"In hot pursuit of the Mekon, were we, sir?"
A speed boat captain called Dan Dare flooded a yacht with his wake as he rocketed down the Thames to pick up a friend on his party boat.
Daniel Dare, 36, doused the crew of a Dutch boat as he flew over the water at up to 34 knots - three times the river's speed limit.
Onlookers called the river's traffic managers as the rented rigid-hulled inflatable boat known as a rib roared by, Westminster Magistrates' Court heard.
Tim Williamson, prosecuting, said Dare was in a rush to meet a friend at midday at Festival Pier, where the pair planned to set off on in the £150,000 vessel they had rented from London Party Boats.
...
Steven Fitzpatrick, for Dare, said his client is currently sofa surfing as he finds it difficult to obtain work because of his name.
Dan Dare was a 1950s science fiction comic hero, often described as 'Biggles in Space.'
'You can imagine the difficult his name, Dan Dare, causes when facing future employers, and the difficulty he has explaining this,' Steven Fitzpatrick said.
'And on this occasion, you can imagine being asked by the authorities who the master of the vessel was, and his reply being 'Dan Dare.''
I have to agree with Mr Fitzpatrick here. I rather suspect the Marine Policing Unit may have indulged in a little light sarcasm after Mr Dare gave his name.
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Daniel Dare, 36, doused the crew of a Dutch boat as he flew over the water at up to 34 knots - three times the river's speed limit.
Onlookers called the river's traffic managers as the rented rigid-hulled inflatable boat known as a rib roared by, Westminster Magistrates' Court heard.
Tim Williamson, prosecuting, said Dare was in a rush to meet a friend at midday at Festival Pier, where the pair planned to set off on in the £150,000 vessel they had rented from London Party Boats.
...
Steven Fitzpatrick, for Dare, said his client is currently sofa surfing as he finds it difficult to obtain work because of his name.
Dan Dare was a 1950s science fiction comic hero, often described as 'Biggles in Space.'
'You can imagine the difficult his name, Dan Dare, causes when facing future employers, and the difficulty he has explaining this,' Steven Fitzpatrick said.
'And on this occasion, you can imagine being asked by the authorities who the master of the vessel was, and his reply being 'Dan Dare.''
I have to agree with Mr Fitzpatrick here. I rather suspect the Marine Policing Unit may have indulged in a little light sarcasm after Mr Dare gave his name.
This entry was originally posted at http://major-clanger.dreamwidth.org/34767.html, where there are
comments.