My parents were very pleased that I was in the army. The fact that I hated it somehow pleased them even more.

He has written several plays and has made dozens of recordings. The Dadaist pranks and performances he mounted in Melbourne were experiments in anarchy and visual satire which have become part of Australian folklore. The same year he had a cameo as Edna in the Robert Stigwood musical film Sgt.

The stories about "Bazza" (Humphries' nickname as well as an Australian term of endearment for the name Barry) gave wide circulation to Australian slang particularly jokes about drinking and its consequences (much of which was invented by Humphries) and the character went on to feature in two Australian films in which he was portrayed by Barry Crocker. John Barry Humphries AO CBE (born 17 February 1934) is an Australian comedian satirist artist and author.