Peter Goers is Fit, Fabulous and Nearly 50!!!

Peter Goers has trodden the Adelaide boards for more than 50 years. He’s had an eclectic career that has seen him as actor, director, TV presenter, the “critic that ate Adelaide”, and now, beloved ABC radio host. After six seasons of Fringe shows he’s back again with “yet another nice show particularly for old people” in Peter Goers is Fit, Fabulous and Nearly 50!!!

It’s obvious that Goers has a strong and loyal following - of a certain age. Old, elderly, senior are all politically incorrect terms these days, he quips. Goers prefers to refer to his audience as the “near-dead”. The poster advertising the show features Goers’ face atop a buff, nearly naked, not near-dead body. Waiting to enter the theatre an older lady politely asked me if that was really his body on the poster. I assume then that the saying “you can fool some of the people some of the time” is still true, both in relation to the poster, and the title of his show.

You would think that after six seasons of Fringe, the recent release of his memoir Self Indulgent Crap, as well as five days a week on radio, Goers might be running out of jokes, anecdotes, stories and schtick. Nothing could be further from the truth.  As usual, nothing is sacred, even Maggie Beer, “Nanna to the Nation”, gets lambasted for her Verjuice, which truly is one of those inexplicable culinary items to the average home cook.

Health is a hot topic, as it always is amongst the near-dead, but thankfully Goers refrains from dwelling on COVID, which we are all tired of at this point. Wisely Goers has Dr. Joel Amos waiting in the wings should anyone, including himself, require assistance. Happily Amos is also an accomplished ballroom dancer and ably brings to life a nostalgic country dance hall scene from Harry Puglsey’s book Confessions of a Dole Bludger.

Goers’ close friend and partner in crime, the inimitable Anne Wills, is back in a supporting role. A candid discussion between the pair about ex-husbands, being single and rubbish night culminates with Willsy belting out a rendition of “The Last Blues Song” (first released by Helen Reddy in 1972). Willsy, adorned in her signature earrings and giant sequins, is as glamorous and entertaining as ever.

Goers knows his audience and plays to them. He’s a cheeky, amiable, sometimes difficult character with a wit and worldliness that is fascinating, and his audience laps it all up.  If you’re a fan of Goers’ radio show, or even if you’re not, there’s a lot to enjoy in this latest fringe offering by Adelaide’s reigning republican and raconteur.

Jenny Fewster

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