[3] Lennon and Ono arrived at Lavenham's Market Place in their white Rolls-Royce driven by a chauffeur and booked into the nearby Bull Hotel in Long Melford as 'Mr and Mrs Smith'.

The couple were accompanied by a film crew who were shooting a documentary for the BBC, The World of John and Yoko, which was broadcast over the Christmas period of 1969.

A photograph of Lennon and Ono in the balloon was on the front cover of the East Anglian Daily Times on the following Monday.

The couple left the basket shortly before the launch of the balloon, causing members of the public who had gathered to heckle them.

[4] The 22,000 cubic metres (780,000 cu ft) of gas that filled the balloon cost £350, and permission for the flight was granted by the Ministry of Defence and Lavenham Parish Council.