Chook raffle explained

Chook raffle is an Australian tradition of "raffling off", often in clubs or pubs, a "chook", which is an Australian slang term for a chicken. Most often the chicken is prepared by a butcher, but live chickens are sometimes raffled.^[1] The chook raffle is a special case of a meat raffle, but is more often used as a fund-raising activity by an amateur club or organisation.

Perhaps because of this association, the expression tends to be used disparagingly about someone who claims to have, or should have, superior organisational skills, that they "couldn't run a chook raffle".^[2] The term is also used to describe any random process. An example is selecting the winner of an election by drawing a name from a hat, said to be turning the process into a "chook raffle".^[3]

External links

Sydney Morning Herald article, Chook Raffle, 22 October 2003

Notes and References

Web site: Boatie on mend. 4 November 2006. dailytelegraph.com.au. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20070928041223/http://www.manlydaily.com.au/article/2006/11/04/1393_sports.html. 28 September 2007. 2 July 2017.
Web site: How to run a chook raffle, Telstra-style . 2 June 2006 . Renai . LeMay . . https://web.archive.org/web/20061229012709/http://www.zdnet.com.au/blogs/fullduplex/soa/How_to_run_a_chook_raffle_Telstra_style/0,139033349,139257614,00.htm . 29 December 2006 . 24 December 2019.
Web site: Cloncurry mayor chosen by 'chook raffle' . 1 April 2008 . www.couriermail.com.au . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120902090151/http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/second-poll-decided-by-raffle/story-e6freoof-1111115950006 . 2 September 2012 . 2 July 2017 .