Billy T James - A Daughter's Story

Television (Full Length) – 1997

In this documentary Cherie James pays tribute to a legendary New Zealand entertainer, telling Billy T James' story from a daughter’s perspective. Fellow members of showband The Māori Volcanics share their memories, while family members reminisce about Billy's life growing up in the Waikato. Cherie provides her perspective on the well-publicised arguments that occurred after his death, and why it was so important for Billy to be buried beside his mother on sacred Mount Taupiri overlooking Huntly. Some of Billy's most famous characters are remembered, along with the resounding chime of his famous giggle.

I still think Dad's death casts a shadow over his memory. I’d like to change that, to shift the emphasis away from what happened when he died, to the kind of life he lived.
– Cherie James