Ah BEagle, I love Talking Pictures TV, wet afternoon, switch it on always something on there of interest. I guess the real reason is costs associated with flying. London to Perth return, according to recent Telegraph article, in the 50s was the equivalent of £18k! Today it's £700. Decades ago it was an event and people dressed up for it. My grandparents even dressed up to travel to Spain on Court Line, these days it's like catching a bus.