Time passes quickly when chatting with Barrie. His stories jump from childhood memories, personal struggles, career highs, deeply felt family moments and back again. What came through was a picture of a man who has learned, through personal reflection on life experiences to make peace with himself. You know when you’re in a room with Barrie; his booming voice fills the space and makes you feel welcome. 

Barrie began by talking about his childhood, “I used to lie in the grass a lot as a child," he said. "We were living in East Preston, a suburb of Melbourne, sort of on the edge of civilization. There were just rolling paddocks behind our place…” 

“I remember occasionally being able, on a sunny day, to lie out in the grass with the onion weed flowering around me and watching the clouds sail by. And you know what… I'm back to that now. It's the little things now that I see around me.” 

He reflected on how past experiences, tend to revisit him in unexpected ways. Whether painful or joyful, they hang around until they are resolved. This ongoing process of reflection and resolution, he said, is part of what growing older has meant for him. 

Barrie didn’t think he had a clear story to tell. He jokingly mentioned imagining a long skewer stretching out behind him — like a kebab — with all the events of his life skewered along it, like moments stacked up in a random order. “What was all that about?” he wondered. But as we talked it through pieces of the puzzle came together. 

Barrie grew up in Castlemaine in regional Victoria. His childhood dotted with memories of a strict household, and a difficult relationship with his father. Affection was rare. His father, struggled to understand Barrie’s emotional world – why can’t you play footy like the other boys. Physical punishment was common, and many incidents left deep emotional scars.  

“My father didn’t understand me. He couldn’t connect. His love came out as control, and often violence.”— this was the beginning of what Barrie now recognises as a lifetime of anxiety and depression. 

Despite these family challenges, there were moments of connection with other family members. Barrie mentioned an uncle who made him feel seen — treating him as someone smart, sensitive and capable. As well as his great aunt, describing her as flamboyant and having a voice like treacle.  

From a young age, Barrie was drawn to performance. Acting gave him a way to express emotions he wasn’t always allowed to show at home. He started performing in school productions, eventually joining the Canberra Children’s Theatre and later training at NIDA this is where he was able to lean into the characters as he would try to find himself.  

Barrier LOVED performing, he described it as feeling... Curious. Challenged. Fulfilled and emptied. Connected to something/nothing larger than... something wholly/holy. Creator of Something from Nothing. Powerful and most of all, scared shitless!  "See-hear. This, too, is me". 

His professional acting career included stage work and television, including roles in The Box and The Devil’s Playground, Ship to Shore, Flight into Hell, A Fortunate life, The Great Gold Swindle, Dimboola, Death Cell, The Newman Shame to mention a few. Many hours of hard work brought Barrie a successful and rewarding career. While the work was rewarding, being publicly recognised was something Barrie was never comfortable with, shying away from attention.  

Barrie eventually moved to Perth with his family after The Box finished, a town where he was less recognised. In Perth, Barrie worked for Channel Nine as a presenter, host, and producer, also announcing on 6KY radio and supporting live events. He later joined a PR firm, continuing to present the nightly weather for six years and producing major concerts at the Perth Concert Hall. 

He did PR for tours including Marcel Marceau (met and talked with him) and Vanessa Redgrave’s one woman show, promoted The Avon Descent and the Italian SAGRA Festival, also performed with local theatre companies, directed a play at the Regal Theatre, and voiced radio dramas for the ABC. 

Eventually he settled in Adelaide, working as chief projectionist for Palace/Nova cinemas, including managing 117 films over 10 days for the Adelaide Film Festival. In retirement, he continued occasional projection work at various cinemas and spent a few years producing and presenting on Coast FM community radio. 

Fatherhood changed everything. Barrie beamed when he spoke about his children. His son, now successful in the tech world still finds valuable time to chat with his Dad once a week. — but his grandchildren, he said, brought a different kind of joy. He spoke about the importance of treating them as whole people: not spoiling them but offering love and structure. 

Sadly, Barrie's daughter’s death remains one of the deepest sorrows of his life. They had grown closer in her final years, but the loss was devastating. In looking back, Barrie recognised that they had both walked the same path with depression but in different directions. 

When asked who he would most want to share one more meal with, he didn’t pause: his daughter. “I’d just hold her, we wouldn’t have to talk” he said. It was clear the father daughter bond remains. 

After undergoing major heart surgery, Barrie became a Meals on Wheels customer. The support he received in the form of nutritious meals during recovery was well received. But as his strength returned, he wanted to give back. He joined the army of volunteers and began delivering meals to others. 

Barrie also mentioned that when the Meals on Wheels Cook to Connect social group started it was another avenue for seeing other blokes and the Intergenerational program with High school students, further satisfied my need to both give and receive great conversations. - “It's impact is a felt experience of being a difference in the lives of people outside of my own immediate tribe”  

Now in his later years, Barrie is drawn to the philosophy of living in the present, he is learning to release guilt about the past and lean in to the future. He spoke about dreams of one day living quietly in the bush, perhaps surrounded by others seeking wisdom, like an elder with all the answers… well some of them. 

Barrie isn’t lonely, he fills his time with valuable experiences and meaning conversations – no chats about the weather here.  In the end, Barrie's greatest message for his grandchildren and great grandchildren is “you’re ok, just the way you are, you don’t have to be someone else”. When asked when did you learn this, he laughed and said “last Friday”   .