Demographics At the , the suburb of Turramurra recorded a population of 12,850 people. Of these: •
Age distribution: The median age was 43 years, compared to the national median of 38 years. Children aged under 15 years made up 19.0% of the population (the national average was 18.2%) and people aged 65 years and over made up 19.7% of the population (the national average was 17.2%). •
Ethnic diversity : 58.9% of people were born in Australia, compared to the national average of 66.9%; the next most common countries of birth were
China (excluding
Special Administrative Regions and
Taiwan) 8.4%,
England 5.5%,
India 2.7%,
South Africa 2.7%, and
Hong Kong 2.1%. 68.6% of people only spoke English at home; other languages spoken at home included
Mandarin 10.3%,
Cantonese 4.0%,
Korean 2.5%,
Persian (excluding
Dari) 1.3%, and
Hindi 1.1% •
Religion : The most common responses for religion were
No Religion 40.3%,
Catholic 17.7%,
Anglican 15.9%, and Uniting Church 4.7%; a further 3.9% of respondents elected not to disclose their religion. •
Finances: The median household weekly income was $, compared to the national median of $. This difference is also reflected in real estate, with the median mortgage payment being $ per month, compared to the national median of $. •
Housing: The majority (68.1%) of occupied private dwellings were separate houses, 27.2% were flats, units or apartments, 4.6% were semi-detached, and there were 0.1% of other types of dwellings. The average household size was 2.8 people.
Notable residents •
Trevor Allan, captain of Australian rugby, lived at Canoon Rd in a house called Murrayfield named for the ground on which he made his debut •
Faith Bandler, Aboriginal activist •
Brett Beyer, Olympic sailing coach •
Eric Campbell, Leader of the
New Guard lived at Boongala, 28 Ku-ring-gai Avenue •
Grace Cossington Smith 20th-century Australian painter lived in Ku-ring-gai Avenue, Turramurra most of her life •
Shane Gould, gold medallist swimmer at
1972 Summer Olympics (Munich), attended Turramurra High School •
Stuart Inder, journalist, editor and specialist in
Pacific Islands affairs •
Kamahl, singer •
Gail Kelly, businesswoman •
John Kerr,
former Governor-General of Australia, lived on the corner of Kissing Point Road and Catalpa Crescent for part of his life. •
Gretel Killeen, host of
Big Brother Australia and author, was born in the suburb and spent some of her childhood at Fairlawn Avenue •
Chris Lilley, actor and comedian famous for
Summer Heights High, grew up in Turramurra •
Charles Mackerras, orchestral conductor, lived in Turramurra from age 7 to age 21 (1933 to 1947). •
Gail Neall gold medallist swimmer at
1972 Summer Olympics (Munich), attended Turramurra High School •
Barry O'Farrell, former
Premier of New South Wales 2011–14, has lived with his family in Turramurra since 2011 or 2012. Until his retirement, O'Farrell had represented the
electoral district of Ku-ring-gai which includes part of Turramurra •
Leslie Alfred Redgrave, author of the 1913 novel
Gwen: a romance of Australian station life and proprietor headmaster of
Highfield College at 51 Ku-ring-gai Avenue, Turramurra, from 1907 until 1915. •
Frank Riethmuller, German–Australian rose-breeder, boarded for seven years at "Wychwood" in Ku-Ring-Gai Avenue, in 1937 made a house and garden containing many original roses at 21 Eastern Road •
Tony Roche, former coach of world number-one tennis player, Roger Federer •
Ken Rosewall, tennis great, became a resident in 1960 •
Dave Sharma, Senator and former diplomat, grew up there and owned a home on Kissing Point Rd •
George Szekeres, mathematician •
Barrie Unsworth, former
Premier of New South Wales 1986–88, lived in Geoffrey Street •
Charles Weston, horticulturalist •
Gough Whitlam (1916-2014), 21st
Prime Minister of Australia, serving from
1972 to
1975 •
Prof Sir Brian Wellingham Windeyer (1904-1994), born in Turramurra; Professor of
Therapeutic Radiology at
Middlesex Hospital Medical School,
University of London 1942–69;
Vice-Chancellor, University of London (1969–72). ==References==