1945 in Australia
Encyclopedia
Incumbents
- MonarchMonarchy in AustraliaThe Monarchy of Australia is a form of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign of Australia. The monarchy is a constitutional one modelled on the Westminster style of parliamentary government, incorporating features unique to the Constitution of Australia.The present monarch is...
– King George VIGeorge VI of the United KingdomGeorge VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death... - 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...
– Alexander Hore-Ruthven, 1st Baron GowrieAlexander Hore-Ruthven, 1st Earl of GowrieBrigadier General Alexander Gore Arkwright Hore-Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie VC, GCMG, CB, DSO & Bar, PC was a British soldier and colonial governor and the tenth Governor-General of Australia. Serving for 9 years and 7 days, he is the longest serving Governor-General in Australia's history...
(until 30 January), then the Duke of Gloucester - Prime Minister – John CurtinJohn CurtinJohn Joseph Curtin , Australian politician, served as the 14th Prime Minister of Australia. Labor under Curtin formed a minority government in 1941 after the crossbench consisting of two independent MPs crossed the floor in the House of Representatives, bringing down the Coalition minority...
(died in office 5 July), then Frank FordeFrank FordeFrancis Michael Forde PC was an Australian politician and the 15th Prime Minister of Australia. He was the shortest serving Prime Minister in Australia's history, being in office for only eight days.-Early life:...
(until 13 July), then Ben ChifleyBen ChifleyJoseph Benedict Chifley , Australian politician, was the 16th Prime Minister of Australia. He took over the Australian Labor Party leadership and Prime Ministership after the death of John Curtin in 1945, and went on to retain government at the 1946 election, before being defeated at the 1949...
State Premiers
- Premier of New South Wales – William McKellWilliam McKellSir William John McKell GCMG , Australian politician, was Premier of New South Wales from 1941 to 1947, and was the 12th Governor-General of Australia. He was also the oldest Governor General of Australia, at 93 when he died....
- Premier of Queensland – Frank Cooper
- Premier of South Australia – Thomas Playford IVThomas Playford IVSir Thomas Playford, GCMG was a South Australian politician. He served continuously as Premier of South Australia from 5 November 1938 to 10 March 1965, the longest term of any elected government leader in the history of Australia. His tenure as premier was marked by a period of population and...
- Premier of Tasmania – Robert CosgroveRobert CosgroveSir Robert Cosgrove KCMG was an Australian politician, trade unionist, and twice Premier of Tasmania from 18 December 1939 to 18 December 1947 and 25 February 1948 to 26 August 1958....
- Premier of Victoria – Albert DunstanAlbert DunstanSir Albert Arthur Dunstan, KCMG was an Australian politician. A member of the Country Party , Dunstan was the 33rd Premier of Victoria. His term as Premier was the second-longest in the state's history, behind Sir Henry Bolte...
(until 2 October), then Ian MacFarlanIan MacFarlanIan MacFarlan was the Deputy Leader of the Australian Liberal Party in the Australian state of Victoria during 1945...
(until 21 November), then John CainJohn Cain (senior)John Cain was an Australian politician, who became the 34th premier of Victoria, and was the first Australian Labor Party leader to win a majority in the Victorian Legislative Assembly. He was the only premier of Victoria whose son also served as premier.-Early life:Cain was born, one of 18... - 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...
– John WillcockJohn WillcockJohn Collings Willcock was the 15th Premier of Western Australia.-Early life:John Willcock was born at Frogmoor , New South Wales on 9 August 1879. The son of miner Joseph Willcock, he was educated at Sydney High School before emigrating to Western Australia in 1897...
(until 31 July), then Frank WiseFrank WiseFrank Joseph Scott Wise AO was an Australian Labor Party politician and the 16th Premier of Western Australia. He took office on 31 July 1945 in the closing stages of the Second World War, following the resignation of his predecessor due to ill health...
State Governors
- Governor of New South Wales – John Loder, 2nd Baron Wakehurst (until 6 June)
- Governor of Queensland – Sir Leslie Orme WilsonLeslie Orme WilsonSir Leslie Orme Wilson, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, DSO, PC was a British soldier, Conservative politician and Governor of Queensland.-Personal life:...
- Governor of South Australia – Sir Charles NorrieCharles Norrie, 1st Baron NorrieLieutenant-General Charles Willoughby Moke Norrie, 1st Baron Norrie GCMG, GCVO, CB, DSO, MC & Bar was a British Army general during World War II, following which he served terms as Governor of South Australia and the eighth Governor-General of New Zealand.-Army career:After education at Eton and...
- Governor of Tasmania – Sir Ernest ClarkErnest Clark (governor)Sir Ernest Clark, GCMG, KCB, CBE was a British civil servant, who was Governor of Tasmania from 1933 to 1945.-Early life and education:...
(until 4 August), then Sir Hugh BinneyHugh BinneyAdmiral Sir Thomas Hugh Binney, KCB, KCMG, DSO was a British naval officer and administrator who was Governor of Tasmania from 1945 to 1953.-Early life:...
(from 24 December) - Governor of Victoria – Sir Winston DuganWinston Dugan, 1st Baron Dugan of VictoriaMajor-General Winston Joseph Dugan, 1st Baron Dugan of Victoria GCMG, CB, DSO, KStJ , known as Sir Winston Dugan between 1934 and 1949, was a British administrator and a career British Army officer...
- 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;...
– none appointed
Events
- 30 January – Prince Henry, Duke of GloucesterPrince Henry, Duke of GloucesterThe Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester was a soldier and member of the British Royal Family, the third son of George V of the United Kingdom and Queen Mary....
becomes Australia's first royal 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...
. - 9 May – GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
surrenders to the AlliesAllies of World War IIThe Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
, ending World War II in EuropeEnd of World War II in EuropeThe final battles of the European Theatre of World War II as well as the German surrender to the Western Allies and the Soviet Union took place in late April and early May 1945.-Timeline of surrenders and deaths:...
. - 26 June – Dr H. V. EvattH. V. EvattHerbert Vere Evatt, QC KStJ , was an Australian jurist, politician and writer. He was President of the United Nations General Assembly in 1948–49 and helped draft the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights...
signs the United Nations CharterUnited Nations CharterThe Charter of the United Nations is the foundational treaty of the international organization called the United Nations. It was signed at the San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center in San Francisco, United States, on 26 June 1945, by 50 of the 51 original member countries...
on behalf of Australia. - 5 July – Prime Minister John CurtinJohn CurtinJohn Joseph Curtin , Australian politician, served as the 14th Prime Minister of Australia. Labor under Curtin formed a minority government in 1941 after the crossbench consisting of two independent MPs crossed the floor in the House of Representatives, bringing down the Coalition minority...
dies in office from heart problems at The Lodge in 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...
. - 6 July – Frank FordeFrank FordeFrancis Michael Forde PC was an Australian politician and the 15th Prime Minister of Australia. He was the shortest serving Prime Minister in Australia's history, being in office for only eight days.-Early life:...
is sworn in as Prime Minister of Australia, following the death of John CurtinJohn CurtinJohn Joseph Curtin , Australian politician, served as the 14th Prime Minister of Australia. Labor under Curtin formed a minority government in 1941 after the crossbench consisting of two independent MPs crossed the floor in the House of Representatives, bringing down the Coalition minority...
. He will serve Australia's shortest term as Prime Minister, being replaced by Ben ChifleyBen ChifleyJoseph Benedict Chifley , Australian politician, was the 16th Prime Minister of Australia. He took over the Australian Labor Party leadership and Prime Ministership after the death of John Curtin in 1945, and went on to retain government at the 1946 election, before being defeated at the 1949...
a week later. - 7 July – The Australian 7th DivisionAustralian 7th DivisionThe 7th Division was an infantry division of the Australian Army. It was formed in February 1940 to serve in World War II, as part of the Second Australian Imperial Force...
commences operations in the Battle of BalikpapanBattle of Balikpapan (1945)The Battle of Balikpapan was the concluding stage of the Borneo campaign . The landings took place on 1 July 1945. The Australian 7th Division, composed of the 18th, 21st and 25th Infantry Brigades, with support troops, made an amphibious landing, codenamed Operation Oboe Two a few miles north of...
. Operations are completed by 21 July. - 13 July – Ben ChifleyBen ChifleyJoseph Benedict Chifley , Australian politician, was the 16th Prime Minister of Australia. He took over the Australian Labor Party leadership and Prime Ministership after the death of John Curtin in 1945, and went on to retain government at the 1946 election, before being defeated at the 1949...
is elected as leader of the Australian Labor PartyAustralian Labor PartyThe Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
, becoming the 16th Prime Minister of Australia. - 15 August – JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
surrendersSurrender of JapanThe surrender of Japan in 1945 brought hostilities of World War II to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy was incapable of conducting operations and an Allied invasion of Japan was imminent...
to the AlliesAllies of World War IIThe Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
, ending World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The day is known as V-P DayVictory over Japan DayVictory over Japan Day is a name chosen for the day on which the Surrender of Japan occurred, effectively ending World War II, and subsequent anniversaries of that event...
(Victory in the Pacific). - 10 November – A general election is held in VictoriaVictoria (Australia)Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
.
Science and technology
- 12 December – Howard Florey shares the Nobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineNobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineThe Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
for his work on penicillinPenicillinPenicillin is a group of antibiotics derived from Penicillium fungi. They include penicillin G, procaine penicillin, benzathine penicillin, and penicillin V....
.
Arts and literature
- William DargieWilliam DargieSir William Alexander Dargie CBE was an Australian painter, known especially for his portrait paintings. He holds the record for the most Archibald Prize wins; eight. He was an official Australian War Artist during World War II.- Biography :William Dargie was born in Footscray, Victoria, the first...
wins the Archibald PrizeArchibald PrizeThe Archibald Prize is regarded as the most important portraiture prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after a bequest from J. F. Archibald, the editor of The Bulletin who died in 1919...
with his portrait of Edmund Herring - Russell DrysdaleRussell DrysdaleSir George Russell Drysdale, AC was an Australian artist. He won the prestigious Wynne Prize for Sofala in 1947, and represented Australia at the Venice Biennale in 1954...
painted The Drover's WifeThe Drover's WifeThe Drover's Wife is a 1945 painting by Australian artist Russell Drysdale. The painting depicts a flat, barren landscape with a woman in a plain dress in the foreground—a man, a wagon and two horses are in the background...
Sport
- 1 September – Eastern SuburbsSydney RoostersThe Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League and is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Australian rugby league history, having won twelve New South Wales Rugby League...
defeats BalmainBalmain TigersThe Balmain Tigers are a rugby league football club based in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Balmain. They were a founding member of the New South Wales Rugby League and one of the most successful in the history of the premiership, with eleven titles...
22–18 in the final of the 1945 New South Wales Rugby Football League seasonNew South Wales Rugby Football League season 1945The 1945 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the thirty-eighth season of Sydney's top-level rugby league club competition, Australia's first...
. - 29 September – The 1945 VFL Grand Final1945 VFL Grand FinalThe 1945 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the South Melbourne Football Club and Carlton Football Club, held at Princes Park in Melbourne on 29 September 1945. It was the 49th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers...
is held, and becomes known as the "Bloodbath" due to the wet, muddy conditions and frequent violence between players and amongst the spectators. CarltonCarlton Football ClubThe Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
defeats South MelbourneSydney SwansThe Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
15.13 (103) to 10.15 (75). - 6 November – Rainbird wins the Melbourne CupMelbourne CupThe Melbourne Cup is Australia's major Thoroughbred horse race. Marketed as "the race that stops a nation", it is a 3,200 metre race for three-year-olds and over. It is the richest "two-mile" handicap in the world, and one of the richest turf races...
. - 26 December – The first1945 Sydney to Hobart Yacht RaceThe 1945 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race was the inaugural running of the annual "blue water classic", the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race. It was hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia based in Sydney, New South Wales....
Sydney to Hobart Yacht RaceSydney to Hobart Yacht RaceThe Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race is hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, starting in Sydney, Australia on Boxing Day and finishing in Hobart. The race distance is approximately...
begins. The British yacht Rani wins both line honours and the handicap, arriving in HobartHobartHobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
on 3 January.
Births
- 1 January – Peter DuncanPeter Duncan (Australian politician)Peter Duncan was an Australian Labor Party politician and one of the relatively few members of parliament to have not only served in both a state and national parliament, but also served as a minister in both cases....
, politician - 2 January – Diane FaheyDiane FaheyDiane Mary Fahey is an Australian poet. She was born Diane Mary Brotheridge in Melbourne, Australia and currently lives in the Barwon Heads area, near Geelong....
, poet - 2 January – Byron LamontByron LamontProfessor Byron Barnard Lamont is a Western Australian botanist. He is currently a senior researcher within the Department of Environmental Biology of Curtin University of Technology...
, botanist - 8 January – Jeannie LewisJeannie LewisJeannie Lewis is an Australian musician and stage performer whose work covers many different styles such as folk, jazz, Latin, blues, opera, rock, fusion. Her music often includes a strong social consciousness and she is capable of making very strong political statements in her work.-Early...
, musician - 10 January – John FaheyJohn Fahey (politician)John Joseph Fahey, AC is a former Premier of New South Wales and Federal Minister for Finance in Australia. John Fahey is currently the President of the World Anti-Doping Agency. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1984 to 1996 and the federal House of Representatives...
, Premier of New South Wales (1992–1995) - 15 January – John PeardJohn PeardJohn "Bomber" Peard is an Australian former rugby league footballer and later coach. An Australian international representative five-eighth, he played for the Eastern Suburbs, St. George and Parramatta NSWRFL clubs in the 1960s and 70s...
, rugby league player and coach - 19 January – Judith ClinganJudith ClinganJudith Clingan AM is an Australian composer, conductor, performer and music educator. Since 1997, she has been the Director of Wayfarers Australia Australia Wide Choir.-Early life:...
, composer and musician - 22 January – Arthur BeetsonArthur BeetsonArthur Henry "Artie" Beetson, OAM , was an Australian rugby league footballer and coach. He represented Australia and Queensland from 1964 to 1981. His position was at prop. Beetson became the first Indigenous Australian to captain his country in any sport. and is frequently cited as the best...
, rugby league player and coach - 22 January – Ken TicehurstKen TicehurstKenneth Vincent Ticehurst is an Australian politician, and was a member of the Australian House of Representatives from November 2001 to 2007, representing the Division of Dobell in New South Wales for the Liberal Party of Australia.- Biography :Ticehurst has a qualification in electrical...
, politician - 26 January – John Coates, mathematician
- 11 February – Ralph DoubellRalph DoubellRalph Douglas Doubell AM is an Australian former athlete, and gold medallist at the 1968 Summer Olympics.-Biography:...
, Olympic athlete - 23 February – Robert GrayRobert Gray (poet)Robert William Geoffrey Gray is an Australian poet, freelance writer, and critic.-Biography:Gray grew up in Coffs Harbour and was educated in a country town on the north coast of New South Wales. He trained there as a journalist, and since then has worked in Sydney as an editor, advertising...
, poet - 26 February – Peter BrockPeter BrockPeter Geoffrey Brock, AM otherwise known as "Peter Perfect", "The King of the Mountain" or simply as "Brocky" was one of Australia's best-known and most successful motor racing drivers. Brock was most often associated with Holden for almost 40 years, although he raced vehicles of other...
, racing driver (d. 2006) - 3 March – George MillerGeorge Miller (producer)George Miller is an Australian film director, screenwriter, producer, and former medical doctor. He is most well known for his work on the Mad Max movies, but has been involved in a wide range of projects, including the Oscar-winning Happy Feet and "Babe" family films.Miller is the older brother...
, film director and producer - 16 March – Michael CobbMichael CobbMichael Roy Cobb is an Australian politician who represented the electorate of Parkes in the Australian House of Representatives from 1984 to 1998.Before entering politics Cobb worked as a veterinary surgeon and ran a farm...
, politician - 10 April – Kevin BerryKevin BerryKevin John Berry OAM was an Australian butterfly swimmer of the 1960s who won the gold medal in the 200 m butterfly at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. He set twelve world records in his career...
, butterfly swimmer (d. 2006) - 13 April – Judy NunnJudy NunnJudy Nunn is an Australian actress and author.-Acting career:Her breakout role was as the scheming bisexual reporter Vicky Stafford in the risque soap opera The Box. Her character became a popular cult figure in the series. Nunn continued in the role for the show's entire 1974–1977 run...
, actress - 8 May – Janine HainesJanine HainesJanine Haines, AM , Australian politician, was the first female federal parliamentary leader of an Australian political party. An Australian Democrat, she was also the first member of that party to enter the federal parliament after the party's formation...
, politician (d. 2004) - 17 May – Tony RocheTony RocheAnthony "Tony" Dalton Roche is a former professional Australian tennis player, native of Tarcutta. He played junior tennis in the New South Wales regional city of Wagga Wagga. He won one Grand Slam singles title and twelve Grand Slam doubles titles. He is also very well known for coaching...
, tennis player - 22 May – Bob KatterBob KatterRobert Carl "Bob" Katter is an Australian federal politician, a member of the Australian House of Representatives since March 1993 for the Division of Kennedy, and the leader of Katter's Australian Party...
, politician - 29 May – Chris BarrieChris Barrie (Admiral)Admiral Christopher Alexander "Chris" Barrie AC is a retired senior officer of the Royal Australian Navy, who served as Chief of the Defence Force from 4 July 1998 to 3 July 2002.-Naval career:...
, Chief of the Defence Force - 2 June – Michael LeunigMichael LeunigMichael Leunig , typically referred to as Leunig, is an Australian poet, cartoonist and cultural commentator. His best known works include The Adventures of Vasco Pyjama and the Curly Flats series...
, cartoonistCartoonistA cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
. - 5 July – Johnny FamechonJohnny FamechonJohnny Famechon, born 28 March 1945, is a former Australian featherweight boxer, who was born as Jean-Pierre Famechon in Paris, France.He moved to Australia in 1950 at the age of five. Over his twenty-year career he developed a reputation for being a skilled boxer whose strength was his defence...
, boxer - 8 July – Graeme BlundellGraeme BlundellGraeme Blundell is an Australian actor, director, producer, writer and biographer.Blundell was born in Melbourne; he grew up in Clifton Hill, a suburb of Melbourne...
, actor - 13 July – Ashley MallettAshley MallettAshley Alexander Mallett is a former Australian cricketer who played in 38 Tests and 9 One Day Internationals between 1968 and 1980...
, cricketer - 17 July – Athena StarwomanAthena StarwomanAthena Starwoman was a well-known Australian astrologer, columnist and television commentator.Born in Melbourne, Victoria, her real name was kept secret from the public...
, astrologer - 18 July – Max TolsonMax TolsonMaxwell "Max" Tolson was on in Wollongong, Australia and is a former football forward. He was a member of the Australian 1974 World Cup squad in West Germany and represented Australia 19 times in total scoring 4 goals as well as representing NSW.-See also:...
, soccer player - 21 July – Geoff DymockGeoff DymockGeoffrey Dymock is a former Australian and Queensland cricketer. He played in 21 Tests and 15 One Day Internationals between 1974 and 1980. He was the third bowler to dismiss all eleven opposition players in a test match, and remains one of only six players to have achieved this unusual...
, cricketer - 1 August – Ken AldredKen AldredKenneth James Aldred was an Australian politician who represented the Liberal Party in the Australian House of Representatives between 1975 and 1996....
, politician - 2 August – Alex JesaulenkoAlex JesaulenkoAlex 'Jezza' Jesaulenko MBE is a former Australian rules footballer and coach. He is regarded as one of the game's greatest-ever players and is an official Legend of the Australian Football Hall of Fame...
, Australian rules football player - 7 August – Graham RamshawGraham RamshawGraham Joseph Ramshaw was a leading Australian rules footballer, playing for Perth Football Club in the Western Australian Football League , Fitzroy Football Club in the Victorian Football League and Central District in the South Australian National Football League .Born in North Fremantle,...
, Australian rules football player - 12 August – Mal WasherMal WasherDr Malcolm James Washer , Australian politician, has beena Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives since October 1998, representing the Division of Moore, Western Australia. He was born in Bunbury, Western Australia, and was educated at the University of Western Australia,...
, politician - 18 August – Gillian BourasGillian BourasGillian Bouras is an expatriate Australian writer who has written several books, stories and articles, many of them dealing with her experiences as an Australian woman in Greece.-Life:...
, writer - 27 August – Kerry O'Brien, television journalist
- 25 October – Peter LedgerPeter LedgerPeter Ledger was an Australian commercial airbrush artist and illustrator.-Biography:...
, illustrator (d. 1994) - 26 October – John RomerilJohn RomerilJohn Henry Romeril is a contemporary Australian playwright.John Romeril was born and grew up in Melbourne where he attended Monash University. His first plays, I Don't Know Who To Feel Sorry For and Chicago, Chicago were written while he was still a student...
, playwright - 1 November – John WilliamsonJohn Williamson (singer)John Robert Williamson AM is an Australian country music singer-songwriter. Williamson has released over thirty-two albums, ten videos, five DVDs, and two lyric books...
, singer - 15 November – Roger DonaldsonRoger DonaldsonRoger Donaldson is an Australian-born New Zealand film producer, director and writer who has made numerous successful movies. He was a co-founder of the New Zealand Film Commission.-Life and career:...
, New Zealand film director - 19 November – Barry HaaseBarry HaaseBarry Wayne Haase , Australian politician, has been a Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives since October 1998, representing the Division of Kalgoorlie, the largest parliamentary constituency by area in the world, in Western Australia. In 2010 he moved to the new seat of Durack...
, politician - 26 November – Roger PriceRoger Price (Australian politician)Leo Roger Spurway Price is a former Australian politician. He was elected as a member of the Australian House of Representatives at the 1984 election, representing the Division of Chifley in western Sydney, New South Wales, for the Australian Labor Party until his retirement before the 2010...
, politician - 28 November – John HargreavesJohn Hargreaves (Australian actor)John Hargreaves was an Australian actor. He won three Australian Film Institute Awards and was nominated six times.-Background:...
, actor - 5 December – Joanne BurnsJoanne BurnsJoanne Burns is a contemporary Australian poet and prose writer, with a strong emphasis on performance in her work.-Biography:...
, poet - 15 December – Thaao PenghlisThaao PenghlisThaao Penghlis is an Australian actor. He is better known for roles in the U.S. daytime soap operas such as Days of our Lives, Santa Barbara, and General Hospital, but he has also guest-starred on a number of crime dramas, such as Kojak, Cannon, Tenspeed and Brown Shoe, Hart to Hart, Nero Wolfe, ...
, actor - 22 December – Sam NewmanSam NewmanJohn Noel William "Sam" Newman is a retired Australian rules football player and current television personality. He is a featured presenter on the AFL version of The Footy Show.-VFL career:...
, Australian rules football player and media personality - 31 December – Vernon WellsVernon Wells (actor)Vernon George Wells is an Australian film and television actor who has built his career around action-type films, most often cast as a villain...
, actor
Deaths
- 28 January – Samuel DennisSamuel DennisSamuel Dennis was an Australian politician. Born in Melbourne, he was educated at state schools before becoming a contractor and company director. He served on Northcote Council for 36 years before his election to the Australian House of Representatives in 1931 as the United Australia Party member...
(b. 1870), politician - 4 March – Harry ChauvelHenry George ChauvelGeneral Sir Harry Chauvel GCMG, KCB was a senior officer of the Australian Imperial Force who fought at Gallipoli and in the Middle Eastern theatre during the First World War. He was the first Australian to attain the rank of lieutenant general and later general, and the first to lead a corps...
(b. 1865), soldier - 5 March – Rupert DownesRupert DownesMajor General Rupert Major Downes CMG, KStJ, VD, FRACS was an Australian soldier, general, surgeon and historian in the first half of the 20th century. Downes attended the University of Melbourne, graduating with his medical degrees in 1907...
(b. 1885), soldier - 15 April – Tom CollinsThomas Collins (Australian politician)Thomas Joseph "Tom" Collins was an Australian politician and stock and station agent, born at Yass, New South Wales to storekeeper John Collins and Mary, née Hartigan. In 1902, having attended the local Catholic school, he enlisted in the 5th Battalion, Australian Commonwealth Horse, to fight in...
(b. 1884), politician - 5 June – Albert PiddingtonAlbert PiddingtonAlbert Bathurst Piddington was the shortest serving Justice of the High Court of Australia, never actually sitting at the bench. Appointed on 6 March 1913, he resigned on 5 April after opponents questioned his independence.-Early life:Piddington was born in 1862 in Bathurst, New South Wales...
(b. 1862), High Court judge - 5 July – John CurtinJohn CurtinJohn Joseph Curtin , Australian politician, served as the 14th Prime Minister of Australia. Labor under Curtin formed a minority government in 1941 after the crossbench consisting of two independent MPs crossed the floor in the House of Representatives, bringing down the Coalition minority...
(b. 1885), Prime Minister of Australia (1941–1945) - 29 July – Henry BurrellHenry BurrellHenry James Burrell was an Australian naturalist who specialised in the study of monotremes. He was the first person to successfully keep the Platypus in captivity and was a lifelong collector of specimens and contributor of journal articles on monotremes.-Biography:Henry James Burrell was born at...
(b. 1873), naturalist - 20 August – Sir Macpherson RobertsonMacpherson RobertsonSir Macpherson Robertson KBE was an Australian philanthropist, entrepreneur and founder of confectionery company MacRobertson's.-Early life:...
(b. 1859), confectioner - 6 December – Sir Edmund Dwyer-GrayEdmund Dwyer-GraySir Edmund John Chisholm Dwyer-Gray was an Irish-Australian politician, who was the 29th Premier of Tasmania from 11 June to 18 December 1939.-Early life:...
(b. 1870), Premier of Tasmania (1939)