Grand opening of Hong Kong City Hall The governor, Sir Robert Black, is being led by the Director of Public Works, Allan Inglis, who is now inviting him to unveil a bronze plaque on the left of the stairs at the main entrance to mark the opening of City Hall. The governor declares, “I have much pleasure in unveiling this plaque to mark the opening of City Hall.” Sir Robert is now walking up the stairs and heading for the concert hall. He seems surprised to see small wooden hut, which is actually a booth selling tickets for music and other cultural performances. In the company of Mr Inglis and Mr Kenneth Kinghorn, the chairman of the Urban Council, Sir Robert is now entering the concert Hall. To report on the proceedings in the hall, I now hand you over to radio host Au Yeung Yee-tak.
I see the concert hall is filled with guests, 1,540 to be precise, and all of them now rise to receive the governor and his entourage. The stalls and balconies, as well as the two boxes on the left and the right, are all packed with guests. The Hong Kong Police Band is playing music in the box on the right. The stage is split into two sections, with chairs in the front. After the governor reaches his seat in the centre, the (British) national anthem will be played… The governor has been standing by his seat, and the national anthem has just been played. All the guests and councillors are now taking their seats.
Inauguration of Shek Pik Reservoir That was Governor Sir Robert Black delivering a speech. He is now proceeding to unveil a plaque, accompanied by the Director of Public Works. The plaque is unveiled to deafening applause. The copper plaque was covered with the Union Jack. On it are inscribed the words “Inauguration Ceremony for Shek Pik Reservoir, 28 November 1963” as well as the names of the key engineers involved in the project. Set in a large block of stone, the plaque is situated on a hill to the west of the main dam. Now Governor Sir Robert will preside over another ceremony in the company of the Director of Public Works. I will hand commentary over to Lo Sai-ping.
Accompanied by the Director of Public Works, the governor is inspecting another copper plaque. This one records the dimensions and the capacity of the main dam as well as the materials used to build it. On the other side of this block of stone is a third plaque that features a plan of the complete Shek Pik Reservoir project. It includes the location of the dam, Silver Mine Bay Water Treatment Works and the water pipes, and it shows the whole of Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories. Two gigantic blocks of stone have been moved to the hill where the ceremony is being held today. The first holds the plaque the governor has just unveiled. The other one has two copper plaques. One contains all the figures, as I mentioned a moment ago, and is in both English and Chinese. Another is the plan of the water supply system. The Director of Public Works and the governor are walking up the hill, where they will be able to enjoy a view of Shek Pik Reservoir from above. Lady Black is also with them. The Director of Public Works and senior officers from the department are explaining every part of the reservoir project to the governor and his wife as they go.
Olympic torch arrives in Hong Kong I can see Cheung Kin-man running down from the raised platform. He is holding the torch up high, and he is being greeted by the cheering crowd. He holds the torch up high, and the flame is producing a lot of smoke. He is now running west alongside City Hall, past the car park and the gate of the Memorial Garden to the west. He is running towards us now. Hong Kong’s “flying fish” is out of the water today. He is running on land, holding the torch up high. I can see him entering the Memorial Garden through the western entrance. And we all know that once he reaches the western entrance, he will come up a few steps onto an elevated pathway. When we come to City Hall, we can all pass through this balcony with its stunning view. Cheung is coming up the pathway. He is coming from the west and has just made a turn towards us. I can see that he is running towards us, the torch held up high. He runs with such a beautiful style. The photographers are fighting for a good shot of him. At the same time, the crowd is welcoming him with warm cheers. Cheung is running towards us. He comes up to the stage, holding the torch up high. Hear all the people cheer. The torch is made of copper nickel. He brings the torch near the cauldron and “boom!” the cauldron is lit. The flame is fuelled by Town Gas. We can smell it. Now that he has lit the cauldron, Cheung stands next to it, still holding the torch up high. There he is, standing proudly. He is the focus of the reporters and the cameras. And now that he has lit the cauldron, he is going into City Hall through a passage.
Hong Kong’s first satellite earth station goes into operation The British Ambassador to Washington, John Freeman, says since we are eight hours apart, Hong Kong businessmen can get in touch with Washington and American businessmen will then have eight hours to prepare the answers, which will arrive in Hong Kong the next morning. Then the ambassador tells a joke, “I hope, in future, communication between myself and the UK won’t have to go through Hong Kong to London.” He finishes by saying, “I am waiting to see a news film sent over from Hong Kong. I am going to say good night to you.” The governor replies, “I would like to say good morning to you and goodbye.” That was Governor Sir David Trench in a long distance conversation with the British Ambassador to Washington, John Freeman. You could hear them talking. Just as the governor said, the voice from Washington was absolutely clear. A news film will now be shown to viewers in Hong Kong and Washington.
Showing now is a video clip from “Hong Kong Today”. We can see how Hong Kong people are making preparations for the Mid-Autumn Festival. Mooncake sales have not declined even though the US’s Apollo 11 mission landed on the moon, from where the tales and legend of the Mid-Autumn Festival originated. Quite the contrary, advertisements are making lots of references to the first manned mission to land on the moon. Next we can see Hong Kong workers making mooncakes with lotus seed paste and double egg yolk filling. The worker first adds the lotus seed paste and then two salted duck egg yolks. The ingredients of every mooncake must be weighed to ensure the cakes are of the same size. Then the pastry chef makes the mooncakes using a special mould. They are baked and then packaged for sale. On the screen now are scenes of Hong Kong residents purchasing mooncakes.
Pope Paul VI visits Hong Kong The pope’s jeep has just passed the broadcast station. Sitting on his left is Bishop Francis Hsu. The pope is waving to all the spectators and believers standing in the centre of Government Stadium. This is indeed an unprecedented scene. If you are watching this on television, the audio and visual are both provided by Radio Television Hong Kong. Today RTHK is not only serving the people of Hong Kong, but is also broadcasting to television and radio station all over the world. The pope is now standing up in the jeep, which is heading south past the spectator stand. I will now hand commentary over to Ms Wong Tak-yee.
I am going to describe to you what is happening inside the stadium. As Au Yeung Yee-tak mentioned earlier, the stadium is packed with people today. There are only 28,000 seats but we have 40,000 people in the stadium now. The pope is making a lap around the stadium. I will now describe to you what’s happening in the stadium. Over 2,000 boy scouts, girl guides as well as members of the St John Ambulance and the Road Safety Patrol are helping to maintain order in the stadium. Au Yeung Yee-tak has already described to you the scenes at the entrance. Let me talk about the altar. It is located in the centre of the pitch. On the side facing the main entrance, six steps, covered in red carpet, lead up to the six foot high altar. The altar covers an area of approximately 2,000 square feet. Both sides of the altar are decorated with alternate yellow and white floral arrangements. There is a table in the centre of the altar. It is covered with white cloth and has six flower-shaped candlesticks on it. I can see that the pope will be seated in a Chinese-style chair with his back facing the broadcast station.
Governor MacLehose takes office The launch Lady Maurine has arrived at Queen’s Pier. I can see the new Hong Kong governor Sir Murray MacLehose standing on the deck at the very front. He is wearing the governor’s uniform of a white jacket and white trousers. His wife is standing next to him, along with the Commander of British Forces in Hong Kong, Lieutenant General Sir Richard Ward, and acting governor Sir Hugh Norman-Walker. They are all standing on the deck. Now the Lady Maurine is berthing at Queen’s Pier. I can see a sailor throwing a rope towards the pier. Soon, Governor Sir Murray MacLehose will come ashore at the pier. A bright red carpet lines the pathway from Queen’s Pier to the spectator stand. The Lady Maurine is docking, and the photographers are fighting for a good shot from the reporters’ stand. The cameras keep on flashing. Now we can see Sir Murray leaving the Lady Maurine. He should be ascending the stone steps now. Yes, Sir Murray is coming up the steps. Next to him is the Commander of British Forces in Hong Kong, Sir Richard Ward, followed by two aides-de-camp. Behind them, acting governor Sir Hugh Norman-Walker accompanies Lady MacLehose. Now Sir Murray has reached the reviewing stand, where he will receive a royal salute.
Inauguration of Kwai Chung Container Port Terminal I at Kwai Chung Container Port covers a vast area, 37 acres in total. The closest structure to the harbour is the 1,000-foot-long berth of Terminal I, which faces Tsing Yi Island and has Gin Drinkers Bay to its right. The terminal has two spacious yards used to store containers. After the containers are unloaded from the ships, they are placed temporarily in the yards before being transported to the two distribution centres by the road, where they are opened. Their goods are then taken out and transported by truck to factories. There is a building between the two distribution centres – the containers port’s administrative building belonging to Modern Terminals Limited, which operates Terminal I.
Guests have packed the covered square outside the administrative building. In a short while, at around 10:30, Governor Sir Murray MacLehose will arrive by helicopter at the square outside the administrative building of Modern Terminals Limited. After the governor disembarks, he will proceed to the main entrance of the administrative building, where he will give a short speech and officiate at the inauguration ceremony. We can see Governor Sir Murray and his wife arriving at the yard in front of the berth in the helicopter. After the helicopter lands, Sir Murray and Lady MacLehose will be received by Mr Lygo, Director and Chief Executive of Modern Terminals Limited, and his wife. Mr and Mrs Lygo have now welcomed Sir Murray and Lady MacLehose, and the party is walking along a zebra crossing to the administrative building. That’s right. We can see Sir Murray, accompanied by Mr Lygo, arriving at the venue for the inauguration ceremony.
The first visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Hong Kong Now the Queen has appeared. She is wearing a white dress with green prints and a white hat decorated with green feathers. Prince Philip (Duke of Edinburgh) is following closely behind her and coming down the steps. They wave at the welcoming crowd. Now, the governor is welcoming the Queen and shaking her hand. He introduced his wife, who curtsies to the Queen. They speak briefly, and the Queen slowly moves forwards. The first to greet her are the Commander of British Forces Sir Edwin Bramall and his wife. The Queen exchanges a few words with them. Then come the Chief Justice, Sir Geoffrey Briggs, and the Colonial Secretary, Mr Denys Roberts. Next are several Chinese VIPs. Sir Yuet-Keung Kan, Senior Executive Councillor, and his wife are now greeting the Queen. The wives of both Sir Yuet-keung Kan and Dr Sze-yuen Chung are wearing Chinese-styled qipao and they both curtsy to the Queen. Following the Queen is her entourage: the royal officials and staff, who are all chatting among themselves. A saloon has been arranged for the Queen. The royal fleet will follow this order: the first car will carry the staff of Government House and the second will carry a security detachment. The third car is the royal saloon. The Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen’s attendant will ride in this royal saloon, followed by more security officers. Next will be the car carrying the governor, his wife and aides-de-camp. The sixth car will carry the Queen’s female attendants, Her Majesty’s personal secretary and the Duke’s security officers. There are only four cars waiting at the airport now. The door is opened for the Queen and she steps gracefully into the saloon.
