[William Darbyshire Home Movies: Reel 7]

William (Billy) Darbyshire (1903–1979) was a film enthusiast and traveller who emigrated with his parents from England to Australia in 1911. It may have been this early trip that influenced a young Billy to travel the world later in life and film his travels as he went.

First travelling to Africa for work and to various destinations whilst in service during WWII, Billy would continue to travel after the war throughout Asia, Europe, Africa, the Pacific and North America. It was in this period, during the 1960s, that he purchased an 8mm movie camera which resulted in a collection of films that capture his travels, taking in the sites of the world from Asia to Europe and Africa to the Americas.

The films were originally made using Standard 8mm film. The quality of the film can be a little challenging as it is jumpy, damaged and scratched at times.

In this film, Billy travels to Japan, Tahiti, New York and Funchal in Portugal. A feature of the film is a glimpse of what appears to be the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York when under construction.

Selected highlights list:
00:00:03:00 a busy scene of junks sailing around a harbour, likely to be in Japan
00:00:30:00 for a large passenger ship being welcomed to port by a military band and Japanese geishas in costume
00:00:53:00 street scenes of a Japanese town, pagodas and historic buildings
00:01:43:00 a statue of an imposing looking man atop a rock formation
00:02:00:00 views of temples, traditional buildings and gardens
00:03:20:00 views of waterways, boats, ships, hills, some snow, and pagodas
00:06:20:00 view across the sea to some picturesque mountains in the background
00:07:37:00 some townhouses along the shoreline
00:08:01:00 a large passenger ship at a dock
00:08:38:00 the Stature of Liberty appears followed by the New York skyline
00:09:39:00 views of New York buildings including a glimpse of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center during construction
00:09:55:00 a harbour view with ferries and piers and the Empire State Building in the background
00:11:20:00 a large tugboat chugs across the water
00:11:38:00 passengers on board a ship deck
00:13:28:00 Billy’s friends or relatives smile at the camera in a garden
00:14:29:00 a ship in port with some great cars of the era in the foreground
00:15:11:00 a public square and fountain, possibly in Portugal
00:16:26:00 decorative fishing boats being loaded in a port