Britain enters the Space Age

This week Britain finally entered the Space Age, sending its first astronaut to the International Space Station. The jubilation has been long-awaited, our fixation with all things celestial starting well before the space race, reaching its stylistic peak in the 1950s and ‘60s. With Alfies having opened its doors a few months prior, the first Space Shuttle blasted into the sky in 1976, is now itself an antique. Things have changed enormously since then, but our insatiable appetite for the dark unknown has never been bigger, our quest to boldly browse never stronger.

Real life has been playing catch-up with pop culture for decades, our extraterrestrial dreams dashed by the cruel logistics of reality. Denied our silver jumpsuits and robot dogs roaming around our own little patch of Mars, we'll have to make do with some kitshcy flourishes from Alfies. Have a look at some of the retro-futuristic wares available here in store and try to relive some of the stargazing of the past.

Rare 1970s Italian Lampshade, from Eclectic Antiques and Contemporary

Converted Pifco Warmasphere Mk II Sputnik Table Lamp,
from Eclectic Antiques and Contemporary

Midcentury Italian Chrome Metal Sputnik Chandelier, from Thirteen Interiors

Large 12 light chandelier with chrome frame and opaque white globes
in opaline glass, from Matt Mitchell London

Set of 8 Original Cinema Filmcard from the 1959 Film First Man Into Space.
Offered by Eclectic Antiques and Contemporary.

Radar Men from the Moon, cinefilm. Available from Atomium.