Josh Richards, Australia

This week on Aspiring Martians, Joe talks with Josh Richards — a physicist, former Australian Army and Royal Marine commando, cave diver, writer, and one of the most visible Mars One finalists.

Josh’s background is extraordinary: growing up in a military family, serving in multiple branches of the armed forces, and even turning to comedy as a way of processing the scars of service. In our conversation, he shares candidly about his PTSD, why he walked away from the military when it no longer felt meaningful, and how he found healing through storytelling, exploration, and a vision of humanity among the stars.

We cover everything from what it was like to grow up thinking space was out of reach for an Australian kid, to how a single song in a London flat reignited his childhood dream, to the philosophy that drives him to keep exploring — whether that’s signing up for Mars or crawling through flooded caves in South Australia.

This is a conversation about space, yes — but more than that, it’s about resilience, visibility, and what it means to keep moving forward after hardship.

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