HELEN Sharman, the UK’s first cosmonaut, will visit Edinburgh’s Usher Hall for a talk this Sunday at the Edinburgh Science Festival.
Sharman became the first Briton, and first Western European woman, to make it to space as part of a joint British-Soviet space mission to the Mir space station in 1991.
The talk on Sunday will coincide with the 65th anniversary of Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s trailblazing mission to outer space, the first in human history.
Sharman is expected to reflect on her training in Russia, her experiences aboard a Soyuz rocket, and becoming the first British person to explore the cosmos.
Sharman returning from the Soyuz TM-12 mission in 1991 (C) Edinburgh Science Festival
In conversation with Earth scientist and former BBC presenter Dr Hermione Cockburn, Sharan will also ponder the evolution of space exploration, from Tim Peake’s International Space Station mission to private space companies, and the growing international diversity in space programmes.
Sharman commented: “Space is getting really exciting again. I’m delighted to return to Edinburgh to share some insights, including my own experiences of what it’s like in space.”
Sharman was born in Sheffield, Yorkshire, and worked as a research and development technician for GEC London and a Chemist for American confectioner Mars.
She responded to a radio application about the role and was selected for the mission ahead of around 13,000 other applicants.
The project, known as Project Juno, was a collaborative effort between British companies and the Soviet Union and formed part of a drive to enhance cooperation between the UK and the USSR in the waning days of the Cold War.
Sharman was given extensive flight training in Moscow and stayed in Russia for around 18 months in preparation.
The Soyuz TM-12 mission, guided by experienced cosmonauts Anatoly Artsebersky and Sergei Krikalev, launched on 18 May 1991 and lasted eight days.
Sharman spent most of that time aboard Mir space station, completing medical and agricultural tests.
She landed safely back in Russia on 26 May 1991 and spent the following eight years self-employed, communicating science to the British public.
Because Sharman was aboard a Russian vessel, she is classed as a cosmonaut, the Russian term for a space explorer rather than an astronaut – the American term.
The talk will take place at the Usher Hall at 7pm on Sunday 12 April.
Ross Chalmers is a journalist focusing on local Edinburgh news, transport, the environment, the arts, and housing.
He graduated from Edinburgh Napier University with a degree in journalism in Summer 2025 and began working at Deadline News as a reporter in August.
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