Greig Pickhaver
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Greig Pickhaver AM (born 1948) is an actor, comedian and writer, who forms one half of the Australian satirical sports comedy duo ''
Roy and HG Roy and HG are an Australian comedy duo, comprising Greig Pickhaver in the role of "H. G. Nelson" and John Doyle as "'Rampaging' Roy Slaven". Their act is an affectionate but irreverent parody of Australia's obsession with sport. Their charact ...
'' as the excitable sports announcer H.G Nelson. The award-winning duo teamed up in 1986 for the
Triple J Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greater emphasis on broad ...
radio comedy program ''This Sporting Life'', and were broadcast nationwide for 22 years, leading to several successful television spinoffs.National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "maint ...
">


Personal life

Pickhaver was born in
Nuriootpa, South Australia Nuriootpa ( ) is a town in South Australia and the major commercial centre of the Barossa Valley, about an hour's drive north of the state capital, Adelaide. The name of the town is reputed to be the local Aboriginal word for "meeting place". ...
to parents Gordon Pickhaver, and Beryl Skuce. His father was a
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
veteran who saw action in the Middle East and on the Kokoda Track and whose career was in the South Australian dairy industry. Pickhaver has three sisters (Jane, Anne and Mary) and a brother, Mark. Pickhaver was raised in
Brighton, South Australia Brighton is a coastal suburb of Adelaide, South Australia, situated between Seacliff and Glenelg and aside Holdfast Bay. Some notable features of the area are the Brighton-Seacliff Yacht Club, the Brighton Surf Lifesaving Club, the Brighton J ...
, up to the age of 15, and then the family moved to the suburb of
Prospect Prospect may refer to: General * Prospect (marketing), a marketing term describing a potential customer * Prospect (sports), any player whose rights are owned by a professional team, but who has yet to play a game for the team * Prospect (minin ...
, where he lived until the age of 22. He attended Oaklands Park Primary school,
Brighton Secondary School en, Do all things well. , city = Adelaide , state = South Australia , country = Australia , coordinates = , type = Public , established = 1952 , principal = Tony Lunniss , faculty = 118 , enrolment = 1500 , colours = Navy bl ...
, and for the last two years of high school
Adelaide High School Adelaide High School is a coeducational state high school situated on the corner of West Terrace and Glover Avenue in the Adelaide Parklands. Following the Advanced School for Girls, it was the second government high school in South Australi ...
. He graduated from
Flinders University Flinders University is a public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia, with a footprint extending across 11 locations in South Australia and the Northern Territory. Founded in 1966, it was named in honour of British navigator M ...
and describes himself as
dyslexic Dyslexia, also known until the 1960s as word blindness, is a disorder characterized by reading below the expected level for one's age. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, r ...
, having always relied heavily on memory and recall to achieve any academic results.


Radio career

Pickhaver performed in plays at school and at university. After a stint as a roadie for Australian rocker
Billy Thorpe William Richard Thorpe AM (29 March 1946 – 28 February 2007) was an English-born Australian singer-songwriter, and record producer. As lead singer of his band Billy Thorpe & the Aztecs, he had success in the 1960s with "Blue Day", " Poison Iv ...
in the early 1970s, he became involved in the Melbourne theatre co-operative The Pram Factory. He moved into radio broadcasting on
3RRR 3RRR (pronounced "Three Triple R", or simply "Triple R") is an Australian community radio station, based in Melbourne. 3RRR first commenced broadcasting in 1976 from the studios of 3ST, the student radio station of the Royal Melbourne Institut ...
in Melbourne and developed the HG Nelson character while performing in the Melbourne radio sports comedy show ''Punter To Punter'' in the early 1980s. Pickhaver met John Doyle in 1985 while both were playing minor characters in an SBS TV show, and they teamed up as Roy and HG in 1986. Their radio comedy program ''This Sporting Life'' was broadcast initially in Sydney and later nationally on the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owne ...
's
Triple J Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greater emphasis on broad ...
youth radio network. It was continuously on-air for a 22-year period till 2008. ''This Sporting Life'' was added to the
National Film and Sound Archive The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national co ...
's
Sounds of Australia The Sounds of Australia, formerly the National Registry of Recorded Sound, is the National Film and Sound Archive's selection of sound recordings which are deemed to have cultural, historical and aesthetic significance and relevance for Australi ...
registry in 2013.


Television and film career

With John Doyle as ''Rampaging Roy Slaven'', Pickhaver has appeared on television shows such as ''
The Dream with Roy and HG ''The Dream with Roy and HG'' was a sports/comedy talk show, broadcast every night during the Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004 Olympics, presented by Australian comedy duo Roy and HG. Their telecasts became one of the most popular events of the Gam ...
'', ''
This Sporting Life ''This Sporting Life'' is a 1963 British kitchen sink drama film directed by Lindsay Anderson. Based on the 1960 novel of the same name by David Storey, which won the 1960 Macmillan Fiction Award, it recounts the story of a rugby league footb ...
'', ''
Blah Blah Blah Blah, blah blah etc. may refer to: Music * ''Blah-Blah-Blah'' (Iggy Pop album), 1986, or its title song * ''Blah Blah Blah'' (Blahzay Blahzay album), 1996 * ''Blah Blah Blah'' (EP), 2018 by Armin van Buuren or the title song * ''Blah Bla ...
'', ''
Club Buggery ''Club Buggery'' is an Australian television series made in the 1990s. It was created and performed by Australian comedy duo Roy and HG ( John Doyle and Greig Pickhaver) and broadcast on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) network ...
'', ''
The Channel Nine Show ''The Aunty Jack Show'' was a Logie Award-winning Australian television comedy series that ran from 1972 to 1973. Produced by and broadcast on ABC-TV, the series attained an instant cult status that persists to the present day. The lead char ...
'', ''
Planet Norwich A planet is a large, rounded astronomical body that is neither a star nor its remnant. The best available theory of planet formation is the nebular hypothesis, which posits that an interstellar cloud collapses out of a nebula to create a yo ...
'', ''
Win Roy and HG's Money Win or WIN may refer to: * A victory Arts and entertainment Film * ''Win!'', a 2016 American film Literature * ''Win'' (Coben novel), a 2121 novel by Harlan Coben * WIN (pacifist magazine), published by the War Resisters League * WIN (wrestl ...
'', ''
The Monday Dump ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
'', '' The Nation Dumps'', ''
The Ice Dream with Roy and HG ''The Ice Dream with Roy and HG'' was a sports/comedy talk show, broadcast every night during 2002 Winter Olympics, presented by Australian comedy duo Roy and HG. Targets of humour during the coverage of the 2002 Winter Olympics included figure ...
'', ''The Cream'', '' The Dream in Athens'', '' The Memphis Trousers Half Hour'', and '' Roy and H.G’s Russian Revolution''. Pickhaver hosted ''
It's a Knockout ''It's a Knockout!'' is a British game show first broadcast in 1966. It was adapted from the French show '' Intervilles'', and was part of the international '' Jeux sans frontières'' franchise. History The series was broadcast on BBC1 from 7 ...
'' from 2011 to 2012 alongside former Hi-5 star
Charli Robinson Sharlene Marie Zeta Robinson (born 8 March 1981), known professionally as Charli Robinson previously as Charli Delaney, is an Australian television and radio presenter, most famously known as an original member of children's musical group Hi-5 ...
and sports presenter
Brad McEwan Brad McEwan (born 28 April 1971) is an Australian television presenter and sports journalist. McEwan has previously been a sport presenter on the Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne editions of ''10 News First'' and is best known for his hosting du ...
. Pickhaver joined
Stephen Quartermain Stephen William Quartermain (born 7 May 1962) is an Australian television personality, journalist and presenter. Quartermain is currently a sport presenter on ''10 News First'' in Melbourne. Early career Quartermain began his career as a cadet ...
and
Alisa Camplin Alisa Peta Camplin, (born 10 November 1974) is an Australian aerial skier who won gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics, the second ever winter Olympic gold medal for Australia. At the 2006 Winter Olympics, Camplin finished third to receive a bronz ...
for the ''Sochi Tonight'' show during the Sochi
2014 Winter Olympics , ''Zharkie. Zimnie. Tvoi'') , nations = 88 , events = 98 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , athletes = 2,873 , opening = 7 February 2014 , closing = 23 February 2014 , opened_by = President Vladimir Putin , cauldron = , stadium = Fisht Olympi ...
in February 2014, and was featured in the SBS series '' Who Do You Think You Are?'' in September 2015. Many of his television opportunities have been "alternative" sports presentation coverages of the
Summer Summer is the hottest of the four temperate seasons, occurring after spring and before autumn. At or centred on the summer solstice, the earliest sunrise and latest sunset occurs, daylight hours are longest and dark hours are shortest, wit ...
or
Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...
. Pickhaver starred in the cult 1993 Australian comedy film ''
This Won't Hurt a Bit ''This Won't Hurt a Bit'' is a 1993 Australian comedy film. It was directed by Chris Kennedy. According to Ozmovies, Those searching for the source of inspiration for writer/director and co-producer Chris Kennedy need look no further than his ...
'' opposite Jacqueline McKenzie. In 2003, he appeared in the political comedy ''
The Honourable Wally Norman ''The Honourable Wally Norman'' is a 2003 Australian comedy film directed by Ted Emery. It stars Kevin Harrington, Shaun Micallef, and Greig Pickhaver. It was filmed primarily in South Australia and was nominated for two AFI awards. Plot Th ...
''.


Published works

*1989: ''Pants off, this sporting life'', by Roy Slaven and H.G. Nelson *1994: ''Where it all went wrong ound recording: address delivered by H.G. Nelson, anti-smoking activist, to the National Press Club, Canberra on World No Tobacco Day, 1 June 1994''National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "maint ...
catalog listing of Where it all went wrong ound recording: address delivered by H.G. Nelson, anti-smoking activist, to the National Press Club, Canberra on World No Tobacco Day, 1 June 1994">
*1994: ''Boys and balls'', by
Brian Nankervis Brian Nankervis (born 1956) is an Australian writer, actor, radio host, television producer and comedian. Personal life Nankervis was born in Melbourne. He lives in St Kilda with documentary film makerSue Thomsonand their children, Claudia, Lola ...
; in the press box: Roy Slaven and H.G. Nelson *1996: ''Petrol, bait, ammo & ice,'' by H.G. Nelson, with a foreword by Roy Slaven; illustrated by
Reg Mombassa Christopher O'Doherty, also known by the pseudonym Reg Mombassa, is a New Zealand-born Australian artist and musician. He is a founding member of the band Mental As Anything and member of Dog Trumpet (alongside his brother Peter O'Doherty). Ea ...
ational Library of Australiacatalog listing"> *1999: ''It's yours for a sawn-off! : Sameranch's Sydney'', by H.G. Nelson; illustrations by James de Vriesational Library of Australiacatalog listing for 'It's yours for a sawn-off! : Sameranch's Sydney'"> *2006: ''The really stuffed guide to good food 2006'', edited by H.G. Nelson *2008: ''Sprays'', by H. G. Nelson *2011: ''My life in SHORTS'', by H. G. Nelson


References


External links


HG Nelson ABC
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pickhaver, Greig Australian male comedians Australian television personalities Australian game show hosts People from Nuriootpa, South Australia Triple J announcers Living people Flinders University alumni Members of the Order of Australia Australian people of German descent 1948 births People educated at Adelaide High School Male actors from Adelaide