Timber, Barley and the Rock Lobster: Australia’s new favourite radio show

The nicknames given to radio hosts and indeed their shows in Australia are sometimes lambasted for their simplicity and unoriginality.

Indeed a recent tweet by Dylan Behan lamented “Every @radiotodayanz headline like “Bazza, Melissa and The Dickhead reflect on three years of rockin’ out on Sunshine FM Coffs Harbour””.

Every @radiotodayanz headline like “Bazza, Melissa and The Dickhead reflect on three years of rockin’ out on Sunshine FM Coffs Harbour”

— Dylan Behan (@dylabolical) October 16, 2020

And Behan, it seems, may be even more on the money than even he realised.

On Monday night’s episode of Have You Been Paying Attention? host Tom Gleisner played panellists Sam Pang, Celia Pacquola, Ed Kavalee, Peter Helliar and Abby Coleman a news clip.

“Timber, barley and rock lobsters were in the news. What’s going on with those terms?” Gleisner asked.

“Is it a new Breakfast radio team? Timer, Barley and the Rock Lobster?” Pacqoula quipped, before Nova Melbourne’s Breakfast host Pang jumped in with “They’re the only three things left in the world that Ed [Kavalee] hasn’t done an ad for”.

The Hit Network’s Kavalee, however, played it straight and got the points: “I think that’s the latest round of Chinese restriction on Australian goods, Tommy”.

The panellists were later asked “What popular radio show has the biggest growing audience in the country?” with Gleisner pointing out “It’s not Ed’s show, it’s not Sam’s show, it’s not Abby’s show”.

Pacquola, keen to revive the earlier gag, proclaimed: “It’s gotta be Timbo, Barley and the Rocklobster”, before Pang was awarded the points for correctly identifying 3AW’s Ross & Russel.