‘Rest in peace to an absolute legend': Iconic We Can Be Heroes star Mick Graham dead after long illness
Graham, who played 'Terry' in the cult ABC mockumentary series, reportedly passed away on July 27.
Mick's son Paddy confirmed his father's death via social media.
'It is with great sadness we inform you of the passing of the amazing Mick Graham, also known as Terry from WCBH,' he wrote.
'We know how loved my father was in this community.
'Rest In Peace to an absolute legend.'
He went on to thank fans for their support during this difficult time.
Graham's death comes exactly 20 years since We Can Be Heroes first went to air on the ABC in mid-2005 and introduced five of Lilley's most famous characters.
The series follows five fictional 'nominees' for Australian of the Year, including Perth mum of two Pat Mullins.
Graham appeared as Mullin's beloved husband who coached his wife in her goal of 'rolling' along the ground from Perth to Uluru for charity.
Throughout the series, Pat experienced some injuries and setbacks during training, including having a gumnut lodged up her nose.
'(Mick's) emotions and acting throughout We Can Be Heroes, is genuinely some of the best I have ever seen!,' one fan of the series wrote.
'Chris, you are incredible at observing people and bringing them small details and mannerisms to life, But Terry's acting is just incredible!'
'Mick played that role so well, he was just as funny as Chris in the duo of Terry and Pat, RIP,' another fan wrote.
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Princess Anne celebrates her 75th birthday with a quick photo and an escape to her Gatcombe Park estate
Throughout her life in the public eye, Princess Anne has built a reputation for being hard-working and no-nonsense. And in familiar style, the princess all but dismissed her milestone 75th birthday today. Seventy-five is a significant celebration for many, but not for Princess Anne. "Big birthdays have a nought at the end," was the message given to royal aides who, despite their best efforts, failed to persuade the royal to acquiesce to repeated interview requests — including one from the ABC — to mark the day. Instead Princess Anne has only reluctantly posed for two new portraits to mark the celebration. But some of those who have worked most closely with the Princess Royal have spoken to the ABC about how they keep up with her work ethic, her vast knowledge of horses and not least, her wide general knowledge and sharp sense of humour. When former Olympic track star Lord Sebastian Coe was given the daunting task of presenting to Princess Anne a plan that her mother — the late Queen Elizabeth — might feature in an unconventional stunt to open the 2012 London Olympics, he could never have predicted the response. "I said, look, the idea is that actor Daniel Craig as James Bond, turns up at the palace and your mother is in her office," Coe told the ABC, reflecting on his conversation with the princess. "The Queen then disappears with him, the corgis follow her out and she gets into a helicopter. We fly all the way down the River Thames, under the bridges and come out over the stadium. At the right moment [stunt doubles of] Her Majesty and James Bond jump in tandem from the helicopter and land in the arena." Coe, a four-time Olympic medal winner who works alongside the princess on the International Olympic Committee (IOC), waited for a reply. Princess Anne responded with penetrating silence. At last she spoke. "She looked at me and in a million years I could never have guessed what [she would say next]," Coe says. "What kind of helicopter? It can't be a Chinook," the princess asked Coe, referring to the tandem-rotor chopper that is often used by the Royal Air Force. "The downdraft would take it into the river," she concluded, displaying her startling breadth of knowledge and perhaps a little dry humour, too. Coe says Princess Anne was vital to the success of London's 2012 Olympic bid as a whole, not just the dramatic opening ceremony. "To have the support of the royal family is one thing, but to have the support of a former Olympian who eats, sleeps and breathes sport was hugely important," he says. "She was quietly in the background, making sure the IOC knew how serious our bid was, how well structured it was." Queen Elizabeth II's only daughter has never enjoyed the limelight, preferring to roll up her sleeves and quietly get on with her job as a working royal. According to those who work alongside her, this no-nonsense approach to the career she was born into is entirely consistent with the Princess Royal they have come to know. Anne is well known for sailing above the social media cauldron of royal scandals, feuds and gossip and has become a vital cornerstone in her brother King Charles III's monarchy. Perhaps this work ethic and sense of duty is why the princess did at last agree to pose for a new birthday photo alongside her husband of 33 years, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence. The formal shot, complete with the Festoon Tiara — a 23rd birthday gift worn in rotation at events over the decades — was taken by royal rota photographer Chris Jackson last month before the couple headed into a state banquet for French president Emmanuel Macron at Windsor Castle. The image was released ahead of her birthday with the second more relaxed and stunning solo photograph taken by portraiture specialist John Swannell. Swannell has photographed the Princess Royal for birthday occasions with a zero at the end. In this 75th birthday shoot, Princess Anne is in the place she loves best, her Gatcombe Estate home in Gloucestershire. Swannell is also known for an iconic series of photographs of Diana — then Princess of Wales — with sons William and Harry back in 1994. When Anne was born — a home birth at Clarence House in London on August 15, 1950 — she was third in line to the throne. Only her mother, then Princess Elizabeth, and her brother Charles were ahead of her. Now, thanks to the sexist quirks of a centuries' old male primogeniture succession system, amended in 2013 by an act of parliament but too late for Anne, she is 18th in line. Nevertheless, the princess tops the "hardest working royal" tally year after year — 474 engagements at last count for 2024 in the annual tally of every engagement published in the London Times newspaper and vying with King Charles for the top spot in 2025. In the days leading up to her birthday, despite it being the usual royal holiday break period, Anne went on an official visit to Dublin to meet with the Irish president Michael D Higgins, a piece of important soft diplomacy to keep the Anglo/Irish relationship on a steady keel. She also attended the opening of the 150th Dublin Horse Show. Princess Anne will spend her birthday in glorious isolation sailing around Scotland with her husband, just the two of them aboard their yacht, according to a report in UK's Sunday Times newspaper The princess is a determined action woman despite a hospital spell in intensive care last year following a horse-related incident. Anne still has no memory of the accident which resulted in bruises and a head injury. In June she was quite literally back on the horse, riding alongside her nephew Prince William and youngest brother Prince Edward through the streets of London in the King's birthday parade, Trooping the Colour. As Colonel of the Blues and Royals, Anne was in full ceremonial uniform: A cocked hat complete with red plume sprouting from the top and carrying the 'Gold Stick' — a peculiar piece of ceremonial pomp. Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Griffin who has ridden with the Princess Royal in many parades over the years says the role of Gold Stick in Waiting goes back to the time of Henry VIII. "I suspect some wicked Frenchman was threatening to slide a knife between his ribs. So, he appointed a close protection officer whose symbol of authority was a gold headed staff," Griffin explains. "Back then the chosen guard used the stick to ease people out of the way. Should they not pay attention, he reversed the stick and gave them a quick tap on the head as a reminder they should get out of the way." The Metropolitan Police now carry out the work of protecting the royal family and the stick has become a position in the royal court. "It is a very senior position because the person closest to the sovereign would be the gold stick who literally waits on the monarch," says Griffin. Princess Anne makes it look easy, but the rigours of the ceremony are far from that. "If you're a horseman, you would say walking a horse from Buckingham Palace up the Horse Guards Parade and back again, which is about two miles, is not a challenge, particularly if you're an Olympian as the Princess Royal is," he says. "But horses are very sensitive animals, they pick up on the electricity of the crowd. Suddenly what was quite a steady number under your backside wakes up, and you've got a bit of a handful." Add in the equipment dating from the 18th century, and even back to the 16th, and it's clear the princess is dressed in an outfit that isn't the most comfortable: White buckskin leather trousers, stiff knee-high leather boots, a thick, heavy wood "barathea" tunic and shoulder boards with gold string epaulet. "Then amongst the spaghetti of her reins, she's also got the gold headed ebony cane to carry, which is about three feet high. It is awkward," says Griffin. In the household cavalry Princess Anne is popular, not so much because she's a royal but because she is a role model, seen as a safe pair of hands and genuine leader at events where — despite intense rehearsals — anything can happen on the day. "She knows more about horses than all of us put together,' Griffin adds. He recalls at Trooping the Colour a few years ago when swirling winds spooked the horses. "Two threw their riders and one decided to go on an escape mission. The only person who yelled out "loose horse" was the Princess Royal," he says. "The rest of us were concentrating on remaining in the saddle. A voice from one side of her, which I think came from one of her brothers, said "What do we do now?". "Sit tight," advised Princess Anne, and everyone did. "We were all relying on her experience," says Griffin. At King Charles' coronation in 2023 Anne was again on horseback with a lot going on. Having been inside Westminster Abbey, the princess somehow had to get ahead of the crowds "Exit stage left, jump on a horse and get in the parade," explains Griffin who says the Princess Royal was particularly impressive that day. Tight coordination was essential as the princess arrived at Buckingham Palace at the end of the coronation procession and had to jump off her horse along with Griffin and others from the cavalry, all then weaved their way through Buckingham Palace to take part in the three cheers for His Majesty in the gardens. Leading the fray, with a large number of burly men in armour and jack boots, spinning through the palace at an extraordinary rate, was the Princess Royal. "She knew time was tight and I can't say we were running, but we were walking with purpose!" Griffin remembers. "She was determined to make sure we weren't late, not only for herself and supporting her brother, but also because we — her cavalry — would then have the opportunity to take part in that extraordinary event." That leadership role continues behind the scenes. Griffin says the Princess Royal "is always on top of her brief". "She quite often asks the question which goes right to the nub of the issue," he says. "And if you haven't done your homework, you know you'll get a raised eyebrow and you go away a wiser person than you arrived." Princess Anne started life as a working royal when she was 18 and to date has been involved with more than 300 charities. It is a model the younger royals haven't followed. Most prefer to focus on fewer initiatives and big social change projects, but Anne is committed to the mundane less headline-grabbing royal work and this quiet dedication is part of what makes her so popular and admired by the public. She took on her first major charity in 1970 as president of Save the Children. In the 55 years of her association with organisation she has visited 33 countries, attended 1300 engagements and met more than 27,500 staff. Sara Allan, head of Save the Children's humanitarian response unit says Anne's longevity of service is "incredibly powerful". "Our staff look up to her as a role model of service and that connection is so powerful," Allan says. Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA) was founded in 1969 as a tiny volunteer run initiative to provide life-changing experiences for children and adults with disability. Today RDA has more than 450 centres in the UK and a sister charity in Australia. Anne has been involved since 1971 and it is known to be one of her most treasured patronages. The association's CEO, Michael Bishop, says the princess is ingrained in every aspect of operations. "I don't know where we'd be without the Princess Royal. She holds the collective knowledge of the organisation," he says. "People say she's hard working, diligent and committed. All of those things are absolutely true," he says. "But what people might not know about her is that she's incredibly knowledgeable and that's particularly true for RDA where her passion and connection with our people stands out." Just three weeks after Princess Anne's accident last year she returned to work to attend the RDA National Championships, a key date in their annual calendar. Her cheek was notably bruised but there was no attempt to cover it with make-up, Anne didn't care. She was determined not to let the charity down. "That was significant," says Bishop. "It demonstrated that leadership of the spirit that creates an organisation like ours." Many refer to Princess Anne's now legendary sense of humour. And Lord Coe, who has known her since the 1970s, is no different. Over the years the thing that has surprised him most about the Princess Royal, he says, is this sense of fun. "She's funny. She's said things in meetings where I've actually had to almost stuff a handkerchief in my mouth to stop laughing," he says. One of those moments happened when the two were presenting London's case for the 2012 Olympics to the coordination commission. During an intense question and answer session one committee member asked a question that totally missed the point of the presentation. Coe sensed the Princess Royal could not contain her frustration and was about to say something to him under her breath. He also realised that she was unaware her microphone was switched on. "I just couldn't get to that microphone quickly enough before she said "That person is probably the most stupid person in world sport"," Coe remembers. "It shot out around the room. There's no way you could not have heard." What happened next was even funnier, he recounts. "She never flinched. Eyes straight ahead as if nothing had happened. I found myself lamely saying 'Fine… item four!'.'' At 75, Princess Anne shows no signs of slowing down, something that is probably just as well for her brother King Charles and his son and heir Prince William. "I think she is critical to the monarchy," says Coe. "I am not making judgements about any other royals, but she's the continuity, the continuum. She is calm, she is measured, and she has that really great mix of not emoting for the sake of it but actually being quietly in tune with people."
