In 1977, after becoming a sensation in the Australian media following his harrowing ordeal in the Outback, Ansell met Joanne van Os, 22, a radio operator originally from Melbourne who was then working at the remote Aboriginal community of Wadeye. The two fell in love and married, having two sons: Callum (born 1979) and Shawn (born 1981). The family spent much of their early years living "under just a canvass sheet." With no electricity or running water, they cooked by campfire and communicated by radio.