Sir Richard McBoatface

[ProfessorPreciseaBug]

Am I the only person who is a little annoyed with the Government deciding to ignore the name chosen in a poll for the NERC's new toy?

To me, it smacks of total arrogance and a disconnect with the taxpayer. To ask people to take part in choosing a name, then ignore the name everyone votes for because the powers that be don't like it shows a level of complete contempt from the government towards the electorate that is truely staggering.

A bit like the EU referrendum ... ?

[TheSolitaryBoojum]

Did you mean Richard or David?
I wasn't surprised that someone did the teacher thing and said 'How creative and wacky and out there you are all being, but we need a proper name for a ship, can we all try and be a bit less frivolous and concentrate please?'
The compromise was a good one IMO.

[WordGetsAround]

They always said that they wouldn't be bound by the vote.

[ThroughThickAndThin01]

I'm with you OP.

I think it would have been brilliant. We aren't able to laugh ourselves though, so I'm not surprised. The hierarchy would never allow it.

[TheSolitaryBoojum]

I agree that they should have set the parameters more clearly, they could have ended up with Cunty MacCuntface.

[Bavmorda]

Agre with Solid, but yeah - Votey McWhatsthebloodypoint.

[Bavmorda]

*agree

[BeStrongAndCourageous]

It was a funny joke, but actually calling it that would've been taking the joke too far. I think it's a good compromise. And I love David Attenborough. He should have all the ships named after him.

[Vaara]

You're joking aren't you?

Asking the general, ignorant, public to engage with the exciting new leaps forward in science and scientific exploration, to read up and educate themselves on the amazing journeys that the vessel will be undertaking, what it can do to bring forward our knowledge of our planet....

..... And some prick wants to call it Boaty McBoatface because it's like for the lolz right? Fucking arseholes. Some things are more important than being fucking meme of the week so a bunch of immature wankers can have a three second lol on the internetz.

It's fucking pathetic.

[DontFeedTheDailyFail]

But those things that are so important cost a lot of money.

The whole Boaty McBoatface campaign has allowed the ignorant public to engage with something that they fund and once the campaign had our interest the news reports were able to get a few other snipets of information in like some of the amazing research that will be undertaken so we are slightly less ignorant.

How many people can name any research ship ever? I probably couldn't have. Yet Boaty McBoatface caught peoples attention. Its a lost education opportunity. Had the name stuck it would have made peoples ears prick every time they heard it over years to come, it could have kept the research in the news as a relevant to society thing. Now by not using the name the what ever they called Boaty boat will go unmentioned and her important work may struggle for funding and recognition.

[TheSolitaryBoojum]

Maybe. Or perhaps the three seconds of fame brigade would have forgotten it in a year or less. Whereas those that know the difference between David and Richard Attenborough will remember, and continue to actively support environmental research rather than skipping onto the next daft bit of ephemeral viral fluff.

[ClashCityRocker]

And this is why we shouldn't have an EU referendum.....

Although it did tickle me.

[ThroughThickAndThin01]

Totally agree with you DontFeedTheDailyFail.

[ReallyTired]

They name the submarine attached to the boat Boatyard MacBoatface which I think is a good compromise. A boat name needs to be practical for everyday use. This boat is going to go into pretty dangerous places and there is a small chance that it could sink or need to send out an SOS. A joke name also detracts from the seriousness of its research work.

I think the competition has been fun. Many of the public had never heard of NERC or the work they do. The competition was for the public to come up with suggestions. It was clear NERC would have the final say.

[BeStrongAndCourageous]

I've been thinking the same thing ClashCityRocker!

[ProfessorPreciseaBug]

First off, apologies for getting the two McBoatfaces mixed up..

I think Don't Feed has actually got it pretty right. From now on everyone will associate the boat with the arrogance of the establishment instead of engaging with the actual work being done. As Boojum puts it the establishment is doing the teacher thing, treating adults with contempt. . If they were not going to follow the results of the poll, they should not have opened the poll in the first place.

[BushBabies]

Totally agree with ClashCityRocker.

[dementedma]

It was fun but I think they came up with the perfect compromise. Named the ship after a truly brilliant naturalist and scientist, and name the submersible, Boaty. Job done.

[bloodymaria]

100% disagree op. Everyone will still call the bloody thing boaty mcboatface (arf, how very zeitgeist and lolz) but it has an official name honouring a pretty brilliant man. Don't see that it's worth getting your knickers in a twist for.

[TondelayaDellaVentamiglia]

i don't dispute all the bad stuff being said about the establishment but Ive yet to see anyone (anywhere else) actually vexed that the boat is to be named after David Attenborough, and think that naming one of the research subs boaty McBoatface is a brilliant compromise.

aside from the fact that it not the right suffix, it should obviously be McBoat erson, and not McBoat face.

[gleam]

YANBU op. By not using the Boaty name, they've lost goodwill from those who voted for it.

Imagine 20 years down the line when Boaty needed a refit, they could probably have crowdfunded it.

[ReallyTired]

"YANBU op. By not using the Boaty name, they've lost goodwill from those who voted for it."

Boaty MacBoatface was just click bait. Most the people who voted for the name had no serious interest in science or the work this ship will do. The competition was a bit of fun; it was not a vote to pick a name for serious research ship.

20 years down the line Boaty MacBoatface will be forgotten about. Something else will be click bait.

[lljkk]

I'd be embarrassed to be a citizen of the UK if the powers that be had gone for such a daft name. Love the British sense of humour, but sometimes you gotta be grownup.