Experimental observations are presented on the light emission from the hollow cathode region of a pulsed hollow cathode discharge. A 2 mJ, 30 ns, 1.06 μm laser pulse incident on the back of the cathode is used to trigger the discharge. The temporal evolution of the light emission from this region is recorded in 50 nm spectral bands. Comparisons are made with the laser applied before and after the application of voltage across the discharge chamber. Clear experimental evidence is found of the importance of a transient volume hollow cathode process prior to gas breakdown in the main discharge region.