Sports and hobbies

Whether it be for work, hobbies, sightseeing or relaxation – Australians love to travel. It is unsurprising that they want to record these important moments, hoping to later share their home movies with family and friends or – as we do now – post our clips and images to social media. 

In 1966–67, Jon Human was selected for the Australian Schoolboys Cricket Team to tour India. Between matches, Jon explored the sights with his family camera. He captured candid moments featuring his travelling companions, as well as street scenes and notable locations like the Taj Mahal:

As with many momentous events, Jon still clearly recalls the trip, particularly the time when the bus had difficultly arriving at the ground due to all the people travelling around them. Jon thought there must have been a festival or something important happening nearby. To his amazement, he discovered the crowds were all there to watch the Australians play!

Continue your travels and catch a few waves along the coast of Bali or try a spot of golf in China in 1940 – before the course was turned into Shanghai Zoo.

Sightseeing

Alan Bresnahan was an active member of the Victorian Amateur Cine Society – later Victorian Movie Makers – for over 60 years. The footage from a 1971 trip records a Singapore in transition, with skyscrapers and cars mingling with smaller buildings, building sites – often with bamboo scaffolding – and rickshaws:

The majority of this footage was shot around Raffles Place, with Robinson & Co. department store featuring prominently.

Raffles Place had been developed extensively in 1965, providing a park to walk through and Singapore's first underground car park, as recorded in the footage. The car park later made way for the Raffles Place MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) Station.

The Raffles Place in this footage has more retailers. The Robinson & Co. department store was established in 1858 by Phillip Robinson, who had recently spent time working in Melbourne, and James Gaborian Spicer, a former keeper at the Singapore prison. A year after this footage was shot, the store was closed in 1972 by one of the worst fires in Singapore's history. Caused by a short circuit on the ground floor, the fire killed nine people and burnt S$21 million worth of property.

Alternatively perhaps you'd prefer to explore geothermal attractions in New Zealand, go to San Francisco in the 1950s, wander the canals and temples of Thailand or travel along Queens Road in Fiji, stopping for the Saturday markets.

Momentous Events

In his second term as Australian prime minister, Sir Robert Menzies travelled to England for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953:

Menzies was a great supporter of the monarchy and the ongoing relationship between Australia and England. The relationships he had built since his first trip in 1935 are reflected in the access he was afforded for this event.

Finally, you might like to visit Japan and stroll among the cherry blossoms just after the end of the Second World War.

Like all travel, these home movies only scratch the surface of what your destination has to offer. For the chance to visit more locations and other decades, and catch behind-the-scenes glimpses of some famous people, explore our Home Movies curated collection.