Wiggles Founder, Anthony Field Shares Personal Insight During ‘Good Reading Magazine Blog’ Interview
Q & A With Anthony Field
Good Reading Magazine Blog
March 27, 2012
Anthony Field is the creator and a founding member of the global phenomenon that is The Wiggles. Born in 1963 the youngest of seven children, he grew up in Sydney’s western suburbs. Anthony and his brothers Paul and John and purple Wiggle Jeff were members of the ′80s chart topping group The Cockroaches.
For the first time, Anthony tells his inspiring, behind-the-scenes story of how he overcame depression, life-threatening illness and chronic pain to get his life back.
Q: What were some of your favourite books when you were growing up?
Anthony: Well I would have to say Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl and The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith by Thomas Keneally.
Q: As the blue Wiggle, you obviously lead a pretty busy life. What books do you like to read to wind down and relax?
Anthony: Meditation books by Jean Vanier, my fave would be The Broken Body. I love biographies too.
Q: Are there any particular moments in your extensive career that stand out above the rest?
Anthony: The first few years, when we were loading in the PA system, driving ourselves miles and miles to do a show, playing ourselves and the characters, meeting people who had never heard of us, it was all very exciting.
Q: What books do you and your children like to read together?
Anthony: Well they are still very young, but they love Anthony Browne picture books and my oldest, Lucia, 8, loves ‘Ripley’s Believe It or Not!’ books.
Q: What can you tell us about your new book ‘How I got my Wiggle Back’? What led to its creation?
How I Got My Wiggle Back
Anthony: I was so thankful to the health professionals who saved my life and inspired me to work to become pain free. I wanted to produce a book which showed the world some natural cures and thanked these great healers.
Q: What would you like your readers to take away from How I got my Wiggle Back?
Anthony: That good health and a pain free existence are available to most people naturally. Yes you have to work at it, and yes you have to make lifestyle changes, but it will be worth it.
Q: How I got my Wiggle Back is quite a revealing and yet inspiring look into your personal struggles. What challenges did you face while writing your book?
Anthony: I couldn’t and wouldn’t delve too far back into some painful times, which I think really contributed to my clinical depression in later life.
Q: Who would you say have been the most inspirational people in your life?
Anthony: My parents, my fellow Wiggles, the doctors in the book and lately, famous Greek photographer Spiros Poros, whom has taken me under his wing and really helped me see things in a real Greek philosophical way.
Q: Can we expect another book in the future?
Anthony: I would love to write a book about some of the fun and inspiring people we have met on the road in the last 21 years, some funny stories, heart-warming stories and sadly some heartbreaking ones involving children with terrible diseases.
Q: Do you have any advice that you would like to offer to your readers?
Anthony: Health and happiness are attainable and yet they can be transient. Natural is best in diet and exercise. Take the steps, educate yourself on how our marvelous bodies work, respect your bodies and give them the best fuel and lots of rest. Enjoy life and love.
