Diary – 1 November 2003

I was as excited as a kid going to Disneyland to be invited on Concorde’s last flight from New York to London. I’ve always regarded it as one of Britain’s greatest ambassadors, and we considered that being a part of its final journey was too important a historic event to miss. Percy and I thus arrived at a darkened and seemingly deserted JFK airport at 6 a.m. for a 7 a.m. flight. Are we the first?, I inquired of the charming special services representative. ‘No, you’re the last,’ was the reply. ‘The party’s been going for hours.’ We checked in without luggage, which for me is itself a historic event, but I still managed to pocket a couple of Concorde luggage tags, which I understand are now selling for £17 on e-Bay along with various other mementos from the iconic aircraft, including memorabilia catalogues, safety cards and a bathroom sign.