Here's a really obscure show that I think most people here will like: Ascension - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascension_(miniseries)
It's about a colony ship sent from Earth to another planet way back in the 1960s, but kept secret from the general public. If that sounds a little too far fetched, consider this:
(1) the technology actually existed back then! It used nuclear bombs for propulsion: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_pulse_propulsion - in the '50s they were talking about building spaceships the size of aircraft carriers, because with nuclear-pulse propulsion, the larger the spacecraft, the smoother the ride.
(2) the british interplanetary society specced out a design that used this engine and could reach barnard's star in just 50 years (it was a flyby, but still) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Daedalus
(3) in the 1950s, the public's perception of nuclear weapons wasn't "catastrophized" like it is today. It was the atomic age and they viewed nukes as just another tool, not the agent of armageddon. So, it kind of makes sense that a government project of this type might get going, then decades later realize there was zero public support for it.
Do not read too much about this series - if you find my description at all compelling, just watch an episode or two. If you read too much about the series' plot, it will spoil it for you. There is a major hidden twist that you want to experience in the show, if you like the show.
One final thing: the orion engine is also used in the novel, Footfall, which is also excellent.
Here's a really obscure sure that I think most people here will like: Ascension - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascension_(miniseries)
It's about a colony ship sent from Earth to another planet way back in the 1960s, but kept secret from the general public. If that sounds a little too far fetched, consider this:
(1) the technology actually existed back then! It used nuclear bombs for propulsion: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_pulse_propulsion - in the '50s they were talking about building spaceships the size of aircraft carriers, because with nuclear-pulse propulsion, the larger the spacecraft, the smoother the ride.
(2) the british interplanetary society specced out a design that used this engine and could reach barnard's star in just 50 years (it was a flyby, but still) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Daedalus
(3) in the 1950s, the public's perception of nuclear weapons wasn't "catastrophized" like it is today. It was the atomic age and they viewed nukes as just another tool, not the agent of armageddon. So, it kind of makes sense that a government project of this type might get going, then decades later realize there was zero public support for it.
Do not read too much about this series - if you find my description at all compelling, just watch an episode or two. If you read too much about the series' plot, it will spoil it for you. There is a major hidden twist that you want to experience in the show, if you like the show.
One final thing: the orion engine is also used in the novel, Footfall, which is also excellent.