More than 150 public figures have signed a letter calling for the government to reverse a "foolish" decision and "find funding immediately to save Jodrell Bank". About £2.8m has been pulled from the Cheshire observatory, leaving the University of Manchester needing to find alternative cash by 2028. Signatories of the letter include astronaut Tim Peake, musicians Sir Brian May and Jarvis Cocker, Scotland's Astronomer Royal Prof Catherine Heymans, physicists Prof Jim Al-Khalili and Prof Brian Cox, and Judy Spence, the daughter of the site's founder Sir Bernard Lovell. The UK Research and Innovation agency (UKRI) has said it had to focus on projects that delivered "the greatest long-term impact". All scientific observations at Jodrell are expected to cease on the 1 April 2028 unless alternative funding can be found.