Jul 2, 2019
With the publishing phenomenon of The Rosie Project and follow-up The Rosie Effect having sold over 5 million copies worldwide, the final of Graeme Simsion’s trilogy, The Rosie Result, is out now. There’s a proposed Hollywood adaptation in the works and even Bill Gates is even a fan. Travel is an integral part of all Graeme’s stories whether that’s rural France, his native Melbourne, a cosy house in Norwich or a grey day in Manchester. A lively and engaging conversation with this best-selling Australian author.
On this episode we cover:
The Rosie Project
Two Steps Forward – his book charting the Camino de Santiago de Compostela
His most recent book, The Rosie Result
Comedic but heartfelt subjects
Selling over 5 million copies worldwide
The different routes through Europe to France and Spain to the Camino de Santiago
Finding the scallop-shaped symbol tracks to the Camino
Walking from central France over 2000km over 87 days
Getting their ‘walking passports’ stamped
‘You’ll get blisters, the walk will change you’ and crying when arriving at the Cathedral
The 19 year old Belgian who suggested they write the book the together (with Anne his wife)
Walking the Camino again along the Camino Frances
‘Finding a woman to sleep with’ from Catholics taking in pilgrims
Can you help us find the Belgian guy…? He’s Mattias the mysterious Belgian who walked the Camino in 2011, starting in Switzerland
Being born in New Zealand but moving to Australia age 12
Drawing from life for inspiration for his books
The Norwich (England) house that inspired one of his stories
…owned by Emma Healey – author of Elizabeth is Missing
The size of Australian houses compared to English ones
Having a washing machine upstairs!
Living in inner city Melbourne
Melbourne being one of the world’s most liveable cities
His father chief planner for Melbourne
The Botanic Gardens and the Myer Music Bowl
‘Sydney has the harbour and Melbourne has the culture’
Travelling with the book - Poland, Hungary, India, Bhutan and more
Loving turning left when you go onto a plane
Bhutan’s dramatic mountains and the tricky airport landing
Seeing Mount Everest from the air
The beautiful house they bought in southern Burgundy in France (instead of Italy)
Adventurer Alistair Humphreys on the Big Travel Podcast
Laurie Lee’s As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning
Writing and collaborating with his wife Anne in their French house
With a glass of wine in the evening
The colourful characters encountered in French villages
Using these locations in his books
The bleakness of Manchester in the winter
The wonderful story of Adam Sharp’s ménage a trois in Franc
Plenty of ‘Trangressive sex’!
The great lesson he’s learned from travelling around the US
The taxi driver in Pocatello Idaho on the way to see Bob Dylan
Feeling physically threatened in Morocco
Being pushed around in Paris
How Carol Shields The Stone Diaries inspired him to ditch corporate life
How life can change in an instant
The quintessential, memorable hiking moment with a ukulele