1933 in Australia

← 1932 1931 1930 1933 in Australia → 1934 1935 1936
Decades:	1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s
See also:	1933 in Australian literature Other events of 1933 Timeline of Australian history

The following lists events that happened during 1933 in Australia.

1933 in Australia
Monarch	George V
Governor-General	Isaac Isaacs
Prime minister	Joseph Lyons
Population	3,262,728
Elections	SA, WA

Incumbents

Joseph Lyons

• Monarch – George V
• Governor-General – Sir Isaac Isaacs
• Prime Minister – Joseph Lyons
• Chief Justice – Frank Gavan Duffy

State Premiers

• Premier of New South Wales – Bertram Stevens
• Premier of Queensland – William Forgan Smith
• Premier of South Australia – Lionel Hill (until 13 February), then Robert Richards (until 18 April), then Richard L. Butler
• Premier of Tasmania – John McPhee
• Premier of Victoria – Sir Stanley Argyle
• Premier of Western Australia – James Mitchell (until 24 April), then Philip Collier

State Governors

• Governor of New South Wales – Sir Philip Game
• Governor of Queensland – Sir Leslie Orme Wilson
• Governor of South Australia – Sir Alexander Hore-Ruthven
• Governor of Tasmania – Sir Ernest Clark (from 4 August)
• Governor of Victoria – none appointed
• Governor of Western Australia – none appointed

Events

• 8 April – A referendum is held in Western Australia, which is carried 2 to 1 in favour of secession from the Commonwealth of Australia.
• 26 April – The seaplane carrier, HMAS Albatross, is paid off into reserve.
• 10 June – The Australian Women's Weekly is first published.
• 13 June – The Australian Antarctic Territory is established.
• 30 June - The third national Australian Census is taken, recording the population at 6,630,600. ^[1]
• 28 August – The Brisbane newspaper, The Courier-Mail , is first published.
• 5 September – Australia signs a trade agreement with New Zealand.
• 6 September – Windscreen wipers become compulsory on all Australian cars.
• 13 October – The first traffic lights in Sydney become operational at the intersection of Kent and Market Streets.

Arts and literature

Main article: 1933 in Australian literature

• Charles Wheeler wins the Archibald Prize with his portrait of Ambrose Pratt ^[2]
• Blinky Bill: The Quaint Little Australian, the first Blinky Bill book is published by children's author Dorothy Wall

Film

• Errol Flynn makes his first film appearance, In the Wake of the Bounty, directed by Charles Chauvel

Sport

• 9 September – The 1933 NSWRFL season culminates in Newtown's 18–5 victory against St. George in the premiership final. Western Suburbs finish in last place, claiming the "wooden spoon".
• Hall Mark wins the Melbourne Cup
• New South Wales wins the Sheffield Shield
• England defeats Australia 4–1 in The Ashes series

Births

• 2 January – Ed Casey (died 2006), banker and politician
• 19 January – Leslie Dayman (died 2023), actor
• 23 January – Bill Hayden (died 2023), Governor-General of Australia (1989–1996)
• 29 January – Rosemary Adey, softball player (died 2013)
• 12 February – Brian Carlson (died 1987), rugby league footballer
• 22 February – Faith Thomas (died 2023), cricketer and hockey player ^[3]
• 20 March – Ian Walsh (died 2013), rugby league footballer and coach
• 15 April – David Martin (died 1990), Governor of New South Wales (1989–1990)
• 27 May – Michael Crouch (died 2018), investor, water boiler manufacturer
• 13 July – Kel O'Shea (died 2015), rugby league footballer
• 25 July – Owen Abrahams (died 2006), Australian rules footballer
• 27 July – Ted Whitten (died 1995), Australian rules footballer
• 19 August – Patricia Kailis (died 2020), businesswoman, neurologist and geneticist
• 30 August – Keith Payne, soldier
• 14 September – Zoe Caldwell (died 2020), actress
• 15 September – Monica Maughan (died 2010), actress ^[4]
• 3 October – Neale Fraser (died 2024), tennis player
• 6 October – Diane Cilento (died 2011), actress
• 11 October – Gary O'Callaghan (died 2017), radio personality
• 19 October – Brian Booth (died 2023), cricketer
• 29 October – John Andrews (died 2022), architect
• 1 December – James Wolfensohn (died 2020), President of the World Bank
• 5 December – Harry Holgate (died 1997), Premier of Tasmania (1991–1992)
• 19 December – Kevan Gosper (died 2024), athlete, sports administrator and businessman
• 20 December – Ted Mack (died 2018), politician
• 26 December – Ugly Dave Gray, television personality

Deaths

• 7 January – Bert Hinkler, aviation pioneer (died in Italy) (b. 1892)
• 9 January – Daphne Akhurst, tennis player (b. 1903)
• 10 January – Richard Buzacott, Western Australian politician (b. 1867)
• 17 January – John Hodges, cricketer (born in the United Kingdom) (b. 1855)
• 5 February – Josiah Thomas, New South Wales politician (born in the United Kingdom) (b. 1863)
• 16 February – Archie Jackson, cricketer (born in the United Kingdom) (b. 1909)
• 21 March – James Edmond, journalist (born in the United Kingdom) (b. 1859)
• 15 April – Alfred Stephens, writer and literary critic (b. 1865)
• 20 April – Sir William Rooke Creswell, 1st Naval Officer Commanding the Commonwealth Naval Forces (born in Gibraltar) (b. 1852)
• 30 April – Robert Hamilton Russell, surgeon (born in the United Kingdom) (b. 1860)
• 4 June – Herbert Basedow, South Australian politician, anthropologist, geologist and explorer (b. 1881)
• 22 June – Harold Desbrowe-Annear, architect (b. 1865)
• 20 July – William Lowrie, agricultural educationist (b. 1857)
• 26 July – Sir Joseph Verco, physician and conchologist (b. 1851)
• 10 August – Alf Morgans, 4th Premier of Western Australia (born in the United Kingdom) (b. 1850)
• 7 October – Sir Alexander Peacock, 20th Premier of Victoria (b. 1861)
• 15 November – Affie Jarvis, cricketer (b. 1860)
• 19 November – Hugo Throssell, soldier and Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1884)

See also

• List of Australian films of the 1930s

References

1. 1933 Census - Bulletin No 1.pdf
2. "Winner: Archibald Prize 1933 - Charles Wheeler". artgallery.nsw.gov.au. Art Gallery of NSW. Retrieved 19 August 2017.
3. Faith Thomas, the first Indigenous woman to play cricket for Australia, dies aged 90
4. Carman, Gerry (9 January 2010). "'Wonderful' thespian a real trouper". The Sydney Morning Herald.