NEPTUNE IN RETROGRADE
As the hazy mid-afternoon sun illuminates Rainbow Bay on the southern Gold Coast, I wander up to the fuss unfolding around Cody Simpson. The group of people working around him – photographers, stylists, and manager – hasn’t yet noticed me. But as he clambers over the railing beneath a lifeguard tower, Simpson’s gaze meets mine, and he shoots me a wry smile. A moment passes before he catches my eye again, and this time his smile broadens. I see the penny drop. “How good is this weather?” beams Simpson, nodding my way. The group, hitherto absorbed in their tasks, now turn to take in the splendour of their surroundings. “Pretty pictureperfect, huh?”
Simpson’s not wrong. As the group disperses for a break, he leans in for a firm handshake – with a limb I know can seriously disperse water – and we begin to walk. He tells me it already feels like it’s been a long day – his began with a dawn yoga session and a training session in the pool, before he spent the last three hours in unforgiving sun chasing perfect pixel placement. You or I might be ready for a nap or at least seek a comfortable spot to lounge away from the heat of the sun. Not Simpson, though.
“My itinerary at the moment is pretty hectic,” he says. “I’m always on the go. Stuff always going on.” By stuff he means the 16 separate workout sessions he does each week. “First thing tomorrow morning – before training even begins – I have a steroid shot in my shoulder to look forward to,” he laughs.
Sporting a deep cinnamon tan, muscled arms and that imperious jawline, Simpson fits this golden afternoon to a tee. The months
