the mega miners and vested interests.
As to Rudd's previous comments on "government advertising" I guess that wasn't "written down" so can not be taken as "gospel truth".
I believe the biggest advertiser in the UK is the British Government ...perhaps some of our British posters might like to confirm or deny that.
Not sure where government advertising ranks by spend in Australia but it too must be up there near the top.
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11pete11: isn't it tweedle dum and tweedle dummer? The choice is between bad and badder.
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". . . the Rudd government has decided to bend its own rules, and spend $A38.5m ($32.5m, £22.4m) promoting its tax reforms . . . . Your comments please."
I seem to recall an adage to the effect that rules were made to be broken. In today's parlance, wouldn't sticking to the rules be "unAustralian"? So I'm for giving KRudd a fair go here: information is (sometimes) power; better an advertising campaign than strictly backroom negotiations.
Should it turn out to be a shocker of an ad (unlike Tourism Australia's, on which I agree with you Nick), that's another matter . . .
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Hard to swallow, but you are probably right. Got to distinguish between "Australia", the country and "Australia", the product.
Have to agree with KRUDD on that one: "a sick cancer within our system...a cancer on democracy." What more can one say?
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Bryan, please don’t make out the Australian press to be represented by the SMH! You might as well be quoting the interview with the page 3 girl from the ‘The Sun’.
Being an Okka is a point of pride for a lot of Aussies, especially when travelling abroad. In the large cities (ho ho) a lot of people look to America and the UK for cultural influence, but as soon as you step out you see the real Aussies doing what they do best; barstardising the English language and fending off 10 foot spiders made of the 10 most poisonous snakes, sharks and jellyfish in the world. But I kid, the worst thing an Australian can ever do, and I hope we can fit the motto on our new flag when we become a republic (or theocracy…), is takeoneself seriously.
So ‘throw another shrimp on the barbie!’ pretend to surf on Bondi Beach and, lest we forget, buy dingo insurance if you have a baby.
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We have a similar situation in Canada. Many in government and elsewhere want tourist ads to show Canada as "A modern, hi-tech, urbanised society." Tourist experts know very well that what visitors want is mountains, Mounties, forests, bears, Indians and igloos.
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With regards to the main body of the article: you're spot on, Nick. I don't think anyone believes they'll visit London and see beefeaters walking around everywhere, but let's not get reality to interfere with a decent ad campaign, eh? Or perhaps Tourism Australia is still smarting from the last 'where the bloody hell are you' campaign, which cost how many million, flopped anyway and it turns out they didn't their job in the first place and resaearch the advertising laws in two of the main target countries.
As for Rudd breaking his own rules... I'm not surprised. He's shown on sveral occosaions he's will to do whatever it takes to get his own way.
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Australia has a rather idiosyncratic relationship with its near past: "The 1970s - terrible". "The 1950s - terrible". "The 19th Century - terrible". If there is a unique Australian identity, it's this belief that the past is always an embarrassing place to be associated with.
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If those overseas want culture on holiday, they will probably be looking elsewhere. So the trick is to try to convince those not looking for culture that a holiday in Australia justifies the long flight. And the ad does a reasonable job - the stereotypes may grate with the locals but they are not the target audience.
Re the mining tax ad issue and partly in response to Greg Warner's question - certainly the UK government is a huge advertiser, but the adverts are of a public information type - quit smoking, don't drink and drive, send your tax return in by the end of January kind of thing. There are of course similar uncontroversial government funded ads running in Australia.
However the proposed mining tax campaign is fundamentally different. It is to promote a government proposal on which there is no political consensus and in any event isn't yet law. It is in other words a party political issue. Ministers should by all means continue to support the policy in parliament and in media interviews etc with assistance from public servants. But the government should not use taxes to pay for the unrestricted and unchallenged access to the electorate that an advertising campaign provides. If the ALP thinks more publicity is needed to get the policy message across then the ALP can pay for it. I note the Liberals are currently funding a TV campaign attacking Rudd.
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What an 'Ocker Shocker' English shocker, how about an Aboriginal elder standing (not stood) in front of Uluru. It's just an advert selling an image that people may find interesting but in discussing it let's at least us decent English.
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Like most commenters have pointed out, every single country plays up its stereotypes in tourist adverts. It annoys me to no end when every tourist ad for India has the Taj Mahal tacked on, a few elephants and tigers being all majestic.
What can you do? That's what tourists want to see. Being "urban and modern and 21st century" is great but I wouldn't travel across the planet to see that. But to see the cuddly-wuddly koala bears? Hell yes.
But then, I feel the pain that the Australians feel when the tourist hops off the plane and goes, "well, its been three minutes and I haven't spotted a kangaroo yet." Just like I feel a vein throb in my temple when tourists go, "well, I've been here 3 minutes and I haven't seen any tigers yet."
But fear not, intelligent tourism is catching on--people who don't travel because of an ad they saw on TV, but because they actually wants to see an entire culture as it was and as it is, and when they can actually converse with you about real topics and have a fair grasp of the geography.
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Oh groan ..not again..why do the various Governments of Australia insist on those corny songs...this on is as bad as our national anthem which is actually a national embarassment...bogans are as much admired as doggy doo in Autralia.
Honestly if I was running an open stage and someone came on to perform that song I would turn off the sound system pronto and get security to throw them out the door.
Hey World..we are not really like this ad portays us to be, but the Austrlian Government believes in the lowest common denominator for everything...aspire to mediocracy seems to be the offical line.
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"local pubs where everyone's your mate?" umm, well yes if you are white and speak english. I had an experience in country Victoria where I was in a local pub with a friend from Singapore. Within 20 minutes we met some locals who called my friend a 'gook' and smacked him one. With friends like that... I guess there is Nothing Like Australia...
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The purpose of the Tourism advert, Nick, is to stop Australia getting confused with Austria (or Armenia as Zali Steggall discovered)
No schnitzels, dirndls and they weren't singing Edelweiss so it should do the job
I anticipate Rudd will do a backflip on the resource tax adverts
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I totally agree. Whenever we welcome visitors from overseas they are so keen to see Kangaroos, beaches, bbqs and vineyards. I reckon that Tourism Australia are right on the money with this one
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"11. At 07:05am on 01 Jun 2010, Graham wrote:
What an 'Ocker Shocker' English shocker, how about an Aboriginal elder standing (not stood) in front of Uluru. It's just an advert selling an image that people may find interesting but in discussing it let's at least us decent English."
Graham, Graham, Graham.... If you're going to point out errors in someone's grammar you really need to use spell checker.
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No doubt BBC World will be running the ad ad nauseam, alongside its charming little takes on India (elephants, sadhus, tigers, mountains, gymnastic cartwheels on pristine, empty beach), Turkey (mosques on the skyline, happy, helpful people, lotsa luvli grub), Malaysia "Truly Asia" and other sick-making, cliche-loaded takes on countries riven with poverty, strife, and terrorism, often not even safe for Brits to visit (bit like Australia, in some ways). Of course, BBC policy towards the people paying tens of thousands for these ads is in no way influenced - aren't we all just gaga for the camels, water-pipes, seafood and nice smiling old men to invite us to the delights of Gaza?
I'm with Rudd. Advertising is a cancer. In fact, it's a malignant, stinking, fungating, metastasizing parasitic growth in the spine of democracy and should be excised as a matter of urgency for the survival of anything resembling human values.
And the BBC has compromised itself beyond redemption by financing its world news service with it. What price objective reporting when the country reported upon can pull the plug on the money current that supports you? A government minister on the take? Dog bites man, no news, so headlines. A respected broadcaster propagating rubbish and bending facts for money? Dog bites mankind, so no story, so what?
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I think what's reassuring about Australia is that the politicians are the same as here: they get sniffy about Government advertising when in Opposition, and then use it cynically for political gain when in office.
What my emigree daughter loves about Oz is the people, the beauty, the weather, and actually having an economy. If I can just scrape together the bounty, I'll be following her in due course.
Read Aussie papers - good, no bull reporting and far better blogs than over here. Also very good to see Aussie-Pom David Mapley is about to topple Goldman Sachs.... follow this and other nonsense on nbyslog at Blogger.
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Michael, Michael, Michael - why so pompous over what was obviously a typographical error, not a spelling mistake? A spell checker would not have picked that up anyway, 'us' is a valid word.
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I agree completely with Nick that this is an advertising campaign that potential overseas visitors will love. Sure, Australia is, indeed, much more sophisticated and contemporary than the ad portrays us but the ad churns out the very visions that set us apart from any other sophisticated and contemporary Western country. I live in Ballarat and, whilst Ballarat has art galleries, museums, botanical gardens, side walk cafes, terrific restaurants, wineries galore, etc., the biggest draw card is Sovereign Hill, a reconstruction of the Gold Rush, displaying all the clichés of that time. It is amazingly popular, particularly the "Blood on the Southern Cross" sound and light show retelling the story of the Eureka Rebellion, a battle between gold miners and Government forces at Ballarat. Sovereign Hill draws hordes of overseas visitors, particularly bus load after bus load of Asian tourists. I've shown Scottish cousins around Ballarat and never miss the botanical gardens with its statue of William Wallace, which stuns them every time (there's another statue, of Robert Burns, in the main street) but comparatively few visitors go there. And if I can show them kangaroos (pretty simple thing to do given the surrounding bush) or better still, a koala (also pretty simple to do - I even have migrating ones stop over in my garden for a snooze) then they always go away in raptures. It's not what we are but it sure as hell is what they want to see!
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Nick I totally agree with your article. Quite frankly modern, hi tech, cosmopolitan cities are boring and dime a dozen and is not Australia's main USP. i can get that at home in London so why spend thousands of pounds crossing the world to get it in Oz. When I go to Australia I want the outback, beaches, Great Barrier Reef et al and the great restaurants, bars and culture of Sydney, Melbourne, etc are the bonus.
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Our Prime Minister is familiar with advertising as far back as the sixties, when he starred in a confectionary campaign. He was the Milky Bar Kid then and still is....riding into town and fixing all the problems by handing out milky bars or social security payments. It is laughable this government....maybe the milky bar kid should ride out to the bush but his horse would go lame on our goat tracks we call national highways. As for the new advert, it's for overseas, and yes, it still is a great place to visit....just dont get sick while your here.
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Graham (7.05) if you're going to correct someone's us (sic) of grammar, it might be an idea to check your spelling before submitting your comment.
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My advice to a would-be tourist is: if you like the ad, go to Australia; if you don't like it, go more often and you'll find out what it's really like. I have been every year for the last ten years, ever since my daughter settled there and especially since 2002 when our first Aussie granchild was born. I love doing the tourist things occasionally but just ordinary day to day living is relaxing and renewing. Advance Australia Fair!
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What Ho! What’s all this about stereotypes.
If it wasn’t for this pea-souper of a fog I would be able to see the screen properly and then hopefully understand what these damned colonials are whingeing about. (A slight case of role reversal, me thinks)
Modern Australia, If I wanted to go back to the 1950’s I would re-visit rural New South Wales and Victoria.
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Most american tourists that come to the UK seem to just visit London and Stratford. Most the UK is fairly different to London. Similarly tourists visiting the US will go to disney world or maybe New York, rather than the sprawling suburbs of a city like Detroit or Cleveland. Presumably tourism is the same the world over?
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*shrugs* Get used to it fellas! We still are portrayed as clog wearing, fish eating, pot smoking simpletons who put windmills on top of and fingers in sides of dikes, only grow tulips and eat and drink from Delft Blue porcelain...
The fact is that stereotypes work with tourists that do not know the country, and they'll come back educated and wiser!
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I'm English and I've had the good fortune to visit Australia twice, both times in fact on the back of business trips.
On my first visit I was able to take a holiday in the centre of Australia; the second time was a purely business affair, when I stayed in Sydney and travelled by train every day to a small town about 50 miles North.
Both visits revealed different things about Australia, as you would expect: Uluru & King's Canyon are very different from Sydney. But both visits also revealed one thing in common, which is that Australia is like nowhere else on earth, whether you consider the scenery (both inside and outside the cities) or the people - and I mean all the people of Australia.
Although Australian society seems a lot more "Anglo-Saxon" to me than the USA for example, it's still very different from the UK. I love the lack of formality, the openness and dislike of snobbery which is such an obvious difference.
My point, however, is this: I'm sure it's easy for an occasional visitor like myself to see the country through rose-tinted spectacles, and I'm sure there are many things in Australia which are far from perfect (although the trains seem pretty reliable), nevertheless, I think Australians need to stop cringing about how tourism to Australia is advertised; it isn't really any more cringe-worthy than advertising of any other country. In my opinion Australians ought to get on with being themselves and just being aware and quietly proud of how unique they and their country are in different ways.
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'or, more accurately, countering the media campaign from the resources sector to block the super tax on super profits.'
Well, I think you have your answer. What chance to democratic governments have if the 'free press' is nothing more than an outlet for very specific business interests? How can governments compete in a balanced debate if those options are denied to them? People don't go to government websites for information, they go to the news media and if they are only getting one side of the story.....
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A good piece, Nick. I totally agree with Christopher, be proud of who you are and your way of life, Australians! I visited once in 2001, and like Christopher I was struck by the informality and general friendliness shown by the locals. Dont't worry about trying to present all your modern day accomplishments in the global competition, just rely on your unique strengths - countryside, fauna and flora, well-known buildings and landmarks etc. The trick is to get folks to visit in the first place, all the rest will follow.
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Well done, Nick, a good and informative piece. Like Christopher, I was struck on a visit in 2001 by the informality and friendliness of the locals. So play to your strengths, Aussies, and don't get too hung up over trying to present some great competitive entry in the global city/ culture stakes. You have many unique features, such as the overall country, fauna and flora, distinctive landmarks, buildings and customs, which are the great attraction to foreign visitors. The trick is to get them to visit in the first place, then all the rest will follow.
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This advertising campaign is just typically KRudd. The argument that this is to counter the campaign by the miners is a farce as documents were released today showing the advertising campaign was planned prior to the tax announcement.
This campaign has broken all its own rules regarding objectivity and political interests and is a waste of our money. KRudd thinks he is above the law, this is mass appropriation of taxpayers wealth and outside the public sector, this clown would be thrown in jail.
The only cancer on Australian democracy is KRudd himself.
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#35
lambu1,
So what has happened is that you've moved from a country where you experienced some racist verbal remarks to a country where in the recent national election 500,000 people voted for the BNP, a political party devoted to 'white rights' and deportation of coloured minorities
I'm unclear why that makes you feel safe
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#36 Wollemi
Do try to remember that, whilst 500,000 people may seem like a lot of people when compared to Australia's population, it actually represents less than 1 percent of the UK population.
The UK is very much multi-cultural and the vast majority of the population treat the BNP as nothing more than a joke and one not to be taken seriously. Free Speech provides the bigots with a platform, but equally entitles the rest of us to ignore their rantings.
Please do not tar everyone with the same brush. We seem to have a huge number of Aussie visitors (many of whom seem to like it enough to stay here), so we must be doing something right.
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#37
Alan
I don't regard the BNP as reflecting the UK population. With time, they might go the way of Pauline Hanson and her party and fizzle out
I'm just curious why some racist remarks can cause someone to leave a country #35, to a country with a racist political party talking about deportations because this feels 'safe'
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Who was it again who said the usage of consolidated revenue to fund political advertising was a "Cancer on our democracy"?
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#38 Wollemi
Sorry, I do not know anything about the lady to whom you refer.
To be fair, the BNP have not really been talking about deportation of minorities (forced or otherwise). They prefer to refer to their scheme as 're-patriation' made acceptable by the throwing in of ten-bob or so to ease the way in the Third World. Very generous. You can see why they are treated as a joke. I imagine something similar was said during the last world war "Look, it is a holiday resort, honest!".
I never had a chance to read #35, but I suspect there is much more behind the decision to leave. Perhaps the person could not really make a go of it out there or could not adapt to the climate? Or perhaps they had a bad experience and just wanted to sound off? I doubt it will tarnish Australia's reputation at all.
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Tourism is about the fulfillment of illusions....government is about the creation of illusions...similar but different.
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Living in the US, having worked in travel industry marketing for decades and as a visitor to Australia, here is my opinion.
Australia is like a fantastic grand meal. Unfortunately, the execution of this advertisement served that meal on a dirty, cracked plate with bent tableware.
Tourism Australia committed the cardinal sin of advertising - they underestimated their audience and dumbed down their message.
The major issue was not their messaging or the visuals - it was an annoying melody and pedestrian lyrics.
The song is better suited to a kitschy regional tourist attraction than a culturally rich global destination.
There is nothing unique about the song to differentiate Australia from any other destination. One could easily exchange "Australia" for the syllabically similar "Los Angeles" and achieve a similar outcome.
While 90% of the people in Australia reportedly felt proud of this commercial, I can assure you, the global travel industry considers it a bad joke.
Votes on YouTube seems to be about 50% positive - that is exceptionally bad for a tourism campaign if half the people do not like the ad.
The time and financial investment for an overseas visitor to Australia is considerable. In exchange for that commitment, they are seeking an unforgettable experience - fortunately, one that Australia can definitely provide.
Sorry Tourism Australia, it is laughably egocentric to think that this ad will work to inspire travel to Australia from overseas and that the song might become an "anthem for Australia."
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I wonder at the minds of those people berating Rudd for funding a campaign to provide a better lifestyle for older Australians. They have not commented on mining companies using their illgotten gains to fund an advertising campaign to take this away from older Australians. Anyone watching the advertising on Australian television daily knows that computer genrated rubbish is used to sell manufactured, insurance, banking car products etc. What a great experience it is sitting on a QANTAS jumbo at Heathrow after 4 years living and teaching in England when it begins to move to help you return to paradise.
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" 20. At 08:19am on 01 Jun 2010, djac wrote:
Michael, Michael, Michael - why so pompous over what was obviously a typographical error, not a spelling mistake? A spell checker would not have picked that up anyway, 'us' is a valid word."
djac, djac, djac - why are you getting so agitated over what was on obvious tongue in cheek post? Anyway, Champerton's on my side ;)
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Good article.
Of course the truth of everyday life needs to be embellished if you want to sell Australia as a tourism destination. It is a long way to fly, after all.
What are you going to say, anyway? "Come to australia, where you work all day in the burning sun and then a bunch of hooligans come and steal half you wages and spend it on police who deal drugs and shoot kids."
Not a winning slogan, but closer to the truth than koalas on the barbie and all that.
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Australia is a beautiful country and had it not been for the racist incidents that happened to me around 2000-2001 I would have still been living there. I live in the UK now and although it doesn't have all the weather and nature related 'benefits' - I still don't have to worry about being beaten up because someone got too drunk and was out looking for a 'W**' to knock down.
Australia needs to be potrayed as it actually is like. I can't understand what the fuss is all about.
A beautiful country, but with unfortunately a sizeable number of people who love curry bashing just for the fun of it.
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"I wonder at the minds of those people berating Rudd for funding a campaign to provide a better lifestyle for older Australians."
Care to elaborate? Most older Australians can just see their super funds drying up because of the degradation in the value and outlook of mining and metals stocks caused by thieving twits governing Australia.
"They have not commented on mining companies using their illgotten gains..."
Illgotten gains? How? They're legally compliant. They pay their taxes and royalties. They pay their workers.
"...to fund an advertising campaign to take this away from older Australians."
See my first point.
"Anyone watching the advertising on Australian television daily knows that computer genrated rubbish is used to sell manufactured, insurance, banking car products etc."
Yes. Manufactured,..er..stuff...awful stuff.
"What a great experience it is sitting on a QANTAS jumbo at Heathrow after 4 years living and teaching in England when it begins to move to help you return to paradise."
You're on a commercial flight? But that would involve banking, insurance, (*shock horror*) cars and manufactured..er..stuff...I assumed you'd be walking back to Australia, being so pious and all.
p.s. Was the QANTAS jet "manufactured" or was it grown on one of those QANTAS trees?
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The Ocker shocker: "There's Nothing like Australia"
What’s wrong with it?
Personally, I can’t wait to listen to the grand piano on the beach and see the sunset from a camel’s back and maybe stand beside the Elder at Iluru.
How many drinks do I get provided before everyone's my mate, including koala bears, kangaroos and other Australian animals – two-legged & four?
In my opinion, the ad seems amateurish, a bit dumb, not even stereotypical (which I might enjoy), certainly not irreverent…I guess that’s the problem. It’s just nothing...ah...special.
And worst of all, it doesn’t particularly seem Australian.
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Don't believe everything you see. The Sydney outside my window is cold, wet and miserable, even if it is filling the half full reservoirs.
I'm still not convinced though Nick. Without a doubt the cliches are a money spinner - look at the enterprises of Steve Irwin and family. But there should be something more. Like there's a lot more to the visitor to England than pomp and ceremony.
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47 murph73v2 "Care to elaborate? Most older Australians can just see their super funds drying up because of the degradation in the value and outlook of mining and metals stocks caused by thieving twits governing Australia."
"Our assessment is that the announcement (of the super profit tax) has had to date a negligible effect on the share prices of the resources sector." ~ David Whiteley, chief executive of the Industry Super Network
http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2010/s2910862.htm
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5 minutes after you have landed in New Zealand, you are guaranteed to have spotted a sheep.
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lambu1, there are some people who are racist and will be violent about it in Australia, there is racism in this country.
Having said that, I saw some similar stuff in certain parts of the UK. It depended on the neighbourhood.
I'm sorry you had a bad experience though, the vast majority of us aren't like that.
In regards to the add, my first reaction was that the song was annoying. Other than that it just looks like a tourism ad.
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#47 Murph:
Good to see you expressing an opinion Murph, even though I disagree with it although I quite like your "biting writing" style. Hope you go to the link # 50 Lamington posted.
Back to the ad, the ocker shocker.
Bottomline is it will work. It is friendly and happy and sunny and nice and kitsch and all that, and it is probably exactly what people in a GFC world want, if they can afford a holiday.
Yes it could have been better, especially the lyrics which I referred to as "cringey" in an earlier post.
Cringey as in rather lame rhyming...day and bay...camel and mammal.
The masters of this style of ad were Alan Morris and Alan Johnson at MOJO in the 70s and 80s.
For good lyrics consider the following snippet from their HAVE A GO AUSTRALIA campaign..."It's time to get the country started, boots and all and not half hearted..." etc.
Feel like a Toohey's...or two...?
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Just read your update Nick...went to the Jonathon Green link.
"Up There Cazaly" wasn't MOJO...pretty sure it was by Mike Brady...some of the Melbourne crew might like to confirm that or provide the name of composer/performer...and then update Jonathon.
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#51
I've been to New Zealand once, and spotted sheep before the plane had landed.
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