Written by: Hannah Giles  |  Posted on: March 21st, 2023

BKS event at Samsung KX, 27 February 2023

Life as a diplomat in 1970s Seoul

Over 70 members and guests attended the BKS event ‘Life as a diplomat in 1970s Seoul’ by our very own Chairman Martin Uden and former Chairman Warwick Morris at Samsung KX. They both had three postings in South Korea, with their final ones being Ambassador. Warwick and Martin dug into their private archives, brought out amazing photos and shared their personal memories of Korea in 1970 with the captivated audience. We were delighted to see so many longstanding members of the Society as well as new members and guests. We were also pleased to have our two Joint Presidents Sir Stephen Brown and HE Yeocheol Yoon, Ambassador of the ROK, with us as well as HE Colin Crooks, current British Ambassador to the ROK. It was meaningful to hold the event at Samsung KX. Samsung is now undoubtedly one of the best known brands in the UK. Looking at the 1970s photos and hearing what it was like living in Korea in the 1970s made a real contrast to the state-of-the-art technology on display at the venue. What a reminder how quickly Korea has changed and developed!

We were reminded by Martin how turbulent a time it was in 1970s Seoul when Warwick and Martin first arrived in Korea. It was only 20 years after the ceasefire of the Korean War. Warwick left after his first three years in Korea on 26^th October 1979, the day when President Park was assassinated. Many people were still wearing Hanbok (한복 – Korean traditional costume) day to day, not only on special holidays. Many households were using Yeontan (연탄 – coal briquettes) for heating and many lives were lost due to carbon monoxide poisoning every year due to Yeontan gas leak. How Gangnam has changed – looking at the photo in which Warwick ice skating on the frozen rice field in Gangnam with his son Oliver in the buggy – from agricultural farmland far from the heart of the capital then, to an expensive and sought after area to live and work now, full of skyscrapers, and a pilgrimage destination for K-pop fans. When Warwick first arrived in Korea, there were no Korean cars and only a few foreign cars on the streets of Seoul. Only at the end of 1975, the year Warwick arrived in Seoul, Hyundai started making the Pony, which was Korea’s first mass-produced and exported vehicle and the inspiration for the popular electric car Hyundai IONIQ 5, which can easily be seen on the streets of London nowadays. Listening to Martin talking about the Gwangju Uprising (5.18 광주 민주화운동) in 1980, where so many lives were lost, was poignant and it was apparent hearing Martin talk how it affected him as a young diplomat living in the country.

The word ‘exponential’, which we became so used to during the Covid19 pandemic, is the one that perfectly describes South Korea’s growth, advancement and development since the 1970s. One of the poorest countries in the world to one of the world’s largest economies!

The event took me back in time to the 1970s. The stories Warwick and Martin shared were not only what I read in history books or just old photos from someone’s photo albums but were my childhood. I recall vividly watching the funeral of President Park on TV and crying with my brother and sister at home without really understanding what was happening. I sadly lost one of my aunts due to carbon monoxide poisoning during the1970s. I also have happy memories of ice skating in winter on frozen rice fields just as in one of Warwick’s photos.

In the 1970s, Warwick and Martin had to source any foreign food by direct import as diplomats or from the black market fed by the US base. Now you can find Waitrose jams on the shelves in department store food sections in Seoul. You can find Korean cup noodles and chilli paste on the shelves of UK supermarkets. Marmite is still not available in shops in Korea but you can order online! The relationship between South Korea and the UK have come a long way too. The BKS is now 67 years old and this year we are marking 140 years of diplomatic relationship between the ROK and the UK. I often ask British diplomats after they came back from their posting in Korea ‘What do you miss from Korea the most?’ The answer is unanimously Korean people – their friendships, openness and warmth. So much has changed since the 1970s in Korea but one thing that has not changed is the people. It is my and the BKS Committee’s hope that we can continue play a small part in strengthening and deepening relationships between Korean and British people.

We are extremely grateful for the speakers and for all those who attended. Our heartfelt thanks also go to Samsung for allowing us to hold this event at their amazing venue and also sponsoring the Society with such generosity.

You can watch the talk on the BKS YouTube channel:
Life as a Diplomat in 1970s Seoul

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