Harold Holt's disappearance

On the afternoon of 17 December 1967, Prime Minister Harold Holt entered the surf at Cheviot Beach in Victoria. He was never seen again.

Despite an exhaustive search, no body or other evidence was found. In their place rose allegations, rumours and conspiracy theories that continue to this day.

Is Harold Holt still alive? Did he commit suicide? Was he drunk or drugged? Did he secretly belong to a crime syndicate? Was he a Communist spy?

The clip below combines the first news reports of his disappearance with footage of the search that quickly got underway.

As a stunned nation struggled to make sense of the tragedy, a memorial service was held for Holt on 22 December 1967, just five days after his disappearance. It attracted royalty, world leaders, political powerbrokers and the grieving general public. Holt's disappearance changed the face of Australian politics and how Australians saw themselves.

Visit the curated collection Harold Holt: the Missing Prime Ministerfor collection items such as:

• Channel Nine news footage from December 1967
• Moments from the documentary The Harold Holt Mystery (Ten Network, 1985)
• Clips of Holt hosting Australia's first US Presidential visit in 1966
• Holt, as Treasurer, introducing the new decimal coin designs.

See reporting of more cases in our Australian True Crime Mysteries curated collection.

Stream The Prime Minister is Missing (2008, 56 minutes) on NFSA Player.

This article was first published in 2017. The text was updated in 2024.

Main image: Two navy divers search for the missing prime minister along the Victorian coastline.