- A Canterbury bach that hosted Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynskey during the filming of Heavenly Creatures is for sale.
- The owner recalled the stars bouncing on the bed, but the property wasn’t used for filming.
- The bach has attracted significant interest and is being sold “as is, where is”.
A Canterbury bach where Hollywood A-listers Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynskey bounced on the bed together has hit the market for sale.
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The holiday home at 12 Puari Road, in Port Levy, Banks Peninsula, hosted Sir Peter Jackson and his stars while he was making his Oscar-nominated film Heavenly Creatures.
The movie, a dramatization of the notorious 1954 New Zealand murder involving school girls Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme, was shot in and around the area in 1994, and memories of the production still linger.
The owner told OneRoof that she and her husband had been staying at the bach when the movie came to town. She remembers Sir Peter knocked on her door one morning and asked if he could bring Winslet, Lynskey and two other cast members to the property, which had been used by the real-life Hulme family.
The one-bedroom bach at 12 Puari Road, in Port Levy, is insured, but is being sold "as is where is". Photo / Supplied
Winslet and Lynskey jumped on the beds of the bach when they were in Port Levy filming Heavenly Creatures. Photo / Supplied
“Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynskey came and had a look and they said, ‘Oh, did they [Juliet and Pauline] sleep in these beds?’,” she told OneRoof.
“They were psyched up for the movie and they were bouncing up and down on the beds.”
She laughed: “My late husband liked to say that Kate Winslet was in his bed. That was his favourite thing to say.”
Sir Peter decided against filming at the property because he couldn’t get his camera gear in thanks to a large macrocarpa hedge that had been planted after the 1954 murder to stop people peering in.
The couple’s bach may have missed out, but their old motorboat managed to make the cut and can be seen bobbing in the water in one of the scenes at Port Levy.
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“We think we are famous because our boat was in it.”
The owner, who asked not to be named, also recalled helicopters landing in front of their house to take the stars up the hill. “It was an absolute big thing [for the bay].”
She and her husband bought the bach in 1984. They had been in the area visiting friends when they spotted a For Sale sign out front. “We saw the sign, had the money and bought it. It’s the best thing we have ever done,” she said.
The couple lived in Lyttelton so the bach was an easy 45-minute drive away. However, with the owner’s husband dying earlier this year, the trip out to the bach had become more difficult and so she made the tough decision to sell.
The bach, which was once used by the Hulme family, is a classic Kiwi holiday home. Photo / Supplied
Port Levy, including the jetty just metres from the house, features in Heavenly Creatures. Photo / Supplied
“It’s sad that it’s got to be sold, but my husband died and I just can’t get there anymore,” she told OneRoof.
Raine & Horne agent Kristian Danholt, who also has ties to the area, said the property had already attracted a lot of interest, with 27 groups attending the first open home.
“There’s been a lot of people that have looked at this property over the years. They’ve seen it as the property to have because it’s a waterfront on freehold.”
Danholt said the property was insured, but was being sold “as is, where is”. It had not really been used for about 10 years with the odd exception of family members staying there now and then.
The owner purchased it fully furnished 40 years ago and planned to resell it the same way, he said. “Everything is pretty original. It just needs a lot of tender love and care.”
Waterfront properties in Banks Peninsula rarely come up for sale, with families passing them down through the generations rather than selling, he said.
“I would not be surprised if it is bought by someone who already has a house over in Banks Peninsula. I’ve had a lot of enquiries in Lyttelton Harbour area.
“So far everyone who has come has said it is cute. A few have said they would flip it.”
- 12 Puari Road, in Port Levy, Banks Peninsula, is for sale, deadline closing January 16
