1950 in Australia
Monarch	George VI
Governor-General	William McKell
Prime Minister	Robert Menzies
Population	8,178,696
Elections	NSW, VIC, QLD, WA, SA, TAS

See also: 1949 in Australia, other events of 1950, 1951 in Australia and the Timeline of Australian history.

Incumbents

• Monarch – King George VI
• Governor-General – William McKell
• Prime Minister – Robert Menzies

State Premiers

• Premier of New South Wales – James McGirr
• Premier of Queensland – Ned Hanlon
• Premier of South Australia – Thomas Playford IV
• Premier of Tasmania – Robert Cosgrove
• Premier of Victoria – Thomas Hollway (until June 27), then John McDonald
• Premier of Western Australia – Ross McLarty

State Governors

• Governor of New South Wales – Sir John Northcott
• Governor of Queensland – Sir John Lavarack
• Governor of South Australia – Sir Charles Norrie
• Governor of Tasmania – Sir Hugh Binney
• Governor of Victoria – Sir Dallas Brooks
• Governor of Western Australia – Sir James Mitchell

Events

• January 25 - The Tank Landing Ship HMAS Tarakan explodes at Garden Island in Sydney, killing 8 persons.
• April 27 - The Communist Party Dissolution Bill is introduced in parliament [1]
• June 26 - Australian National Airways (ANA) Skymaster VH-ANA Amana crashes near Perth, Western Australia, killing 28. One passenger survived (ANA Skymaster Amana crash)
• September 17 - The first Australian troops land in Korea to take part in the Korean War
• The Smith's Weekly newspaper, founded in 1919, is published for the last time
• New South Wales and Queensland receive extraordinary annual rainfall

Arts and literature

• William Dargie wins the Archibald Prize with his portrait of Sir Leslie McConnan
• The novel, Power Without Glory, is published by Frank Hardy
• The Ballet Corroboree, by John Antill, is first performed

Film

Sport

• General
  • Australia wins 34 gold medals at the 4th British Empire Games, held in Auckland, New Zealand

• Cricket
  • New South Wales wins the Sheffield Shield

• Cycling
  • Sid Patterson wins the world amateur pursuit cycling title in Belgium

• Football
  • Brisbane Rugby League premiership: Easts defeated Wests 14-10
  • New South Wales Rugby League premiership: South Sydney defeated Western Suburbs 21-15
  • South Australian National Football League premiership: won by Norwood
  • Victorian Football League premiership: Essendon defeated North Melbourne 92-54

• Golf
  • Australian Open: won by Norman Von Nida
  • Australian PGA Championship: won by Norman Von Nida

• Horse Racing
  • Grey Boots wins the Caulfield Cup
  • Alister wins the Cox Plate
  • Comic Court wins the Melbourne Cup

• Motor Racing
  • The Australian Grand Prix was held at Nuriootpa and won by Doug Whiteford driving a Ford

• Tennis
  • Australian Open men's singles: Frank Sedgman defeats Ken McGregor 6-3 6-4 4-6 6-1
  • Australian Open women's singles: Louise Brough defeats Doris Hart 6-4 3-6 6-4
  • Davis Cup: Australia defeats the United States 4-1 in the 1950 Davis Cup final
  • US Open: John Bromwich and Frank Sedgman win the Men's Doubles
  • Wimbledon: John Bromwich and Adrian Quist win the Men's Doubles

• Yachting
  • Margaret Rintoul takes line honours and Nerida wins on handicap in the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race

Births

• January 1 - Wayne Bennett, rugby league coach
• February 14 - Phil Dent, tennis player
• February 16 - Malcolm Blight, Australian Rules football player
• March 18 - Larry Perkins, ATCC/V8 Supercars racing driver
• May 15 - Jim Bacon (d. 2004), Premier of Tasmania
• August 16 - Jeff Thomson, cricketer
• September 11 - Bruce Doull, Australian Rules football player
• November 2 - Graeme Murphy, choreographer
• December 18 - Gillian Armstrong, film director
• December 22 - Nick Enright, playwright, director

Deaths

• January 2 - James Dooley (b. 1877), Premier of New South Wales
• February 28 - Ted Theodore (b. 1884), Premier of Queensland

See also

• 1950
• 1950s