Fred Hoyle argued for the "steady state" theory of the origins of the universe, as contrasted to the "big bang" theory. He supported this theory by proposing existence of a "creation field" or C-field. He also coined the term "Big Bang." while doing a radio interview on BBC.

The steady state theory tried to explain how the universe could be eternal and essentially unchanging while still having the galaxies we observe moving away from each other. The theory hinged on the creation of matter between galaxies over time, so that even though galaxies get further apart, new ones that develop between them fill the space they leave. The resulting universe is in a "steady state" in the same manner that a flowing river is - the individual water molecules are moving away but the overall river remains the same.

This theory was the only serious alternative to the Big Bang which agreed with key observations of the day, namely Hubble's red shift observations

Hoyle offered an explanation for the appearance of new matter by postulating the existence of the "C-field", which had negative pressure in order to be consistent with the conservation of energy and drive the expansion of the universe. These features of the C-field anticipated the later development of cosmic inflation.

Mounting observational evidence convinced most cosmologists that the steady state model was incorrect and that the Big Bang was the theory that agreed best with observations - to which Hoyle created a modified theory, Quasi Steady State, which again did not fit the new evidence.
Source(s):
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Hoyle

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