The story of Michael Peterson, told again, but this
time by those who knew him best.
It’s a slow morning in Byron Bay and of all the
issues Sean Doherty might’ve expected to come across in that part
of the world, finding someone to surf with probably wasn’t one of
them.
In town to spruik his latest book, MP Untold, at the
Readers and Writers Festival, Doherty’s ran through the list and
came up empty…which given the current climate, might be a good
thing.
“When you see an empty line up anywhere around here you know
something’s wrong,” says Doherty. “I think this shark business
has finally gotten to everyone. Everyone I’ve spoken to has either
seen one or knows someone who has and is opting out; it’s pretty
heavy.”
Of course, Doherty and his solid body of work need little in the
way of spruiking, but shortly after the release of the brilliant,
MP, The Life of Michael Peterson, the former
Tracks editor realised there was a whole other side of
MP’s story left untapped.
“I realised I fell into the trap of shaping MP’s story around
the guys he surfed against as opposed the guys he hung out
with,” he says. “Those were the guys he really felt at ease
with and as it turns out, they were also the guys who were willing
to keep his secrets.”
Indeed, it was a time where famous surfers could breeze into
town; go about their business, whatever it may be, and leave,
without even their mothers knowing where they’d been.
“It’s quite the juxtaposition to today’s scenario where just
about every movement is mapped which is in part why the legend of
MP grew to what it did,” Doherty says. “So it was a matter of
following the breadcrumbs Michael had left and scooping up the
little anecdotes.”
With the bullshit radar finely tuned, Doherty set about
gathering the “little anecdotes” and presenting them as a series of
first-person narratives, accompanied by a treasure trove of unseen
photos.
“I found the people were a bit too willing to interject
themselves into the story were perhaps stretching the truth a
little,” says Doherty. “The guys who really struggled to offer
up the stories; that’s where the gold was.”
Despite the success of the first book and the early positive
response to the MP Untold, Doherty says there are
“absolutely” no plans for a third instalment.
“Nah. I can rule that out entirely,” says Doherty. “I think
I’ve exhausted that treasure trove, though the first book was
optioned to be made into a film, so I’d like to see where that ends
up.”
Which of course begs the question, who would the robust and
highly efficient penman like to see cast as MP.
“The guy was a bit of a specimen, so it’d be along the lines of
someone like Dave Rastovich,” says Doherty. “But if you ask
Mrs MP, she’s shopping at the top end of town. She’s of the opinion
Brad Pitt would fill the role quite nicely.”
Buy MP: Untold here… (it costs a little
under 30 shekels).
