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Australia win after a very tense penalty shootout during the FIFA WomenÕs World Cup quarter final between Australia and France at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. Pics Adam Head

2023 in Review: The best photos from a turbulent year in Australia

Olivia Harris
1 min read·December 27, 2023 - 7:56PM
News Corp Australia Network

It’s been a turbulent year for Australia. The referendum on the Voice to Parliament was a divisive conversation between races, ages and naturally, politicians; a record number of Aussies are now at risk of mortgage stress after a year of rate rises by the RBA; and mushroom poisoning became the focus of a police investigation. See our selection of this year’s best Australian photos.

 

Elected representatives of remote communities in Central Australia pose in front of Uluru after their council meeting to vote 'Yes' to a voice to parliament. Picture: Tina Tilhard/Central Land Council/AFP
Elected representatives of remote communities in Central Australia pose in front of Uluru after their council meeting to vote 'Yes' to a voice to parliament. Picture: Tina Tilhard/Central Land Council/AFP

 

Anthony Albanese - surrounded by members of the First Nations Referendum Working Group - gets emotional as he speaks at a press conference. Picture: Lukas Coch/AAP
Anthony Albanese - surrounded by members of the First Nations Referendum Working Group - gets emotional as he speaks at a press conference. Picture: Lukas Coch/AAP

 

The devastating scene of a crash between two SeaWorld helicopters just outside the tourist park on the Gold Coast. Picture: Glenn Hampson
The devastating scene of a crash between two SeaWorld helicopters just outside the tourist park on the Gold Coast. Picture: Glenn Hampson

 

Workers get ready to perform restoration works on the 9-metre Big Prawn statue in the car park of Bunnings in Ballina. Picture: James D. Morgan/Getty Images
Workers get ready to perform restoration works on the 9-metre Big Prawn statue in the car park of Bunnings in Ballina. Picture: James D. Morgan/Getty Images

 

Indigenous filmmaker and Yes campaigner Rachel Perkins, left, with Aunty Felicity Hayes in one of the dirt-poor camps outside Alice Springs. Picture: Matt Turner
Indigenous filmmaker and Yes campaigner Rachel Perkins, left, with Aunty Felicity Hayes in one of the dirt-poor camps outside Alice Springs. Picture: Matt Turner

 

Daniel Andrews leaves Victorian Parliament House following his resignation after a nine-year stint as Premier. Picture: Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images
Daniel Andrews leaves Victorian Parliament House following his resignation after a nine-year stint as Premier. Picture: Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images

 

A kangaroo makes an escape the Tara fires in Queensland. Picture: Liam Kidston
A kangaroo makes an escape the Tara fires in Queensland. Picture: Liam Kidston

 

A fire engulfs an empty building in Surry Hills. The structure later collapsed and two 13-year-olds charged with setting the blaze. Picture: Neil Bennett
A fire engulfs an empty building in Surry Hills. The structure later collapsed and two 13-year-olds charged with setting the blaze. Picture: Neil Bennett

 

Ex-Qantas CEO Alan Joyce reacts during a senate hearing into the cost of living. Picture: Aaron Francis/NCA Newswire
Ex-Qantas CEO Alan Joyce reacts during a senate hearing into the cost of living. Picture: Aaron Francis/NCA Newswire

 

24-year-old ex-Australian Army soldier Ethan McNamara breaks silence as the first Aussie to openly discuss his role as a drone operator on Ukraine’s front line. Picture: Liam Mendes/The Australian
24-year-old ex-Australian Army soldier Ethan McNamara breaks silence as the first Aussie to openly discuss his role as a drone operator on Ukraine’s front line. Picture: Liam Mendes/The Australian

 

Things get a little rowdy in the members’ stand as Giga Kick wins the $15M race at Royal Randwick on Everest Day. Picture: Sam Ruttyn
Things get a little rowdy in the members’ stand as Giga Kick wins the $15M race at Royal Randwick on Everest Day. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

 

Erin Patterson, accused of killing three people with a poisonous mushroom dish at her home in Victoria, makes an emotional statement to media. Picture: Brooke Grebert-Craig
Erin Patterson, accused of killing three people with a poisonous mushroom dish at her home in Victoria, makes an emotional statement to media. Picture: Brooke Grebert-Craig

 

Schoolchildren pass a crime scene with forensics police in Canterbury, NSW, where a man was fatally shot. Picture: Damian Shaw/NCA Newswire
Schoolchildren pass a crime scene with forensics police in Canterbury, NSW, where a man was fatally shot. Picture: Damian Shaw/NCA Newswire

 

A sheep, having lived among kangaroos for 10 months in Sugar Loaf National Park, is rescued with a massive 5-year wool growth. Picture: Mark Stewart
A sheep, having lived among kangaroos for 10 months in Sugar Loaf National Park, is rescued with a massive 5-year wool growth. Picture: Mark Stewart

 

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese dances before receiving a gift during a welcome ceremony the Pacific Islands Forum in the Cook Islands. Picture: Mick Tsikas/AAP
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese dances before receiving a gift during a welcome ceremony the Pacific Islands Forum in the Cook Islands. Picture: Mick Tsikas/AAP

 

Bruce Lehrmann attends Federal court in Sydney for his defamation trial against Network 10. Picture: Adam Yip/NCA Newswire
Bruce Lehrmann attends Federal court in Sydney for his defamation trial against Network 10. Picture: Adam Yip/NCA Newswire

 

Jarryd Hayne is taken into custody at the King St Courts in Sydney after being found guilty of rape. Picture: Sam Ruttyn
Jarryd Hayne is taken into custody at the King St Courts in Sydney after being found guilty of rape. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

 

10,000 people play the Kazoo at Federation Square during RISING winter festival. Picture: Mark Stewart
10,000 people play the Kazoo at Federation Square during RISING winter festival. Picture: Mark Stewart

 

A police officer spots young local children on the streets of Alice Springs at night before giving chase. Picture: Mark Brake
A police officer spots young local children on the streets of Alice Springs at night before giving chase. Picture: Mark Brake

 

Anti-trans activist Kellie-Jay Keen leaves the Tasmanian Parliament grounds as Equality Tasmania and LGBTQI+ supporters counter-protest at the Let Women Speak rally. Picture: Chris Kidd
Anti-trans activist Kellie-Jay Keen leaves the Tasmanian Parliament grounds as Equality Tasmania and LGBTQI+ supporters counter-protest at the Let Women Speak rally. Picture: Chris Kidd

 

Hundreds of workers, led by CFMEU, strike in Brisbane against wage theft and sham contracting, causing CBD traffic chaos and vandalising Waterfront Place. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen
Hundreds of workers, led by CFMEU, strike in Brisbane against wage theft and sham contracting, causing CBD traffic chaos and vandalising Waterfront Place. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

 

A bugler plays at the Anzac Day Dawn Service at Melbourne’s Shrine of Remembrance. Picture: Aaron Francis/NCA Newswire
A bugler plays at the Anzac Day Dawn Service at Melbourne’s Shrine of Remembrance. Picture: Aaron Francis/NCA Newswire

 

A mother and her son walk from the scene of a school bus crash in Eyensbury. Children were left with severe injuries, some requiring amputation. Picture: Jake Nowakowski
A mother and her son walk from the scene of a school bus crash in Eyensbury. Children were left with severe injuries, some requiring amputation. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

 

Gumatj Yellow Tribe presents evening Bungul at the Garma Festival. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin
Gumatj Yellow Tribe presents evening Bungul at the Garma Festival. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

 

A woman volunteering for the YES23 campaign reacts to comments that SA Opposition Leader David Speirs makes speaking to media following his vote on the referendum. Picture: Morgan Sette/NCA Newswire
A woman volunteering for the YES23 campaign reacts to comments that SA Opposition Leader David Speirs makes speaking to media following his vote on the referendum. Picture: Morgan Sette/NCA Newswire

 

Scandinavian Airshow Skycats wingwalker Hella Stening performs high flying stunts over Avalon. Picture: David Caird
Scandinavian Airshow Skycats wingwalker Hella Stening performs high flying stunts over Avalon. Picture: David Caird

 

Former RBA Governor Philip Lowe reacts during a press conference on rate hikes. Picture: Nikki Short/NCA Newswire
Former RBA Governor Philip Lowe reacts during a press conference on rate hikes. Picture: Nikki Short/NCA Newswire

 

The Progress Pride Flag is seen projected onto the Sydney Opera House during WorldPride. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty Images
The Progress Pride Flag is seen projected onto the Sydney Opera House during WorldPride. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

 

People participate in a rally against the occupation of Palestine and the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Melbourne CBD. Picture: David Crosling
People participate in a rally against the occupation of Palestine and the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Melbourne CBD. Picture: David Crosling

 

People take to the water at Newcastle’s coal port in a historic peaceful protest for climate action, highlighting the nation’s struggle with coal reliance amid emissions targets. Picture: Roni Bintang/Getty Images
People take to the water at Newcastle’s coal port in a historic peaceful protest for climate action, highlighting the nation’s struggle with coal reliance amid emissions targets. Picture: Roni Bintang/Getty Images

 

At North Narrabeen Beach in Sydney, a boy enjoys the sun as part of the 18th year of Bush to Beach, an initiative giving Indigenous children a chance to immerse in beach culture. Picture: Jenny Evans/Getty Images
At North Narrabeen Beach in Sydney, a boy enjoys the sun as part of the 18th year of Bush to Beach, an initiative giving Indigenous children a chance to immerse in beach culture. Picture: Jenny Evans/Getty Images

 

Ian Malouf, who ranks at #188 on Australia’s rich list, poses on his yacht in the Bahamas. Picture: Supplied
Ian Malouf, who ranks at #188 on Australia’s rich list, poses on his yacht in the Bahamas. Picture: Supplied

 

Brian Houston, founder of Hillsong, arrives at court charged with covering up his father’s sexual abuse of a young boy. Picture: Nikki Short/NCA Newswire
Brian Houston, founder of Hillsong, arrives at court charged with covering up his father’s sexual abuse of a young boy. Picture: Nikki Short/NCA Newswire

 

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott touches the coffin of George Pell at the Solemn Pontifical Mass at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney. Picture: Giovanni Portelli/The Catholic Weekly
Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott touches the coffin of George Pell at the Solemn Pontifical Mass at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney. Picture: Giovanni Portelli/The Catholic Weekly

 

Jill Ogai and Marcus Morelli in costume from the production of Don Quixote by The Australian Ballet at the Sydney Opera House. Picture: Jonathan Ng
Jill Ogai and Marcus Morelli in costume from the production of Don Quixote by The Australian Ballet at the Sydney Opera House. Picture: Jonathan Ng

 

Police survey the area after a bus crash in the Hunter Valley that claimed 10 lives and injured 25. Picture: David Swift
Police survey the area after a bus crash in the Hunter Valley that claimed 10 lives and injured 25. Picture: David Swift

 

Daisy and Odin face off at the Armstrong Creek Pets Day. Picture: David Smith
Daisy and Odin face off at the Armstrong Creek Pets Day. Picture: David Smith

 

President Biden hosts Anthony Albanese and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for an AUKUS meeting to discuss the procurement of nuclear-powered submarines. PIC: PMO
President Biden hosts Anthony Albanese and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for an AUKUS meeting to discuss the procurement of nuclear-powered submarines. PIC: PMO

 

Grandmother Mandy Brown and mother Courtney Hunter-Hebberman hold a photograph of Rose. Picture: Matt Turner
Grandmother Mandy Brown and mother Courtney Hunter-Hebberman hold a photograph of Rose. Picture: Matt Turner

 

Tracy Chapman poses for a portrait. She has been waiting 1400 days for reconstruction surgery after having a double mastectomy. Picture: Tara Croser
Tracy Chapman poses for a portrait. She has been waiting 1400 days for reconstruction surgery after having a double mastectomy. Picture: Tara Croser

 

Friends let loose in the rain on day one of the Woodford Folk Festival. Picture: Lachie Millard
Friends let loose in the rain on day one of the Woodford Folk Festival. Picture: Lachie Millard

 

An aerial view shows the scale of deluge from widespread floods in Far North Queensland. Picture: Liv Cole
An aerial view shows the scale of deluge from widespread floods in Far North Queensland. Picture: Liv Cole

 

Darren Stanley, one of the homeless people living at Musgrave Park, reacts after learning he will not be asked to move while Brisbane hosts the Paniyiri Festival. Picture: David Clark
Darren Stanley, one of the homeless people living at Musgrave Park, reacts after learning he will not be asked to move while Brisbane hosts the Paniyiri Festival. Picture: David Clark

 

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi embraces Anthony Albanese at an Indian cultural event in Sydney. Picture: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi embraces Anthony Albanese at an Indian cultural event in Sydney. Picture: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

 

Koala Obi Wun re-enacts a TRESemmé ad after getting drenched in the rain at Ballarat Wildlife Park. Picture: David Caird
Koala Obi Wun re-enacts a TRESemmé ad after getting drenched in the rain at Ballarat Wildlife Park. Picture: David Caird

 

Investigators at the scene of a plane wreckage at Kybong where two aeroplanes collided, leaving two people dead. Picture: Lachie Millard
Investigators at the scene of a plane wreckage at Kybong where two aeroplanes collided, leaving two people dead. Picture: Lachie Millard

 

Police use pepper spray after neo-Nazis from the National Socialist Network clashed with counter-protesters from the Campaign Against Racism and Fascism at a Stop Immigration Rally in Melbourne. Picture: Jake Nowakowski
Police use pepper spray after neo-Nazis from the National Socialist Network clashed with counter-protesters from the Campaign Against Racism and Fascism at a Stop Immigration Rally in Melbourne. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

 

A painterly sunrise over Trinity Inlet in Queensland. Picture: Belinda Peck
A painterly sunrise over Trinity Inlet in Queensland. Picture: Belinda Peck

 

Dan Pote, CEO and part-owner of Powelltown Sawmill in Victoria, faces a challenging future as the state government accelerates the end of native timber logging by five years. Picture: Aaron Francis/The Australian
Dan Pote, CEO and part-owner of Powelltown Sawmill in Victoria, faces a challenging future as the state government accelerates the end of native timber logging by five years. Picture: Aaron Francis/The Australian

 

Lidia Thorpe gave an emotional speech in the Senate Chamber in regard to Aboriginal deaths in custody, brandishing a stick with markings representing those fatalities. Picture: Gary Ramage/NCA Newswire
Lidia Thorpe gave an emotional speech in the Senate Chamber in regard to Aboriginal deaths in custody, brandishing a stick with markings representing those fatalities. Picture: Gary Ramage/NCA Newswire

 

The Matildas win after a very tense penalty shootout during the FIFA Women’s World Cup quarterfinal between Australia and France at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. Picture: Adam Head
The Matildas win after a very tense penalty shootout during the FIFA Women’s World Cup quarterfinal between Australia and France at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. Picture: Adam Head

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Original URL: https://www.ntnews.com.au/news/photos/2023-in-review-the-best-photos-from-a-turbulent-year-in-australia/news-story/b25a670fb06d941cec63c1fd9a12d127