Ahoy there me hearties! Pirate impressions raise pounds for charity
Melanie May | 18 September 2018 | News
With International Talk Like a Pirate Day taking place this Wednesday (19 September), online casino site bgo.com is pledging to donate £5 to charity for every entry submitted in a competition to find the best pirate impersonator.
The competition, Pirate Factor, is a parody of the X Factor and has been launched to celebrate International Talk Like a Pirate Day. It aims to find the UK’s best pirate impersonator, a person that knows their ‘aarrrs’ from their ‘yo ho hos’ for the chance to raise money for charity, win a pirate hat and the glory of being the UK’s best pirate.
Those wishing to enter must submit a voice clip of their best pirate impression to Pirate Factor, where there is also an option to include a photo of themselves in their pirate gear. Clips are uploaded for all to listen to, with a public vote for the best impersonation.
In support of the day and the competition, bgo.com has pledged to donate £5 per entry submitted to the website, up to £5,000, with 80% of the donations going to the competition winner’s charity of choice, and the remaining 20% to GamCare.
International Talk Like a Pirate Day was invented by John Baur and Mark Summers in 1995. The official International Talk Like a Pirate Day page now has over 134,000 likes on Facebook, while according to a recent survey conducted by bgo over a third (36%) of people asked said they will be celebrating the day.
Historian and authority on pirates, Angus Konstam said:
“International Talk Like a Pirate day is a success because it taps into all the things that make pirates so appealing to us all, regardless of our age. Forget the realities of historical piracy for a minute – this is all about celebrating their sense of adventure, their rebellious nature and their freedom from authority. Add in a heady mixture of fictional pirates, with their eye patches, wooden legs, parrots and strange ways of talking and you’ve got a celebration just about anyone can have fun with.”
Advertisement
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.