In the October of 1977 Mats Örn arrived at London Stanstead Airport fresh from the smoke filled plane journey from his native Sweden. When he arrived he found a country brimming with energy, if not always the most positive.

The country at the time was a melting pot of deepening social frustrations and the lack of economic growth. The hangover from the swinging sixties which had made London the epicentre of the world was well and truly kicking in.

If Mats Örn had been reading the news of the time he may have felt a slight pang of regret at boarding the plane to The Big Smoke, maybe worried about the anguish and frustration he found when he landed. Instead what he did find was the ultimate British trait— a stiff upper lip.

Örn with, his stunning Kodachrome images, instead found life motoring along the way life does and his photographs capture these moments of grit and grandeur in perfect colour pops of nostalgia. The tourist-like photos show Portobello Road, Smithfield Market, London Buses, people in the parks, Queen’s Jubilee celebrations and so much more.

These images are a moment in time, and instead of the picture the history books may paint of the late-seventies, Örn’s photos show a life doing what it does best – living.





(All images via Flashback)