On arrival on the footpath in front of the hotel, with French driver holding the door open for the PM - I had already ascertained which side he wished to travel - Prime Minister Fraser turned to me and said, ‘I want to go in that car,’ pointing to a stretched limousine parked some fifty metres away to the right. It happened to be the French press vehicle!

Never Carry Your Own Briefcase is the always personal, often humorous story of a much-travelled Australian Trade Commissioner. In a career spanning more than thirty-four years, John Allgrove’s assignments took him to Calcutta, Bombay, Athens, Cairo, Hong Kong, Taipei, Bangkok, Paris, Jakarta, Seoul and Frankfurt, before he retired after his final posting in Singapore in 1995. His children were born in Hong Kong, Taipei, Bangkok and Paris.

Austrade’s mission is to increase the international success of Australian business. Never Carry Your Own Briefcase gives us a unique glimpse into Austrade’s endeavours over decades, via the on-the-ground experiences of one of its longest-serving officers.