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Healing with the Heelers

“I had someone who works in foster care say, ‘This show is probably the only example that some kids have of a functioning family,’” says Melanie Zanetti, better known as the voice of Bluey’s mum Chilli on what is arguably Australia’s most successful TV show.

With the Heeler family set to unleash their biggest episode yet, we had a chinwag with Zanetti, plus Bluey’s executive producer Daley Pearson, about their favourite episodes, the healing power of play, and the little dog’s quest to take over the world from Brisbane, one heart at a time.

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Tallis

Every single day people walk past that know me and say hello. They make me feel like I’m part of the community.

I grew up in Sydney but have moved a lot since then. I lived in Canberra and then spent 12 years on the Gold Coast. I’m in Brisbane now and I love it here. It’s fantastic, and I love that the people here are happy.

I have dyslexia and so school was difficult for me. I failed my exams in high school, but amazingly, due to my art ability, I got into university. I studied art and drama, which is why I’m so jovial. I hop foot to foot and sing and dance when I’m selling too. If people want a song, I’ll sing them a song. I like to sing mostly rhythm and blues, opera, and a bit of Michael Jackson and Frank Sinatra.

I love all forms of art. I can paint, draw, sketch…everything. I majored in pottery and that’s what I’m best at. I spend a lot of my free time making clay pots. I was considering selling my clay pots for a living, but I ended up selling The Big Issue instead.

Before The Big Issue, I was working at the RSL selling raffle tickets, but because of my dyslexia I couldn’t read the script properly. I started selling magazines after meeting a lovely vendor named Tony. He told me he was selling magazines that support the homeless and disadvantaged and I said, “I could get into that.” I have been doing it for six months now.

I sell five days a week at the Post Office Square. Everyone knows me there, and they deliver me wonderful presents and gifts. I have heaps of regulars.

Every single day people walk past that know me and say hello. They make me feel like I’m part of the community. I feel like I belong somewhere, and that I’m finally a piece of a puzzle.

I started selling the magazine to save up for my wedding this October. I met my fiancée Helen in November 2020 at the Baptist Church. I heard her sing, and she sounded like an angel. I knew she was the one for me and I asked her out a few months later. I’ve saved $15,000 for the wedding so far, and that’s from The Big Issue alone. I can’t wait to get married, and after we do, we’re going on a trip to Tasmania.

I’m 100 per cent reliant on my income from The Big Issue; I use it to pay for everything. It’s crucial that people understand that you can make a living, you can earn a wage, and that this is an actual job. After my wedding, my next dream is to use the money to buy a home in Newstead.

There are two loves in my life: my fiancée and The Big Issue. I feel grateful. Grateful to be alive and grateful that every magazine I sell, I feel like I’m a part of something great.

Tallis sells The Big Issue at Post Office Square, Brisbane. 

Interview by Lilian Bernhardt
Photo by Barry Street