The year is 2025. The UK Government has, for reasons best known to itself, chosen Newquay, Cornwall, as an international Space hub, from which to launch missions to near Earth orbit, then the Moon, and ultimately to establish a colony on Mars. Susan McKenzie is the Minister for Space and has overall responsibility for Britain's Space presence. She is afraid of flying. Prime Minister Ralph Hampton publicly supports Susan but is hiding a dark secret that will eventually cause him to be completely ostracised from polite society, and maybe even Westminster. Meanwhile, volunteers for the Mars Colony seem to consist entirely of geeky, self-promoting, sociopathic narcissists. Which is convenient as the whole enterprise is to be made into a reality TV show.