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THE chairmanship of Wests Tigers is not the most unusual position Mike Bailey has held.
Long before he began presenting the weather or entered politics, the veteran journalist - according to his Wikipedia profile - held a job as ‘‘Bargain Sam’’ spruiking, among other things, ladies’ underwear outside a Sydney department store.
This is only partly true. ‘‘Actually, they got that wrong. It was ‘Savings Sam’,’’ Bailey chuckled. ‘‘They were looking for someone who had done some microphone work. Being precocious and wanting a media career, I said ‘yeah, I can do that’. They gave me a striped coat - much more striped than the suit I’m wearing today - with grey and blue stripes going down and a boater straw hat with ‘Savings Sam’ around it. I tell you what, despite my love of journalism and everything else I’ve done, it was a great way to earn a living.’’
Advertisement: Story continues belowFor the generation which grew up with Bailey - best remembered as a weather presenter on the ABC - the chairmanship of the Tigers may also appear an incongruous fit. But this is not so. The former Ashfield De La Salle College student is a Wests Tigers man to the core. He grew up three doors down from the great Western Suburbs Magpies and Australian halfback Keith Holman, his father was a Magpies player (albeit the Bellingen variety) and he grew up watching his beloved black and whites at Pratten Park. He drank with the players at the old Dancer’s Club when the team moved to Lidcombe Oval. As the years went on, he struck up a friendship with teacher-cum-coach Roy Masters.
‘‘I even took a couple of classes for him once or twice because, in those days, they didn’t have home video equipment,’’ Bailey said. ‘‘Maybe I shouldn’t say this but he’d occasionally look at videos during school hours and I’d go out and talk about weather or something else half relevant [to the class] while he did that.’’
There has been a more formal relationship with Wests Tigers in recent times, as the chairman of the Wests Ashfield Leagues Club. The chairmanship of Wests Tigers is shared between the Wests and Balmain branches of the joint venture for a year each - with Bailey slipping into the role just as their winning streak began. Given he ran for Parliament in 2007 - the swing of 4.7 per cent to Labor in North Sydney was not enough to dislodge Joe Hockey - it would seem the perfect grounding for his present role.
‘‘I don’t know if it helps at the Wests Tigers, but I enjoyed it,’’ he said. ‘‘My wife said that I became a new man as a result of that campaign.’’ Bailey’s wife of 25 years is ‘‘Miss Helena’’ of Romper Room fame - another successful joint venture. Rugby league can now welcome one of its more unlikely power couples.
‘‘I met her at Channel Seven when she got the job,’’ Bailey said. ‘‘I started at Seven in 1972 and Miss Patricia was doing Romper Room at that time. I got along very well with Miss Patricia but it was Miss Helena who made the difference … The violins started playing. We got together and it’s been a very happy partnership in the years since.’’
Other projects, including fund-raising for the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney, working through issues affecting the club industry and acting as a consultant to the NSW government regarding its emergency management strategies for climate change, have kept him busy.
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Good luck to Mike he has a big job ahead of him, bit like the rough weather he used to report on at Channel Seven years ago, all the best.
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Congrats Mike
''I started at Seven in 1972 and Miss Patricia was doing Romper Room at that time. I got along very well with Miss Patricia but it was Miss Helena who made the difference …
you old dog you …LOL
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He is an old magpie who liked to swoop, just joken Mike :slight_smile:
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“The Weatherman”, our new chairman
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I thought they changed the chairman role before the start of the season, which would mean he’s been in the position since Feburary……not really the NEW chairman.
And also, if Bailey is the chairman, why is David Trodden the one representing us at all these Independent Commission things?? Seems a bit silly really when he isn’t the chairman.
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I know Mike and may i say he is a lovely bloke and a Wests Tiger to the core……i have seen him many a time selling memberships after games when Ive been rolling down hills,beer in one hand and hot dog in the other.
Lovely feller and the kind of feller you want to have around…imo of course.And Miss Helena…yuuuuummmmmmmmmyyyyyy!
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Does that make him Mr Do Bee ??
You young uns won’t get that I know
Maybe Miss Patricia thought he was Mr Don’t be ?? -
Stompa bompa,stompa do,tell me,tell me tell me do
magic mirror tell me today- have all my friends had fun today?Obviously Mike did!
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