Creativity on display at Lego show

Toddlers, octogenarians and all ages in between converged on ILT Stadium Southland in Invercargill at the weekend to see the creative Lego displays of the fifth annual Southland Brick Show.

As the event opened, there were queues of adults and children ready to see the displays by members of the Lego Users Group South.

Star Wars, the Taj Mahal, London Bridge, cities, and railway yards were alongside roller coasters and aeroplanes - there was little that had not been built by the members.

There were play pits with thousands and thousands of Lego pieces as well as Lego building races.

It started with one small Lego train set for Chris Dawson's yet-to-be-born child. That was five years ago, and it has never stopped. He was one of the exhibitors at the fifth Southland Brick Show. PHOTO: GIORDANO STOLLEY

Gavin Evans, secretary of the Lego Users Group South, said the show had been a hit - several thousand people had attended.

"The crowds seem happy with it. The exhibitors are getting really good feedback from the crowd. We've got exhibitors from as far away as Wellington and from probably as far south as Bluff. So we are going from all up this island into the next."

He said the youngest exhibitor was 7 years old and the oldest had recently celebrated his 80th birthday.

"We've got every age range there is. It doesn't matter how old you are - Lego is [a] thing you can do. If you've got fingers you can manipulate Lego bricks."

One exhibitor, Chris Dawson, was bought his first Lego train by his wife five years ago when the couple found out they were expecting their first child. It was something she had envisaged him playing with his future child.