A public memorial for James Valentine was held today at Sydney Town Hall, with attendance limited to people who registered in advance. The service was broadcast on 702 ABC Sydney, bringing listeners across the city into the farewell for the ABC Sydney radio host, author and musician who died last month aged 64 after a two-year battle with cancer.
Richard Glover hosted the memorial after working alongside Valentine on the airwaves for 25 years. That long partnership gave the ceremony a personal edge, and it came after days of warm tributes from fellow broadcasters and ABC Radio listeners who remembered his voice as part of the daily rhythm of Sydney.
Valentine’s death in April followed a terminal diagnosis he said he received earlier this year, and he had already made clear he wanted the time that remained to be filled with joy rather than anger. Earlier this month, in an Australian Story episode, he said he wanted his last days to be full of joy and laughter. He told viewers, “This is a gift that I can take with me into these next months, which are going to be tough,” and added, “This is nourishment for my soul, which I’m getting from you today. So thank you.”
That outlook was on display at his living wake on Valentine’s Day, when 180 guests gathered at Clovelly Surf Life Saving Club at his invitation. He had urged them to bring stories of stupid things they had done together or adventures they had shared, turning what might have been a sombre gathering into something closer to a celebration. He said he had started to think about death as a time when people often fall into bitterness, anger or regret, but that he did not want that for himself.
The detail that stayed with many listeners was not simply that Valentine faced illness with clarity, but that he kept trying to shape the atmosphere around him even as the end drew near. Julie Sloan, one of the people who spoke about him, said his joy gave her strength on long afternoons when she was home with young children and no family nearby. She said he lifted what could be tedious housekeeping and childcare into something brighter and more expansive. That is why today’s memorial mattered beyond the usual public farewell: it marked the end of a voice that had become part of Sydney life, and it answered the question left by his final months. Valentine chose laughter, and those who knew him — or simply listened — came together to send him off in that spirit.
