The Series
Frontier of Dreams is a major 13-part documentary series which brings together the voices of our country, past and present.
It tells the story of New Zealand/Aotearoa through the eyes of people who came to our shores and made New Zealand their home, the people who found and shaped the land, who witnessed momentous and terrible events, and participated in our greatest celebrations and triumphs.
Together they weave a rich and dramatic picture, from our geological origins to the arrival of the 21st Century. It is a story of war and peace, ecstasy and despair, and the key people, turning points and events which make us who we are today.
Further information about the series is available on the Frontier of Dreams programme page.
On this page: Episode 1 & 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13
Millions of years ago, the largest islands of the South Pacific rose from the ocean to become home to specialised plants and animals adapted to a unique environment. In more recent times Polynesian voyagers crossed the Pacific to finally make landfall on the shores of the 'long bright cloud'. The Polynesians faced a new environment, but one teeming with food – fish, seals and birds. Over the next 500 years, they re-shaped the land and developed a sophisticated Māori tribal society.
See Episodes 1 & 2 Teachers' Notes
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Early contact between Māori and European was filled with danger and promise for both sides. Whalers, sealers, traders and missionaries arrived. But the muskets they brought would lead to terrible tribal wars and mass internal migration.
The treaty signed at Waitangi in 1840 was welcomed by some Māori, but not all. In its wake came settlers, lots of them, and the first conflicts between the new government and Māori.
Māori trade, economic success and fertile lands caused envy among the rising tide of settlers. Fighting erupted in Taranaki and quickly spread across the North Island. Defeat would cost Māori their independence, mana and more than a million hectares of land. But resistance would continue.
As war consumed the North Island, gold was discovered in Otago. The best (and wildest) of times for the South Island had arrived. Soon the south would be the most populous and wealthiest part of the country.
In the 1880s, the New Zealand economy collapsed. Poverty and unemployment replaced prosperity. But the 'Long Depression' gave rise to a political and social revolution, the birth of the welfare state and votes for women. And Māori, dismissed as a dying race, began their great revival.
At the dawn of the 20th Century, New Zealand was a loyal member of the British Empire, the home of 'better Britons'. Identity and pride were tied to victory on the rugby field and a rush to fight in Britain's wars.
The horrors of World War 1 were followed by the 'black flu' pandemic. Then the 1920s promised a better life in modern times. Home ownership increased and American music and films arrived. But the bright lights were dimmed by another great depression, causing widespread ruin and despair.
In 1935 Depression-battered New Zealanders elected their first Labour Government and began a decade of radical social and economic reform. But even as they grasped at security, a new threat emerged – another world war, and this time one of the enemies was in the Pacific.
See Episode 10 Teachers' Notes
With the 1950s came a period of economic expansion and prosperity built on the sheep's back and farming innovation. The population drifted north and Māori moved to the cities and set up vibrant social clubs. There was full employment, endless sporting success, relentless suburban spread, and a massive programme of power schemes for the new homes and industries.
See Episode 11 Teachers' Notes
When New Zealand troops were sent to fight in Vietnam, the divisions emerging in society broke into the open. The country took to the streets. They marched in protest about the Vietnam war, nuclear testing, the environment, women's rights, sporting links with apartheid South Africa and the place of Māori in modern New Zealand.
See Episode 12 Teachers' Notes
The 1984 election introduced another reforming government, one prepared to cut loose a heavily regulated economy and challenge old alliances. But change came at a price. 'New Right' policies began dismantling 50 years of economic supports and social welfare. Māori demanded that long-held grievances be addressed. And as New Zealand entered the 21st Century a new wave of immigration began.
See Episode 13 Teachers' Notes