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B7 Media and Boffin Media’s history of The Space Race, presented by Star Trek Voyager’s Kate Mulgrew, has been nominated for the prestigious Sir Arthur Clarke Award.

The Sir Arthur Clarke Awards have been presented annually since 2005 and recognise and reward those individuals and teams that have made notable or outstanding achievements in, or contributions to, all British space activities. Better known as ‘The Arthurs’, they have been presented annually since 2005.

The nominees were chosen by a large panel of judges from all parts of the Space community, chaired by Mrs Angie Edwards, niece of Sir Arthur. The Award Ceremony at the British Interplanetary Society’s Reinventing Space Conference Gala Dinner will take place at the International Convention Centre, Belfast, on Thursday 14 November 2019, where the winners of the nine awards will be announced.

The finalists in the Space Achievement: Media – Broadcast and Written category are:

▪ B7 Media/Boffin Media (Andrew Mark Sewell, B7 Media and Richard Hollingham/Sue Nelson, Boffin Media) – for Audible’s landmark 10-episode audio docudrama “The Space Race”, combining extensive worldwide interviews with dramatic reconstructions, soundscapes and archive, presented by actress Kate Mulgrew.

▪ Dr. Kevin Fong, University College London – For hosting the BBC’s comprehensive and informative podcast series “13 Minutes to the Moon”, covering the Apollo programme by telling the story of the scientists, engineers, programmers and astronauts through to the final 13 minute descent of the Apollo 11 Lander.

▪ Sue Nelson – For showcasing the Mercury 13 and the history of women in space through her inspiring book ‘Wally Funk’s Race for Space’ – a lesson on determination, hope and overcoming sexism.

Helen Quigley, B7 Media’s Head of Production, says of the nomination; “Huge amounts of research went into ‘The Space Race’ to discover new stories and dispel myths around some established ones, so we are delighted that the series has made such a positive impact on the space and scientific community. Drawing upon B7 Media’s drama production credentials with Boffin Media’s well-established science and journalism expertise, we were able to combine drama and actuality to get to the heart of the experiences and events that made the space race and the Moon landings such an incredible human achievement. We’re thrilled and honoured that ‘The Space Race’ has been recognised as a nominee for a Sir Arthur Clarke Award.”

Richard Hollingham, director of Boffin Media and series producer of The Space Race, says: “The combination of our award-winning journalism with a company renowned for its excellence in audio drama and sound design has allowed the story of human spaceflight to flourish and unfold in a much more vivid and exciting way than we thought possible. It’s been fantastic collaborating with B7 Media and we’re delighted that the ‘Arthurs’ has recognised The Space Race in its media category alongside the BBC’s 13 Minutes to the Moon podcast and Sue Nelson’s critically acclaimed book Wally Funk’s Race for Space.”

Producer and director Andrew Mark Sewell told Sci-Fi Bulletin, “Ever since I watched the Apollo 11 Moon landing as a child I’ve been inspired and fascinated by humankind’s exploration of space. Making the docudrama series The Space Race was a long-held ambition and one that wouldn’t have been possible without our fellow producer’s at Boffin Media. It was Herculean team effort. It’s also fair to say that Stanley Kubrick’s seminal take on Arthur C. Clarke’s 2001 novel was a major inspiration to my career going forward and fuelled by love of stories that convincingly melded science fact with science fiction. So to be nominated for an ‘Arthur’ for our work on The Space Race feels a real honour.”

Narrated by Kate Mulgrew, The Space Race was produced for Audible to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1969 moon landing. This major 10-part docudrama series crossed three continents in the making and gives even the most ardent space fan additional insight into the history of human spaceflight.

With unprecedented access ‘The Space Race’ gives listeners access to Virgin Galactic’s space programme in the Mojave Desert, features conversations with Buzz Aldrin, Gene Cernan, Sergei Krikalev, Tim Peake and numerous key players at mission control, and pulls back the curtain on untold aspects of the space-exploration story. The result is a compelling, entertaining, surprising and enlightening journey across 60 years of space history and the story of humanity’s past, present and potential future off-world.