A nationally broadcast commemorative service will take place at the Australian War Memorial on the morning of Anzac Day, April 25, 2020.
The ABC will begin pre-service programming from 5am, with the service broadcast live from the Commemorative Area and Hall of Memory from 5.30am.
The event will not be open to the public but will be broadcast live across Australia and streamed online to enable people to mark Anzac Day safely and respectfully from home.
Director of the Australian War Memorial, Matt Anderson PSM, said that the situation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic makes this year’s Anzac Day all the more important.
“Anzac Day is traditionally about acknowledging the resilience and fortitude demonstrated by the Anzacs at Gallipoli and the subsequent legacy that was born. Across the community, people are drawing upon their own resources to deal with this global health crisis,” Mr Anderson said.
“It is vital that we have the opportunity to take time to pause and reflect on Anzac Day, if not as some brief respite from the overwhelming nature of the pandemic, but because it’s what we do.
“Anzac Day happens every year and it will happen in 2020, albeit in different circumstances.
“We are resolute in our commitment to ensuring Australians can honour the Australian servicemen and servicewomen who have served in the past, and recognise those who are currently serving.”
A special pre-recorded Last Post Ceremony will be posted to the Memorial’s digital platforms at 4.55pm on Anzac Day.
The ceremony will feature the story of Private Thomas Anderson Whyte of the 10th Battalion AIF who was killed during the landing at Gallipoli in 1915, read by Sergeant Shelby Powell of the Royal Australian Air Force.
