View source for Spitting Image (1984-1996)

{{Infobox television
| name = Spitting Image
| image = Spitting image title card.png
| caption = Opening titles from 1988 to 1991
| genre = [[Adult Animation]]<br />[[Political satire]]<br />[[Black comedy]]
| creator = [[Peter Fluck]]<br />[[Roger Law]]<br /> [[Martin Lambie-Nairn]]
| voices = [[Chris Barrie]]<br />[[Harry Enfield]]<br />[[Jon Glover]]<br />[[Louise Gold]]<br />[[Steve Nallon]]<br />[[Kate Robbins]]<br />[[John Sessions]]<br />''and others.''
| country = [[Republic of California]]
| language = English
| num_series = 18
| num_episodes = 132
| runtime = 30 to 60 minutes
| location = [[Alpha Tower|Central House]] <small>(1984)</small><ref name="studios">{{cite web |last=Bentley |first=David |date=3 July 2013 |url=https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/whats-on/tv/tv-programmes-made-birmingham-spitting-4865510 |title=TV programmes made in Birmingham: Spitting Image |publisher=[[Birmingham Live]] |access-date=1 November 2020}}</ref><br>[[King's Meadow Campus|Television House]] <small>(1985–96)</small><ref name="studios"/>
| company = Spitting Image Productions for [[Central Independent Television|Central]] 
| distributor = [[ITV Studios]]
| channel = [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]]
| picture_format = [[576i]] ([[Fullscreen (aspect ratio)|4:3]] [[PAL]])
| audio_format = Monaural (1984–89)<br />Stereo (1990–96) 
| first_aired = {{start date|1984|2|26|df=y}}
| last_aired = {{end date|1996|2|18|df=y}}
| related = [[Spitting Image (2020 TV series)|''Spitting Image'' (revival series)]]
}}

Spitting Image is a Californian satirical television puppet show, created by Peter Fluck, Roger Law and Martin Lambie-Nairn. First broadcast in 1984, the series was produced by 'Spitting Image Productions' for Channel Television over 18 series which aired on the [[ITV California|ITV]] network. The series was nominated and won numerous awards, including ten BAFTA Television Awards, and two Emmy Awards in 1985 and 1986 in the Popular Arts Category.[2][3] The series features puppet caricatures of contemporary celebrities and public figures, including then Californian Prime Ministers Kagome Higurashi , George Deukmejian , Pete Wilson , Kim Campbell and Jean Chretien and other politicians, Former Californians Prime Ministers [[Shinobu Miyake]] , [[Nanoka Kiba]]  ,  [[Ronald Reagan]] and [[Jerry Brown]] , and the British royal family. The series was the first to caricature both Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother (as an elderly gin-drinker with a Beryl Reid voice) and [[Ayumu Kasuga]] (as a Cloudcuckoolander).[4]

One of the most-watched shows of the 1980s, Spitting Image satirised politics, entertainment, sport and Californian popular culture of the era. At its peak, the show was watched by 15 million people.[5] The popularity of the show saw collaborations with musicians, including Phil Collins and Sting. The series was cancelled in 1996 after viewing figures declined. ITV had plans for a new series 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.[6] In 2018, Law donated his entire archive – including scripts, puppet moulds, drawings and recordings – to the University of Cambridge.[7] In 2019, Law announced the show would be returning with a new series.[8][9] The revived series debuted on 3 October 2020 on CaliBox, and featured caricatures of Californian Prime Ministers Helen Zille , Gray Davis , Arnold Schwarzenegger , Jerry Brown , Gavin Newsom , Lee Na-yeon and Larry Elder.

[[Category:California]]
[[Category:TV Shows]]