Neighbours’ Angry Anderson unrecognisable 38yrs since Scott and Charlene wedding song
The 1987 wedding of Neighbours favourites Scott and Charlene was the TV event of the year - and the couple had an iconic song for their big day from Angry Anderson
Soap opera weddings are always a huge event, guaranteed to be full of intrigue, drama and emotion. But it’s testament to the enormously popularity of Aussie soap Neighbours at the end of the last century that fans still remember Scott and Charlene’s big day. The TV wedding of the couple, infamously played by Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue, was a highlight of the year, perhaps even the decade, with Charlene being escorted down the aisle by her brother Henry (Craig McLachlan) to marry Scott in front of Ramsay Street residents including Paul (Stefan Dennis), Madge (Anne Charleston), Harold (Ian Bishop) and Mike (Guy Pearce).
As Neighbours’ popularity surged among UK viewers at the time, nearly 20 million people in the UK tuned in for the much-awaited nuptials, making it the third most-watched programme that year. The iconic scene was set to a song by Australian rock star Angry Anderson, specifically chosen by Kylie herself, as she found the lyrics meaningful.
Reminiscent of a Phil Collins hit, it’s a true 1980s power ballad, complete with a drum break and key change. The song was so popular, it reached number three in the Official UK Singles Chart, reports OK!. It was even later parodied in Gavin & Stacey when Nessa and Dave were getting married. But what became of Suddenly singer Angry Anderson himself?
Angry Anderson was born Gary Stephen Anderson on 5 August 1947 in Melbourne. He reportedly developed the nickname ‘Angry Ant’ as a child when he let his volatile nature get the better of him, yet his upbringing was horrific. In a 1994 biography, Angry – Scarred For Life, author Karen Dewey said young Gary was “sexually, physically and mentally abused”, with Angry telling Classic Rock magazine in 2018: “I was constantly belittled and beaten by my father, and also a victim of paedophillia by another family member. On top of being a little guy, it was a lot to deal with.”
Standing at just 5’1″ tall, Angry became a member of several bands, including Sydney’s Rose Tattoo in 1976. In 1981, during a performance at the UK’s Reading Festival, he repeatedly head-butted an amplifier until his scalp started bleeding. A year later he met the Lindy Michael, with the couple having a daughter together in 1983.
In 1985 he progressed from music to acting, with a role as Ironbar Bassey in the Mel Gibson movie Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. Angry had his biggest hit with Suddenly in 1987/88, taken from Rose Tattoo’s debut album released years earlier, Beats from a Single Drum. He appeared on the Christmas edition of Top Of The Pops, and crooner Cliff Richard told Angry he personally loved the track.
However Rose Tattoo split up, and Angry went on to have a solo music career, alongside a venture into musical theatre where he played Herod during a 1992 revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s rock opera, Jesus Christ Superstar. In 1993 he made a Member of the Order of Australia in recognition of service to the community, particularly as a youth advocate”. Rose Tattoo reunited to support Guns N’ Roses on their Australian tour, but they split again at the end of the tour. Tragically, all other band members have since died from cancer, leaving Angry as the sole survivor.
At the turn of the millennium, Angry participated in several charity events, took on minor film roles and hinted at running in local elections. By this time, he and Lindy had three sons together, but sadly, the couple divorced in 2002.
In 2012, he told a reporter from Australia’s TV Week that Suddenly is the best song he has ever written, explaining it’s “about a man coming to a point in his life when he says, ‘I know who I am, and I don’t mind revealing myself and being vulnerable.'” In 2014, he became a judge on the Australian TV show Bogan Hunters.
