Advertisement

Hong Kong’s Southorn Playground, haven for sports and socialising amid the urban jungle

  • A rare open space amid modern Hong Kong’s jungle of skyscrapers, the playground in Wan Chai has been a place to let off steam since 1934

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
1
Southorn Playground in Hong Kong’s Wan Chai district has offered space for recreation amid the urban jungle for the past 90 years. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Hong Kong is home to more skyscrapers than any other city in the world – 554 according to a list compiled by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, which counts buildings 150 metres tall or more.

Advertisement

Shenzhen in southern China ranks second, with 413 skyscrapers. Hong Kong, which is only 63 per cent as big as Shenzhen in terms of area, remains mostly undeveloped; its many skyscrapers are packed into an extremely dense urban jungle, where open spaces are a rarity.

But Southorn Playground, in the heart of Hong Kong Island’s Wan Chai neighbourhood, is one such place.

The playground, originally called Wan Chai Children’s Playground, opened in 1934; it was later renamed after Sir Wilfred Thomas Southorn, Hong Kong’s colonial secretary from 1925 to 1936.

A photograph taken around 1950 shows Southorn Playground nestled among rows of tenement houses in Hong Kong’s Wan Chai neighbourhood. Photo: Hong Kong Public Libraries
A photograph taken around 1950 shows Southorn Playground nestled among rows of tenement houses in Hong Kong’s Wan Chai neighbourhood. Photo: Hong Kong Public Libraries
For history buffs, there is an interesting connection between this urban spot and Sri Lanka, formerly Ceylon.
Advertisement
Advertisement