Wollongong The Brave

1 9 7 5 (Australia)
4 x episodes

So raise your head high
To a burnt sienna sky
Of Dapto, Port Kembla and nigh,
You may say we pong
But to us it’s Wollongong
Wollongong the brave

This four-part comedy from the prolific Grahame (Aunty Jack) Bond aired on the ABC in March, May and December of 1975. The stand-alone episodes were as follows;

Norman Gunston – The Golden Weeks
Wollongong superstar Norman Gunston was kidnapped near Bulli Pass while conducting a coach tour of South Coast Drive-Ins. After Norman’s mysterious disappearance, a TV station recalled his life and times, and his mother, childhood sweetheart and others closest to him paid tribute in a documentary about Gunston’s rise to fame in “the biggest southern hemisphere in the world”.

Included Norman singing I Who Have Nothing to a busload of geriatrics, and a scene in which recently arrived immigrants were tested for their fitness to become Australian citizens by asking them to make a choice between a ripe salami sausage and a “nutritious vanilla slice”.

Kev Kavanagh – Beyond The Infinite
Kev Kavanagh, meat artist, Butcher Laureate, international meat fashion designer and meaty author, turned film maker in Australia’s most adventurous film epic The History Of Man. Kev traced the history of man from primitive wanderer to cosmic explorer and discovered that behind every great man in history was a butcher.

Having studied under the great master meatologist and “creative supervisor” of abattoirs, Kev searched the world for the “essence of truth and butchery” which has been handed down through time by the great butchers.

Kev then returned to his suburban home after years away as Australia’s most creative talent, and found things were not what they seemed to be. His super-secretary sister had just been jilted by her fiancé, and his brother Kirk was a medical student larrikin who spat peas at his mother while she was trying to find solace in a crossword puzzle.

Meanwhile, Klarrie Kavanagh, Kev’s dear old dad and owner-operator of Redfern’s most successful meateasy – the haunt of criminals and ne’er-do-wells in the 1930s – had disappeared, leaving a trail of green slime behind him. There was a happy ending.

Aunty Jack ’n’ The Gong In Bloody Concert
This show, set in a comic book, was filmed during the 1974 Australian Aunty Jack tour. Kid Eager wonders about the powers of Aunty Jack and plots to steal the Golden Glove.

The show included the songs Rip Off, Head Of The Pack, Heavyweight Boxer, Queen Of The Gong, Aunty Jack ’n’ The Gong and Farewell Aunty Jack.

The Farrelly Brothers – Three Men, A Sheep And Their Music
The Farrelly Brothers (Ernest, Ernie and Enzo) captured the hearts of the world with their unique blend of Country & Western Suburbs music and their hit song Set Another One Up To The Bar.

The trio now went back to where it all began – Dapto International Airport. They also played a concert at the Manly Pool, where their water follies extravaganza Drought featured none other than the station’s favourite super baa, Jason the singing sheep. Also included Norman Gunston and Aunty Jack.

Grahame Bond
Rory O’Donoghue
Gary McDonald
Jude Kuring
Kris McQuade