CHILDREN from the Royal School met the first Briton in space when they went to Imperial College London to enjoy a day of “interactive science”.

The pupils from the Haslemere school met Dr Helen Sharman and six other astronauts, who took part in a question-and-answer session.

A school spokesman said: “Questions included: ‘How do you eat food in space?’ and ‘What was your favourite experience during training?’ The responses were both informative and entertaining and really inspired the audience.”

There was also a talk on rocket science by Dr Simon Foster, and several ‘rocket fuel explosions’, including some gunpowder made by prep five teacher, David Guest.

The children also took part in an experiment comparing seeds that had been into space with seeds that hadn’t, to see if there was any difference between them.

One pupil – Charlie – said: “It was an incredible opportunity to speak to so many astronauts and I think we all learned a lot!”