Do we like Tim Peake?
Our score: 8 out of 10. A clean record, real climate advocacy and a public-service career, with the LGBTQ+ side of the file too thin to push it higher.
Peake is the astronaut Britain got to cheer for. He spent six months on the International Space Station, did a spacewalk in January 2016 and landed back on Earth on 18 June that year. He was named in the Queen's Birthday Honours while still in orbit and later collected his CMG at Windsor Castle.
The scandal file is honestly empty. Searches for court cases, lawsuits, accusations and denials turned up nothing against him. The recent coverage is all about the work: the Moon missions, and his role as an adviser on a proposed all-UK space flight.
On the harm check, nothing nasty from him. On climate he has been plain: in 2018 he said the planet is warming and needs a serious response, and at COP26 he said satellite data is how we fight climate change. He also pushed back on a widely repeated rocket-emissions figure that he called false. He has not been linked to anyone pushing harm, though there is little on record from him about LGBTQ+ issues either way.
The recent news is pretty wholesome. In March 2026 he talked up Britain's role in building the service module for Artemis II and said such missions could inspire young people into space careers. Since 2024 he has also been a strategic adviser to Axiom Space on a potential all-UK human spaceflight mission.
The good stuff is mostly about using a rare platform well. He dedicated his honour to the people who made his mission possible, rather than himself. At COP26 he argued space should be about science and public benefit, not just tourism.