Skip to main content Skip to navigation

The Art of Travel: The History of Travel Guidebooks

Faculty of Arts Building

Join Tony Wheeler (Engineering Science, 1969) alumnus and co-founder of the Lonely Planet, for his guest lecture titled 'The Art of Travel: The History of Travel Guidebooks'.

Hosted by Professor Tim Lockley, the lecture will be a guided tour through the history of travel writing, from guidebooks through to modern travel blogs, drawing on Tony's unique insight through his years at the helm of the Lonely Planet.

The Art of Travel: The History of Travel Guidebooks

Date: Wednesday 8 May, 15.00 – 16.00

Location: FAB0.08 Faculty of Arts Building, 6 University Road, Coventry, CV4 7EQ

Followed by a drinks reception for Faculty, Staff, and History PhD students only hosted by Professor Rachel Moseley, Faculty of Arts Building Terrace, Fifth Floor (next to FAB5.03)Link opens in a new window at 16.00 - 17.00.

About the talk

Hosted by Professor Tim Lockley, the lecture will be a guided tour through the history of travel writing, from guidebooks through to modern travel blogs, drawing on Tony's unique insight through his years at the helm of the Lonely Planet.

About the speaker

Tony Wheeler

Tony Wheeler was born in England, and grew up in Pakistan, the Bahamas, Canada, USA and England; his father was an airport manager for British Overseas Airways Corporation. After studying engineering at the University of Warwick and earning an MBA at London Business School, where he met his wife Maureen, they embarked on a trek across Europe and Asia to Australia. This journey led to the creation of two travel guides and the establishment of Lonely Planet in 1973.

Host of the lecture

Professor Tim Lockley

Professor Tim Lockley is a lecturer in American History at the University of Warwick where his teaching and research interests include colonial and antebellum North America, with a particular focus on slavery and the South. He has written and edited a number of books, including 2009’s Welfare and Charity and the Antebellum South. He holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge.

Host of the drinks reception

Professor Rachel Moseley

Professor Rachel Moseley graduated from Warwick with a BA in Film and Literature in 1995 a PhD in television Studies in 2000. She became Head of Film and Television Studies in 2017 and is co-founder of The Centre for Television Histories. In September 2022 she became the Vice Provost of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Warwick.