Finding Family

One woman's obsession with family history.

Bushells Ballads

Jessica Barratt

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September 9, 2015

Under certain circumstances there are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea. ~Henry James

Throughout the years Australians have had many different brands of tea to choose from and while some have faded into obscurity, others have remained and have become iconic brands. Bushells is one such company.

In 1883 Alfred Bushell opened a tea shop in Queensland and began selling his own brand of tea which was aptly named Bushells. The tea proved to be a big hit with the public and by 1899 his sons joined the company and the business moved to George Street in Sydney. It continued to expand and it was in this same year that they began to supply tea to other states and territories of Australia. Bushells remained owned by the Bushell family for over 100 years until 1998 when it was purchased by Unilever.

Since their inception, there have been many different ads printed in newspapers around Australia which talked about the superior flavour and high quality of Bushells tea. Throughout the late 1940s and early 1950s an advertising company came up with the idea of ‘Bushells Ballads’ which consisted of a comic and short rhyme illustrating why the featured character (in different situations) desperately needed a cup of Bushells tea. Whether the advertising campaign resulted in an increase in sales is unknown but they are, however, quite clever and witty.

1 May 1952

15 September 1947

22 December 1947

24 April 1952

29 November 1951

20 October 1947

6 March 1948

29 March 1952

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