I went to see the old new Star Trek film last week. And knock me down with a feather, but it was fantastic1. I recommend going to check it out if you get the chance. Rip roaring fun, with plenty of nods and winks for fans of the original Roddenberry Star Trek series.
But the point of this post is not about fantasy. Rather, the reality of humans actually travelling to space. The European Space Agency is announcing its latest batch of recruits today, at 13.00 local time (CET).
They will stream a live press conference online here, and a colleague of mine is down to the final group for selection, after an initial 10,000+ applied.
Jussi, good luck to you! I genuinely hope you make it, so you can send us a postcard from Alpha Centauri!
1 Except Simon Pegg’s dodgy Scottish accent. It was almost passable, but for some reason he confused the personal pronoun “I” with the exclamation often uttered after blunt force is applied to a testicle “Aaaaiiieeeee!”
BBC News:- Europe unveils British astronaut
UPDATE: Unfortunately, Jussi just missed out. Sorry dude
We have 6 new ESA astronauts, from Italy (2), Germany, Denmark, France and the UK.
Good luck to you all – to infinity and beyond!
@Mike. I’ll probably be going to see it (the film that is, not the press conference) this weekend.
I would be obliged if you could confirm if these Runpee™ times are accurate for da film?
What is Runpee™ I hear you say ? Click here
Well, I did have a couple of glasses of wine with dinner before the film, but like Whitney Houston going for the highest note in the Bodyguard, I managed to hold it.
But I won’t argue with the timeline – I spent all my time transfixed to the screen, waiting for Uhura’s legs to make a welcome return. I don’t think I glanced at my watch once.
Mike’s right. It’s spellbinding. And I agree that Scotty/Pegg is the one bum note. My pun-filled review.
Great review, Matt – especially the Rooney joke (though I guess that will only play in the UK…?)
To be fair, Pegg’s Scottish accent was probably better than James Doohan’s…
Not according to film guru Mark Kermode…