Meet Adrian, the minion duck. Confused yet?
We are always keen to help local charities, and Break are a very deserving one, located near Flux HQ in Norfolk. Their vision is to ensure children, young people and families reach their full potential and shape their own futures in a safe and creative environment. Have a look at the great work that they do here (and if you’re feeling kind, a donation wouldn’t go amiss either).
So, where does a giant duck made to look like a minion come into this?
Every year, Break hold The Grand Norwich Duck Race on the river Wensum in Norwich on the August bank holiday. Last year, we entered a modified car styled duck called Volksquacken. He failed to live up to his speedy promise (call himself a boy racer?) and didn’t win – beaten by Where’s Wally. Now, if Spiderman had beaten him, that would have been fine, you know, superhero and all that. But Wally? Hmmm…..
This year, we’re up for winning. Get your beaks out of the way ducks, Adrian is coming…
I had the pleasure of decorating Volksquacken last year so naturally it’s now assumed I have a talent (cough) for decorating giant ducks (can I use that to make my millions? Somehow? No?). But of course the dilemma is what shall we do to our blank duck-canvas this year? Originally, he was going to be Ducktor-Who, or Duckatti (think lots of leather), but one day at work a sudden brainwave hit me. What’s yellow, topical and mildly amusing? Nope, definitely not Nick Clegg. Minions of course! With them taking over the world of social media and cinema, the idea of Adrian the minion was born.
For those of you scratching your heads and wondering what a minion is, hang your head in shame, and head straight out to buy Despicable Me. A little clip below should help you out….
I asked for Despicable Me for my children for Christmas, but who am I kidding, it was actually for me. The minions are the evil mastermind Gru’s personal helpers, all two or three thousand of them, who can speak very minimal English and have names like Steve, Colin, Stewart etc. So naturally, what better than Adrian for our duck?
First off, I had to somehow dress our duck up in Denim dungarees. Sewing does not come naturally to me (that’s what my mother in law is for) so I think hacking it blindly with a needle is more appropriate a description. Then, I thought I’d paint him yellow. Yes, paint a yellow duck yellow. Aided on this quest by my two sons, who are 1 and 4, and this might explain to you the dodgy paint job. But stick a giant duck and paint in front of small children and it was never going to get away unscathed.
I won’t bore you with the rest of it, but at one point Adrian even had a pet caterpillar living in his pocket (again, two small boys, giant duck, things happen). That caterpillar has never been seen since, thinking about it … Anyway, Adrian is now ready for his race and to claim victory for Flux this year. Given that the minions make evil weapons for Gru, I think he might have some sneaky tricks up his sleeve……
After the race, all of the ducks are auctioned off – so if you really love Adrian, donate some money to a deserving charity and give him a home. Just bear in mind you might get a bonus butterfly in a few weeks.
He’s a hard worker.
For details of the race and auction, please follow Break Charity on Twitter @breakwriter.