How did the round the world trip go?

It was absolutely fantastic! It was really hard work, but there's no doubt in all of our minds that it was worth it. One of the best bits about it as far as I was concerned, was that we even got to go to a couple of places we've never visited before, which was great. We saw Cape Town and Rio, they were both really interesting! Unfortunately we didn't have much time to look around.

Were you completey knackered?

Oh yes! We were exhausted by the end of it! Luckily we had Thanksgiving weekend right after the tour had finished, so we got some rest then. But it didn't last long - we're back working now, rehearsing for the tour, which we're really excited about.

Why were you hanging out with Melissa Joan Hart in Sydney?

She's been a friend of mine for quite a while, we get on really well, and when we were out in Australia, we bumped into her. She was out there filming and it was a really nice surprise to see her there!

Have you been getting much drum practice in?

Sadly, I haven't been practising as much as I'd like recently. Once we get back on the road I'll get a chance to be around more musicians, and that really helps.

Howie mentioned you'd put a rock band together - how's it going?

Well I was working with a band - but I'm not actually in it! It's just a group I'm working with. It's going fine, no real news with a single or anything! I'll keep y'all posted!

What was the last concert you went to?

Awww, it was great - I went to see my brother, Aaron's show at an American event called the Wesbury Music Fair. He had no idea I was coming along, so it was all a big surprise, which was nice! I try and go to concerts as much as I can, but it's difficult...

Do you get hassled when you go to see other artists?

That's part of the problem of going to concerts, really. I guess it's one of the reasons I don't see as many as I'd like. I do get hassled even though I try to be low key as much as possible. It's just really hard to relax, because I alwasy feel like people are watching me, which can be a little creepy sometimes.

What's in your CD player at the moment?

It's a compilation of songs from the 80s which is my favourite period for music. The one I'm listening to right now is by a band called Men At Work, who are from Australia. I love that kind of thing!

Do you make up your own mini-discs/tapes?

I'd love to say I did, but usually I just buy finished ones. I used to when I was younger, and had more time, but not any more! If I did make one, it'd be an ultimate 80s mixture - that'd be perfect!

When was the last time you went into a record shop?

I remember this exactly - it was last year, on Nov 21, right when B&B came out in the states. We were in NY doing a press conference, and when it was over we surprised everyone by walking right into Virgin Records on Broadway to check out our new CD! The staff and all the customers completely freaked out 'caus it was totally unplanned! It was mayhem!

We've heard you've recently bought a house?

Yeah it was about 4 months ago, I moved to the Keys. It's a lovely house right on the ocean, and I'm so excited that I've got a real home finally sorted out. It's my dream place. It has its own private beach so I can go out on my boat whenever I'm home.

Have you had a chance to decorate it yet?

No I've only been back home a few times since I bought it. My mum does all that kind of stuff! I didn't even pick the colours or anything. I just left it all up to her, she's got good taste.

Have you had much time to hang out in it yet?

Actually, I've been really lucky and had a fair bit of time over the last year or so - it's been great! But that's all going to change with the upcoming tour! I'll have to say farewell to lounging out around the house for a while! But it'll be worth it...

You've been talking about it for yonks, but will you ever record with Aaron?

Well, to be honest, Aaron's doing pretty well without me! But you never know do you? I guess I would like to one day.

Have you got yourself a new girlfriend yet?

No, right now I am concentrating 100% on my music, the tour, and the whole of my career. But again, you just never know when you might meet someone special, so even though I'm not looking, I can't say anything for definite.

Do you miss having someone to go home to or phone up when you're down?

Of course I do but I have friends outside the group who I'm close to, which makes me feel really lucky. Plus the other guys are the people I'm closest to, since we've pretty much grown up together. I'm not saying it wouldn't be nice to have a girlfriend, just that I have plenty of good friends I can talk to.

When was your last night out with 'the lads'?

We had a lot of nights out during our last trip to Europe - particularly the night out we had after the MTV Europe Awards in Stockholm. Now that was a party! (Laughs for about a decade!)

You seem to have really matured recently, are you happier with the Nick Carter you are now than, say, 2 years ago?

I think everyone gets a little more comfortable with themselves as they get older, and yes, I think that's true of me, too. Still I know it's not a normal life I lead, and although I am happy within myself, there are bits of my life that I am still unsure of . Like sometimes I love the attention I get, other times I hate it, if you know what I mean?

What was the last thing that had you rolling around laughing?

One of our security guys has always sworn that he would never, ever dance with us in a club, and recently we finally made him do it! We were all just cracking up, but I guess you had to be there!

What one tip would you give a 12/13 year old who was considering joining a band?

I'd just tell him to be sure he looks after himself. I got pushed around a bit when I was younger. Thankfully I've learned that you don't have to let anyone take advantage of you and it's all ok now. But you've got to watch that when you're younger.

Now you're one of the world's biggest groups do you travel around in your own private BSB jet?

Why waste all that money? It's way too expensive and we don't need to do that, when we're going on long flights we just travel business class or first class just so we can rest!