Harrison investigates the British Interplanetary Society which was found in 1933 and is the world’s longest established organisation devoted solely to supporting and promoting the exploration of space and astronautics. It seems likely that because of this incredible society, Britain could have been first to the moon after World War II, if the country hadn’t been completely broke and on its knees. Join us on a voyage of discovery!

Chris meanwhile learns about the blue people of Kentucky. Through incredibly bad luck, Martin Fugate, a Frenchman who emigrated to the United States in 1820 married a woman who had the same regressive gene that coloured his skin blue. Over 150 years, inbreeding and lack of understanding, the gene meant multiple generations of the Fugate’s and three other families in one small area of Kentucky suffered with blue skin, marking them out as different. Fortunately modern science came to the rescue…

BBC News - Charles and Diana's wedding cake slice sells for £1,850

Harrison’s Sources

Episode 5: Typhoid Mary and all about spacesuits

Episode 68 - Zambia’s astronauts and the Battle for Castle Itter

British Interplanetary Society - Wikipedia

The British Interplanetary Society

The BIS Lunar Spaceship

How a Nazi rocket could have put a Briton in space

Space Suit: 1949 - Wired

The BIS Lunar Spacesuit - National Space Centre

The Lunar Space Suit

The Long-Forgotten History of the British Moon Spacesuit

Chris’ Sources

What Scientists Found After Analyzing Cases of Inbreeding in the UK 

Wikipedia article on Methemoglobinemia 

The Fugate Family of Kentucky Had Blue Skin For Generations 

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