David Glasheen abandoned civilisation and moved to Restoration Island, a tiny landmass off North East Australias most remote peninsula, in May 1997 after losing his fortune in the stock exchange crash of 1987.
Heaven on Earth
The ex-businessman and property magnate, who at his most successful was worth an estimated 8.4 million, was feeling deserted on the mainland and looking for an excuse to leave. Glasheen walked away from his life and became Australia’s real life Robinson Crusoe. He now lives in a wooden beach shack with only loyal pooch Polly for company after his first dog Quassi was killed by a deadly taipan snake in 2015. But despite having limited electricity, fresh water and internet and facing regular battles against Australia’s deadly wildlife and unforgiving elements, the bearded exile insists there is nowhere he’d rather be than marooned on his ‘heaven on earth’ natural paradise.
Over the last two decades he has renovated a World War II outpost into a livable home, complete with solar power and internet. It’s an hour’s boat ride to the mainland for groceries, a trip he makes just a few times a year—he grows his own vegetables and catches fresh crabs and fish. He’s hosted numerous visitors, including Russell Crowe, who once moored his yacht and stayed for dinner.
He still plays the stock market
Glasheen says the best part of becoming a hermit has been the peace. “Restoration Island is a good name,” he said. “It’s restored me personally, in every which way.”
But despite his seemingly remote situation, he has internet access, a mobile phone — and even plays the stock market.
