Who was Peter the phantom puller?
Television personality Graham Kennedy developed many characters in his television shows. He often played with innuendo, using words and names with double meanings. This often caused chuckles, laughter and applause from his studio audience.
I know some of his viewing public also enjoyed using his characters and jokes for fun.
Graham could use anything that he saw as an opportunity to entertain his audience. He sometimes spoke to, or about the production crew live on camera, including them in the show.
For example the props and scenery on stage in the television studio included doors and other items which would be opened, closed, or moved as required. This was usually done manually by a backstage worker. I remember one show where Graham showed the audience how something opened or closed on command as if by magic. Actually a mechanist such as Peter (I don't know his surname) often performed this task by pulling the correct rope when required. Peter would be cued by the stage director, or probably by Graham Kennedy himself, as Graham often spontaneously diverted from the script.
So the character Peter the phantom puller was created.
A number of people called me Peter the phantom puller as my name is Peter Pullar.
I felt angry when I heard Graham joke about Peter the phantom puller on his show, as I took it personally. I hated him for promoting that character.
When I heard on the news that Graham Kennedy died, I suddenly became aware that I had been unnecessarily carrying resentment towards him for years.
I now realize that his joke had nothing to do with me.
I may have been better to direct my anger towards my "friends" who enjoyed taunting me at the time they did that, or better still to learn to just play and have fun!