Barry Crocker

 ( Official ) 

Crocker was Beresford's first choice as lead actor when it came to the filming of David Williamson's popular play Don's Party, but serious back problems curtailed Crocker's screen career at that point, opening the way for John Hargreaves to achieve film success in the coveted title role.

Nevertheless, in 1976 Crocker was crowned Moomba Festival, the annual entertainment festival in Melbourne.Craig Bellamy, Gordon Chisholm, Hilary Eriksen (17 February 2006) Moomba: A festival for the people PDF pp 17–22

He had the lead role as Governor Alan Smith in the short-lived prison drama Punishment (1981), and guest-starred in two episodes of the Australian satirical black comedy series Review with Myles Barlow. Later TV roles included parts in Pizza, Swift and Shift Couriers, and Housos for SBS, and The Strange Calls, an ABC2 comedy series.

In 1994, Crocker appeared as himself in the worldwide record-breaking film Muriel's Wedding. He proved his acting and comedy credentials once again as the retro-disco host Donny Destry in the 2007 movie .

Crocker appeared as Charles "Hoot" Russell, Greg Russell's father in the Hey Dad..! episode "Hoot's Boots". It was the second last episode of the show, which spanned 14 seasons. A DVD box set of Hey Dad..! has had to be abandoned, following the conviction of the original "Dad" – Robert Hughes – on several sex offences.

In 2005, Crocker was featured on the Nine Network program This Is Your Life. It was a rare accolade, because Crocker had already been the subject of this prestigious TV program thirty years earlier, in 1975, when the show was hosted by Roger Climpson. Crocker was caught by surprise when host Mike Munro and the TV production team arrived, after a lot of careful planning by his long-term partner, Katy Manning, the English actress.

Crocker was chosen by Chaim Topol to co-star as his nemesis Lazer Wolfe in a long-running Australian season of the musical Fiddler on the Roof. He also featured in the role of The Lecturer in the 2008 Australian premiere of the stage musical Reefer Madness.

Crocker presented the Australian version of Behind Mansion Walls on the Crime and Investigation Network on Foxtel in Australia.

In May 1973, Crocker released the album Music Makes My Day, on Festival Records, featuring an updated version of American rockabilly singer Robin Luke's "Susie Darlin'. The recording featured Olivia Newton-John and Pat Carroll on backup vocals, and enjoyed chart success, peaking at number 7. "Susie Darlin' – Barry Crocker 1973 Pop Archives Barry Crocker Discography BarryCrocker.net

He sang the original recording of the theme song for the 1977 Reg Grundy soap opera, The Restless Years (later a hit for Renée Geyer), and also the original theme to the long-running soap opera Neighbours, another Reg Grundy production. His version was used from 1985 to 1992, and it was also played during the series' final episode, which aired in July 2022.

Crocker wrote and recorded an unofficial theme song for the Australian rules football team, Geelong, entitled Come on the Cats.

(wins only)
     

A notable public use of the expression was on the front page of the Sydney newspaper The Daily Telegraph on 17 April 2014 when Barry O'Farrell the Premier of New South Wales, was forced to resign, allegedly for accepting a gift of an expensive bottle of wine without declaring it, and then later denying in court that he had even received the gift. The headline, consisting of almost half the front page, read "A Barry Crocker".

In February 2022, news of the cancellation of Neighbours in the British press prompted fans of the TV show to download the theme song. It reached No. 1 on UK iTunes and at No. 11 on the UK Singles Sales Chart sales and downloads chart ending 17 February 2022.