ABSTRACT
On the 25th of April in Australia, in New Zealand and in some Pacifi c Islands there is a public holiday to mark Anzac Day. Across the region, from Perth to Dunedin to Aloft in Niue, people gather for the dawn services often held at the local war memorials. Anzac Day was fi rst initiated to remember the Australian and New Zealand troops who died at Gallipoli in the First World War, and the commemorations now extend to all military losses. The rituals vary little. Participants can expect to hear a lone bugler play ‘The Last Post’ and ‘Reveille’, to bow their heads for two minutes silence and to be invited to sing the national anthems of both Australia and New Zealand. On fi ne days, dawn adds to the spectacle, as the sun rises, silhouetting the obelisk-shaped memorials and the lone bugler. Commemorations begun in darkness on empty stomachs usually end in sunlight – often concluded with breakfast at the local café where the sense of duty well done might be intensifi ed by a shot of alcohol in the coffee.
