1961 in Australia
The following lists events that happened during 1961 in Australia.
Incumbents
- Monarch – Elizabeth II
- Prime Minister – Robert Menzies
- Governor General – William Morrison, 1st Viscount Dunrossil, 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
- 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 saleRiders 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 Victoria.
Sport
Cricket- * New South Wales wins the Sheffield Shield
- * The Ashes: Australia defeats England 2-1 and retains The AshesFootball
- * 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 94-51Golf
- * 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 CupMotor racing
- * The Australian Grand Prix was held at Mallala and won by Lex Davison driving a Cooper ClimaxTennis
- * 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 SinglesYachting
- * 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
- 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
- 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
- 3 February – William Morrison, Governor General of Australia
- 20 February – Percy Grainger, pianist and composer
- 22 May – Lionel Lindsay, artist
- 27 September – Peter Dawson, singer
- 2 October – Essington Lewis, industrialist
- 3 December – Pat O'Hara Wood, tennis player
- 20 December – Earle Page, Prime Minister of Australia
- 29 December – Sibyl Morrison, first female barrister in New South Wales