A couple of weeks ago I found myself with a free day in New York. I did the usual touristy things — Empire State, Central Park, Broadway show… However, one thing in particular stuck with me — as I was walking along Seventh Avenue, I found myself confronted by not one but nine billboards, all advertising the new Superman film. Each was strapped to the side of the same building. Now, Times Square is famed for its excessive advertising, but

Some readers will be familiar with our recent study on the economics of different ways to decarbonise aviation. One option we didn’t explore was not flying where an alternative mode of transport to get to your destination exists. My wife and I put this option to the test on this year's family summer trip from London to Lithuania (where I am writing from now). With two kids. Ages 1 and 4. In an EV. Was it worth it? I’d love

As a hybrid worker, commuting from my flat in Lewisham to our office in Hoxton twice a week can feel like quite a chore, particularly when my commute for the other three days consists of a three-foot distance between my bed and my desk. Recently, flustered from having conquered both the DLR and Tube at rush hour, I climbed the escalator at Old Street station only to be engulfed by a mass of purple posters plastered with slightly too-perfect-looking faces,

I have a confession. It was Father’s Day recently and so, being the good son that I think I am, I wrote my father a card. I wanted to incorporate a pun in the message that was comic book themed to match his interests and ‘bad’ enough to achieve the level of dad humour he is notorious for. This however was a struggle, perhaps because I am not yet a father myself and so not privy to this kind of

When he was a young man, my father-in-law, Anthony (Tony) Morgan, CMG, ret. (more usually known as ‘Mogs’), once remarked to his mother-in-law that he found the peas on his plate to be unusually tasty. It was just a courtesy, really. He could equally well have remained silent or have made a remark about the weather. It was lightly done. The meal had been proceeding as they usually did. Perhaps he felt it was his turn to say something. Perhaps

It has become a Fathom tradition that, upon returning from holiday, Fathomites will write a blog post tangentally related to their travels. I recently came back from a trip to Taiwan and it’s the nation’s capital (or more precisely its tallest building) that serves as the inspiration for this week’s blog. For those who don’t know, Taipei (the capital city of Taiwan) plays host to the Taipei 101 tower, once the tallest building in the world. On the face of

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) credit has exploded in popularity since the pandemic. With its tempting zero-percent interest rates offered to anyone who can pass a ‘soft’ credit check, it is not hard to see the appeal. Sure, it can make sense to spread medium-size, infrequent purchases into several payments to ease the liquidity constraints of a monthly paycheck. But with BNPL payment now available on food delivery services such as Uber Eats, has it gone too far? For those

When preparing for my interview with Fathom, nearly two years ago now, I remember being both impressed and daunted by Thank Fathom it’s Friday. ‘How on earth’ I thought ‘would I (if I got the job) manage to come up with something interesting, well-written and economics-related at semi-regular intervals?!’. As it turns out this has gone reasonably well (at least up to now), not least because of the willingness of Tom, my partner to brainstorm TFiFs with me. However, dear