1986 in Australia

← 1985 1984 1983 1986 in Australia → 1987 1988 1989
Decades:	1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
See also:	Other events of 1986 Timeline of Australian history

Incumbents

• Queen of Australia – Elizabeth II
• Governor General – Sir Ninian Stephen
• Prime Minister – Bob Hawke

Premiers and Chief Ministers

• Premier of New South Wales – Neville Wran (until 4 July), then Barrie Unsworth
• Premier of Queensland – Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen
• Premier of South Australia – John Bannon
• Premier of Tasmania – Robin Gray
• Premier of Western Australia – Brian Burke
• Premier of Victoria – John Cain
• Chief Minister of the Northern Territory – Ian Tuxworth (until 10 May), then Stephen Hatton

Governors and Administrators

• Governor of New South Wales – Sir James Rowland
• Governor of Queensland – Sir Walter Campbell
• Governor of South Australia – Sir Donald Dunstan
• Governor of Tasmania – Sir James Plimsoll
• Governor of Western Australia – Gordon Reid
• Governor of Victoria – Davis McCaughey (from 18 February)
• Administrator of the Northern Territory – Eric Johnston

Events

• 2 January – A state funeral is held for former Governor of Victoria Sir Henry Winneke at St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne.
• 3 January – Federal Opposition Leader John Howard introduces a four-point plan to reduce interest rates.
• 4 January – A tanker driver is killed instantly when his truck overturns in Aspen, New South Wales, releasing clouds of nitrogen gas.
• 5 January – Actress Lauren Bacall arrives in Sydney to star in the play Sweet Bird of Youth.
• 2 February – Nurse Anita Cobby is abducted, robbed, raped and murdered by John Travers, Michael Murdoch, and Leslie, Gary and Michael Murphy at Prospect in Sydney (all five men are sentenced to life imprisonment without parole, June 1987).
• 8 February – Elections in Western Australia and Tasmania see the re-election of the ALP in WA, and the Liberal Party in Tasmania.
  • Post-mortem results support the claim of the sister of Sally Anne Huckstep that she was murdered.
  • Dire Straits makes history in Tasmania by drawing the state’s biggest audience ever for an open-air concert.
• 9 February – Lindy Chamberlain is released from prison in Darwin.
• 11 February – Joan Child becomes the first female Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives.
  • More than 100 bushfires burn across the state of Victoria.
• 3 March – The Australia Act 1986 comes into effect at 1600 AEST, granting Australia legal independence from the United Kingdom by removing the power of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to legislate with effect in Australia and its states and territories.
• 27 March – The Russell Street bombing takes place at the headquarters of Victoria Police in Melbourne. A police constable, Angela Taylor, is killed.
• 4 July – After ten years in power, Neville Wran resigns as Premier of New South Wales, and is replaced by Barrie Unsworth.
• 7 July – Barlow & Chambers are executed at Malaysia’s Pudu Prison for drug trafficking. Prime Minister Hawke condemns the move as “barbaric”.
• 16 July – An explosion at Moura No. 4 mine in Moura, Queensland kills 12 people.
• 25 July – An unusual cold dry change sweeps through south-eastern Australia, causing temperatures to plummet and bringing 8 centimetres (3.15 in) of snow to Hobart, isolating the city until midday. Canberra also receives snow during the early afternoon with reports of snow and sleet also occurring in the suburbs of Melbourne and Sydney.
• 6 August – A low pressure system moving from South Australia and redeveloping off the New South Wales coast dumps a record 327.6 millimetres (12.90 in) of rain in a day on Sydney. Resulting floods kill six people.
• 9 August – Sydney schoolgirl Samantha Knight disappears in Bondi, Sydney.

• 1 November – Joh Bjelke-Petersen wins his final election as Premier of Queensland with his party, the National Party gaining 38.6% of the vote and an absolute majority of seats in the Queensland Parliament

Arts and literature

• Elizabeth Jolley’s novel The Well wins the Miles Franklin Award

Film

• 30 April – Crocodile Dundee is released in Australia. The film will go on to become a worldwide smash hit, becoming the highest grossing Australian film ever.
• Malcolm
• The Fringe Dwellers

Television

• 5 January – SBS ceases VHF transmissions on Channel 0 in Sydney & Melbourne.
• 20 January – Neighbours makes its debut on Network Ten & comes to dominate the 7 pm weeknight timeslot
• February – Red Symons signs to Hey Hey It's Saturday as the show launches Red Faces
• April – The Movie Show begins on SBS
• December – The Herald and Weekly Times Ltd, owners of HSV-7 & ADS-7 are sold to Rupert Murdoch's News Limited for $1.8 billion. As News Limited owned ATV-10 at this time, HSV-7 is sold to Fairfax (already owners of ATN-7 & BTQ-7) in February 1987 for $320 million.
• Christopher Skase’s Qintex company sells TVQ-0 to Darling Downs Television, owners of DDQ-10 in Toowoomba.
• AUSSAT satellites are launched, bringing television to remote areas for the first time.

Sport

• 16 March – Parramatta Stadium is opened. The Parramatta Eels defeat the St. George Dragons 36-6.
• 23 March – Robert de Castella is once again Australia’s best finisher at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, this time staged in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. He finishes in 14th place (36:10.9) in the long-distance race over 12,000 metres.
• 8 June – Stephen Austin wins the men’s national marathon title, clocking 2:15:59 in Sydney, while Margaret Reddan claims the women’s title in 2:48:28.
• 29 June – Last game of rugby league is played at the Sydney Sports Ground. Eastern Suburbs Roosters defeat the North Sydney Bears 21-14.
• 27 September – Hawthorn (16.14.110) defeats Carlton (9.14.68) in the 1986 VFL Grand Final to win the 90th VFL premiership.
• 28 September – The Parramatta Eels defeat the Canterbury Bulldogs 4-2 in the lowest scoring grand final in history to win the 79th NSWRL premiership.
• 4 November – At Talaq wins Melbourne Cup ridden by Michael Clarke.
• Brownlow Medal awarded to Robert DiPierdomenico (Hawthorn) and Greg Williams (Sydney)
• Farrier Command 10 "Aussie" was constructed and launched.

Births

• 22 February – Joel Brunker, boxer
• 23 February – Kate Keltie, actress
• 8 March – Michelle Steele, athlete
• 20 March – Dean Geyer, actor, singer and Australian Idol (season 4) contestant
• 16 April – Bronwen Knox, water polo player
• 7 May – Mark Furze, actor and singer
• 18 July – James Sorensen, actor
• 11 August – Dean Timmins, figure skater
• 2 September – Darcy Bonser, actor
• 18 September – Eloise Mignon, actress
• 1 October – Prashanth Sellathurai, gymnast
• 16 October – Peter George, cricketer
• 31 October – Christie Hayes, actress
• 2 November – Lara Sacher, actress
• 19 November – Jessicah Schipper, swimmer
• 19 December – Gemma Pranita, actress
• 27 December – Torah Bright, snowboarder

Deaths

• 21 October – Lionel Murphy (born 1922), former Attorney-General of Australia
• 7 November – Tracy Pew, bass guitarist for The Birthday Party