Transformation of HK's PMQ: From historic building to creative landmark

Published : 2025-04-28

Author︰Huang Haoyi

Walking around Hong Kong's Central District, you will find that this prosperous commercial district not only features modern buildings, but also has many revitalised buildings that are worth a closer look.

Just a short distance from the Central Market and Tai Kwun stands PMQ (Police Married Quarters), whose premises previously housed a school and police dormitories. Now it has been revitalised into a thriving creative hub.

This transformation has become a quintessential example of breathing new life into heritage architecture.

PMQ was formerly police married quarters

The image shows Central School as viewed from Staunton Street, taken around the late 19th century.

View of the Central School from Hollywood Road, taken around late 19th century.

This is the school premises of Queen’s College located on Causeway Road in Causeway Bay, photographed in 1950.

Inside the underground exhibition gallery at PMQ, the granite foundation from the original Government Central School site can still be seen.

PMQ (元創方) is also known as "Police Married Quarters", which refers to its former identity as a dormitory for married police officers.

However, the story of PMQ should actually date back to the mid-19th century with Central School (中央書院).

In 1862, Central School was established on Gough Street (歌賦街) in Central. It was the first government-run public school in Hong Kong to offer primary and secondary education in a western style.

It provided Chinese students with opportunities to access modern Western Education. In 1884, Dr. Sun Yat-sen (孫中山) also studied at this school.

In 1889, Central School relocated to the intersection of Hollywood Road and Aberdeen Street, which is the current site of PMQ, and was renamed as Victoria College. In 1894, the school was renamed Queen's College.

In 1947, due to severe damage during the World War II, the school moved to a temporary campus on Kennedy Road. Subsequently, the government allocated land to build a new campus on Causeway Road (高士威道) in Causeway Bay, which opened in 1950 and has been in use since then.

Speaking of the campus on Hollywood Road, it was completely demolished in 1948. In 1951, it was rebuilt into two Police Married Quarters, with another building once used as a Junior Police Call Clubhouse (少年警訊會所).

Police Married Quarters on Hollywood Road was the first to provide residence for junior Chinese police officers and their families in Hong Kong, offering 140 one-bedroom and 28 two-bedroom units. The quarters also had a special "mission" to boost the morale of front-line police officers.

In the 2000s, the government intended to redevelop the quarters, so residents gradually moved out from 2000. However, no development plans were implemented afterward, leaving the site vacant.

Police Married Quarters was the lucky place for Leon Lai

In 2002, the empty Hollywood Road Police Married Quarters was the main filming location for the film “Three… Extremes: The Story” directed by Peter Chan Ho-sun.

During the several years that the Police Married Quarters was vacant, an unexpected Best Actor was born.

In 2002, Hong Kong director Peter Chan (陳可辛) utilised the police quarters as the main filming location for the horror story Going Home (《回家》), which was one of the three independent stories in the film Three (《三更》).

The story follows a police officer and single father who moves into an abandoned residence and encounters a neighbour—a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner who has been using TCM to preserve and try to revive his deceased wife for three years.

Leon Lai (黎明) portrays the lonely and indifferent Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor. His gaze filled with emotion as he looks at his deceased wife, demonstrating his deep, intense love for her. The film does not rely on dramatic outbursts but captivates the audience through a simple and lifelike approach.

Leon Lai's calm and restrained performance completely broke free from his idol image, showing a leap in acting skills.

Later, Coming Home was edited into a 50-minute version and independently released under the title Three: Going Home. For this film, Leon Lai won the Best Actor Award at Golden Horse Awards.

Police Married Quarters was revitalised into a creative hub

In 2014, the “1600 Pandas World Tour in Hong Kong: Creativity x Conservation” exhibition was held at “PMQ”.

In 2014, PMQ officially opened, injecting new vitality into the development of creative culture.

In 1889, the Government Central School moved to Hollywood Road and was renamed Victoria College.0

In 2009, the Former Police Married Quarters was included as one of the projects under "Conserving Central" (保育中環). In 2010, the quarters were classified as a Grade III Historic Building.

At the end of 2010, the operating right of PMQ was awarded to PMQ Management Co, Ltd, a non-profit-making social enterprise set up by the Musketeers Education and Culture Charitable Foundation Ltd., in collaboration with the Hong Kong Design Centre, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and Hong Kong Design Institute of the Vocational Training Council.

PMQ was positioned as an iconic creative centre to promote Hong Kong's creative culture development.

In 2014, PMQ was officially launched, bringing new vitality to the development of Hong Kong's creative culture, and providing an innovative platform for creatives, designers, and history enthusiasts.

By exploring PMQ, you can not only appreciate the profound history of the architecture itself but also visit numerous artists' studios and boutiques, experiencing their creative inspiration.