{"id":5444,"date":"2025-04-18T09:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-18T09:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/?p=5444"},"modified":"2025-04-24T18:20:07","modified_gmt":"2025-04-24T18:20:07","slug":"50-years-ago-i-rescued-a-penguin-now-steve-coogan-is-playing-me-in-a-film","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/18\/50-years-ago-i-rescued-a-penguin-now-steve-coogan-is-playing-me-in-a-film\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201850 years ago I rescued a penguin, now Steve Coogan is playing me in a film\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\"The\t<\/div>
Steve Coogan stars as Tom Michell in The Penguin Lessons, directed by Peter Cattaneo (Picture: Lionsgate)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018It was a tiny movement, really. I almost missed it. If the penguin hadn’t flapped his swings I would have assumed he was dead like all the others\u2026 Then none of this would have ever happened.\u2019<\/p>\n

This was the moment when Tom Michell, a 23-year-old science teacher working in South America<\/a>, first spotted a penguin on the coast of Punta del Este in Uruguay in 1975. <\/p>\n

Drenched in oil from an ocean spill, Tom decided to clean the bird up and return him to the sea. But after the penguin refused to leave the Englishman\u2019s side, Tom smuggled him back to his boarding school<\/a> in Argentina.<\/p>\n

Named Juan Salvador, the penguin became the school\u2019s new mascot of the rugby team, confidant to the dorm housekeeper and an unprecedented swimming coach to a shy boy.<\/p>\n

Now 73, and speaking to me from his home in Cornwall, Tom has reminisced on his extraordinary journey with the flightless bird, which is now the subject of a film called The Penguin Lessons.<\/p>\n

\u2018Who would have thought that 50 years ago I would see a penguin flap its wings in oil, and now Steve Coogan is playing me in a film,\u2019 Tom says, laughing.<\/p>\n

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(Photo by Neil Mockford\/WireImage)\" loading=\"lazy\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_246195852-be55-e1744903051978.jpg\">\t<\/div><figcaption>Tom and Steve pictured at The Penguin Lessons UK Premiere (Picture: Neil Mockford\/WireImage)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u2018I really think it fits this idea of the \u201cchaos theory\u201d, that because things are unpredictable, very small changes can lead to bigger ones later on.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018In my case, it\u2019s a concrete example because 50 years ago, a penguin flapped its wings, this tiny thing happened\u2026 then I wrote a book that got published. Bill Nighy says that he wants to do the audiobook.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018South Korea, a country of 50million people, comes to me and asks whether they can add my book into the national curriculum. <\/p>\n<p>\u2018When a country comes to you and says that they want to put your book in front of our 14 to 16-year-olds, I simply cannot imagine a higher prize for an author.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018And then, no less, Steve Coogan says he wants to act as me in a film. It\u2019s just been extraordinary, absolutely extraordinary.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>After writing a book about his experience with Juan Salvador, Tom was first approached by Disney\u2019s Animal Planet, which wanted to make a film about his relationship with the penguin.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"646\" height=\"490\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"article-image wp-image-22927535 lazyload\" alt=\"The Penguin Lessons - Steve Coogan\" loading=\"lazy\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_246243212-4a89-e1744905034186.jpg\">\t<\/div><figcaption>Steve pictured alongside a real penguin during filming (Picture: Lionsgate)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"646\" height=\"932\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"article-image wp-image-22927508 lazyload\" alt=\"Mandatory Credit: Photo by Anthony Harvey\/Shutterstock (15234896ac) Tom Michell 'The Penguin Lessons' film premiere, London, UK - 03 Apr 2025\" loading=\"lazy\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_246193295-e6e0.jpg\">\t<\/div><figcaption>Tom, a former science teacher, pictured at the premiere (Picture: Anthony Harvey\/Shutterstock)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Asked whether he had any proof that the penguin existed, he uncovered a reel of film showing Juan Salvador in the swimming pool at his boarding school, which is shown at the end of The Penguin Lessons film.<\/p>\n<p>In 2016, the film rights to his book were bought by Lionsgate before Coogan committed to the project.<\/p>\n<p>But, after recovering from a battle with cancer, Tom would have to wait seven years for filming to finally commence in 2023, with Covid-19 also delaying proceedings.<\/p>\n<p>Discussing the experience of having his memoir – which explores the military coup that took place in Argentina during the 1970s amid political turmoil – adapted into a feature film, Tom said it differed ‘significantly’.<\/p>\n<p>‘It was explained to me that the film was never going to be the same as my book, because a lot of it involves me being by myself and the narrative describes what I can see and what I’m thinking,’ he said.<\/p>\n<p>‘And that of course doesn’t work in a film because you have to have dialogue and that involves two people, so it is significantly different from the book, but not in a way that’s going to spoil it.<\/p>\n<p>‘The story of the penguin is the exact same as the book, and as far as I am concerned that is the important thing.’<\/p>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"646\" height=\"431\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"article-image wp-image-22927531 lazyload\" alt=\"Undated film still handout from The Penguin Lessons. Pictured: Steve Coogan as Tom Michell. See PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Penguin Lessons. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Penguin Lessons. PA Photo. Picture credit should read: @AndreaResmini\/Lionsgate. All Rights Reserved. NOTE TO EDITORS: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Penguin Lessons.\" loading=\"lazy\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_247609607-9983.jpg\">\t<\/div><figcaption>The film is set in Argentina during the 1970s (Picture: AndreaResmini\/Lionsgate)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"646\" height=\"363\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"article-image wp-image-22927524 lazyload\" alt=\"Undated film still handout from The Penguin Lessons. Pictured: Steve Coogan as Tom Michell. See PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Penguin Lessons. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Penguin Lessons. PA Photo. Picture credit should read: Lucia Faraig\/Lionsgate. All Rights Reserved. NOTE TO EDITORS: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Penguin Lessons.\" loading=\"lazy\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_247609623-b65f.jpg\">\t<\/div><figcaption>The real-life penguin in Tom’s book became a confidant to the dorm housekeeper (Picture: Lucia Faraig\/Lionsgate)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Describing his time on set, he added: ‘I expected there to be a fair degree of mayhem and shouting, but it wasn’t like that at all. It was all so utterly organised and regimented.<\/p>\n<p>‘It was funny that, because of the penguins, everybody had to behave and there was no shouting allowed. The crew said it wasn’t always like this.’<\/p>\n<p>Asked where he thinks his journey with Juan Salvador could go next, he added: \u2018Time and time again it’s the extraordinary power of this penguin playing through. <\/p>\n<p>\u2018To be honest I don\u2019t know where this is going to go from here, but I wouldn’t be surprised by anything because he’s done so many extraordinary things.<\/p>\n<p>‘I\u2019ve just remained as the penguin\u2019s sidekick.’<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>The Penguin Lessons, directed by Peter Cattaneo, is in cinemas on April 18.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Got a story?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">If you\u2019ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the <a href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\">Metro.co.uk<\/a> entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our <a href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/submit-stuff\/\">Submit Stuff<\/a> page – we\u2019d love to hear from you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Steve Coogan stars as Tom Michell in The Penguin Lessons, directed by Peter Cattaneo (Picture: Lionsgate) \u2018It was a tiny movement, really. I almost missed it. If the penguin hadn’t flapped his swings I would have assumed he was dead like all the others\u2026 Then none of this would have ever happened.\u2019 This was the moment when Tom Michell, a 23-year-old science teacher working in South America, first spotted a penguin on the coast of Punta del Este in Uruguay … <a href=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/18\/50-years-ago-i-rescued-a-penguin-now-steve-coogan-is-playing-me-in-a-film\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> “\u201850 years ago I rescued a penguin, now Steve Coogan is playing me in a film\u2019”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5446,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5444"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5444"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5444\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5453,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5444\/revisions\/5453"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5446"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5444"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5444"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5444"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}