Wales' only dedicated baked beans museum - and Port Talbot’s top tourist attraction - has closed its doors for good after nearly 15 years.
Museum curator Barry Kirk, who changed his name by deed poll to Captain Beany in 1991, is downsizing his apartment which houses the Baked Beans Museum of Excellence that boasts over 450 bean-themed artefacts.
The self-proclaimed superhero of Port Talbot decided to permanently move out of his Sandfields council flat some months ago due to ongoing renovations by the social housing provider Tai Tarian with his downsize now imminent. You can read more stories about Port Talbot here.
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“I’ll be moving to a one bedroom beangallow as soon as I get the keys and to be honest, I don’t really wish to spend the rest of my days here looking after the museum so it’s the end of this chapter of my life,” said the Captain, 68, with a hint of sadness.
“It brings a tear to my eye packing all of this stuff into banker's boxes but it's time I do so, a change is as good as a rest and I want to live in comfort for the rest of my days,” he said. “The Captain will still be out and about, I’m not giving up who I am but the museum will be no more."
The Baked Beans Museum of Excellence opened in January 2009 and has entertained over 1,200 visitors since. Captain Beany and his exhibit have become extremely popular and endeared people near and far, becoming the number one tourist attraction in Port Talbot on Tripadvisor.
“I suppose whoever was number two has reclaimed their spot at number one, beyond that I’m sure the council will be relieved that I’m on the move,” he joked.
A typical visit to the museum normally consisted of a chat with the Captain, followed by a tour of his bean-themed flat and his museum. Every guest would leave with a goody bag of Captain Beany keepsakes including fridge magnets and an autograph. The museum itself housed over 450 pieces of bean memorabilia from around the world. The museum’s collection has been donated to the Archive of Brand Communication in Norwich.
“It won’t be on display, it’ll be sealed away in bankers' boxes meaning that people will get to see what a tin of beans looks like in years to come," Captain Beany explained.
“Much of the rest will hopefully be going to the Museum of Advertising in London and if anyone is stuck for a bean pot I’ll put them up for the ration. Anything left I’m sure some other half-baked human bean like myself would buy it off me.”
Captain Beany is a local legend and his origin lies in a bath of baked beans all the way back in September 1986. “I decided to wallow in a bath of beans for the best part of 100 hours. I didn’t think I would last 100 seconds, but we managed to raise £1,500 for a special needs charity bus and it's still the world record to this day.
“Imagine if I had a time machine and went back to see myself in that bath - I’d probably give myself a bollocking because my entire life changed irreversibly after that."
This was the catalyst for Beany to pursue a lifetime of humanitarian and charity work, which includes body modification, charity stunts and marathon running, all with some relevance to beans. Today he sports a pair of bean brows and a striking baked bean head tattoo.
Although this is the end of the Museum of Excellence, Beany has no plans of retiring anytime soon.
“I think that the future is looking bright, looking orange if you will,” he said. “Without the museum, I can finally take a nice deep breath and get grafting on my book ‘Bean there, Done that, Got the Tattoo.'
“I’ll also be standing in next year's general elections as an independent, and I hope to release a charity single called ‘I Love Baked Beans," he said. “I might even give Britain's Got Talent a shot, but I might be more suited to Britain's Got No Talent."
One piece of Beany’s Museum that definitely won’t be getting archived or sold is his most prized possession, his very own Heinz Baked Beans coffin that formed the centrepiece of his museum.
“It’s like this - whenever I do go I’ll be going out with a blast, and in years to come people will say ‘Remember bean man, wasn't he mad.'
“It’s only right that I do so, the humble baked bean has changed my life and I have to attribute a lot to them,” he said. “All hail to Heinz.” Sign up to the Neath Port Talbot newsletter
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