Yuri Gagarin in London and Manchester: A smile that changed the world?

The first human spaceflight on 12th April 1961 shocked the West and made cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin the most famous person on the planet. As one of human civilisation's seminal accomplishments it was borne out of technology designed for weapons of mass destruction. Following the launch of Sputnik in 1957, the Soviet Union charged headlong into the exploration of the Moon, Venus and Mars, demonstrating and honing their weapons of war in the name of science.

Three months after his flight, still th...