5.67 events planned in the past

The past continuous can be used to refer to events planned in the past, especially with some common verbs such as 'come' and 'go'.

• Four of them were coming for Sunday lunch.
• Her daughter was going to a summer camp tomorrow.
• Allister Sparks, formerly of the Dispatch, was leaving a local London paper to join Reuters.

5.68

The simple past of 'be' can be used in structures used to express future events, such as 'be going to', 'be about to', and 'be due to'. The implication is usually that the expected event has not happened or will not happen. For more information on 'be going to', see paragraph 4.237.

• I thought for a moment that she was going to cry.
• He was about to raise his voice at me but stopped himself.
• The ship was due to sail the following morning.