Child Catcher

Robert Helpmann in the role of the Child Catcher in the film version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968).

Action Figures based on Robert Helpmann as the Child Catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

The Child Catcher is the supporting antagonist of the film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and in the later stage musical adaptation. The character was created by the film's screenwriter, Roald Dahl, and did not appear in the original Ian Fleming book.^[1] The Child Catcher is employed by Baron Bomburst and Baroness Bomburst to snatch and imprison children on the streets of Vulgaria.

In the 1968 film, he is played by ballet dancer Sir Robert Helpmann. In the theatrical version in London, he was played by Richard O'Brien and Wayne Sleep, and on Broadway, he was played by Kevin Cahoon.

The Child Catcher on stage

On stage the childcatcher has been played by

• Richard O'Brien
• Paul O'Grady
• Peter Polycarpou
• Derek Griffiths
• Wayne Sleep
• Lionel Blair
• Stephen Gately
• Alvin Stardust
• Kevin Kennedy
• Ian Watkins
• Christopher Timothy

In the latest UK tour, the character features far less than in the original UK tour and in the London Palladium production. The song "Kiddy-Widdy-Winkies" has been cut, along with some of his original scenes. The actor playing the Child Catcher in the show now also plays the minor role of the Junkman at the start of the show.

Trivia

Robert Helpmann, the actor who played the Child Catcher in the film, in reality loved children, and was well liked by the child actors Adrian Hall and Heather Ripley. At the end of the day when Helpmann was finished with work, he gave Adrian and Heather his facial wax add-ons.

Acclaim

• The Child Catcher was the inspiration for Marilyn Manson's Smells Like Children EP. The title and cover art, as well as Manson's outfit and appearance during the album, reference the Robert Helpmann character.
• In 2005, the Child Catcher was voted "the scariest villain" in children's books",^[2] despite not actually featuring in the original book.
• In 2009, the Child Catcher, character originally created by Roal Dahl, was voted the seventh scariest character, in an adult poll carried out by Penguin Books.^[3]

References

1. ^ Body Language: 7 Easy Lessons to Master the Silent Language p.73. Pearson Education, 2008
2. ^ CBBC Newsround | UK | Childcatcher is scariest villain
3. ^ Which witch? Or who is the scariest of them all... Daily Mail Retrieved 31 January 2011