Captain Pugwash is a fictional pirate who appears in a series of British children's comic strips, books and television shows created by John Ryan.
The eponymous hero – Captain Horatio Pugwash – sails the high seas in his ship called the Black Pig, assisted by cabin boy Tom, pirates Willy and Barnabas, and Master Mate. His mortal enemy is Cut-Throat Jake, captain of the Flying Dustman.
History At John Ryan’s wedding in 1950, he was introduced by a friend to Marcus Morris, who was launching Eagle, and asked the artist to create a strip for it. When John returned home, he claimed that Captain Pugwash appeared without explanation. It ran for the first nineteen issues of Eagle, but was dropped due to being considered too childish, and John replaced it with Harris Tweed.
The first Captain Pugwash picture book, subtitled A Pirate Story and featuring Tom’s debut, was rejected by twelve publishers until The Bodley Head picked it up in 1957. The book became successful, and was translated around the world.The Bookseller (28th September 1957 issue) That same year, the BBC commissioned it to be adapted into an animated short film, made using "captions". This was a form of cutout animation that involved levers attached to the back of characters.
All the voices were provided by Peter Hawkins, who had to be hidden behind a monitor due to his facial expressions made while recording being too distracting for the animators. What this did mean was that he could write notes in his script about incidental characters and be reminded of them as they appeared onscreen. Further short films would be produced and broadcast until 1966, and in 1960 a popular and regularly released Radio Times strip was launched to promote the series, running until 1965. In 1974 a new colour series was commissioned, with Peter Hawkins reprising his roles, and wider-reaching than its sporadically produced predecessor. Four of its 30 episodes were remakes of black-and-white shorts.
In 1997, Gullane Entertainment (then called The Britt Allcroft Company) purchased the rights to the character, with the intention of producing a revival series. The new series of 26 episodes, animated traditionally, aired in 1998.
A related book by John Ryan is Admiral Fatso Fitzpugwash, in which it is revealed that Pugwash had a medieval ancestor who was First Sea Lord but was terrified of water.
Characters
Captain Pugwash The pompous and arrogant but likeable captain of the Black Pig. Although he boasts of being the "bravest buccaneer", he is actually quite cowardly and stupid; and his greed for money often gets him into trouble. Nevertheless, he usually wins the day – either with the help of Tom the Cabin Boy or by sheer luck. Despite being a pirate, he is rarely seen committing any acts of piracy.
The Mate/Master Mate/Mr. Mate A somewhat dopey character, who has a tendency to use malapropisms and to mispronounce common words. He has a teddy bear in his bunk and is quite mild-mannered. It is not entirely clear why he is the mate, as he does not appear to have any authority over the rest of the crew. He was present in the first ever Pugwash story, in which he was depicted as being constantly sleepy. Pugwash's adenoidal pronunciation of Master Mate's name appears to be the main source of the urban legend about characters' sexually suggestive names.
Barnabas The most aggressive of the pirates, but in reality just as harmless. He is quite rebellious and grumpy, but also perhaps marginally more intelligent than Willy, the Mate or the Captain. He was not present in the 1998 series.
Willy A simple sailor from Wigan. He appears to be the youngest crew member (apart from Tom). He is against using violence, and has been the crew's saviour on occasion (more by luck than by design).
Tom the Cabin Boy Tom is the most intelligent and resourceful member of the crew – the only one who can cook, and the only one who can actually sail a ship. The rest of the crew found they were basically unable to operate without Tom, after he left with the captain when the crew mutinied. Tom is an expert concertina player, and part of his repertoire is "The Trumpet Hornpipe" (the Captain Pugwash theme).
He was portrayed with a Home Counties accent in the first television adaptation, and with an Irish accent in the 1998 series.
Cut-Throat Jake Captain Pugwash's fearsome arch-enemy, captain of the Flying Dustman (a pun on the Flying Dutchman combined with a reference to the occupation of dustman). When he is not scheming to bring about Pugwash's downfall, he is a rather more competent pirate than his enemy, and always seems to have plenty of treasure. He speaks with a stereotypical West Country accent, and is easily recognisable by his eye patch and enormous black beard.
Characters added in the 1998 series Jonah This character replaced Pirate Barnabas, who was in the earlier series. A somewhat pessimistic pirate, his catchphrase is "No good will come of this, mark my words!" Jonah appears to be of Jamaican origin. He is the tallest of the crew so he often hits his head on the ceiling of the ship's lower deck. He is also one of the strongest of the crew as he is the Black Pig's carpenter. Governor of Portobello This character lives at the top of the island in a mansion covered in vines. He talks very quietly and his head of guard, Lt. Scratchwood, usually acts as a megaphone. He is deeply in love with Donna Bonanza and attends to her every need. Donna Bonanza An infamous opera singer who is the love of the Governor of Portobello and has her own group of security guards. She owns a cat named Franco. Toni Tom the Cabin Boy’s best friend, who works for barber Betty, and has dreams of becoming a member of the Black Pig. Dook A member of Jake's crew who somewhat resembles Barnabas. This character appeared in the original series, but was never named. In the 1998 series, he talks rather like a New York gangster, but is less aggressive than in the original series. Swine An Australian pirate who works for Jake. He almost always has a mug of grog in his hand. Like Dook, he appeared in the original series but was unnamed. Stinka A Mexican who works for Jake, who sometimes finds him annoying. Again, this character was unnamed in the earlier series. Jake's Mum The mother of Cut-Throat Jake, who serves as the Flying Dustmans cook. Lieutenant Scratchwood Toddington The voice for the governor and the law for the town of Portobello. In charge of the guard and collecting taxes, he also spends his time chasing thieves. Jeremiah Rook Portobello's rather dodgy merchant, who sometimes works for Cut-Throat Jake. Luscious Lil A barmaid who runs Portobello's inn, frequently involved in Pugwash and Jake's schemes.
Libel case regarding double entendres In 1991 the Pugwash cartoonist John Ryan won apologies and settlements from The Sunday Correspondent and The Guardian; the newspapers inaccurately claimed that the BBC took the series off the air owing to some character names being double entendres.
Pugwashisms Captain Pugwash is renowned for his exclamations, owing something to the style of Captain Haddock in The Adventures of Tintin:
"Dolloping doubloons/dolphins!" "Coddling catfish!" "Lolloping landlubbers!" "Suffering seagulls!" "Staggering stalactites!" "Nautical nitwits!" "Plundering porpoises!" "Kipper me capstans!" "Tottering turtles!" "Dithering dogfish!" "Scuttling cuttlefish!" "Stuttering starfish!" "Blistering barnacles!" "Shuddering sharks!"
Cut-Throat Jake has occasionally been known to utter the similar exclamation, "Scupper me skull-and-crossbones!"
Theme music The series' signature tune was the "Trumpet Hornpipe", a folk dance that dates to at least the early nineteenth century. Some early versions of the tune refer to it as "Lascelles Hornpipe" and "Baloon Hornpipe". The composer and country of origin are unknown.
The original black-and-white episodes of Captain Pugwash used a solo rendition by the accordionist Tom Edmondson, who had learned the tune from watching Jimmy Shand's band in Northumberland as a teenager. Edmondson's version was recorded in the front room of his home in Harbottle, Northumberland, on 12 July 1954. The recording was made by the folklorist Peter Kennedy as part of the BBC's Folk Music and Dialect Recording Scheme and Edmondson was paid 30 shillings (£1.50) for his efforts. The track was transferred to disc for the BBC Sound Library and, according to John Ryan, it was later chosen as the Captain Pugwash theme by producer Gordon Murray.
For the colour Captain Pugwash episodes, a new recording of the same tune was commissioned from Johnny Pearson in 1973. This version used accordion, bass and acoustic guitar, and the finished piece was retitled "Shipshape". The recording was published by KPM and was later added to the KPM Recorded Music Library which gave Pearson the composer credit. Pearson’s arrangement of the theme has also been used as the goal theme for Fleetwood Town F.C.
For the 1998 series, a new arrangement of the theme was created by Philip Lane. Another arrangement appears in the audiobook versions.
The "Trumpet Hornpipe" itself is in the code of BBC Micro computer game Frak! and Acorn Electron game Zalaga, intended to be played when a pirated version of the game was loaded, a reference to Captain Pugwash.
Captain Pugwash books Original series Captain Pugwash: A Pirate Story (1957) Pugwash Aloft (1958) Pugwash and the Ghost Ship (1962) Pugwash in the Pacific (1973) Pugwash the Smuggler (1976) Pugwash and the Sea Monster (1976) Pugwash and the Buried Treasure (1980)
Colins Cub series Captain Pugwash and the Ruby (1976) Captain Pugwash and the Treasure Chest (1976) Captain Pugwash and the New Ship (1976) Captain Pugwash and the Elephant (1976)
Strip cartoon series The Captain Pugwash Cartoon Book (1977) The Quest of the Golden Handshake (1983) The Battle of Bunkum Bay (1984) The Secret of San Fiasco (1985)
Black-and-white series Captain Pugwash and the Fancy Dress Party (1982) Captain Pugwash and the Mutiny (1982) Pugwash and the Midnight Feast (1984) Pugwash and the Wreckers (1984) Captain Pugwash and the Huge Reward (1991) Captain Pugwash and the Pigwig (1991) Captain Pugwash and the Birthday Party (1997)
Audiobooks In 1987, BBC Cover to Cover released various stories published in the 1980s on one cassette, read by the voice of Pugwash in the television series, Peter Hawkins. Alt URL In 2012, the original picture book series was released on CD, with Jim Broadbent narrating.
Television episodes 1957–1966 series Series 1–9 were produced and directed by Gordon Murray; Diana Potter for series 10. Series 1–3 do not have individual episode titles. Series 1 (1957) Peter Hawkins voiced the first episode, while Noel Coleman narrated the rest.
Captain Pugwash – 8 October 1957 22 October 1957The Bookseller (26th October 1957 issue) 5 October 1957 19 November 1957The Bookseller (9th November 1957 issue) 3 December 1957
Series 2 (1958) Howard Marion-Crawford voiced the first episode, with Hawkins voicing every subsequent instalment.
20 April 1958The Bookseller (12th April 1958 issue) 13 July 1958 10 August 1958 7 September 1958
Series 3 (1959)
22 February 1959 14 June 1959 5 July 1959 26 July 1959 23 August 1959 6 September 1959
Series 4 (1960)
The Firework Party – 21 February 1960 Surprise Attack – 6 March 1960 The Highwayman – 20 March 1960 The Captain’s Dream – 3 April 1960 Gold Dust – 1 May 1960 Abandon Ship – 15 May 1960 The Flying Buccaneer – 29 May 1960
Series 5 (1961)
A New Ship – 7 May 1961 The Cuckoo Clock – 21 May 1961 The Powder Magazine – 4 June 1961 Ivory Cargo – 18 June 1961 New Sails – 2 July 1961 On Trial – 16 July 1961 The Map – 30 July 1961
Series 6 (1962)
Night Attack – 4 February 1962 Ghost Ship – 18 February 1962 The Test – 4 March 1962 The Secret Weapon – 18 March 1962 The Crown Jewels – 1 April 1962 The Doctor – 15 April 1962