Weekend Rewind: Celebrating Aotearoa ahead of Waitangi Day

Historian James Belich's The New Zealand Wars attempt to change Kiwis' lack of understanding of our history. Photo / NZ On Screen

As we gear up for Waitangi Day, NZ On Screen's Zara Potts looks at some of the screen history that has recognised and celebrated our cultural history.

There's no denying that Waitangi Day has had its share of controversy – celebrated by some and criticised by others. But the day itself has an interesting history, first officially commemorated in 1934, February 6 wasn't formally declared 'Waitangi Day' until 1960.

The Prime Minister at the time, Walter Nash, had high hopes for the day declaring that it would be a national day where all New Zealanders could come together: "We should not think of ourselves as Maoris or pakehas," he noted, "but rather as one people".

In 1973, then-Prime Minister Norman Kirk, officially declared that from the next year the day would become a national public holiday and changed its name to 'New Zealand Day'. While many Kiwis welcomed the day off and thought nothing more of it, many Māori were opposed to commemorating a day that did not recognise many of the injustices that had occurred since the signing of the 1840 treaty.

Kirk's 'New Zealand Day' commemoration at Waitangi in 1974 was a little bit of a strange affair. A cornucopia of entertainment was broadcast to the nation in a show called 'Aotearoa' which included a young Howard Morrison performing The Age of Aquarius. The New Zealand Herald review was slightly bemused, asking whether the show was 'imaginative pageantry or tasteless vulgarity?'. Well, here it is - you decide!

Watch the Aotearoa Pageant on New Zealand Day at Waitangi here:

Bad NZ Herald reviews notwithstanding, the celebrations of 'New Zealand Day' did have a serious aspect. The inaugural 1974 day featured a royal entourage, was watched by 20,000 people and was screened live on TV. While not everyone approved of the singing, few could fault the speech by Norman Kirk which gained a special poignancy when he died in office just six months later.

Watch Norman Kirk's speech here:

Not specifically related to Waitangi Day itself, this episode of 50 Years of New Zealand Television looks at the history of Māori programming in Aotearoa. It looks at many aspects of societal change – urbanisation, protest, cultural resurgence – and charts the evolution from Māori being seen as exotic extras in early documentaries to being an intrinsic part of Aotearoa's screen landscape, with te reo used on national news, and Māori telling their own stories on Māori Television.

Watch 50 Years of Television – Taonga TV here:

Many New Zealanders have often expressed regret at not knowing enough about our own history – and one man who attempted to change that was historian James Belich. His award-winning history of Māori vs Pākehā armed conflict gave many Kiwis the first real look at what had actually occurred on our shores. This excerpt looks at Ngā Puhi chief Hōne Heke, whose celebrated acts of civil disobedience saw him cut down the flagpole at Kororāreka three times.

Watch the first episode of The New Zealand Wars here:

Another historian who attempted to shine a light on our past was the late Dr Michael King, whose acclaimed book The Penguin History of New Zealand, sought to dissolve prejudice through information. In this interview with Kim Hill, he offers his theory that that you can have two indigenous peoples in one country – that Māori are our first people and Pākehā are our second people.

Watch Dr Michael King Face to Face with Kim Hill here:

Enough with the seriousness for a moment. What about humour? Well, this 2002 documentary attempts to explore what defines Māori humour. The tu meke tiki tour travels from marae kitchens to TV screens, from original trickster Maui to cheeky kids, from the classic entertainers (including Prince Tui Teka tipping off an elephant) through to Billy T James, arguably the king of Māori comedy. Even Winston Peters can't help flash his trademark smile.

Watch the late Prince Tui Teka and the late Billy T James here:

The largest gathering ever seen of Māori tribal war canoes (waka taua) was one of the centrepieces of the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1990. This documentary, narrated by Tukuroirangi Morgan, followed the ambitious countrywide programme to build the ornately carved waka, and assemble them at Waitangi as a demonstration of Māori pride and unity. The 22-strong fleet, powered by 1,000 paddlers, also fulfilled a dream of Tainui leader Princess Te Puea Herangi that had been curtailed 50 years earlier by World War II.

Watch Waka – The Awakening Dream here: