Telethon 2026: Anticipation officially reaches fever pitch as WA counts down until 59th annual Telethon

The stage is set and anticipation has officially reached fever pitch as the countdown until the 59th annual Telethon enters its final hour.

RAC Arena opened to the public at 5.45pm, allowing hundreds of giddy fans waiting in the Wellington Street forecourt to stream inside ahead of the televised fundraising extravaganza.

Self-proclaimed super-fan Phoebe Butler has been coming to Telethon for the past five years with her family, and tonight is rocking a Telethon hoodie, t-shirt and socks.

She plans to stay at the Telethon live site for the entire 26-hour broadcast — a tradition she and her family started about three years ago.

“We’re going to be here the whole time, we won’t be going home, we’ll stay all weekend ... we’re a bit like zombies by the time we leave,” she said.

“We slept for about 10 minutes last time, but other than that, we’re awake the whole time.”

Monique Shaddick is tonight introducing her young daughter, Savannah, to the fundraiser.

“I have been watching Telethon for many years growing up, and it was so much fun when I was a kid, but Savannah hasn’t really experienced Telethon too much, so I’m really excited to take her this time,” she said.

Paula Williamson and her friend, Shelley, were first in line at RAC Arena. They had been queuing since 4pm.

“I’m really excited because I’ve not been here before ... I’ve done Telethon Mega-Bingo, but I’ve never done this,” she said.

And on the concourse, dozens of devotees are already participating in mammoth 24-hour community fundraisers, putting their bodies on the line for sick kids.

Aviation Rescue Firefighting Services’ Phil Birch said he and a team of 17 firefighters would be walking on a treadmill for 24 hours - each decked out in 20kg of firefighting gear.

“It’s broken into one-hour blocks doing rotating shifts non-stop for that time,” he said.

“The gear definitely makes a difference and wearing the equipment makes it a lot hotter as well. So there are two challenges: carrying the weight and also the heat buildup and your core temperature.”