posted 05-17-2011 02:10 PM               

Saturday September 10th, 2011. 18:00-19:00 at Carlton Community High School, Pontefract, West Yorkshire. WF8 3NW

"Apollo 13; The Longest Hour" a public lecture by NASA Flight Controller Sy Liebergot.

Tickets £10 each (Under 16s £5). Photo session (£10 per photo) from 17:00 to 17:45 with autophraph session following the lecture. Ticket price includes one free signature. Additional signatures £10 each. Single signature includes "Apollo EECOM"

Signed copies of Sy's book (including CD) will be available on the evening for £15 also with "Apollo EECOM" inscription.

For tickets please send a stamped addressed envelope to: Ken Willoughby, 11 Hardistry Drive, Pontefract, West Yorkshire, WF8 4BU. Cheques made payable to "Apollo 13".

Dinner and talk with Sy on Friday September 9th at the Rogerthorpe Manor Hotel, Thorpe Lane, Badsworth, Pontefract, West Yorkshire. WF9 1AB. Starting at 19:30 – 01:00. Tickets £60 each. Cheque made payable to Ken Willoughby.

posted 05-29-2011 06:55 PM               

W. David Woods will be attending and will sign copies of his book, How Apollo Flew To The Moon and others if people bring them along, though he won't be bringing any copies of his own for sale on the evening; He does not want to interfere in any way from the main event.....namely Sy.

And a comment from author David Harland who will also be there...

I'll co-sign Apollo EECOM for anyone who wishes me to add to Sy's signature, and I will sign any books written by myself that people might bring along - although I won't have any stock of such books to sell at the venue. This will likely be the only opportunity people will have to have copies of Apollo EECOM signed by both Sy as author and myself as his editor.

posted 09-11-2011 09:16 AM               

The event was well attended; the majority of the audience being hard core space fans with fewer casual enthusiasts than normal. It was nice to be back at Carlton Community High School all be it in temporary accommodation on a very warm evening.

Work has started on the new school building following a disastrous fire three years ago (just a week after Fred Haise visited) and all being well within a year Ken Willoughby will be holding future events in pristine, purpose built surroundings.

It was nice to put faces to names and finally meet a number of collectSPACE members and "lurkers"; Chris, Nigel, Gurbir, Aileen, and Steve... with Nick and Bryar serving up a number of very nice Sy/Mission Control goodies.

Apologies for any names I have left out but at my age the kids can consider themselves lucky when I get their names right and don't confuse them with the cat!

Sy's lecture was excellent combining stills, audio and movie excerpts to really shed light on a Mission Controller's lot, particularly in the harrowing hour immediately following the explosion or "rapid expansion of gas" (you had to be there) on Apollo 13.

It provided a unique perspective on a group of young, talented individuals without whom the lunar landings would never have happened and who — all too often — were over looked. It was evident just how dedicated they were under the great leadership of Flight Directors, most notably Gene Kranz and Glynn Lunney.

Thank you Ken for putting on another excellent event; looking forward to the next one already... whoever it may be.

posted 09-12-2011 03:18 PM               

As with all of Ken's guests Sy was very approachable and nothing was too much trouble. I believe Sy gets a lot of pleasure from these interactions with space fans and other interested parties and 40 years on he brings those historic moments to life. He compares the reality with the Apollo 13 movie; both accounts are gripping.

posted 09-12-2011 11:35 PM               

Cracking evening with Sy (thank you for coming over the pond), and thank you Ken for putting on a great event.