TRAVEL TIPS • December 2020

England Rugby at 35,000 feet

England Rugby’s outstanding performances on the pitch makes them the team to beat at many of the world’s fiercest tournaments, but do the lads manage quite so comfortably at 35,000 feet? To celebrate BA’s partnership with the national team, and their recent Autumn Nations Cup win, we talk to some of the star players about life in the skies…

On the subject of sleep

Will Stuart: I can sleep just about anywhere, so I’ve never found sleeping on planes particularly difficult. I just sit down, settle in, close my eyes and count some sheep. I can get comfy quite easily, but I’m not sure I can say the same for the passengers who end up next to me!
Ollie Lawrence (pictured left): I always bring my pillow from home with me on flights. Not only does it make the plane experience a bit comfier, I’ll also take it to whatever hotel we end up in and use it again there.
Tom Curry: I usually try and fall asleep as quickly as possible. I like flying, sure, but I wouldn’t say I get particularly excited or pumped for it. But it is a good excuse to get a few hours of shuteye.

On the subject of feet

Tom Curry (pictured right): A lot of the time, I’ll take my socks off on planes to stop any inflammation around my feet. Then, if it gets too cold (particularly on long haul), the socks will come back on. I haven’t had any complaints thus far. I wash my feet, I promise!
Ollie Lawrence: I’m the same, actually. I take my socks off because my ankles can get pretty swollen. To stop swelling, I’ll keep moving, too – a few walks down the aisle, have a chat with some of the lads, stretch out a bit, that kind of thing.

On the subject of stress

Will Stuart (pictured left): Flights don’t get me too pent up, but not much does! I have, however, known a few teammates struggle with it. They’ll sort of do a death grip on the armrests during take-off. I’ve had one particular teammate grab an arm when the plane shook. That didn’t go down so well…
Ollie Lawrence: Yeah, I’m pretty chilled out, too. As long as I have some snacks and an iPad. I like to have everything in its place. Besides dozing off straight away (which pretty much everyone does), playing cards and chatting are both good ways to stay relaxed.

On the subject of entertainment

Tom Curry: It has to be an iPad for me, too. When it comes to a good Netflix binge, it’s pretty essential. Before I fly, I’ll download everything I want to watch and try to download enough to fill the flight, just in case.
Ollie Lawrence (pictured right): I’m the same with the downloading, and also listening to music from my phone. I think on my most recent flight I watched Invictus – pretty fitting, really!
Will Stuart: The inflight entertainment channels always have at least one thing you really want to watch. It’s pretty good stuff on there, and quite recent releases, too.
Tom Curry: The entertainment on our last British Airways flight to Japan was really good. What’s that one where they’re singing? The Greatest Showman!

On the subject of packing

Ollie Lawrence: A gamechanger at 35,000 feet is my Nintendo Switch. I’ll play Mario Kart with some of the lads. I’ve got two controllers, so I’ll happily force whoever’s next to me into playing for hours on end. I’ll go for a smaller character like Koopa Troopa or sometimes go a bit hefty and go for Bowser. Depends on the mood.
Will Stuart: I’m all about a good pair of noise-cancelling headphones. I like listening to music when I go to sleep anyway, so I find it helps even more on planes. Maybe some whale noises or rainfall. That kind of thing usually do the trick.
Tom Curry (pictured left): I’d go for my Theragun. You know when you’re sitting still for a long time you get tight muscles? I’ll just get the gun out and make sure I’m keeping my muscles nice and loose. It’s a foam ball with different levels of vibration and force, basically. If anyone wants to use it, I’ll gladly share!