John Cornell was a talented writer and a highly respected business visionary. To a broader Australian public, he was perhaps best remembered for his onscreen character Strop in The Paul Hogan Show (1973–1984).
John rose from a cadet journalist position at the Daily News in Perth to managing the newspaper’s London office, before turning his attention to broadcast journalism as the original producer of A Current Affair (1971–current) where he first met Paul Hogan. Cornell became Paul Hogan’s manager, lifelong friend and creative collaborator.
Cornell went on to co-write and produce The Paul Hogan Show. In that mixture of comedic anarchy, the character of Strop was born. The program became a comedy vehicle for unique talents and enjoyed sky-high ratings and popularity for more than a decade.
During this period John also met his wife Delvene Delaney, a talented actress and television personality who became a regular cast member on The Paul Hogan Show.
You can see Cornell as Strop in this clip from episode one (1974):
