Hector the Inspector, also known as Hector the Taxman was the unnamed advertising figurehead of the former British government taxation department, Inland Revenue and was originally intended to remind people to return their self-assessment tax returns on time. The Inland Revenue attempted to avoid referencing the cartoon as 'Hector' given the negative connotations around the word. They initially tried to identify him as Sam - the Self Assessment Man, but this never caught on and he was forever identified as Hector in the media.