Looking at New Zealand - The Third Island

This 1968 Looking at New Zealand episode travels to NZ’s third-largest island: Stewart Island/Rakiura. The history of the people who've faced the “raging southerlies” ranges from Norwegian whalers to the 400-odd modern folk drawn there by a self-reliant way of life. Mod-cons (phone, TV) alleviate the isolation, and the post office, store, wharf and pub are hubs. The booming industry is crayfish and cod fishing (an old mariner wisely feeds an albatross); and the arrival of tourists to enjoy the native birds and wildness anticipates future prospects for the island.

The outsider’s frequent question of ‘What do you do down there?’ forgets that this is a way of life that accepts the natural resources of bush, sea and shore, where children can handle a dinghy as deftly as a bicycle.

– From the narration

Key Cast & Crew

Derek Morton

Director, Writer

Noel Lee

Camera