Return to the Centre of the Earth Leskanich. The story is narrated by Patrick Stewart. Recording was delayed after Wakeman was hospitalised with a life threatening case of double pneumonia and pleurisy, and needed time to recover. Upon release, the album reached number 34 on the UK Albums Chart. In 1974, Wakeman released his second solo album "Journey to the Centre of the Earth", a concept album based on the same-titled science fiction novel by Jules Verne. It tells the story of Professor Lidenbrook, his nephew Axel, and their guide Hans who follow a passage to the Earth's centre originally discovered by Arne Saknussemm, an Icelandic alchemist.
Cultural influence of Jules Verne conversational character robot designed and built by him "Jules" in memory of Jules Verne. It is able to speak and respond in a human like manner, based on what it hears and has facial muscles that react to speech. Other scientific figures known to have been influenced by Verne include Fridtjof Nansen, Wernher von Braun, Guglielmo Marconi, and Yuri Gagarin. Arthur Rimbaud was inspired to write his well-known poem "Le Bateau ivre" after reading "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea", which he extensively alludes to within the poem; "The Adventures of Captain Hatteras" was likely an additional source of inspiration.