Calling For Some Class

At the weekend I had the opportunity to pay a visit to The Redback Tavern, in Acton Town. Apparently, the No. 1 Australasian pub and live music venue. Their calling card: "If it is a taste of home your after? The Reddy is your place". Ummm, yeah... perhaps not.

I found a few of these so-called, 'Aussie' venues during my time in New York City (namely, Eight Mile Creek, on Mulberry Street in Nolita and The Sunburnt Cow, in the East Village on Avenue C)... They were always a fun hangout, a place to watch the rugby, the cricket or the AFL (okay, so maybe I didn't go there to see the footy much, but I didn't judge those who did!). But it appears the London equivalents - which have been around a little longer, I'm sure - seem to endorse all things 'Occa' about being Aussie, and they're giving us a bad name!

In New York, there's still a bit of mystery surrounding the Down-Unders, but in London we're a dime a dozen, and not so well thought of as that! While we do have a reputation on the jobfront for being hard workers, we have a bigger reputation for being the drunk and rowdy people stumbling out of establishments like The Reddy, and the equally debaucherous, Walkabout (an Australian themed bar with locations throughout Oz and the UK). And I for one, am calling for action!

The day, as an Australian, that you hope the Brits watch shows like Neighbours and Home & Away in order to develop a more well-rounded opinion of our way of life, is a very sad day indeed. But, I'd prefer people thought all Aussie blokes were like Ramsey Street's Toadie Rebecchi (played by Ryan Moloney) than like the drunken yobbos getting wasted on 'Snakebites' and calling out to their 'Sheilas'... and it's placed like The Reddy and Walkabout that indulge the small portion of Aussies (and Kiwis) that truly act like this. It's up to the rest of us to put an end to Fosters and Snakebites, and call for more brunches and lunches... and go kick the footy in the park.