Sep 15, 2020
The year is 2505. The oceans have risen. A new era of piracy has dawned…Justin Somper’s vision of a future world in the bestselling Vampirates books has been very much influenced by his passion for Australia, which has lead to much exploring and also even his recent wedding on the beach. In the rain. As well as Australia we talk New York’s Studio 54 and Broadway, Washington DC’s homophobic hostel owner, the surrealness of Bangkok, hanging out with Isla Fisher in London and so much more.
On this episode we cover:
Almost getting stuck down under for lockdown
Marrying his now husband in Perth, Australia in early 2020
Torrential rain for the beach wedding on the Margaret River
Lisa ballooning over outer Melbourne fields at sunrise
The beautiful atmosphere and landscapes of Australian wineries
When everyone was obsessed with Home and Away and Neighbours
Hanging out with Isla Fisher in London
Finding Australian forthright personalities particularly attractive
The book Cloud Street (set in Perth in the 1960s) by Tim Winton
Bill Bryson’s Down Under (and the personal email Bill sent)
Perth’s beautiful botanic gardens
Visiting out back cattle ranch and sheep farms
Sheep shearing being a great way to learn how to cut hair
New York feeling super energised
The excitement of Broadway shows
Wanting to time travel back to the glory days of Studio 54 (on roller skates)
New York being best seen by foot
Falling asleep in a Katie Holmes show
The surreal nature of Bangkok
Looking for the sense of difference when travelling
But places being homogenised by worldwide brands
Lisa’s favourite restaurant in Bangkok, run by Australians
(It’s still there! Yay) Travel as a gay man
Being thrown out of a hostel in Washington DC
The Vampirates books being published in 35 countries around the world
But some of these countries being somewhere he wouldn’t feel comfortable going
Prejudice for gay people in Russia, Brazil and the Emirates
His books being for older school children upwards
Setting the books 500 years in the future with a lot less land and a lot more water
A huge coincidence during the magical sunset tour of Uluru
Familiar and unexpected faces Greek Islands
‘Living to eat’, particularly when travelling
The best fish restaurant in Tasmania
The Neverending Summer riverside restaurant in Bangkok
Thai food’s amazing tastes
New Year’s Eve in Krabi, Thailand
How sometimes you need a pause in tastes
The brilliant Crowded House