Boaty McSadface: British vessel may not get the name the public wants

LONDON -- For anyone who's been following the  #NameOurShip competition, we have a troubling update: Boaty McBoatface, the name suggestion that's received the lion's share of public support, may not actually end up being chosen, even if it does come top of the poll.

The whole brilliant saga started last week, when the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) kicked off an online competition for the public to vote for the name their new polar research ship. 

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Flash forward to a day later, and this was how the leaderboard looked:

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The competition has now received so much coverage that the NERC's specially created website keeps crashing due to the volume of traffic.

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It's become so popular, even Iron Maiden have weighed in.

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We can't view the current standings because the NERC's website is still on the blink, but according to this recent BBC article Boaty McBoatface is now miles in the lead (27,000 votes versus 3000 for RRS Henry Worsley, which is in 2nd place).

So it's pretty much a done deal, right? 

Well, no. On BBC Radio 4's Today programme, which featured an appearance from the former First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Alan West, there was a sobering reminder: according to competition rules, the final choice of name will actually fall to a panel of experts. Not the public.

"I'm rather proud that we have silly names going around, but I hope we don't select one," West told the BBC. 

"I think I would probably go for an Arctic or Antarctic explorer -- that would be appropriate -- bearing in mind this is a key bit of research where we are probably leading the world, and we should be very proud of it."

Mashable reached out to the NERC, who confirmed that they will indeed be the ones to make the final decision on the ship's name.

"We’re delighted by the enthusiasm and creativity people have shown to help the Natural Environment Research Council make sure the new ship has a name as inspirational as she will be when she sets off for the polar seas in 2019," said the NERC's Director of Corporate Affairs Alison Robinson. 

"We’ve had thousands of suggestions made on the website since we officially launched; many of them reflect the importance of the ship’s scientific role by celebrating great British explorers and scientists. We are pleased that people are embracing the idea in a spirit of fun. 

"We have suggested some criteria for the name on our website and the final decision will be announced in due course. We are very much enjoying hearing everyone’s ideas."

So, in short: "Boaty McBoatface" will probably not be the name of the new polar research ship.

Still, it was fun while it lasted. 

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