I am based in the UK and here the term mate... is as common as "would you care for some tea old bean!"

I think that the word mate is not as synonymous with those of Oz origin as some might think. Certainly not as "Oz" as Barbie or Bonza or even Shelia...

I frequently walk into work of a morning and greet my workmates with "morning mate"... to which the response is normally... "would you care for some tea old bean!?" and the reply to this? "Cheers mate that would be bloody perfect!"...

So what does all this mean... don't really know. *scratches his head*... BUT Mates are also a well known brand of contraception.