History & heritage  |  11 Sep 2024

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Delve into Christchurch’s sporting and recreational history at the Heritage Festival.

The Christchurch Heritage Festival programme has been released with this year’s theme of Active Heritage – Sport, Recreation and Leisure.

The festival runs from 12 to 28 October and will explore how these activities have shaped the diverse communities from Ōtautahi Christchurch, Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū Banks Peninsula and wider Waitaha Canterbury.

“This year marked the 50-year anniversary of the 1974 Commonwealth Games in Christchurch which made the perfect starting point for the theme of our 2024 festival,” Festival Coordinator Deborah Cosgrove said.

The 10th British Commonwealth Games, known as the ‘Friendly Games’, took place at Queen Elizabeth II Park, Christchurch from 24 January to 2 February 1974.

“A number of events in our programme reference the games with a highlight being the Area 51 Futuro House Open Day,” she said.

“The Futuro house is a futuristic ellipsoid building, which looks a bit like a spaceship, made from prefabricated white reinforced plastic. A Christchurch manufacturer secured the rights to produce the Finnish design and two Futuro houses were show-cased at the entrance to QE II Park during the Games.”

Other themed events include:

·         The Remembering the Friendly Games exhibition at New Brighton and Districts Museum which runs daily from 12-28 October with a talk on Wednesday 16 October and Sunday 20 October from 2-3pm.

·         Anyone for croquet? Croquet at Te Whare Waiutuutu Kate Sheppard House on Saturday 19 October from 11-12.30pm. Booking required.

·         From Olympia to New Zealand: Highlighting New Zealand’s Olympic History exhibition from 12-27 October, Wednesday to Sunday, 11am-4pm at the Teece Museum of Classical Antiquities.

·         Prebbleton - Its Sport and Leisure over Sixteen Decades, a display on 18 and 19 October at the Prebbleton Public Hall.

·         The 70s Big Band Blast features hits from the 1970s at Te Matatiki Toi Ora The Arts Centre on Sunday 27 October from 1-4pm.

·          The Global Games and Leisure Extravaganza at the Christchurch Multicultural Recreation and Community Centre celebrates traditional games, sports, and leisure activities from around the world, from noon-4pm on Saturday 19 October. 

“There’s a rich programme of other activities for people to learn about aspects of our communities’ heritage – from a tram ride to heritage building tours – over and above the sport, recreation and leisure themed events,” Ms Cosgrove said. 

For more information on the Christchurch Heritage Festival, check out the online programme or pick up a guide from local libraries and service centres.