Ebook: It Came From Outer Space Wearing an RAF Blazer!: A Fan's Biography of Sir Patrick Moore

To British television viewers, the name ‘Patrick Moore’ has been synonymous with Astronomy and Space Travel since he first appeared on The Sky at Night in 1957. To amateur astronomers he has been a source of inspiration, joy, humour and even an eccentric role model since that time. Most people know that his 55 years of presenting The Sky at Night is a world record, but what was he really like in person? What did he do away from the TV cameras, in his observatory, and within the British Astronomical Association, the organisation that inspired him as a youngster? Also, precisely what did he do during the War Years, a subject that has always been shrouded in mystery? Martin Mobberley, a friend of Patrick Moore’s for 30 years, and a former President of the British Astronomical Association, has spent ten years exhaustively researching Patrick’s real life away from the TV cameras. His childhood, RAF service, tireless voluntary work for astronomy and charity and his endless book writing are all examined in detail. His astronomical observations are also examined in unprecedented detail, along with the battles he fought along the way and his hatred of bureaucracy and political correctness. No fan of Sir Patrick Moore can possibly live without this work on their bookshelf!

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To British television viewers, the name ‘Patrick Moore’ has been synonymous with Astronomy and Space Travel since he first appeared on The Sky at Night in 1957. To amateur astronomers he has been a source of inspiration, joy, humour and even an eccentric role model since that time. Most people know that his 55 years of presenting The Sky at Night is a world record, but what was he really like in person? What did he do away from the TV cameras, in his observatory, and within the British Astronomical Association, the organisation that inspired him as a youngster? Also, precisely what did he do during the War Years, a subject that has always been shrouded in mystery? Martin Mobberley, a friend of Patrick Moore’s for 30 years, and a former President of the British Astronomical Association, has spent ten years exhaustively researching Patrick’s real life away from the TV cameras. His childhood, RAF service, tireless voluntary work for astronomy and charity and his endless book writing are all examined in detail. His astronomical observations are also examined in unprecedented detail, along with the battles he fought along the way and his hatred of bureaucracy and political correctness. No fan of Sir Patrick Moore can possibly live without this work on their bookshelf!

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To British television viewers, the name ‘Patrick Moore’ has been synonymous with Astronomy and Space Travel since he first appeared on The Sky at Night in 1957. To amateur astronomers he has been a source of inspiration, joy, humour and even an eccentric role model since that time. Most people know that his 55 years of presenting The Sky at Night is a world record, but what was he really like in person? What did he do away from the TV cameras, in his observatory, and within the British Astronomical Association, the organisation that inspired him as a youngster? Also, precisely what did he do during the War Years, a subject that has always been shrouded in mystery? Martin Mobberley, a friend of Patrick Moore’s for 30 years, and a former President of the British Astronomical Association, has spent ten years exhaustively researching Patrick’s real life away from the TV cameras. His childhood, RAF service, tireless voluntary work for astronomy and charity and his endless book writing are all examined in detail. His astronomical observations are also examined in unprecedented detail, along with the battles he fought along the way and his hatred of bureaucracy and political correctness. No fan of Sir Patrick Moore can possibly live without this work on their bookshelf!
Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xxvi
The Pre-War Years....Pages 1-19
The War Years....Pages 21-41
The Post War Years....Pages 43-64
The First Books and O’Neill’s Bridge....Pages 65-83
Desmond Leslie, Cedric Allingham and Science Fiction....Pages 85-105
The BBC....Pages 107-125
Encounters with Russians and George Alcock....Pages 127-144
Some Classic 1960s Broadcasts....Pages 145-160
Back to the Lunar Section....Pages 161-172
The Move to Armagh....Pages 173-181
Meteorites, Pills, Saturn and the Leonids....Pages 183-195
St Osyth, 2 British Novae, Serpents Everywhere, and an OBE....Pages 197-206
Selsey and the Race to the Moon....Pages 207-227
Apollo 11....Pages 229-237
A Bestselling Author, Nutters and More Moon Landings....Pages 239-250
Mainly BAA and TLP....Pages 251-269
Back in Charge of the Lunar Section....Pages 271-289
A Telescope, a Comet and the Monte Umbe....Pages 291-305
Kohoutek Flops and This Is Your Life....Pages 307-313
Not Enough Hours in the Day....Pages 315-326
A Naked Eye Nova and a Director Resigns....Pages 327-335
An End to Lunar Section Chores....Pages 337-341
20 Years on TV and a Fall in the Bath!....Pages 343-348
Back in the TLP Driving Seat....Pages 349-354
Nursing Mother....Pages 355-366
A British Comet Marks the End of an Era....Pages 367-371
Musings on Planet 10; Life After Mother....Pages 373-385
Halley Recovered as Patrick becomes President....Pages 387-407
Fifty Years in the BAA and Halley....Pages 409-425
Supernova 1987A, Politics and a New Magazine....Pages 427-434
Business as Usual at the BBC and the BAA....Pages 435-452
A 100th Birthday and Madness in Buenos Aires....Pages 453-466
A Nasty Accident and Shoemaker-Levy 9....Pages 467-485
The Caldwell Catalogue, Neptune, and More Foreign Trips....Pages 487-501
Death of a Friend, Selsey’s Tornado and Serious Health Problems....Pages 503-520
The 1999 Total Solar Eclipse and Ailing Health....Pages 521-530
A Knighthood, a BAFTA and a Fellow of the Royal Society....Pages 531-543
A Biography, a Co-Presenter, a Venus Transit and a Deadly Goose Egg....Pages 545-559
A New Magazine, a Pacemaker and BANG!....Pages 561-568
50 Years of the Sky at Night....Pages 569-578
Still Alive Despite All the Odds!....Pages 579-592
Life, the Universe and Everything…….....Pages 593-619
Epilogue: Patrick’s Legacy....Pages 621-624
Back Matter....Pages 625-655

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To British television viewers, the name ‘Patrick Moore’ has been synonymous with Astronomy and Space Travel since he first appeared on The Sky at Night in 1957. To amateur astronomers he has been a source of inspiration, joy, humour and even an eccentric role model since that time. Most people know that his 55 years of presenting The Sky at Night is a world record, but what was he really like in person? What did he do away from the TV cameras, in his observatory, and within the British Astronomical Association, the organisation that inspired him as a youngster? Also, precisely what did he do during the War Years, a subject that has always been shrouded in mystery? Martin Mobberley, a friend of Patrick Moore’s for 30 years, and a former President of the British Astronomical Association, has spent ten years exhaustively researching Patrick’s real life away from the TV cameras. His childhood, RAF service, tireless voluntary work for astronomy and charity and his endless book writing are all examined in detail. His astronomical observations are also examined in unprecedented detail, along with the battles he fought along the way and his hatred of bureaucracy and political correctness. No fan of Sir Patrick Moore can possibly live without this work on their bookshelf!
Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xxvi
The Pre-War Years....Pages 1-19
The War Years....Pages 21-41
The Post War Years....Pages 43-64
The First Books and O’Neill’s Bridge....Pages 65-83
Desmond Leslie, Cedric Allingham and Science Fiction....Pages 85-105
The BBC....Pages 107-125
Encounters with Russians and George Alcock....Pages 127-144
Some Classic 1960s Broadcasts....Pages 145-160
Back to the Lunar Section....Pages 161-172
The Move to Armagh....Pages 173-181
Meteorites, Pills, Saturn and the Leonids....Pages 183-195
St Osyth, 2 British Novae, Serpents Everywhere, and an OBE....Pages 197-206
Selsey and the Race to the Moon....Pages 207-227
Apollo 11....Pages 229-237
A Bestselling Author, Nutters and More Moon Landings....Pages 239-250
Mainly BAA and TLP....Pages 251-269
Back in Charge of the Lunar Section....Pages 271-289
A Telescope, a Comet and the Monte Umbe....Pages 291-305
Kohoutek Flops and This Is Your Life....Pages 307-313
Not Enough Hours in the Day....Pages 315-326
A Naked Eye Nova and a Director Resigns....Pages 327-335
An End to Lunar Section Chores....Pages 337-341
20 Years on TV and a Fall in the Bath!....Pages 343-348
Back in the TLP Driving Seat....Pages 349-354
Nursing Mother....Pages 355-366
A British Comet Marks the End of an Era....Pages 367-371
Musings on Planet 10; Life After Mother....Pages 373-385
Halley Recovered as Patrick becomes President....Pages 387-407
Fifty Years in the BAA and Halley....Pages 409-425
Supernova 1987A, Politics and a New Magazine....Pages 427-434
Business as Usual at the BBC and the BAA....Pages 435-452
A 100th Birthday and Madness in Buenos Aires....Pages 453-466
A Nasty Accident and Shoemaker-Levy 9....Pages 467-485
The Caldwell Catalogue, Neptune, and More Foreign Trips....Pages 487-501
Death of a Friend, Selsey’s Tornado and Serious Health Problems....Pages 503-520
The 1999 Total Solar Eclipse and Ailing Health....Pages 521-530
A Knighthood, a BAFTA and a Fellow of the Royal Society....Pages 531-543
A Biography, a Co-Presenter, a Venus Transit and a Deadly Goose Egg....Pages 545-559
A New Magazine, a Pacemaker and BANG!....Pages 561-568
50 Years of the Sky at Night....Pages 569-578
Still Alive Despite All the Odds!....Pages 579-592
Life, the Universe and Everything…….....Pages 593-619
Epilogue: Patrick’s Legacy....Pages 621-624
Back Matter....Pages 625-655
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