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Tom Scott (presenter) (born 26 November 1984) is a presenter, producer, speaker and web developer notable for his role as Mad Captain Tom in connection with International Talk Like a Pirate Day. He is currently standing as a candidate for Member of Parliament in the constituency of The Cities of London and Westminster.

Mad Captain Tom

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Tom Scott is most well known for his role as Mad Captain Tom in connection with the International Talk Like a Pirate Day held annually on 19 September. In his pirate persona he wears a tricorne hat, eyepatch and an eighteenth century style shirt. He is frequently accompanied by Brian the Duck (a stuffed toy duck), a parody of the parrots that are usually associated with pirates in popular culture. He also talks in a "pirate accent" which is a faux west country accent based on that used by Robert Newton to play the role of Long John Silver in the film Treasure Island. Mad Cap'n Tom often conducts radio and television interviews[1] to raise publicity for Talk Like a Pirate Day which encourages people to spend the day talking like a pirate in order to raise money for charity through sponsorship.

University of York Student Union President

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In 2008 Scott was elected as the Student Union President at the University of York[2]. He stood as a joke candidate using his Mad Cap'n Tom persona. His election to the role as a comedy candidate received significant criticism from the student body[3] and he later said that he regretted accepting the position[4].

2010 General Election

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On 14 April 2010 Tom Scott announced that he would run as an independent candidate for the constituency of The Cities of London and Westminster as Mad Cap'n Tom. His reason for running for the election is that he "be losin' a bet"[5]. Mad Cap'n Tom's policies include removing duties on Rum, sending duct tape to every household in Britain to "Fix broken Britain" and swordsmanship lessons in schools[6]. The campaign has already received media attention, notably from BBC Newsnight[7] and The Londonist[8].

The Technical Difficulties

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The technical difficulties was a radio show presented by Tom Scott, Chris Joel and Gary Brannan broadcast on University Radio York broadcast from 2004 until 2009. It featured music, audience questions and the "Battle of the Beer" quiz. The show won two Student Radio Awards including the prestigious Kevin Greening Creativity Award in 2008[9].

In 2010 the original presenters including Tom Scott produced three ten minute television episodes of the Technical Difficulties for broadcast online. Whilst including the original "Battle of the Beer" quiz and questions from the audience it also had a number of stunts including a race between Google Street View and real life set in San Francisco using a virtual reality headset; using the illuminations on a castle as a Morse code beacon and filming the public's reaction to a talking traffic cone[10].

Television and Videos

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Scott was a team captain for the Hitchhickers on the BBC 4 television series Only Connect reaching the semi-finals of the third series[11]. The team were formed of members of the Douglas Adams Society at the University of York which Scott had previously chaired during his period as an undergraduate.


References

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  1. ^ Newsround Interview Accessed 16 April 2010
  2. ^ York PressPublished 10 March 2008, Accessed 16 April 2010
  3. ^ Election response Published 13 March 2008, Accessed 16 April 2010
  4. ^ Nouse article Published 16 March 2010, Accessed 16 April 2010
  5. ^ Elections FAQs Published 16 April 2010, Accessed 16 April 2010
  6. ^ Election Manifesto Accessed 16 April 2010
  7. ^ Newsnight Web News Published 16 April 2010, Accessed 16 April 2010
  8. ^ The Londonist Published 16 April 2010, Accessed 16 April 2010
  9. ^ Student Radio Awards Accessed 16 April 2010
  10. ^ Technical Difficulties Accessed 16 April 2010
  11. ^ Tom Scott IMDB Accessed 16 April 2010
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