Category: Australia Day In Sydney

All times are Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT)

The new Sydney Fish Market‘s roof will illuminate green & gold tonight from sunset (8:17pm) until sunrise (6:10am) on Australia Day. It will not be illuminated after sunset on Australia Day.

The new Market’s roof comes with a programmable light display so whilst this is the 1st special illumination, it certainly won’t be the last & the wait until the next one shouldn’t be long.

The Market will also host in their new Civic Plaza a Welcome To Country by Uncle Lloyd Webber at 11:45am on the 26th followed by a yidaki performance by Ralph Hatzi. Then, at 12pm, there will be face painting for children, live music, roving performers & oyster shucking demonstrations until 5pm.

The live music & roving performers will also be held today, the 25th, at the same time but finishing at 3pm instead.

The new Sydney Fish Market, which opened its doors for the 1st time on the 19th, is on the shores of Sydney Harbour’s Blackwattle Bay at 1 Bridge Rd, Glebe. To get there, you can catch the light rail from Central or Dulwich Hill to Wentworth Park (400 metre walk) or a bus from Parramatta or Bondi Junction to Harris Street (550 metre walk). There is also a dedicated taxi & ride share drop-off & pick-up area outside as well as basement car parking, which, due to it being a special event long weekend, is expected to have a flat cashless $15 fee (definitely 5pm-10pm) except for mobility permit holders (1st 2 hours only), taxis & emergency services. There is NO FERRY access.

Expanded Mega Kidz Zone back in Harbourfest With Fun In The Sun & New Lego Zone

After initially reporting it was excluded, an expanded Mega Kidz Zone is back as being included in Harbourfest between 11am & 3pm. Held in the Overseas Passenger Terminal south to the Museum Of Contemporary Art, this is mainly an interactive arcade for kids in the Arrivals Hall featuring the Wipe Out Challenge, ninja-inflatable obstacle course, classic arcade games & a new Lego Zone. Outside, there will be roaming street performers & in the Undercroft Food Court, there will also be wheelchair basketball & a disc jockey.

On the lawn in front of the Museum Of Contemporary Art is Fun In The Sun – included in the Mega Kidz Zone for the 1st time ever after being held as a separate event since 2023.

Hosted by Surf Life Saving New South Wales (NSW) volunteer surf life savers, Fun In The Sun teaches kids how to stay safe in the water with games, colouring-in & free sunscreen. An important activation especially as Australia Day In Sydney is already affected by a shark attack within Sydney Harbour killing a 12-year-old boy (see below).

Look, you know, we really look forward to Australia Day like all the community does & how iconic to have Australia’s most iconic organisation – the red & yellow Surf Life Saving – there celebrating Australia Day & we’ve done that year-on-year in, in here with the activation so, you know, we’re going to be over at Circular Quay with all our lifesavers. The red & yellow flags will be flying over there. We’re inviting people to come over onto the grass. Come & talk to a lifesaver. Free sunscreen will be handed out & obviously, you know, we will be talking all about lifesaving & water safety this summer.

Lifesavers are really looking forward to it. We love the appreciation & support of everyone but importantly, it’s just a great platform for us to promote water safety here along the, uh, New South Wales beaches.

We love Australia Day. We love the festivities & we just love celebrating everything about Australia.

Steve Pearce, Surf Life Saving NSW Chief Executive Officer

Salute Begins At 11:30am

Harbourfest‘s Salute will now begin at 11:30am when His Majesty’s Australian Ship (HMAS) Canberra, a landing helicopter dock naval ship, arrives to float in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge on the eastern side. It is the 1st time HMAS Canberra has featured in the Salute since 2020.

Centred in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge on the eastern side, the Salute weaves together cultural & ceremonial traditions in a tribute to Australia including, from 11:55am, a smoking ceremony from the vessel, Wirwai, the Navy Helicopter Flag Display (departing from Middle Head) & a 21-gun salute from Bradfield Park. After which, the National Anthem, Advance Australia Fair, will be played concluding at 12pm with a F35-A Lightning II stealth strike fighter jet aircraft flypast & handling display.

The route & estimated times of the whole Navy Helicopter Flag Display are below:

• 11:56am – North Head
• 12:03pm – Barrenjoey Head
• 12:11pm – North Head
• 12:14pm – Sydney Harbour Bridge/Goat Island
• 12:16pm – South Head
• 12:17pm – Bondi Beach
• 12:18pm – Coogee/Maroubra Beach
• 12:19pm – Cape Banks/Kamay Botany Bay National Park
• 12:21pm – Cronulla Beach/Royal National Park
• 12:33pm – Wollongong
• 12:38pm – Shellharbour
• 12:43pm – Kiama
• 12:50pm – Comerong Island

The Salute will end at 1pm with a sing-along of the National Anthem, Advance Australia Fair & the Navy Helicopter Flag Display landing in Nowra.

Harbour Splash Cancelled

After the shark attack in Rose Bay on the 18th of January, the Harbour Splash swim was cancelled the next day. The shark attack, yesterday, become a fatality. The event, which would have begun at 8am on Australia Day, features swims around Sydney Harbour of up to 5 kilometres in length beginning & ending in Rose Bay with loops up to Hermit Bay. The shark attack occurred in Vaucluse Bay 700 metres further to the north. A statement from the 19th on the cancellation is below:

Following the tragic incident in the Harbour off Vaucluse on Sunday the 18th of January, the Organising Committee for the Sydney Harbour Splash has made the difficult decision to cancel the 2026 event taking place next week on Monday the 26th of January.

This decision has been made following extensive consultation with New South Wales Police & experienced, senior Harbour and waterways personnel as well as our event partners. This cancellation is made out of deep respect for the young boy who was tragically attacked yesterday & for his family and friends. Our thoughts & prayers are with them during this difficult time.

The Sydney Harbour Splash is a valued community event & we respect the Sydney and eastern suburbs community. We also acknowledge & thank the many 1st responders and waterways personnel who protect & patrol our Harbour.

We’ll be in touch with registered participants via e-mail with the next steps.

On behalf of the entire Sydney Harbour Splash family, we thank you for your continued support.

‘Harbour Splash’ Cancellation Statement

Broadcast Details

All the below can also be accessed on our Watch LIVE page

10 Kilometre: The Great Australian Wheelchair Race will be broadcast on YouTube & Facebook from 8:45am.

The Yabun Festival will be broadcast on their website in full with 4 separate streams, one for each stage/event area.

The Wollongong Fireworks will have local radio station, i98FM, playing the fireworks soundtrack at 9pm.

Event Map

The official event map has been published but note that it also features the now-cancelled Harbour Splash.

Food Trucks

Lastly, on Circular Quay Way, there will also be food trucks selling easy family meals from 11am to 9pm.

Australia Day 2026 is held on the 26th of January.

All times are in Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT)

The Australia Day LIVE Concert is going to feature a tribute to the families affected by the Bondi Beach massacre & Jewish genocide terrorism on December 14.

The tribute will be done by Sydney Jewish music festival group, SHIR, which means ‘song’ in Hebrew.

The announcement comes as the New South Wales (NSW) Government emphasised all their agencies are supporting all Sydney events that day & all agencies are focused on safety.

Meanwhile, the Australia Day LIVE Concert line-up has been revealed (All are musicians except where stated):

• Cody Simpson
• Kate Ceberano
• William Barton
• Jude York
• Rrawun Maymuru
• Cianna Walker
• DJ Ha
• Diego Torre
• Victor Valdes
• The Fabulous Caprettos
• Jael & The Wena Family
• Burn The Floor (dancers)
• Doonooch dancers

Olivia Coe Fox will also sing the National Anthem, Advance Australia Fair, as well as provide backing vocals for the Yothu Yindi songs, Treaty & Djäpana. Yothu Yindi has not been announced as part of the line-up with their songs likely to be covered by another artist in the line-up.

The Australia Day LIVE Concert will also feature an “aerial show” over Circular Quay. Whilst history states this should involve planes, kites or parachuters, there is a possibility something will debut at the Concert, as stated at the end of this article.

Held from 7:30pm-9:30pm, the Australia Day LIVE Concert will be broadcast on Australian Broadcasting Corporation Television (TV) & iView.

Dawn Reflection

Sydney Opera House

Dawn Reflection sees the western Sydney Opera House sails illuminated with an Indigenous artwork for 20 minutes from 5:20am.

The artist for Dawn Reflection in 2026 is Garry Purchase, a proud Indigenous man descended from the Dharawal, Bidjigal and Dhungutti peoples & hailing from the renowned Timbery family. Painting from lived experience & contemporary social issues, his work is a modern interpretation of traditional Indigenous art, pushing boundaries to tell stories that are honest, sometimes confronting & deeply connected to identity, resilience and community.

This year, we’re honoured to have artwork of Garry Purchase who is a Dhungutti, Bidjigal man that is showcast, showcasing his artwork & it’s a complete honour for him but it’s also a complete honour for us that representation from 1st light, uh, in the skies to a 1st projection onto the Sails from a First Nations person & what it shows that where Australia Day begins here, uh, in this city, across the whole of the country, it begins in such a way with that reflection of First Nations people coming together with all of us.

Yvonne Weldon, Australia Day Council Of NSW Chair

As the projection fades into the sunrise, head to either Barangaroo Reserve to get a spot for 7:30am’s WugulOra Morning Ceremony or you could continue the Dawn Reflection by heading to…

Bondi Beach

For the 1st time in 2 years, Dawn Reflection at Bondi Beach is also included in the Sydney program. Held at 5:30am for an hour on the sand in front of the Bondi Pavilion, it will feature:

• La Perouse Elder, Aunty Lola Ryan, conducting a Welcome To Country & also reflecting in her own words what January 26 means to her,
• The Gamay Dancers with traditional dance from the local area & a smoking ceremony,
• Josh Sly playing the didgeridoo &
• The Dhinawan Yarn dancers

Other News

Firstly, the WugulOra Morning Ceremony will be simulcast on National Indigenous TV & the Special Broadcasting Service from 7:30am.

The hour-long ceremony involves a smoking ceremony, Indigenous artistic performances, speeches & the National Anthem sung by Olivia Coe Fox in both Gadigal and English.

I’m very excited for January 26th so in the morning, I’ll be starting off at WugulOra at the Morning Ceremony where I’ll be leading the National Anthem in both Gadigal and English & then in the evening, I’ll be on the Opera House Forecourt at the Australia Day LIVE Concert also singing the National Anthem as well as backing vocals for Treaty & Djäpana which I’m really excited for.

On such a day like January 26th, it’s so important that our voices are seen and heard and valued & I’m really grateful to be partaking in such massive events where you know a lot of eyes are going to be on both WugulOra & the Concert. It’s a great opportunity to be a part of & to be with such amazing artists and you know, some of the biggest names in Australia so I’m really grateful that I get to not only be there but to sing in language. You know, that’s very important to me & I’m very excited for it.

Olivia Coe Fox

Also, the 10 Kilometre (10K) Wheelchair Race has been renamed to 10K: The Great Australian Wheelchair Race while the Parade has been renamed to Boat Parade.

Lastly, Indigenous advisors have been involved in guiding the overall Australia Day In Sydney program.

There’s a lot of planning that goes in, in behind the scenes & uh, the team are amazing and you know, we start planning the, the seeds of, I guess, you know, reflection and celebration and respect, you know, the, the moment we finish the last one-sort of thing and so it is about, you know, really working with the community and, and, and our multiculturalism to sort of, I guess, uh, uncover the new talent as well that’s coming out which is really beautiful to see.

I think with the, the, the, the evening Concert is about that connection of lullaby to Country and uh, you know, the ancestors, you know, bringing that energy here collectively, uh, between different nations of, um, of, um, you know, First Nations people from around Australia & also how that integrates, uh, you know, sorta seamlessly with the, the other performances & you know, we got the wonderful Kate Ceberano and everyone & so you know, it’s going to be, uh, uh, uh, a powerhouse performance.

William Barton, ‘Australia Day In Sydney’ Co-Creative Director

Australia means lots of things to different people. It is in this land that we share with hundreds of different traditions, nations, religions & practices, yet it is in the sharing of who we are & who we need to be – together.

Our coming together on Australia Day can & will bring all of our diversity together because that’s where kindness is, us. We don’t always agree but we can & need to be kinder to one another, to commemorate, to reflect, to respect & to honour who we are in Australia where everyone is included.

The 26th of January starts, uh, with the Dawn projection, um, you know, beautiful city & even more beautiful artwork on the sails of our Opera House. Uh, from there, we have an early morning, uh, event at Barangaroo called Wug, WugulOra. It’s been happening for a couple of decades now & it certainly shows and showcase, um, the First Nations practices and traditions and all of us coming together, um, celebrating our survival and certainly reflecting about this whole country, whose in here in this country and how we walk together…& later in the evening when we have the Australia Day LIVE Concert, there are Aboriginal artists that are participating in that & also co-directing it with, uh, sensitivity but also with inclusion from a First Nations perspective for the whole of the nation perspective.

We can make a positive difference if we actually start to walk together & we can do that starting, um, on the 26th of January to make sure that we honour and we are reflecting and being respectful in that reflection but also celebrating the survival of the world’s oldest continuous living culture.

Yvonne Weldon, Australia Day Council Of NSW Chair

Australia Day 2026, friends, is going to be the biggest yet as New South Wales proudly hosts the nation’s largest Australia Day celebration. From suntri, from sunrise to when after the sun sets, Sydney Harbour will host events that celebrate the Australian spirit, honour our First Nations history & showcase, showcase our vibrant multicultural communities.

Australia Day 2026 gives us the chance to come together again with care, respect & unity to reflect on who we are and what we stand for and recognise what makes our country so wonderful. Australia Day is about what unites us, our shared values, our diversity & the mateship that defines us as, as Australians.

We saw that spirit at its strongest at the end of last year when communities came together in solidarity following the tragic events at Bondi.

This year, the Australia Day LIVE Concert will include a special tribute featuring Sydney band, S-S-H-I-R, as, w, which, which is part of the Australian Jewish, uh, music festival group, uhm, (exhales) who, who performed a moving, uh, rendition of I Am Australian at the Bondi vigil.

An all-star Australian line, line-up will perform including Cody Simpson, Kate Ceberano, Olivia Coe Fox, William Barton & many, many more. The Concert will feature a wonderful fireworks display & a & a spectacular aerial show.

No city delivers big, bold, bold & unmissable events like Sydney. Whether you’re firing up at the barb, firing up the barbecue with friends & family, heading to the beach or joining 1 of our iconic Harbour events, there’s something, there’s something for everyone…& with a day filled with free events for all ages, I encourage everyone to get involved & make the most of Austra, Australia Day 2026 so however you choose to celebrate, enjoy your day & have a sensational Australia Day.

Steve Kamper, NSW Multiculturalism, Tourism & Jobs Minister

A Teaser?

Earlier, we speculated about the aerial show at the Australia Day LIVE Concert. The media release also mentions this:

More exciting additions to the Australia Day program are coming soon.

‘Sydney To Host The Country’s Biggest Events As ‘Australia Day’ 2026 Program Is Unveiled’ Media Release

While at the media launch, Australia Day In Sydney Co-Creative Director, William Barton, also said:

There will be, uh, you know, some special surprises that, uh, haven’t, uh, been seen before during, uh, Australia Day LIVE at the Opera House as well as for the WugulOra as well.

William Barton, ‘Australia Day In Sydney’ Co-Creative Director

So standby.

Interesting it will appear during the daytime too…

All times are Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT)

Australia Day LIVE Concert tickets will go on sale at 10am, the 14th of January 2026 here. They are free & are limited in stock but don’t worry if you miss out, you can still enjoy the event without a ticket from around Circular Quay on the night or through the visual broadcast provided by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation! The Australia Day LIVE Concert goes for 2 hours & features Australian musical acts & fireworks celebrating Australian identity, beginning at 7:30pm, following a 1-hour non-broadcasted pre-show. Meanwhile, here are some other updates on Australia Day In Sydney for the 2026 edition…

Harbourfest

Mega Kidz Zone is no longer a Harbourfest event but will still be held in the Overseas Passenger Terminal between 10:30am & 4pm.

Salute (11:55am-1pm)

Centred in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Salute weaves together cultural & ceremonial traditions in a tribute to Australia including a smoking ceremony from the vessel, Wirwai & opening with a 21-gun salute from Bradfield Park.

Navy Helicopter Flag Display

After a 2-year absence, the Navy Helicopter Flag Display will return to doing a leg down and along the South Coast to Nowra.

The Navy Helicopter Flag Display sees a Royal Australian Navy helicopter tow a giant Australian flag. The route & estimated times are below:

• 11:55am – Middle Head take-off
• 11:56am – North Head
• 12:03pm – Barrenjoey Head
• 12:11pm – North Head
• 12:14pm – Sydney Harbour Bridge/Goat Island
• 12:16pm – South Head
• 12:17pm – Bondi Beach
• 12:18pm – Coogee/Maroubra Beach
• 12:19pm – Cape Banks/Kamay Botany Bay National Park
• 12:21pm – Cronulla Beach/Royal National Park
• 12:33pm – Wollongong
• 12:38pm – Shellharbour
• 12:43pm – Kiama
• 12:50pm – Comerong Island
• 1pm – Nowra landing

Other

The Salute will see His Majesty’s Australian Ship Canberra returning for the 1st time since 2020 & at 12pm, a F35-A Lightning II stealth strike fighter jet aircraft returns for the 1st time since 2023 to do a flypast and handling display.

The Salute will end with a sing-along of the National Anthem, Advance Australia Fair. The National Anthem will also be played following the 21-gun salute.

Ferrython Fun

The Ferrython Race & Maritime Mayhem, while still being 2 distinct events, will be combined under a new umbrella term, Ferrython Fun, this year. It begins at 12:10pm and lasts until 12:30pm.

Race

The race sees 4 of Sydney’s Emerald Class ferries racing each other from in 2 laps in-between the Sydney Harbour Bridge & Fort Denison.

This year, the competing ferries will be carrying members of the Department Of Defence.

Maritime Mayhem

Beginning at 12:15pm, Maritime Mayhem sees tugboats pulling off stunts within Circular Quay as for the 1st time ever as part of the event, jet boats also carve up those waters.

Parade

The Parade will start 15 minutes later than usual this year at 1pm. It will run the same duration so it will finish at 2:15pm, 15 minutes than usual though. If you want to be part of the Parade, you can register here by 3pm, 21 January.

The Parade, which begins in front of Mary Booth Lookout, sees vessels dressed to impress judges in a display of national spirit. The Parade goes west to turn around in front of Goat Island before heading back east past the Sydney Harbour Bridge & Opera House to finish in Athol Bay.

Australia Day Eve Open Air Cinema

The Australia Day Eve Open Air Cinema film this year is Kangaroo. Rated PG (Parental Guidance Recommended – Mild Themes, Violence & Coarse Language) & inspired by the true story of The Kangaroo Sanctuary, it is about a former television star, Chris Masterman, stranded outside Alice Springs (Mparntwe), who teams up with a 12-year-old Indigenous Australian girl, Charlie, to rescue orphaned joeys.

This 2-hour event is held at 6:30pm on the 25th of January in Rat Park, Warriewood. Gates open at 5:30pm with the following food trucks on site:

• Dolce Bacio
• Fire and Flames Catering
• Smoky Sue’s Barbecue
• Twist Potato Sydney
• Vege for Love

There will be water stations available for you to refill your own water bottles.

Free tickets must be reserved here to gain entry before 6:45pm on event day. Tickets can only be cancelled before 6:45pm on the 18th of January.

Australia Day Council Of New South Wales (NSW)

The Australia Day Council of NSW is now 50% Indigenous & 50% Non-Indigenous with a total of 6 members. The 3 new members are:

• The Honourable Linda Burney, Wiradjuri nation member
• Joseph Carrozzi, NSW Business Chamber President
• Mick Bainbridge, Operational Legal Australia Pty Ltd Director

This follows the Council becoming Indigenous majority for the 1st time ever last year.

Australia Day In Sydney will be held on January 26.

A 1st Responder Expo is to replace the Great Aussie Barbeque (BBQ) as part of Australia Day In Sydney‘s Harbourfest.

After a lengthy absence, the return of The Great Aussie BBQ saw the multicultural diversity of Sydney come together at a sausage sizzle that let you taste test their interpretation of a sausage sanga (sandwich for international readers) among the others as well as the classical version (plus with onions).

Lambda Sydney presented a Greek gyros-style version while Mr & Mrs Pho crafted an authentic Vietnamese version & the team from Turbans 4 Australia offered a Tandoori-inspired vegan version. The snags (sausages) were provided by Our Cow & each purchase resulted in a 100% donation to Rural Aid that helped NSW’s farmers. It was held from 10am Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT) whilst stocks lasted.

In the end, its return only lasted for that 1 edition last year. It is being replaced this year by a 1st Responders Expo to be held at Hickson Road Reserve, the location of last year’s Great Aussie BBQ, underneath the south-eastern pylon of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The timing is a bit different to its predecessor with the Expo beginning at 12pm AEDT & lasting 4 hours.

The event name, timing & location are the only confirmed details of the Expo based on an Accessibility & Inclusion Sensory Map but a few other details can be gathered based on earlier Australia Day In Sydney announcements.

At approximately 11:38am AEDT, the 4 ferries participating in Harbourfest‘s Ferrython will do a pre-race lap of Circular Quay. The 4 ferries are the May Gibbs, Catherine Hamlin, Bungaree & Pemulwuy, each decorated themed to its name.

Onboard the ferries will be representatives of 4 emergency agencies, with 1 emergency agency per ferry to give the race more competition. The emergency agencies are:

• New South Wales (NSW) Police (Pemulwuy)
• Fire and Rescue NSW (Bungaree),
• Ambulance NSW (Catherine Hamlin) &
• the NSW State Emergency Service (May Gibbs).

It is likely these 4 emergency agencies will be represented at the Expo, the location of which is right beside the start line of the Ferrython: the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The actual race begins at 12:09pm AEDT, with the ferries heading out to Fort Denison in an anticlockwise direction before returning. They then repeat this path except instead of finishing at the Sydney Harbour Bridge, they will finish in-between 2 tugboats, the Engage Renegade & Engage Rascal, off the Sydney Opera House.

The Ferrython should conclude at around 12:22pm. The winning ferry will then do a lap of honour around Circular Quay, which should finish at approximately 12:29pm.

Other Harbourfest Entertainment

The Ferrython & 1st Responders Expo are a part of Harbourfest, which actually begins at 10:30am AEDT with the Mega Kidz Zone in the Arrivals Hall of the Overseas Passenger Terminal. Held in 45-minute sessions, the last session is held at 3pm. This is mainly an arcade with wheelchair basketball & a silent disco.

The main entertainment, the Salute, begins at 11:40am & concludes at 1:30pm. It begins with a smoking ceremony onboard the Wirwai. This vessel will enter Circular Quay at around 11:48am. At 11:56am, the Australian Army will then fire a 21-gun salute from Bradfield Park. At 12pm, the National Anthem will ring out in English & Eora across Circular Quay as jet-skiiers, each in alternate, holding the Australian National & Aboriginal Flags, circle it. The Anthem will conclude with the Royal Australian Air Force Roulettes doing a 13-minute display overhead. The Salute then concludes with a Royal Australian Navy Seahawk helicopter flying a giant Australian National Flag underneath from the Northern Beaches at 12:30pm, up Sydney Harbour to west of the Sydney Opera House at 1:30pm.

Other Harbourfest entertainment includes:

• Maritime Mayhem (12:05pm-12:25pm), a tugboat/jet-ski/flyboard show in Circular Quay.
• the Parade (12:39pm-2pm), a decorated boat parade from Kirribilli, around past the eastern edge of Goat Island then the Opera House & Mrs Macquarie’s Point before finishing at Athol Bay.
• the Tall Ships Race (1pm from Bradley’s Head to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, finishing at around 1:30pm) featuring the James Craig & Soren Larsen.
• the Working Vessel Display from 2pm at Campbell’s Cove & the Overseas Passenger Terminal featuring cleaning vessels, the Soren Larsen & the 2 tugboats that acted as the Ferrython finish line.

Australia Day In Sydney‘s Harbourfest is held on the 26th of January between 10:30am & 4pm AEDT. The 1st Responders Expo is held between 12pm & 4pm while the Ferrython is held from 12:09pm, finishing at around 12:22pm.

Australia Day In Sydney has revealed James P. Simon has designed this year’s Dawn Reflection projection in consultation with the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council with a work titled River Life.

Born in Wellington, near Dubbo NSW, he belongs to the Wiradjuri – Biripi people & has painted all his life. He grew up around Newtown and Redfern in Sydney, where he has seen many changes over the last 50 years.

Although he completed a 6-month art course, James is largely self-taught continuing to develop his own distinctive style, which mainly involves oils. In 1987, he was awarded a grant from the Aboriginal Arts Council.

His work, which extensively features commissions, is found in many collections, which has been included in lots of exhibitions & publications. His favourite artists are Picasso, Tom Roberts, Salvador Dali & Albert Namatjira.

At the end of this article is a statement from James P. Simon about River Life.

Australia Day In Sydney‘s Dawn Reflection is held at 5:20am Australian Eastern Daylight Time on the 26th of January on the western sails of the Sydney Opera House.

For Aboriginal people, fishing anywhere on Country, whether it is on the ocean beaches or coastal estuaries or inland rivers & lakes, it has always been about more than simply collecting food. We have this connection to water, with spirit, culture, songlines, our dreaming.

Waterways also form tribal boundaries. Waterways are critical to the culture & wellbeing of Aboriginal communities. Water provides food, medicine, tools, kinship, connection, recreation, stories, songlines & healing. It can be deeply spiritual. A chance for people to connect with their ancestors.

Water is seen as a living entity with its own spirit & it is believed that we have a responsibility to protect and care for it. For our peoples, water is not just a commodity but a language, a community & a source of knowledge and law.

Our Country encompasses land, water, sea and sky & the connections between them. Cultural flows are essential for Our People to continue their spiritual relationship with Country.

James P. Simon, ‘Dawn Reflection’ 2025 – ‘River Life’ Artist

The Australia Day LIVE! concert has returned to its usual finish time of 9:30pm Australian Eastern Daylight Time according to the event’s website.

The main concert is a television event featuring musical performances of Australian songs from Australian artists. Held from the Southern Forecourt of the Sydney Opera House, the concert is coordinated with fireworks from Circular Quay, city buildings & the Sydney Opera House, the latter also featuring projection mapping while the Sydney Harbour Bridge hosts a light show. Aquatic entertainment & sometimes aerial displays feature around Circular Quay as well, which is rounded out by pre-recorded television packages and live interviews that fill in the remainder of the time of the concert. Sometimes extra performances from other Circular Quay foreshore locations are also held.

While free tickets for the seated area are now sold out, you can still sign up to the waitlist. There is also a competition that closes at 5pm today (16th of January). Also, access to the rest of Circular Quay is not ticketed on the evening so you can watch the fireworks & other aquatic entertainment from there with its capacity of 55,000!

The news comes after Australia Day In Sydney held their media launch yesterday revealing SHEPPARD, Paulini, William Barton, Emma Pask, Ben Lee, James Morrison, Dragon, the New South Wales (NSW) Public Schools Choir, Clarissa Spata & Sync Or Swim will star in a “revitalised” concert with a new stage & the introduction of a focus on dance, which Burn The Floor will provide with their reinvention of ballroom dancing.

Other musicians to feature include Junkyard Beats, Véronique Serret, Cameron Leon, Rruwan Maymuru, Djakapurra Munyarryun, Australian Guitar Quartet, Cianna & Olivia, David Pritchard Blunt (musical director) & the Australian Pops Orchestra while other dancers to feature include Sundowners & Burrundi Dance Theatre For Performing Arts.

Australia Day LIVE! 2025 will be held at 7:30pm AEDT on the 26th of January, televised on Australian Broadcasting Corporation Television & iView.

SHEPPARD, Paulini, William Barton, Emma Pask, Ben Lee, James Morrison, Dragon, the New South Wales (NSW) Public Schools Choir, Burn The Floor, Clarissa Spata & Sync Or Swim will star in a “revitalised” Australia Day LIVE! concert in 2025 on the Southern Forecourt of the Sydney Opera House with a new stage & the introduction of a focus on dance.

Sync Or Swim are a rock band created through the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Television (ABC TV) series, Headliners, whose members all having a lived experience of disability. Clarissa Spata is a soprano while Burn The Floor are dancers who have reinvented ballroom dancing globally & their performance will mark the introduction of dance as a new focus of the concert, which previously focused solely on music, apart from the Circular Quay activities. This is part of why the concert has been “revitalised”. The other reason is because a new innovative stage design will be introduced.

The NSW Public Schools Choir will perform from the Monumental Steps.

It was also announced the concert will, once again, be hosted by Australia Day In Sydney creative director, John Foreman with Jeremy Fernandez & for the 1st time, ABC Classic Breakfast host, Megan Burslem.

Other musicians to feature include Junkyard Beats, Véronique Serret, Cameron Leon, Rruwan Maymuru, Djakapurra Munyarryun, Australian Guitar Quartet, Cianna & Olivia, David Pritchard Blunt (musical director) & the Australian Pops Orchestra while other dancers to feature include Sundowners & Burrundi Dance Theatre For Performing Arts.

Free tickets for Australia Day LIVE! are available here from 10am Australian Eastern Daylight Time, today (Wednesday the 15th of January). They are expected to sell out quickly as the capacity is just in the thousands.

If you miss out on a ticket, you can still watch the fireworks, projections, lights, aerial & on-water action from Circular Quay, with its capacity of 55,000.

For those who are unable to make it to Circular Quay, Australia Day LIVE! will be broadcast live on ABC TV & iView from 7:30pm.

Meanwhile, during Harbourfest‘s Ferrython, representatives from NSW Police, Fire and Rescue NSW, Ambulance NSW & the NSW State Emergency Service will this year be onboard the 4 ferries, probably an emergency agency per ferry for extra competition!

Free tickets for Ferrython are available here from 10am Australian Eastern Daylight Time, today (Wednesday the 15th of January). They are expected to sell out quickly as the capacity is just in the thousands.

Australia Day In Sydney is held on the 26th of January.

Sydney locals & visitors want to spend Australia Day in a way that’s meaningful to them. This program allows them to do just that. The other great thing about this program is that it’s all free so families dealing with the cost-of-living crisis can have a fun & meaningful day out without blowing the budget.

John Graham, NSW Tourism & Jobs Minister

A deep respect for Aboriginal culture is infused into everything that we undertake as part of our programming for Australia Day In Sydney & we’re committed to continually evolving the program to ensure it is appropriate, respectful and reflects modern Australia.

Yvonne Weldon, Australia Day Council Of NSW Chair

The line-up this year is the best yet featuring iconic Australian band Dragon, Ben Lee, Paulini & SHEPPARD. We look forward to seeing Circular Quay & the Sydney Opera House forecourt come alive with tens of thousands joining together, sharing the cultural landscape, enjoying this unforgettable Australia Day LIVE concert & epic fireworks display.

William Barton, ‘Australia Day LIVE!’ Co-Creative Director

Australia Day In Sydney is giving you the chance to win a trip to their 2025 edition, valued at AUD$8000, over 2 nights with 3 other guests of your choice.

The prize includes:

• tickets for return economy flights from your nearest airport
• twin share accommodation at a 4-star hotel,
• tickets to WugulOra Morning Ceremony,
• exclusive access to the Ferrython &,
• tickets to Australia Day Live!

To enter, you need to tell them in 25 English words or less what is your ‘Only In Australia’ moment as well as provide your 1st & last name, e-mail address, mobile phone number, birth date and postcode & read and accept the terms & conditions & Destination New South Wales’ (NSW) privacy policy. You must be 18 or over to enter.

You must also agree to receive marketing communications from Destination NSW & confirm you can travel to Sydney on Saturday the 25th of January 2025.

The competition opened at 9am Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT) on the 8th of January & closes at 5pm AEDT on Thursday the 16th of January.

The most enthusiastic, creative & original entry will win.

Click here to enter.

Winners will be announced on Australia Day In Sydney’s Facebook & Instagram pages on the 17th of January.

The 2025 & any future editions of Australia Day In Sydney will be coordinated by Destination New South Wales (NSW) with the advice of the Australia Day Council of NSW, which has reduced in membership from 6 members to just 3 in the past few months, leading to the 1st ever Indigenous-majority Council.

Destination NSW is the NSW Government’s tourism & major events agency. They already have produced the signature Australia Day In Sydney event, Australia Day LIVE! since 2016 as well as flagship Sydney Spectacular, Vivid Sydney, which they have owned & managed as well since the agency’s inception in 2011.

The NSW Government’s Premier’s Department was the former coordinator of Australia Day In Sydney since 2013.

Destination NSW will work in collaboration & with the advice of the Australia Day Council Of NSW to coordinate the Sydney events, just as the Premier’s Department did.

The Australia Day Council of NSW was established by the NSW Government in 1981 & was the sole coordinator until 2013 before taking on a purely advisory role. In 2024, the Council was reduced from 6 members to just 3 in a single go sometime since mid-October last year, after having 7 members last edition. As far as we can tell, the largest the Council ever got was a peak of 18 members between 2002 & 2003. It has slowly reduced in size since, stabilising at around 14 members in the early 2010’s roughly when Barry O’Farrell was NSW Premier, before resuming the decline. This current decline is on par with recent declines.

Councillors were appointed by the NSW Premier, currently Chris Minns. In the past month, appointments and also ultimately the day’s coordination are now the NSW Minister For Jobs & Tourism’s responsibility. The current holder of that role is John Graham.

1 councillor we can confirm resigned. The other 2 including the former chair advised the NSW Government that they weren’t seeking reappointment. Australia Day In Sydney has confirmed new Council members will be announced soon with the Council remaining committed to representing the diverse interests of the community.

The 3 remaining councillors are Yvonne Weldon in the role as chair (previously deputy chair since 2020) & Greg Daniel and Faye McMillan. Yvonne Weldon & Faye McMillian are Indigenous members, meaning this is the 1st ever Indigenous-majority Council by 2-1.

Yvonne Weldon is well known as the Deputy Chairperson of the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, featuring prominently at Sydney New Year’s Eve & Australia Day In Sydney events in that role. She is also a City Of Sydney councillor. Maintaining strong ties to her homelands of Cowra & the Riverina areas of NSW, she is a proud Wiradjuri woman whilst also keeping a strong passion for improving everyone’s lives through health, education, research, evaluation and the rights of children and Aboriginal people, the latter whose communities she is committed to change positively. She has been on the Australia Day Council Of NSW since 2019.

Greg Daniel is the National Practice Leader for SR7, which he founded in 2008. It is widely recognised as Australia’s leading social media intelligence and research firm & became a division of KPMG in 2014. He has been on the Australia Day Council of NSW since 2012.

Faye McMillan is Australia’s first registered Aboriginal pharmacist. She is a Doctor Of Health Science & is the director of the Djirruwang Program at Charles Sturt University. She seeks to use her own lived experiences to make a difference & share the transformative opportunities that education can provide by researching into nation building, mental health and Indigenous female leaders. She has been on the Australia Day Council Of NSW since 2019.

Above the Australia Day Council of NSW, which coordinates Sydney & NSW events, is the National Australia Day Council, who coordinates over all of Australia. They currently have a council of 9 people, chaired by Australia Day In Sydney creative director, John Foreman, all appointed by the Australian Prime Minister, currently Anthony Albanese. 3 members are Indigenous.

Australia Day In Sydney, as it has always been, is not a single event but rather an umbrella term for multiple independent events, all coordinated by Destination NSW on the advice of the Australia Day Council of NSW. Sydney Spectaculars recognises Australia Day LIVE! (since 2019), Dawn Reflection (since 2021) & Harbourfest (since 2022 in various forms) as the main events in Sydney under that umbrella term.

The program of Sydney events for the 2025 edition will be unveiled within the next week with all 3 events mentioned in the previous sentence already confirmed as returning.

Australia Day In Sydney 2025 is held on the 26th of January.

Opinion

Whilst the Australia Day Council of NSW would still have significant influence on what is on the Sydney event program, it would not be a surprise if the focus of the day gradually shifts over the years from a celebration of Australia to a promotion of Sydney. The fact the Premier’s Department is no longer coordinating the Sydney events probably signals that the Premier Of NSW is beginning a subtle transition away from the controversial date, which for the Indigenous people of the country is one that marks invasion, which also commenced in the place now known as Sydney. It’s a symbolic gesturing that the Premier is wiping his hands clean of organising Australia Day around NSW, at least on the current date, leaving it to a Minister.

This minister, the Minister For Jobs & Tourism, will have to be very cautious that if Destination NSW takes its tourism marketing role to heart with the Sydney event program that they do not go overboard & try to present such a sparkling rosy image of Sydney that they do not, whether accidentally or deliberately, acknowledge what happened to the Indigenous people from that date in 1788. Australia Day In Sydney isn’t an event program that potential international tourists would be interested in but potential domestic tourists from around Australia to NSW would be so there would still be cause to attempt marketing but Australians should already know enough history to know that Sydney on that date in 1788 wasn’t one without consequence and make their future travel plans accordingly & even if they know just enough, researching the history in more depth, particularly from an Indigenous perspective, would help in fulfilling the Indigenous peoples’ wish for them to have the full truth told to them about that date & the consequences of that date’s events until the present day including & especially on the 26th of January.

Notable is the fact it is now the 1st Indigenous-majority Council. This should be a strong counter to any spick & sparkle tourism marketing from Destination NSW but it raises questions of the future of the day in New South Wales. It sends a strong signal that Australia Day in New South Wales & Sydney, the birthplace of that anniversary, is currently no longer a day to be celebrated. As the reduced Council settles in with an Indigenous majority, it is possible that from the next edition, a stronger transition will begin, though no doubt still slowly and subtly to avoid media-driven controversies, from a day of celebration to a day of mourning. After the transition finishes, it would be a fine guess that the only events on the program would be Dawn Reflection, WugulOra Morning Ceremony & the Yabun Festival with a stronger focus on the consequences of the landing at Sydney Cove on 26 January 1788. No doubt it wouldn’t be called Australia Day by then. Day Of Mourning is the likeliest with its reference back to 1938. Invasion/Survival Day, whilst still being used by the Indigenous community, wouldn’t resonate as much with non-Indigenous people. If this happened, Sydney Spectaculars would review giving Dawn Reflection a flagship Sydney Spectacular status given the day would formally transition from celebration to mourning in NSW.

This leads to the final question, with the states/territories holding the power to determine public holidays, will the NSW Government mark a new date for Australia Day & rename the current Australia Day to Day Of Mourning, treating it akin to ANZAC Day? After all, if the purpose of a Council is to, well, council – a 2-1 Indigenous majority on the Australia Day Council Of NSW suggests a renaming/dating recommendation could be made.

Back when we designated Australia Day LIVE! a flagship Sydney Spectacular in 2019, we discussed the date & its implications for the future. Firstly, any date between the 20th January & 7th February would be ruled out as the latter is the date the colony of NSW was formally created while the former is when the 1st Fleet was in visual sight from land. Changing the date to these dates just brings everyone back to square one.

Secondly, possible new dates for Australia Day: January the 1st. It was when the colonies federated in 1901 to form Australia. Whilst there is precedent for celebrations on that date, notably the Centenary Of Federation in 2001, it is right after a big night for Australians – New Year’s Eve plus it is an existing public holiday, New Year’s Day. Whilst this would be an improvement in terms of controversy, it wouldn’t solve the problem. The Indigenous population did not have full citizen/subject rights until the late 1960’s so this date just represents the consequences Europeans brought to them as becoming more permanent as 6 colonies combined into 1 federated Commonwealth.

Next, there is the 3rd of March 1986. The date the Australia Act 1986 commenced, which granted Australia the complete right to legislate without needing the United Kingdom. It began at precisely 4pm Australian Eastern Daylight Time. Adding this date would give Australians an extra public holiday. This date is all but a complete improvement on January the 1st. The fact that the Monarch Of Australia is currently King Charles III is the only damper on this date.

The best date though is actually one that we do not know the date of yet – the day when formal Australian recognition of the Indigenous culture & reconciliation between the Indigenous peoples and Australia occurs. This still has to be realised to this day especially after 2023’s referendum. It should be pointed that whilst the United Kingdom and since 1986, Australia, always considered the Indigenous population as one of them (that is, British subjects or Australian citizens, despite the Indigenous population not having full citizen/subject rights until the late 1960’s), the Indigenous peoples were & are still ‘separate’ despite living in the same locations or sharing multiple ‘citizenships’ & cultures. Reconciliation is the formal act of uniting our peoples – most obviously, by a treaty. The day that happens a new national day will be born. Another date that would add an extra public holiday. It may even have a new name entirely…

…as long as it doesn’t happen between the 20th of January and the 7th of February and/or on an existing public holiday.

The Australia Day LIVE! concert has a new finish time of 10:30pm Australian Eastern Daylight Time – an hour longer than recent previous editions – according to the event’s website.

As far as we are aware, this excludes the hour-long pre-show entertainment portion of the program, which begins normally at 6:30pm AEDT.

The main concert is a television event featuring musical performances of Australian songs from Australian artists. Held from the Southern Forecourt of the Sydney Opera House, the concert is coordinated with fireworks from Circular Quay, city buildings & the Sydney Opera House, the latter also featuring projection mapping while the Sydney Harbour Bridge hosts a light show. Aquatic entertainment & sometimes aerial displays feature around Circular Quay as well, which is rounded out by pre-recorded television packages and live interviews that fill in the remainder of the time of the concert. Sometimes extra performances from other Circular Quay foreshore locations are also held.

All previous editions had a main show duration of 2 hours, except the inaugural edition in 2015 which went 1.5 hours. It now seems, based on the website, the main concert has been expanded to 3 hours duration. What the extra hour will feature is unknown. Normally the concert finishes with a major 15-minute fireworks display over Circular Quay at 9:15pm AEDT, having fired mini fireworks displays throughout the remainder of the concert after sunset. Will this major display now be at 10:15pm AEDT?

If you want to attend the live concert, limited free tickets for the seated area will be made available in about a fortnight. If you miss out on a ticket, access to the rest of Circular Quay is not ticketed on the evening so you can watch the fireworks & other aquatic entertainment!

Artists for the upcoming concert have not yet been announced.

Australia Day LIVE! 2025 will be held at 7:30pm AEDT on the 26th of January, televised on Australian Broadcasting Corporation Television & iView.