Dunedin Writers' Walk
At the heart of this most literary of cities can be found the Dunedin Writers' Walk - a series of brass plaques set into the brick pavement that curves around the upper Octagon. Each plaque bears a quote about Dunedin by a published writer.
The aim of the Walk is to entertain and enlighten passers-by about Dunedin and its literary heritage. In 1992, Roger Hall and Lynley Hood presented the original proposal to mayor Richard Walls and city council chief executive Murray Douglas. Walls and Douglas investigated the costs and sought sponsorship for an initial set of ten plaques. The Alexander McMillan Trust agreed to sponsor five; the city council agreed to sponsor the rest.
A list of around 30 quotes was compiled by Lynley Hood from a range of published sources. Most of the authors had strong links to Dunedin, but this was not a consideration in the initial selection. The list was mulled over by everyone involved and arranged in a more-or-less agreed order of preference.
The top ten quotes were selected primarily for their relevance (they had to be about Dunedin), their entertainment value, the range of ideas they conveyed, and their brevity. A short explanatory note about each author was also prepared.
Thomas Bracken's Victorian pomposity won him a place in the top ten. Others were included for their comments on Dunedin landmarks (Denis Glover and James K. Baxter); their comments on Dunedin's climate (Lauris Edmond, Janet Frame and Witi Ihimaera); their comments on the character of Dunedin's citizens (Edmond, Frame and Ihimaera again, plus Dennis McEldowney and Frank Sargeson); and their comments on Dunedin's topography, class distinctions and gold-mining heritage (Christine Johnston).
Robin Hyde's quote was included because it was the only one that gave the impression of warmth and sunshine. When the top ten had been chosen, Richard Walls and his wife offered to sponsor one of the plaques (the Dennis McEldowney one). This enabled an eleventh plaque (the John A. Lee one) to be included in the first set.
The first eleven plaques were unveiled at a mayoral reception for the third New Zealand Writers' Week in March 1993. Since then, seven more plaques have been laid. The authors who appear on the more recent plaques were chosen for a variety of reasons, but the requirement that the plaque include a catchy published quote about Dunedin from the featured author has been retained.
The Joan De Hamel plaque was unveiled during the 1998 children's book festival. It has a time capsule underneath. The Ruth Dallas plaque was unveiled during the 1998 Burns Fellows reunion. The Charles Brasch plaque was unveiled during Wordstruck 2000. It marked the return of Landfall to Dunedin.
The other recent plaques, featuring John Barr, Roger Hall, John Hamilton and A.H. Reed, were laid at irregular intervals. The Barr, Hamilton and Reed plaques were sponsored by businesses, trusts or private individuals. The rest were sponsored by the Dunedin City Council.
Further plaques will be added over the coming years. To view the list of quotes for future plaques, or to suggest additional quotes, contact Lynley Hood email: ljhood@ihug.co.nz
To sponsor a plaque, contact Greg Sligo, Dunedin City Council email: gsligo@dcc.govt.nz).
