BBC Radio 4 – Desert Island Discs

2. His father taught him that artwork ought to “shake you up”

Nick describes how his father, a instructor, educated him in artwork and literature. “He would take books out of my hand that he thought had been lower than and change them with one thing that had the identical physique rely however was extra fascinating… I might be studying some crappy crime novel and he would put Titus Andronicus, as an instance, by Shakespeare in my hand, as a result of it is a massively bloody play.”

He continues: “I feel my father loved taking me to issues that had been barely out of order, that I used to be slightly too younger to be seeing, that simply shook up what I considered issues… Once I was fairly younger, he used to take me to reveals by Barry Humphries [who performed as Dame Edna Everage], and I used to be solely 12. Now, what she is on TV is one factor, however a stay present is completely outrageous and I bear in mind simply being completely entranced. However he additionally took me to movie festivals the place there have been fairly grownup films; and he learn me the primary chapter of Lolita [by Vladimir Nabokov] and stated, ‘That is what literature is all about.’”

Nick thinks his father was introducing him to “the concept that artwork ought to shake you up, and may confront you and shock you and offend.”

3. His misbehaviour in school didn’t go unnoticed at house

Nick went to highschool in Wangaratta, Victoria, the place his father taught Maths and English, and his mom was a college librarian. His mother and father would typically discover him sitting outdoors the headmaster’s workplace. “I used to be only a troublemaker,” he remembers. “Outspoken at school, speaking again on a regular basis, a type of me-against-them feeling in the direction of the varsity on the whole, that resulted in me getting kicked out.”

He says, “I simply by no means actually appreciated to be instructed what to do, and learn how to behave, and what to sing, and what to play and all of this kind of stuff. And I feel this very a lot carries on to this present day. I discover that basically sticks in my craw.”

4. His transfer to London prompted some heartfelt letters again house

Nick moved to London in 1980, not lengthy after the demise of his father, along with his band The Birthday Celebration. At the moment he lived in a bedsit in Earl’s Courtroom along with his fellow band members and their girlfriends. He says he downplayed their dwelling circumstances within the letters he wrote to his mom.

“She died throughout COVID and after we had been going via her issues, I discovered this field that my mom had saved of my letters to her from Earl’s Courtroom. There have been 100 of them and so they had been lengthy. If I used to be getting these letters as a guardian, I might freak. I used to be desperately making an attempt to cover the scenario that I used to be in, which was fairly dire, behind what a very good time we’re all having over right here in London. And in addition asking them to please write to me. We couldn’t afford lengthy distance cellphone calls and so they had been unusually, weirdly loving, determined letters from throughout the ocean.”

However when she later visited, he was capable of give her slightly reassurance. He says “I opened up the NME and there was this little advert for [his band] The Birthday Celebration that had a gig someplace, and my mom noticed that and [there was] simply this look of reduction on her face that [said], ‘Okay, that is really not simply one thing in my creativeness.’ In order that was a beautiful second.”