Story: Holmes, Paul Scott

In the public eye

Paul Holmes lies on a hospital gurney with a blanket covering the lower half of his body, with a nurse looking on.

Paul Holmes was one of New Zealand’s best-known celebrities throughout his television career, and his activities attracted considerable media interest. Holmes accepted publicity as a necessary and usually positive element of his career, though at times it could be intrusive and unwelcome. He sometimes used the media spotlight to advance causes close to his heart, such as talking publicly about his treatment for prostate cancer to raise awareness of the illness. He’s pictured here undergoing radiotherapy in March 2000. He later used his public profile to demand political action to fight the proliferation of methamphetamine in the community, a problem which directly affected his own family. 

Using this item

Stuff Limited
by Phil Doyle

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How to cite this page:

Tim Shoebridge. 'Holmes, Paul Scott', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 2022. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/6h15/holmes-paul-scott (accessed 14 May 2024)