Boaty Mcboatface

2016catchphraseclassic

Boaty McBoatface is the joke name proposed in a 2016 UK government online poll to christen a new polar research vessel, which won by a landslide before officials overruled the vote. The name spawned an ongoing 'X-y McXface' template applied to trains, horses, ferries, and schools, while the winning name was eventually handed to a small robotic submarine aboard the same ship.

british memessnowclone memesbackfire memesname based memes2016 memes

Overview

Boaty McBoatface is the joke name that won a 2016 online UK government poll to name a $287 million polar research vessel, then got overruled by officials who picked something more dignified1. The name spawned a naming template where anything can be tagged with a childlike 'y Mc[Noun]face' formula, spreading to trains, ferries, horses and schools4. It is one of the clearest examples of what happens when British institutions hand naming power to the wider internet.

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The template itself is dead simple. Take the object being named, add a 'y' if it needs one, then repeat it with 'Mc' in the middle. Boaty McBoatface, Trainy McTrainface, Horsey McHorseface. The joke works because it deflates any pretense of gravitas, dressing an official process in language that sounds like a toddler naming a plush toy5. It also grew a whole meta-story about crowdsourced polls, with headlines about British democracy hinging on whether a research ship would carry a silly name2.

How It Spread

When the poll closed in mid-April 2016, 'RRS Boaty McBoatface' had pulled in 124,109 votes, more than four times the runner-up 'RRS Poppy-Mai,' named after a 16-month-old girl with incurable cancer1. Science Minister Jo Johnson pushed back, arguing the ship needed 'a name that lasts longer than a social-media news cycle and reflects the serious nature of the science it will be doing'2. NERC eventually picked RRS Sir David Attenborough, then handed the Boaty McBoatface name to a small yellow robotic submarine that would ride aboard the ship4.

The naming template broke free of the boat almost immediately. On March 22nd, 2016, Daily Telegraph journalist Harry Wallop tweeted a photo of a South West Trains LED display reading 'Trainy McTrainface,' racking up more than 1,449 retweets5. That same day, the US Air Force opened a name-the-B-21-bomber contest and got joke suggestions like 'Bomby McBombface' and 'Stealthy McHidden'5. On April 15th, Australian trainer Bjorn Baker of Sydney's Warwick Farm racecourse debuted a two-year-old gelding called Horsey McHorseface, with his racing manager telling CNN, 'any publicity is good publicity'3.

The formula kept going. In late March 2016, an Austin, Texas school board fielded suggestions like 'Schoolie McSchoolface' while renaming Robert E. Lee Elementary School5. On November 13th, 2017, New South Wales Public Transport announced that a new Sydney ferry would be called Ferry McFerryface after winning a 15,000-suggestion contest, prompting the Maritime Union of Australia to threaten refusing to crew the boat5. In June 2019, the Boaty submarine finished its first Antarctic mission and produced real science, finding that stronger polar winds mix cold deep water with warmer mid-level water in a pattern that speeds sea level rise5. The AV Club noted at the time that the discovery probably would not have gotten coverage without the silly name attached5.

How to Use This Meme

The formula is a mad libs. Grab a noun, add a 'y' ending if it does not already end in one, then say it again with 'Mc' glued to the front and 'face' glued to the back. Boat becomes Boaty McBoatface. Train becomes Trainy McTrainface. Horse becomes Horsey McHorseface. The gag typically lands hardest when the target is an expensive or dignified object being crowdsourced a name by an institution that probably should know better, which is why it keeps showing up whenever a government agency, transit authority, or school district opens a public poll4.

Cultural Impact

The Atlantic framed the vote as a small crisis for British democracy, calling Jo Johnson's refusal to honor the poll 'a cruel bait-and-switch' from officials who asked for public input then recoiled from the answer2. The Guardian pointed out the awkwardness of a naming tradition that had previously honored Ernest Shackleton and James Clark Ross running into a joke ship name backed by four times the runner-up's votes1. SFGate ran gallery pieces about the internet reusing the same formula on animals within days of the NERC vote closing6. Grunge later listed rival Boaty poll suggestions like 'I Like Big Boats and I Cannot Lie,' 'What Iceberg,' 'It's Bloody Cold Here,' and 'Clifford the Big Red Boat' as evidence that the whole poll was pranked, not just the winning entry7.

Frequently Asked Questions

Boaty Mcboatface

2016catchphraseclassic

Boaty McBoatface is the joke name proposed in a 2016 UK government online poll to christen a new polar research vessel, which won by a landslide before officials overruled the vote. The name spawned an ongoing 'X-y McXface' template applied to trains, horses, ferries, and schools, while the winning name was eventually handed to a small robotic submarine aboard the same ship.

british memes snowclone memes backfire memes name based memes 2016 memes

Overview

Boaty McBoatface is the joke name that won a 2016 online UK government poll to name a $287 million polar research vessel, then got overruled by officials who picked something more dignified1. The name spawned a naming template where anything can be tagged with a childlike 'y Mc[Noun]face' formula, spreading to trains, ferries, horses and schools4. It is one of the clearest examples of what happens when British institutions hand naming power to the wider internet.

Loading tweet...

The template itself is dead simple. Take the object being named, add a 'y' if it needs one, then repeat it with 'Mc' in the middle. Boaty McBoatface, Trainy McTrainface, Horsey McHorseface. The joke works because it deflates any pretense of gravitas, dressing an official process in language that sounds like a toddler naming a plush toy5. It also grew a whole meta-story about crowdsourced polls, with headlines about British democracy hinging on whether a research ship would carry a silly name2.

How It Spread

When the poll closed in mid-April 2016, 'RRS Boaty McBoatface' had pulled in 124,109 votes, more than four times the runner-up 'RRS Poppy-Mai,' named after a 16-month-old girl with incurable cancer1. Science Minister Jo Johnson pushed back, arguing the ship needed 'a name that lasts longer than a social-media news cycle and reflects the serious nature of the science it will be doing'2. NERC eventually picked RRS Sir David Attenborough, then handed the Boaty McBoatface name to a small yellow robotic submarine that would ride aboard the ship4.

The naming template broke free of the boat almost immediately. On March 22nd, 2016, Daily Telegraph journalist Harry Wallop tweeted a photo of a South West Trains LED display reading 'Trainy McTrainface,' racking up more than 1,449 retweets5. That same day, the US Air Force opened a name-the-B-21-bomber contest and got joke suggestions like 'Bomby McBombface' and 'Stealthy McHidden'5. On April 15th, Australian trainer Bjorn Baker of Sydney's Warwick Farm racecourse debuted a two-year-old gelding called Horsey McHorseface, with his racing manager telling CNN, 'any publicity is good publicity'3.

The formula kept going. In late March 2016, an Austin, Texas school board fielded suggestions like 'Schoolie McSchoolface' while renaming Robert E. Lee Elementary School5. On November 13th, 2017, New South Wales Public Transport announced that a new Sydney ferry would be called Ferry McFerryface after winning a 15,000-suggestion contest, prompting the Maritime Union of Australia to threaten refusing to crew the boat5. In June 2019, the Boaty submarine finished its first Antarctic mission and produced real science, finding that stronger polar winds mix cold deep water with warmer mid-level water in a pattern that speeds sea level rise5. The AV Club noted at the time that the discovery probably would not have gotten coverage without the silly name attached5.

How to Use This Meme

The formula is a mad libs. Grab a noun, add a 'y' ending if it does not already end in one, then say it again with 'Mc' glued to the front and 'face' glued to the back. Boat becomes Boaty McBoatface. Train becomes Trainy McTrainface. Horse becomes Horsey McHorseface. The gag typically lands hardest when the target is an expensive or dignified object being crowdsourced a name by an institution that probably should know better, which is why it keeps showing up whenever a government agency, transit authority, or school district opens a public poll4.

Cultural Impact

The Atlantic framed the vote as a small crisis for British democracy, calling Jo Johnson's refusal to honor the poll 'a cruel bait-and-switch' from officials who asked for public input then recoiled from the answer2. The Guardian pointed out the awkwardness of a naming tradition that had previously honored Ernest Shackleton and James Clark Ross running into a joke ship name backed by four times the runner-up's votes1. SFGate ran gallery pieces about the internet reusing the same formula on animals within days of the NERC vote closing6. Grunge later listed rival Boaty poll suggestions like 'I Like Big Boats and I Cannot Lie,' 'What Iceberg,' 'It's Bloody Cold Here,' and 'Clifford the Big Red Boat' as evidence that the whole poll was pranked, not just the winning entry7.

Frequently Asked Questions