Graeme Barker
Show Announcer - Having called 43 Royal Melbourne Shows, announcer Graeme Barker is known as the ‘Voice of the Show’.
Having called 43 Royal Melbourne Shows, announcer Graeme Barker is known as the ‘Voice of the Show’. Born in Melbourne, Graeme grew up on dairy farms in Yea and Hallam and horses were always a big part of family life. As a child, Show time for the Barkers meant milking in the wee hours of the morning and then driving to Melbourne each day to compete and enjoy the attractions. Graeme himself was just a small boy when he started in the showjumping competitions around 1950.
In 1964, when he was still a teenager, Graeme’s competition experience led him to a job as the showjumping announcer, initially working in the commentary box with the legendary Don Kinsey of radio station 3DB. Eventually Graeme progressed to commentating in the main arena, a huge job requiring a great deal of knowledge. Graeme estimated that he used to do about 100 hours research before each Show, and developed a system utilising 3000 index cards to keep track of all the horses and riders.
However, the main arena of course hosted much more than horse events. Over the years Graeme announced every imaginable type of competition and entertainment: marching bands, precision driving displays, clowns and high-wire acts. Graeme called from inside cars, underneath motorbikes and up in a hot-air balloon. Graeme also called the Grand Parade each day, ‘probably one of the most spectacular things you'll ever see’, as well as his favourite event of all, the fireworks.
In his position high up in the broadcast box, Graeme Barker watched over all the comings and goings of the Royal Melbourne Show and, as a result, was a man with wonderful stories to tell. Yet Graeme never lost track of the central purpose of his role, which was to communicate with the thousands of Show visitors who relied on his announcements day-after-day, year-after-year:
The job of an announcer is to be informative, educational, to be accurate, and to try and involve the public as much as you possibly can ... It was a great feeling to walk home, and you'd see mum, dad and the kids hand in hand, leaving the showgrounds, and you'd think, I wonder if I had any part in them having such a great day.
Graeme called his last Show in 2006.