List of people from Adelaide

This is an incomplete list of notable people from Adelaide.

Arts and music

Prominent intellectuals, writers, artists, bands, and musicians to hail from Adelaide include:

Actors

• Dame Judith Anderson AC DBE - Rebecca, And Then There Were None; Tony and Emmy Award winner
• Elspeth Ballantyne - Prisoner
• Holly Brisley - Home and Away
• Sam Clark - Neighbours
• Kate Fischer - Sirens
• Sir Robert Helpmann CBE - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
• Nicholas Hope - Bad Boy Bubby
• Dichen Lachman - Neighbours, Dollhouse
• Anthony LaPaglia - Without a Trace
• Jonathan LaPaglia - Seven Days, The District
• Glenn McMillan - Wonderland, Power Rangers Ninja Storm
• Adam Tuominen - Power Rangers Ninja Storm, Underbelly: Razor, Escape from Pretoria
• Ben Oxenbould - Hey Dad..!
• Teresa Palmer - December Boys, I Am Number Four
• Lois Ramsey - Road to Nhill, Home and Away
• Xavier Samuel - The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
• Hugh Sheridan - Packed to the Rafters
• Sarah Snook - Succession; Golden Globe winner
• Sonia Todd - McLeod's Daughters
• Melanie Vallejo - Winners and Losers, Power Rangers Mystic Force
• Samara Weaving
• John Noble - Fringe

Comedians

• Anthony "Lehmo" Lehmann - comedian
• Richard Marsland
• Shaun Micallef
• Greig Pickhaver AM - aka "H.G. Nelson"
• Roy Rene - aka "Mo McCackie"
• Frank Woodley

Film directors

• Mario Andreacchio
• David James Campbell
• Alex Frayne
• Rolf de Heer
• Scott Hicks
• Pip Karmel
• Anthony Maras
• Michael James Rowland
• Murali K. Thalluri
• Eddie White

Humanities

• Graeme Hugo - demographer and Federation Fellow (2002)
• J. J. C. Smart - philosopher
• Hugh Stretton - historian and sociologist
• Peter Sutton - anthropologist
• Ghil'ad Zuckermann - linguist and revivalist
• Wesley Wildman - philosopher, theologian, ethicist

Journalists

• Annabel Crabb - political writer and commentator
• Brady Haran OAM - independent video journalist and Internet personality
• Jenni Hogan - TV reporter and host, Emmy Award winner
• Christian Kerr - political commentator and journalist
• David Kosh - financial journalist and former presenter of Sunrise
• Bruce McAvaney OAM - sports broadcaster
• Hamish McLachlan - television sports commentator for the Seven Network
• David Penberthy - editor-in-chief of the Australian newspaper The Daily Telegraph

Musicians and bands

• Allday
• The Angels
• At Sunset
• The Beards
• Tkay Maidza
• Atlas Genius
• The Audreys
• Jimmy Barnes
• Beeb Birtles
• Bit By Bats
• David Campbell
• Wes Carr
• Julian Cochran
• Cold Chisel
• Beccy Cole
• Michael Crafter
• Delta (hip hop artist)
• Fraternity
• Funkoars
• Peter Furler
• Dave Graney
• Angie Hart
• Hilltop Hoods
• The Hot Lies
• I Killed the Prom Queen
• Jim Keays
• Paul Kelly
• Rachael Leahcar
• Lowrider
• The Mark of Cain
• The Masters Apprentices
• Reece Mastin
• Sarah McLeod
• Sia
• Sister Janet Mead
• Orianthi Panagaris
• Redgum
• Aleesha Rome
• Guy Sebastian
• Glenn Shorrock
• Benjamin Speed
• The Superjesus
• Rudy Nikkerud
• Swanee
• Michelle Tumes
• The Twilights
• Universum
• Virgin Black
• Wolf & Cub

Visual artists

• James Ashton - painter and arts educator
• Dorrit Black - modernist printmaker and painter
• Michal Dutkiewicz - comic book artist and illustrator, three-time winner of the Stanley Award
• Robert Hannaford AM - portrait artist, three-time winner of the People's Choice Award of the Archibald Prize
• Barbara Hanrahan - artist, printmaker and writer
• Sir Hans Heysen OBE - landscape painter, nine-time winner of the Wynne Prize
• Nora Heysen AM - portrait artist, first female winner of the Archibald Prize
• Ondrej Mares - sculptor and furniture maker
• Joseph Stanislaus Ostoja-Kotkowski AM - painting, photography, film-making, theatre design, fabric design, murals, kinetic and static sculpture, stained glass, vitreous enamel murals, op-collages, computer graphics, and laser art
• Geoffrey Proud - portrait and landscape painter, sculptor, winner of the 1990 Archibald Prize, winner of the 1975 Sulman Prize
• Jeffrey Smart AO - precisionist landscape painter
• Susan Dorothea White - painter, sculptor and printmaker

Writers

• Malcolm Afford - playwright and novelist
• Guy Boothby - novelist and travel writer
• James Bradley - novelist and critic
• Brian Castro - novelist
• Nancy Cato - author
• J M Coetzee - novelist and essayist, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature
• Aidan Coleman - poet
• David Conyers - science fiction author
• Geoffrey Dutton AO - poet, author and historian, winner of the Grace Leven Prize for Poetry
• Max Fatchen AM - journalist and children's author
• Mem Fox AM - educator and children's author
• Peter Goldsworthy AM - novelist, poet and scriptwriter, winner of the Helpmann Award
• Christine Harris - children's and young adult author
• Max Harris AO - poet, critic and columnist
• Vernon Knowles - fantasy author
• Kym Lardner - children's author, illustrator, and storyteller
• Caleb Lewis - playwright
• DBC Pierre - novelist, winner of the Man Booker Prize
• Gillian Rubinstein - children's author and playwright
• Bel Schenk - poet
• Tony Shillitoe - fantasy author
• Tim Sinclair - poet and novelist
• Hugh Stretton - historian and sociologist
• Anne Summers - feminist writer and editor
• Colin Thiele AC - children's author and educator, winner of the Dromkeen medal
• David Thorne - humorist and satirist
• Russel Ward - historian and author of The Australian Legend
• Sean Williams - science fiction author
• Ben Winch - novelist
• Nan Witcomb - poet
• Laetitia Withall - poet, author and suffragette

Business and media

• Rick Allert AO - accountant, company director and chairperson
• Balfours family - bakery founders
• Barr Smith family - businessmen and philanthropists
• Matt Barrie - entrepreneur, CEO Freelancer Limited
• Shaun Bonétt - property developer, entrepreneur and philanthropist
• Cooper family - brewery founders
• Thomas Elder GCMG - pastoralist, politician and philanthropist
• Gerard family - founders of Clipsal
• Edward Hayward Kt - owner and manager of John Martins
• Sir Sidney Kidman - pastoralist, entrepreneur and landowner
• Matthew and Zbigniew Michalewicz - entrepreneurs and co-founders of SolveIT Software
• Rupert Murdoch AC - media mogul, chairperson and CEO of News Corporation
• Mary Penfold - winemaker
• John Spalvins - managing director of Adelaide Steamship Company
• Robert Stigwood - impresario, entertainment entrepreneur and film producer
• Michael Tunn - radio announcer and program director
• Gary Turner - producer, record company owner and founder of LearnToPlayMusic.com

Law and politics

• Julie Bishop - Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia
• Sir John Langdon BonythonKCMG - member of the first Australian parliament
• Sir John Lavington Bonython - Mayor and Lord Mayor of Adelaide
• Michael Bradley - mayor of Sarnia, Ontario, Canada
• James Crawford - Legal academic and Judge of the International Court of Justice (2014)
• Mario Despoja - leader of the Croatian community in Australia
• Natasha Stott Despoja AM - senator and leader of the Australian Democrats
• Alexander Downer AC - Foreign Affairs Minister and Leader of the Opposition
• Alexander Downer, Sr.KBE - member of the House of Representatives and High Commissioner to London
• John Downer KCMG KC - twice Premier of South Australia
• John Finnis - Professor of Law at University College, Oxford
• Julia Gillard - Prime Minister and leader of the Australian Labor Party
• Janine Haines - senator and leader of the Australian Democrats
• Sir Charles Kingston - Premier of South Australia and Minister for Trade and Customs in the first Commonwealth parliament
• Dame Roma Mitchell AC DBE CVO - Australia's first female QC, first female judge, and first female Governor
• Christopher Pyne - Minister for Defence
• Catherine Helen Spence - suffragist, electoral reformer, prohibitionist, and first female political candidate in Australia
• Ian WilsonAM - member of the Australian House of Representatives and Minister for Aboriginal Affairs
• Sir Keith WilsonCBE - senator and member of the Australian House of Representatives
• List of mayors and lord mayors of Adelaide
• List of premiers of South Australia
• Category: Federal politicians from South Australia

Science

World-renowned Adelaide scientists include:

• Len Beadell OAM BEM - surveyor, roadbuilder and explorer; asteroid 3161 Beadell is named after him
• William Henry Bragg OM KBE PRS - physicist, chemist and mathematician, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics
• William Lawrence Bragg CH OBE MC FRS - physicist and crystallographer, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics and youngest Nobel Laureate
• Rodney Brooks - roboticist, director of the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory and founding member of the iRobot corporation
• Baron Howard Florey OM FRS FRCP - pharmacologist and pathologist, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
• Basil Stuart Hetzel AC - medical researcher who made a major contribution to combating iodine deficiency
• Cecil Madigan - geologist and meteorologist, member of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition
• Sir Douglas Mawson OBE FRS FAA - geologist and explorer, leader of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition
• Sir Mark Oliphant AC KBE FRS FAA - nuclear physicist, winner of the Hughes Medal and the Faraday Medal
• Enid Lucy Robertson AM - botanist, conservationist
• Reg Sprigg AO - geologist and conservationist
• George Szekeres FAA AM - mathematician, after whom the George Szekeres Medal is named.
• Terence Tao FRS FAA - mathematician, winner of the Fields Medal
• Andy Thomas AO - aerospace engineer and NASA astronaut
• David Unaipon - inventor and writer, commemorated on the Australian fifty-dollar note
• Robin Warren AC - pathologist and researcher, winner of the Nobel Prize in Medicine
• Sir Hubert Wilkins - Antarctic aviation pioneer, Arctic explorer, ornithologist and geographer

Sport

Internationally and nationally recognised sports people from Adelaide include:

Aerobatics

• Chris Sperou - thirteen-time National Aerobatics Champion,^[1] and five-time participant in the FAI World Aerobatic Championships

Archery

• Simon Fairweather OAM - Olympic gold medalist

Athletics

• Jessica Stenson (born 1987) - Distance Runner

• Matthew Clarke (runner) (born 1995) - Distance Runner

Australian rules football

• Nathan Buckley - captained the Collingwood Football Club, winner of the Brownlow Medal
• Adam Cooney - player for the Western Bulldogs and the Essendon Football Club, winner of the Brownlow Medal
• Matthew Pavlich - captained the Fremantle Football Club
• Adelaide Football Club players
• Port Adelaide Football Club players

Basketball

• Mark Bradtke - played one season in the NBA for the Philadelphia 76ers, played in the NBL for the Adelaide 36ers, Melbourne Tigers and Brisbane Bullets
• Lindsay Gaze - played for the Australian Boomers in three Olympics and coached the team in four Olympics
• Joe Ingles - plays for the Orlando Magic in the NBA
• Ben Madgen - plays in the NBL for the Sydney Kings
• Brett Maher - played in the NBL for the Adelaide 36ers
• Mike McKay - played in the NBL for the West Adelaide Bearcats, Adelaide 36ers, Brisbane Bullets, Canberra Cannons and Wollongong Hawks
• Brad Newley - plays in Spain for CB Gran Canaria, drafted to the NBA by the Houston Rockets
• Erin Phillips - plays in the WNBA for the Phoenix Mercury, played for the Connecticut Sun
• Luke Schenscher - played in the NBA for the Chicago Bulls and the Portland Trail Blazers
• Phil Smyth AM - played in the NBL for the St Kilda Saints, Canberra Cannons, Adelaide 36ers and Sydney Kings

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

• Craig Jones 2x ADCC silver medalist (2019 - 2022)

Cricket

• Greg Blewett - played for the Australian national cricket team
• Sir Donald Bradman AC - captained Australia, all-time highest Test batting average of any player with 99.94 (Note: Bradman was born in Cootamundra, New South Wales in 1908 and moved to Adelaide in 1934)
• Greg Chappell MBE - captained Australia
• Ian Chappell - captained Australia
• Trevor Chappell - played for Australia
• Albert Gillespie - played first-class cricket in England
• Jason Gillespie - played for Australia
• George Goodfellow - played first-class cricket in England
• Clem Hill - captained Australia
• David Hookes - played for Australia
• Barry Jarman OAM - captained Australia
• Arthur G. Jenkins - first South Australian to umpire a cricket Test match
• Darren Lehmann - played for Australia; current (2015) coach of the Australian team
• Wayne Phillips - played for Australia
• Vic Richardson OBE - captained Australia; won Magarey Medal (Australian Rules Football) and represented Australia in Baseball; grandfather of Ian, Greg and Trevor Chappell
• Shaun Tait - plays for Australia

Cycling

• Alex Edmondson - Commonwealth Games Team pursuit champion, World individual pursuit champion 2014
• Annette Edmondson - Commonwealth Games gold medalist 2014, Olympic bronze medalist in the omnium 2012
• Matthew Glaetzer - Olympic gold, silver and bronze medalist for the Australian Cyclist team since 2009
• Alexandra Manly - professional cyclist at Orica-AIS
• Stephanie Morton - Commonwealth Games Individual Sprint Champion 2014
• Stuart O'Grady OAM - Olympic gold medalist in the Men's Madison, silver and bronze medalist in the 4000m Team Pursuit, bronze medalist in the Points Race, and four-time second-place finisher in the Tour de France
• Michael Turtur OAM - Olympic gold medalist in the Team Pursuit, and Race Director of the Tour Down Under
• Kimberley Wells - two-time national criterium champion, and current professional cyclist.
• Sam Willoughby - Olympic silver medalist in the men's BMX and UCI BMX world champion

Darts

• Barry Atkinson - professional darts player
• Rob Modra - two-time Geelong Open Darts Championships

Golf

• Geoff Ogilvy - U.S. Open winner and three-time World Golf Championships winner
• Adam Scott - U.S. Masters winner and World number one

Kickboxing

• Frank Giorgi - two-time Australian champion and world Super Middleweight champion
• Paul Slowinski - four-time Muay Thai world champion

Motor sports

• John Boulger - two-time Australian Speedway Champion, nine-time South Australian Champion, captained Australia to win the Speedway World Team Cup
• Jeremy Burgess - MotoGP engineer, helped Wayne Gardner, Mick Doohan and Valentino Rossi to 12 World Championships
• Garrie Cooper - founder of Elfin Sports Cars, Australian 1½ Litre Champion, Australian Sports Car Champion and Singapore Grand Prix winner
• Daniel Falzon - two-time Australian Superbike Champion
• Steve Martin - Superbike World Championship veteran and World Endurance Champion
• Billy McConnell - competes in the British Supersport Championship
• Nick Percat - V8 Supercar driver, Australian Formula Ford Champion and Bathurst 1000 winner
• Vern Schuppan - Formula One driver, 24 Hours of Le Mans winner and Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year
• Johnnie Walker - Australian Drivers' Champion and Australian Grand Prix winner
• Jack Young - two-time Speedway World Champion and nine-time South Australian Champion

Professional wrestling

• Rhea Ripley - signed to the WWE, current 2023 Women’s Royal Rumble winner; former 1/2 of the WWE Women's Tag Team Champions; former Raw Women's Champion former NXT Women's Champion & former NXT UK Women's Champion (as well as being the inaugural champion for the latter).
• Bronson Reed - billed from Black Forest, signed to the WWE, former NXT North American Champion.

Soccer

• Dianne Alagich - played in the Women's United Soccer Association for the San Jose CyberRays, played for the Matildas
• John Aloisi - played in La Liga, Premier League and Serie A, played for the Socceroos at the FIFA World Cup
• Diana Hall - played for the Matildas
• Charlotte Grant - plays for the Matildas^[2]
• Awer Mabil - plays for FC Midtjylland
• Joel Porter - played for the Socceroos
• Alex Tobin - captained the Socceroos
• Aurelio Vidmar - captained the Socceroos
• Tony Vidmar - played for the Socceroos
• Adelaide United FC players

Sport aerobics

• Kylie Halliday - placed second at the Aerobic Gymnastics World Championships

Swimming

• Kyle Chalmers - 2016 Summer Olympics gold medalist in the 100m freestyle
• Emily Seebohm - 2012 Summer Olympics gold medalist in the 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay and 2008 Summer Olympics gold medalist in the 4 × 100 metre medley relay

Tennis

• Darren Cahill - Australian Open doubles finalist, US Open singles semi-finalist
• Lleyton Hewitt - U.S. Open and Wimbledon winner and World number one
• Alicia Molik - Australian Open and French Open doubles winner, reached World top ten singles ranking
• Mark Woodforde OAM - two-time Australian Open, one-time French Open, six-time Wimbledon, and three-time French Open doubles winner; Olympic gold and silver medalist; World number one
• Thanasi Kokkinakis

Trampoline gymnastics

• Blake Gaudry - 2012 Summer Olympics competitor, Australian Gymnastics Championships Winner

Volleyball

• Kerri Pottharst OAM (born 1965) - Olympic gold and bronze medalist in beach volleyball
• Tania Gooley-Humphry (born 1973) - beach volleyball and indoor volleyball player
• Andrew Schacht (born 1973) - beach volleyball player
• Tamsin Hinchley (born 1980) - volleyball player
• Becchara Palmer (born 1988) - beach volleyball player

Other

• Garry Gordon Cooper - retired airline captain, ex RAAF pilot
• Gladys Elphick - Australian Aboriginal active in Aboriginal affairs
• David Hicks - former Guantanamo Bay inmate, falsely convicted of 'providing material support to terrorism'

See also

• List of University of Adelaide people

References

This page was last edited on 15 May 2024, at 18:17