November 2026 Newsletter

Dear Members and Friends,

I have just returned to a very cold London after a short trip back to Australia visiting family and friends. The glorious summer of 2026 is well and truly over but the cold snap only serves to get us into the festive spirit in the run up to Christmas.

On Thursday 3 December we will again host our annual B-AS Carol Service at St Clement Danes Church, opposite Australia House. Last year’s Service brought together nearly 400 people from the Australian British community in London for a truly stunning evening and we are delighted that we will once again host this magnificent service and a festive reception.

This is a wonderful opportunity for us all to come together to enjoy magnificent performances from the St Clement Danes’ choir and Australian soloists, and readings from leaders within the Australian British community. St Clement Danes has a significant historical and ceremonial connection with Australia. During the 1920s and 1930s, St Clement Danes regularly hosted ANZAC Day services. The Church was devastated during the Blitz but, after a long restoration, it was reconsecrated in 1958 as the Central Church of the Royal Air Force. To honour this, the Royal Australian Air Force donated a magnificent brass lectern featuring a map of Australia and RAAF insignia which is still very much in use in the church today.

We only launched the Carols a few days ago and already we have over 300 people registered to attend. I strongly encourage you to book early to avoid disappointment. Please scroll down for booking details!

Thank you once again to the Daisy Green Collection who very generously supported our Service last year and are back again in 2026 supporting us and supplying the delicious lamingtons we will serve during the reception. Thank you also to iconic Australian brand, RM Williams who are also generously supporting the service this year. Many of you joined us for a very successful event with the RM Williams team in September at their flagship store on Jermyn Street. We look forward to welcoming the Daisy Green and RM Williams’ teams to the Carols. Thanks to Vinarchy, we will be serving the fabulous Croser sparkling wine from South Australia!

It is important that we support our sponsors. If you missed out on our fabulous event at RM Williams, do drop into their beautiful new store. If you are thinking of somewhere for a lunch or dinner in the lead up to Christmas, go to one of the great Daisy Green Collection restaurants - my faves are Ziggy Green and Bondi Green and always Larry’s Bar for cocktails. And when buying your Christmas sparkling, add some Croser to your order!

We had a very successful and busy month in October. On the 5th, the Admiral Phillip Memorial Trust’s annual Commemoration Service was again held at St Mary-le-Bow in the City with the address this year given by former Australian High Commissioner, the Hon George Brandis KC.

On 22 October we held a very successful event discussing “Australia’s Place in the Commonwealth” in the beautiful Downer Room at Australia House. Guests were privileged to hear from Lord Marland, Chair of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC), and our Deputy High Commissioner, Ms Elisabeth Bowes PSM, in a discussion expertly moderated by B-AS Board Member and CWEIC CEO, Ms Samantha Cohen. Very unfortunately, I was in Australia and unable to attend but the feedback has been outstanding. Thank you again to the Office of the WA Agent General and to Ms Rebecca Tomkinson for their support. We captured some great photos of the event which can be seen below.

My flight from Sydney landed very early on 28 October, allowing me to attend the outstanding “La Stupenda” tribute to Dame Joan Sutherland, a concert in front of a capacity audience at Australia House, celebrating the 100th birthday of one of Australia’s greatest artistic figures and one of the world’s greatest opera singers. The concert, hosted by the Tait Memorial Trust chaired by the irrepressible Isla Baring OAM, featured some brilliant Australian and international artists, and also honoured Dame Joan’s husband, the architect of her career, Maestro Richard Bonynge AC CBE. An outstanding evening.

I am looking forward to the Royal Flying Doctor Service Gala on 12 November which will be hosted by the incomparable Adam Hills at the Dorchester hotel. We work closely with the RFDS (Friends in the UK) and I know many of our Members will be at the Gala supporting their vital work.

I am also excited to see the Australia House Ensemble performing “classical music, tango rhythms and Australian voices” in the Downer Room at Australia House on 19 November. The ensemble comprises five outstanding London based Australian string players. Jacqui and I have been to many of their performances and they are always brilliant - and again a reminder of the depth of Australian talent in the UK. There are still some tickets available and booking details are below. Please come and join me for this performance. And a shoutout to Professor Margaret Mayston AM, the convenor of the AHE.

We are getting closer to reaching the £10,000 target I set for the B-AS community to fund two Endeavour scholarships for the Britain-Australia Society Education Trust. In the Christmas spirit, please help us reach our goal to help BASET provide life-changing opportunities for young people. More on the work BASET does can be found on the B-AS website and you can donate here.

And finally, I will be proudly laying a wreath on behalf of all our Members at the Australian War Memorial at Hyde Park Corner on Remembrance Day, Wednesday 11 November. There will be a short service at 11am in honour of the members of the Australian armed forces who died in the line of duty. If you can make the time, it is a small but moving service - and you can always follow that with a cup of tea at the Peninsular Hotel across the road, the venue for the Australia Foundation’s Australia Day Gala on Saturday 24 January 2027.

We have much in planning for 2027 with some major events already in the works. The Carols will be my last formal event as Chair of the Britain-Australia Society and I am looking forward to seeing many of you there.

Our Members are a huge support to us and the work we do. We truly value this support and if you are not already a B-AS Member, please join us and sign up - just click here!

Best wishes,

Damian Walsh