The ''Vital Spark'' is a fictional

Clyde puffer The Clyde puffer is a type of small coal-fired and single-masted cargo ship, built mainly on the Forth and Clyde canal, and which provided a vital supply link around the west coast and Hebrides of Scotland. Built between 1856 and 1939, these stu ...

, created by Scottish writer Neil Munro. As its captain, the redoubtable

Para Handy Para Handy, the anglicized Gaelic nickname of the fictional character In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game ...

, often says: "the smertest boat in the coastin' tred".

Background

Puffers seem to have been regarded fondly even before Munro began publishing his short stories in the ''

Glasgow Evening News The ''Glasgow Evening News'' was an important Scottish newspaper in the early 20th century. It was founded as the ''Glasgow Evening Post'' in 1866 and became the ''Evening News'' in 1915. Neil Munro was editor for a time and his Para Handy ...

'' in 1905. This may not be surprising, for these small

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the ship prefix, prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S ...

s were then providing a vital supply link around the west coast and

Hebrides The Hebrides (; gd, Innse Gall, ; non, Suðreyjar, "southern isles") are an archipelago off the west coast of the Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner and Outer Hebrid ...

islands of Scotland. The charming rascality of the stories went well beyond the reality of a commercial shipping business, but they brought widespread fame. They appeared in the newspaper over 20 years, were collected in book form by 1931, inspired the 1953 film ''

The Maggie ''The 'Maggie (released in the U.S.A. as ''High and Dry'') is a 1954 British comedy film produced by Ealing Studios. Directed by Alexander Mackendrick and written by William Rose, it is a story of a clash of cultures between a hard-driving Ame ...

'', and came out as three popular television series, dating from 1959 to 1995.

Description

In her captain's own (islands accented) words, the ''Vital Spark'' is "aal hold, with the boiler behind, four men and a derrick, and a watter-butt and a pan loaf in the foc'sle". The way these ''steam

lighters A lighter is a portable device which creates a flame, and can be used to ignite a variety of items, such as cigarettes, gas lighter, fireworks, candles or campfires. It consists of a metal or plastic container filled with a flammable liquid or ...

'' with their steam-powered derricks could offload at any suitable beach or small pier is featured in many ''Vital Spark'' stories, and allows amusing escapades in the small west coast communities. The cargoes carried in the hold vary from gravel or coal to furniture to livestock, the crew's quarters in the forecastle are taken as lodgings by holidaymakers or lost children and the steam engine struggles on under the dour care of the engineer Macphail. Tales are recounted of improbably dramatic missions in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Others scoff at her as a ''coal gaabbert'', reflecting the origins of the puffers, but an indignant Para Handy is always ready to defend his boat, comparing her speed and her looks with the glamorous

Clyde steamer The Clyde steamer is the collective term for several passenger services that existed on the River Clyde in Scotland, running from Glasgow downstream to Rothesay and other towns, a journey known as going ''doon the watter''. The era of the Cly ...

TV series featuring ''Vital Spark''

The original BBC Series ''

Para Handy - Master Mariner ''Para Handy - Master Mariner'' is a series produced and broadcast by the BBC, set in the western isles of Scotland in the 1930s, based on the Para Handy books by Neil Munro. It starred Duncan Macrae as Peter "Para Handy" MacFarlane, captain of ...

'', which ran from 1959–60, starred Duncan Macrae (Para Handy),

Roddy McMillan Roddy McMillan OBE (23 March 1923 – 9 July 1979) was a Scottish actor and playwright, possibly most famous for his comedy role as Para Handy for BBC Scotland's television series, ''The Vital Spark''. He also played the lead role in Edwa ...

(The Mate), and John Grieve (Dan Macphail, the engineer). Six episodes were made, none of which survive. In 1963 Macrae, McMillan and Grieve, accompanied by

Alex Mackenzie Alex MacKenzie (1885 – December 1965) was a Scottish character actor who was born and died in Glasgow. He was a schoolteacher in Clydebank Clydebank ( gd, Bruach Chluaidh) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. Situated on the north b ...

and guitarist George Hill, recorded an album of songs, ''Highland Voyage''. A short film was made to accompany the recording, filmed on board a puffer as it cruised around the Firth of Clyde. Macrae and McMillan appear as The Captain and The Mate, while Mackenzie appears as The Engineer, causing Grieve to move to play The Cook. Although very obviously based on Munro's characters, the names of Para Handy, the ''Vital Spark'', etc. are never mentioned, probably due to copyright issues. In the second version, ''

The Vital Spark ''The Vital Spark'' is a BBC Scotland television series set in the western isles of Scotland in the 1930s, based on the Para Handy books by Neil Munro. It starred Roddy McMillan as Peter "Para Handy" MacFarlane, captain of the puffer ''Vital Sp ...

'', McMillan took the role of Para Handy, and Grieve reprised his role as Macphail; Walter Carr (Dougie the Mate) and

Alex McAvoy Alex McAvoy (10 March 1928 – 16 June 2005) was a Scottish actor known for his roles as Sunny Jim in the BBC Scotland adaptation of Neil Munro's Para Handy stories, ''The Vital Spark'', and as the teacher in Pink Floyd's musical film, ''The W ...

(Sunny Jim) completed the crew, and the series ran for three series between 1965 and 1974. The third series, made several years after the first two, was in colour and consisted of remakes of selected earlier episodes. In 1994

BBC Scotland BBC Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: ''BBC Alba'') is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. It is one of the four BBC national regions, together with the BBC English Regions, BBC Cymru Wales and BBC Northern Ireland. I ...

produced ''

The Tales of Para Handy ''The Tales of Para Handy'' is a Scottish television series set in the western isles of Scotland in the 1930s, based on the Para Handy books by Neil Munro. It starred Gregor Fisher as Captain Peter "Para Handy" MacFarlane, Sean Scanlan as first ...

'' which starred

Gregor Fisher Gregor Fisher (born 22 December 1953) is a Scottish comedian and actor. He is best known for his portrayal of the title character in the comedy series ''Rab C. Nesbitt'', a role he has played since the show's first episode in 1988. He has also ...

in the lead role alongside

Sean Scanlan Sean Scanlan (18 August 1948 – 17 April 2017) was a Scottish actor. He is known primarily for his many television and stage roles. Career Scanlan appeared in a large number of plays and television programmes, including as Dougie the shi ...

as Dougie, Andrew Fairlie as Sunny Jim and

Rikki Fulton Robert Kerr "Rikki" Fulton, OBE (15 April 1924 – 27 January 2004) was a Scottish comedian and actor best remembered for writing and performing in the long-running BBC Scotland sketch show, ''Scotch and Wry''. He was also known for his appea ...

as Dan Macphail. This ran for two series, a total of nine episodes, in 1994 and 1995. The series also featured

David Tennant David John Tennant (''né'' McDonald; born 18 April 1971) is a Scottish actor. He rose to fame for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor (2005–2010 and 2013) in the BBC science-fiction TV show '' Doctor Who'', reprising the rol ...

in one of his first acting roles.

, who played Sunny Jim in ''The Vital Spark'', appears in one episode as a fellow captain of Para Handy in the coastal trade.

Ships depicting ''Vital Spark''

The stories sparked considerable interest in the puffers, and many books explore their now vanished world. In the third television series, ''The Tales of Para Handy'', the ''Vital Spark'' was depicted by the puffer ''Auld Reekie'' (VIC 27). She is moored at

Crinan Crinan is a name of Gaelic origin and it has a number of contexts: * Crinan, Argyll, a village in Scotland * The Crinan Canal, a waterway in Scotland with one of its outlets at Crinan, linking Loch Fyne with Loch Crinan * Crínán of Dunkeld C ...

awaiting restoration. When ''VIC 72'', renamed ''Eilean Eisdeal'', ventured from her home at the

Inveraray Inveraray ( or ; gd, Inbhir Aora meaning "mouth of the Aray") is a town in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is on the western shore of Loch Fyne, near its head, and on the A83 road. It is a former royal burgh, the traditional county town of Arg ...

Maritime Museum to visit the

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

River Festival in 2005, she bore the name ''Vital Spark'' in testimony to her continuing popularity. In 2006 she was re-registered as the ''Vital Spark'' of Glasgow. The

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

brewer Brewing is the production of beer by steeping a starch source (commonly cereal grains, the most popular of which is barley) in water and fermenting the resulting sweet liquid with yeast. It may be done in a brewery by a commercial brewer, ...

Fyne Ales, near Inveraray, where the current boat rests and Neil Munro was born, brews a beer called Vital Spark in tribute to the series. In December 2007, the ''Vital Spark'' Clyde puffer returned to the

Forth and Clyde Canal The Forth and Clyde Canal is a canal opened in 1790, crossing central Scotland; it provided a route for the seagoing vessels of the day between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde at the narrowest part of the Scottish Lowlands. This allo ...

– the place of her 'birth', as reported on STV news'
/ref> Reporting Scotland. The puffer is now on the slipway at Crinan boatyard awaiting restoration. Vital Spark December 2006 at Crinan

Notes

References

*Donald, Stuart (1994). ''In the Wake of the Vital Spark''. Johnston & Bacon Books Ltd. ( paperback) *McDonald, Dan (1977). ''The Clyde Puffer''. David & Charles (Publishers) Ltd.

External links

{{Commons category, Vital Spark (ship, 1944)
Neil MunroBBC Scotland - the wireless to the web''The Vital Spark'' (TV)''The New Tales of Para Handy''
Three new adventures for the crew of the ''Vital Spark'', staged and filmed in front of a live audience at The Warehouse Theatre, Lossiemouth, Scotland (available on DVD) Fictional ships Ships of Scotland