Posted by Mike Field on June 25, 2015 at 14:55:25 user mikefield.
In Reply to: Re: New S & A Film Reports and Rumours posted by Mike Jones on June 25, 2015 at 12:19:18:
I suppose they could pretend it was short for Letitia, and thus get away with calling her 'Letty'. But in fact it is Titty and not an abbreviation for anything -- rather, the name comes from a (rather unpleasant) nursery story called 'Titty Mouse and Tatty Mouse.' (It comes up straight away in an internet search.) So I suppose that explains 'Tatty'.
The Independent had an article a couple of weeks ago about the name change -- and also how the BBC changed it to 'Kitty' for the 1963 version. So I guess even back then it was though risque. (Roger, you must have had some very socially immature boys in your early teaching career.)
Personally, I hate bowdlerisation of any sort, and we've had arguments here before about doing this with Ransome's works. (How would Conrad's classic go if it were called 'The Dark-Skinned Man of the Narcissus'?) If the character's name is 'Titty', then that's what it is; and if promotes sniggering among schoolboys, so be it.
As Mike J. says, if they're going to change 'Titty', then they really should change 'Roger' too (as well as 'Dick' when they come to do Coot Club again).
Thank goodness for the 1974 version. I myself have no intention of seeing the super-duper, jazzed-up, bowdlerised, 2015 one.
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