Golden weather 1950–1972
Abstract
Wartime controls ended in 1950, allowing New Zealanders to look forward to an era of postwar growth and change. The 1950s and 1960s are often recalled as a ‘golden age’. In many respects they were, for the baby boomers born from 1945 to 1961 who enjoyed a childhood unburdened by depression and war, and for the parents responsible for their upbringing. Broadly, however, the internal dynamics of the Pacific region were in flux. Playwright Bruce Mason captured the mood in The End of the Golden Weather (first performed in 1960), his dramatic solo performance about a summer in a boy’s childhood.
Fields of Study & Subjects
New Zealand Economic and Social Studies
Australian History and Society
World Wars: History
Literature
and Impact
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Cambridge University Press eBooks
- Pages
- 193–220
- Publication date
- 9 February 2026
- Language
- EN
- Document type
- Book chapter