It was the late 1970s when Aussie television show Shirl’s Neighbourhood hit the screens. For kids it was an entertaining program full of comical sketches and musical segments performed by a host of Aussie characters such as Norm the Kangaroo and Ol’ Possum.
But, like other children’s shows, there was something for the parents as well and quite often adults would find themselves glued to the screen for the 30-minute program. This was mainly due to Claude the Crow, who had a slightly more cynical view of the world than the other characters.
His sarcastic humour was amusing for parents and the comments, which usually went right over the heads of kids, kept adults laughing along. Claude also had some strange habits and enjoyed collecting used band-aids and toe nail clippings – which was just odd. But his songs such as ‘Bad Habits’ were entertaining and amusing.
The Channel 7 program first hit screens across the country in 1979 and lasted until 1983. Former Skyhooks frontman Graeme “Shirley” Strachan led the show alongside his co-host Liz Rule and their team of fluffy characters from the Australian wildlife.
Norm the Kangaroo was one of the main characters and was played by Aussie actor Don Bridges. While the other characters were puppets created and brought to life by Ron Muek – a sculptor who was inspired by his parents’ work as toymakers.
The puppets included Stanley the Snake, Greenfinger the Garden Gnome, Yippee the Bunyip, Bartholomew the Sheep and a band of monkeys. Meanwhile, musician and children’s entertainer Franciscus Henri appeared on the program as a regular, both as himself presenting musical segments and as ‘Professor Henri’ in comical sketches.
The songs were catchy and it was hard not to sing-a-long with the kids, while the comedic skits were hilarious. And at times other famous faces would make an appearance on the program, such as comedian Happy Hammond. The Aussie TV show host popped up on the show occasionally, with his sense of humour and entertaining personality keeping viewers captivated.
Meanwhile, on another occasion musician Joe Dolce joined the show to sing his famous song ‘Shaddup You Face’ – a song which some believe would likely not be allowed on a children’s show nowadays. Looking back today avid viewers of the show have described it as a true Aussie program, while others claimed there’s nothing like it on TV today.
“Oh gosh I loved this show,” @KylieWalsh wrote on YouTube. “It was so good, so Australian.” @MegaTrickyOne agreed and said: “This was children’s TV gold … nothing like this anymore … sad really.” While @ShaneyO’Brien added: “I loved Shirl’s Neighbourhood. I so wish they would release a DVD of it. Best kid’s show ever!”