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SYDNEY - He put his arm round the Queen and became known in Britain as the "Lizard of Oz".
Now former leader Paul Keating is being courted to head a campaign to promote Australia to the Poms.
The "G'day UK" initiative has been hatched following the huge success of a similar showcase in the United States featuring Cate Blanchett, Nicole Kidman and Mel Gibson.
Advertising guru Bill Muirhead is developing the British version, and hopes celebrities like Kylie Minogue, Elle Macpherson and Jason Donovan will play key roles. But the London-based founding director of M&C Saatchi has hinted at a figurehead with more gravitas. "Paul Keating is on the short list to be the face of the campaign," he told News Ltd.
It would be a highly controversial choice, and left current Prime Minister Kevin Rudd unimpressed. "It's about as possible, I reckon, as having John Howard and Paul Keating team up for ... the Eurovision Song Contest. And probably about as likely of taking the prize."
In Britain, Keating is best remembered as a crude Antipodean politician who ignored royal protocol and stirred the republican debate when he touched the Queen's back in 1992. His wife Annita declined to curtsy. At home, he's the king of the political putdown. He once likened an opponent's performance to being "flogged by a warm lettuce". Another was accused of being a shiver looking for a spine to run up. John Howard was a "desiccated coconut", his deputy Peter Costello was "all tip and no iceberg".
The team behind the "G'day UK" campaign say they are hoping to harness Keating's "personality, profile and business acumen".
Spearheading the push is Muirhead, a member of the Australia Day Foundation, along with former mining chief Phil Aiken and Qantas executive Stephen Thompson. The campaign, designed to boost trade, tourism and cultural ties, is set to be launched next year.
Public reaction to Keating's potential appointment was mixed. On the Herald Sun's website, one reader commented: "Great idea. If Keating was to stay in the UK, Brits would wish to leave for Oz."
