9. What were the characters in Captain Pugwash called? (British comedy)
Description
This article is from the British comedy FAQ, by James Kew j.kew@ic.ac.uk with numerous contributions by others.
9. What were the characters in Captain Pugwash called? (British comedy)
It's frequently claimed that some of the characters in the children's show
Captain Pugwash had somewhat suggestive names: "Master Bates", "Seaman
Staines" and "Roger the cabin boy". Not so; this is a classic urban legend.
The crew of The Black Pig were: Captain Pugwash, Master Mate, Pirate
Barnabas, Pirate Willy, and Tom the cabin boy. Several British newspapers
have fallen for this UL and were forced to print retractions.
It's possible that, on occasion, the name "Master Mate" was slyly altered
to "Master Bate". In the episode Fair Exchange (BBC video, "Seafaring
Tales"), the final line, spoken by Pugwash, sounds like "I certainly did
Master Bate." Pugwash's voice is rather indistinct, so it's hard to be
sure.
alt.folklore.urban discusses such matters; they've heard this one many
times and remain unconvinced. If anyone can provide concrete, documented
evidence they'd love to hear from you. More information, including an
apology printed in the Guardian and a .wav file of the quote above, is
available from the a.f.u archives:
ftp://cathouse.org/pub/cathouse/urban.legends/tv/cpt.pugwash/
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