Auckland’s lost treasure: His Majesty’s Theatre and Arcade, Queen Street (1902

Ben Schrader, Theatres, cinemas and halls – Early 20^th century, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand (accessed 06 May 2026).

In the process of curating our latest heritage exhibition Encore! we uncovered an extraordinary wealth of material across our Heritage Collections about music in Auckland and the different Central City venues at which musicians have performed.

We quickly found that we could not include everything we wanted to. This was partly because of the limitations of the physical space and partly having to narrow down what we focused on.

His Majesty’s Theatre was one of the venues that did not make the final selection for the exhibition. However, the material we hold about the theatre within Heritage Collections is worth sharing and the theatre’s history, along with the dramatic story behind its untimely demise, shows that it was an important and valued part of Auckland’s musical and cultural life and deserves to be acknowledged.

The Overture – setting the scene

From vision to reality

Renowned stock agent and auctioneer, Alfred Buckland, sold a prime piece of land from Durham Lane to Queen Street (originally called Buckland's Haymarket), to Robert Henry Abbott in 1902.

The visionary Abbott listed the property in the name of the His Majesty's Arcade and Theatre Company Ltd, of which he was chairman. In addition, a 50-year lease was taken out with the Melanesian Mission Trust Board for their land just in front of the theatre site, to form the bulk of the arcade, from 1 April 1902.

The architectural plans for His Majesty’s Theatre were a collaboration between Melbourne architect William Pitt and Auckland Architect Mr Thomas Mahoney. Modelled on the Princess Theatre in Melbourne, it featured a sliding roof for ventilation along with six private boxes.

It also had a massive 80ft (24m) height from stage floor to gallery joists. This enabled the use of many screens, some with gauze windows which could be in stage view and not seen, then with lighting behind the screen, an Act 2 could be made to suddenly appear. It was quite unique for a theatre to have more than double their stage height to enable screens to be hoisted out of view.

The ornate interior design and scenery was the work of Australian artist Mr Phil Goatcher.

His Majesty’s Theatre view from Durham Lane. Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections, 994-17.

His Majesty’s Theatre Private Box. Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections, 994-36

George Frederick Jenkinson. Flashlight photo of auditorium on first night of ‘A Moorish Maid’ at His Majesty’s Theatre, Auckland, 8 July 1905. Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections, NZG-19050708-0031-01

The First Act – The curtain rises on a vibrant scene

The theatre was first leased to entrepreneur Mr Percy Reginald Dix (1866-1917) and opened on the 26 December 1902 with a performance of J.C. Williamson’s musical comedy A runaway Girl.[1.]

The New Zealand Mail reported:

"Mr J. C. Williamson’s Musical Comedy Company opened at His Majesty's Theatre, Auckland, on Boxing Night, when it produced "A Runaway Girl".

"The theatre was packed to the doors by a most enthusiastic audience. This is the second theatre the company has opened during its tour of New Zealand, the other one being His Majesty’s, Dunedin.”

At this stage, Dix was confident he had domination of the light theatrical business in Auckland. However, by 1903 the popular John Fuller’s Vaudeville and Theatre Company made their presence felt once more in the city, bringing stiff competition.

In 1905, composer Alfred Hill conducted his new opera A Moorish Maid [2.] starring celebrated comedian Mr Fred H. Graham and opera singer Mrs Lilian Tree. From the photograph above, it too was a sell out with a limited season of one week.

Bailey managed to keep things pumping with many of the touring shows advertising ticket sales for “Standing Room Only”. In 1915 Bailey was replaced by Allan Doone, an Irish singing comedian, then J.C. Williamson from 1916 until the theatre was bought out by David Phillips of Pacer Kerridge Corporation 1981.

Roy Emerson. His Majesty’s Theatre, 1977. Record ID 1959-029-02

Philip Doyle. His Majesty’s Arcade, 1977. Record ID 435-01-35

A stage for Auckland's biggest performances

Over the years, His Majesty's Theatre hosted an extraordinary range of music, theatre and dance. Radio Hauraki's "Buck a Head" concerts featured many local acts including Split Enz, Hello Sailor, Th' Dudes and Space Waltz.

The theatre also welcomed productions by organisations including the Light Opera Club, the Auckland Amateur Operatic Society, the New Zealand Opera Company, the Kiwi Concert Party and the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company.

Famous international performers included:

Gladys Moncrieff
The Borovansky Ballet
Dame Margot Fonteyn
Anna Pavlova
Jan Ignacy Paderewski
George Benson
Vivien Leigh
Joan Armatrading

...to name just a few!

Many of these acts were brought to Auckland by major promoters including Harry M. Miller[3], Tivoli Circuit, J.C. Williamson, Edgley and Dawe Attractions, and Stetson Productions.

See image references at end*

Preserving a theatre's history

Much of the ephemera in Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections relating to His Majesty’s lies within the Freida Dickens Ephemera Collection. This collection contains music, dance, and theatre programmes from 1911 to 1976.

Freida Dickens [4] was a Ticket Office assistant and, during the course of her working life, collected the programme to every show she sold tickets for. While many different venues are represented, His Majesty’s Theatre features strongly in her collection which she donated to Auckland Libraries on her retirement in 1976.

The Second Act - A tragic ending and then lights down

Kerridge Odeon initially expressed a keenness to continue staging live shows when they took over in 1981 and many epic shows were put on such as the controversial musical Hair and the legendary Rocky Horror Picture Show. However, by 1987, the company admitted they could not sustain the cost of bringing the old building up to the required standard.

The last show in the theatre was Vince Carmen’s magic show, which ended 21 December 1987.

Kerridge Odeon advertised the building for sale by auction the following February. Their reasoning was that the upcoming opening of the Aotea Centre would mean any refurbishment costs they put into His Majesty’s would be unlikely to be recovered.

The fight to save His Majesty's Theatre

The heritage classification of His Majesty's was downgraded which helped clear the path to destruction of what was in fact a magnificent civic space. This was a very controversial move, with passionate supporters on one side and those on the other, who couldn’t understand its cultural significance and could only see a rundown venue.

The situation wasn’t helped by comments such as those made by City Councillor Phil Warren, himself, a former music promoter, and whose archive is held by Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections.

He described His Majesty’s Theatre as “a rat-infested dump with no artistic, historic or architectural significance”.

Heritage advocate Hamish Keith strongly disagreed, arguing that councillors should lead the way rather than let “developers walk all over them.”

Photographs. Auckland Sun News Pictures. Demolition. Auckland Heritage Collections, 1329

Demolition under cover of darkness

Predictably, the demolition was not without drama.

Developers moved in during the night of 23–24 December 1987, just before a Category A heritage listing could be officially applied to protect the Queen Street theatre.

Protesters, including writer Maurice Shadbolt and musician Jools Topp, attempted to block the demolition, resulting in 29 arrests.

As protesters gathered, there was a brief moment of hope. A Council inspector was called after it was discovered that the demolition permit, applied for by Pacer Corporation, had only been lodged the previous day. At 1am the inspector entered the site and ordered work to stop.

The reprieve was short-lived. The permit was granted on 31 December 1987, and demolition resumed on 3 January 1988, when a crane arrived to remove the roof.

The stage was demolished on 13 January, and by around 14 January 1988 the point of no return had been reached. Most of the theatre had been destroyed.

The photographs below from the Auckland Sun News capture both the dramatic demolition and the determination of those who fought to save the iconic theatre.

Photographs. Auckland Sun News Pictures. Demolition. Auckland Heritage Collections, 1329

A turning point for heritage protection

The demolition of His Majesty's Theatre became a major catalyst for strengthening New Zealand's heritage protection laws.
Today, we can look forward to seeing the St James Theatre on Lorne Street restored to its former glory.

Conclusion – The Review

His Majesty's Theatre will forever be remembered as the grand dame of Auckland venues, with many local and internationally renowned performers treading the boards of its stage. For more than 80 years, it played a vital role in Auckland's cultural life.

The ephemera, photographs and posters held in Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections capture the vibrancy the theatre brought to the central city. Together, they help tell the story of a remarkable venue that may be gone, but is far from forgotten.

Continue the story at Encore!

Want to discover more of Auckland's music history?

Visit our Encore! exhibition on Level Two of the Central City Library to explore the stories behind iconic venues, unforgettable performances and the people who shaped Tāmaki Makaurau's live music scene. The exhibition features more than 100 items from Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections.

Listen to the podcast episode

You can also listen to our panel discussion about Auckland's music venues, featuring Rosetta Stone (95bFM), Taylor MacGregor (Independent Music Venues Aotearoa), Savina Fountain (Big Fan) and Chlöe Swarbrick (MP for Auckland Central), as they share their views on the future of live music venues in Tāmaki Makaurau.