E. Van Johnson – EWN Interview

Having lived and worked in 38 countries alongside international celebrities E.Van Johnson now lives in Mallorca and writes novels. Nicole Hallett reports.

What did you want to be when you were 10?

A deep sea trawler man; based on memories of holidays fishing off Iceland.

Interesting jobs?

Naval officer; oil company sub-sea consultant; author; business owner; musician; actor; stunt man. Appeared In British TV series including Z cars, Moonstrike, Arthur Haynes show Casualty and Crossroads alongside many stars including Michael Cain, Roger Moore and Brian Blessed. In films including The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, The Magnificent Showman (starring John Wayne) and The Thin Red Line (Kerin Moore).

Musically worked with jazz guitarist Diz Disley, met the Beatles, Jimmy Page, Paul Simon, Mick Jagger plus jazz band leaders including Humphrey Littleton and Christ Barber.

What are your two books about?

‘Dead Men Make the Best Heroes’, published last November is set against the background of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Soon to be released, ‘Transported for Life’ is a historical romance set against the first Convict Fleet carrying prisoners from England to Australia in 1778.

When not working on a book what do you do?

Run a Creative Writers Group for ESRA and sing and play guitar.

Future novels?

Yes, two. One parallels the 1850 doomed Franklyn expedition to find the North West Passage and the set in the 1700s and follows the development of an orphan boy press ganged into the navy who rises to the rank of captain at the time of Trafalgar.

Positives and negatives of life in Spain?

Adore the people, easy pace of life, Mediterranean diet and weather. Dislike lack of realisation of how much the expat community contributes to Spanish economy.