British astronaut Major Tim Peake will be able to watch England's RBS Six Nations opener against Scotland on a live stream 250 miles above the earth.

The BBC and European Space Agency will feed the game live from Murrayfield to the International Space Station where Peake has been preparing for the game - while sending a picture of him wearing an England shirt.

'I know that space is a hostile environment, but Murrayfield, for the old Calcutta Cup, that's a whole different matter. And Scotland has a fire in their belly; you could hear their World Cup rage from up here in space… May the best team win! Come on England!'

Major Tim Peake gets into the Six Nations spirit by wearing an England shirt ahead of Saturday's opener

The British astronaut will be able to watch Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland live from 250 miles up in space

Peake, who is two months into a seven month space mission, became the first UK astronaut to walk in space

Rugby fantatic Peake, who is two months into a seven month space mission, has also sent a video message ahead of the opener and will be tweeting live comments from space during the game.

The 43-year-old became the first UK astronaut to take a spacewalk last month before the operation was cut short when water leaked into US colleague Colonel Tim Kopra's helmet.

MAJOR TIM PEAKE FACT FILE Peake served for 18 years in the British Army before beating more than 8,000 applicants for a place on the European Space Agency. 1994:Completes army pilot's course 1998: Becomes a qualified flight instructor 2002: Starts instructing trainees in flying Apache helicopters 2009: Retires from the army and becomes a senior helicopter test pilot 2009: Joins the European Space Agency after being selected as an astronaut 2010-12: Completed extensive training with ESA 2013: Selected for a mission to the International Space Station 2015: Begins his Principia mission after successful lift-off in Soyuz rocket Advertisement

The signal for the game will be sent from the BBC to the European Space Agency, which will then bounce it on to mission control in Houston and then to the ISS.

Philip Bernie, Head of TV Sport for the BBC said: 'We've always tried to push the boundaries of broadcasting at the BBC, and streaming to space is an exciting first for us.

'We knew Tim was a massive rugby fan and now he can join the rest of the nation watching Scotland v England in the Six Nations.'

John Feehan, Six Nations Rugby Chief Executive, is equally excited about making broadcast history.

'The RBS 6 Nations is watched by millions of people across the globe and this latest development is certainly a new and exciting one,' he said.

'We are delighted that the BBC are able to bring all the action from the eagerly awaited Calcutta Cup clash between Scotland and England to keen rugby fan Tim and hope he enjoys all the action from the International Space Station.'