Kate Rowe

Kate Rose Life has been full of adventure.

and hard living, ever since she stepped off the boat at Circular Quay as a 20-something, 10-pound pom.

Kate travelled around Australia picking tobacco and hitchhiking and spent her weekends running riot in King's Cross.

Then in 1974, she tagged along with some random guys she met who wanted to walk across the island of Timor.

And so they did, just as all the turmoil there was about to break out.

From there, Kate ventured into Southeast Asia, coming up with a lunatic idea to smuggle bricks of cannabis out of Thailand into Nepal.

But everywhere she went, she brought herself along with her.

All kinds of baggage from her early life came along for the wild ride.

But eventually a cloud lifted and Kate realised something absolutely huge and significant about herself.

Now, just to let you know, there are some distressing episodes in Kate's story and some unavoidable strong language.

So to put it on the airwaves, I might have to drop the levels here and now, starting right here, because Kate's memoir is called How the Fuck Would I Know?

Hello, Kate.

Good to meet you, Richard.

Where was home for you in most of your childhood?

Where did your family fit into the wonderful British class system as it was back then?

How big was the family?

Were you kids close, the four of you?

When you're in that kind of environment, bright kids like to find a little escape place they can go to.

Was there a place like that for you anywhere in Putney?

You could go and sort of be on your own and be in your own mind?