hamish and andy Men of the Year in association with chivas They’ve conquered America, dominated europe and cut loose in asia. Then there’s This Aussie comedy duo’s ownership of the airwaves – and their own destinies.

It’s 10am in a South Melbourne cafe, which viewers every episode on the Nine Network, GQ: What if it revolved entirely around trucker caps? means rush hour for creative types. They dominating the ratings. HB: Then we’re in. We have six different looks. drift in for bircher muesli, checking their Sitting down for breakfast with them is as Andy Lee: On the day, he wanted us to have seven Instagram feeds against a backdrop of scando you’d expect – an assault on the senses, with outfits, but I couldn’t have any changes. wood walls and bare lightbulbs. The work day no off button for the banter. But they make the GQ: The shoulder? will kick in, eventually. perfect couple. Lee, 32, is focused and intense. AL: Yeah – once I got into a suit, I couldn’t get Blowing through the door in a chilly spring Blake, 31, is not. (At one point his attention out, so we just did one look. gust, Hamish Blake and Andy Lee fit right severely wanders. Where to? “Sorry, I was GQ: Sounds like something worth faking, next time in – super low-key in their uniform of jeans, imagining a pool party in my glass of water.”) you can’t be bothered. T-shirts and trucker caps. Only Lee has gone So, Machiavellian media geniuses or a pair HB: Yeah, we’ve done it before. Wheelchair, off brief, with a burgundy sling supporting his of Peter Pans? Which is it? Then again, maybe cardiac arrest. right arm. Shoulder reconstruction, apparently. it doesn’t matter. Because given that it allows GQ: So anyway, the reason we dragged you into the They’re regulars here; their office is just them to fly around the globe having adventures studio is for our Men of the Year Awards. It’s not the upstairs. And yes, they do have a proper on someone else’s dime, it’s quite possible they first trophy you’ve won. grown-up office, complete with desks and have the coolest job in the world. AL: The first award we won together was the computers and a team. Because while they Barry McIver award. Hamish wears wool tuxedo, $999, by Hardy might look like a couple of mates having fun GQ: You brushed up well for our shoot, chaps. Very slick. HB: My Mum made it for us, at our first Amies from a selection at David Jones; cotton ‘Valentinus’ shirt, $489, by Hugo Boss; together, make no mistake: they’re a hugely Hamish Blake: Yeah, but your stylist kept trying Melbourne Comedy Festival. The official silk bow tie, $155, by Harrolds; silk pocket successful operation. 1.2m listeners tune in to persuade us into a much bigger shoot, and one you can win is the Barry Award, named square, $29.95, TM Lewin; brass plated every weekday to their radio show, Hamish and it’s like dangling a carrot in front of a horse after Barry Humphries. That’s for the best of cufflinks, $49.95, by Ben Sherman; stainless Andy’s Happy Hour, on the Today Network. who’s allergic to carrots. I’d hate someone to the best. We were not the best of the best. So steel and 18ct gold ‘De Ville Prestige’ watch, $7950, by Omega. Andy wears wool tuxedo, Their podcast tops the Australian iTunes pick up a magazine and for us to be the people Mum went to the trophy shop and made us an $1890, by Harrolds; cotton shirt, $295, by charts. And their most recent TV project, pushing fashion upon them. We don’t know award. We mentioned MacGyver a lot in the Paul Smith at David Jones; velvet bow tie, Gap Year Asia, clocked up well over a million anything about fashion. show, for whatever reason. Mum had never $129, by Calibre at David Jones; silk pocket square, $29.95, by TM Lewin; stainless steel ‘De Ville Prestige’ watch, $4225, by Omega. words ceri david photography Zachary Handley styling wayne gross (Both outfits worn throughout.)

188 gq.com.au december 2013/january 2014 heard of MacGyver, and didn’t understand aren’t engaged in what we do, and that’s fine. AL: As time’s gone on – and that’s what is great to the point where you’ve got enough material the reference. So, on the final night of the Having said that, we did recently have a feud about working with your old friends, which for a show. festival, she presented us with this award... with 50 Cent. we do – you’ve got to learn to trust your inner AL: Learning on the spot is what makes each AL: And she called it the Barry McIver award. circle, and not what people are saying outside. series better. We try not to learn too much HB: And we went, ‘Who’s Barry McIver?’ For anyone not clued up on this, here’s Because, when we first started, no one would about anything in advance. You know, And she said, ‘The guy you’re always talking what happened. Two years ago, Andy entered listen to our ideas. Now, they’re even more Ham found a bar where monkeys serve as about on the show.’ Yeah, good try Mum, Hamish in the New York State Amateur likely to not listen, but still let us do it. And waiters. And that’s all we need to know about very sweet. Bodybuilding Championships. By complete that’s a dangerous place to be. that. If we walk in and we’re glossing over GQ: You’ve won the odd legitimate award too, though. fluke, Hamish was the only contender in his HB: I wouldn’t call our strategy ‘long-sighted’ things we’ve already heard about, it’s not the HB: I’m going to ask you to retract that, bracket – the heavyweight category – so, by but it’s whatever the step is past ‘short- right experience. We want to be asking the because Barry McIver is legit. default, he took the title. sighted’. I can absolutely understand why very first question the viewers might ask. GQ: Erm, sorry. does it feel strange to win such The shots from the comp are something people would want to be famous and would But there was a degree of nervousness when prestigious awards? to behold, Blake resplendent in royal blue want to be on TV and want that as a goal. we were sitting there at the table with the HB: I think if you’re a physicist and you get a Speedos, his complexion and muscle tone But really, it should be a by-product of the cameras on, and an old lady came out, and Nobel prize, well done, you’ve added another like uncooked dough, next to the rock hard actual thing you want to do. put our food down. We were like, ‘But she’s paving stone on the journey of science for terracotta of the other contestants. GQ: Have you met any Kardashians? not a monkey.’ mankind. But to muck around on TV and try Time passed, and the win faded into a AL: Yeah, we have actually, on the show. HB: We were like, ‘So maybe the monkeys are to make your friend vomit... I don’t know if distant memory. Then, in October this year, HB: It’s weird. It’s like the filmAwakenings – off today?’ that’s an award-worthy job. rapper/idiot 50 Cent came across one of the you’re looking at someone that’s just trapped GQ: And you’re OK with that uncertainty? GQ: So, it hasn’t got to the stage where you think, ‘Well, photos and posted it on his Instagram feed, in this world that they can’t get out of. But AL: We have ideas of things we want to go and everyone loves us, of course we’re the winners’? captioned, “The moment you realise your they seem happy. Maybe ignorance is bliss. see, but until you get there, you never know AL: We thought that last year at the Logies, trainer been bullSH!TTiNG”. At last count, GQ: Do you guys worry that the public will go off you? how it’s going to turn out. And I think that’s and then neither of us won the gong. And we it had 20,116 likes. HB: They will. We work in an industry that has the fun for us, too. hate Asher Keddie for it. The pair immediately launched a counter- a very short life cycle. HB: You can pretend there’s a science to HB: If Asher Keddie wins GQ Man of the Year, attack on Twitter: AL: It’s not a worry, as such. We thought it was it. But in reality it’s just intuition and an I’ll be fucking annoyed. “Listen @50cent I don’t want this to turn going to happen ages ago. unmeasurable mix of things that work. That’s GQ: fair enough. into a feud over who has more body building HB: We’re totally on borrowed time. But how you know you’re in the right job. If you trophies because a) I respect you b) I will you can’t be too down about that. You can find yourself realising you have no gut feeling At this point breakfast arrives. Hamish crush you.” – @hamishblake either think, ‘Oh man, I’ll be so upset if this for what works, it’s probably not right. e tucks into a plate of poached eggs and avocado. “Piss off @50cent. I trained @hamishblake ends, and that’s really unfair,’ or you can just GQ: Is this what you both thought you’d end up doing

Andy goes for a hot chocolate, adding a heaped as best I could and we actually won our weight appreciate the fact you won the lottery in the omad for a living? spoonful of sugar. Really. division you big moron (with the utmost first place, to be allowed to do it. AL: When I was really little, I wanted to tley P

respect).” – @andy_lee o do stage theatre. I’ve got a penchant for

GQ: You were part of a big event earlier this year to “Yo @50cent are we feuding or not? My s M musicals, which Hamish finds funny. And

farewell Hillary Clinton when she stepped down as us accountant needs to know so I can tax deduct orri then I wanted to become an accountant. Secretary of State. That’s almost as good as a Gold Logie. certain items (bulletproof vests, safe house GQ: Wow. Is there anything that sits neatly in the middle ts & M

How did that come about? snacks, etc).” – @hamishblake c of those two? AL: It was peculiar, because there were articles And so on. u AL: It feels like the right thing would be to do coming out saying, ‘Why did we put Hamish mid-level accountancy, and sing in a piano y prod and Andy up to represent Australia? What HB: We won that feud, because he never got "creativity bar at night. car e a waste of Hillary’s time.’ But it wasn’t like back to us by close of business on Tuesday. h HB: I look back, and I wanted to do about 100 t the country came together, and Julia Gillard That was nice to win. doesn’t work jobs, but mostly for the equipment or the cool turned around and goes, ‘I think the best GQ: The bodybuilding comp was part of your American factor. I wanted to be in the army so I could Gap Year. Do trips like that feel like work? on hours at the people for the job are these idiots.’ It was bibat, apo parachute. I wanted to be a bricklayer because the US embassy saying they’d like to lighten HB: It’s like a highly jampacked holiday. you got to drive a cool truck. Looking things up. I suppose if it was an actual holiday, you office. It’s a magic y gri back, I realise what I was actually doing was ro

HB: We were watching the feed before we wouldn’t do as many things as we do. tz GQ: So, you’re not afraid of it all vanishing? HB: There is, but creativity doesn’t work on fantasising, which probably lends itself to the went on, shitting ourselves, thinking ‘We AL: If you did, your spouse might turn to machine – You HB: The best thing that happened to us, hours at the office. If you spend two hours at career I’m in now, where you get to wear a hat ing Fi might accidentally start a war here.’ Anyone you and go, ‘Do we really need to go from career-wise, was when we got our first show the office and you have one idea, and then you for one day, and then fuck off. in Australia who saw us interview Hillary a Germany to Venice to Sicily in one day?” have to ask your ll us and it was axed after six weeks. The whole spend six hours, you’re not necessarily going GQ: And at the other end of your lives, when you look into

couple of years back – they get the joke. The HB: A real holiday would probably have more on hi point of being in TV is not to get axed. To to get three ideas. That’s not how it works. your future, what kind of old men would you like to be?

brain to think of ft only worry you have is that people from other sipping of mai-tais by the pool. We tried that i go out so early on in your first innings is It’s just a magic machine – you have to ask AL: We like to visualise ourselves heading countries might not. So, if we besmirched in season one. It doesn’t make for great TV. something and disappointing. We thought, ‘This was our your brain to think of something, and hope to have a gamble on a sporting event, and Australia’s reputation, we apologise. GQ: These days, does the TV network just say yes to one shot. It’s over.’ But it was great because that out of nowhere you get a little bolt. having a few beers, and still laughing. t biba Cl GQ: It’s not all sunshine and roses, then. everything you come to them with? you get a bit of bad press, and then everyone You can do everything in your power – HB: Also when I get to 65, I only want to wear

hope that out of on a s

HB: On the whole, we’re pretty lucky. With HB: We’re lucky. I don’t think we even go to a moves on. It teaches you that it’s not the end get lots of sleep, eat right, not go out and velour tracksuits. what we do, it’s not like it’s ever very them – we just give them a show at the end of the world at all. It removes that fear for the really focus 24/7 on the show, but if you GQ: Not sure what our stylist would make of that.

nowhere you get ob M controversial. But also, even if a million of it. They’ve always been so generous to let rest of your career. don’t get an idea, you don’t get an idea. But HB: So, is the Men of the Year event black tie? people watch our TV show, that means 22 us go and make our own mistakes. I wouldn’t a little bolt." GQ: since then, how has your strategy improved? Is there when we do get an idea, we put it in a bucket, GQ: It sure is. million don’t. So, the overwhelming majority have done it if I was them. more to it than just two mates getting up to mischief? and the bucket slowly fills up, and then it gets HB: Ah, shit. n GROOMING: R

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