Did You Know?
Requiescat
Did you know that the painting which features in Chapter 10 of Humpty Doo and the Imperial Carousel – Requiescat by Briton Rivière – really exists?
It's at the Art Gallery of NSW in the 19th Century European art section.
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What do you think might happen if you went there, found Requiescat, and called Bruno?
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Real Time Stories
Did you know that the chapter A Real Time Story exists because of Flip's love of audiobooks and being read to?
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RMS
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Carpathia
Did you know that the Carpathian horse in Humpty Doo and the Imperial Carousel is named after the RMS Carpathia?
It was the first ship on the scene after The Titanic sank. It arrived two hours after the sinking. 705 Titanic survivors left the lifeboats and sought refuge on The Carpathia.
Clytie's Name
Did you know that Clytie's name changed four times during the writing of Humpty Doo and the Imperial Carousel?
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In chronological order, these are the cast-off names... Liberty, Clementine, Columbine, and Carbonel.
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In early drafts of Imperial Carousel, Clytie was American and spoke with a syrupy Southern accent.
The Goblin
Did you know that the goblin in Chapter 10 of Humpty Doo and the Imperial Carousel underwent several changes by illustrator Hanna Mancini before Flip settled on the final look?
The final look
Jelly Baby Guides
Did you know that the idea for jelly baby guides came about when Flip was navigating Ireland in a car with a map? Her mum was driving. This was before Google Maps and satnavs.
Flip found the roads and the map confusing and she thought to herself, 'Wouldn’t it be great if there was a jelly baby perched on the bonnet, pointing and showing us the way?'
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Cato's Name
Did you know that Cato is so-named after Flip's English cocker spaniel?
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One day, when Cato was off-leash at the dog park, he put his wet nose on the back of a man’s knee – a man who happened to be giving an outdoor Samurai sword lesson in shorts. The poor man leapt three feet in the air, taking his sword with him. His students dissolved laughing.
light the way
The idea for shell beacons came about because Flip loves things that glow in the dark.
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Jellyfish, luminous mushrooms, fireflies, glow worms, anglerfish - there are lots of things in nature that glow naturally.
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If you lose your way in Humpty Doo, all you have to do is find a shell beacon and a jelly baby guide will pop out and take you wherever you want.
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Because shell beacons glow 24/7, they're easy to find. So, you can never really be lost. Isn't that comforting?
Comb jellyfish
Luminous mushrooms
Firefly
Greystanes
Did you know that the idea for the Greystanes celebration evolved after Flip had a dream in which her house was floating like a hot air balloon?
Fate No. 7
Did you know that the character Fate No. 7 was inspired by this painting?
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Girl Reading (1878)
by Charles Edward Perugini
The Puzzler
Chapter 10 of Humpty Doo and the Imperial Carousel... have you figured out who and what Jo is?
Lamingtons
Did you know that, although lamingtons are considered Australian, it's not clear who invented them?
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Many think it was Lord Lamington's French-born chef, Armand Galland. What is known is that Lord Lamington disliked the taste of lamingtons and called them "woolly biscuits."
Butler Birds
Have you ever seen a bird sitting on a horse?
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This is how the idea for butler birds came about.
Here are some of Hanna's
butler bird experiments.
And here's the finished illustration.
Carpy
The first time Hanna drew Carpy, Flip thought she was a bit tame-looking. Hanna agreed that the horse she'd drawn was "too fabulous" (her words).
Flip asked Hanna to make Carpy look more dishevelled. She nailed it.
Sugarloaf Bob
Did you know that Sugarloaf Bob who is mentioned in chapter 6 of Humpty Doo and the Imperial Carousel is a nod to Greyfriars Bobby?
An Irregularity
Page 138 of Humpty Doo and the Imperial Carousel... what do you think Koaly did to prompt the departure of his confidante? And why won't Bohemia talk about it?
Postie Life
Did you know that Flip worked as a postie for three years? She delivered round number 5160. That's how Vault 5160 got its name.
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Round 5160 was 10kms long. Delivery took approximately four hours. So, Flip walked about 20,000 steps per day, Monday to Friday.
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A fun part of the job was seeing all the different dogs. One dog - Leon - belonged to a shopkeeper. The shop was near some apartments. Leon would often sneak away from the shop and steal a tennis ball from one of the apartment garages. Then he'd run back to the shop with the ball in his mouth and hide it in his bed. Leon's frustrated owner was constantly returning balls.
One day wen Flip was delivering the mail in Waverley, NSW a ladybug went up her nostril.
Flip immediately blew her nose and the ladybug came out ALIVE.
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Flip told her team leader about it. Substantial teasing followed. Flip didn't mind, not even when the team leader brought it up in a safety briefing with the other posties.
