Agro (puppet) facts for kids

Agro is an Australian puppet and media personality, operated by comedian and voice artist Jamie Dunn. He was especially prominent on Australian television in the 1990s due to his co-hosting opposite Ann-Maree Biggar and Terasa Livingstone of Agro's Cartoon Connection, a children's program that was aired from 1989 to 1997 on weekday mornings by the Seven Network.

Name

The word "agro" (also spelled "aggro") is English slang for "aggression". Agro is sometimes said to have the surname Vation, though the puppet is rarely credited with a surname.

Career

Television host

Agro hosted the following Australian television shows:

• Boris' Breakfast Club (? – 1989)
• Wombat (1983–1990)
• Agro's Cartoon Connection (1989–1997)
• Super Sunday Show (aka Super Saturday Show)
• Perfect Match (2002 revival)

Agro was a guest host for Tonight Live with Steve Vizard on four occasions. He also appeared many times as a guest on Tonight Live.

Television appearances

Agro has also appeared as a guest on the following television shows:

• The Don Lane Show
• Everybody
• Hey Dad..!
• Hey Hey It's Saturday
• Wheel of Fortune (often appearing as the partner and mouthpiece for Fat Cat on Celebrity Wheel of Fortune)
• Family Feud (with his "family" father Star, mother Ellie and younger brother Neville)
• The Main Event
• Talk With the Animals
• Concentration
• The Daily Edition

Agro has also appeared on a number of Australian telethons, particularly those that raise money for the Royal Children's Hospital, Brisbane. Agro has also occasionally appeared as a panel member on the Channel Seven Perth Telethon, but usually after 10 p.m.

Radio host

Agro's radio credits include:

• The Morning Crew (1990–2005), B105 FM's breakfast show. Agro performed prank telephone calls and also presented a segment Agro to the Rescue, in which he would provide money or resources to a family or individual in trouble. Eventually the Agro performances were credited to Jamie Dunn, and the Agro character was marginalised.
• The Zinc Morning Zoo (2006–), with Ian Calder and Courtney Burns on Sunshine Coast FM radio station Zinc 96.

Merchandising

Agro, at his height of popularity saw much merchandising released, including four recorded studio albums (of which three were nominated for ARIA Awards), a Game Boy game (Agro Soar), an arcade game (Agro's Fantastic Video Game), and a range of other merchandise including action figures, snap cards, stickers, lunchboxes, and children's clothing, and annual showbags at the Sydney Royal Easter Show.

Current status

Agro's on-camera roles became less frequent in the late 1990s as his radio commitments grew and the novelty of the character wore off. When Agro performed on radio, Jamie Dunn would sit in the studio and provide the Agro voice without actually operating the puppet. In time, these performances were credited to Dunn himself.

Dunn aspired to become a show-business personality in his own right, and so in time he appeared in promotional material for the B105 FM Morning Crew as himself. He used the Agro character as a kind of alternative, more uninhibited personality (for example, when making prank telephone calls). The puppet itself was seldom seen during the 2000s. Dunn said at one point that Agro was "in a suitcase somewhere". In 2008 Agro appeared in promotional material for Zinc 96.

In March 2009 Agro returned to television screens in South East Queensland to promote a $7,000 cash give-away on Radio Station 4BC. From August 2013, Agro started appearing on Channel 7 program The Daily Edition. He talks to the panel and answers viewer questions.

In 2017, Agro appeared in several ads for "sellmycar.com.au", and has continued as the voice of the radio advertisement. In 2020 he appeared in several ads for Uber Eats. In 2021 Agro made a cameo appearance on the second episode of Holey Moley.

Awards and nominations

ARIA Music Awards

Logie Awards

He also received a Penguin Award for "Best Presenter of Light Entertainment".