The Country Hour, Australia’s longest-running radio program, will soon mark a major milestone. On 3 December it will be 80 years since the program first aired in 1945, with presenter Dick Snedden welcoming listeners to “a program for the farm families of Australia”.
Initially The Country Hour was a way to communicate farming information to a generation of new farmers, many of them soldier settlers who had been sent to the country to make a new life.
Today its seven state and territory editions continue to provide a unique and valuable service, reporting the news and reflecting the voices and views from regional and rural Australia,
From this weekend special coverage across the ABC will build up to the anniversary and continue into 2026 with the theme “Celebrating 80 years of telling rural stories”.
Among the special content:
- This weekend, a Landline special presented by Warwick Long on ABC NEWS Channel and ABC iview will tell the story of The Country Hour’s rich history and current rural reporters explain how it remains relevant today
- On Wednesday 26 November: Victorian Country Hour presenter Warwick Long and Queensland Rural Lead Kallee Buchanan will host a special national Country Hour Outside Broadcast from Parliament House in Canberra, where the program’s anniversary will also be marked at the ABC’s annual Parliamentary Showcase
- The ABC web homepage will link to dedicated Country Hour content on the rural page
- On the anniversary on Wednesday 3 December Country Hour OBs will air in every state and territory to celebrate the milestone and News Breakfast will cross to four Country Hour presenters on location in Victoria, NSW, Queensland and the Northern Territory. A special segment will run nationally on the 7PM News and the ABC NEWS Channel focusing on intergenerational farming families who have listened to and benefited from The Country Hour over the decades
ABC Director, News Justin Stevens: “The Country Hour exemplifies the ABC’s deep and enduring connection with rural and regional Australia, which remains integral to our service and purpose.
“The program’s seven editions cover every aspect of country life, reporting on and breaking stories that have huge impacts for rural Australia and our whole nation.”
The ABC has around 600 employees working and living in rural and regional Australia across 56 locations and produces more than 800 hours of unique regional radio every week. In addition, our dedicated Emergency Broadcasting service operates around the clock when lives and property are under threat.
Other dedicated rural and regional programming includes Landline, Australia Wide and 16 editions of the Rural Report.
The Country Hour is broadcast on all regional ABC Local Radio stations from midday to 1pm each weekday and streamed on the ABC listen app,
Join the celebration and explore 80 years of rural storytelling at abc.net.au/rural.