Events on this Day – 5 February

The 27-km line between Invercargill and Bluff was the third public railway in New Zealand. Southland's railway ambitions helped drive the province into bankruptcy.

Pioneering aviator Vivian Walsh took to the skies over South Auckland for the first successful flight in New Zealand.

The Big Day Out, an Australian franchise based on the successful Lollapalooza model, brought alternative, hard rock, hip hop and, more recently, dance acts together in a one-day festival in Auckland.