The Hovercraft-Eel Translation Project
Created | Updated Nov 4, 2004
In one of the more obscure Monty Python sketches, a mischief-making phrasebook author produces malicious phrasebooks with the wrong translations. Among the many phrases uttered by John Cleese in the mistaken belief that it means something completely different is the following gem:
My hovercraft is full of eels!
For reasons that I can barely remember, I decided to make it my mission to translate this phrase into as many languages as possible. I think I might have been trying to explain a joke related to this sketch to a German friend of mine. Anyway, it certainly involved a students' union bar, a university fencing club, and some of my bestest mates.
Anyway, this is my mission.
German
Mein Luftekissenbaut est fulle alle!
I can remember this, but I can't spell it!
Afrikaans
My skeertuig is met aalvisse vollgemaak word
French
Mon aéroglisseur est plein d'anguilles
So says Spaceman Spiff. "Except that most people over here just say - 'overcraft - so... and then, 'full' *could* be 'chargé de', in the sense of 'loaded with'."
Klingon
bIQgharghmey naQ lupDujHomwIj
This is from Hoovooloo, who says that this "literally translates as 'my shuttlecraft is full of water serpents'", which is good enough for me!