- Douglas: "Oh dear. That won't go down well with Herc the Berk."
- Carolyn: "Do you mind not calling him that?"
- Douglas: "I'm sorry. Hercules the Berkules?"
- — Douglas and Carolyn, Xinzhou
Hercules "Herc" Shipwright is a recurring character who appears in Series 3 and 4 as Carolyn's love interest. At the end of the series, he becomes the First Officer at OJS Air.
In the Show[]
Hercules is introduced to the series in Newcastle as a Captain at Air Caledonia, having previously worked with Douglas at Air England. Although he and Douglas greet each other as old friends, their relationship becomes more antagonistic when Herc turns down Douglas for a job. Douglas later describes Herc as thinking that he is 'the best thing to happen to the sky since rainbows' — it is suggested that Douglas doesn't like Herc because he's 'nicking his act.'
Also in Newcastle, Herc begins a relationship with Carolyn, with their main common interest being bickering. By Series 4, Herc has repeatedly confessed his love to Carolyn, though she is reluctant to commit. When Swiss Airways buys Air Caledonia, Herc faces redundancy unless he moves to Zürich. He is willing to lose his job to stay in England with Carolyn, and her hesitancy to commit to a relationship forms a central dilemma of the later episodes. She ultimately confesses her love to Herc and, when MJN is revived as OJS Air in Zürich, Herc takes the role of First Officer under Douglas.
Background[]
Hercules was named by his "eccentric" father (after the aircraft rather than the hero). He has two brothers (Wellington and Harrier) and a sister, Sarah ("He was eccentric, not mad."). He has been divorced four times, in comparison to Douglas's three.
Hercules owns a British racing green Mercedes, is fond of opera, is (to Carolyn's dismay) a vegetarian and is (to Carolyn's delight) ovinophobic.
Behind the Scenes[]
- Hercules is played by actor Anthony Head.