Biography
The Volcano Cafe and Lava Bar at 42 London Street were, by the time the 2011 earthquake took them, the most recognisable landmarks on Lyttelton’s main street. Their blue and yellow facades had defined the look of London Street for over two decades. Owners Lois Ogilvie and Pete Llewellyn Evans ran the businesses for 23 years — from 1988 until the February 2011 earthquake made the buildings irreparable.
In that time the Volcano Cafe and Lava Bar became the social and creative heart of Lyttelton’s arts community, a gathering place for musicians, writers, and artists drawn to the port town’s alternative character. Prominent painter Bill Hammond was a regular at the Lava Bar, contributing artwork to the interior decor and designing a celebrated 1994 poster featuring volcanoes, guitar-playing skeletons, and the word LAVA — a piece that captures the venue’s atmosphere perfectly.
RNZ’s Spectrum programme documented the Volcano Cafe’s history in July 2011, with Ogilvie and Evans recalling the personalities, regulars, and the “personality waiter” who had defined the place across a generation. The site was subsequently demolished, briefly occupied by the PortHole Bar — a temporary structure of shipping containers and corrugated iron — before becoming Forty Two restaurant.
Details
Also known as: –
Location: 42 London Street, Lyttelton
London Street, Lyttelton, Banks Peninsula Community, Christchurch City, Canterbury, 8082, New Zealand
Current Status: Demolished post-earthquake. Site now occupied by Forty Two, a small restaurant in a refurbished shipping container.
Active as a live music venue: 1988 – 2011
History
- 1988: Volcano Cafe and Lava Bar open at 42 London Street, Lyttelton, run by Lois Ogilvie and Pete Llewellyn Evans.
- 1994: Bill Hammond designs the celebrated LAVA poster — volcanoes, guitar-playing skeletons — for the venue.
- 22 February 2011: Damaged in the Canterbury Earthquake and forced to close after 23 years.
- Post-2011: Site demolished, briefly occupied by the PortHole Bar (shipping container), later replaced by Forty Two restaurant.
Links
- The Volcano Cafe — RNZ Spectrum, July 2011
- Volcano Cafe photos — DiscoveryWall
- Forty Two – current site tenants