New way to connect with people as Queen starts the tradition of going walkabout, Down Under

The Seventies - the Jubilee years

WHEN the Queen returned to Australia and New Zealand in 1970, her new team of advisers were determined that this tour would be different. They came up with the idea of closer interaction between the Queen and the crowds - something she had advocated for years, but which had been vetoed for security reasons.

The new plan meant that she would step out of the car before an appointment to meet and greet people in the crowd, many of whom had waited hours for a glimpse of her - it was dubbed "going walkabout".

Seeing Her Majesty close up and talking to individuals created tremendous excitement. When children started appearing in the crowd with posies to present to the Queen, the royal household knew the idea had caught on.

"Walkabout" has since become a standard feature for the Queen and members of the royal family on foreign visits.

Australia and New Zealand's relationship with Britain has always been strong, with the economies of the two countries closely tied to the UK. However, after the Second World War both countries began to develop a belief in their own identity and their governments forged closer links with the countries around them; a relaxation in immigration policies also accelerated a change in their relationship with the UK and the Crown.

The Queen was still popular, but by the time she returned to Australia in 1973 to open the Sydney Opera House republicanism was very much on the agenda.

Two years later, in 1975, an incident occurred that would send republican support rocketing. Australia's Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam, was at a political crossroads his scandal-hit government was under pressure, engulfed by economic problems. A constitutional crisis ensued when the Liberal opponent, Malcolm Fraser, blocked Mr Whitlam's plans for reforms in Australia's Senate.