A friend of mine in New Zealand recently posted a photo from his trip to the fine town of Hamilton. In 2006, the Waikato Museum of Art and History unveiled a bronze statue dedicated to Richard O'Brien, the creator of The Rocky Horror Show who also portrayed the Igor-esque (until he isn't) Riff Raff in the film. Though born in England, O'Brien spent much of his adolescence in New Zealand, and returned there later in his life to claim dual residency.
Or, as Visit Hamilton describes:
The statue commemorates the development of the idea and the writing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show by Richard O'Brien – who lived in Hamilton and worked next door to the site of the now demolished Embassy Theatre where the statue is on Victoria Street.
According to Atlas Obscura, there is also a hidden camera near the statue that records visitors performing the Time Warp.
I guess New Zealand truly is a land of fantastical wonders. (And very few COVID cases.)
Image: Sebastian Dooris / Flickr (Public Domain)
