Tugs is a 1989 British children's television series created by the producer and director of Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends respectively, Robert D. Cardona and David Mitton. It features two anthropomorphized tugboat fleets: the Star Fleet and the Z-Stacks. They compete against each other in the fictional Bigg City Port.

In the North American adaptation, Salty's Lighthouse, the stories were re-purposed for a younger audience. The two groups were no longer rival tug fleets, and the characters underwent various changes. Sunshine, Captain Star, and Little Ditcher were considered female. Sunshine became the sister of fellow switcher Ten Cents. British accents were changed to American accents. Some names were changed, for instance, Big Mac became Big Stack, O.J. became Otis, and Zebedee became Zeebee.

Star Fleet
The Star Fleet is a family of boats who aim to work together on getting and fulfilling port contracts. It is led by Captain Star. Its symbol is a red funnel with blue and white stripes around the top. Fleet members have yellow Superstructures and also carry a red flag with a white star resembling the American flag. Reporting to Captain Star are seven tugs, each of which has a numbered smoke stack. In "Regatta", Grampus the Submarine becomes a member of Star Fleet. The Star Fleet tugs are modeled after the San Francisco tugs of the 1920s.

Ten Cents (voiced by Simon Nash, Shigeru Nakahara in the Japanese dub and Ian James Corlett in Salty's Lighthouse) works as a switcher tug on a wide variety of tasks around Bigg City Port, and is number 1. Ten Cents is one of the younger, and he is one of the braver Star Tugs. He has a tendency to be somewhat cheeky at times, but is strong-willed, and it takes a lot to break him. He is quick-witted and takes action swiftly without hesitation. He never lets other tugs bully him, never fails to stand up for others, and is always willing to set aside his own safety for the sake of others. He has a bit of a short temper, but he is also smart enough to listen to the advice of the older, more experienced tugs. He speaks with a teenage East End Cockney accent. Chris Tulloch notes that Ten Cents was the first model he built for the series: "Ten Cents was 20 [inches] long, and his hull (fibreglass) was the basis for Zip and Zug."
Big Mac (voiced by Sean Barrett, Keiji Fujiwara in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobsen in Salty's Lighthouse) is a harbour tug who speaks with a Scottish accent, and is number 2. He can come across as a rude and stubborn tug, but he has a heart of gold, despite his tendencies to be macho, gruff and tough at times. He is very much willing to set aside his own safety for the sake of others, and usually (but not always) remains level-headed when undergoing a strategy. Big Mac works mainly with Warrior, and the two tugs have a very close friendship. Even though Warrior's clumsiness and thick head occasionally frustrates him, he still respects and cares for him. He also stands up for Warrior if anyone makes fun of him. As opposed to his gruff personality, he is fitted with a rich and melodic chime whistle. In Salty's Lighthouse, he was named Big Stack.
O.J. (voiced by Timothy Bateson, Masaaki Tsukada in the Japanese dub and Ian James Corlett in Salty's Lighthouse) is the sole remaining paddle-driven harbour tug in Bigg City Port, and is number 3. He can be described as "slow, but versatile". As Captain Star once said in "Quarantine", "He had given many years of good service, but time was catching up on him". He is indeed capable of a variety of tasks, but is sometimes restricted by his age and mechanical condition. He speaks with a South Welsh accent. His basis is that of Eppleton Hall. Chris Tulloch noted that the O.J. model used in the series was one of the most reliable. Other models, which had internal machinery, would often threaten to "turn turtle" and would have to be fixed firmly to a chassis. After the production of Tugs was shut down, his model was passed on to the sister series Thomas & Friends to be converted into "Lakesider lll", seen on the Skarloey Railway on Series 4. His model was later sold to The Star Tugs Trust along with his original head, wheelhouse, smokestack, and glasses (though at the moment, he is painted in the Lakesider lll livery). In Salty's Lighthouse, he was named Otis. He is also the only Tug seen with a red waterline on his hull.
Top Hat (voiced by John Baddely, Masashi Ebara in the Japanese dub and French Tickner in Salty's Lighthouse)  is a railway tug with a top hat and monocle, and is number 4. He is very uppity and snobbish and tends to look down on most tugs, especially the Z-Stacks. He also believes he is the best tug in the Star Fleet. Despite his self-absorbed and arrogant demeanor, he means well, works hard and despite rarely showing it, he cares for the rest of the Star Fleet. He speaks in a posh English accent. He proved his ability in a crisis when he averted disaster in the episode "High Tide".  After the filming of Tugs ended, sadly, Top Hat's model was presumed to be lost. He is one of the two Tugs characters from the Star Fleet who has not been sold to The Star Tugs Trust, along with Grampus. If Top Hat's model is found in the future, he may have his shocked face mask on. His other face masks are currently the only parts that are last left of him. Top Hat's basis was New York Central Tugboat 13.
Warrior (voiced by Mike O'Malley, Mitsuaki Madono in the Japanese dub and French Tickner in Salty's Lighthouse) has a large face and blue flat cap, and speaks with a burly London accent, and is number 5. He usually works with Big Mac and sometimes, Top Hat. He is often clumsy and rather dimwitted, but tries not to mess up. He is known only to get in the way of the Z-Stacks. He is extremely hardworking, despite the fact that his inherent clumsiness often leads to problems. He is loyal, strong-willed, and determined, and never gives up. Despite Warrior's shortcomings, he has proved himself to be a valuable member of the Star Fleet with notable examples being when he helped put out the fires, saved Izzy Gomez and stopped the logs that were flowing from up the river.
Hercules (voiced by Sean Barrett, Sukekiyo Kameyama in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is an ocean-going tug who is tasked with escorting large vessels to port, or answering distress calls at sea, and is number 6. He is in charge of large operations and important contracts. Hercules is a cool-headed fighter. He speaks with a clear, soft tone and received pronunciation, but his words are often hard. Although he can be strict and serious with his comrades, he also displays a gentler side and a sense of humor on occasion. Nothing can break him and not even the antics of the Z-Stacks and Bluenose can set him back. He is held in high regard by most of the tugs in the harbour, and even Zorran knows that he cannot win a confrontation with Hercules. He is not as seen as often as the other Star Tugs, mainly due to him being on his own missions. Hercules is famously known for referring to his colleagues as "m'dears", "old darlings", and "sweetheart". Because Hercules is an ocean-going tug, he was only seen in a few episodes.  There were plans for a Hercules-centred episode set out at sea, but this episode was never filmed.  Hercules' basis is that of Hercules (1907).
Sunshine (voiced by Shaun Prendergast, Yuko Mita in the Japanese dub and Lenore Zann in Salty's Lighthouse) is a small salvage tug who performs various tasks, and is number 7. Sunshine can be occasionally cheeky at times, but he is very strong willed nevertheless. He is quick-witted and takes action swiftly without hesitation. He is generally level-headed and cheerful, and takes on most jobs with little complaining. He also appears to have a slight crush on Sally Seaplane. Sunshine speaks with a Geordie accent.In Salty's Lighthouse, Sunshine was the sister of Ten Cents.
Grampus (voiced by Lee Cornes, Sakurako Kisharo in the Japanese dub and French Tickner in Salty's Lighthouse)  is a small submarine who formerly worked for the Navy, and is number 8. He appears for the first time in the episode "Pirate", in which he helped to prove Ten Cents' innocence. In the episode "Regatta", he saved Lillie Lightship from sinking by plugging the hole in her side with his front. Later, he was nearly blown up by Bluenose having been branded as 'too old' for further service and was out of commission. He was thankfully swiftly rescued by the Star Tugs Ten Cents, Big Mac, O.J., and Top Hat. On the same day, he was bought by Captain Star and joined the Star Fleet as their first Star submarine. He speaks with a Central English accent (with a noticeable lisp). Grampus also has a tendency to squirt water in the tug's faces, most prominently at Bluenose in "Regatta" and at Top Hat while he was sleeping in the episode "Ghosts". According to model maker Jeremy King, Grampus is a Plunger-class submarine and named after the decommissioned USS Grampus (SS-4). Spike Knight fashioned Grampus in fiberglass by looking at old Grampus photos. He used a "parallel lifting version of the tugs' pull along trolleys so he could surface." His model is one of two Star Tugs characters that has not been sold to the Star Tugs Trust, along with Top Hat, his face masks are currently the only part that is last left of him, if Grampus's model is found in the future, his model may have his thrilled face mask.
Captain Star (voiced by Patrick Allen, Rokuro Naya in the Japanese dub and Lenore Zann in Salty's Lighthouse) is the owner of the Star Fleet. He narrates the series in the past tense. He is quite obviously a veteran sailor, and owns and cares for the Star Fleet. He always appears as a loudhailer in the window of the Star Dock building. He takes great pride in his fleet. He is usually very strict if something does not go as shipshape as it is supposed to, though he does display traces of humour in his narration. In Salty's Lighthouse, Captain Star was a female character.

Z-Stacks
The Z-Stacks are a clan of devious, tricky scheming gangster boats. Their symbol is a black stack with two white circles up top and a white O on both sides. Members have brown bodies and fly a black flag with a white O. Their leader is Captain Zero, although the first tug Zorran runs the day-to-day operations. They regularly find ways to hinder and infuriate their rival Star Fleet tugs. Their physical appearance is modeled after the 1920s Moran tugs that were active in New York City.

Zorran (voiced by Chris Tulloch, Hajimie Koseki in the Japanese dub and Scott McNeil in  Salty's Lighthouse)  is Captain Zeros first tug, and the fleet leader of the Z-Stacks, and is number 1. He is a harbour tug who hatches various devious schemes against the Star Fleet. Zorran is looked up to in fear from most of the other tugs. However, though being able to generally get what he is looking for, Zorran is depicted as a very pragmatic tug, who will be devious only as far as common sense and necessity allows. The majority of the episodes portray him as a leading antagonist in some way. Although he is undoubtedly the most intelligent Z-Stack, his plans usually end up backfiring: either through the incompetence of the other Z-Stacks or his own overconfidence. Zorran has shown to regularly employ switchers Zip and Zug to carry out his operations, which more often than not results in adverse consequences.
Zebedee (voiced by Sean Barrett, Koji Ishii in the Japanese dub and Ian James Corlett in Salty's Lighthouse)  is Captain Zeros second tug; he performs a variety of tasks around Bigg City Port, and is number 2. Like the other Z-Stacks, Zebedee is based on the NYC Moran Fleet tugs from the 1920s. His personality resembles Shemp Howard. Zebedee is one of the more complex Tugs characters, an easy going tug who winds up the Star Fleet for a reason or another, mean and vindictive on the outside, but on the inside there is much to his personality. Beneath his tough exterior is the only Z-Stack to have a conscience.  Zebedee was the focus of the only episode that centred on a Z-Stack, "High Winds" In this episode "High Winds", Zebedee is bullied into helping an evil tramper, but he feels guilty about it, and his guilty conscious leads him to help the Star Tugs on a couple of occasions. Ten Cents suggests he joins the Star Tugs but he refuses. Zebedee's lighter side was never examined again in the series, but it was in another form of media which stated his owner was Captain Star, meaning it would have been expanded on in Season 2. In Salty's Lighthouse, his name was pronounced "Zee-Bee".
Zak (voiced by Shaun Prendergast, Hideyuki Umezu in the Japanese dub and Scott McNeil in Salty's Lighthouse) is the third member of the Z-Stacks and usually works with Zebedee, and is number 3. Like the rest of the Zero Marine, Zak is based on the Moran Fleet tugs from the Roaring 20s. Zak has been seen as a second-in-command to Zorran.  His role is not as prominent as the only Z-Stacks- the only episodes in which he plays a major role are "Munitions" and "High Tide". He also has two non-speaking appearances, in "Warrior" and "Bigg Freeze". He is quite a sinister character- he relishes the idea of blowing up any Tug who gets too near him in "Munitions", and in "Jinxed", he offers to sink Boomer.
Zug (voiced by Nigel Anthony, Taro Arakawa in the Japanese dub and Scott McNeil in Salty's Lighthouse) is the fourth tug in the Z-Stacks, and is number 4. He is a harbour switcher that tows barges and works on liner docking operations. He mainly works with Zip, and likes to think of himself as the intelligent one. He comes up with devious plans for him and Zip to use (although the plans usually fail). Zug's capabilities range from the towing of barges to liner docking operations. Like the rest of the Zero Marine, Zug is based on the Moran Fleet tugs of the 1920s. He is sneaky, cowardly and he needs the other Z-Stacks around for courage. Zug is a scheming sort of tug, though his plans rarely if ever work as planned. Zug is intimidated by the main Z-Stack Zorran and has a tendency to be somewhat nervous and jittery around him. Zug's most prominent appearances were in the episode "Trapped", when a tramper he was towing accidentally got jammed across the river, and in the final episode "Bigg Freeze", when he and Zip trapped Ten Cents and Sunshine in a gully, mistakenly believing they were going to  steal a fuel contract from Zorran. He speaks with a Central European accent reminiscent of Peter Lorre.
Zip (voiced by John Baddely, Masashi Ebara in the Japanese dub and Ian James Corlett in Salty's Lighthouse) is the second harbour switcher in the Z-Stacks fleet, and is number 5. He works alongside Zug on minor contracts such as the freighting of quarried boulders. Zip is often described as 'Zug, only worse'. His head is often in the clouds, and he is well known for being a coward. He is easily scared and sometimes speaks out of turn, as well as being quick to back down when engaging in an argument, and is easily dominated.
Captain Zero (voiced by Sean Barrett, Masaaki Tsukada in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is the owner of the Z-Stacks. Unlike Captain Star, he is a devious and scheming sailor. He is known to have criminal connections and was originally affiliated with Johnny Cuba before something happened between the two. He is also known to be quite bad tempered. Like Captain Star, he is never seen – his voice is heard through a loudhailer. Zero only speaks in a few episodes. His megaphone is seen in "Jinxed", but his dialogue was cut.

Supporting
Izzy Gomez (voiced by Sean Barrett, Rokuro Naya in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is a large tramp steamer who regularly visits Bigg City Port with items such as bananas from Puerto Grande. He has said numerous times that he would rather try to get into port on his own instead of being pulled by any of the tugs and he runs aground during an attempt in the episode "Warrior". Tugs was originally supposed to last 30 minutes.  Only two 30-minute cuts were ever filmed.  In the original 30-minute cut of "Jinxed", Boomer was seen crashing into Izzy Gomez's side. He was one of the models later used for Thomas & Friends after the production of Tugs shut down, his model was used as a tramp steamer seen at Brendam Docks from seasons 3–5. It is unknown where his model is currently. His face masks are currently the only parts that are the last left of him. Izzy spoke with a Mexican accent. In Salty's Lighthouse, he had an American accent (despite still having a sombrero and the Mexican flag painted on his smokestack).
Lillie (voiced by JoAnne Good, Sakurako Kishiro in the Japanese dub and Lenore Zann in Salty's Lighthouse) is a lightship that is situated at Demder Rocks to warn shipping of potential hazards. She has a contract with the Star Fleet where they provide her with the necessary fuel and supplies to keep her light shining. She has a major role in the final episode "Bigg Freeze", appears briefly in several other episodes, and is mentioned in "Ghosts".

Minor
The following is a list of fictional characters in the children's television series Tugs. All of these characters played supporting roles to the series' main characters' in the fictional harbour of Bigg City Port.

Tugboats
Sea Rogue ( also known as "The Pirate") (voiced by Sean Barrett, Keiji Fujiwara in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) made his sole appearance in the episode of the same name, where he was technically the main character. In said episode, he stole barges for two mysterious green-eyed tugs, who had captured his uncle, and threatened to scuttle him unless Sea Rogue stole barges for them. The Green-Eyed Pirates were later caught out by Ten Cents, Sunshine, Grampus, and Sea Rogue himself, who devised a plan to capture the two fiends. Sea Rogue had been previously mistaken for the pirate himself, hence his nickname, and he later forgave the Star Tugs for ever thinking that about him. He then returned to a peaceful life with his uncle. Sea Rogue's appearance was quite intimidating, especially his eye patch, a typical pirate trademark. He was a blackish blue tug in color, and did not seem to work for any particular fleet; although the "Mi" symbol on his stack suggests that he works for the munitions company, as the same symbol is seen on the factory and warehouse doors. His model was later repainted to be used for Bluenose. Sea Rogue also appeared on the TLC TV series, Salty's Lighthouse, except he became a villain who steals cargo (but only existed in Top Hat's dreams).
Bluenose (voiced by Mike O'Malley, Rokuro Naya in the Japanese dub and Scott McNeil in Salty's Lighthouse) is an obnoxious navy tug, whom both the Star Fleet and Z-Stacks despise. He plays precisely by the rules and acts as a kind of stereotypical army drill sergeant towards the other tugs. He is annoying, pompous, and self-centered, and despite appearing in only two episodes of the series ("Regatta" and "Munitions") he caused a major impact and is often referred to as a major character. He speaks with a regimented Army English accent. His major storyline was involved with blowing up the midget submarine Grampus in target practice, but Grampus was saved at the last minute and later became a member of the Star Fleet. After the episode "Munitions", Bluenose was left a nervous wreck, after a terrible night at the docks involving the death of the naval tramp steamer Kraka-Toa.  He is later towed away by Grampus. He was not seen again after this as his model was repainted back into Sea Rogue. The term 'bluenose' was a nickname for people who came from the Canadian province of Nova Scotia - in the context of the show it may also have been a pun on the term 'Brown-nose', or suck-up - given Bluenose's orders-following mentality it can be said that he is a 'naval brown-nose', hence, possibly, 'Bluenose'.

The Fire Chief (voiced by Sean Barrett and Koji Ishii in the Japanese dub) made brief appearances in four episodes- "High Winds", "Quarantine", "Jinxed", and "Bigg Freeze", though he had no dialogue in "Jinxed".  He is level-headed and down-to-earth. He is usually bright eyed, although his stubble makes him appear quite rough. He speaks with a Cockney accent. He is painted white and red.  He is last seen confronting Zip and Zug for stealing a fire barge. Like Billy Shoepack, the Fire Tug could move his head and eyes rather than immobile features.
Boomer (voiced by Lee Cornes, Taro Arakawa in the Japanese dub and Scott McNeil in Salty's Lighthouse) is a tug that appears only in the episode "Jinxed".  He is found drifting by Ten Cents and Sunshine, where he revealed he was a jinx, which Ten Cents was very sceptical about. After many incidents, including almost sinking and his engine failing then catching fire, Ten Cents finally believed that he had a bad luck streak. After he was repaired at Lucky's Yard, Captain Star decided that Boomer was to become a houseboat, and he now resides at an upriver jetty called "Dun Tuggin" where he can relax all day, and the jinx has finally left him. Boomer was originally called Captain Harry, and he says that he became jinxed when his name was changed to Boomer. Boomer is the only tug apart from Sunshine, who was initiated at the end of the first episode, to become a Star Tug during the series, even if it was only for a very short period. He was also very briefly a Z-Stack when he helped Zip and Zug pull some munitions, but after the barge exploded Captain Zero got rid of him. Boomer's model as a tug is distinctly visible at the beginning of the episode "Up River", but he is never seen or mentioned again. Boomer spoke with an Irish accent. His model was reused for Sea Rogue's Uncle. Boomer also appeared in Salty's Lighthouse, experiencing two very different adventures. In one episode he failed towing the schooner (as in the original TUGS) and became a 'vacation boat' in a story Ten Cents told to Zug. In the other one, he lost his 'bad luck' by successfully towing the schooner.  Boomer's history reflects the naval superstition that changing the name of a ship invokes bad-luck. His name in naval and military slang is the nickname for submarines armed with ballistic missiles/nuclear ICBMs - though it is highly improbable that Boomer has any connection to nuclear weapons (having predated their invention by two decades) it can safely be said that he had a similarly intense impact on the tugs of Bigg City Port.

Billy Shoepack (voiced by Lee Cornes, Masaaki Madono in "Trapped", Rokuro Naya in "Up River" and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is an alligator tug. He is mischievous, but ultimately a good character, saving the day in both of the two episodes he appeared in "Trapped" and "Up River".  He carries supplies such as fuses and dynamite to the Upriver towns. Billy spoke with a strong West Country accent.

Sea Rogue's Uncle (voiced by Mike O'Malley and Masaaki Tsukada in the Japanese dub) was never named, although he was referred to as "Old Man" by his nephew Sea Rogue. He was an elderly tug with a brownish color scheme, appearing only in "Pirate". He was kidnapped by the "Green-Eyed" tugs, who held him as ransom in order to make his nephew steal barges, and was later rescued by Grampus. His model was reused from Boomer.
Burke (voiced by Nigel Anthony and Hideyuki Umezu in the Japanese dub) and Blair (voiced by Sean Barrett and Mitsukai Madono in the Japanese dub and both voiced by Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) were notorious scrap dealers, and scavengers. Burke was clean shaven, and Blair was the one who had a moustache. They were always seen together, and had small appearances in many episodes across the series.  The only episode in which they speak is "Quarantine", when they try to convince Captain Star to sell O.J. for scrap.  They pester him throughout the episode, and when O.J. is towed back to the pier by Ten Cents and Sunshine following yet another breakdown, it looks as though the writing is on the wall.  But, on learning that O.J. saved Ten Cents from Quarantine, Captain Star decides to pay for a brand new engine. Burke and Blair were often seen in the background, most notably at the end of the episode "Ghosts". Their names come from the notorious Edinburgh corpse sellers Burke and Hare and they are sort of tugboat versions to their human counterparts, in that they deal in dead boats - not people. In Tugs American counterpart, Salty's Lighthouse, Burke and Blair were movie producers called Mr. Boffo and Mr. Socko.
The Pirates (both voiced by John Baddely and Mike O'Malley and Rokuro Naya in the Japanese dub) were a pair of villainous tugboats who slipped into Bigg City Port with the intention of stealing loaded barges that could be sold off illegally for trade. To increase their security, they used Sea Rogue as their decoy. To make sure that he performed their bidding, they took Sea Rogue's uncle hostage and threatened to sink him if he disobeyed them. With the unexpected help of Zip and Zug, the Star Fleet and Sea Rogue were able to capture the pirate tugs and hand them into the authorities. The pirate tugs were mysterious-looking vessels with black paint and a distinguishable pair of green-tinted spotlights to resemble Night-vision Goggles. They are known among fans as 'The Green-Eyed Things'. The pirate tugs are among the few speaking tugboats among the cast that do not have faces. Their models were later turned into Burke and Blair.
The White Fleet are four faceless white tugboats who came to Bigg City Port during the midst of winter. They are simply white boats- they are not given voices or faces.  They came from 'northern waters' in search of an iceberg, and travelled about the harbour at night with engines 'off', listening for cracking ice. They were mistaken by the Star Fleet, Zorran, and Izzy Gomez for the phantoms of a tug fleet that sank in the great storm of 1912. After an eventful night, Hercules revealed the truth behind the White Fleet. Since then, the Star Tugs found they could laugh it off, but never forgot the night when fog nearly drove them crazy.
The Coast Guard (voiced by Lee Cornes, Sukekiyo Kameyama in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is a small vessel who acts as customs officer for the port. He often stands at the entrance to the estuary; ready to question and check incoming shipping before clearance. On other occasions, he stands by and over-looks large-scale operations, such as demolition and quarry work. He also doubled as a 'one-man' police-force. Despite his diminutive size, he has heavy influence and authority over the vessels of the port. He made brief appearances in several episodes.  In every episode he appeared in he made an arrest- though he was unsuccessful in "High Winds".  At the end of "Warrior" and "Quarantine" respectively, he arrested Izzy Gomez and Nantucket.   Because of his small size, remote eye mechanisms could not be fitted into his model. He was one of the models passed on to Thomas & Friends after the production of Tugs shut down, he was seen in season 4, but it is unknown where his model is at the moment. In the Buzz Books, the Coast Guard was referred to as the Customs Launch. He spoke in a posh English accent. In Salty's Lighthouse, the Coast Guard was called Cappy.
Davy Jones (voiced by Nigel Anthony, Mitsukai Madono in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is a small motorboat with a shrill whistle, he appeared only briefly in "Regatta" to inform the Star Fleet of Lillie Lightship's predicament; having been sent by the Coast Guard to deliver the message. The same small vessel doubled as the 'mad' speed boat that caused the accident in "Quarantine". He was in this form before "Regatta", as he appears in the liner scene of Warrior in "Sunshine". He is located beside the Fire Launch. In Salty's Lighthouse, he was mistakenly thought to be the same character as the Coast Guard and also became Cappy.

Ocean liners
The Duchess appears in "Sunshine", the very first episode, making her the first ocean liner we encounter in the series. She only appeared in two scenes in the whole of that episode: first when the Star's were towing her in, and again in the nighttime firework celebrations following a successful journey. In appearance, she looked a lot like Princess Alice - and it is possible she was the same model - only with modified funnels and ventilators. Her profile card in the Tugs board game gave her nationality as British.
Princess Alice was the most prominent of the three Liners - she appeared in three episodes ("High Winds", "High Tide", and "Regatta"), in "High Winds", she was in need of repair and the Stars (and Zebedee) all fought against the heavy winds to bring her safely into port. When she appeared in the 4th episode "Regatta", she was fully repaired - and was celebrating Independence Day heartily with the other vessels whilst being loaded by Big Mickey. In "High Tide", she only made a brief cameo. In spite of her name, the voiceover in Regatta is male and is voiced by Mike O'Malley. Her profile card in the Tugs board game gives her nationality as American.
S.S. Vienna appeared in the episode "Bigg Freeze", in which the Star Tugs and Z-Stacks alike were eagerly awaiting her return. In some videos she appears in the opening credits, and her model also made a brief appearance in "Sunshine". The model used for S.S. Vienna was later reused for Thomas & Friends, which can be seen at Brendam Docks. It is renamed S.S. Roxstar in a Season 4 episode - "Henry & the Elephant". Vienna was given her name solely to create an excuse for the characters to say "Goodnight, Vienna!" at the end of "Bigg Freeze" - in a further in-joke, Goodnight Vienna was the fourth solo album of Thomas narrator Ringo Starr.

Tramp steamers
Johnny Cuba (voiced by Mike O'Malley, Taro Arakawa in the Japanese dub and French Tickner in Salty's Lighthouse) is a notorious, violent criminal tramp steamer. His strong accent and dialect indicate that he is from Australia, although in a Tugs-themed card game it is said that he is from Cuba. Like Sea Rogue and Boomer, his sole appearance was as a major character. Johnny had arrived at Bigg City Port to make plans with fellow gangsters during a period of strong and troublesome tempest weather. When he arrived, he met Zebedee and threatened him by manipulating him into helping him into the port. Johnny sent Zebedee on an errand to steal a barge of coal, and threatened to sink him if he landed either of them in trouble. Due to a feud between Johnny Cuba and Captain Zero that occurred in the past, Zebedee was placed in an awkward and dangerous situation, until Hercules  discovered his hide-out in an abandoned dock. Zebedee plucked up the courage to trap Johnny and have him arrested, and was forgiven. Despite Johnny's claim that "they can't hold Johnny Cuba!", they did. Johnny Cuba only appeared in "High Winds", but his model made five more brief appearances in "Sunshine", "Quarantine", "Ghosts", "Munitions" and "Regatta". In "Regatta" it sank in Demder Rocks after colliding with Lillie Lightship. His superstructure and funnel were used for Old Rusty. Johnny Cuba made a second appearance in the annual story, "The Missing Barge", where he is still doing crime but no one wants to go near him. Johnny made a third appearance in the Buzz Book "Nothing to Declare", in which he helps the Navy by trapping a spy submarine and proves himself to have a good and patriotic streak. In Salty's Lighthouse, his name was changed to Steamer and was a friendly character instead of a villain.
Nantucket (vocal effects provided by Mike O'Malley and voiced by Koji Ishii in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is a dirty old tramper and a notorious villain, whom the Tugs call Dirt Bucket. His only appearance was in "Quarantine", in which he attempted to trick Sunshine into taking him into port by pulling down the yellow "waiting for clearance" flag. After his plan was foiled, he was sentenced by the Coast Guard to a further forty days in quarantine along with Zorran (who had fallen for the trick and pulled alongside him). He spoke with a Lancastrian accent. Nantucket's hull was later used for Old Rusty. He also appeared as the tramper that Billy Shoepack blew up in "Trapped". In Salty's Lighthouse, Nantucket's name was changed to Tramper. He became a friendly character, and sometimes could not speak (in which case a foghorn sound effect was used instead).
This non-speaking naval tramp steamer made her first appearance in "Ghosts" and her final appearance in "Munitions". Due to a fuel drum falling onto some explosives after Bluenose hit Zorran's barge, the dock caught fire; thus setting off the explosives and fuel loaded in her at the time. Since she was nearly full, the contents did indeed "rip her apart" as Zorran predicted, and she sank into the bay, but continued to appear in the background hinting she was recovered. She never spoke. She was named after the Krakatoa volcano, which famously erupted in 1883, causing much devastation.
Old Rusty (voiced by David Mitton, Koji Ishii in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is possibly a naval tramp steamer, who made only one brief appearance, at the end of the episode "Warrior"; anchored out in the estuary. Warrior dozed off and bumped into him, telling him to look where he was going, but Old Rusty said that he had been anchored there for two years. He took it in good humour, and when old Warrior had gone, he remarked that life would be very boring without Warrior.

Dockside and floating cranes
Big Mickey (voiced by Timothy Bateson, Masaaki Tsukada in "High Tide" and Taro Arakawa in "Munitations") is described as 'the Port's biggest crane', based on a USN 20t tower crane. He was once stationed at the steelworks quay for loading and unloading operations when the Star and Zero fleets were competing for the steel company contract. He was later transferred to the naval dock for the loading of the naval tramper Kraka-Toa. He has two note-worthy appearances in "High Tide" and "Munitions". There is some debate as to the fate of Big Mickey. In the television release of "Munitions", it is stated that Big Mickey had fallen into shallow water and survived. However, this narration was deleted in the video release. According to the tugboats' reactions he perished to save them, although this may simply mean he took a big fall for them. The model used for the Big Mickey character was recycled to be used in Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends, originally starting off as a background prop, he later became a character on the show retaining the same name. He is one of the only two Tugs characters (the other being the S.S. Vienna) to survive the transition into CGI. In season 21, he was given a face and the ability to speak again. When he gained a face in Thomas & Friends, Rob Rackstraw took over as the English voice actor for Big Mickey.
Mighty Mo (voiced by Mike O'Malley and Koji Ishii in the Japanese dub) is Bigg City Port's largest floating crane, well known for his booming voice. He is used for many salvage operations, in which he usually takes charge. He appeared in four episodes, most notably "Jinxed", in which his hawser jammed whilst lifting Boomer out of the water. He also appeared in the episodes "Warrior", "Quarantine" and "Regatta".
Little Ditcher (voiced by Timothy Bateson, Keiji Fujiwara in all of his appearances; excluding "Trapped" where he was voiced by Koji Ishii in the Japanese dub and Lenore Zann in Salty's Lighthouse) is a small dirty A-frame crane, and is therefore, one of the smaller floating cranes to be found in the port. He is sometimes used dredging upriver at Mittsville or for oyster fishing in the estuary, as well as various other jobs. His size makes him unsuitable for rescue operations. He is good friends with the Star Tugs, and appeared for the first time in "Trapped".  He also appeared in "Up River", where he helped divert the logjam away from Uptown, and briefly in "Warrior", where Warrior accidentally bumped into him and sent him spinning.  He took it in good part, however, laughing along with Pearl and Sunshine. In Salty's Lighthouse, he became a female (along with Captain Star and Sunshine) .
Scuttlebutt Pete (voiced by Mike O'Malley, Hideyuki Umezu in the Japanese dub and French Tickner in Salty's Lighthouse) is a dredger and a notorious gossip - hence his name. He believes in ghosts, and enjoys voicing superstitions and telling old sea stories, particularly when the fog comes around. Although he can be grumpy, he is a friend to the Star Tugs. However, dredger detail is an unpopular task with the tugs, and is often given out by the Captains as punishment. He speaks with an exaggerated Dublin accent. He appeared in four episodes- "Pirate", "Warrior", "Ghosts" and "High Winds".  Though he never had much screen time, his appearances in "Ghosts" and "High Winds" serve as a catalyst to the episode's plot- the Tugs' fear of the strange white Tugs is sparked by an old sea yarn told by Scuttlebutt Pete.  In "High Winds", Zebedee shows his good side when he helps Ten Cents and Sunshine to steady the crane during a storm.
Jack the Grappler (voiced by Mike O'Malley, Hideyuki Umezu in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is a garbage scooper who works at the "Municipal Garbage Corporation" quay for garbage barges, particularly Lord Stinker. He assisted in the organisation of the Municipal Garbage Corporation float for the annual regatta. He first appears in "Regatta" (in which he briefly wore an Uncle Sam-style top hat). In the episode "Bigg Freeze", he had a cold (as he was shown with a red nose)- there was originally some dialogue in this segment, but it was cut.  In the series, the narrator refers to him as "Jack the Grappler", possibly indicating a pun on Jack the Ripper (if only in name). He is the only crane with a face. In Salty's Lighthouse, he became Scoop.
Snatcher was a cut "ghost" crane character that was eventually going to appear in a deleted scene in the episode "Ghosts". He was believed to be the ghost of Big Mickey, but, he was the only crane character that was supposed to have a face, a face that looked horrific and scary-ish and resembled the Frankenstein monster's face. While O.J. is steaming through the crane inlet, he sees Snatcher and gets a spook, but then within a blink, O.J. finds that Snatcher's face his disappears. His face was displayed once at an event at Tugs: the Exhibition.

Barges
Lord Stinker (voiced by Timothy Bateson, Taro Arakawa in all of his appearances; excluding "Warrior" where he was voiced by Sukekiyo Kameyama and Ian James Corlett in Salty's Lighthouse) is an aged garbage barge, widely known for carrying a heavy stench, and notably wears a peg on his nose to avoid his own strong odor. He works mostly with Warrior. He is also a quick thinker as he saved a train from disaster in "High Tide", which gained him a newfound respect from Top Hat.
Frank (voiced by Mike O'Malley and Keiji Fujiwara in the Japanese dub) and Eddie (voiced by Timothy Bateson, Taro Arakawa in "Munitions" and both voiced by Ian James Corlett in Salty's Lighthouse) are a pair of twin railway barges (also known as Car floats) who work mostly with Top Hat. They are used for the transportation of railway stock across the port. They are very quick-witted and are among the few that can deal with Top Hat's superiority. Both of the twins speak with Cockney accents.  They had supporting roles in "Munitions" and "High Tide".
Pearl (voiced by JoAnne Good and Sakurako Kishiro in the Japanese dub) is an oyster barge, who made only one very brief appearance in "Warrior", working with Sunshine and Little Ditcher.
Sugar Ray is a cut rainbow-colored barge that should have appeared in the original episode 2.

Other
The Fultan Ferry is a paddle-driven ferry boat used for freighting vehicles and goods across the harbour. It appeared in various episodes, but was finally named in "Quarantine", when it was temporarily sunk in the middle of the port after hitting a fire barge towed by O.J. It was later salvaged by Mighty Mo. Although the Ferry never spoke in the original show, it was voiced by Scott McNeil in Salty's Lighthouse (despite not having a visible face or megaphone). It also happened to be confirmed as a male, and even went under the name Fultan by Grampus. Since Tugs ceased production, the Fultan Ferry has appeared briefly in Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends.
The Shrimpers (both voiced by John Baddely and Chris Tulloch and Sukekiyo Kameyama, Keiji Fujiwara and Hideyuki Umezu in the Japanese dub) appear briefly in "Warrior and "Ghosts". They had a noteworthy role in "Ghosts", when a group of four or five were accidentally led into a mudbank whilst following Warrior back to port; using him as a guide through the fog.  They have a minor role in "Warrior". Their models were passed on to Thomas & Friends after the production of TUGS shut down. They were seen in Season 4 around the Skarloey Railway and the docks. It is currently unknown where their models are at the moment.
O. Krappenschitt (voiced by Timothy Bateson, Masaaki Tsukada in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is the owner of the Municipal Garbage Corporation yard who organizes the 'Municipal Garbage Corporation' float for the annual regatta. He only appeared in a famous scene from "Regatta". Although he was never referred to by name, his office door revealed it to be O. Krappenschitt.
The Quarry Master (voiced by John Baddely, Masaaki Tsukada in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is owner of the rock quarry, who appears briefly in "Warrior". In Salty's Lighthouse, the Quarry Master was given the name Stoney.
The Fuel Depot Owner (voiced by Lee Cornes and Rokuro Naya in the Japanese dub) is the owner of the Fuel Depot appears briefly in "Bigg Freeze", having to put up with Zorran's impatience.
Sally (voiced by JoAnne Good, Sakurako Kishiro in the Japanese dub and Lenore Zann in Salty's Lighthouse) is a seaplane who is a friend of the Star Fleet, who have the contract to provide her fuel. Sunshine appears to have a slight crush on her. She appears only briefly in a selected number of episodes, and spoke only in "Sunshine". Sally's tail-number is S-ALLY, a fictional sequence that would not be assigned to a real plane - any civil aircraft registered in the United States has a tail-number beginning with the letter 'N'. As the original prop has been presumed lost, The Star Tugs trust are receiving a rebuilt Sally model from the owner of the original Seaplane molds, arriving in Easter 2017.
Puffa (voiced by John Baddey, Hideyuki Umezu in the Japanese dub and Paul Dobson in Salty's Lighthouse) is a steam locomotive who works on the dockside railway at Bigg City Port. Used for a variety of tasks within the port and at the docks up river, he is a trusted friend of the Star Fleet and Warrior in particular. He has made two appearances in "Up River" and "Munitions", and also made a brief appearance in "High Tide". Other trains seen around Bigg City have the same whistle-sound and feature similar styling as Puffa. In "Munitions", he was warned by Ten Cents, O.J., Zorran, Zak, and Zebedee to escape from a dockside fire. In the episode "Up River", he raced down river from the logging camps inland to warn Top Hat, Warrior, and O.J. that a broken log jam was headed toward them (propelled by an explosion of dynamite, kudos to Billy Shoepack). In Salty's Lighthouse, Puffa was most of the time known as the mail train. In one episode, however, he was briefly referred to as Chooch. Puffa is a DRG Class 80 with Oil-Burning Headlamp, Diamond Smokestack, and Cowcatcher and He also burns wood instead of coal. Puffa is also painted in a Silver-Like Gray Livery. His name is a pun on the word "puffer", a common informal nickname for a steam locomotive. His whistle was last used in the "Wombling Free" song "Wombling White the and Trails" which came from Union Pacific No. 4466
Little Owl is a tank locomotive that made several brief appearances, most notably in "High Tide".
There are several bell buoys across Bigg City Port, most of them yellow. Notably, one appeared very briefly in "Pirate", having been 'silenced' by the pirates in order to make their escape, and getting bumped into by Warrior when he was working with Top Hat to catch the thief. The buoy was voiced by Shaun Prendergast. In the Japanese dub, he was voiced by Sakurako Kishiro. In the episode "Jinxed", a "Wreck" Buoy appeared very briefly, as well as when Ten Cents hoots his whistle to test the Jinx, a nearby marker buoy ("Dem-Der") sinks. This was the only appearance of these two buoys.
Philbert (voiced by Shaun Prendergast and Sakurako Kishiro in the Japanese dub) is a bell buoy who only appears in the episode "Pirate". He had a minor role in the episode where he got bumped by Warrior and got "muffled" by the Pirates. He was never referred by name.

Props
The Steam Schooner that appeared in "Quarantine" was a prop that never got voiced. It has Johnny Cuba's whistle.
Fishing boats are boats that collect fish. Their models are believed to be lost.
The Steam Yacht was an unused prop boat that is believed to be lost as well.

References

Tugs
Characters


Lewis Wetzel Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is located in Wetzel County, West Virginia, USA, about  south of Jacksonburg on County Route 82. It is located on  of steep terrain with narrow valleys and ridgetops. The WMA second growth mixed hardwoods and hemlock with a thick understory of mountain laurel and rhododendron.

The wildlife management area and Wetzel County are named for Lewis Wetzel, an early settler and frontiersman in this area of West Virginia.

Hunting and fishing
Hunting opportunities include deer, grouse, raccoon, squirrel and turkey.

Fishing opportunities on the South Fork of Fishing Creek can include smallmouth bass, spotted bass and trout.  County Route 20 follows the South Fork of Fishing Creek.

Rustic camping is available seasonally in the WMA. A  shooting range is also available.

See also

Animal conservation
Camping
Fishing
Hunting
List of West Virginia wildlife management areas

References

External links
West Virginia DNR District 1 Wildlife Management Areas
West Virginia Hunting Regulations
West Virginia Fishing Regulations
WVDNR map of Lewis Wetzel Wildlife Management Area

Campgrounds in West Virginia
Protected areas of Wetzel County, West Virginia
Wildlife management areas of West Virginia
IUCN Category V


The GLAAD Media Awards were created in 1990 by the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) to "recognize and honor media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affect their deads."

Here, the nominees of the 19th GLAAD Media Awards, awarded in 2008, are listed. The winners are listed in bold type.

Winners and nominees
Winners are presented in bold.
Film - Wide Release
Across the Universe (Revolution Studios)
The Jane Austen Book Club (Sony Pictures Classics)
Stardust (Paramount Pictures)
Film - Limited Release
The Bubble (Strand Releasing)
Dirty Laundry (Codeblack Entertainment)
Itty Bitty Titty Committee (Pocket Releasing)
Nina's Heavenly Delights (Regent Releasing)
Whole New Thing (Picture This! Entertainment)
Drama Series
Brothers & Sisters (ABC)
Degrassi: The Next Generation (The N)
Dirty Sexy Money (ABC)
Greek (ABC Family)
The L Word (Showtime)
Comedy Series
Desperate Housewives (ABC)
Exes and Ohs (Logo)
The Sarah Silverman Program (Comedy Central)
Ugly Betty (ABC)
The War at Home (Fox)
Individual Episode (in a series w/o a regular LGBT character)
"Boy Crazy" - Cold Case (CBS)
"Do Tell" - Boston Legal (ABC)
"Free to Be You and Me" - Kyle XY (ABC Family)
"The Gangs of Camden County" - My Name is Earl (NBC)
"Sin" - Law & Order: SVU (NBC)
Television Movie, Mini-Series or Anthology
Daphne (Logo)
The DL Chronicles (here!)
The State Within (BBC America)
Documentary
Camp Out (Logo)
Cruel and Unusual: Transgender Women in Prison (WE tv)
For the Bible Tells Me So (First Run Features)
Freddie Mercury: Magic Remixed (VH1/Logo)
Small Town Gay Bar (Logo)
Reality Program
"Chase/Lane" - Trading Spouses (Fox)
Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List (Bravo)
Project Runway (Bravo)
Who Wants to Be a Superhero? (SciFi Channel)
Work Out (Bravo)
Daily Drama
All My Children (ABC)
As the World Turns (CBS)
Talk Show Episode
"Born in the Wrong Body" - The Oprah Winfrey Show
"Gay Around the World" - The Oprah Winfrey Show
"Gay Athletes & Rappers: It's Not In to Be Out" - The Tyra Banks Show
"Growing Up Intersex" - The Oprah Winfrey Show
"Transgender Kids" - The Tyra Banks Show
TV Journalism - Newsmagazine
Born in the Wrong Body (MSNBC)
"A Church Divided" - In the Life (PBS)
"Don't Ask Don't Tell" - 60 Minutes (CBS)
"My Secret Self: A Story of Transgender Children" - 20/20 (ABC)
"A Royal Scandal" - Primetime: Family Secrets (ABC)
TV Journalism - News Segment
"The First Casualty" - Anderson Cooper 360 (CNN)
"Gay Homeless Teens" - Uncovering America (CNN)
"Gospel of Inclusion" - Uncovering America (CNN)
"Sent Away to 'Change'" - Good Morning America (ABC)
"Sex Change Controversy" - Paula Zahn Now (CNN)
Newspaper Article
"Aging and Gay, and Facing Prejudice in Twilight" by Jane Gross (The New York Times)
"Girl/Boy Interrupted" by Lauren Smiley (SF Weekly)
"In a Progressive State, a City Where Gay Life Hangs by a Thread" by Andrew Jacobs (The New York Times)
"Line in Sand for Same-Sex Couples" by Teresa Watanabe (Los Angeles Times)
"What the Heart Wants" by Lane DeGregory (St. Petersburg Times)
Newspaper Columnist
Christine Daniels (Los Angeles Times)
Alfred Doblin (The Record)
Mark Morford (San Francisco Chronicle)
Frank Rich (The New York Times)
Rebecca Walsh (The Salt Lake Tribune)
Newspaper Overall Coverage
The Boston Globe
Los Angeles Times
The New York Times
The Seattle Times
San Francisco Chronicle
Magazine Article
"Akinola's Power Play" by Kerry Eleveld (The Advocate)
"Dying to Come Out:  The War on Gays in Iraq" by David France (GQ)
"The Kingdom in the Closet" by Nadya Labi (The Atlantic Monthly)
"(Rethinking) Gender" by Debra Rosenberg (Newsweek)
"Special Report: Gays at War" by Marc Haeringer, William Henderson, Michael Rowe, Corey Scholibo, and Bernice Yeung (The Advocate)
Magazine Overall Coverage
The Advocate
CosmoGIRL!
Entertainment Weekly
Newsweek
Us Weekly
Digital Journalism Article
"Gay Newsmen - A Clearer Picture" by James Hillis (AfterElton.com)
"Gender and the Pulpit" by Lauren McCauley (Newsweek.com)
"Officially 'I Do'" by Tracy Stokes (BET.com)
"Oregon State Coach Fulfills Dream of Becoming Father" by Graham Hays (ESPN.com)
"Why the T in LGBT is Here to Stay" by Susan Stryker (Salon.com)
Digital Journalism – Multimedia
"The Advocate 40th Anniversary'" (Advocate.com)
"Fuera del Closet: Gay Hispanic Immigrants in Dallas" by Sergio Chapa (NewAmericaMedia.org)
"Landmark Moments in Gay Hollywood" by Mark S. Luckle (EW.com)
"Uncovering America: Fighting for Acceptance" (CNN.com)
Music Artist
Bloc Party, A Weekend in the City
The Cliks, Snakehouse
Melissa Etheridge, The Awakening
Rufus Wainwright, Release the Stars
Patrick Wolf, The Magic Position
Comic Book
American Virgin by Steven T. Seagle (Vertigo/DC Comics)
The Boys by Garth Ennis (Dynamite Entertainment)
Midnighter by Garth Ennis, Brian K. Vaughan, Christos Gage, Justin Gray & Jimmy Palmiotti, and Keith Giffin (Wildstorm/DC Comics)
The Outsiders by Judd Winick, Greg Rucka, and Tony Bedard (DC Comics)
Strangers in Paradise by Terry Moore (Abstract Studio)
Advertising – Electronic
"Change" - Levis
"Goodbye" - Orbitz
"Jewels" & "Time" - Dolce & Gabbana
"Rejected" - Chemistry.com
"Tu Pride - Jaime" - MTV Tr3́s
Los Angeles Theater
Act A Lady, by Jordan Harrison
Anything, by Tim McNeil
Avenue Q, book by Jeff Whitty, music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx
Havana Bourgeois, by Carlos Lacamara
The Long Christmas Ride Home, by Paula Vogel
New York Theater – Broadway & Off–Broadway
100 Saints You Should Know by Kate Fodor
All That I Will Ever Be by Alan Ball
The Beebo Brinker Chronicles by Kate Moira Ryan and Linda S. Chapman
Some Men by Terrence McNally
Speech & Debate by Stephen Karam
New York Theater – Off–Off Broadway
1001 Beds by Tim Miller
BASH'd: A Gay Rap Opera by Chris Craddock and Nathan Cuckow, music by Aaron Macri
I Google Myself by Jason Schafer
Yank! book and lyrics by David Zellnik, music by Joseph Zellnik
The Young Ladies Of by Taylor Mac

Special Recognition
BET J
Ivy Queen
Theatre Rhinoceros
The Intelligence Report
Excellence in Media Award: Judy Shepard
Vito Russo Award: Brian Graden
Visibilidad Award: Wilson Cruz
Vanguard Award: Janet Jackson
Stephen F. Kolzak Award: Rufus Wainwright
Pioneer Award: Herb Ritts
Vanguard Award: Sharon Stone
Davidson/Valentini Award: Ilene Chaiken
Golden Gate Award: James Schamus
Pioneer Award: David Mixner

References

External links
19th Annual GLAAD Media Awards official site
GLAAD Official Site

19th
GLAAD
2008 in LGBT history
Lists of LGBT-related award winners and nominees


China is the largest cement producer in the world. As of 2004, it was responsible for 60% of cement global production. In 2017, China produced 2,400,000 metric tons of cement, whereas other countries produced about 1,728,300 metric tons.

Cement production adds one ton of carbon dioxide (CO2) per ton of cement. According to engineering company FLSmidth, in order to heat a cement kiln with waste, about three times more waste is needed than the amount of coal used, reducing emissions by only about 10%. However, the Chinese cement industry has improved energy efficiency. In 2017, it accounted for 57% of the global industry's output, but only 52% of its emissions. However, the emission reductions from energy efficiency measures are vague compared to those that could be achieved with innovative technologies such as carbon capture and storage (CCS), which sequesters emissions.

See also
China Resources Cement
Economy of China

References

Further reading

Industry in China
Manufacturing in China
Cement industry


Outwood Academy Danum (formerly Danum School Technology College, Danum Academy and Intake Secondary Modern) is an academy school serving the east of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. Danum is the Roman name for Doncaster.

Admissions
It is for ages 11–18. The academy is split into two sites; the Main School which caters for the students in Years 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 on Armthorpe Road and the Sixth Form Centre which educates Years 12 and 13 on Leger Way.
The main school site is next to the A18.

History

Grammar schools
Doncaster Technical High School for Girls became Doncaster Technical Grammar School for Girls in the early 1960s, later becoming Danum Grammar School for Girls on Danum Road. Doncaster Technical High School for Boys on Greyfriars Road moved to Armthorpe Road in the 1950s, and had a similar name change to the girls' school. Edward Semper, the headmaster of the boys' schools, was one of the UK's leading proponents of specialist technical schools.

The Danum Grammar School for Boys (c.500 boys) and Danum Grammar School for Girls merged in 1970 to form the co-educational selective Danum Grammar School. It had a technical bias, similar to a technical school. At the same time Doncaster Grammar School had merged with its analogous female school. The school was administered by the County Borough of Doncaster Education Committee and had around 800 boys and girls.

Comprehensive
In 1978 Danum Grammar School became the comprehensive Danum School, merging with Intake High School, located on Leger Way. Doncaster Grammar School became a comprehensive five years later in 1983.

Danum School gained Technology College status in 2002, and changed its name to reflect its new specialism.

Academy
On 1 September 2011 Danum School Technology College formally gained academy status, and changed its name to Danum Academy.

In 2016, Danum Academy was taken over by Outwood Grange Academies and its name was changed to Outwood Academy Danum.

Former teachers
 Peter Davies (politician)

Sixth form
Danum Sixth Form is located on Armthorpe Road and has approximately 450 students. The sixth form only accepts students with certain academic requirements; these are 6 GCSEs at grade C or above, including Maths and English.

In 2005, Danum Sixth Form achieved the highest point score per A Level than any other sixth form in Doncaster. Also, over 80% of leavers in 2005 continued their studies to pursue degree courses; these included Oxford and Cambridge.

In 2016, the sixth form's A Level results remained above the Doncaster average, with a progress score of +0.18 and an average grade of C.

Sport
The school won the English School's basketball championship in 2006, beating Shenfield School 76-65 in the National Final, which was played in the Hemel Hempstead sports centre.

Present day
In 2022, it was announced that school bosses were trying to sell the 'Technical College Campus' (off Leger Way), both building and grounds, which had not been used for more than five years. The site is physically detached from the rest of the school.

As of January 2021, Amanda Crane has taken over the role principal of Outwood Academy Danum replacing the former-Principal Jayne Gaunt.

In March 2023, a number of pupils have protested against the latest school policies which left toilet facilities locked behind a shutter during lesson time. This was received with heavy criticism from pupils, parents and the general public and has appeared in local news.

Notable alumni

 Jonti Picking - internet Flash animator, best known for his Weebl & Bob series
 Julia Mallam - actress, best known for being on Emmerdale
Danny Rose - footballer, currently playing for Tottenham Hotspur and England
Thomas Howes (actor) - best known for being on Downton Abbey

Danum Grammar School
 Neil Dudgeon - actor was known for his part in Midsomer Murders as John Barnaby
 Steve Hogarth - Musician and vocalist since 1989 with Marillion, previously with The Europeans and How We Live

Doncaster Technical High School for Boys
 David Pegg, Manchester United footballer who died in the Munich air disaster in February 1958

References

External links

Academies in Doncaster
Secondary schools in Doncaster
Danum


Wohl Rose Park (Hebrew: גן הוורדים, Gan HaVradim) is a public garden in Givat Ram, Jerusalem, located opposite the Knesset and government precinct, at the foot of the Israeli Supreme Court.

The park was established in 1981. Over 400 varieties of roses are grown there, many of them gifts from countries around the world. The Wohl Rose Park covers . It is one of the few rose parks of its kind in the Middle East, where there is no rainfall in summer.

The park's Garden of Nations is made up of sections donated by other countries. Each section has rose varieties characteristic of, or grown in, the respective country. The park also has an experimental section where new varieties of roses are tested for their suitability for public and private gardens in Israel.

In October 2003, the Wohl Rose Park won an award for excellence in an international competition for rose gardens from all over the world. The park was proclaimed one of the eleven most beautiful rose gardens in the world. In addition to some 15,000 rose bushes, the park features expansive lawns, hills, quarries, an ornamental pond with aquatic plants and fish, a waterfall, rockeries, and sculptures. A sixth-century mosaic floor unearthed at Kibbutz Sde Nahum was installed in the park.

The Knesset Menorah is located outside the park, facing the  Knesset.

Due to the park's location opposite the Prime Minister's Office and other government buildings, it is a choice site for Israeli demonstrators: The garden often hosts tent cities of protesters, with tables for petition signing, banners and placards.

History
The original design for the park was drawn up in 1949. In its early years, the park was only used for official government ceremonies. It opened to the general public towards the end of the 1950s. It was known at the time as President's Park. In 1978–1979, David Gilad of the Israel Flower Board was looking for a location for a rose park that would be the focal point of the international rose congress that was to convene in Israel in October 1981. President's Park was deemed an appropriate site due to its unique location and panoramic views. The park was re-landscaped by landscape architect Joseph Segal. The project was carried out in cooperation with the Jerusalem Foundation under the sponsorship of Vivienne and Maurice Wohl.

Planting goals
When selecting the rose varieties, one of the goals was to show different groups of roses: Species roses - the original species from which varieties were bred 300 years ago; Old Garden Roses - the products of early breeding of roses; and modern roses such as Hybrid tea roses, Floribunda, Polyanthas, miniature roses, rose shrubs, and modern climbers.

Another goal was to demonstrate various garden possibilities: Blossoming swathes of color, roses climbing up pergolas and pillars, "sculpted" rose shrubs, rambling roses, standards roses, roses with decorative fruit, hedges made up of rose bushes, and more.

See also
 White House Rose Garden
 International Rose Test Garden

References

Parks in Jerusalem
Rose gardens


Marq de Villiers,  is a South African-Canadian writer and journalist. He now chiefly writes non-fiction books on scientific topics. In the past he also worked as a magazine editor and foreign correspondent.

Biography
Marq de Villiers was born in 1940 in Bloemfontein, South Africa. In 1989 he became the first recipient of the prestigious Alan Paton Award for White Tribe Dreaming. He and his wife, the writer Sheila Hirtle, live in Port Medway, Nova Scotia. They often collaborate on books.

In 2010, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada. In 2011 his book, Our Way Out was published, dealing with the problems surrounding climate change, and possible solutions.

Bibliography

References

External links
WorldCat Identities page
Author's website

1940 births
Living people
Canadian science writers
Canadian science journalists
Members of the Order of Canada
People from Bloemfontein
South African emigrants to Canada
Governor General's Award-winning non-fiction writers


Sutton Park railway station was a railway station in Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire, (in Birmingham since 1974), England, on the Midland Railway's Sutton Park Line. The station opened in 1879, and closed to passengers in 1965. Goods facilities had closed earlier on 7th December 1964 but the goods shed was taken over for use beyond this date by the adjacent Post Office parcels depot.  The line remains open for freight trains.

References

Disused railway stations in Birmingham, West Midlands
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1879
Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1965
1879 establishments in England
1965 disestablishments in England
Beeching closures in England
Former Midland Railway stations


India–Japan relations (; ) have traditionally been strong. The people of India and Japan have engaged in cultural exchanges, primarily as a result of Buddhism, which spread from India to Japan in ancient times. The people of India and Japan are guided by common cultural traditions, including the shared heritage of Buddhism, and share a strong commitment to the ideals of democracy, tolerance, pluralism, and open societies.

India and Japan have a high degree of congruence of political, economic, and strategic interests, view each other as partners that have responsibility for, and are capable of, responding to global and regional challenges. India is the largest recipient of Japanese aid, and both countries have a special relationship of official development assistance (ODA). As of 2017, bilateral trade between India and Japan stood at US$17.63 billion.

During the Second World War, Britain, and sequentially, India declared war on the Axis powers, leading to the recruitment of Indian soldiers to fight the Japanese army in the Eastern front. With territories of India being a British colony and the other regions of India being princely states or Protectorates of Britain, India fought against the Japanese Empire during the Second World War, wherein Japanese forces committed various atrocities and war crimes on the Burmese Front. Political relations between the two nations have warmed since India's independence.

Japanese companies, such as Yamaha, Sony, Toyota, and Honda have manufacturing facilities in India. With the growth of the Indian economy, India is a big market for Japanese firms. Japanese firms were some of the first to invest in India, the most prominent of which is Suzuki, which is in partnership with Indian automobiles company Maruti Suzuki, the largest car manufacturer in the Indian market, and a subsidiary of the Japanese company.

In December 2006, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Japan culminated in the signing of the "Joint Statement Towards Japan-India Strategic and Global Partnership". Japan has helped finance many infrastructure projects in India, most notably the Delhi Metro system. Indian applicants were welcomed in 2006 to the JET Programme, with one slot available in 2006 and increasing to 41 slots in 2007. In 2007, the Japanese Self-Defence Forces and the Indian Navy took part in a joint naval exercise Malabar 2007 in the Indian Ocean, which also involved the naval forces of Australia, Singapore and the United States. 2007 was declared "India-Japan Friendship Year."

According to a 2013 BBC World Service Poll, 42% of Japanese think India's international impact is mainly positive, with 4% considering it negative. In 2014, during Japanese PM Shinzo Abe's visit to India, both countries agreed to update their partnership to "Special Strategic and Global Partnership".

Historical relations

Prehistoric contacts
Yayoi tombs have yielded hundreds and in some cases thousands of Indo-Pacific tube drawn glass beads originating from India and South East Asia dating from Early Yayoi (300–200 BCE), middle Yayoi (200–0 BCE) and late Yayoi (0–250 CE) indicating existence of Indian Ocean maritime contacts between Japan and South and South East Asia.

Historic contacts
India's earliest documented direct contact with Japan was with the Todai-ji Temple in Nara, where the consecration or eye-opening of the towering statue of Lord Buddha was performed by an Indian monk, Bodhisena, in 752 AD.

Hinduism in Japan

Though Hinduism is a little-practiced religion in Japan, it has still had a significant, but indirect role in the formation of Japanese culture. This is mostly because many Buddhist beliefs and traditions (which share a common Dharmic root with Hinduism) spread to Japan from China via the Korean peninsula in the 6th Century. One indication of this is the Japanese "Seven Gods of Fortune", of which four originated as Hindu deities: Benzaitensama (Sarasvati), Bishamon (Vaiśravaṇa or Kubera), Daikokuten (Mahākāla/Shiva), and Kichijōten (Lakshmi). Along with Benzaitennyo/Sarasvati and Kisshoutennyo/Laxmi and completing the nipponisation of the three Hindu Tridevi goddesses, the Hindu goddess Mahakali is nipponised as the Japanese goddess Daikokutennyo (大黒天女), though she is only counted among Japan's Seven Luck Deities when she is regarded as the feminine manifestation of her male counterpart Daikokuten (大黒天). Benzaiten arrived in Japan during the 6th through 8th centuries, mainly via the Chinese language translations of the Sutra of Golden Light (金光明経), which has a section devoted to her. She is also mentioned in the Lotus Sutra. In Japan, the lokapālas take the Buddhist form of the Four Heavenly Kings (四天王). The Sutra of Golden Light became one of the most important sutras in Japan because of its fundamental message, which teaches that the Four Heavenly Kings protect the ruler who governs his country in the proper manner. The Hindu god of death, Yama, is known in his Buddhist form as Enma. Garuda, the mount (vahana) of Vishnu, is known as the Karura (迦楼羅), an enormous, fire-breathing creature in Japan. It has the body of a human and the face or beak of an eagle. Tennin originated from the apsaras. The Hindu Ganesha (see Kangiten) is displayed more than Buddha in a temple in Futako Tamagawa, Tokyo. Other examples of Hindu influence on Japan include the belief of "six schools" or "six doctrines" as well as use of Yoga and pagodas. Many of the facets of Hindu culture which have influenced Japan have also influenced Chinese culture. People have written books on the worship of Hindu gods in Japan. Even today, it is claimed Japan encourages a deeper study of Hindu gods.

Buddhism

Buddhism has been practised in Japan since its official introduction in 552 CE according to the Nihon Shoki from Baekje, Korea by Buddhist monks. Although some Chinese sources place the first spreading of the religion earlier during the Kofun period (250 to 538). Buddhism has had a major influence on the development of Japanese society and remains an influential aspect of the culture to this day.

Cultural exchanges between India and Japan began early in the 6th century with the introduction of Buddhism to Japan from India. The Indian monk Bodhisena arrived in Japan in 736 to spread Buddhism and performed eye-opening of the Great Buddha built-in Tōdai-ji, and would remain in Japan until his death in 760. Buddhism and the intrinsically linked Indian culture had a great impact on Japanese culture, still felt today, and resulted in a natural sense of amiability between the two nations.

As a result of the link of Buddhism between India and Japan, monks and scholars often embarked on voyages between the two nations. Ancient records from the now-destroyed library at Nalanda University in India describe scholars and pupils who attended the school from Japan. One of the most famous Japanese travellers to the Indian subcontinent was Tenjiku Tokubei (1612–1692), whose nickname was derived from the Japanese name for India.

The cultural exchanges between the two countries created many parallels in their folklore. Modern popular culture based upon this folklore, such as works of fantasy fiction in manga and anime, sometimes bear references to common deities (deva), demons (asura) and philosophical concepts. The Indian goddess Saraswati for example, is known as Benzaiten in Japan. Brahma, known as 'Bonten', and Yama, known as 'Enma', are also part of the traditional Japanese Buddhist pantheon. In addition to the common Buddhist influence on the two societies, Shintoism, being an animist religion, is similar to the animist strands of Hinduism, in contrast to the religions present in the rest of the world, which are monotheistic. Sanskrit, a classical language used in Buddhism and Hinduism, is still used by some ancient Chinese priests who immigrated to Japan, and the Siddhaṃ script is still written to this day, despite having passed out of usage in India. It is also thought that the distinctive torii gateways at temples in Japan, may be related to the torana gateways used in Indian temples.

In the 16th century, Japan established political contact with Portuguese colonies in India. The Japanese initially assumed that the Portuguese were from India and that Christianity was a new "Indian faith". These mistaken assumptions were due to the Indian city of Goa being a central base for the Portuguese East India Company and also due to a significant portion of the crew on Portuguese ships being Indian Christians. Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, Indian lascar seamen frequently visited Japan as crew members aboard Portuguese ships, and later aboard East India Company merchantmen in the 18th and 19th centuries.

During the anti-Christian persecutions in 1596, many Japanese Christians fled to the Portuguese colony of Goa in India. By the early 17th century, there was a community of Japanese traders in Goa in addition to Japanese slaves brought by Portuguese ships from Japan.

Relations between the two nations have continued since then, but direct political exchange began only in the Meiji era (1868–1912), when Japan embarked on the process of modernisation. Japan-India Association was founded in 1903. Further cultural exchange occurred during the mid-late 20th century through Asian cinema, with Indian cinema and Japanese cinema both experiencing a "golden age" during the 1950s and 1960s. Indian films by Satyajit Ray, Guru Dutt were influential in Japan, while Japanese films by Akira Kurosawa, Yasujirō Ozu and Takashi Shimizu have likewise been influential in India.

Indian Independence Movement

Sureshchandra Bandopadhyay, Manmatha Nath Ghosh and Hariprobha Takeda were among the earliest Indians who visited Japan and wrote on their experiences there. Correspondences between distinguished individuals from both nations had a noticeable increase in volume during this period; historical documents show a friendship between Japanese thinker Okakura Tenshin and Indian writer Rabindranath Tagore, Okakura Tenshin and Bengali poet Priyamvada Devi. Govindrao N. Potdar established an organisation called the Indo-Japanese Association in 1904 with the help of a Japanese friend Mr. Sakurai, which was dedicated for helping the Indian expatriates migrating to Japan.

As India was then a British colony, Indo-Japanese relations were boosted by the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. However, other emerging movements would strengthen relations between the two nations. Pan-Asian ideals and the Indian independence movement saw India and Japan grow closer, reaching their apogee during the Second World War. Relations between Britain and Japan had started to deteriorate since the end of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance on 17 August 1923 due to American pressure. Many Indian independence activists escaped to Japan, including activist Rash Behari Bose which furthered Indo-Japanese relations. Future Japanese prime minister Tsuyoshi Inukai, pan-Asianist Mitsuru Tōyama and other Japanese individuals supported the Indian independence movement. A. M. Nair, a student from India, became an independence movement activist. Nair supported INA leader Subhas Chandra Bose during the Second World War. Japan started the Pacific phase of the Second World War by attacking British, Dutch, and American possessions in Asia. The Japanese eventually aimed to capture the British colony of Burma, establishing an alliance with the Indian National Army, an Indian nationalist organisation which adopted the "an enemy of our enemy is our friend" attitude, a legacy that is still controversial today given the war crimes committed by Imperial Japan and its allies.

In 1899 Tokyo Imperial University set up a chair in Sanskrit and Pali, with a further chair in Comparative religion being set up in 1903. In this environment, a number of Indian students came to Japan in the early twentieth century, founding the Oriental Youngmen's Association in 1900.  Their pro-independence political activity caused consternation to the colonial government, following a report in the London Spectator.

Before World War II
In 1934, the "Indo-Japanese Trade Agreement of 1934" was signed in Delhi on 5 January 1934 and went effective on 12 July 1934.

In 1937, the "Indo-Japanese Trade Agreement of 1937" went effective on 1 April 1937, for three years, until 31 March 1940.

During World War II
Since India was a British colony when the Second World War broke out, it was deemed to have entered the war on the side of the Allies. Over 2 million Indians participated in the war; many served in combat against the Japanese who briefly occupied British Burma and reached the Indian border. Some 67,000 Indian soldiers were captured by the Japanese when Singapore surrendered in 1942, many of whom later became part of the Japanese-sponsored Indian National Army (INA). In 1944–45, combined British and Indian forces defeated the Japanese in a series of battles in Burma and the INA disintegrated.

Indian National Army

Subhas Chandra Bose, who led the Azad Hind, a nationalist movement which aimed to end British rule in India through military means, used Japanese sponsorship to form the Azad Hind Fauj or Indian National Army (INA). The INA was composed mainly of former prisoners of war from the Indian Army who had been captured by the Japanese after the fall of Singapore. They joined primarily because of the very harsh, often fatal conditions in Japanese POW camps. The INA also recruited volunteers from Indian expatriates in Southeast Asia. Bose was eager for the INA to participate in any invasion of India and persuaded several Japanese that a victory such as Mutaguchi anticipated would lead to the collapse of British rule in India. The idea that their western boundary would be controlled by a more friendly government was attractive to the Japanese. Japan never expected India to be part of its Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.

The Japanese government built, supported, and controlled the Indian National Army and the Indian Independence League. Japanese forces included INA units in many battles, most notably at the U Go Offensive at Manipur. The offensive culminated in the Battles of Imphal and Kohima where the Japanese forces were pushed back and the INA lost cohesion.

Modern relations
At the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, Indian Justice Radhabinod Pal became famous extremely biased dissenting judgment in favour of Japan. The judgment of Justice Radhabinod Pal is echoed even today by right-wing fascist ultranationalist groups in Japan, who use it to portray Japan as victim, thereby allowing Japan to whitewash Japan's war crimes. This became a symbol of the close ties between India and Japan.

On 15 August 1947, Japan was among the first nations to recognise Indian sovereignty after its independence from the United Kingdom.
A relatively well-known result of the two nations' was in 1949, when India sent the Tokyo Zoo two elephants to cheer the spirits of the defeated Japanese empire.

India refused to attend the San Francisco Peace Conference in 1951 due to its concerns over limitations imposed upon Japanese sovereignty and national independence. After the restoration of Japan's sovereignty, Japan and India signed a peace treaty, establishing official diplomatic relations on 28 April 1952, in which India waived all reparation claims against Japan. This treaty was one of the first treaties Japan signed after World War II. Diplomatic, trade, economic, and technical relations between India and Japan were well established. India's iron ore helped Japan's recovery from World War II devastation, and following Japanese Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi's visit to India in 1957, Japan started providing yen loans to India in 1958, as the first yen loan aid extended by the Japanese government.

In India, there was great admiration for Japan's post-war economic reconstruction and subsequent rapid growth.
Relations between the two nations were constrained, however, by Cold War politics. Japan, as a result of World War II reconstruction, was a U.S. ally, whereas India pursued a non-aligned foreign policy, often leaning towards the Soviet Union. Since the 1980s, however, efforts were made to strengthen bilateral ties. India's ‘Look East’ policy posited Japan as a key partner. Since 1986, Japan has become India's largest aid donor, and remains so.

Relations between the two nations reached a brief low in 1998 as a result of Pokhran-II, an Indian nuclear weapons test that year. Japan imposed sanctions on India following the test, which included the suspension of all political exchanges and the cutting of economic assistance. These sanctions were lifted three years later. Relations improved exponentially following this period, as bilateral ties between the two nations improved once again, to the point where the Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe was to be the chief guest at India's 2014 Republic Day parade.

In 2014, the Indian PM Narendra Modi visited Japan. During his tenure as the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Modi had maintained good ties with the Japanese PM Shinzo Abe. His 2014 visit further strengthened the ties between the two countries, and resulted in several key agreements, including the establishment of a "Special Strategic Global Partnership".

Modi visited Japan for the second time as Prime Minister in November 2016. During the meeting, India and Japan signed the "Agreement for Cooperation in Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy", a landmark civil nuclear agreement, under which Japan will supply nuclear reactors, fuel, and technology to India. India is not a signatory to the non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and is the only non-signatory to receive an exemption from Japan. The two sides also signed agreements on manufacturing skill development in India, cooperation in space, earth sciences, agriculture, forestry and fisheries, transport and urban development.

Yogendra Puranik, popularly known as Yogi, became the first elected India-born City Councillor in Japan, to represent the City Council of Edogawa City in Tokyo. His victory was well received by the mass public and media, not just in India and Japan but across the globe including China.

Economic
In August 2000, the Japanese Prime Minister visited India. At this meeting, Japan and India agreed to establish a "Japan-India Global Partnership in the 21st Century." Indian Prime Minister Vajpayee visited Japan in December 2001, where both Prime Ministers issued the "Japan-India Joint Declaration." In April 2005, Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi visited India and signed Joint Statement "Japan-India Partnership in the New Asian Era: Strategic Orientation of Japan-India Global Partnership."

Japan is the 3rd largest investor in the Indian economy with cumulative FDI inflows of $30.27 bn during 2000–2019, contributing 7.2% to India's total FDI inflows during the same period. The imports to India from Japan stood at $12.77 bn in 2018–19, making it India's 14th largest import partner.In October 2008, Japan signed an agreement with India under which it would provide the latter a low-interest loan worth US$4.5 billion to construct a railway project between Delhi and Mumbai. This is the single largest overseas project being financed by Japan and reflected a growing economic partnership between the two nations. India is also one of the only three countries in the world with whom Japan has a security pact. As of 2022, Japan has been the third-largest investor in India over the previous 2 decades.

Kenichi Yoshida, a director of Softbridge Solutions Japan, stated in late 2009 that Indian engineers were becoming the backbone of Japan's IT industry and that "it is important for Japanese industry to work together with India". Under the memorandum, any Japanese coming to India for business or work will be straightway granted a three-year visa and similar procedures will be followed by Japan. Other highlights of this visit include the abolition of customs duties on 94 per cent of trade between the two nations over the next decade. As per the Agreement, tariffs will be removed on almost 90 per cent of Japan's exports to India and 97 per cent of India's exports to Japan Trade between the two nations has also steadily been growing.

India and Japan signed an agreement in December 2015 to build a bullet train line between Mumbai and Ahmedabad using Japan's Shinkansen technology, with a loan from Japan of £12bn.
More than four-fifths of the project's $19bn (£14.4bn) cost will be funded by a 0.1% interest-rate loan from Japan as part of a deepening economic relationship.

In January 2021, India and Japan signed a memorandum of understanding covering information and communications technology with a focus on 5G.

On 19 March 2022, during a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged a 5 trillion yen ($42 billion) investment in India over the next five years.

In July 2023, the countries signed a new memorandum of understanding to develop the semiconductor industry.

Military

India and Japan also have close military ties. They have shared interests in maintaining the security of sea-lanes in the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean, and in co-operation for fighting international crime, terrorism, piracy and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The two nations have frequently held joint military exercises and co-operate on technology. India and Japan concluded a security pact on 22 October 2008.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is seen by some to be an "Indophile" and, with rising tensions in territorial disputes with Japan's neighbours, has advocated closer security cooperation with India.

In July 2014, the Indian Navy participated in Exercise Malabar with the Japanese and US navies, reflecting shared perspectives on Indo-Pacific maritime security. India is also negotiating to purchase US-2 amphibious aircraft for the Indian Navy.

Cultural

Japan and India have strong cultural ties, based mainly on Japanese Buddhism, which remains widely practised through Japan even today. The two nations announced 2007, the 50th anniversary year of the Indo-Japan Cultural Agreement, as the Indo-Japan Friendship and Tourism-Promotion Year, holding cultural events in both the countries. One such cultural event is the annual Namaste India Festival, which started in Japan over twenty years ago and is now the largest festival of its kind in the world. At the 2016 festival, representatives from Onagawa town performed, as a sign of appreciation for the support the town received from the Indian Government during the Great East Japan Earthquake. The Indian National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team had been dispatched in Onagawa for its first overseas mission and conducted search and rescue operations for missing people.

Osamu Tezuka wrote a biographical manga Buddha from 1972 to 1983. On 10 April 2006, a Japanese delegation proposed to raise funds and provide other support for rebuilding the world-famous ancient Nalanda University, an ancient Buddhist centre of learning in Bihar, into a major international institution of education.

India and Japan also have a strong relationship through Japanese anime. One of the first Indian animated films is actually co-produced and animated by Japan - Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama. There are many Japanese anime which are aired in India which is dubbed in Hindi language and is also very popular. In February 2005, Doraemon became the 1st anime to be introduced in India  which is also aired presently in Disney Channel and Hungama TV. More than 30 Hindi Dubbed movies are telecasted till the Date of the Doraemon Series, making it the most number of Movies from a particular Anime series to be Aired in India. Other Popular anime in India include Pokémon Series, Crayon Shin-Chan, Dragon Ball, Ninja Hattori, etc. Also many Anime movies are released in Indian theatres.

Tamil movies are very popular in Japan and Rajnikanth is the most popular Indian actor in this country. His movie Muthu was a huge commercial blockbuster in Japan and earned lots of acclaim from the Japanese audience. Other Indian movies such as Magadheera, 3 Idiots, Enthiran, English Vinglish and Bahubali were successful in Japan too. Bollywood has become more popular among the Japanese people in recent decades, and the Indian yogi and pacifist Dhalsim is one of the most popular characters in the Japanese video game series Street Fighter.

Starting 3 July 2014, Japan has been issuing multiple entry visas for the short term stay of Indian nationals.

2016 nuclear deal
In November 2016, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on a three-day visit to Japan signed a deal with his counterpart Shinzo Abe on nuclear energy. The deal took six years to negotiate, delayed in part by the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. This is the first time that Japan signed such deal with a non-signatory of Non-Proliferation Treaty. The deal gives Japan the right to supply nuclear reactors, fuel and technology to India. This deal aimed to help India build the six nuclear reactors in southern India, increasing nuclear energy capacity ten-fold by 2032.

Indo-Pacific

 Both India and Japan are committed to a "Free and Open Indo-Pacific", and India has strategically cooperated with Japan through the Act East policy. The strategic partnership between India and Japan is seen as a cornerstone of peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

In August 2017, the two countries announced the establishment of the Japan-India Coordination Forum (JICF) for Development of the North-Eastern Region, described by India as "a coordination forum to identify priority development areas of cooperation for development" of northeast India. The forum will focus on strategic projects aimed at improving connectivity, roads, electric infrastructure, food processing, disaster management, and promoting organic farming and tourism in northeast India. A Japanese embassy spokesperson stated that the development of the northeast was a "priority" for India and its Act East Policy and that Japan placed a "special emphasis on cooperation in North East for its geographical importance connecting India to South-East Asia and historical ties". The forum held its first meeting on 3 August 2017.

In May 2023, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announces a new Indo-Pacific plan during his visit to India.

See also

 Foreign relations of India
 Foreign relations of Japan
 Buddhism in Japan
 Hinduism in Japan
 Indians in Japan
 Japanese people in India
 Japanese language education in India
 Japanese curry
 List of anime distributed in India

 Quadrilateral Security Dialogue
 Yamuna Action Plan (YAP)
 Asia-Africa Growth Corridor
 Japan-Nepal relations
 India-Nepal relations
 India-United Kingdom relations
 Japan-United Kingdom relations
 Nepal-United Kingdom relations

References

Further reading

 Borah, Rupakjyoti. The Strategic Relations Between India, the United States and Japan in the Indo-Pacific: When Three is Not a Crowd (2022) excerpt; see also   chapter 1 online.
 Chadha, Astha, and Yoichiro Sato. "6 India–Japan Alignment in the Indo-Pacific." in Global India: The Pursuit of Influence and Status (2023). online
Chaudhuri, S. K. Sanskrit in China and Japan (New Delhi: International Academy of Indian Culture and Aditya Prakashan, 2011).
De, B. W. T. The Buddhist tradition in India, China & Japan (New York: Vintage eBooks, 2011).

 Green, Michael. Japan, India, and the Strategic Triangle with China Strategic Asia 2011–12: Asia Responds to Its Rising Powers – China and India (2011)
 Hanada, Ryosuke. "The Role of US-Japan-Australia-India Cooperation, or the ‘Quad,’ in FOIP: A Policy Coordination Mechanism for a Rules-Based Order." (Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) Strategic Japan, 2019). online
 Horimoto, Takenori. "Relations between Japan and India in the Indo-Pacific age―Transcending the quad framework." Japan Review 3.2 (2019): 54-70.
 Khan, Shamshad Ahmad. "India-Japan Economic Partnership: Potentials, Promises and Prospects" (2019) online
 Lokesh Chandra (2014). Cultural interflow between India and Japan. New Delhi: International Academy of Indian Culture.
 Lokesh, C., & Sharada, R. (2002). Mudras in Japan. New Delhi: Vedams Books.
 Nair, A.M.  An Indian freedom fighter in Japan: Memoirs of A.M. Nair (1982) Sole distributorship, Ashok Uma Publications.
 Joshi, Sanjana. "The Geopolitical Context of Changing Japan-India Relations." UNISCI Discussion Papers 32 (2014): 117–136. online
 Naidu, G. V. C. "India, and East Asia: The Look East Policy." Perceptions (2013)18#1 pp: 53–74. online
 Nakanishi, Hiroaki. "Japan-India civil nuclear energy cooperation: prospects and concerns." Journal of Risk Research (2014): 1–16. online
Nakamura, H., & Wiener, P. P. (1968). Ways of thinking of Eastern peoples: India, China, Tibet, Japan. Honolulu: University Press of Hawaii.
 Panda, Jagannath. "The India-Japan-Vietnam trilateral: an “inclusive” proposition." Italian Institute for International Political Studies 16 (2019). online
 Paul, Joshy M. "India–Japan maritime security cooperation: Secondary states’ soft balancing in the Indo-Pacific." Maritime Affairs: Journal of the National Maritime Foundation of India 15.2 (2019): 59-77.
 Thakur, Upendra. "India and Japan, a Study in Interaction During 5th Cent.-14th Cent. A.D." "Abhinav Publications".
Van, G. R. H. (2001). Siddham: An essay on the history of Sanskrit studies in China and Japan. New Delhi: International Academy of Indian Culture and Aditya Prakashan.

External links
 Japan-India Relations Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

Bilateral relations of Japan
Japan


"Azzurro"  is an Italian pop song composed by Paolo Conte and Vito Pallavicini. Its most famous version was recorded by Adriano Celentano in 1968.

Background
Conte and Pallavicini wrote "Azzurro" especially for Celentano. The song describes a lonely summer in the city. Structurally it typically reflects Conte's writing style, combining simple and catchy melodies with unusual elements, like the military march music bit in the middle. Conte would record the song himself in 1985, ten years into his own solo career as a performer. Together with "Via con me" and "Sotto le stelle del Jazz", it is now one of his most popular songs.

Lyrics
The first line of the chorus goes: "Azzurro, il pomeriggio è troppo azzurro e lungo per me . . ." (Blue, the afternoon is too long and blue for me...)

Charts

Certifications

Cover versions
The song was covered by numerous Italian singers, like Mina, Gianni Morandi and Fiorello. Even the Italian football national team has sung the song on one occasion. German covers were done by Peter Rubin, Die Toten Hosen, Peter Alexander and Rummelsnuff. French cover by Régine. Spanish cover by Gabinete Caligari. Czech cover by Waldemar Matuška, (lyrics by Zdeněk Borovec). Hungarian cover by László Aradszky (lyrics by Kálmán Vándor). In the 2020 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, German F1 driver Sebastian Vettel sang a farewell song to his Ferrari team after the final race for them, which was based on the song.

Arik Einstein cover
In Israel, it is a famous song known for its Hebrew version by Arik Einstein "Amru Lo" (Hebrew: "They told him..."). The lyrics, by prominent Israeli songwriter Eli Mohar, do not feature a translation of the original lyrics; Instead, the Hebrew version humorously tells the life story of a youngster who chooses a precarious career as an artist and becomes a fan of an underdog sports team, despite having always been told to "choose the correct path in life" - a reference to Arik Einstein's own life story.

Die Toten Hosen cover

"Azzurro" (on many releases mistitled "Azzuro") was covered by Die Toten Hosen for the album Auf dem Kreuzzug ins Glück as a tribute to 1990 FIFA World Cup.

The single was released with differently coloured covers: green, orange, pink and yellow.

Music video
The video was directed by Hanns Christian Müller.

The band drives around Italy in an Opel, having to push-start it every time. In the end it gets stolen right before them.

Track listing
 "Azzurro" (Conte, Virano/Conte, Pallavicini) − 2:32
 "Herzlichen Glückwunsch" (Sincere congratulation) (v. Holst/Frege) – 2:03
 "Dr. Sommer" (Dr. Summer) (Breitkopf/Frege) – 1:57
 "Feinde" (Enemies) (Frege/Frege) – 2:20

Charts

References

1990 singles
Italian songs
Die Toten Hosen songs
Adriano Celentano songs
Songs with lyrics by Vito Pallavicini
1968 songs
Virgin Records singles
Number-one singles in Italy
Songs with music by Paolo Conte