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The view from the Writers' Centre

06 March 2009 – Hill Standing Above - speech by Bob Ross at launch of history booklet

Speech notes – Bob Ross, Chairman
Michael King Writers’ Centre
History booklet launch
Friday 6 March 2009

I would like to make a mention of two very special guests. Vincent O’Sullivan is the eighth writer to stay here on a residency supported by Creative New Zealand.

We are also delighted to have with us Anne Beaglehole from Wellington, who is here on a short visit.

Writers are what this project is all about. I know I speak on behalf of all the trustees when I say that seeing you here at work gives us a deep sense of satisfaction.

Last year, we had three writers in residence. Chris Price was here for six months in our first joint arrangement with The University of Auckland.

Then we were able to offer two six-week residencies. The successful short-story writer, Sarah Laing, from Mt Albert, came here to complete her first novel, which will be published this year. Dick Corballis, from Wellington and Massey, used his time here to research his important biography of Bruce Mason.

This year we have Vincent here for eight weeks working on his biography of Ralph Hotere. He will be followed in April by Dunedin poet David Eggleton and, we hope, by a further six month residency with The University of Auckland in the second half of the year.

Creative New Zealand has funded all of these residencies and we are very grateful for this support.

It is wonderful to be involved in the work and development of these fine writers and these great projects. If we are able to continue the pattern developed over the past year, this project will make an enormous contribution to the development of New Zealand literature.

Many of you are friends and colleagues who have followed this project ever since its launch in 2004. From the outset, the aim was to bring to fruition Michael King’s dream of helping New Zealand writers to get on with their work – especially those engaged in major projects, which take a long time and a great deal of research.

I think that we have achieved that in a more meaningful way than many of us thought was possible.

I was involved in the selection panel for the latest round of short residencies. We had 33 applications. We could have happily accepted almost all of them. The quality of the work and the calibre of the applicants were outstanding.

The only problem was that we could only accept two.

I think that we have here a formula that appears to work for writers… Long residencies work well for some people. For others, work or family commitments make the shorter options very appealing.

And, happily, we are able to support work across a wide range of genres – from fiction to non-fiction, poetry and drama.

We have supported well established authors and we hope in future we will have some options for younger writers, and emerging authors.

Supporting New Zealand writers is our core business.

Thanks to the North Shore City Council, we are able to offer writers accommodation in this beautiful heritage house.

It is a peaceful and inspiring place to work – close to, but removed from, the charms of Devonport and the busy business world of the city across the harbour.

This heritage house has brought another welcome dimension to our activities as a trust. We recognise and welcome our responsibility to look after the lovely house, and to record its stories.

This house stands on the slopes of Mt Victoria. Takarunga - as the Maori knew it - has a rich and distinguished history.

Takarunga means “hill standing above”, an elegant description which I think captures the gentle mood of this mountain. It stands as a quiet and modest sentinel, the highest point on the Devonport peninsula.

It has always been an important place to the people who lived around it. From Maori times through today, it is a place people love to come to look out and watch the harbour.

The signal station was established on the summit of Mt Victoria almost as soon as Auckland was settled. It was vital communications link for the young city, both for trade and also in times when there was the fear of attack from the sea.

This house was built in 1898 as the home for the signalman and his family. With its long association with the signal station, the port, with early Auckland and its landmark position in Devonport, this house has major historic and architectural significance.

We are delighted to be able to celebrate the history in this booklet, “Hill Standing Above.”

It was written by our administrator, Karren Beanland, who pulled together information available from existing sources.

There are several people we would like to thank for their contribution to this project:

The ASB Community Trust, for the grant which made it possible.
Our former trustee, Dinah Holman, who did a great deal of work researching the comprehensive conservation plan put together before the house was renovated.
Peter Weeks from the Devonport Museum, who is a mine of information about Mt Victoria and who has put in endless hours of work to research the area.
Our former trustee, Merata Kawharu, who helped write the section on the Maori occupation of the area.
Dave Veart from the Department of Conservation, who is also a mine of information about Mt Victoria.
Paul Titchener, historian and former North Shore Mayor, who wrote the wonderful series Beginnings
Roger Giles, from The Bunker, Devonport’s famous folk club in the old bunker just up the hill. Roger is known as the caretaker of Mt Victoria and is an enormous help to us.
Jim Mason, one of our trustees who is also involved in the Fort Victoria Trust, which has recorded the story of the fortification of Mt Victoria.
Marleene Boyd from the New Zealand National Maritime Museum, who helped us sources photos.

There are many others who have helped out and been involved, too many to name. To all of you we say thank you.

One other person I must mention today is Gordon McLauchlan, who has played a part in this, and every other project the centre has taken on.

Gordon was the founding chairman of our trust and stayed on as a trustee. Sadly for us, he has decided to resign because of his many other commitments.

We will miss you, Gordon. You have made a huge contribution to this project. We are so grateful for the time and energy you have been able to put into it.

Like a precious woven basket, there are three strands to this project.

Writing, above all.

The heritage house.

Third, but not least, is the memory of Michael King.

This month will bring the fifth anniversary of his untimely death. We still mourn him. His passing left an aching chasm in the lives of his friends and in New Zealand literature. He still had so much more to write about, to say.
We have done our best with this project to bring one of his dreams to fruition. A place to write. A place to help writers. A place to celebrate our shared history, both Maori and Pakeha.

I do believe we can be proud of what we have achieved here in his name. This little booklet represents another step along that path.

Now I invite the Minister of Culture, Arts and Heritage, Chris Finlayson to say a few words to launch the booklet.

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