{"id":8762,"date":"2021-10-14T13:26:45","date_gmt":"2021-10-14T10:26:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/?p=8762"},"modified":"2022-08-12T17:56:28","modified_gmt":"2022-08-12T14:56:28","slug":"captain-pugwash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/index.php\/2021\/10\/14\/captain-pugwash\/","title":{"rendered":"Captain Pugwash"},"content":{"rendered":"

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We begin an occasional series on famous sea captains with a character familiar to our British fans, but one who remains mostly unknown outside the Commonwealth. <\/em><\/p>\n

The rotund figure of pirate Captain Horatio Pugwash is seared into the memory of any child fortunate enough to have had access to BBC children\u2019s telly in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The corpulent captain of the Black Pig was known as much for his witlessness as his good fortune. Hardly an episode transpired where he wasn\u2019t rescued by his loyal crew. Each episode was a seven-minute-ish tale of adventure \u2013 long enough to give mum a needed break for a cup of tea and a fag (cigarette for you Americans).<\/p>\n

For those watching closely, the unspoken admonishment was to never assume that because someone is in charge they know what they are doing. In this way, Captain Pugwash continued the traditional British mockery of authority. Particularly aristocratic military leaders like Gilbert and Sullivan\u2019s Modern Major General<\/a>, Colonel Blimp<\/a> and Black Adder\u2019s General Hogmanay Melchett<\/a>. It was a lesson that proved very useful for me as I navigated corporate life in adulthood.<\/p>\n

Tottering Turtles!<\/h6>\n

An essential element of any great fictional captain is how they speak when under pressure. Given his pre-school target audience, typical Pugwash-isms are G-rated and include such alliterative gems as:<\/p>\n