1961 in Australia

The following lists events that happened during 1961 in Australia.

1961 in Australia
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Governor-General	William Morrison, then William Sidney
Prime minister	Robert Menzies
Population	10,548,267
Australian of the Year	Joan Sutherland
Elections	Federal, VIC

List of events

←

1960
1959
1958

1961
in
Australia

→

1962
1963
1964

Decades:

1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s

Incumbents

Monarch – Elizabeth II
Prime Minister – Robert Menzies
Governor General – William Morrison, 1st Viscount Dunrossil (died in office 3 February), then William Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'Isle
Chief Justice – Sir Owen Dixon

State Premiers

Premier of New South Wales – Robert Heffron
Premier of Queensland – Frank Nicklin
Premier of South Australia – Sir Thomas Playford
Premier of Tasmania – Eric Reece
Premier of Western Australia – David Brand
Premier of Victoria – Henry Bolte

State Governors

Governor of New South Wales – Sir Eric Woodward
Governor of Queensland – Sir Henry Abel Smith
Governor of South Australia – Sir Edric Bastyan (from 4 April)
Governor of Tasmania – Thomas Corbett, 2nd Baron Rowallan
Governor of Western Australia – Sir Charles Gairdner
Governor of Victoria – Sir Dallas Brooks

Events

2 January – Oral contraceptives are first sold in Australia
20 January to early March – Disastrous bushfires affect Western Australia, completely destroying a number of towns.
25 February – Last electric tram service runs in Sydney
23 June – Australia signed the Antarctic Treaty
12 August – Richmond become the only team since 1922 to fail to score a goal in a VFL/AFL match.
31 October – Parkes radiotelescope officially opened by the Governor General
30 November – Ansett-ANA Flight 325, a Vickers Viscount aircraft, crashes into Botany Bay shortly after takeoff, killing all 15 on board

Arts and literature

Dame Joan Sutherland is announced as Australian of the Year
William Edwin Pidgeon wins the Archibald Prize
The novel Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence is banned from sale
Riders in the Chariot by Patrick White is awarded the Miles Franklin Literary Award

Television

19 August – Four Corners TV current affairs program first screened on ABC TV
1 December - The first regional television station is launched in Traralgon, Victoria, as GLV-10 Gippsland and Latrobe Valley (Television) Victoria.

Sport

Cricket
- New South Wales wins the Sheffield Shield
- The Ashes: Australia defeats England 2-1 and retains The Ashes
Football
- Brisbane Rugby League premiership: Norths defeated Valleys 29-5
- New South Wales Rugby League premiership: St. George defeated Western Suburbs 22-0
- South Australian National Football League premiership: won by West Adelaide
- Victorian Football League premiership: Hawthorn defeated Footscray 94-51
Golf
- Australian Open: won by Frank Phillips
- Australian PGA Championship: won by Alan Murray (golfer)
Horse racing
- Summer Fair wins the Caulfield Cup
- Dhaulagiri wins the Cox Plate
- Magic Night wins the Golden Slipper
- Lord Fury wins the Melbourne Cup
Motor racing
- The Australian Grand Prix was held at Mallala and won by Lex Davison driving a Cooper Climax
Tennis
- Australian Open men's singles: Roy Emerson defeats Rod Laver 1–6, 6–3, 7–5, 6–4
- Australian Open women's singles: Margaret Court defeats Jan Lehane O'Neill 6–1, 6–4
- Davis Cup: Australia defeats Italy 5–0 in the 1961 Davis Cup final
- Wimbledon: Roy Emerson and Neale Fraser win the Men's Doubles
- Wimbledon: Rod Laver wins the Men's Singles
Yachting
- Astor takes line honours and Rival wins on handicap in the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race

Births

1 January – Sam Backo, Indigenous Australian rugby league footballer
7 January – Andrew Thomson, lawyer and politician
9 February – Alison Megarrity, politician
12 February – Di Farmer, politician
25 February – Trevor Strong, politician
28 February – Mark Latham, politician
2 March – Simone Young, conductor
4 March – Bart Bassett, politician
14 March – Garry Jack, rugby league footballer and coach
16 March – Brett Kenny, rugby league footballer
24 March – Dean Jones, cricketer, coach and commentator (died 2020)
26 March – Richard Torbay, politician
29 March – Gary Brabham, racing driver
12 April
- Magda Szubanski, actor and comedian
- Lisa Gerrard, singer
20 April – Frances Adamson, Australian public servant and diplomat, Australian Ambassador to China
2 May – Peter Doohan, tennis player
16 May – Gina Riley, actor and comedian
31 May – Justin Madden, Australian rules footballer
2 June – Kerry Saxby-Junna, racewalker
16 June – Peter Sterling, rugby league footballer
6 July - Rick Price, singer
18 July – Stephen Hodge, cyclist
21 July – Morris Iemma, 40th Premier of New South Wales
1 August – Peter Evans, swimmer
8 August – Tim Mander, politician and rugby league referee
12 August – Peter Dowling, politician
19 August – Frank Terenzini, politician
20 August – Greg Egan, science fiction author and mathematician
3 September – Andy Griffiths, author
15 September
- Terry Lamb, rugby league footballer and coach
- Joan Pease, politician
29 September – Julia Gillard, Welsh-Australian lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of Australia
8 October – Simon Burke, actor
19 October – Cliff Lyons, rugby league footballer
23 October – Brett Dean, composer, conductor and violist
18 November – Anthony Warlow, entertainer
23 November – Merv Hughes, cricketer
4 December – Sonia Hornery, politician
17 December – Larry Anthony, politician
29 December – Mal Brough, politician

Deaths

3 January – Auvergne Doherty, businesswoman (born 1896)
3 February – William Morrison (born 1893), Governor General of Australia
20 February – Percy Grainger (born 1882), pianist and composer
22 May – Lionel Lindsay (born 1874), artist
27 September – Peter Dawson (born 1882), singer
2 October – Essington Lewis (born 1881), industrialist
3 December – Pat O'Hara Wood (born 1891), tennis player
20 December – Earle Page (born 1880), Prime Minister of Australia^[1]
29 December – Sibyl Morrison (born 1895), first female barrister in New South Wales

References

^ Bridge, Carl. "Page, Sir Earle Christmas (1880–1961)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved 20 March 2018.

Years in Australia (1788–present)

18th century

19th century

20th century

21st century

Timeline of Australian history

v t e 1961 in Oceania
Sovereign states	Australia Federated States of Micronesia Fiji Kiribati Marshall Islands Nauru New Zealand Palau Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu
Associated states of New Zealand	Cook Islands Niue