Tugs "Jinxed" (partially found extended cut of British children's TV series episode; 1989)

Ten Cent's Hooter.

Status: Partially Found

In 1988 production on Tugs began. The series was planned to have 13 episodes with a 20-minute runtime. Four were publically released on VHS, though the rest were released as 15-minute cuts. Fans have speculated on the existence of other cuts, especially after a 20-minute workprint of the episode "Warrior" was found. Much debate was had on how many episodes were filmed or edited to 20 minutes, and if there was any chance of them surviving. The genesis of this was the Tugs Sizzler Reel at a Star Tugs Trust event.

Background

In the promotional Sizzler Reel, A close-up shot of Ten Cent's whistle is shown, using a large-scale model never seen in the show. The only episode where his whistle had a role was "Jinxed" Another scene that was observed was Boomer ramming into Izzy Gomez and him crashing into a warehouse (A.K.A The Gomez Incident). These are only witness accounts, as the attendees were under NDA. "Jinxed" was one of the first two episodes filmed, with its footage (along with "Sunshines") being used in the promotional Sizzler. Initially, fans thought only 5 or 6 episodes were filmed to 20 minutes, as at the time the production of Tugs was still extremely mysterious.

Once word got out about the large-scale Ten Cents whistle, fans began to suspect that there was more to "Jinxed," that the episode could have been filmed to 20 minutes. In 2020 YouTuber Star Switcher uploaded the prototype intro of the show, which showed even more deleted footage from "Jinxed" (specifically Mighty Mo and the crane rigs). 2021 however would change everything. Various filming schedules from 1988 and 1989 showcased at Star Tugs Trust events showed 12, if not all episodes were fully filmed to 20 minutes, and that two versions were being edited simultaneously (a "short" and "long" version). These documents also show the music, F/X, and dubbing dates though it does not specify which cut is being dubbed.

The Gomez Incident being filmed.

In October of 2021, The Tugs Project would unveil a series of photos provided by crewmember Paul Knight, and among these were photographs of "the Gomez Incident" being filmed. "On Christmas day of 2021, The Tugs Project unveiled a "treatment plan for the episode JINXED TUG. These documents would've been translated into actual shooting (or) dialogue scripts, used for their intended purpose."

Plot

The 20-minute count would have played out much the same, though with more context in scenes and more continuity with the show in general. Changes and additions include:

• Everything involving Lucky's Yard being extended. Sunshine taking away the barge Boomer sunk on, more dialogue from Mighty Mo (and everyone in general), Ten Cents mentioning Captain Star being superstitious, an extended tow to Lucky's Yard through the night with Zip and Zug mocking the Star switchers and an explanation as to how Boomer sunk.

• A scene with the Ironworks from the episode High Tide. Big Mickey would be loading barges and Boomer would be pushing them along the Pier. They "seemed to be getting on fine" until his jinx strikes, causing Big Mickey's engine to hiccup and drop an extremely large and heavy load of steel onto a barge. The barge sinks to the bottom of the port. the Ironworks blames Boomer, but Big Mickey blames Ten Cent's whistle giving a smoother transition into that subplot.

• When Ten Cents tests his whistle to see if it jinxes Boomer, a large-scale prop of his whistle and smokestack was intended to be used.

• The Gomez Incident. Ten Cents and Sunshine are sailing past Boomer and Izzy Gomez. Ten Cents toots his whistle and chaos ensues as Boomer's rudder gets jammed. Ten Cents and Sunshine watch in horror as Boomer slams into sleepy Izzy. This causes Izzy to ram into a small pier and destroy it in an explosion. Ten Cents and Sunshine offer to tow Izzy away with Izzy spouting the line "Ees that silly Grino's fault, He pay."

• An explanation as to why Boomer is sitting near the Buoy, being a standby fog horn. Then some dialogue in the next scene alludes to Scuttlebutt Pepe's tendency to gossip.

• A scene just before the Fire Tug pulls in boomer, where Big Mac and O.J. rally Sunshine and Ten Cents to help with Boomer.

Availability

The location of the episode is unknown, fully dubbed, or even a workprint. This episode never saw release on VHS or TV. Fans have debated on if the footage was even finished editing. That said there are some leads and clues, though the majority of this is speculation:

• Star Tugs Trust: They own the Sizzler reel which contains many of the scenes from the 20-minute cut. Most likely they don't have the full episode, but they do have many materials relating to it.

• Robert Cardona: Surviving co-creator of Tugs. There's a possibility he may have kept a finished copy of the episode as a keepsake. The same could also be said for other crew members who haven't donated lost and unseen materials to the TUGS Project or the Star Tugs Trust.

• Shepperton Studios: Though extremely unlikely a copy may be sitting in a forgotten archive or vault at Shepperton

• The Tugs project has confirmed they DO NOT have the episode, though they have released many images and materials relating to the episode.