1974 In Australia

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1974 In Australia

1973 In Australia ,
Other Events Of 1974 ,
1975 In Australia and the
Timeline Of Australian History .

INCUMBENTS

Prime Minister - Gough Whitlam

Governor General - Paul Hasluck (til July 11), then John Kerr

Premier Of New South Wales - Sir Robert Askin

Premier Of South Australia - Don Dunstan

Premier Of Queensland - Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen

Premier Of Tasmania - Eric Reece

Premier Of Western Australia - John Tonkin (til April 8), then Charles Court

Premier Of Victoria - Rupert Hamer

EVENTS

January - Cyclone Wanda makes landfall near Double Island Point . Large parts of south east Queensland , including Brisbane , and northern New South Wales are flooded.

February 26 - Mungo Man , a human skeleton estimated to be 40,000 years old, uncovered at Lake Mungo

May 18 - John Howard enters Parliament as an Opposition backbencher for the electorate of Bennelong

October - The first Australian Credit Card , Bankcard , is introduced

December 24 - Cyclone Tracy devastates the city of Darwin . The official death toll was 71

ARTS AND LITERATURE

Conductor Bernard Heinze is announced as Australian Of The Year

FILM

The Cars That Ate Paris , directed by Peter Weir , is released

TELEVISION

The long running popular music program Countdown first screens

SPORT

Think Big wins the Melbourne Cup

Victoria wins the Sheffield Shield

''Apollo'' takes line honours in the Sydney To Hobart Yacht Race . ''Love and War'' is the handicap winner

Australia defeats the USA 2-1 in the Federation Cup

Australia makes its first appearance in soccer World Cup

BIRTHS

July 2 - Matthew Reilly , writer

DEATHS

April 6 - Hudson Fysh (b. 1895 ), co founder of Qantas

May 1 - Frank Packer (b. 1906 ), publisher

June 10 - Prince Henry, Duke Of Gloucester (b. 1900 ), former Governor General of Australia