Discover Tai Kwun

Discover Tai Kwun I: Highlights Tour

Date & Time

1 Nov 2021 - 31 Mar 2022 5 minutes for each episode

Location

Online

Price

Free of charge

General

Stepping into Tai Kwun, the compound’s stories slowly unfold amidst the 16 historic buildings. Discover Tai Kwun navigates your journey through time and space across the heritage site to learn about its history, conservation, and revitalisation. Stories surrounding the buildings, the people, and their various activities prompt new considerations towards the historical, architectural, and social significance of Tai Kwun in the heart of Central.


Taking visitors on a time-travelling tour, our tour guides become storytellers who are eager to narrate in their own words the fascinating episodes and unusual anecdotes of Tai Kwun. Join our tour guides on a journey to discover the original and adaptive reuse of different buildings and their restoration in five episodes.


Episode 1: Retaining the Authenticity of Design

Watch our first episode to explore the architectural features and the conservation of Block 01 Police Headquarters Block, and learn why a “tiger” caught in the New Territories was once preserved in the building.

English version

Cantonese version
Putonghua version

Episode 2: Stories Beyond the Century-old Dock

“All rise!” - In this episode, our guide and storyteller will show you around the third-generation Central Magistracy to learn about its changing design and function from past to present. Step into the frame of an iconic historical photograph of Godber’s trail while traversing the outdoor staircase leading to the courthouse.

English Version 


Cantonese version

Putonghua version

Episode 3: Secret Murals behind the Wall

Follow us through the former main entrance of Victoria Prison at the Superintendent’s House. Built in 1862, the ground floor of the building now serves as a major passageway into the refurbished prison, but the area was once remade into an enclosed space in the post-war period. It was only at the early stages of revitalisation that the team uncovered two murals beneath the white paint. How do you think these murals were related to the history of this building?

English Version


Cantonese version

Putonghua version

Episode 4: Behind the Bars at B Hall

Located in the heart of Victoria Prison, B Hall is visible after one enters the passage leading on from the former main gate. Traces of the old prison remain everywhere, along the narrow corridors with rows of cells on each side. Stepping into the cell with its original decorations and interior structures can be likened to time travel. As you immerse yourself in the historical atmosphere of the building, the stories and memories of the former inmates of the prison are there to be discovered.

English Version


Cantonese version

Putonghua version

Episode 5: Reshaping the Old Radial Prison

In the final episode, we take a glimpse at the site’s open space – the Prison Yard. Look for the markings that represent the foundations of the old radial prison, and examine the details of the Boundary Wall to find out why a green door is now named the “Blue Gate”.

English version

Cantonese version

Putonghua version