For a man who had spent decades socialising with the Kardashians and other members of the Hollywood A-list, celebrity photographer Russell James could have been forgiven for being underwhelmed by the company at the Perth dinner he had found himself with.

It was 2021, and James, sporting long blond hair, had returned from the United States and found himself working for Chris Ellison. There he was, at Lamont’s Wine Store in Cottesloe, on the other side of the table from his billionaire employer and former foreign minister Julie Bishop, at the time an ambassador for Ellison’s Mineral Resources. Beside her was Paul Rider Boon, a Broome didgeridoo player who goes by the stage name Groovylips.