SOME people believe man never really walked on the moon and it was all faked on a film set in the Nevada desert.
Some people believe Elvis never really died, but faked his own death to escape the fame that surely would have killed him.
Some poeple even believe the fantastical world of Star Wars is pure fiction, dreamed up for the big screen by George Lucas. Poor misguided souls.
I mean, if that were true, then answer me this... how could Haynes, the noted publisher of manuals for all thing mechanical, produce an Owner’s Workshop Manual for the Millennium Falcon (Modified YT-1300 Corellian Freighter). I rest my case.
And Haynes has done just that, setting out in microscoping detail and across 125 information-packed pages the workings of the iconic Star Wars spaceship piloted by Han Solo and his hirsute companion Chewbacca. Shame they didn’t have a copy.
But for a mere £14.99 you can – and even if you don’t yet pilot your own spaceship, there’s surely no harm in familiarisng yourself with the ins and outs for that happy day when you do
Using brand-new, full-colour artwork, cutaways and exploded diagrams, together with plenty of photographs, this Haynes Manual provides the most thorough technical description yet available of the starship that helped to change the course of history. With this much detail you could almost build your own, though you’d need a pretty big shed.
The book is written by Ryder Windham, a hugely respected authority on Star Wars and author of more than 50 books on the subject.
It includes full, technical descriptions of how the Millennium Falcon was illegally modified by its smuggler owner-operators to deliver increased shield power and speed, and carry military-grade weapons.
In true Haynes how-to style, the reader is taken through how to fly the Falcon as well as the technology behind hyperspace travel, special manoeuvres, combat techniques and using the hyperdrive.
Double-page character profiles for each crewmember also offer reminders of the men – and Wookiee – at the helm, along with shots from the original trilogy of Star Wars films.
Published in wipe-clean hardback, The Millennium Falcon Owner’s Workshop Manual is available from all good bookshops, online retailers and direct from Haynes at {http://www.haynes.co.uk|www.haynes.co.uk} (ISBN: 978 0 85733 096 3)
Go, treat yourself... oh, and may the force be with you.