So Steph, what do Robert Irwin, Nigella Lawson, and a cartoon kangaroo have in common?
Wait, is this a joke?
No not at all, I’m genuinely asking.
Oh, sorry. The answer is a new round of ads spruiking Australia as a tourist destination to potential international visitors.
Is this the latest from Scott Morrison’s old workplace?
Do you mean Tourism Australia? Yes, the former PM and former director of Tourism Australia liked to claim he was responsible for the “where the bloody hell are you?” ad that featured Lara Bingle (and was banned from the UK for being too risque).
This new round of ads feature a bunch of personalities from places where the agency intends them to air. So the ads featuring actor Yosh Yu will show in China, those with Japanese comedian Abareru-kun will air in Japan, those featuring influencer Sara Tendulkar will run in India and Nigella Lawson will front the ads showing in the UK. I assume the UK don’t think Nigella Lawson is too risque.
Wait, so is Robert Irwin supposed to be appealing to … other Australians?
No, he’ll be shown in the ads for Americans, blasting over sand dunes in a four-wheel-drive, chasing an emu that’s stolen an American tourist’s phone. Tourism Australia’s current managing director, Phillipa Harrison, says the ads having international stars as well as locals in them will “create bespoke invitations for five markets”.
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Isn’t Robert Irwin a wildlife warrior though? Ripping it up through the sand dunes isn’t great for the environment, and I don’t think you’re supposed to chase emus.
No, but these ads also feature a multilingual cartoon kangaroo, Ruby the Roo, who you may remember from a previous round of government tourism propaga … I mean, campaigns. I don’t think they’re going for realism here.
The general gist of it is that travellers will tell their friends and family back home about their wild and unbelievable adventures in Australia.
How much is selling the magic of these wild and unbelievable adventures going to cost us?
About $130m. The argument for it is that tourism is a significant part of the Australian economy: around 360,000 Australian businesses rely on tourism and the government estimates that the number of international arrivals will hit 10 million in 2026 and 11.8 million in 2029.
When he announced the campaign, the tourism minister, Don Farrell, called tourism “the lifeblood of so many communities right around the country” and claimed the previous campaign “struck a chord with visitors, with Ruby the Roo bounding into the imagination of countless guests”.
Please tell me that they’ve at least stopped leaning into cliches about Australia when trying to sell us to the world?
It’s an extension of the “Come and Say G’day” campaign from 2022. I regret to inform you that this version features pavlova, beaches and a riff on the old Crocodile Dundee “shrimp on the barbie” line. I can hear you groaning from here.
Didn’t Tourism Australia also once have an ad where Kylie Minogue sang a song of mateship?
Let’s not go there.
