If you love puppets, comedy, musicals and the theatre then you will love Idiots Assemble Spitting Image the Musical which is showing at Phoenix Theatre for a limited run.
What is Spitting Image though you might be asking. Well Spitting Image is a show which originally aired on British television back in 1984 which is a puppet show. The puppets are caricatures of public figures, celebrities, the government, and the Royal Family. It was created by Peter Fluck, Roger Law and Martin Lambie-Nairn.
For over 18 series it was aired on ITV. At its peak, the show was watched by 15 million people. The series was so popular it even had collaborations with musicians. The show also was nominated and won numerous awards, including ten BAFTA Television Awards, and two Emmy Awards back in 1985 and 1986 in the Popular Arts Category. Sadly though in 1996 it was cancelled as viewing figures started to decline. After many years though with a few bumps along the way Spitting Image returned to our TV screens October 2020 with new puppets and plenty of laughs for a short stint.
Now Spitting Image is back and LIVE at the Phoenix Theatre after having a 5 star sell out run at Birmingham Rep, where you can now go along and actually see this hilarious puppet show musical in real life, which are controlled by professional puppeteers on stage.
I went along to the press night of Idiots Assemble Spitting Image the Musical courtesy of Avalon marketing.
Idiots Assemble Spitting Image the Musical
Spitting Image The Musical is presented by Avalon, and originally produced at Birmingham Rep where it had a hugely successful run.
It is written by a comedy team made up of Al Murray, Matt Forde and double-Olivier award winner Sean Foley, who also directs, alongside a creative team spearheaded by the original Spitting Image co-creator, Roger Law.
The voice overs are pre-recorded by a stellar line-up of artists from Oliver Chris (Green Wing, The IT Crowd, and Prince William in Charles III on Broadway and on film) Kathryn Drysdale (Bridgerton, The Windsors, Christmas on Mistletoe Farm, The Bubble, The Queen and I and Plebs), Jason Forbes (The Tracy Ullman Show, The Mash Report and Horrible Histories: The Movie and Borg Mcenroe), Luke Kempner (Spitting Image, Steph’s Packed Lunch, The Last Leg, Stand-up Sketch Show and The Imitation Game), Lorna Laidlaw (Doctors, Coronation Street, Getting It Straight and A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Jackie Lam (Strangers, All that Remains and Emma) Shri Patel (Rishi Sunak in This England, Emmerdale and Pennyworth), Jess Robinson (Spitting Image, The Last Leg, Stars in Their Ears, and The Rise and Fall of Little Voice and Britain’s Got Talent), Debra Stephenson (The Impressions Show, Dead Ringers, Rich Hall’s Election Breakdown, Newzoids, Coronation Street and Bad Girls) and Ronan Summers Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and Krays: Code of Silence, Doctor Who and Episodes).
The talented puppeteers who bring the puppets to life are Antony Antunes, Rianna Ash, Katie Bradley, Emily Essery, Kaidan Dawkins, Bertie Harris, Pena Iiambo, Jackie Lam, Bright Ong, Will Palmer, Helen Parke, Rayo Patel, Tom Quinn, Richard Vorster and Faye Weerasinghe.
Everyone else that works on Idiots Assemble Spitting Image the Musical are as follows:
Production Designer, Alice Power, Video Designer Nina Dunn for Pixel Lux, Lighting Designer Tim Mitchell, Sound Designer Richard Brooker, Puppet Master Scott Brooker, Costume Designer Lotte Collett, Choreographer Lizzi Gee, Composer and Musical Director Alexander S. Bermange, Music Supervisor Jerome van den Berghe, Creators of Spitting Image Peter Fluck and Roger Law, General Manager Emma Brunjes for ebp, and Producers Richard Allen-Turner and Jon Thoday for Avalon.
It first opened up in Birmingham Rep early in the year and was a 5 star sell out performance. It now has come to London Phoenix Theatre for a limited run (Wednesday 24 May to Saturday 26 August 2023).
This extravaganza musical is simultaneously inspired and appalled by real events with a little make believe moments as it see the Government in particular Boris Johnson trying to steal the crown from King Charles as Boris wants to be King, plus see Tom Cruise as you have never seen him before.
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