The BGTW celebrates 50 years

The year 2010 will be a landmark one for the British Guild of Travel Writers (BGTW) as it celebrates its 50^th anniversary year with a line-up of parties and commemorative events.

The last five decades have been momentous in the history of the development of travel and tourism and the BGTW has been at its forefront.

The original idea for an organisation to represent Britain’s top travel writers was first conceived in Berkeley Square, London, by a group of journalists in – appropriately enough – the board room of Thomas Cook: the company often credited with the invention of mass tourism.

This was post-war boom time when foreign holidays were beginning to take off thanks to a revolution in air travel, giving rise to a real need for objective and well-researched travel reporting.

Then, as now, membership of the BGTW was only open to professionals with a proven record in responsible travel writing.

Britain’s leading professional body in travel writing

Today, the BGTW is recognised as Britain’s leading professional body for those working in the fields of travel writing, photography, editing and broadcasting. While today’s members are blogging, twittering and writing for the web as well as for more traditional print and broadcast outlets, they remain committed to retaining the standards and spirit of the original members.

Lieutenant Colonel Geoffrey Portham, the trailblazing propietor of Go!, one of the earliest travel magazines, became the first Chairman of the BGTW in 1960, with novelist W Somerset Maugham as its first distinguished Honorary President.

Over the years, membership grew steadily. “By the late 1960s, members were joining a fledgling travel industry to serve a post-war public that was anxious and often suspicious of strange foreign ways and foods, but eager for guidance,” says Guild Archivist John Ruler. “And though circumstances have inevitably changed, that is pretty much what they do today, albeit in far more specialised ways.”

Today, the Guild has more than 270 professional members including many distinguished industry names such as the publisher and founder of the Bradt travel guide empire Hilary Bradt, veteran broadcasters Judith Chalmers (ITV’s Wish You Were Here) and John Carter (BBC TV’s Holiday programme) and BBC travel presenter Sankha Guha. Past members have included Egon Ronay, Maeve Binchy and Alastair Sawday.

Says current Chairman Melissa Shales: “There is virtually nowhere in the world that has not been covered by one of our members, virtually no publication – in print, on the airwaves or online, in the UK and, increasingly, abroad as well – in which our work is not represented on a regular basis.”

In 2010 membership of the BGTW is seen as a professional seal of quality in the world of travel media while members benefit from networking opportunities and professional support and development.

2010 Yearbook: a collector's item

Each year the BGTW publishes its updated Yearbook, a media contacts database that is seen as ‘the travel industry bible’. This year, with its gold-embossed cover, the 2010 issue is expected to become a collector’s item.

The BGTW also runs annual Members’ Awards for journalistic excellence as well as its highly coveted international Tourism Awards, presented for successful and environmentally sensitive projects that benefit local communities.

These awards will be presented at the BGTW Annual Gala Awards 50^th Anniversary Dinner on the eve of the World Travel Market in November at the newly re-refurbished iconic Savoy Hotel in London.

Find out more about the BGTW’s 50^th anniversary at www.bgtw.org

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