Some things never change. Our cover story for May 1983 was about the horrors of being a business traveller who is also an anxious flyer. Boeing had released figures showing that one in every six adult Americans had aerophobia, and over several pages the phenomenon was examined, with
helpful advice offered alongside case studies. The tales are timeless, though thankfully, in the intervening 35 years, aviation safety has improved.
Another piece by Ian Wooldridge looked at how it might be possible to organise a work itinerary so you could “hit the high spots of the year’s sporting calendar” (Wooldridge was a well-respected Daily Mail sports journalist). It might be tempting to do this today with the FIFA World Cup in Moscow in 2018 and the Rugby World Cup in Tokyo in 2019, although the suggestion that one of the must-see sports events was bull fighting in Spain probably dates the piece.
Highlights
- Adverts An ad for BA’s Concorde, showing a bleary-eyed businessman: “So you’ve just saved £245 by not flying Concorde Mr Spearman, it’s obvious no one’s going to put anything over on you.”
- People Express The launch of the American airline was approaching, with the promise of a £99 (return) transatlantic fare.
- Corruption Poland’s economic crisis under communism was creating a scramble for dollars, and some entrepreneurial Poles were operating on the wrong side of the law. Communism lasted another six years in Poland.
- Private clubs Before the advent of Soho House and the Groucho, gentlemen’s clubs were indeed men-only, and used by businessmen on their London trips.
