The following lists events that happened during 1973 in Australia.

Incumbents

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

–

Sir Paul Hasluck Sir Paul Meernaa Caedwalla Hasluck, (1 April 1905 – 9 January 1993) was an Australian statesman who served as the 17th Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1969 to 1974. Prior to that, he was a Liberal Party politician, holding min ...

* Prime Minister – Gough Whitlam ** Deputy Prime Minister –

Lance Barnard Lance Herbert Barnard AO (1 May 19196 August 1997) was an Australian politician and diplomat. He was the deputy leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1974 and held senior ministerial office in the Whitlam Government, most n ...

** Opposition Leader –

Billy Snedden Sir Billy Mackie Snedden, (31 December 1926 – 27 June 1987) was an Australian politician who served as the leader of the Liberal Party from 1972 to 1975. He was also a cabinet minister from 1964 to 1972, and Speaker of the House of Represe ...

* Chief Justice – Sir Garfield Barwick

State and territory leaders

* Premier of New South Wales – Sir Robert Askin ** Opposition Leader – Pat Hills (until 17 November), then Neville Wran * Premier of Queensland – Joh Bjelke-Petersen ** Opposition Leader – Jack Houston * Premier of South Australia – Don Dunstan ** Opposition Leader – Bruce Eastick * Premier of Tasmania – Eric Reece ** Opposition Leader – Max Bingham * Premier of Victoria – Rupert Hamer ** Opposition Leader – Clyde Holding * Premier of Western Australia – John Tonkin ** Opposition Leader – Sir Charles Court

Governors and administrators

Governor of New South Wales The governor of New South Wales is the viceregal representative of the Australian monarch, King Charles III, in the state of New South Wales. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governors of the ...

– Sir Roden Cutler * Governor of Queensland – Sir Colin Hannah *

Governor of South Australia The governor of South Australia is the representative in South Australia of the Monarch of Australia, currently King Charles III. The governor performs the same constitutional and ceremonial functions at the state level as does the governor-gene ...

– Sir Mark Oliphant * Governor of Tasmania – Lieutenant General Sir Edric Bastyan (until 30 November), then Sir Stanley Burbury * Governor of Victoria – Major General Sir Rohan Delacombe * Governor of Western Australia – Major General Sir Douglas Kendrew * Administrator of Norfolk Island – Edward Pickerd * Administrator of the Northern Territory – Frederick Chaney (until 10 December), then Jock Nelson * Administrator/High Commissioner of Papua New Guinea –

Les Johnson Leslie Royston Johnson AM (22 November 1924 – 26 May 2015) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and held ministerial office in the Whitlam Government, serving as Minister for Housing (1972–19 ...

Events

* 10 February – Australia's first casino, the Wrest Point Hotel Casino, opens in

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

* 28 February – The federal voting age is lowered from 21 to 18. The state of New South Wales had already enacted such a change in 1970. * 2 March – Wellington Street bus station in Perth is opened by Western Australia's premier John Tonkin * 8 March – Whiskey Au Go Go fire * 1 June – The first General Dynamics F-111 aircraft is delivered to the

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

* 9 June – Disappearance of Jason Shannon * 19 July – Lois D'Arcy was the first independent civil marriage celebrant ever appointed – by Attorney-General Lionel Murphy. * 25 August -

Disappearance of Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirste Gordon Joanne Ratcliffe (born 1962) and Kirste Jane Gordon (born 1968) were two Australian girls who went missing while attending an Australian rules football match at the Adelaide Oval on 25 August 1973. Their disappearance and presumed abduction and ...

* 20 October –

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...

officially opened by Elizabeth II * 1 December – Papua New Guinea is granted self-government prior to independence * 31 December –

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...

perform their first major gig in Sydney. * Removal of the " White Australia Policy".

Arts and literature

Patrick White Patrick Victor Martindale White (28 May 1912 – 30 September 1990) was a British-born Australian writer who published 12 novels, three short-story collections, and eight plays, from 1935 to 1987. White's fiction employs humour, florid prose, ...

is announced as

Australian of the Year The Australian of the Year is a national award conferred on an Australian citizen by the National Australia Day Council, a not-for-profit Australian Governmentowned social enterprise. Similar awards are also conferred at the State and Territo ...

* 21 September – The Jackson Pollock painting '' Blue Poles'' is controversially purchased by the

Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1977, he was notable for being the he ...

government for US$2 million ( A$1.3 million). * "No award" was made for the

Miles Franklin Award The Miles Franklin Literary Award is an annual literary prize awarded to "a novel which is of the highest literary merit and presents Australian life in any of its phases". The award was set up according to the will of Miles Franklin (1879–195 ...

Film

* Alvin Purple

Television

* Certain Women (TV series) commences *The novel '' Seven Little Australians'' adapted for television (10 part series) *The New South Wales Rugby Football League negotiates its first television deal with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Sport

*8 September – Derek Clayton wins his fourth men's national marathon title, clocking 2:12:07.6 in Perth. * 15 September –

Manly-Warringah The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Sydney's Northern Beaches. The team colours are maroon and white, while their namesake and logo is the sea eagle. They compete in Australia's premier rugb ...

defeated Cronulla-Sutherland 10–7 in the

1973 NSWRFL season The 1973 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the sixty-sixth season of the rugby league competition based in Sydney. Twelve district clubs from across the city, including six foundation clubs, competed for the J.J. Giltinan Shi ...

Grand Final, claiming their second straight premiership. Penrith finish in last position, claiming the wooden spoon. * ''Gala Supreme'' wins the Melbourne Cup * Western Australia wins the Sheffield Shield * ''Helsall'' takes line honours in the

Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race is an annual event hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, starting in Sydney, New South Wales, on Boxing Day and finishing in Hobart, Tasmania. The race distance is approximately . The race is run i ...

. ''Ceil III'' is the handicap winner * Australia defeats South Africa 3–0 in the

Federation Cup Federation Cup or Fed Cup is the former name of the premier world team competition in women's tennis. Federation Cup may also refer to: * Capital Football Federation Cup, an Australian territory-based association football tournament *Federation Cup ...

Births

* 8 January –

Jason Stevens Jason Anthony Stevens (born 8 January 1973) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s. He is also a writer, screenwriter and actor. An Australia national rugby league team, Australia nationa ...

, rugby league player and sportscaster * 17 January – Chris Bowen, politician * 22 January –

Abi Tucker Abigail Anne "Abi" Tucker (born 22 January 1973) is an Australian singer-songwriter and actress. She has had roles in television series-telemovies in '' Heartbreak High'' (1994-1995), '' Water Rats'' (1999), '' Wildside'' (1999), '' The Secret ...

, actor and singer * 31 January – Portia de Rossi, actress * 4 February – James Hird, Australian footballer and coach * 5 February –

Luke Ricketson Luke Ricketson (born 5 February 1973) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s. An Australian and Ireland international, and New South Wales State of Origin representative back-row forward, ...

, rugby league player * 6 February - Chris Wilmore * 15 February – Sarah Wynter, actress * 20 February – Kimberley Davies, actor * 26 March –

Matt Burke Matt or Matthew Burke may refer to: * Matt Burke (rugby union, born 1973), Australian rugby union player who represented the Wallabies from 1993 to 2004 * Matt Burke (rugby, born 1964), Australian rugby union and rugby league player who represented ...

, rugby union footballer * 13 April –

Tammy Cole Tammy Cole (born 13 April 1973 in Queensland) is a retired female field hockey defender from Australia. She was a member of the Hockeyroos at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, E ...

, field hockey defender * 19 April – George Gregan, rugby union player * 26 April –

Stephanie Graf Stephanie Graf (born 26 April 1973, in Klagenfurt) is an Austrian former middle distance runner who won silver medals in the 800 metres at both the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships. In June 2010 Graf was suspen ...

, middle distance athlete * 30 April - Craig White, Movie Lover, no relation to Patrick White * 29 May – Malcolm Allen, swimmer * 12 June – Darryl White, Australian rules footballer * 21 June – Alyson Annan, field hockey player * 24 June –

Matt Drummond Matthew Simon Drummond is an Australian film director, screenwriter and visual effects supervisor. Personal Matthew Drummond is the eldest child of musician Pat Drummond and the brother of Pete Drummond from the Australasian band Dragon. ...

, film director, screenwriter and visual effects supervisor * 27 July – Gorden Tallis, rugby league footballer * 2 August –

Susie O'Neill Susan O'Neill, (born 2 August 1973) is an Australian former competitive swimmer from Brisbane, Queensland, nicknamed "Madame Butterfly". She achieved eight Olympic Games medals during her swimming career. Early life Susan (Susie) O'Neill was ...

, swimmer * 14 August –

Kieren Perkins Kieren John Perkins, OAM (born 14 August 1973) is a former Australian freestyle swimmer. He specialised in the 1500-metre freestyle and won successive Olympic gold medals in this event in the 1990s. He won his first at the 1992 Olympics whic ...

, swimmer * 20 August – Scott Goodman, swimmer * 22 August –

Mark Hickman Mark Christopher Hickman OAM (born 22 August 1973 in Darwin, Northern Territory) is a field hockey goalkeeper from Australia. He was a part of the team that won the gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens Athens ( ...

, field hockey goalkeeper * 2 September – Matthew Dunn, swimmer * 5 September – Jennifer Whittle, basketball player * 18 September – Louise Sauvage, wheelchair athlete * 22 September – Craig McRae, footballer * 8 October – Toby Haenen, swimmer * 14 October –

Steven Bradbury Steven John Bradbury OAM (born 14 October 1973) is an Australian former short track speed skater and four-time Olympian. He won the 1,000 m event at the 2002 Winter Olympics after all of his opponents were involved in a last-corner pile-u ...

, speed skater * 18 October –

Stephen Allan Stephen Douglas Allan (born 18 October 1973) is an Australian professional golfer. Allan was born in Melbourne. His parents emigrated from Edinburgh, Scotland three years before he was born. He turned professional in 1996 and was a member of t ...

, golfer * 23 October – David Beard, volleyball player * 31 October – Andrew Constance, politician * 6 November – Greg Warren, politician * 20 November **

Sav Rocca Saverio Giovanni Rocca (born 20 November 1973) is a retired Australian professional sportsman. He played Australian rules football for Collingwood and North Melbourne in the Australian Football League, and then switched to playing American f ...

, American football player and Australian rules footballer ** Matthew Smith, field hockey player * 4 December – Steve Menzies, rugby league footballer * 24 December – Kerry Nettle, politician * 28 December – Alex Dimitriades, actor * (Date Unknown) – Rodger Corser, Actor * (Date Unknown) –

Ann Shoebridge Ann Georgina Shoebridge is an Australian milliner. She was born in Melbourne, and now lives in Sydney. Her work has been shown at the Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation, and the National Gallery of Victoria. Shoebridge's hats are held in ...

, milliner * date unknown (1 January) –

Catherine Freeman Catherine Astrid Salome Freeman (born 16 February 1973) is an Aboriginal Australian former sprinter, who specialised in the 400 metres event. Her personal best of 48.63 seconds currently ranks her as the ninth-fastest woman of all time, se ...

, athlete

Deaths

* 5 April – John Coleman (born 1928), Australian rules footballer * 21 April – Arthur Fadden (born 1894), former Prime Minister * 8 July – Arthur Calwell (born 1896), politician

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1973 in Australia

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Years of the 20th century in Australia