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See also: 1989 in Australia, other events of 1990, 1991 in Australia

Incumbents

• Queen of Australia - HM Queen Elizabeth II
• Governor General - Bill Hayden
• Prime Minister - Bob Hawke
• Premier of New South Wales - Nick Greiner
• Premier of South Australia - John Bannon
• Premier of Queensland - Wayne Goss
• Premier of Tasmania - Michael Field
• Premier of Western Australia - Peter Dowding, then Carmen Lawrence
• Premier of Victoria - John Cain, then Joan Kirner
• Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory - Trevor Kaine
• Chief Minister of the Northern Territory - Marshall Perron

Events

• February 12 - Carmen Lawrence becomes the first female premier of Western Australia and indeed Australia's first female premier after the resignation of Peter Dowding.
• March 20 - Serial killer John Wayne Glover is arrested for a series of "Granny Murders" on Sydney's North Shore.
• March 24 - The government of Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke is re-elected for a 4th term.
• May 6 - Steam locomotive 3801 was part of the Cowan rail disaster with a CityRail Interurban passenger train as it collided with the special heritage train due to wheel slips on the Cowan Bank, Hawkesbury River. Six people have lost their lives, including the driver of the electric Gordon Hill.
• August 7 - John Cain resigns as Victorian Premier over a series of financial scandals and is replaced by the first female premier of Victoria, Joan Kirner.
• October 1 - The Tasmanian Greens terminate the Labor-Green Accord after Tasmania adopts the federal government's Forests and Forest Industry Strategy.
• October 2 - Australian opera singer Dame Joan Sutherland announces her retirement.
• October 5 - After one hundred and fifty years, ten months and two days (Friday, January 3, 1840 - Friday, October 5, 1990), The Herald broadsheet newspaper in Melbourne is published for the last time as a separate newspaper. Founded in 1840 as The Port Phillip Herald, it is merged with its morning tabloid sister paper The Sun News-Pictorial and the first issue of the new Herald Sun, described by owner Rupert Murdoch as "The world's first 24-hour newspaper", with morning and afternoon editions, is published on the 8th.
• October 5 - On the same day, the forty nine year old afternoon tabloid The Daily Mirror in Sydney is published for the last time as a separate newspaper. The first edition of The Daily Telegraph-Mirror appears on the 8th.
• October 27 - Northern Territory elections return Country Liberal Party government of Marshall Perron to power.
• November 1 - The Australian domestic aviation market is deregulated.
• November 29 - Treasurer Paul Keating announces that Australia is experiencing an economic recession.
• December 11 - Fairfax is placed in receivership.

Unknown Dates

• Homosexual acts between consenting adults decriminalised in Queensland.

Arts and literature

• Tom Flood's novel Oceana Fine wins the Miles Franklin Award

Film

• September 20 – The Big Steal is released. Directed by Nadia Tass, the film will go on to be nominated for nine AFI awards, of which it will win three.

Television

• July - Kerry Packer purchases back control of the Nine Network for $250 million from Alan Bond, who purchased it from him for $1 billion in 1987.
• September 14 - Westpac puts Network Ten into receivership.
• December 27 - WIN Television purchases Star Television just 3 days before Queensland is due to be aggregated, giving them the Nine Network affiliation & leaving QTV, who were going to take the Nine affiliation, with the Network Ten affiliation.
• December 31 - The Queensland Regional television market is aggregated, with Sunshine Television Network (now Seven Queensland) taking a Seven affiliation, WIN Television taking a Nine affiliation & QTV with the Ten affiliation.
• The Seven Network is placed in receivership.

Sport

• March 20 – The VFL officially becomes known as the AFL.
• March 30 – First day of the Australian Track & Field Championships for the 1989-1990 season, which are held at the Olympic Park in Melbourne, Victoria. The men's 10,000 metres event was conducted at Canberra on February 24, 1990.
• May 22 – New South Wales (13.8.86) upsets Victoria (10.16.76) in a State of Origin match at the SCG.
• July 22 – Allan Carman wins the men's national marathon title, clocking 2:15:17 in Brisbane, while Trudy Fenton claims the women's title in 2:44:38.
• July 23 – Players' draft adopted at board meeting of NSWRL.
• September 8 – Collingwood draws its elimination final with the West Coast Eagles. The AFL finals schedule is thrown into chaos & the Grand Final had to be played a week later than usual. Extra time is subsequently introduced in future finals matches.
• October 6 – Collingwood (13.11.89) defeat Essendon (5.11.41) to win the 94th VFL/AFL premiership. It is the first premiership won under the AFL banner & Collingwood's first premiership since 1958, thereby symbolising the end of the "Colliwobbles".
• November 10 – Mal Meninga scores stunning last-minute try to win second Ashes rugby league test at Old Trafford.

Births

• March 24 – Keisha Castle-Hughes, New Zealand actress

Deaths

• January 4 – Henry Bolte (b. 1908), Premier of Victoria
• January 9 – Sir Edward McTiernan (b. 1892), High Court judge and politician
• January 15 – Dame Peggy van Praagh (b. 1910), ballet dancer
• February 8 – Sir Ernie Titterton (b. 1916), nuclear physicist
• February 14 – Graeme Hole (b. 1931), cricketer
• March 10 – Pat McDonald (b. 1922), actress (Number 96, Sons & Daughters)
• March 10 – Sir Reginald Wright (b. 1905), Tasmanian Liberal senator
• April 15 – William Hart-Smith (b. 1911), poet
• May 5 – Gordon Mackie (b. 1912), NSW politician
• June 8 – Herbie Matthews (b. 1913), Australian Rules football player and coach for the South Melbourne Swans
• June 21 – Martin Johnston (b. 1947), poet
• June 25 – Peggy Glanville-Hicks (b. 1912), composer
• July 1 – Albert Field (b. 1910), Queensland senator
• August 15 – Jimmy Carruthers (b. 1929), boxer
• August 17 – Sir David Martin (b. 1933), Governor of New South Wales
• September 2 – Robert Holmes à Court (b. 1937), businessman
• September 26 – Sir James Forrest (b. 1905), lawyer
• September 30 – Patrick White (b. 1912), author
• October 14 – Clifton Pugh (b. 1924), artist
• December 25 – John Stuart Anderson (b. 1908), chemist