Spitting Image (2020 TV series)

Spitting Image is a British satirical television puppet show, based on the 1984 original series of the same name created by Peter Fluck, Roger Law and Martin Lambie-Nairn. Similar to the original, the series features puppet caricatures of contemporary celebrities, such as Adele, James Corden, and Kanye West, as well as public figures, including Boris Johnson, several Conservative cabinet members such as Michael Gove, Dominic Raab and Priti Patel, and Donald Trump.

This article is about the 2020 television series. For the original 1984–1996 series, see Spitting Image.

Spitting Image
Promotional poster featuring from L-R Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, Donald Trump, Kanye West and Vladimir Putin
Genre
Created byPeter Fluck
Roger Law
Martin Lambie-Nairn
Voices of
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes10
Production
Running time30 minutes
Production companyAvalon Television[1]
DistributorBritBox
Release
Original networkBritBox
Picture format1080i HDTV
Audio formatSurround sound 5.1
Original release3 October 2020 (2020-10-03) –
present
External links
Website

ITV had plans for a reboot in 2006, but these were scrapped after a dispute over the Ant & Dec puppets used to host Best Ever Spitting Image, which were created against Roger Law's wishes.[2] In September 2019, Law announced the show would be returning with a new series.[3] It was confirmed in March 2020 that the show would return on BritBox.[4] Featuring 100 new puppets, the series debuted on 3 October 2020.[5] It was renewed for a second series on 7 October 2020.[6]

Staff

Voices

Puppeteers

Writers

Production

In April 2017, it was reported that US broadcaster HBO was set to revive the series in light of the presidency of Donald Trump. However, no immediate official confirmation or announcement was made.[9] In September 2019, the show was confirmed to be returning to screens twenty-three years after it originally ended, with the unveiling of the puppets of Trump, Vladimir Putin, Mark Zuckerberg, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.[10] Roger Law stated that the pilot for the new series had been filmed and that talks were in progress with US networks to take the show to a larger, global audience.[3] According to Law, the revival is set to have a global appeal through a "uniquely British eye".[4] Originally NBC was set to distribute the series stateside, however they backed out weeks before its initial broadcast. Executive producer Jon Thoday cited their "nervousness" with the series' content as the reason for their departure.[11]

The writers for the revival include Jeff Westbrook, Al Murray, The Windsors creators Bert Tyler-Moore and George Jeffrie, Bill Odenkirk, David X. Cohen, Jason Hazeley, Keisha Zollar, Patric Verrone, Phil Wang, and Sophie Duker.[12]

On 4 March 2020, the show was announced to be returning on the streaming service BritBox, as its first official commission.[4] The show premiered on the service on 3 October 2020, featuring the voice talents of Billy West, Debra Stephenson, Debra Wilson, Guz Khan, Indira Varma, Jess Robinson, John DiMaggio, Lewis MacLeod, Lobo Chan, Matt Forde, and Phil LaMarr.

Episodes
No.
overall		No. in
series		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
11"Episode 1"Andy De Emmony, Steve ConnellyGemma Arrowsmith, David X. Cohen, Matt Forde, Jason Hazeley, George Jeffrie, F. Maxwell, Karl Minns, Tom Neenan, Bill Odenkirk, Nico Tatarowicz, Brona C. Titley, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Phil Wang, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar3 October 2020 (2020-10-03)
22"Episode 2"Andy De Emmony, Steve ConnellyDavid X. Cohen, Sophie Duker, Matt Forde, Jason Hazeley, George Jeffrie, F. Maxwell, Karl Minns, Al Murray, Bill Odenkirk, Nico Tatarowicz, Brona C. Titley, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar10 October 2020 (2020-10-10)
33"Episode 3"Andy De Emmony, Steve ConnellyDavid X. Cohen, Matt Forde, Jason Hazeley, Noah James, George Jeffrie, F. Maxwell, Jordan Maxwell, Karl Minns, Al Murray, Bill Odenkirk, Nico Tatarowicz, Brona C. Titley, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Phil Wang, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar17 October 2020 (2020-10-17)
44"Episode 4"Andy De Emmony, Steve ConnellyGemma Arrowsmith, David X. Cohen, Matt Forde, Jason Hazeley, Laura Major, F. Maxwell, Karl Minns, Al Murray, Bill Odenkirk, Brona C. Titley, Nico Tatarowicz, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar24 October 2020 (2020-10-24)
55"US Election Special (Part 1)"Andy De Emmony, Steve ConnellyDavid X. Cohen, Sophie Duker, Matt Forde, Jason Hazeley, George Jeffrie, F. Maxwell, Karl Minns, Al Murray, Bill Odenkirk, Brona C. Titley, Nico Tatarowicz, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar31 October 2020 (2020-10-31) (Debuted on Britbox, also broadcast on ITV the same day at 10pm)
66"US Election Special (Part 2)"Andy De Emmony, Steve ConnellyDavid X. Cohen, George Jeffrie, F. Maxwell, Karl Minns, Bill Odenkirk, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar31 October 2020 (2020-10-31)
77"Episode 7"Steve Connelly, Andy De EmmonyDavid X. Cohen, Sophie Duker, Matt Forde, Jason Hazeley, George Jeffrie, F. Maxwell, Karl Minns, Al Murray, Pierre Novellie, Bill Odenkirk, Brona C. Titley, Nico Tatarowicz, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar7 November 2020 (2020-11-07)
88"Episode 8"Steve Connelly, Andy De EmmonyGemma Arrowsmith, David X. Cohen, Matt Forde, Jason Hazeley, George Jeffrie, F. Maxwell, Karl Minns, Al Murray, Tom Neenan, Bill Odenkirk, Brona C. Titley, Nico Tatarowicz, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar14 November 2020 (2020-11-14)
99"Episode 9"Steve Connelly, Andy De EmmonyDavid X. Cohen, Matt Forde, Jason Hazeley, Travis Jay, George Jeffrie, Laura Major, F. Maxwell, Karl Minns, Al Murray, Bill Odenkirk, Brona C. Titley, Nico Tatarowicz, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar21 November 2020 (2020-11-21)
1010"Episode 10"Steve Connelly, Andy De EmmonyDavid X. Cohen, Matt Forde, Jason Hazeley, George Jeffrie, Laura Major, F. Maxwell, Karl Minns, Al Murray, Bill Odenkirk, Brona C. Titley, Nico Tatarowicz, Bert Tyler-Moore, Patric M. Verrone, Jeff Westbrook, Keisha Zollar28 November 2020 (2020-11-28)

Reception

The series received mixed reviews from critics. The decision to satirise Greta Thunberg garnered criticism because of her youth.[13]

Mark Lawson of The Guardian wrote approvingly in his four-out-of-five star review that "[a]dmirers of the franchise will be relieved that the revival ... has lost none of its savagery or willingness to shock."[14] Also writing for The Guardian, columnist Nesrine Malik described the new series as a "toothless performance" and the jokes "excruciatingly obvious".[15]

In his three-out-of-five star review, Ralph Jones of NME lauded the series' ability to satirise timely events, "its topicality is admirable: there are several sketches here about events that occurred as little as 12 hours before the recording. This is impressive on the radio but when puppets are involved, it’s almost breathtaking."[16]

The Economist was more mixed in their analysis, calling it "pretty tame" in light of the current political atmosphere and when compared to its 1984 predecessor, writing how "[i]n an era of cynicism and conspiracy theories, the radical act would be to make a show that celebrated public life."[17] Ed Power of The Telegraph was negative in his one-out-of-five star review pertaining to the two-part US election special, calling it "toothless" in its satire.[18]

References
  1. "Spitting Image Lands On Britbox UK From 3rd October". Avalon. 11 September 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  2. "Ant and Dec stunt ends 'Spitting Image' return". Digital Spy. 17 November 2006. Archived from the original on 12 September 2007.
  3. "Spitting Image show plots return to TV after 23 years". BBC News. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  4. "Spitting Image to return on BritBox, 24 years after the TV show ended". BBC News. 4 March 2020. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  5. Cremona, Patrick (11 September 2020). "Spitting Image revival to debut on BritBox next month with 100 new puppets including Boris Johnson and Donald Trump". Radio Times. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  6. Katner, Jake (7 October 2020). "'Spitting Image' Renewed For Second Season By BritBox". Deadline. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
  7. "The voice of Johnson and Trump on Spitting Image". BBC News. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  8. Roper, Kerri-Ann (30 October 2020). "Spitting Image star: Trump is intellectually insecure". Sunday World. PA Entertainment. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  9. "HBO to make Spitting Image series". British Comedy Guide. 22 April 2017. Archived from the original on 16 October 2017. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
  10. Addley, Esther (27 September 2019). "Look who's back: Spitting Image returns for our chaotic times". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  11. Kanter, Jake (7 October 2020). "'Spitting Image' Producer Says NBC Backed Out Of Series Because Of "Too Much Nervousness"". Deadline. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  12. "Spitting Image lands on BritBox UK from 3rd October 2020". ITV Press Centre. 11 September 2020. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  13. Chilton, Louis (23 September 2020). "Spitting Image: 'Gross and explicit' trailer for BritBox comedy series released following Greta Thunberg criticism". The Independent. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  14. Lawson, Mark (2 October 2020). "Spitting Image review – welcome return for comedy that revels in giving offence". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  15. Malik, Nesrine (11 October 2020). "The return of Spitting Image shows how toothless British satire has become". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  16. Jones, Ralph (3 October 2020). "'Spitting Image' review: satirical puppet show aims to shock". NME. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  17. "The new "Spitting Image" will please the puppeteered more than the public". The Economist. 16 October 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  18. Power, Ed (31 October 2020). "Spitting Image, US Election Special, review: this toothless satire fails to land a single blow". The Telegraph. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
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