Shorrock's appearance on Talking Heads, however, reminded me of one of the key answers to question (a) above, which was the seemingly ridiculous concept of a national talent quest sponsored by a chocolate bar.
That might be ridiculous in today's terms, but there was quite definitely a substantial benefit to taking out the national title in Hoadley's (makers of the Violet Crumble Bar) National Battle of the Sounds.
With a series of regional Battles that led up to State and National Finals there was the possibility that up and coming acts from just about anywhere could hit the big time. Very few acts from Outer Woop Woop went close, of course, but it was a handy means of getting exposure beyond your back yard and for the national winner there was a trip to London and a recording session at Abbey Road.
The reality of taking out that title wasn't quite as glamorous as it may seem on the surface. The Twilights and the Masters Apprentices were two winners who found it almost impossible to get gigs in Britain (hardly surprising - it would've been tough enough if you were British) and wouldn't have enjoyed the stint as the ocean liner house band that paid the cost of the trip to Blighty.
Three other things came out of the Shorrock interview, or, if not directly from the interview, from my reflections thereon.First, I was reminded how many prominent Australian performers were migrants. Shorrock, like many of his peers, was born in England and arrived in Adelaide aged ten, as was the Easybeats' Stevie Wright, who was nine when he landed in Sydney. Jim Keays (Masters Apprentices) and Jimmy Barnes were both Scots, as was AC/DC's Bon Scott, and the list goes on...
Second, as Shorrock talked about his ability to mimic other artists I was reminded that, having obtained a pre-release copy of Sergeant Pepper, by the time the album appeared in Australian stores The Twilights were playing the whole thing from go to woah in their live show.