The Royal train arrives in Palmerston North to great cheers. We then see the train passing Mt Taranaki (Egmont). In Stratford, the Royals walk among the crowd.
Crowds cheer and wave flags as the Royal entourage passes down Queen Street. We then cut to the Royal couple's visit to Auckland hospital and the Queen talking to a wounded war veteran.
Crowds welcome the royals as they arrive by train. Local officials and the Royal couple stand on a balcony while the Mayor conducts the crowd in a rendition of 'Hip hip, hooray!'.
Hear the Queen's speech from Auckland. ' This is the first time that I have spoken to New Zealanders in their own homeland and my first words must be to tell you how happy I am to be amongst you....'
Shots of the streets of Masterton and of various decorations and floral arrangements created for the visit. The Royal entourage drives down the main street as the crowds cheer.
The Queen, sitting in the stands, is given a tartan blanket to keep warm. She is entertained by shows of horse riding and cattle judging - the latter gets out of hand when the bulls start 'playing' with their minders.
New Zealand has had a governor or (from 1917) a Governor-General since 1840. The work of these men and women has reflected the constitutional and political history of New Zealand in many ways.
For those New Zealanders old enough to have experienced it, the visit of the young Queen and her dashing husband, Prince Philip, to New Zealand in the summer of 1953-54, is a never-to-be forgotten event.
Following her stay in Auckland and her visits to Waitangi, Hamilton and Rotorua, the Queen and Duke had a break for five days at Lake Rotoiti, and then flew to Gisborne and Napier. The theme for the next few days was the pastoral productivity of New Zealand.
As head of the Church of England she laid the foundation stone of the Anglican cathedral, and as head of the Commonwealth's armed forces she laid a wreath at the cenotaph. Such events emphasised the loyalty of New Zealanders to the British Empire and Commonwealth.
On the day of the reception for children at Athletic Park, the Evening Post wrote: 'As the mother of two young children 12,000 miles away, the Queen today assumed the role of mother to her wider family, and it was this maternal aspect that so caught the imagination and love of the New Zealand citizens of the future'.
On 30 January 1954 the Gothic sailed from Bluff and after a brief side trip into Milford Sound, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip departed for Australia. They have returned nine times since then.
Cabbage tree leaves, kiwi, a farewell in the Maori language and the New Zealand and Union Jack flags greet the royal procession in New Plymouth on 8 January 1954
