RIP Tina

[erwin greven]

[Everso Biggyballies]

Very sad news but not unexpected as I was aware of her illness.


Her promotional tie up here in Aus with NSW Rugby League saved the game from disappearing.



And Simply the Best NRL Promo was brilliant. She appeared on stage in Grand Finals and was a brilliant ambassador for them.






RIP Tina Turner.

In the late 80s, rugby league — and Australia, was a very different place.

The sport of rugby league was far from the multimillion dollar behemoth it is today.

Still known as the NSWRL and dripping with tobacco advertising, the game realised that it needed a revamp to attract a new audience in the face of the growing threat from the south, the expanding VFL.

Enter one of the most iconic musical acts of the 20th century, Tina Turner.

The American superstar known as the Queen of Rock'n'roll becoming the figurehead for the — at that stage more than any other — slightly downtrodden, Australian-based working-class game.

On the face of it, a more incongruous pairing did not exist.

"She was that international icon," then-NSWRL general manager John Quayle told ABC Brisbane.

"It was a wonderful time for all of us. To think that we were a part of it during the time that was wonderful for rugby league. It was a special time for all of us."

Rugby league had been part of the fabric of life in New South Wales and Queensland for nearly a century, but as sports promotion became more and more important in an ever-crowded entertainment marketplace, governing bodies knew they needed something special to stand out from the crowd.

And Turner was most definitely special.

Advertising executive Jim Walpole approached the NSWRL with the idea of using Turner to film an advert using her hit song, What You Get Is What You See.

What followed was a groundbreaking, admittedly risque piece of television that would help propel rugby league to a different level.

Shirtless rugby league players mix training montages with looking backwards, sultrily over their shoulders as Turner struts down a darkened corridor, singing her 1985 hit.

Ironically the first clip and promo was filmed in London at Craven Cottage.... Tina only had a single day free so a trip to Aus was out of the question. So everything needed was shipped and taken to the UK. Its only when it all really took off she started appearing in Aus. That story here:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-25/ ... /102390216