Frank McCarron played the part of the school caretaker, Basil
Cornelius Snootles. He had a distinctive quaver in his voice that the
boys found irresistible to imitate, often leading to his caning from Dr
Pym.
It seems that Mr Snootles was never paid, but it
was never explained how he managed to live, nor why he kept working at
the school. He was never praised by Dr Pym for anything. Quite the
contrary, he was always derided, mostly for things that were not his
fault.
In promotional material, his name was sometimes
mis-spelt "Snootals".
Frank McCarron was 27 years old when the series
began. He died in June 1992, aged 83.