Costumes, sets and props from The Luminaries TV show donated to Hokitika Museum

Monday, 7 December 2020

Based on Eleanor Catton's novel, The Luminaries is a tale of love, murder and revenge set amidst New Zealand's 1860s gold rush.

Costumes, sets and props from The Luminaries television show have been donated to a West Coast museum.

Mayor Bruce Smith said Hokitika Museum staff would be busy in the new year assessing and cataloguing production materials from the six-part BBC/TVNZ production of Eleanor Catton’s Booker prize-winning novel The Luminaries.

He said the “generous donation” from producer Lisa Chatfield and production company Southern Light Films would enhance the costume items from the production that were already part of the museum’s collection.

“It’s brilliant that Hokitika Museum will have these items for display. A lot of visitors are aware of the history of the area through watching The Luminaries on TV and it will be exciting for them to see the costumes and props in person.”

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The costumes worn by actor Eve Hewson, who played Anna, will be donated to Hokitika Museum.

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Props and sets from The House of Many Wishes will be on display at Hokitika Museum.

The items will go on display when the museum reopens after earthquake strengthening. It has been closed since 2016 after it was deemed to be only 12 per cent of the national building standard

The Westland District Council was given $794,830 to upgrade the Hokitika Museum’s Carnegie Library Building by the Regional Culture and Heritage Fund in October. Once completed, the Carnegie Building will comply 100 per cent with New Building Standards IL2.

The Luminaries series was filmed mostly in Auckland where an area near Bethells Beach stood in for Hokitika Beach. However, the team did spend two days filming on the West Coast’s Crooked River, near Lake Brunner, in 2019.

The cast intended to film on the Arahura River but were forced to move due to flooding. Robin Hood’s Eve Hewson, Casino Royale's Eva Green, EastEnders' Himesh Patel and Top of the Lake's Ewen Leslie are among the international cast members.

The items, which are currently in storage in Auckland, include costumes from characters including Anna, Lydia, Emery, Crosbie, Carver and the 12 men who represent the signs of the zodiac.

Eve Hewson as Anna Wetherell and Himesh Patel as Emery Staines, behind the scenes of The Luminaries.

Some film props and games from Lydia’s House of Many Wishes and the set designed by Felicity Abbott will also be donated.

Chatfield said she felt privileged to be able to offer the items, so they could be preserved and made accessible to the public.

“We are particularly pleased that the majority of the costumes, that were designed and handmade for the series by costume designer Edward Gibbon and an extraordinary team of talented New Zealanders, are able to form the most significant aspect of the collection.

“The Hokitika Museum is the natural home, and it is a great opportunity to ensure the experience of The Luminaries TV series has an ongoing life beyond the screen.”

National Services Te Paerangi museum development adviser Judith Taylor said the donation was “wonderful”.

“The costumes and other props can illustrate parallel stories about 1860’s Hokitika and are a resource for the development of creative workshops based on the crafts in this legacy collection and in filming making,” she said.