Ipswich legend Terry Butcher on son’s death and film

Terry Butcher admitted he felt “nervous” ahead of the premiere at King Street Cinema in Ipswich on Friday night.

The film charts his rise through football, his family life and the devastating loss of his son Christopher following his experiences serving in Afghanistan.

Butcher said the documentary was never intended to focus solely on his achievements in the game, but instead to use his platform to raise awareness of mental health issues.

Terry Butcher (Image: TazzyBro Photography)

“It’s not about me, it’s about the football,” he said. “The football enabled me to do lots of things, but also put me at the forefront rather than behind.

“Say there’s someone out there who has had the same problems as I had with my son — they wouldn’t get the cover and publicity. But football has given me a platform where I can now speak out not about football, but about something really serious.”

The 67-year-old said revisiting both the highs of his career and the lows of his personal life proved deeply emotional, which left the cinema in tears following the screening.

“They’re both very emotional periods of my life,” he said. “You cry when Ipswich got relegated in 1986, you cry when England lost a World Cup semi-final, but there’s many more positives for us and me as a family in football.”

Terry Butcher and Jason Dozzell (Image: TazzyBro Photography)

He described the documentary as a “rollercoaster ride”, balancing footballing highs with personal tragedy, before focusing on the work now being done through Combat2Coffee.

The initiative, which supports veterans and their families, has become a major focus for Butcher. He hopes the film will encourage people to speak openly about their struggles.

“We want to help because we don’t want families to go through what we went through with Chris,” he said. “The secret for Combat2Coffee is to have a brew, have a coffee and then the conversation starts — and that’s exactly what we want.”

Butcher stressed that support is available not only for veterans, but for anyone struggling with their mental health.

Terry Butcher with his wife Rita and sons Alexander and Edward (Image: TazzyBro Photography)

“Even if they’re not in the military and they’re struggling, we can put them in touch — but they’ve got to speak out,” he added.

Director Stuart Burley, who has known the Butcher family since childhood, said making the documentary had been an emotional experience.

“It was a tricky one because Terry is someone I’ve known all my life, and Chris — we were the same age — so we knew each other as kids,” he said. “You don’t know what’s going to happen when you’re asking questions they’re not used to answering.”

He admitted he initially questioned whether the film was the right thing to do, given the painful memories it would revisit. However, he said Butcher and his wife Rita later described the process as “cathartic”.

John Grint, Terry Butcher, Nigel Seaman, Paul Hamilton and Stuart Burley (Image: TazzyBro Photography)

Terry Butcher and Louise Cobbold (Image: TazzyBro Photography)

Mr Burley also praised Butcher’s willingness to take part, despite his reluctance to talk about his own achievements.

“He absolutely hates talking about how good a footballer he was,” he said. “The only reason he wanted to do it was because of what he experienced with Chris — he wants to help people.”

Nigel Seaman, founder of Combat2Coffee and a close colleague of Butcher, said the former England defender had played a key role in helping veterans open up about the long-term effects of military service.

“What Terry’s done for me personally in my recovery has helped me,” he said. “He totally gets what I’ve been through and understands the message about the indirect effects mental health has on families.”

Terry Butcher (Image: TazzyBro Photography)

John Grint, Terry Butcher, Victoria Barrell, Robert Sarre and Stuart Burley (Image: TazzyBro Photography)

Mr Seaman added the documentary could play an important role in improving understanding of the challenges many veterans face long after returning home.

Paul Hamilton, whose company Halo helped fund the project, said the story was one that “needed to be told”.

He described Butcher as an inspirational figure and said the film highlights an issue that often lacks awareness, particularly the impact on families.

The documentary is expected to attract national attention ahead of the World Cup later this year, with Butcher hopeful it can make a difference.

“If it can help one person, then we’ve done something good,” he said.

The premiere was on Friday night at King Street Cinema (Image: TazzyBro Photography)