Forty-seven years after NBC killed it off, Star Trek celebrates its half-century in a state of rude health. Boldly going where several other people have been before, Marcus Berkmann tells the story of this sturdy science fiction vehicle from its first five-year mission (rudely curtailed to three), through the dark years of the 1970s, the triumphant film series and The Next Generation, to the current reboot films, with a younger cast taking on the characters of Kirk, Spock, McCoy and co.

With wit, insight and a huge pile of DVDs, Berkmann seeks to answer all the important questions:

Why did Kirk's shirt always get torn when he had a fist fight? (To show off William Shatner's rippling abs.)

What's the most number of times Uhura said 'Hailing frequencies open, sir' in a single episode? (Seven.)

And what's the worst imaginable insult in Klingon? (Your mother has a smooth forehead.)

'Marcus Berkmann extracts buckets of fun in this witty mixture of anecdote and episode guide . . . Berkmann's triumph is the way he evokes that time and sends the reader hurrying to watch the show again'Daily Mail