SpongeBob is not gay, says creator

No wonder SpongeBob SquarePants is always smiling. Since making his debut in America in 1999, his sheer effervescence has made him the number one children's cartoon character on television. But something odd has happened – it is not just kids who have fallen in love with him.

SpongeBob, who lives in a pineapple beneath the Pacific and whose best friend is an equally boisterous pink starfish, is popular with adults too. But his adventures in a town called Bikini Bottom has also attracted a strong gay following. Novelty stores aimed at gay men in New York have been unable to keep up with demand for items ranging from SpongeBob dolls, key rings and even thongs.

This week his creator, Stephen Hillenburg, has been moved to clarify SpongeBob's sexual inclination, telling us that SpongeBob isn't really gay, but just "kind of special". Never mind his flamboyant manner, his constant holding of hands with his pink pal, or his enthusiasms for taking boating lessons from Mrs Puff. Gays identify with the character, Mr Hillenburg told The Wall Street Journal, because of his tolerant attitude.

"Everybody is different, and the show embraces that. The character SpongeBob is an oddball. He's kind of weird, but he's kind of special," he said. "I always think of them as being somewhat asexual."

No one denies that SpongeBob, who has also drawn large audiences on MTV in Britain, appeals to a wider audience than the under-11s it was aimed at. In Britain, 40 per cent of the show's viewers, estimated at up to a million, are over 16.