labrador road 26
I beg to differ that the books would have died had the original belgian/french status been kept. It is such a good series of books I can't really believe it wouldn't have succeded anyway.
But it
had already been unsuccessful in English, so your confidence is slightly misplaced. Methuen were taking a gamble on a series which had failed once before, and the changes were used to maximise the chance of success.
in my opinion Moulinsart is located in France close to the belgian border
It’s funny that Marlinspike being in England makes you cringe, and disturbs you, yet you quite willingly transport Moulinsart into a foreign country for your own reasons. There is no doubt that - according to the French books - Moulinsart is in Belgium… ;-)
I would just bear in mind that story of Hergé getting the letter from the little Congolese boy who put himself forward for the part of Tintin, should Hergé need a real-life model: I think that people should be allowed to identify with the books in the way that suits them best - if you want Moulinsart in France, fine. If Marlinspike appears to be in England, equally fine…
As to Haddock being English (or British) - the debate about that arises from a remark by Hergé himself, not from the translations. MT&LL-C make no indication of, or claims for, Haddock’s nationality, so don’t put it at their door. See
this thread for more on the subject of the “sad fishâ€.