Thursday March 26, 2026.
Sunny intervals with light winds, 10°C to 11°C (50-52°F), with a nighttime low of 5°C (41°F).
It was a typical start to a birthday that falls on a weekday. Up and dressed for work, ensuring the girls were awake and getting ready for school. I then headed off on the 12-minute walk to work.
The morning was much like any other day, with my work being completed in my usual efficient manner. My boss, Ann, seeing that I had finished everything that was expected of me, allowed me to leave slightly early, which meant that I wouldn't have to rush to get myself ready for that evening's adventure.
I arrived home in time to see Emma and Keilyn, before they headed off to do a food shop. Keilyn's school had closed for the Easter holidays just after lunch, so she was eager to join mum on her shopping trip.
Emma had bought me two tickets to the Science Museum, where a new Star Trek Warp Trail was being opened to mark the 60th anniversary of Star Trek. My uncle Martin would be joining me for the evening.
Once they had left I set about getting myself ready, showering and picking out my clothes for the evening. I was debating on whether I should wear one of my Star Trek uniforms. I have a Next Generation maroon uniform and a Captain's dress uniform, from Star Trek First Contact. It was this latter uniform that I wore at my wedding. However, the maroon top was a little too small, by now, and the trousers for the dress uniform were very tight. In the end I decided on black trousers, a black shirt and jacket, with gold Star Trek socks and my Starfleet class ring.
Martin came through the door just after Erin had arrived home from school. So, we sat and had a drink while we waited for Emma and Keilyn to return. Once the shopping was packed away, Martin and I headed off, with him driving us to Croxley station from where we would catch our train.
We took the train to Baker Street, from where we boarded a Hammersmith & City line train for the one stop to Edgware Road. We then had to wait for a Circle line train to complete the journey. You see, back on Sunday December 13, 2009, the Circle line stopped being a continuous 13-mile loop much to the annoyance of many of the line's users. It now is more of a spiral that follows the Hammersmith
& City line from Edgware Road.
Once our train arrived we boarded and took our seats for the short ride of four stops to Kensington High Street. I had suggested this station as it would give us a chance to stretch our legs, before standing in the queue outside of the museum. Plus, it gave us a chance to enjoy the fading light and see some of the area.
As we passed Imperial College London we noticed a United Federation of Planets flag fluttering at the head of the queue. Various Starfleet personnel from ensigns to admirals, medical and sciences to engineering and command were in attendance. Vulcans, Borg and countless other species were all in the queue, too. Every style of uniform was on parade. Original series, next generation, lower decks, deep space nine, Picard and more. One of the volunteers checked out our tickets and showed us which line to join. There were two queues. One for general admission and the other for those who had tickets to see Star Trek The Motion Picture (Director's Cut) in IMAX.
At exactly 18:30 the queue for the film began filtering into the museum, while ours, which by now stretched beyond the Natural History Museum didn't begin moving until 18:45. Soon we were entering the museum, passing through security and boldly exploring the museum.
In the main entrance was a model of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701, which lit up with small LEDs. The Star Trek Warp Trail included costumes, props and much more, all spread throughout the museum. There was no real trail to follow, rather you went to each area and looked for the items. We began by heading through to the Space exhibition, where a spacesuit, from Star Trek Discovery, was on display, along with the permanent exhibits that the museum holds. There was also a 360° Experience Bridge of the Enterprise, where you could have a selfie taken, but the queue was already quite long, so we headed in another direction.
Our next stop was at the Star Trek pop-up shop, where merchandise specifically designed by the Science Museum for the Star Trek 60 exhibition was on sale. However, before we entered the shop there was a queue of people waiting to sit in the Captain's chair from Star Trek Discovery. So, we joined it. Minutes later Martin took to the chair, while a volunteer took photos from various angles. Then it was my turn to pose in the chair.
Once we had relinquished command to the next member of Starfleet we began perusing the shop. Again there were costumes on display from Star Trek Picard, Discovery and the Kelvin timeline films, while another cabinet was full of Tribbles. There were t-shirts, goblets, models, props, books, posters, key rings, magnets, cups, caps, hip flasks and much more. I purchased a Klingon hip flask, complete with cups and a funnel, while Martin purchased a key ring and a magnet, which he then informed me were for me as a birthday present.
On leaving the shop we decided to head to level 3, where the history of flight was on display. We meandered around the room, taking in all of the exhibits, before we discovered the 'Interstellar' part of the trail. This was the costume worn by James Cromwell when he portrayed Zefram Cochrane in Star Trek First Contact.
We then made our way down through the museum, stopping at each level to marvel at the objects on display. As part of the Star Trek Warp Trail we saw communicator badges, communicators, tricorders, an Emergency Medical Hologram kit, Data's head, from Star Trek Nemesis, and more. There was also a pop-up Cocktail Bar, where you could purchase Romulan Ale, a Warp Core Energize or simple lagers, ciders, wine and more.
There were talks being given, music being played by the Cosmic Quartet, while Mary X and Datta, from Mission Control, were playing electronic music as part of their DJ set. Then there was the Ready Singer One choir, performing songs that were reimagined in interstellar harmony.
There were also craft clubs, where you could make your own Combadge or create a badge with a starship on it.
Soon, though, we were getting hungry, so we headed to the 'Energy Cafe' where we enjoyed a 'Deep Space 9" Dog', with 'Warp-speed wedges' and a drink each. Once we had eaten we continued on our exploration, revisiting certain areas to make sure that we hadn't missed anything.
Once we had seen all that there was to see, we made our way towards the exit. Close to the exit, on the ramp to the lower floor, various Starfleet personnel, Borg and other species were taking part in a Costume Competition catwalk display.
Outside we headed south, deciding to take a look at the Natural History Museum with its wonderful and elaborate architecture illuminated against the night sky. We then headed to South Kensington station and boarded a train back to Edgware Road. Then it was up the stairs, across the bridge and down to the next platform to board a train for the one stop to Baker Street. I really do think that the Circle line should be restored to a loop, which would make it so much simpler for travellers.
Anyway, when we finally reached Baker Street our train was waiting for us at Platform 1, so we boarded and settled down for the ride home, chatting about the evening and looking the photographs that we had taken. Arriving at Croxley, we headed to the car park and Martin drove me home, before heading home himself.
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