The hole Johnny Danger left behind — as told by a millennial

Opinion

To say a nation has been rocked by the death of Johnny "Danger" Bennett struggles to scrape the territory of hyperbole.

Sadly Johnny died on Anzac Day in a motorcycle accident in Dairy Flat.

He was a cult icon to an extraordinary number of people; it was hard to miss him, as he might say - he stood out like "dogs balls".

Being a fan of Johnny felt like you were a fan of a funny kid you went to school with, or that hard-case guy that lived down the road, you felt like you knew the guy.

His ability to remain so relatable to his audience was incredible.

There's no doubt Johnny Danger was a controversial character - a massive show-off.

While Johnny joked about, the man was a marketing genius. Photo/ Instagram

To say anything less would be a disservice to the man, and something I have no doubt would have offended him deeply - he was polarising.

Well known for "taxi surfing" the Auckland Harbour Bridge, scaling Tomorrowland's main stage – one of the biggest electronic dance festivals in the world - or "Danger swigging" with the former prime minister, Johnny Danger pushed the limits.

The iconic drinking technique will no doubt live on in the back of TV interviews for years to come.

Many didn't agree with the way Johnny rose to fame, nor some of what he did with it.

Often his content involved or was based on alcohol. Whether brewing, selling or swigging he was never afraid of a contentious topic, even in a country with such a massive culture of binge drinking.

Regardless of controversy, it cannot be argued that all he ever wanted was to make people laugh, to bring light to the lives of those who followed him.

A huge advocate for mental health, particularly in men, he encouraged fans to speak out in times of need and showed us that it was alright to be "danger swigging" one minute and then being an ear for a mate in need the next.

He had dreams to help raise funds for those affected by mental health issues and cancer, there's no debating he would have had a massive impact too – when Johnny wanted something, nothing stopped him from achieving it.

He promoted success stories of those he'd helped and supported, in a way no Movember campaign or mental health week ever could.

That's not to say they don't do a brilliant job, they just couldn't do it in the way Johnny could – he saved lives, and in the end he devastatingly lost his own.

There are massive groups of New Zealanders who will forever be in debt to him.

Thank you for the hours of brilliant content and business nous that brought so many together, you were truly one in 4.7 million – rest in peace.