Astronauts

Oct 26, 1981

It's the dawning of a new era. US Air Force Colonel Lloyd Beadle unveils his British space travellers for the press, whose imaginations go into overdrive when they learn that one of the crew is a woman. But Beadle has another ace up his sleeve: Bimbo, a mongrel dog.

Nov 2, 1981

In their orbiting space station, the crew members are trying to acclimatise themselves while rapidly discovering each other's foibles. Sleep eludes them, and they realise that privacy is a thing of the past...

Nov 9, 1981

Gentian's in charge of the Life Science Projects, and David's doing Earth Observation, Astronomy, Crystallography and Communications — leaving Malcolm doing the dusting. And not terribly well. It takes a major crisis before the Mission Commander finally comes into his own.

Nov 16, 1981

Earthly problems invade the space station and Gentian Foster believes she knows why: Ackroyd's being beastly because he doesn't fancy her, and Mattocks is being patronising because he does.

Nov 23, 1981

After five weeks of constant surveillance, relations between the crew and Ground Control are strained. So when Beadle disappears for lunch, the astronauts decide to get even.

Nov 30, 1981

Fifty days in space should be newsworthy, but the media has already lost interest. Beadle promises to remedy the situation. Ackroyd, however, is more interested in the potent product of his lab experiment involving yeast, fruit flies and a copious quantity of blackcurrant juice...

Dec 7, 1981

Nine weeks into the mission: depression is rampant. The food is boring. The routine is boring. Then, catastrophe! A wiring fault plunges the station into darkness. With Mattocks and Ackroyd out of action, Foster must rely on Bimbo to save her.

Jul 19, 1983

Gentian finds herself talking to the machinery while Ackroyd quite happily holds conversations with himself. Mattocks is concerned about both of them and discusses it with the only person he can trust — Bimbo.

Jul 26, 1983

Ackroyd denounces the whole mission as a big publicity stunt. Mattocks, meanwhile, has been caught out acting furtively and sending scrambled messages. Gentian and Ackroyd want to know what's happening but it's top secret...

Aug 2, 1983

Mattocks is pining for his wife but he gets no sympathy from the other two, who are determined to see that he lives up to his domestic responsibilities while he's at the space station. Beadle has a hot date.

Aug 9, 1983

Ackroyd is concerned that he is now maintaining some of the systems beyond their level of tolerance — emergency repairs are now the norm. During one of the blackouts Gentian sees a bright object outside her lab window.

Aug 16, 1983

One week to go and the crew breaks the record for the longest spaceflight in history. Beadle is ecstatic but Mattocks is behaving more strangely than normal, questioning things at a cosmic level — much to the annoyance of the other two.

Aug 23, 1983

After six months, the mission is completed and it's time to go home. Mattocks' recent epiphany still annoys the other two, and concern over re-entry has caused group insomnia. Ackroyd doesn't want to go home.