Fred Hoyle

Sir
Fred Hoyle
FRS
Sir Fred Hoyle FRS
	Hoyle in 1967
Born	24 June 1915; Gilstead, Bingley, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
Died	20 August 2001 (aged 86); Bournemouth, England
Alma mater	Emmanuel College, Cambridge
Known for	Coining the phrase 'Big Bang'; Steady-state theory; Stellar nucleosynthesis theory; Triple-alpha process; Panspermia; Hoyle state; Hoyle's fallacy; Hoyle's model; B2FH paper; Hoyle–Narlikar theory; Bondi–Hoyle–Lyttleton accretion
Spouse	Barbara Clark (m. 1939)
Children	Geoffrey Hoyle; Elizabeth Butler;
Relatives	Samantha Butler (grandchild);
Awards	Mayhew Prize (1936); Smith's Prize (1938); FRS (1957); Rittenhouse Medal (1960); Kalinga Prize (1967); Bakerian Medal (1968); RAS Gold Medal (1968); Jansky Lectureship (1969); Bruce Medal (1970); Henry Norris Russell Lectureship (1971); Royal Medal (1974); Balzan Prize (1994); Klumpke-Roberts Award (1977); Crafoord Prize (1997);
	Scientific career
Fields	Astronomy
Institutions	St John's College, Cambridge; Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge
Academic advisors	Rudolf Peierls; Maurice Pryce; Philip Worsley Wood
Doctoral students	John Moffat; Chandra Wickramasinghe; Cyril Domb; Jayant Narlikar; Leon Mestel ; Peter Alan Sweet ; Sverre Aarseth
Other notable students	Paul C. W. Davies; Douglas Gough

Sir Fred Hoyle (24 June 1915 – 20 August 2001) was an English astronomer. With Margaret and Geoffrey Burbidge and William Alfred Fowler, he formulated the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis in the influential B²FH paper.

He held controversial views on some scientific matters — in particular, in his rejection of the "Big Bang" theory (a term he jokingly coined on BBC Radio, though he later denied doing so in derision) in favour of a "steady-state model", and his promotion of panspermia as the origin of life on Earth.

He spent most of his working life at St John's College, Cambridge, and served as the founding director of the Institute of Theoretical Astronomy at Cambridge.

Hoyle also wrote science fiction novels, short stories, and radio plays, co-created television serials, and co-authored twelve books with his son, Geoffrey Hoyle.