Sydney is a booming city, and the 1932 built Harbour Bridge certainly needed company to cater to the expanding suburbs as well as the traffic congestion. Steadily, the Sydney skyline added Gladesville, Pyrmont, Spit, and Anzac bridges. Our focus here is on the ANZAC Bridge. The reason for writing in capitals is so that we understand that the name is actually an acronym for ‘Australian & New Zealand Army Corps’ that fought as one army during WW-I.

Much earlier, the Anzac Bridge was known as the Glebe Island Bridge. The Australians are known for their whacky sense of humour, so when Madonna strutted on stage with those famous conical covers, the locals were quick to refer Anzac Bridge as ‘Madonna’s Bra’, and for two very pointed reasons. Though in mirth and in true local spirit we shall here make reference to Madonna’s Bra, it should be known that on records the official name is very much Anzac Bridge, as it serves as a memorial.

Some vital statistics about Madonna, sorry, about Anzac Bridge will help in understanding the importance of this key link between the Sydney city and it’s western suburbs. The reinforced and new Anzac Bridge was constructed at a whopping cost of As $ 170 million, and it not just the longest cable-held bridge in Australia, but amongst the longest in the entire world. This almost 106 ft wide colossal has a span of nearly 1132 ft long with reinforced concrete pylons almost 394 ft high. The entire deck is supported by two planes of steel-ribboned cables which literally stand out in the sky-line, and therefore the seductive by-the-way christening to ‘Madonna’s Bra’.

The Anzac Bridge, or if you prefer Madonna’s Bra, in fact merits a closer look from the eyes of a tourist. The current name was officially given on Remembrance Day in 1988 to honour the memory of all soldiers who served and laid down their lives during WW-I. To further elaborate on the ANZAC as an acronym, check out the top of the eastern pylon and you cannot miss the fluttering Australian flag. On the western end of the bridge is a bronze statue of an Australian ANZAC soldier, fondly nicknamed the ‘digger’, holding a reversed rifle. Later in 2008, a bronze statue of a New Zealand ANZAC soldier was also added right across the plinth and opposite to the Australian soldier. Perched high on top of the western pylon flutters the flag of New Zealand.

So now we have the vital statistics of the Anzac Bridge which won’t exactly compare or compete with the vital statistics of Madonna’s pylons, and we know the history and significance of the term ANZAC, and also why that binds Australia and New Zealand even today. So while driving across or stopping over to check the memorial, do think of it as the Anzac Bridge. But from a distance when you gaze at the Sydney skyline and the various bridges all lit up, the Sydney Harbour Bridge will remind you of a coat hanger, whereas the Anzac Bridge will make you smile with the pet-name, ‘Madonna’s Bra’.