The criticism stung because by this stage Ron and Valerie had renounced spearfishing and were fiercely committed to marine conservation. It was at the Australian Spearfishing Championship in Queensland in 1969 that the pair had an epiphany. “We looked at all these beautiful tropical fish lying on the beach waiting to be weighed in, and I thought, 'What have we done?’ Ron said to me, 'This is terrible. We’re making a living filming beautiful marine animals and then for sport we’re killing them.’” They won the competition but never fished again, instead using their celebrity status to raise awareness. “I was young and beautiful and had long blonde hair, and I’d jump into the sea with any animal and do anything, so I was very successful in the field of conservation,” Valerie says, wryly.