There have been six astronauts born in the UK, that have managed to be launched into space. Here's a brief summary of the six astronauts.
1. Helen Sharman
Born: 30 May 1963, Sheffield, England
Launch Date: 18 May 1991
Rocket: Soyuz TM-12
Space Agency: Soviet Space Program (via Project Juno - private/Soviet partnership)
Mission: 8-day mission to Mir Space Station
Significance: First British person in space, first Western European woman in space, first woman to visit Mir
2. Michael Foale
Born: 6 January 1957, Louth, Lincolnshire, England
Launch Dates:
STS-45: 24 March - 2 April 1992 (Atlantis)
STS-56: 9-17 April 1993 (Discovery)
STS-63: 2-11 February 1995 (Discovery)
STS-84: 15 May 1997 (Atlantis) - transferred to Mir
STS-86: 6 October 1997 (Atlantis) - returned from Mir
STS-103: 19-27 December 1999 (Discovery)
Soyuz TMA-3: 18 October 2003 (ISS Expedition 8 Commander)
Space Agency: NASA
Total Time in Space: 374 days, 11 hours, 19 minutes
Significance: Second Briton in space, first British spacewalker, only NASA astronaut to serve extended missions on both Mir and ISS
3. Piers Sellers
Born: 11 April 1955, Crowborough, Sussex, England (died 23 December 2016)
Launch Dates:
STS-112: 7-18 October 2002 (Atlantis)
STS-121: 4-17 July 2006 (Discovery)
STS-132: 14-26 May 2010 (Atlantis)
Space Agency: NASA
Total Time in Space: 559+ hours (including almost 41 EVA hours in 6 spacewalks)
Significance: British-American climate scientist and astronaut, contributed to ISS construction
4. Nicholas Patrick
Born: 19 November 1964, Saltburn-by-the-Sea, North Yorkshire, England
Launch Dates:
STS-116: 9-22 December 2006 (Discovery)
STS-130: 8-21 February 2010 (Endeavour)
Space Agency: NASA
Total Time in Space: 638 hours (over 18 hours of EVA during 3 spacewalks)
Significance: Fourth UK-born person in space, helped install Tranquility node and Cupola on ISS
5. Tim Peake
Born: 7 April 1972, Chichester, West Sussex, England
Launch Date: 15 December 2015
Rocket: Soyuz TMA-19M
Space Agency: European Space Agency (ESA)
Mission: Principia mission - 186 days aboard ISS (Expeditions 46/47)
Return: 18 June 2016
Significance: First British ESA astronaut, first official British government-funded astronaut, first official British spacewalker (15 January 2016)
6. Hamish Harding
Born: 24 June 1964, Hammersmith, London, England (died 18 June 2023)
Launch Date: 4 June 2022
Rocket: Blue Origin New Shepard (NS-21)
Space Agency: Blue Origin (commercial spaceflight)
Mission: Suborbital flight reaching 107 km altitude
Significance: Eighth British astronaut to reach space, part of Blue Origin's commercial space tourism program
Summary Statistics
Total UK-born astronauts who have launched into space: 6
Space agencies represented: Soviet Space Program, NASA, ESA, Blue Origin First launch: 1991 (Helen Sharman)
Most recent launch: 2022 (Hamish Harding)
Most missions: Michael Foale (6 missions)
Longest cumulative time in space: Michael Foale (374+ days)