It’s a chilly morning at their home in rural Victoria when Woman’s Day chats to Kevin and Janetta from Travel Guides – and, unsurprisingly, given their occupation, the TV faves are thinking of sunnier climes.
“The weather’s got to me down here,” says Janetta. “We want to move to Lake Macquarie, NSW, by the water.” They’ll be in good company, with their co-stars, the Fren family, just down the road in Newcastle.
“Yes!” says Kevin. “We’ve been up there several times to have a look around.”
Of course, after nine years on Travel Guides, Janetta, 73, and Kevin, 67, are used to being on the move…
You’ve been married 38 years this year!
Janetta: We’ve been married longer than the majority of the cast and crew on the show have been alive!
In 2027, it will be 40 years! Will you do a big trip to celebrate?
Kevin: Absolutely! It will not only be our 40th anniversary, it will also be my 70th.
We’re assuming it will be quite the extravaganza though….
Kevin: It will be! When we do a big trip, we usually pick out a nice cruise for maybe 20 days and then add some land content onto the beginning and the end.
Where will you go?
Kevin: Probably Europe.
Janetta: Our issue, of course, is we think we’re still 30 and then we realise we’re not, so we have to make adjustments (laughs).
Your co-stars the Fren family are the lovable bogans – what’s something they do that you would never do?
Kevin: Well, we don’t like buffets. They love their buffets. We prefer to see a meal the way the chef intended.
Janetta: Yeah, I want to see it plated. I don’t want it all slopped. But when they call us snobs, that’s a bit strange…
Kevin: We’re not snobs, we’re just old!
Have you ever clashed with producers over where they want you to stay?
Kevin: No. Sometimes we can be staying in a $3000 a night palace in India and the next an ashram for $5 a night.
Janetta: We haven’t clashed with the crew, but Kevin and I have clashed when we’re trying to pitch a tent or something and he won’t read the instructions!
Remember that time in WA, during season one?
Kevin: Oh, that was dreadful! We had to go camping. We hate camping! We have a hierarchy of C-words – and they start with camping, then cabins, caravans, cask wine and children on holidays! Speaking of on-camera fights, have you ever asked producers to take anything out of the final edit?
Kevin: No, we don’t have any say over the editing or post-production.
Janetta: When we went to Darwin, they asked us if we’d be happy to go naked on a beach. We thought about it and realised we’re closer to our death certificate than our birth certificate so let’s just give it a go. We said, “Just make sure they pixelate any hanging-down bits.”
38 years married this year – what’s the secret to your happy relationship?
Kevin: I always say, “Take the blame for everything and the credit for nothing.”
Janetta: That’s not very nice! It’s just being best friends and compromise. We don’t really have too many…
Kevin: Arguments!
Travel Guides is the dream job! But are there any downsides?
Kevin: Over the last nine years we’ve missed a lot of milestones – people’s weddings and birthdays because we travel between July and January.
How long do you see yourself staying on the show?
Janetta: As long as they keep asking! If it keeps going, it will have to be Travel Guides: The Zimmer Frame Edition!
Catch up on season 8 of Travel Guides on 9Now, with new episodes in June.
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
.png?resize=380%2C285)