Producer John Lloyd considers online comeback

Spitting Image could be heading for a comeback.

Producer John Lloyd says he’s thinking of reviving the notoriously expensive puppet satire for an online series.

And he revealed that he has already discussed script ideas with Ian Hislop and Nick Newman, who wrote on the original.

Lloyd, who also created QI and Not The Nine O’Clock News and produced Blackadder, said the show was hugely influential in its heyday.

‘For 12 years a whole generation learned their politics from a late-night comedy show on ITV,’ says Lloyd in an interview with the Daily Mail.  ‘The average teenager could name eight or nine members of the Cabinet and three or four members of the opposition.’ 

Recently ITV returned to topical caricature with Newzoids, which launched with 3.7 million viewers in April but dwindled to 1.7million over the series. ITV has since put the sketches online.

Spitting Image ran for 131 episodes over 18 series from 1984 to 1996 and included the voices of comedians such as Steve Coogan, Harry Enfield and Rory Bremner.

It was revived of one-off special in 2006, hosted by puppet versions of Ant & Dec, something which angered Roger Law, who created the series with fellow puppeteer Peter Fluck.

Of his plans for a revivial, Lloyd said: ’I'm thinking of doing it online to see if there is any interest.’

Published: 19 Jul 2015