Captain Beany opened the Baked Bean Museum of Excellence in his flat more than a decade ago (Picture: Dimitris Legakis/Athena Pictures/REX/Shutterstock)
Captain Beany, a Welsh ‘eccentric’ who opened a baked beans museum, could be coming to a dating app near you.
Beany, born Barry Kirk, has closed his Baked Bean Museum of Excellence in Port Talbot after nearly 14 years as he breaks up with Heinz to find true love.
The New Millennium Bean Party member’s future Tinder page might be filled with photos of him bald and covered in orange paint or of his 60 baked bean tattoos.
Or what could make people swipe right is the world record he shattered in 1986 for the longest time sitting in a bath of baked beans (more than 100 hours).
While a fun fact for his dating profile could be how he legally changed his name to Beany by deed poll in 1991.
Beany decided to shutter the museum after failing to find someone up for spending at least £5,000 for his sprawling baked beans collection.
He legally changed his names to embrace baked beans in 1991 (Picture: REX/Shutterstock)
Comedian Danny Wallace was a patron of the museum (Picture: REX/Shutterstock)
It’s Port Talbot’s top tourist attraction (Picture: Dimitris Legakis/REX/Shutterstock)
This was a steal given that Beany estimated that he forked out more than £10,000 building his bean-themed collection over the years.
‘At this current moment in time, I feel a sense of deep loss as if it was my true good friend, almost human-like,’ he told NeedToKnow.
‘It has been one labour of love amassing one vast collection of well over 450 memorabilia from all over the world.’
Beany put up the collection, which ranges from baked bean cans to Heinz blankets, on eBay with the intention of giving 50% of the profit to charity.
But it had no takers, with nine potential buyers not meeting the asking price.
‘I decided to depart with the museum as it is no longer part of my life, and I’m looking forward towards the future with other prospective opportunities,’ Beany said.
Beany tried to flog the collection for £5,000 on eBay (Picture: Dimitris Legakis/REX/Shutterstock)
Beany once bathed in a bathtub of baked beans for more than 100 hours, becoming a record-holder (Picture: REX/Shutterstock)
He now wants to settle down with his own ‘Tina Beans’ (Picture: Dimitris Legakis/REX/Shutterstock)
‘I would love now to settle down with thoughts of sharing my very eccentric relationship with a future “Tina Beans” as I have been an “edible” bachelor all my life!”
He will now close the museum which he set up inside his Sandfields council flat after the social housing provider Tai Tarian renovates the building.
Announcing the closure on Facebook on June 5, the captain said: ‘RIP Baked Bean Museum Of Excellence (2009-2023).
‘Bit of an emotional one for myself today my fellow human beans! Farewell, I knew you so well!’
Beany’s bean museum is one of Port Talbot’s most popular attractions, being top of TripAvisor’s list of things to do in the southwest Wales town.
With his Wikipedia page referring to him as an ‘eccentric’, Beany’s social media users were devasted to hear his museum is shuttering.
Punter Kimberly O’Donnell said: ‘So sad to see this. Had a fab crazy time when I visited. Was just what I needed as was in a back brace recovering from a broken back and it really cheered me up.
‘You are such a genuinely lovely funny guy. I raise a (beans on) toast to you.’
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He wants to find his ‘Tina Bean’.