Pass the sick bag: why I published a book on airline sick bags

I never imagined I would spend much of 2026 scanning hundreds of airline sick bags, let alone become a keen enthusiast for their designs. Making my book Sicko, though, turned out to be one of the most joyful projects I’ve done. The story began in 2023 when I met Trevor Cunningham while making a film about his support group Ask Trev, staffed by an astonishing 140 people all called Trevor – what he calls “a Trevorlution”.

During filming breaks he pulled out a large binder stuffed with sick bags, a collection he had built up over 37 years. He didn’t realise how fascinating I found it. The collection started in 1989 after Trevor’s boss Peter, aged 32, died at work from a brain aneurysm.

Trevor found Peter’s own stash of sick bags and decided to carry on the collection in his honour. He now has more than 150, including bags from airlines that no longer exist, such as Dragonair, Air Berlin and Varig.

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