Australian news live: Men's huge Two-up bet on Anzac Day, Aussies set to pull sickies on Friday

Plenty of notes are being handed over as games of Two-up start to get tasty as the day goes on, but will we have a bigger bet than this one?

According to Bondi Lines, the company that tracks how packed Sydney venues are, these two gentlemen at Paddington's The Royal were playing for an impressive $1,800.

I think we can work out who the winner was.

Medical certificate provider Sicky says requests for a day off because of illness this Friday will be more than 50 per cent higher, making it the most requested day of the year.

It would give employees a stretch of four days off in a row without using any annual leave following Thursday's public holiday for Anzac Day.

“Quite often it’s because our patients have over indulged or have interacted with infectious people while socialising," co-founder Avinash Vazirani said.

Aussies have been urged not to fake illness though, with fears small businesses will be impacted.

With Australians heading in their droves to pubs across the country in honour of the Anzacs, one of NSW's top cops has asked drinkers to remain on their best behaviour.

Assistant Commissioner Scott Whyte said the overwhelming majority of people have so far been respectful as they honoured the "courage and sacrifice of our servicemen".

“We now urge anyone continuing to mark the day to act responsibly, know your limits and look out for each other,” Assistant Commissioner Whyte said.

Twenty-six of roughly 160 whales that washed up on a Western Australia beach have died, authorities have revealed.

It was initially believed up to 100 pilot whales were stranded at Dunsborough, 250 km south of Perth, on Thursday, however that number has since been recalculated to the much larger of 160.

A sunbathing tourist who made headlines around the world after she was bitten on the bum by a K'gari dingo in 2023 has spoken out about the incident.

"When I first got to Australia, I got stung by a jellyfish in the sea. I'm not going to be mad at all the jellyfish in the sea because I got stung by one — it's the same with the dingoes … I'm on their island," ea Baudu told the ABC after returning to her native France.

"I don't have a bad image of the dingoes because of that. It's not their fault and I would 100 per cent go again."

The behaviour of tourists on K'gari has been heavily scrutinised in recent years due to a series of attacks by dingoes. Environment authorities have stressed visitors must follow the safety warnings given on the island.

An attendee of a Brisbane dawn service has ruffled a few feathers for suggesting Aussies can only attend the pub on Anzac Day if they too were up early to honour the Anzacs.

Not only was he met with fierce resistance, the man was also widely criticised for filming and posting a video on social media of The Last Post during the service.

So what do you think of his claim? Have your say below.

Authorities are rushing to save up to 100 whales from a mass stranding at a beach in Western Australia's southwest.

Between 50 and 100 pilot whales have beached themselves at Toby's Inlet near Dunsborough, more than 250km south of Perth, on Thursday.

Wildlife authorities are at the scene to try and save the creatures.

- AAP

A dozen or so people have managed to lift a car out of the way of an Anzac Day dawn service in New Zealand after the owner failed to move it in time.

Video taken by New Plymouth service attendee Reuben Doyle and shared by Radio New Zealand shows the group, instructed by a man on a microphone, struggling to move the car before sunrise as hundreds attending watch on.

They eventually manage to shuffle it in stages out of the way of access to a stage for speakers and wreath layers.

New Plymouth RSA president and veteran Graham Chard told RNZ police officers had given permission for the car to be moved. He said he hoped the owner of the car was "embarrassed".

A company that helped Sydneysiders navigate busy bars during the pandemic years say they're taking things one step further this Anzac Day by hiring a chopper to keep you informed.

With popular pubs traditionally packed to the brim, leaving huge queues to get in, Bondi Lines is taking to the skies to report on the venues which have the longest lines.

"Channel 9 please stay out of our way," the company joked about the network's news chopper.

In the UK, a teenage girl has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after two teachers and a student were stabbed at a Welsh high school.

Students were held in lockdown in their classes on Wednesday as the “deeply worrying” incident unfolded.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he was "shocked" by the attack.

Read more here.

Five teenagers have now been charged with terror offences after police raids in the wake of the Wakeley church stabbing.

Three of the teens, aged 16, 16 and 17, have been charged with conspiring to prepare or plan a terrorist act. The youngest teen to be charged is 14 years old.

Read more here.

It's the highly-popular betting game made legal for Anzac Day. And while Aussies freely exchange their notes inside our pubs today, with many becoming a bit more care-free as the schooners flow, make sure you check the money strangers are handing you.

Yahoo's Head of Finance Belinda Grant-Geary last year received this $10 note last year and was oblivious to the damage at the time. She also warns counterfeit notes remain in circulation and offers tips for checking if notes are real or not.

Now this is a brilliant photo.

Taken by photographer Chris Hyde at Currumbin on the Gold Coast this morning, hundreds who were up to honour the Anzacs take in the sunrise with the CBD partially hidden in fog in the distance.

Thousands of Australians have gathered at dawn services around the country to commemorate the sacrifices of service men and women past and present on Anzac Day.

Liberal MP Phil Thompson, a former soldier who was named Anzac of the Year in 2016, said it was a day of reflection amid the current global tensions.

"When I'm at the RSL or pub I buy two beers, one for myself and one for my mates who paid the ultimate sacrifice and that sits on the table and they have a seat," he told AAP.

"When you're out and laughing and having fun and you're with your mates, you're still remembering and reflecting. They would want that."

Read more here.