Michael Fowler

Sir Edward "Michael" Coulson Fowler, FNZIA, (born 19 December 1929), is a New Zealand architect and author who served as Mayor of Wellington from 1974 to 1983.

Biography

He was born in 1929 in Marton, and was educated at Christ's College in Christchurch.

Wellington's principal concert performance hall, the Michael Fowler Centre, commemorates in its name Sir Michael.^[1]

Sir Michael designed Wellington's Overseas Passenger Terminal in the early 1960s, which was to have served international passenger ships, but never saw its intended use due to the rising popularity of air travel. In an interview many years later, he said that he "was party to the design of the biggest white elephant that Wellington ever built."^[2]

Criticism

He was criticised for his comments in May 2011 where he backed a controversial Wellywood sign in a handwritten letter to The Dominion Post, describing its critics as "dumb, humourless, totally irrelevant and probably Irish". When later questioned, he was unapologetic stating that his comment "wasn't meant to be derogatory." Irish residents in New Zealand expressed outrage at the comments.^[3]

References

1. ^ Wellington Convention Centre history^{[dead link]}
2. ^ Red Orbit - Facelift for 'White Elephant', 21 June 2007^{[dead link]}
3. ^ Easton, Paul (24 May 2011). "Fowler unapologetic about Irish outburst". The Dominion Post. http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/5044409/Fowlers-humourless-outburst-angers-Irish. Retrieved 25 October 2011. 

External links

• Sir Michael's personal website^{[dead link]}

Persondata
Name	Fowler, Michael
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Date of birth	19 December 1929
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