1990 in Australia
Encyclopedia
Incumbents
- Monarch – Elizabeth II
- Governor-GeneralGovernor-General of AustraliaThe Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia at federal/national level of the Australian monarch . He or she exercises the supreme executive power of the Commonwealth...
– Bill HaydenBill HaydenWilliam George "Bill" Hayden AC was the 21st Governor-General of Australia. Prior to this, he represented the Australian Labor Party in parliament; he was a minister in the government of Gough Whitlam, and later became Leader of the Opposition, narrowly losing the 1980 federal election to the... - Prime MinisterPrime Minister of AustraliaThe Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
– Bob HawkeBob HawkeRobert James Lee "Bob" Hawke AC GCL was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia from March 1983 to December 1991 and therefore longest serving Australian Labor Party Prime Minister....
Premiers and Chief Ministers
- Premier of New South Wales – Nick GreinerNick GreinerNicholas "Nick" Frank Hugo Greiner AC, is an Australian businessman and former politician. He was the 37th Premier New South Wales from 1988 to 1992. He was Leader of the New South Wales Division of the Liberal Party from 1983 to 1992 and Leader of the Opposition from 1983 to 1988. He is married...
- Premier of Queensland – Wayne GossWayne GossWayne Keith Goss was Premier of Queensland from 7 December 1989 until 19 February 1996.-Early life:He was born at Mundubbera, Queensland and educated at Inala High School and the University of Queensland...
- Premier of South Australia – John BannonJohn BannonJohn Charles Bannon AO is a former Australian politician. He was the 39th Premier of South Australia, leading the Labor Party to government at the 1982 election. The Bannon Labor government was re-elected at the 1985 election and the 1989 election...
- Premier of Tasmania – Michael FieldMichael Field (Australian politician)Michael Walter Field, AC was Tasmanian Labor leader from 1988 until his retirement in 1996, and was the Premier of Tasmania between 1989 and 1992...
- Premier of Western AustraliaPremier of Western AustraliaThe Premier of Western Australia is the head of the executive government in the Australian State of Western Australia. The Premier has similar functions in Western Australia to those performed by the Prime Minister of Australia at the national level, subject to the different Constitutions...
– Peter DowdingPeter DowdingPeter McCallum Dowding SC was the 24th Premier of Western Australia, serving from 25 February 1988 until his resignation on 12 February 1990 after an internal party dispute....
(until 12 February), then Carmen LawrenceCarmen LawrenceCarmen Mary Lawrence is a retired Australian politician; a former Premier of Western Australia and the first woman to become Premier of a State of the Commonwealth of Australia.... - Premier of Victoria – John CainJohn Cain IIJohn Cain , Australian Labor Party politician, was the 41st Premier of Victoria, holding office from 1982 to 1990.-Biography:...
(until 10 August), then Joan KirnerJoan KirnerJoan Elizabeth Kirner AM , Australian politician, was the 42nd Premier of Victoria, the first woman to hold the position, which she held for two years prior to a landslide election defeat.-Biography:... - Chief Minister of the Australian Capital TerritoryChief Minister of the Australian Capital TerritoryThe Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory is the head of government of the Australian Capital Territory. The leader of party with the largest representation of seats in the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly usually takes on the role...
– Trevor KaineTrevor KaineTrevor Thomas Kaine , an Australian politician, was Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory from 1989 to 1991, and was elected a multi-member single electorate first unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, from 1989 to 2001, initially as a member of the Liberal... - Chief Minister of the Northern TerritoryChief Minister of the Northern TerritoryThe Chief Minister of the Northern Territory is appointed by the Administrator, who in normal circumstances will appoint the head of whatever party holds the majority of seats in the legislature of the territory...
– Marshall PerronMarshall PerronMarshall Bruce Perron is a former Australian politician, who was a Country Liberal Party member of the Legislative Assembly in the Northern Territory from the formation of the Assembly in 1974 until his resignation in 1995. From 1988 to 1995, Perron was the Chief Minister of the Northern...
Governors and administrators
- Governor of New South Wales – Sir David MartinDavid Martin (Governor)-Honours:-External links:...
(until 7 August), then Peter Sinclair - Governor of Queensland – Sir Walter Campbell
- Governor of South Australia – Sir Donald DunstanDonald Dunstan (Australian Governor)Lieutenant General Sir Donald Beaumont Dunstan, AC, KBE, CB was an Australian Army officer who was Governor of South Australia from 23 April 1982 until 5 February 1991.-Military career:...
- Governor of Tasmania – Sir Phillip BennettPhillip BennettGeneral Sir Phillip Harvey Bennett AC, KBE, DSO is a retired senior officer of the Australian Army who served as Chief of the Australian Defence Force from 1984 to 1987, and later as Governor of Tasmania from 1987 to 1995....
- Governor of Victoria – Davis McCaugheyDavis McCaugheyJohn Davis McCaughey, AC was a bible scholar, church and university administrator, and was Governor of Victoria from 1986–1992.-Working life:...
- Governor of Western AustraliaGovernor of Western AustraliaThe Governor of Western Australia is the representative in Western Australia of Australia's Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. The Governor performs important constitutional, ceremonial and community functions, including:* presiding over the Executive Council;...
– Michael JefferyMichael JefferyMajor General Philip Michael Jeffery AC, CVO, MC was the 24th Governor-General of Australia , the first Australian career soldier to be appointed governor-general... - Administrator of Norfolk Island – Herbert Bruce MacDonald
- Administrator of the Northern TerritoryAdministrator of the Northern TerritoryThe Administrator of the Northern Territory is an official appointed by the Governor-General of Australia to exercise powers analogous to that of a state governor...
– Neil Conn
Events
- 12 February – Carmen LawrenceCarmen LawrenceCarmen Mary Lawrence is a retired Australian politician; a former Premier of Western Australia and the first woman to become Premier of a State of the Commonwealth of Australia....
becomes the Premier of Western AustraliaPremier of Western AustraliaThe Premier of Western Australia is the head of the executive government in the Australian State of Western Australia. The Premier has similar functions in Western Australia to those performed by the Prime Minister of Australia at the national level, subject to the different Constitutions...
, and Australia's first female premier, after the resignation of Peter Dowding. - 20 March – Serial killerSerial killerA serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
John Wayne GloverJohn Wayne GloverJohn Wayne Glover was a British-born Australian serial killer convicted for the murders of six elderly women on Sydney's North Shore....
is arrested for a series of "Granny Murders" on Sydney's North ShoreNorth Shore (Sydney)The North Shore is an informal term used to describe the primarily residential area of northern metropolitan Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The term usually refers to the suburbs located on the north shore of Sydney Harbour between Middle Harbour and the Lane Cove River, up to...
. - 24 March – A federal election is held. The government of Prime MinisterPrime Minister of AustraliaThe Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
Bob HawkeBob HawkeRobert James Lee "Bob" Hawke AC GCL was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia from March 1983 to December 1991 and therefore longest serving Australian Labor Party Prime Minister....
is re-elected for a fourth term. - 6 May – Six people die in the Cowan rail accident, when a CityRailCityRailCityRail is an operating brand of RailCorp, a corporation owned by the state government of New South Wales, Australia. It is responsible for providing commuter rail services, and some coach services, in and around Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, the three largest cities of New South Wales. It is...
Interurban train collides with a 3801 Limited3801 Limited3801 Limited is a not for profit company limited by guarantee. It was incorporated on 5 June 1985; A.C.N. 002 951 671. The registered office of the company is at Australian Technology Park.- Establishment :...
steam locomotive on the banks of the Hawkesbury RiverHawkesbury RiverThe Hawkesbury River, also known as Deerubbun, is one of the major rivers of the coastal region of New South Wales, Australia. The Hawkesbury River and its tributaries virtually encircle the metropolitan region of Sydney.-Geography:-Course:...
in New South Wales. - 7 August – John CainJohn Cain IIJohn Cain , Australian Labor Party politician, was the 41st Premier of Victoria, holding office from 1982 to 1990.-Biography:...
resigns as Premier of Victoria over a series of financial scandals, and is replaced by the first female premier of Victoria, Joan KirnerJoan KirnerJoan Elizabeth Kirner AM , Australian politician, was the 42nd Premier of Victoria, the first woman to hold the position, which she held for two years prior to a landslide election defeat.-Biography:...
. - 1 October – The Tasmanian GreensTasmanian GreensThe Tasmanian Greens are a political party in Australia which developed from numerous environmental campaigns in Tasmania, including the flooding of Lake Pedder and the Franklin Dam campaign...
terminate the Labor–Green Accord after Tasmania adopts the federal government's Forests and Forest Industry Strategy. - 2 October – Opera singer Dame Joan SutherlandJoan SutherlandDame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s....
announces her retirement. - 5 October – After one hundred and fifty years, ten months and two days, The Herald broadsheetBroadsheetBroadsheet is the largest of the various newspaper formats and is characterized by long vertical pages . The term derives from types of popular prints usually just of a single sheet, sold on the streets and containing various types of material, from ballads to political satire. The first broadsheet...
newspaper in MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
is published for the last time as a separate newspaper. Founded in 1840 as The Port Phillip Herald, it is merged with its morning tabloid sister paper The Sun News-Pictorial and the first issue of the new Herald SunHerald SunThe Herald Sun is a morning tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia. It is published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Limited, itself a subsidiary of News Corporation. It is available for purchase throughout Melbourne, Regional Victoria, Tasmania, the Australian Capital...
, described by owner Rupert MurdochRupert MurdochKeith Rupert Murdoch, AC, KSG is an Australian-American business magnate. He is the founder and Chairman and CEO of , the world's second-largest media conglomerate....
as "the world's first 24-hour newspaper", with morning and afternoon editions, is published on 8 October.On the same day, the 49-year-old afternoon tabloid The Daily MirrorThe Daily Mirror (Australia)The Daily Mirror was an afternoon paper established by Ezra Norton in Sydney, Australia in 1941, gaining a licence from the Minister for Trade and Customs, Eric Harrison, despite wartime paper rationing. In October 1958, Norton and his partners sold his newspapers to the Fairfax group, which...
in SydneySydneySydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
is published for the last time as a separate newspaper. The first edition of The Daily Telegraph-MirrorThe Daily Telegraph (Australia)The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...
also appears on 8 October. - 27 October – A general electionNorthern Territory general election, 1990A general election was held in the Northern Territory on Saturday 27 October 1990, and was won by the incumbent Country Liberal Party under Chief Minister Marshall Perron....
is held in the Northern TerritoryNorthern TerritoryThe Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
. The Country Liberal PartyCountry Liberal PartyThe Northern Territory Country Liberal Party is a Northern Territory political party affiliated with both the National and Liberal parties...
government of Marshall PerronMarshall PerronMarshall Bruce Perron is a former Australian politician, who was a Country Liberal Party member of the Legislative Assembly in the Northern Territory from the formation of the Assembly in 1974 until his resignation in 1995. From 1988 to 1995, Perron was the Chief Minister of the Northern...
is returned to power. - 1 November – The Australian domestic aviation market is deregulatedDeregulationDeregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or...
. - 21 November – The Queensland state caucus amends the amend the Criminal Code and the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1978–1989 to decriminalise consensual sexual activity between adult males in private.
- 29 November – Treasurer Paul KeatingPaul KeatingPaul John Keating was the 24th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1991 to 1996. Keating was elected as the federal Labor member for Blaxland in 1969 and came to prominence as the reformist treasurer of the Hawke Labor government, which came to power at the 1983 election...
announces that Australia is experiencing an economic recessionRecessionIn economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction, a general slowdown in economic activity. During recessions, many macroeconomic indicators vary in a similar way...
. - 11 December – Media company FairfaxFairfax MediaFairfax Media Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The group's operations include newspapers, magazines, radios and digital media operating in Australia and New Zealand. Fairfax Media was founded by the Fairfax family as John Fairfax and Sons, later to become John...
is placed in receivership.
Arts and literature
- Tom FloodTom FloodTom Flood is an Australian novelist, editor, manuscript assessor, songwriter and musician. Tom Flood was born in Sydney in New South Wales, the son of writer Dorothy Hewett and grew up in Western Australia....
's novel Oceana FineOceana FineOceana Fine is a 1989 Miles Franklin literary award winning novel by the Australian author Tom Flood.-Awards:*Miles Franklin Literary Award, 1990: winner*Victorian Premier's Literary Award, Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction, 1990: winner...
wins the Miles Franklin AwardMiles Franklin AwardThe Miles Franklin Literary Award is an annual literary prize for the best Australian ‘published novel or play portraying Australian life in any of its phases’. The award was set up according to the will of Miles Franklin , who is best known for writing the Australian classic My Brilliant Career ...
Film
- 20 September – The Big StealThe Big Steal (1990 film)The Big Steal is a 1990 Australian caper film directed by Nadia Tass starring Ben Mendelsohn, Claudia Karvan and Steve Bisley. David Parker was the scriptwriter and cinematographer. The film won three Australian Film Institute awards.-Plot:...
is released. Directed by Nadia TassNadia TassNadia Tass is a film director, producer and actress, originally from Macedonia, northern Greece, who moved to Australia in the 1960s. She began her career as an actress appearing in the television series Prisoner. Ms...
, the film will go on to be nominated for nine AFI awards, of which it will win three.
Television
- July – Kerry PackerKerry PackerKerry Francis Bullmore Packer, AC was an Australian media tycoon. The son of Sir Frank Packer and Gretel Bullmore, the Packer family company owned controlling interest in both the Nine television network and leading Australian publishing company Australian Consolidated Press, which were later...
purchases back control of the Nine NetworkNine NetworkThe Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
for A$Australian dollarThe Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
250 million from Alan BondAlan Bond (businessman)Alan Bond is an Australian businessman noted for his criminal convictions and high-profile business dealings, including what was at the time the biggest corporate collapse in Australian history. Bond was born in the Hammersmith district of London, England, and emigrated to Australia with his...
, who purchased it from him for $1 billion in 1987. - 14 September – WestpacWestpacWestpac , is a multinational financial services, one of the Australian "big four" banks and the second-largest bank in New Zealand....
puts Network TenNetwork TenNetwork Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
into receivership. - 27 December – WIN Television purchases Star Television just three days before QueenslandQueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
is due to be aggregated, giving them the Nine Network affiliation and leaving QTV, who were going to take the Nine affiliation, with the Network Ten affiliation. - 31 December – The Queensland regional televisionRegional television in AustraliaRegional television is a term given to local television services in areas outside of the five main Australian cities .-1960s:...
market is aggregated, with Sunshine Television Network (now Seven QueenslandSeven QueenslandSeven Queensland is an Australian television station, licensed to, and serving the regional areas of Queensland. The station is owned and operated by the Seven Network from studios located in Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast, using the callsign STQ, which stands for Sunshine Television,...
) taking a SevenSeven NetworkThe Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
affiliation, WIN TelevisionWIN TelevisionWIN Television is an Australian television network owned by the WIN Corporation that is based in Wollongong, New South Wales. WIN commenced transmissions on 18 March 1962 as a single Wollongong-only station, and has since expanded to 24 owned-and-operated stations with transmissions covering a...
taking a Nine affiliation, and QTVSouthern Cross TenSouthern Cross Ten is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Macquarie Media Group in Queensland, New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory, Victoria and South Australia. The channel is owned by the Macquarie Media Group as is affiliated to Network Ten...
with the Ten affiliation. - The Seven Network is placed in receivershipReceivershipIn law, receivership is the situation in which an institution or enterprise is being held by a receiver, a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights." The receivership remedy is an equitable remedy that emerged in...
.
Sport
- 1 January – The VFL is renamed as the AFL (Australian Football LeagueAustralian Football LeagueThe Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
). - 30 March – First day of the Australian Track & Field Championships for the 1989–1990 season, which are held at the Olympic ParkOlympic Park, MelbourneThe Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Precinct is a series of sports venues and stadia, located in Melbourne, Victoria, in Australia. The precinct is situated around 3 km east of the Melbourne city centre, between the suburbs of East Melbourne and Richmond, and close to the north-eastern bank of...
in Melbourne, Victoria. The men's 10,000 metres event was conducted at CanberraCanberraCanberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
on 24 February 1990. - 22 May – New South WalesNew South WalesNew South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
(13.8.86) upsets Victoria (10.16.76) in a State of Origin match at the SCGSydney Cricket GroundThe Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian...
. - 22 July – Allan Carman wins the men's national marathon title, clocking 2:15:17 in BrisbaneBrisbaneBrisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, while Trudy Fenton claims the women's title in 2:44:38. - 23 July – Players' draft adopted at board meeting of NSWRLNew South Wales Rugby LeagueThe New South Wales Rugby League is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and is a member of the Australian Rugby League. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was known as the New South Wales Rugby Football League until 1984 when forward thinking marketing managers decided...
. - 8 September – Collingwood draws its elimination final with the West Coast EaglesWest Coast EaglesThe West Coast Eagles are an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League. The club is based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 and played its first games in the 1987 season. Its current home ground is Subiaco Oval...
. The AFL finals schedule is thrown into chaos and the Grand Final is rescheduled to be played a week later than usual. Extra timeOvertime (sports)Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw. In most sports, this extra period is only played if the game is required to have a clear winner, as in single-elimination...
is subsequently introduced for future finals matches. - 6 October – CollingwoodCollingwood Football ClubThe Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
(13.11.89) defeats EssendonEssendon Football ClubThe Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
(5.11.41) to win the 94th VFLAustralian Football LeagueThe Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
/AFLAustralian Football LeagueThe Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
premiership. It is the first premiership won under the AFL banner and CollingwoodCollingwood Football ClubThe Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
's first premiership since 1958, thereby symbolising the end of the "Colliwobbles". - 10 November – Mal MeningaMal MeningaMalcolm Norman Meninga AM is an Australian former rugby league test captain and current coach of Queensland's State of Origin team. As a player he was a legendary goal-kicking centre, counted amongst the finest footballers of the 20th century...
scores a stunning last-minute try to win the second Ashes rugby leagueRugby leagueRugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
test at Old TraffordOld Trafford (football)Old Trafford is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 75,811, Old Trafford is the second-largest football stadium in England after Wembley, the third-largest in the United Kingdom and the eleventh-largest in Europe...
.
Births
- 24 March – Keisha Castle-HughesKeisha Castle-HughesKeisha Castle-Hughes is a New Zealand film actress who rose to prominence at the age of eleven when playing Paikea "Pai" Apirana in the 2002 film Whale Rider...
, New Zealand actress - 22 May – Wyatt RoyWyatt RoyWyatt Beau Roy is an Australian politician. He has been a Liberal National Party of Queensland member of the Australian House of Representatives since August 2010, representing the electorate of Longman. At 20 years of age, he was the youngest person ever to be elected to an Australian parliament...
, politician
Deaths
- 4 January – Henry BolteHenry BolteSir Henry Edward Bolte GCMG was an Australian politician. He was the 38th and longest serving Premier of Victoria.- Early years :...
(b. 1908), Premier of Victoria - 9 January – Sir Edward McTiernanEdward McTiernanSir Edward Aloysius McTiernan, KBE , was an Australian jurist, lawyer and politician. He served as an Australian Labor Party member of both the New South Wales Legislative Assembly and federal House of Representatives before being appointed to the High Court of Australia in 1930...
(b. 1892), High Court judge and politician - 15 January – Dame Peggy van PraaghPeggy van PraaghDame Margaret "Peggy" van Praagh, DBE had a long and distinguished career in ballet as a dancer, choreographer, teacher, producer, advocate and director.-Dancing:...
(b. 1910), ballet dancer - 8 February – Sir Ernie TittertonErnest William TittertonSir Ernest William Titterton Ph. D. was a nuclear physicist and professor.-Early years:...
(b. 1916), nuclear physicist - 14 February – Graeme HoleGraeme HoleGraeme Blake Hole was an Australian cricketer....
(b. 1931), cricketer - 10 March – Pat McDonald (b. 1922), actress (Number 96, Sons & Daughters)
- 10 March – Sir Reg Wright (b. 1905), Tasmanian Liberal senator
- 15 April – William Hart-SmithWilliam Hart-SmithWilliam Hart-Smith was a New Zealand/Australian poet who was born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England. His family moved to New Zealand in 1924. He had about "seven years of formal schooling" in England, Scotland and New Zealand before getting work at 15. His first job was as a radio mechanic...
(b. 1911), poet - 5 May – Gordon MackieGordon MackieGordon Charlton Mackie was an Australian politician, elected as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing the seat of Albury....
(b. 1912), NSW politician - 8 June – Herbie MatthewsHerbie MatthewsHerbie Matthews was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League. He was recruited from suburban Fairfield under the League's "father and son" rule. His father, 'Butcher' Matthews, partnered the great Roy Cazaly in South Melbourne's ruck...
(b. 1913), Australian Rules football player and coach for the South Melbourne Swans - 21 June – Martin JohnstonMartin JohnstonMartin Johnston was an Australian poet and novelist.Martin Johnston was born in Sydney in November 1947, son of the writers George Johnston and Charmian Clift. His early childhood was spent in London and Sydney. In 1954 the family moved to Greece...
(b. 1947), poet - 25 June – Peggy Glanville-HicksPeggy Glanville-HicksPeggy Glanville-Hicks was an Australian composer.- Biography :Peggy Glanville-Hicks was born Melbourne in 1912. At age 15 she began studying composition with Fritz Hart in Melbourne...
(b. 1912), composer - 1 July – Albert FieldAlbert FieldAlbert Patrick Field was an Australian who was a French polisher plucked from obscurity to become a Senator in 1975. The circumstances of his appointment were instrumental in precipitating the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis.Queensland ALP Senator Bertie Milliner died suddenly on 30 June 1975...
(b. 1910), Queensland senator - 15 August – Jimmy CarruthersJimmy CarruthersJames "Jimmy" William Carruthers was an Australian boxer, who became world champion in the bantamweight division.-Amateur career:...
(b. 1929), boxer - 17 August – Sir David MartinDavid Martin (Governor)-Honours:-External links:...
(b. 1933), Governor of New South Wales - 2 September – Robert Holmes à CourtRobert Holmes à CourtMichael Robert Hamilton Holmes à Court was an entrepreneur who became Australia's first businessman worth over a billion dollars before dying suddenly of a heart attack in 1990.Holmes à Court was one of the world's most feared corporate raiders through the 1980s, having built his empire...
(b. 1937), businessman - 26 September – Sir James ForrestJames Alexander ForrestSir James "Jim" Alexander Forrest was an Australian lawyer, businessman and philanthropist.Born in Kerang, Victoria, Forrest was educated at Caulfield Grammar School in Melbourne before studying an articled clerk's course at the University of Melbourne...
(b. 1905), lawyer - 30 September – Patrick WhitePatrick WhitePatrick Victor Martindale White , an Australian author, is widely regarded as an important English-language novelist of the 20th century. From 1935 until his death, he published 12 novels, two short-story collections and eight plays.White's fiction employs humour, florid prose, shifting narrative...
(b. 1912), author - 14 October – Clifton PughClifton PughClifton Ernest Pugh AO, was an Australian artist and three-time winner of Australia's Archibald Prize. He was strongly influenced by German Expressionism, and was known for his landscapes and portraiture...
(b. 1924), artist - 25 December – John Stuart AndersonJohn Stuart AndersonJohn Stuart Anderson FRS, FAA, was a British and Australian scientist who was Professor of Chemistry at the University of Melbourne and Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Oxford....
(b. 1908), chemist