Breakfasters
Encyclopedia
The Breakfasters is a long running morning program on 3RRR
, a radio station based in Melbourne
, Australia
. It is currently presented by Fee B-Squared, Ben Birchall
and Jess McGuire.
The program has seen a number of line-up changes since it began in the 1984. The first team consisted of Stratos Pavlis and Chris Hatzis. They weren't given very much direction from RRR but Chris and Stratos quickly established a strong following amongst a broader RRR audience who were perhaps not as cool as the inner city Carlton folk who were the original audience. Unlike many other RRR jocks, Chris and Stratos didn't mumble and didn't drone, and often involved the audience on the air. They invited many people on as guests in order to keep the show fresh and to have other personalities to bounce off. They were relatively articulate, witty and not afraid of expressing joy in the music and talk they presented.
This approach was a shock to the RRR old guard who were prone to long silences between sentences and speaking in a monotone, mostly off-mic to their friends in the studio. Initially the old guard thought they were selling out but as Stratos often said "We're not selling anything, we want to get Melbourne to buy in". Denise Hylands, and D-Gen writer/comedian Santo Cilauro
, joined them in their 2nd year and the breakfasters never looked back. Sponsorship increased for RRR as did their share of the mainstream audience across the board. RRR soon backed this up with a regular drive time show hosted by Stephen "the Ghost" Walker. This strategy ensured that RRR had a loyal and regular following who locked the dial to 102.7.
The popularity of the Breakfasters was a shock to commercial radio who were still presenting deep voiced smooth talking, proper DJs in the 6 - 9am slot. Mainstram radio in the 80s did not have any room for 2 'wogs' and so Chris and Stratos has no chance of establishing a media career like the later Breakfasters. However producer Val Emuitis found that commercial stations were paying attention. By 1987 commercial radio started offering 'breakfast teams' and 'morning crews' to their audiences - often telling the same jokes and playing the same music that was on Breakfasters 3 months prior.
Chris and Stratos are credited with setting the template for the modern public radio presenter. Their influence however is underplayed in Radio City - The First 30 Years of 3RRR.
Later presenters have included Richard Neil, Kate Langbroek
, Leaping Larry L, James (The Hound Dog) Young, John Safran
, Mark O'Toole, Kate Paton, Dave O'Neil
, Cousin Creep
, Chris Venville, Holly C
(Marieke Hardy
), Angus Sampson
, Michaela Boland, Stephen Downes, Tony Wilson
, Sam Pang
, Michael Williams
& Tim Shiel.
3RRR
3RRR is a popular Australian community radio station, based in Melbourne. It is the largest per capita subscribed radio station in the world....
, a radio station based in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, 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...
. It is currently presented by Fee B-Squared, Ben Birchall
Ben Birchall
Ben Birchall is a musician based in Melbourne, Victoria. He was a member of Klinger until it broke up and then he went solo, releasing an ep, Year of the Monkey, in 2004. He formed Ben Birchall and the Corrections and they released an album, Last Ditch Brigade, in 2007...
and Jess McGuire.
The program has seen a number of line-up changes since it began in the 1984. The first team consisted of Stratos Pavlis and Chris Hatzis. They weren't given very much direction from RRR but Chris and Stratos quickly established a strong following amongst a broader RRR audience who were perhaps not as cool as the inner city Carlton folk who were the original audience. Unlike many other RRR jocks, Chris and Stratos didn't mumble and didn't drone, and often involved the audience on the air. They invited many people on as guests in order to keep the show fresh and to have other personalities to bounce off. They were relatively articulate, witty and not afraid of expressing joy in the music and talk they presented.
This approach was a shock to the RRR old guard who were prone to long silences between sentences and speaking in a monotone, mostly off-mic to their friends in the studio. Initially the old guard thought they were selling out but as Stratos often said "We're not selling anything, we want to get Melbourne to buy in". Denise Hylands, and D-Gen writer/comedian Santo Cilauro
Santo Cilauro
Santo Cilauro is an Australian television and feature film producer, screenwriter, actor, author, comedian and cameraman, a co-founder of The D-Generation...
, joined them in their 2nd year and the breakfasters never looked back. Sponsorship increased for RRR as did their share of the mainstream audience across the board. RRR soon backed this up with a regular drive time show hosted by Stephen "the Ghost" Walker. This strategy ensured that RRR had a loyal and regular following who locked the dial to 102.7.
The popularity of the Breakfasters was a shock to commercial radio who were still presenting deep voiced smooth talking, proper DJs in the 6 - 9am slot. Mainstram radio in the 80s did not have any room for 2 'wogs' and so Chris and Stratos has no chance of establishing a media career like the later Breakfasters. However producer Val Emuitis found that commercial stations were paying attention. By 1987 commercial radio started offering 'breakfast teams' and 'morning crews' to their audiences - often telling the same jokes and playing the same music that was on Breakfasters 3 months prior.
Chris and Stratos are credited with setting the template for the modern public radio presenter. Their influence however is underplayed in Radio City - The First 30 Years of 3RRR.
Later presenters have included Richard Neil, Kate Langbroek
Kate Langbroek
Katherine Elizabeth Wilhelmina Beuving Langbroek is an Australian television and radio personality of Jamaican, Jewish and Dutch heritage...
, Leaping Larry L, James (The Hound Dog) Young, John Safran
John Safran
John Safran is an Australian documentary maker and radio broadcaster, known for combining humour with explorations into religion and other issues...
, Mark O'Toole, Kate Paton, Dave O'Neil
Dave O'Neil
Dave O'Neil is a Melbourne-based stand-up comedian, actor, writer and radio personality.-Early career:Dave was a Cub, Scout, Venturer and Rover. His father Kevin is still the Group Leader at the 1st/3rd Mitcham Scout Group....
, Cousin Creep
Cousin Creep
Cousin Creep is the alter ego of Australian Craig Barnes, known for his involvement in Melbourne Alternative music / Independent music scenes. In the late '80s he published a number of limited run cassette Fanzines called Aliens Mutants...
, Chris Venville, Holly C
Marieke Hardy
Marieke Josephine Hardy is an Australian writer, broadcaster, television producer and former television actress.-Early life and family:...
(Marieke Hardy
Marieke Hardy
Marieke Josephine Hardy is an Australian writer, broadcaster, television producer and former television actress.-Early life and family:...
), Angus Sampson
Angus Sampson
Angus Murray Lincoln Sampson is an Australian actor, voice-over artist, director and writer based in Los Angeles and Melbourne.-Early life:Sampson was born in Sydney, Australia. A former ward of the state, he was educated at the Trinity Grammar School in Sydney prior to winning a place at The...
, Michaela Boland, Stephen Downes, Tony Wilson
Tony Wilson (Radio Presenter)
Tony Wilson is a Melbourne based Australian radio and television personality, successful writer and prominent speaker. He gained notoriety as the winner of the second series of the ABC television show, Race Around the World, in 1998, and has since become somewhat of a cult figure in Melbourne...
, Sam Pang
Sam Pang
Sam Pang is a Chinese Australian radio and television host, writer and producer.-Career:A former Collingwood Football Club under 19s member, Pang turned to radio hosting at an age of 18 at the urging of his friends to do so. He co-hosted Triple R's Breakfasters program for 5 years.He then began...
, Michael Williams
Michael Williams
Michael Leonard Williams was an English actor who played both classical and comedic roles, and was the husband of Dame Judi Dench.- Early life and career :Born in Liverpool, he attended St...
& Tim Shiel.