Sir Fred Hoyle FRS (24 June 1915 – 20 August 2001) was an English astronomer who formulated the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis and was one of the authors of the influential B2FH paper. He also held controversial stances on other scientific matters—in particular his rejection of the "Big Bang" theory (a term coined by him on BBC Radio) in favor of the "steady-state model", and his promotion of panspermia as the origin of life on Earth. He spent most of his working life at the Institute of Astronomy at Cambridge and served as its director for six years.
Jane Asher is an English actress and author. She achieved early fame as a child actress and has worked extensively in film and TV throughout her career.
Professor Bernard Quatermass is a fictional scientist, originally created by the writer Nigel Kneale for BBC Television. An intelligent and highly moral British scientist, Quatermass is a pioneer of the British space programme, heading the British Experimental Rocket Group. He continually finds himself confronting sinister alien forces that threaten to destroy humanity.
John Christopher Reilly is an American actor, comedian, musician, producer, and writer. He is known as a character actor taking leading and supporting roles in independent drama films and studio comedies. He gained exposure through his supporting roles in Paul Thomas Anderson's films Hard Eight (1996), Boogie Nights (1997) and Magnolia (1999), and Martin Scorsese's Gangs of New York (2002) and The Aviator (2004). Reilly was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the corresponding Golden Globe Award for his role in the musical film Chicago (2002). Reilly's other notable films include The River Wild (1994), The Thin Red Line (1998), and The Hours (2002).
Thomas Nigel Kneale was a Manx screenwriter who wrote professionally for more than 50 years, was a winner of the Somerset Maugham Award, and was twice nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best British Screenplay.
Quatermass and the Pit is a British television science-fiction serial transmitted live by BBC Television in December 1958 and January 1959. It was the third and last of the BBC's Quatermass serials, although the chief character, Professor Bernard Quatermass, reappeared in a 1979 ITV production called Quatermass. Like its predecessors, Quatermass and the Pit was written by Nigel Kneale.
A for Andromeda is a British television science fiction drama serial first made and broadcast by the BBC in seven parts in 1961. Written by cosmologist Fred Hoyle, in conjunction with author and television producer John Elliot, it concerns a group of scientists who detect a radio signal from another galaxy that contains instructions for the design of an advanced computer. When the computer is built, it gives the scientists instructions for the creation of a living organism named Andromeda, but one of the scientists, John Fleming, fears that Andromeda's purpose is to subjugate humanity.
Rupert Evans is a British actor. He is a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and starred in the Amazon series The Man in the High Castle and also in the CW's Charmed series. In 2021 Evans appeared in Bridgerton series 2, portraying Edmund Bridgerton, late husband to Violet Bridgerton and father to the entire Bridgerton clan.
The Quatermass Experiment is a British science fiction serial broadcast by BBC Television during the summer of 1953 and re-staged by BBC Four in 2005. Set in the near future against the background of a British space programme, it tells the story of the first crewed flight into space, supervised by Professor Bernard Quatermass of the British Experimental Rocket Group.
The Quatermass Xperiment is a 1955 British science fiction horror film from Hammer Film Productions, based on the 1953 BBC Television serial The Quatermass Experiment written by Nigel Kneale. The film was produced by Anthony Hinds, directed by Val Guest, and stars Brian Donlevy as the eponymous Professor Bernard Quatermass and Richard Wordsworth as the tormented Carroon. Jack Warner, David King-Wood, and Margia Dean appear in co-starring roles.
The Quatermass Memoirs is a British radio drama-documentary, originally broadcast in 5 episodes on BBC Radio 3 in March 1996. Written by Nigel Kneale, it was born out of his Quatermass series of films and television serials, which had first been broadcast in the 1950s. The idea for the show appeared as BBC radio intended to create a season of programming looking back at the 1950s, and it was the final piece of writing Kneale completed relating to the character.
David Haig Collum Ward is an English actor and playwright. He has appeared in West End productions and numerous television and film roles over a career spanning four decades.
"The Year of the Sex Olympics" is a 1968 television play made by the BBC and first broadcast on BBC2 as part of Theatre 625. It stars Leonard Rossiter, Tony Vogel, Suzanne Neve and Brian Cox, and was directed by Michael Elliott. The writer was Nigel Kneale, best known as the creator of Quatermass.
Andromeda most commonly refers to:
The Andromeda Breakthrough was a 1962 sequel to the popular BBC TV science fiction serial A for Andromeda, again written by Fred Hoyle and John Elliot.
The Stone Tape is a 1972 British television horror drama film written by Nigel Kneale and directed by Peter Sasdy and starring Michael Bryant, Jane Asher, Michael Bates and Iain Cuthbertson. It was broadcast on BBC Two as a Christmas ghost story in 1972. Combining aspects of science fiction and horror, the story concerns a team of scientists who move into their new research facility, a renovated Victorian mansion that has a reputation for being haunted. The team investigate the phenomena, trying to determine if the stones of the building are acting as a recording medium for past events. However, their investigations serve only to unleash a darker, more malevolent force.
Anne-Marie, Lady Byrne is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Holby City, portrayed by actress Jane Asher. The character first appeared on 10 May 2007 in episode "After the Fall" - series 9, episode 30 of the programme. After several guest appearances as the mother of established character Joseph Byrne throughout series 9 and 10, Asher signed a three-month contract to become a series regular from May 2008 onwards, for a period of 10 episodes. Her initial storyline saw her son's girlfriend, Jac Naylor, embark on an affair with Anne-Marie's husband and Joseph's father, Lord Byrne - eventually culminating in his death, and leaving the character a widow. Upon her return to the programme, she takes over Lord Byrne's position as Executive Chairman of the Byrne Foundation – a charity committed to research into Cardiac Valve Disease.
The Quatermass Experiment is a 2005 live television film remake of the 1953 television series of the same title by Nigel Kneale.
Tess of the D'Urbervilles is a 4-hour BBC television adaptation of Thomas Hardy's 1891 book of the same name. The script is by David Nicholls. It tells the story of Tess Durbeyfield, a low-born country girl whose family find they have noble connections.
A come Andromeda, is an Italian television remake of A for Andromeda (1961), the BBC series based on the book of the same name written by cosmologist Fred Hoyle in conjunction with author and television producer John Elliot. The remake was still set in Britain but filmed at Italian locations, and consists of five episodes of about one hour each. It was adapted by Inisero Cremaschi and directed by Vittorio Cottafavi. Music was by Mario Migliardi. The cast includes Paola Pitagora as Judy Adamson, Luigi Vannucchi as Fleming, and Tino Carraro as Reinhart. Nicoletta Rizzi appeared as Andromeda, the person created by the supercomputer, replacing the singer Patty Pravo, who was originally cast in the role, but who did not fulfil her commitments, necessitating re-shooting of several scenes.
