you wouldn't want to be a pirate's prisoner! bonus features

Teachers’ Information Sheet by Nicky Milsted

The book follows the captain of a Spanish treasure galleon on hisattempted voyage in 1716 from the Spanish Main back home toSpain. The Spanish Main is the name given to the parts of theCaribbean that make up Spain’s New World Empire. It includespresent-day Florida, Texas and Mexico; Central America; the northcoast of South America; and islands in the Caribbean Sea includingCuba and Jamaica.

The ship is packed with riches, including emeralds, pearls, timber,porcelain, silk, spices and gold. It is sailing in a convoy, known as a fleet, with six other ships to try and stay safe – there’s safety innumbers. However, given its precious cargo, it is very definitely a target for pirates!

Pirates are common in the Spanish Main – many used to be privateers (the name given to sailorsfrom England, France and Holland, who had permission from their governments to attack Spanishships and steal the precious cargo for their nations’ benefit). Privateering has stopped, but manyof the old privateers are now pirates – keeping their stolen loot for themselves!

The galleon falls behind the rest of the fleet, and is captured by pirates. The captain is takenprisoner. He is tortured by the pirate crew, who are trying to discover the whereabouts andintended route of the other treasure ships. The captain is determined not to give the pirates theinformation they are after. He is thrown into the hold of the pirates’ ship, and then shackled to thedeck. He is flogged and keelhauled (dragged underneath the ship attached to a rope), thrownoverboard and used as target practice. He is tortured with fire, and when he finally breaks downand tells the pirate captain where the fleet of treasure ships is heading, he is marooned on adeserted island. It is very clear indeed that You Wouldn’t Want to Be a Pirate’s Prisoner!

About pirates and privateering

Piracy is the name given to robberies undertaken at sea. Acts of piracy are usually violent innature. The people who commit acts of piracy are called pirates. Privateering is very similar topiracy – certainly if you were on the receiving end of it! However, pirates act for themselves,whereas privateers were endorsed or backed by their governments, and their acts of robbery wereseen as part of a legitimate war between countries. Many privateers went on to become pirateswhen their government backing was withdrawn and their actions were no longer acts of war butfor personal gain.

Ships trading between different lands have been targeted by pirates for thousands of years. In factit is probably the case that ever since people have been taking vessels to sea there have beenpirates attacking them. There are even reports of pirate raids occurring in ancient Egypt nearly

You Wouldn’t Want to Be a Pirate’s Prisoner!

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4,000 years ago! Pirates have originated from all countries and peoples – ancient Greek and Roman pirates attacked ships and seized people as slaves. Vikings in particularare famous for their piratical looting across northern Europe and beyond. In some parts of

the world in the 21st century pirates are still amongst the biggest threats to ocean-going vessels.International waters off of the coast of Somalia in Africa and parts of the Indian Ocean areparticularly dangerous.

Piracy in the Caribbean (or the Spanish Main), which is the subject of You Wouldn’t Want to Be aPirate’s Prisoner!, was at its height from around 1650 to the 1720s. The rise of piracy in this partof the world coincided with the expansion and development of the Empires of several Europeanpowers – those belonging to the Dutch, French, English and Spanish. Many European ships weresailing from the Caribbean back to Europe laden with goods and valuables from their Caribbeancolonies. Cargoes included gold, timber (from the rainforests of South America), silk and calicofabrics, spices, precious stones such as emeralds, and much more.

After 1720, piracy in the Caribbean and across the Atlantic Ocean became much less frequent dueto the British Royal Navy actively hunting down and capturing pirate vessels. Pirates who werecaptured were often hanged for their crimes, and more notorious pirates – such as William“Captain” Kidd and “Calico” Jack Rackham – had their bodies left hanging in speciallyconstructed metal cages (called gibbets) until all that was left of them was their bones!

Activity 1: Become a pirate

Encourage your pupils to create themselves a pirate character for their adventures in the world of piracy. They will need to come up with a good pirate name – they could be inspired by realpirates, like Blackbeard, the Barbarossa Brothers or Captain Kidd; or they could opt to make up a name that they think would scare their prisoners and crew such as John “Shark of the Seas”Gunn, Stella “Flaming hair” Fitten, or Jack “Scoundrel” Dundas. If your pupils need inspirationto help them to create their pirate names, you can use the pirate name generator.

Once your pupils have chosen their pirate name, ask them to describe and draw themselves as apirate using the activity sheet.

Why not try… pirate speed-dating? In pairs, ask your pupils to interview each other as pirates.

Activity 2: Joining the pirate crew

There are lots of different roles aboard a pirate ship. The captain is the head of the ship. Thecaptain is a ruthless and frightening man (or woman!) with a knack for getting exactly what he orshe wants. The quartermaster is the ship’s second in command and is often responsible fortorturing prisoners. The ship’s surgeon is responsible for looking after the crew – he uses a saw(and no anaesthetic!) to amputate wounded limbs. The carpenter maintains and mends the ship’stimbers; he’s good with a saw, so can do surgeons’ work as well! The sailmaker looks after theship’s sails and other items made from canvas. The navigator is responsible for ensuring the ship

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sails a safe course and for helping to track down treasure ships to attack. Coopers make and repair the barrels which store the ship’s food and drink. And ordinary seamen do all the other essential tasks aboard the ship: cleaning the decks, manning pumps, hauling the

sails up and down, and much more.

Challenge your pupils to write a job advert for one of the roles in the pirate crew, or to produce aposter to encourage people to join the crew.

Extension activity: There have been too many applications to join the pirate crew. Appoint a panelof pupils as members of the crew, including the pirate captain, and ask them to conduct jobinterviews of the potential crew members. You could ask the candidates to prepare a CV orcomplete a job application form; the panel should decide on the questions to ask the candidates.What characteristics are they looking for in their pirate crew?

Activity 3: Treasure cargoes

Treasure cargoes from the 17th and 18th centuries included exotic goods and foods that would nothave been available in Europe. Prized materials included gold, emeralds and pearls, porcelain,silk and spices. Your pupils can use the activity sheet to explain which items they would chooseto include in their treasure cargoes.

Imagined monetary values and weights have been given to a range of different objects (usingmodern-day currency and measures) on the activity sheets. There are some maths questions usingthese figures that challenge your pupils to work out the total value and weight of differentcargoes. For example, if a chest of pearls weighs 5kg and is worth £500, and a chest of goldweighs 10kg and is worth £1500, what would the value and weight be of three chests of pearlsand two chests of gold? (Answer: 35kg and £4500)

Extension activity: using the treasure cargo facts, can your pupils come up with some mathschallenges of their own to try out on their classmates?

Activity 4: A song for the pirates

Pirates spent a long time on board their ships looking for treasure-carrying galleons to attack.What better way to pass the time than a bit of a pirate sing-song to keep the pirate crewentertained and ready for the fight of boarding and capturing a galleon? Challenge your pupils tocome up with some words (and a tune) for a pirate song.

Why not try… creating a large pirate ship out of cardboard that can be used as scenery, andperforming some of your pirate songs in a school assembly?

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Activity 5: Torture, pirate style!

The piratical methods of torture described in You Wouldn’t Want to Be a Pirate’s Prisoner! are barbaric. They included:

● Being thrown in the hold; the hold is the inside of the ship, where cargo is stored.The hold was dark, stale, smelly, wet and full of rats. A prisoner in the hold wouldlose all sense of time and be hungry and tired. It was a form of mental torture.

● Being shackled to the deck; clamped to the deck in heavy leg irons called bilboes,a prisoner shackled to the deck would be exposed to the wind, rain, freezing cold ofnight time and blistering sunshine. Again there would be no food or fresh water todrink. This was a mental form of torture.

● Flogging with a cat-o’-nine-tails; a prisoner would be tied with legs and arms spreadupright on the deck and then hit repeatedly with a lash made up of nine strands ofrope, each with knots at the end. Some cat-o’-nine-tails had small metal musket ballsor fish hooks tied to the ends of the rope to make them cut even more deeply. And inmany cases, the prisoner’s raw wounds were rubbed with salt and vinegar whichwould have stung horrifically. This was a physical torture.

● Keelhauling; a rope was passed underneath the ship from starboard to port (right toleft on board a boat) and the prisoner was tied to it. The rope was then hauledunderneath the ship – the prisoner may well have drowned during this form of torture,or been very close to drowning. The prisoner would also have suffered cuts andbruising to the back from being dragged across the keel of the ship. This was both aphysical and mental torture.

● Ducking and towing; being suspended from the ship and repeatedly ducked into theocean whilst the ship was sailing or being towed behind the ship in the ocean whilsttied to a rope.

● Being used for target practice; being thrown overboard and then shot at by the pirates.

● Torture with fire; this included being placed in a barrel full of gunpowder andthreatened with having the fuse leading to the barrel set alight, having burning piecesof rope placed between fingers and toes – or even stuffed into the mouth, or being tiedto a spit and roasted over the ship’s cooking fire.

● Marooning; being abandoned on an uninhabited island without food or water.

Introduce the different methods of torture that feature in the book using the information above,and then challenge your pupils to pick which form of torture they think is the worst. Can theydescribe the torture method, and then explain why they think it is the most barbaric, using theactivity sheet? ©

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Talking point: can your pupils identify any differences between physical and mental methods of torture. Do they have any thoughts about whether physical or mental torture would be harder to endure?

Activity 6: Marooned!

Ask your pupils to imagine that they have been marooned on a deserted island. Challenge them toundertake one or more of the following activity ideas:

a) Write a diary extract of their first day on the islandb) Draw a map of the imagined island – what resources does the island have?c) Design a shelter using only resources available on the island

Extension activity: explain to your pupils that the pirate captain who abandoned them on thedeserted island was kinder than most. He has allowed them to take five personal belongings withthem. What would they choose, and why? (Remember that it is 1716!) Ask your pupils to writeabout their choices on the activity sheet.

Talking point: what five personal belongings from the 21st century would your pupils choose tobe marooned with today?

Activity 7: Rescued!

Your pupils are in luck! They – like the Spanish captain in the book – have been rescued from thedeserted island. Challenge your pupils to produce a piece of creative writing that describes therescue. They could chose to produce a poem, play script or short story.

Activity 8: Arty challenges

Make a cat-o’-nine-tails! A simple small-scale cat-o’-nine-tails could be made by cutting ninelengths of string, and tying three knots in the end of each piece. You could choose to tie smallwooden beads onto the pieces of string to mimic musket balls if you want to. Tape the ninelengths of string together at the opposite end to the knots. Next, stick the taped end of the stringssecurely to the bottom right-hand corner of a piece of portrait-orientated A4 cardboard, about 3cmin from the edge. Make sure that the loose ends of the strings are hanging to the right of the pieceof cardboard. Roll the cardboard up from the bottom edge into a tight tube so that the tapedstrings are inside the middle of the tube, and the lengths with the knots are hanging down. Paintthe ‘handle’ of the cat-o’-nine-tails. Obviously pupils should not use their cat-o’-nine-tails!

Design a new pirate flag! Pirate ships flew the skull and crossbones – or Jolly Roger – to identifytheir vessel as a pirate ship. Challenge your pupils to design a new pirate flag that would strikefear into the crew members of any ships that they approached.

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Pupils’ pack contents

● Pirate name generator● ‘Me ... As a pirate’ activity sheet● Pirate crew job application form● ‘Treasure cargoes’ activity sheet● ‘Treasure cargo maths’ activity sheets (3)● ‘Torture, pirate style!’ activity sheet● ‘Marooned: diary extract’ activity sheet● ‘Marooned: what would you take?’ activity sheet● Design your own pirate flag● Blank sheet with the border top and bottom for your pupils’ own artwork and writing

Answers: Treasure cargo maths (1)

1) a) 30kg b) 35kg c) 40kg d) 130kg e) 5kg

2) a) £1000 b) £1500 c) £1600


1) a) 25kg b) 100kg c) 28.5kg

2) a) £1000 b) £3200

3) Red = £150 Green = £50 Blue = £100 Yellow = £200


1) There are lots of different answers to this question

2) 12 (11 lengths would only give you 275m so an additional piece would be needed)

3) Both cargoes weigh 90kg!

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Pirate name generator!Before you start your adventures as a pirate, you need a good pirate name!

Your pirate name needs to describe you, or help you terrify other people. Some famous pirates include:

Use our pirate name generator to help you create your own pirate name!

First: pick your pirate first name by using the initial of your own first nameThen: choose a description by the month you were born inFinally: choose your pirate last name using the initial of your own surname

Blackbeard

“Red Legs” Greaves

Black Sam

“Calico Jack” Rackham

Montbars the Exterminator“Diabolito” (Little Devil)

Girls

A–B: AnneC–D: CatherineE–F: FloraG–H: HarrietI–J: JaneK–L: LizM–N: MaryO–P: ClaraQ–R: RachelS–T: StellaU–V: RuthW–X: MariaY–Z: Martha

Boys

A–B: AmaroC–D: DanielE–F: EdwardG–H: JackI–J: JohnK–L: ChristopherM–N: NathanielO–P: JosephQ–R: RobertS–T: ThomasU–V: JacobW–X: WilliamY–Z: Henry

January – FearlessFebruary – Scoundrel March – Curse of Serpent CreekApril – Shark of the Seas

May – DevilJune – Cut-throatJuly – Flaming hairAugust – the Exterminator

September – BlackbeardOctober – One-leggedNovember – SwashbucklerDecember – Skull-splitter

A–B: BonnyC–D: DrakeE–F: EvansG–I: Gibbs

J–L: Jones M–N: MorganO–P: PaineQ–S: Smith

T–U: HawkinsV–W: WynnX–Z: Booth

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Me ... As a pirate!My name is: ___________________________________________________________________________________

My pirate name is: ____________________________________________________________________________

About pirate me: ____________________________________________________________________________

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Pirate crewJob Application Form

Name: __________________________________________________________________________________________

Age: __________________________________________________________________________________________

Current job: ___________________________________________________________________________________

Use this box to tell us about your skills and experience – why would you make a good pirate?

Personal statement – why do you want to join the pirate crew?

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You are the Captain of a Spanish galleon about to sail fromthe Spanish Main back to Spain.

What cargo are you going to carry on your galleon?

You can take three things from the list below.

What will you choose to take in your cargo – and why?

Name: _______________________________________________________________

Tick the three items that you have chosen to take in your treasure cargo:

□ Timber

□ Gold

□ Emeralds

□ Pearls

□ Silk

□ Spices

□ Porcelain

□ Sugar

□ Silver

Use this box to explain your choices:

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Treasure cargoes

Treasure cargo maths! (1)Facts about your treasure cargo:

1) Each length of timber is 25m long and has a value of £1002) A chest of gold weighs 10kg and has a value of £15003) A chest of emeralds weighs 7kg and is worth £8004) A chest of pearls weighs 5kg and has a value of £5005) Bales of silk are worth between £50 and £200 dependent

on colour. They weigh 10kg each6) Each box of spices weighs 500g and is worth £200

Name: _____________________________________________________________________

1) What is the weight of:

a) 3 chests of gold? ___________________

b) 5 chests of emeralds? ___________________

c) 8 chests of pearls? ___________________

d) 13 bales of silk? ___________________

e) 10 boxes of spices? ___________________

2) What is the value of:

a) 10 lengths of timber? ___________________

b) 3 chests of pearls? ___________________

c) 2 chests of emeralds? ___________________ © M

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1) Each length of timber is 25m long and has a value of £1002) A chest of gold weighs 10kg and has a value of £15003) A chest of emeralds weighs 7kg and is worth £8004) A chest of pearls weighs 5kg and has a value of £5005) Bales of silk are worth between £50 and £200 dependent

on colour. They weigh 10kg each6) Each box of spices weighs 500g and is worth £200

Name: __________________________________________

1) What is the weight of:

a) 2 chests of gold and 1 chest of pearls? ___________________

b) 10 chests of emeralds and 3 bales of silk? ___________________

c) 5 chests of pearls and 7 boxes of spice? ___________________

2) What is the value of:

a) 3 boxes of spice and 4 lengths of timber? ___________________

b) 4 chests of emeralds and 2 chests of gold? ___________________

3) There are four different colours of silk: red, green, blue and yellow.Each colour is worth a different amount, either: £50, £100, £150 or £200.Using the following facts, can you work out the cost of each different colour?

Yellow silk is the most expensiveGreen silk costs £100 less than red silk.

Red = ________ Green = ________ Blue = ________ Yellow = ________

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1) Each length of timber is 25m long and has a value of £1002) A chest of gold weighs 10kg and has a value of £15003) A chest of emeralds weighs 7kg and is worth £8004) A chest of pearls weighs 5kg and has a value of £5005) Bales of silk weigh 10kg each6) Each box of spices weighs 500g and is worth £200

Name: __________________________________________

1) The value of the goods in your treasure cargo is £10,000. What is your ship carrying?You must have at least three different types of treasure cargo.There are lots of different answers to this question!

Example: 5 boxes of spices = £200 x 5 = £10002 chests of gold = £1500 x 2 = £300020 lengths of timber = £100 x 20 = £20008 chests of pearls = £500 x 8 = £4000 TOTAL = £10,000

2) You need 280m of timber. How many lengths of timber will you have to carry?

___________________________________________________________________________

3) Which of these cargoes is heavier? Use a separate sheet for your workings:

a) 5 bales of silk, 10 boxes of spices, 3 chests of pearls and 2 chests of gold

b) 4 chests of emeralds, 2 chests of pearls, 3 chests of gold, 4 boxes of spicesand 2 bales of silk?

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Use this box to show your workings


Name: ________________________________________________________________

Pirates used lots of different methods of torture to try and get information from their prisoners.But what do you think would be the worst form torture?

Was being keelhauled worse than being used for target practice by the pirates? Was being flogged with a cat-o’-nine-tails more difficult to endure than torture by fire?

Tick which form of torture you would find worst:

□ Thrown in the hold □ Shackled to the deck

□ Keelhauling □ Flogged with cat-o’-nine-tails

□ Torture with fire □ Used for target practice

□ Ducking and towing □ Marooned

Describe the type of torture you chose and explain your choice below:

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Torture, pirate style!

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You’ve finally escaped from the pirates and their barbaric torture methods... but you’ve beenmarooned on a deserted island.

Write a diary extract imagining your first day on the island.

Name: _____________________________________________________________________

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Marooned! Diary extract

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You’ve been marooned on a deserted island... But the pirate captain who has abandoned you is kinder than most. He has allowed you to take five personal belongings with you. What would you choose, and why? (Remember that it is 1716!)

Name: _____________________________________________________________________

1) ___________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

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2) ___________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

3) ___________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

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4) ___________________________________________________________________________

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5) ___________________________________________________

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Marooned! What would you take?


My pirate flag

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Name: __________________________________________________________________________________________

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Pirates’ Den

Parts:

Narrator:

Blackbeard:

Narrator:

Blackbeard:

This play imagines a TV show 300 years ago, where 3 famous pirates sit in a row facing a prisoner who hope to strike a deal with one of the dreaded pirate ‘dragons’.

NarratorEdwin Teach (1680-1718) aka Blackbeard, the fearsome pirateMary Read (1690-1721) aka Mark Read, an English pirateBartholomew Roberts (1682-1722) aka John Roberts, a Welsh pirateAnne McCormack a prisoner, captured by piratesJack Sparrowhawk a prisoner, captured by pirates

The three ‘pirate dragons’ sit on deck, facing each nervous prisoner brought before them.

Welcome to ‘Pirate’s Den’, the show where desperate prisoners get just three minutes to pitch their ideas to three rich and powerful multi-murdering pirates willing to invest some influence – at a price. Let’s meet this week’s pirate dragons. Mr Edwin Teach doesn’t so much breathe fire as shoots flames from fireworks in his beard – for he is better known as...

(Evil laugh) Blackbeard!

And can you remind us in a few words of your business credentials?

As well as my dirty great beard, I’ve got style. Basically, I’ve captured more treasure and sailors than I can remember. Oh yes, and I killed most of my prisoners for a bit of fun. I’ve got forty

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Pirates’ Den

Narrator:

Mary:

Narrator:

Bartholomew:

Narrator:

Blackbeard:

Mary:

Bartholomew:

cannons on my ship called Queen Anne’s Revenge. I took control of Charleston Port (South Carolina) so I own more than my fellow pirate dragons put together!

Well, there’s already hissing and rivalry in the den. Let’s meet Mark Read, who looks like any other violent pirate but is, in fact, a woman.

Correct – but I can fight as well as any man and far better than most. I’ve killed more sailors than I can count and I adore treasure – especially if I’ve killed to get my hands on it. Do you like my gorgeous gold bracelets?

I’m sure Mary can be friendly on her days off. But now we meet our third dragon pirate who comes from Wales - a Welsh Dragon Pirate of the seas.

Correct. I’m Bartholomew Roberts. I’m the most successful pirate ever as I’ve captured 470 ships in my career. Beat that, you two – ha ha ha!

The atmosphere in the den is already hotting up and that’s even before we’ve started. The trouble with 18th century pirates is they’ll pick a fight with anyone – especially themselves. Just remember, it only takes a lost pea to make a pirate IRATE. You may need to see that joke written down!

Get a move on. I haven’t got all day. I’ve got ships to rob and prisoners to torture – as well as anyone who does a stupid pirate voice.

Arrrrr, and I’ve got a ship waiting in the harrrrrbour, me hearrrrrties.

And I need to sharrrrrrpen my cutlarrrrss, me hearrrrties.

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Pirates’ Den

Blackbeard:

Narrator:

Anne:

Blackbeard:

Anne:

Blackbeard:

Anne:

Mary:

(Jumps up, waving fists and a flintlock pistol) If you annoy me I’ll turn narrrrrrrsty. Oops, now you’ve made me do it!

Time to move on. First up in front of the pirate dragons is Anne, a young girl from Ireland who was taken prisoner when the ship she was on got attacked by pirates. She is asking for her life to be spared and fifty thousand pieces of eight for giving information leading to twenty per cent of the booty from her convoy. Just to remind you, a piece of eight is a Spanish dollar. (As early as 1600 one ‘piece of eight’ coin would have been worth the equivalent of a modern £50 note).

(Enters nervously) Hello pirate dragons, I’m Anne and I’ve been chained in the smelly hold of a pirate ship for weeks. I happen to know what one of the ships in our convoy was carrying and where it will be now. Although I’ve been clamped in the bilboes, starved, then kept in the dark, I haven’t given any information away to my captors. But if any of you are prepared to give me fifty thousand pieces of eight and get me released, I’ll lead you to twenty percent of the treasure.

Hold on, Anne. What’s to stop me just getting the information from you by torture or going back on my word and feeding you to the sharks?

Because we have to trust each other.

Oooo, Anne. Rule one: Never trust a pirate. Rule two: Never trust ME. I never trust anyone. You’re very young and you might not be worth trusting or saving. How can you be sure you know where the treasure is?

I’m not prepared to say – unless we make a deal.

I like you, Anne. This pirate business is a man’s world and we

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Pirates’ Den

Anne:

Mary:

Anne:

Mary:

Anne:

Mary:

Bartholomew:

Anne:

Bartholomew:

Anne:

Bartholomew:

Anne:

need more girls like you around. You seem quite brave – does anything scare you?

Not really. Just awful pirate jokes.

Like what?

Like ‘what did the pirate say when his wooden leg got stuck in the ice?’

I don’t know - what did the pirate say when his wooden leg got stuck in the ice?

Shiver me timbers.

I see what you mean. That’s terrible!

Anne, I’m Captain Bartholomew Roberts. I’m rich. I feel I’m wasting my time talking to a little girl who might know where a bit of treasure is. Why should someone as important as me invest in someone like you?

Because I’m worth it.

Tell me... would you rather be punished with a cat-o’-none-tails or be told a bad pirate joke?

Neither – I just want to go free.

Very well, I have no choice. Why did the pirate put a belt on a pumpkin?

That’s easy. He wanted to be a squashbuckler. I know all the bad jokes. I’ve been tortured with them for the last week.

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Pirates’ Den

Bartholomew:

Anne:

Bartholomew:

Anne:

Blackbeard:

Anne:

Bartholomew:

Blackbeard:

Mary:

Anne:

Mary:

Anne:

Here’s another. Why was the girl arrested for making a waxwork of Blackbeard?

That’s easy. It’s illegal to make a pirate copy.

Hmmm, you’ve certainly done your research. What do you know about me?

I know you always wear your velvet suit and a lacy shirt before a battle. I also know you’re a wanted man with a price on your head.

Yeah – just a couple of bucks!

That’s right – a buck-an-ear! A buccaneer is a pirate adventurer who raids Spanish ships along the American coast – just like you.

That’s not funny. You should be made to walk the plank. I’m out.

To be honest, Anne, I’m not interested in saving your life. I’m out.

Anne - I’m going to make you an offer. I’ll take all the treasure but share it with you – half each. I’ll pay you nothing else but save your life if you come and work for me as a pirate. I know a part-time pirate called James Bonny who might marry you. You’d like him.

Can I think about it?

You can have as long as you want.

(She pauses for a millisecond) I accept your offer! (They shake hands and embrace)

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Pirates’ Den

Narrator:

Blackbeard:

All:

Mary:

All:

Bartholomew:

So our first pirate prisoner has struck a deal. Mary Read will get her released but it means Anne will become Anne Bonny and become a pirate herself. She and Mary Read could be remembered as two of the scariest pirates ever – who dress as men. The rest will be history!It’s time to take a short break – with a pirate’s sea shanty...

What shall we do with a pirate’s prisoner?What shall we do with a pirate’s prisoner?What shall we do with a pirate’s prisoner?Early in the morning.

Lock him in the bilboes till he talks of treasureLock him in the bilboes till he talks of treasureLock him in the bilboes till he talks of treasureEarly in the morning.

Weigh heigh and up she rises Weigh heigh and up she rises Weigh heigh and up she risesEarly in the morning.

Flog him fifty lashes from the quartermasterFlog him fifty lashes from the quartermasterFlog him fifty lashes from the quartermasterEarly in the morning.


Drag him underwater in a keelhaul tortureDrag him underwater in a keelhaul tortureDrag him underwater in a keelhaul torture

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Pirates’ Den

All:

Anne:

All:

Jack (or Bartholomew’s parrot):

All:

Narrator:

Early in the morning.


Bung him in a barrel as you light the powderBung him in a barrel as you light the powderBung him in a barrel as you light the powderEarly in the morning.


Burn him on the barbie till he tells his secretsBurn him on the barbie till he tells his secretsBurn him on the barbie till he tells his secretsEarly in the morning.


What shall we do with a pirate’s prisoner?What shall we do with a pirate’s prisoner?What shall we do with a pirate’s prisoner?Early in the morning - weigh heigh!

There’s nothing like a good sea shanty – and that was nothing like

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Pirates’ Den

Jack:

Mary:

Jack:

Blackbeard:

Jack:

Bartholomew:

Jack:

Mary:

Jack:

a good sea shanty! Next in the den is Jack Sparrowhawk. He has spent many years escaping from pirate ships but he’s now a prisoner of Captain One-Eyed-Jake and needs to strike a deal with a pirate dragon so he can escape again.

(Swaggers in) Good day, my friends. You may know me. I’m known by many pirates of the Caribbean. I’ve been on many sea adventures but right now I’m a prisoner and I need a bit of your influence to get me off the hook.

Who’s hook? Captain Hook?

No, no. Listen, I could be a great help to you guys. You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.

With a hook? Why have you got an itchy back?

I was flogged by One-Eyed-Jake with a cat-o’-nine-tails. The whip had scratchy fish hooks and musket balls on the end. Fifty lashes. Then salt and vinegar.

Crisps?

No – scabs. Salt and vinegar was rubbed into them. Ouch. My back now itches like mad. Next I had water torture to make me tell secrets. I had ducking, towing, got stitched-up but I didn’t say a word. Then I was keelhauled. That wasn’t nice – getting dragged under the ship with barnacles on the bottom.

It’s nasty having barnacles on your bottom.

Enough to say, I couldn’t sit down for a week. So I want your help to get revenge. Then I’ll tell you stuff. I know where there’s an island with buried treasure. One-Eyed-Jake has got the map of where it is. I know how to get it. It’s yours if you get me off

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Pirates’ Den

Blackbeard:

Bartholomew:

Mary:

Jack:

Mary:

Narrator:

Blackbeard:

Jack:

Blackbeard:

Jack:

his ship. You see, I’m a prisoner of a pirate captain with one eye called Jake.

Really – so what’s his other eye called?

I don’t find that funny. And I don’t like you, Jack Sparrowhawk. For that reason, I’m out.

I’ll tell you where I am on your bid to get even with One-Eyed-Jake. To me you don’t seem real. You’re more like a character from a book.

Me, Jack Sparrowhawk? Listen, I’m a pirate’s prisoner. And believe me, you wouldn’t want to be a pirate’s prisoner. I could tell you horrible things you’d rather not know. Now that IS in a book! (Holds up a copy of YWWTBAPP!)

You just look too cool to be a pirate’s prisoner. For that reason, I’m out.

So now there’s just one dragon pirate left. Will Blackbeard be prepared to make an offer or will Jack leave the den empty-handed – to return as a prisoner of One-Eyed-Jake?

Right – I’ll tell you what I’ll do. You get me the map to Treasure Island and I’ll rescue you from One-Eyed-Jake’s ship before blowing it up to smithereens. But.... and there’s a big but...

You want me to join your pirate ship?

No way. Once we get to the island, I will paint you with red paint from head to toe. Then I’ll cover you in blue paint...

Oh no... I’m going to be marooned!

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Pirates’ Den

Blackbeard:

Jack:

Narrator:

Anne:

Jack:

Narrator:

That’s my offer. Take it or leave it.

I’ll take it. It’s a deal! (They shake hands)

That’s amazing. Another prisoner leaves the den with an offer of help from a pirate dragon. Jack and Anne, you must both be delighted.

I can’t wait to start my new life as a real pirate of the high seas. Then I’ll never have to be tortured by evil pirates again. I’ll be one myself! Everyone will know my name: Anne Bonny.

Yikes, I might have made a big mistake. Although I’ll get off the pirate ship at last, I’ll be marooned on a desert island. I might get eaten by cannibals or go completely mad. I’ll have to eat creepy-crawlies or starve – or maybe die of the dreaded scurvy. Help!

Those are horrible things I’d rather not know. Which all goes to show YOU WOULDN’T WANT TO BE A PIRATE’S PRISONER... EVER!

you wouldn't want to be a pirate's prisoner! bonus features

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