Sir Paul had lavished praise on Naufahu's debut directorial effort. Photo / File
Former Shortland Street actor Rene Naufahu has paid heartfelt tribute to Sir Paul Holmes on the one-year anniversary of the broadcaster's death.
Sir Paul died of cancer aged 62 on February 1 last year, with friends, fans and even foes praising the former radio and television host before and after his death.
That continued yesterday.
Naufahu wrote on his Facebook page Sir Paul's support for his directorial debut The Last Saint had been a "source of inspiration".
Sir Paul lavished praise on the project in his Herald on Sunday column after attending a read-through in 2010. The crime-drama struggled to get public funding but an early screening last week received a rave review from NZ Herald film critic Dominic Corry.
Corry called the "95 per cent complete" film, which is seeking Film Commission funding for post-production, a "modern Kiwi classic in the making".
Naufahu wrote in his tribute he knew Sir Paul had read the review "from the other side and watching my wonderful team with pride from above".
"I kept (your column) as a source of inspiration during the darkest days of the film's development, when we weren't getting any love from anyone ... you gave us courage with your words, mate. I hope we made you proud, kind Sir."
Newstalk ZB Saturday Morning host Jack Tame, who took over the show from Sir Paul seven weeks before the veteran broadcaster's death, spoke about his predecessor at the beginning and end of yesterday's show.
Sir Paul was supportive of him, although they did not know each other well, Tame said.
"I admired the man and his extraordinary talent and I know a lot of our listeners have been ZB listeners for decades, so Paul was a big part of their lives ... some of the messages we had through to the show today show that people miss him a lot."
Sir Paul's daughter Millie said the family did not want to comment yesterday.
Jussie Smollett was convicted of staging a hate crime in 2021.