In this week’s episode of the Twin Perspective Podcast series, we leave the confines of our desk and head to the slightly intimidating offices of The Independent, to meet travel writer and presenter, Simon Calder. Having been fans of his work for as long as we can remember, meeting and interviewing Simon was a true highlight of our travel blogging ‘career’.
A former mathematician, Simon is a man with an uncanny ability to reduce the subject and trends of travel into digestible bite-size facts. For example, did you know that it’ll now take someone earning the national minimum wage just a morning’s work to buy a cheap flight to Europe? Or that in its heyday, printed travel content would equate to four telephone directories worth of paper from just the weekend supplements? No, neither did we.
A man of almost limitless travel knowledge, our hour with Simon was a fascinating one.
Over the course of the podcast, we touched upon the following subjects:
- How have you seen travel and tourism change over the course of your career?
- How has travel journalism changed over the course of your career?
- What are your views on travel bloggers? The good, the bad and the ugly!
- Do you think there’s space for both journalists and bloggers?
- What do you think a journalist could learn from a blogger?
- And what could a blogger learn from a journalist?
- What are your predictions for the future of travel?
- How seriously should we be adapting the way we travel to take into consideration environmental challenges and climate change?
- What are your predictions for the future of travel journalism?
- Do you have any tips for someone hoping to start a career as a travel journalist?
Recommended books by Simon for those interested in travel writing:
Listen on iTunes or stream below: