Rocket Man

STAR TREK AND REAL SPACE flight have crossed paths before. A Space Shuttle test orbiter was christened Enterprise. Mae Jemison, the first black woman in space, appeared in The Next Generation. Two astronauts cameoed in Enterprise. But all of those were knocked into a cocked hat on 13 October 2021, when James T Kirk himself blasted off – a flight documented in Amazon special Shatner In Space.

The idea came from producer Jason Ehrlich, whom Shatner worked with on celebrity travel show . It was Ehrlich. There’s Jeff Bezos hovering, and we took pictures. Then we sit down with his advisors and talk about what we’d like to do. They say, ‘This is a great idea, we’ll call you back.’ And then Covid hits.”