Barry McKenzie
Encyclopedia
Barry "Bazza" McKenzie (full name: Barrington Bradman Bing McKenzie) is a fictional character
originally created by the Australia
n comedian
Barry Humphries
(but suggested by Peter Cook
) for a comic strip
, written by Humphries and drawn by New Zealand
artist Nicholas Garland
, in the British satirical magazine Private Eye
.
to claim an inheritance. The book was published in London
, but was banned in Australia with the Department of Customs and Excise
stating that it "relied on indecency for its humour".
, was released, based on the book. In 1974, a sequel Barry McKenzie Holds His Own
was produced. The films starred Australian singer Barry Crocker
as McKenzie, and chronicled the character's adventures in the United Kingdom
and France
respectively. In the films, McKenzie is the nephew
of another of Humphries' characters, Edna Everage
. Despite the banning of The Wonderful World of Barry McKenzie in Australia, the films received considerable support from the Australian government of John Gorton
, becoming the first film to receive funding from the Australian Film Development Commission. Later Prime Minister
Gough Whitlam
even made an appearance in Barry McKenzie Holds His Own, where he granted a damehood
to McKenzie's aunt, Edna Everage.
McKenzie frequently employs euphemism
s for bodily functions or sexual allusions, one of the most well-known being "technicolour yawn" (vomiting). The film popularised several Australian euphemisms and slang terms which are still used today in the Australian vernacular (such as "point Percy at the porcelain", "sink the sausage", "flash the nasty"). Some of the slang was invented by Humphries, with other terms borrowed from existing Australian slang such as "chunder", and "up shit creek" (adopted by the Australian poetry magazine Shit Creek Review
).
Men at Work
lead singer Colin Hay
said that the lyrics for "Down Under
" were inspired by the Barry McKenzie character.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
originally created by the Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n comedian
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
Barry Humphries
Barry Humphries
John Barry Humphries, AO, CBE is an Australian comedian, satirist, dadaist, artist, author and character actor, best known for his on-stage and television alter egos Dame Edna Everage, a Melbourne housewife and "gigastar", and Sir Les Patterson, Australia's foul-mouthed cultural attaché to the...
(but suggested by Peter Cook
Peter Cook
Peter Edward Cook was an English satirist, writer and comedian. An extremely influential figure in modern British comedy, he is regarded as the leading light of the British satire boom of the 1960s. He has been described by Stephen Fry as "the funniest man who ever drew breath," although Cook's...
) for a comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
, written by Humphries and drawn by New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
artist Nicholas Garland
Nicholas Garland
Nicholas Withycombe Garland is a political cartoonist for the Daily Telegraph. He had previously drawn for The New Statesman, The Spectator and The Independent....
, in the British satirical magazine Private Eye
Private Eye
Private Eye is a fortnightly British satirical and current affairs magazine, edited by Ian Hislop.Since its first publication in 1961, Private Eye has been a prominent critic and lampooner of public figures and entities that it deemed guilty of any of the sins of incompetence, inefficiency,...
.
Background
The Private Eye comic strips were compiled into a book, The Wonderful World of Barry McKenzie, in which McKenzie travels to the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
to claim an inheritance. The book was published in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, but was banned in Australia with the Department of Customs and Excise
Australian Customs Service
The Australian Customs and Border Protection Service is the Australian Federal Government agency responsible for managing the security and integrity of the Australian border, facilitating the movement of legitimate international travellers and goods, and collecting border-related duties and...
stating that it "relied on indecency for its humour".
Films
In 1972, a Barry McKenzie film, The Adventures of Barry McKenzieThe Adventures of Barry McKenzie
The Adventures of Barry McKenzie is a 1972 Australian film starring Barry Crocker, telling the story of an Australian 'yobbo' on his travels to the United Kingdom. Barry McKenzie was originally a character created by Barry Humphries for a cartoon strip in Private Eye...
, was released, based on the book. In 1974, a sequel Barry McKenzie Holds His Own
Barry McKenzie Holds His Own
Barry McKenzie Holds His Own is the 1974 sequel to the 1972 Australian comedy film The Adventures of Barry McKenzie.Returning from the original film is Barry Crocker in the title role, as well as Barry Humphries in the role of Barry's aunt, Dame Edna. Also returning in the director's chair is Bruce...
was produced. The films starred Australian singer Barry Crocker
Barry Crocker
Barry Hugh Crocker OAM is a popular Australian singer, with a crooning vocal style.-Biography:...
as McKenzie, and chronicled the character's adventures in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
respectively. In the films, McKenzie is the nephew
Nephew
Nephew is a son of one's sibling or sibling-in-law, and niece is a daughter of one's sibling or a sibling-in-law. Sons and daughters of siblings-in-law are also informally referred to as nephews and nieces respectively, even though there is no blood relation...
of another of Humphries' characters, Edna Everage
Dame Edna Everage
Dame Edna is a character created and played by Australian dadaist performer and comedian, Barry Humphries, famous for her lilac-coloured or "wisteria hue" hair and cat eye glasses or "face furniture," her favorite flower, the gladiola and her boisterous greeting: "Hello Possums!" As Dame Edna,...
. Despite the banning of The Wonderful World of Barry McKenzie in Australia, the films received considerable support from the Australian government of John Gorton
John Gorton
Sir John Grey Gorton, GCMG, AC, CH , Australian politician, was the 19th Prime Minister of Australia.-Early life:...
, becoming the first film to receive funding from the Australian Film Development Commission. Later Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
Gough Whitlam
Gough Whitlam
Edward Gough Whitlam, AC, QC , known as Gough Whitlam , served as the 21st Prime Minister of Australia. Whitlam led the Australian Labor Party to power at the 1972 election and retained government at the 1974 election, before being dismissed by Governor-General Sir John Kerr at the climax of the...
even made an appearance in Barry McKenzie Holds His Own, where he granted a damehood
Dame (title)
The title of Dame is the female equivalent of the honour of knighthood in the British honours system . It is also the equivalent form address to 'Sir' for a knight...
to McKenzie's aunt, Edna Everage.
Character
The character was a parody of the boorish Australian overseas, particularly those in the United Kingdom – unsophisticated, loud, crude, drunk and aggressive – although McKenzie also proved popular with Australians because he embodied some of their positive characteristics: he was genuine, forthright, straight-forward, candid to his English hosts, who themselves were often portrayed as stereotypes of pompous, arrogant colonial deviousness.McKenzie frequently employs euphemism
Euphemism
A euphemism is the substitution of a mild, inoffensive, relatively uncontroversial phrase for another more frank expression that might offend or otherwise suggest something unpleasant to the audience...
s for bodily functions or sexual allusions, one of the most well-known being "technicolour yawn" (vomiting). The film popularised several Australian euphemisms and slang terms which are still used today in the Australian vernacular (such as "point Percy at the porcelain", "sink the sausage", "flash the nasty"). Some of the slang was invented by Humphries, with other terms borrowed from existing Australian slang such as "chunder", and "up shit creek" (adopted by the Australian poetry magazine Shit Creek Review
Shit Creek Review
The Shit Creek Review is an online literary and art magazine . Its content is mostly related to poetry, and includes work belonging the differing styles of formalism and free verse by established authors and new writers...
).
Men at Work
Men at Work
Men at Work are an Australian rock band who achieved international success in the 1980s. They are the only Australian artists to have a simultaneous #1 album and #1 single in the United States . They achieved the same distinction of a simultaneous #1 album and #1 single in the United Kingdom...
lead singer Colin Hay
Colin Hay
Colin James Hay is a Scottish-Australian musician, who made his mark during the 1980s as lead vocalist of the Australian band Men at Work, and later as a solo artist.- Early life and Men at Work :...
said that the lyrics for "Down Under
Down Under (song)
"Down Under" is a pop song recorded by Men at Work for their debut album Business as Usual . The song went to #1 on American, British, Canadian and Australian charts....
" were inspired by the Barry McKenzie character.
See also
- Private Eye books
- The Adventures of Barry McKenzieThe Adventures of Barry McKenzieThe Adventures of Barry McKenzie is a 1972 Australian film starring Barry Crocker, telling the story of an Australian 'yobbo' on his travels to the United Kingdom. Barry McKenzie was originally a character created by Barry Humphries for a cartoon strip in Private Eye...
(1972 film) - Barry McKenzie Holds His OwnBarry McKenzie Holds His OwnBarry McKenzie Holds His Own is the 1974 sequel to the 1972 Australian comedy film The Adventures of Barry McKenzie.Returning from the original film is Barry Crocker in the title role, as well as Barry Humphries in the role of Barry's aunt, Dame Edna. Also returning in the director's chair is Bruce...
(1974 sequel film)