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Private Notes
Experience the Tour of Duty roadshow and feel part of the community as Tony encourages the locals to show off memorabilia, tell stories and share poignant recollections of their ancestors who fought the war at home and abroad. Focusing on the last century of war and war service in Australia - on the battlefield, and on the home front, Tony digs deep through the trenches with the towns and cities he visits making the locals the stars of the show.
Welcome to Newcastle, an industrial city which is justifiably proud of its last hundred years of war service. So proud in fact, Tony uncovers a never-before-revealed plan to ensure no intruders would ever take the beloved city from their hands. There's an air aid shelter that doubled as a beer cellar, and a historic flag in desperate need of restoration. The town arrives in numbers to the Community Roadshow with extraordinary war artefacts in tow. Tony has the honour of meeting a survivor of one of the most tragic events in Australia's POW history, and after more than fifty years, two brothers hear the spirit of their father again. This gritty city has a spirit that can't be beaten.
Incredible surprises await Tony in Auckland as he travels to New Zealand's North Island. Little known mysteries are explained and prove that despite its small population, during war times Auckland was prepared to drop bombshells- literally! Hear about New Zealand's secret weapon of mass destruction during WW2 and the famous Hillary brothers whose war efforts were worlds apart. The bugle sounds at the stunning Auckland War Museum as the Community Roadshow begins; Tony meets a man whose photograph of his grandfather in WW1 could rewrite history and there's a tank with a name you wouldn't believe- Auckland reigns with surprises.
Tony travels to the charming South Australian town of Hahndorf, nestled amongst the Adelaide Hills. It's the country's oldest German settlement, but this quaint town's war history is sure to surprise. VC winners and tank inventors sit side by side with female war artists and heroic nurses. The Community Roadshow kicks off with a bang alongside a WW1 bayonet, a military medal finally comes home after 100 years and there's surprising end, thanks to a passerby and a diary from WW1.
Your country needs you! Tony is in the quiet NSW town of Bathurst on Anzac Day. Hear stories of reconciliation over tea and scones in Cowra and the man whose childhood bedroom window bullet hole was the envy of all his mates. The Tour of Duty Roadshow proves once again that no matter the town's population there's always a quirky story to be found; a lifesaving coin, a Japanese POW uniform, and one lucky woman is in for a surprise when she's reunited with a relic from her late father's war service.
Take a trip with Tony through Launceston in a WW1 ambulance as he heads back to school for show and tell with a 90 year old undercover spy. See war drawings that were daringly smuggled through seven different POW camps en route to Nagasaki and drive north to the once quiet town of Legerwood where people power turned a hazardous memorial into an extraordinary thing of beauty. The last stop is our Launceston Roadshow where a mystery painting is finally identified as the presenter role is flipped and the locals have a chance to divulge their fascinating stories of war.
What do over-worked sewing machines, dodgy scissors, a Bull and Vegemite have in common? Ballarat's military history, of course! Take a stroll with Tony down the Avenue of Honour and hear stories of locals whose community spirit is as strong now as it was during the World Wars. A wedding dress worn by seven brides and an invading army welcomed with open arms prove Ballarat really does have a heart of gold. The beautiful Australian ex- POW memorial is the backdrop for this Roadshow where "We will remember them".
Picturesque Dunedin is the next visit on Tony's Tour of Duty. With a fascinating war history, this charming city retells stories of WW1 that were at times often quite scandalous! Tony ventures to the famous Otago University to learn about the surgeon whose war effort created a radical breakthrough for his patients and has a chat with the cheeky nieces of a soldier who was armed in war with a paintbrush, not a gun. The Dunedin Roadshow kicks off in an historic setting with a grand musical entrance as the Dunedin locals share touching stories of their ancestors, a lost pay book and a violin that was carried and played through Gallipoli- this New Zealand city has many hidden treasures.
Tony's Tour of Duty heads to Darwin in the Northern Territory. Tony learns that the last hundred years of Darwin's war service is much more than the 1942 bombing as he discovers the untold stories; a fighting force whose weapons weren't tanks and guns but spears and knowledge of the land, and recollections of a 14 year old girl who became a refugee in her country. The Military Museum plays host to the Community Roadshow, where a rebellious feathered fighter pays Tony a visit, and it's the kids' turn as high school students prove they too have stories to share when it comes to Darwin and its military history.
The last stop on Tony's Tour of Duty is the Western Australian city of Fremantle. Tony meets the grandson of an unlikely celebrity, the word 'Anzac' takes on a number of fascinating meanings, and Tony shares a beer with the son of an Australian war bride and American GI, whose extraordinary love story spans six decades and seven seas. At the Community Roadshow, a massive crowd of locals joins Tony at the Army Museum of Western Australia, causing panic among the hot dog sellers. A rare newspaper, long lost mementos and not just a Victorian Cross, but a Victoria Cross winner as well. This is a Roadshow not to be missed.
