Trek fans get Great Exhibition

Enterprise is the latest Star Trek series

A major Star Trek exhibition set for London's Hyde Park in December will be the biggest event there since the Great Exhibition of 1851.

Star Trek - The Adventure, which runs from 18 December - 31 January 2003, will feature exhibits from all five decades of the cult sci-fi show, as well as specially re-created props, sets and costumes.

Exhibits from all 10 of the Star Trek films, including the forthcoming Star Trek Nemesis, due to open on 3 January 2003, will also be on display.

And fans will have the chance to operate flight simulators, take part in Star Trek trivia challenges, and be 'beamed up' in a replica transporter.

Climate controlled

Special tributes to the late Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, and the early history of the show, together with rare interview footage, are also promised.

The exhibition, which will take place in a 7,000sq m "climate controlled" environment near Speaker's Corner, is expected to be taken on a lengthy world tour following its London run.

The Great Exhibition of 1851 ran for six months in Hyde Park before moving to Crystal Palace.

Leonard Nimoy played Spock in the original series

The Royal Parks agency, which manages Hyde Park, have said they are "entirely happy" about the exhibition, which also has the support of The Friends Of Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens.

Containers

"Basically we do not like large scale commercial events in Hyde Park," said their spokesman.

"But whilst we have quite a few reservations we are not objecting. They've got to raise more money by commercial means."

About 130 containers of items for the exhibition arrived at a disused RAF base in Doncaster this week, and are now being moved down to London to prepare for the December opening.

Organiser Martin Biallas, of the Los Angeles-based Special Entertainment Events (SEE), also created the Titanic Official Movie Tour in 1999.

He is currently planning similar events based around the James Bond and Harry Potter film franchises.

Tickets for the Hyde Park exhibition go on sale on Friday.