Dear Members and Friends
The lockdown still continues and February is traditionally a very gloomy month. However we have been very busy at the B-AS offices. As mentioned in our last newsletter, we are planning our 50th anniversary celebrations and we have lots of other interesting things for you!
The B-AS has always been the pre-eminent organisation promoting the bilateral relationship between Britain and Australia. There has never been a more important time to acknowledge our shared historic, social, cultural and economic ties. B-AS board member Elizabeth Ames and I were recently asked to speak with Hans van Leeuwen of the Australian Financial Review about the issues affecting the Australian ex-pat community in Britain caused by the current pandemic. The AFR has kindly allowed us to re-print the article. Please click here to read it.
We were thrilled to see January's announcement that this year's G7 Summit is scheduled to be held in June in Carbis Bay, Cornwall. The British Prime Minister has invited Australia to attend as a guest country, again highlighting the importance and strength of our bilateral relationship.
As you know, the Royal Over-Seas League is a B-AS corporate partner. Given that we are still all confined to our homes in February, ROSL would like to extend a very special invitation to B-AS supporters. Please join ROSL as it live streams a fabulous one hour concert on the evening of 17 February performed by multi-award winning Australian baritone, Morgan Pearse. Morgan is widely recognised as one of the most exciting and talented baritones in the world. Booking details are below for this exceptional event. And a big thank you to ROSL for inviting B-AS supporters to attend.
We have another exceptional event in the pipeline for you in early March. The Royal Flying Doctor Service (one of our charity partners) has offered the B-AS a world exclusive - a live webinar and panel discussion called "On the Front Line with the Royal Flying Doctors". The event is proudly sponsored by bdhSterling. Registration details will be circulated shortly so please keep an eye out for those.
Congratulations to longstanding B-AS Member, Lindsay Birrell, winner of our Australia Day wine competition (courtesy of Winedelivered.co.uk). Our team very much enjoyed speaking with Lindsay last week and hearing about his life and the tireless work he has done for Legacy here in the UK. His is a fascinating story which has resulted in our "Meet the B-AS" initiative. Each month we will spotlight the most important part of the B-AS - its people. To read more about Lindsay, please see below.
The grey skies of February have us all pining for sunnier climes. To that end, Australian-inspired beauty brand Beached has offered us some fabulous prizes and offers to spark joy this month. We also know that so many of you have been spending time in the kitchen in these lockdowns. Until we can get back to Britain's amazing restaurant scene, the magazine delicious. has a fabulous subscription offer this month for all B-AS supporters. Finally, and inspired by the sheer number of B-AS Members who entered our Australia Day wine competition, Winedelivered.co.uk has another discount offer for you until the end of March.
Further details on these amazing prizes and offers can be viewed via our monthly membership email. Alternatively, please feel free to get in touch here.
If you are not already a Member, please click here to access our Membership page and sign up now to support the work we do and to take advantage of our "Members Only" offers and events.
Best wishes
Damian J. Walsh
Chairman