Spitting Image exhibition to open in Cambridge.
The exhibition will feature the entire archive of the TV show.
Last updated 2nd Oct 2023
The entire archive of satirical TV show Spitting Image has been donated to Cambridge University Library under the Government’s Cultural Gifts Scheme.
Puppets from the programme, including of Margaret Thatcher, Diana, Princess of Wales, and the Queen Mother, are among the items to go on display in a free exhibition from Saturday.
There are also sketches, memorabilia and some of the letters of complaint received by the show, which first ran from 1984 to 1996 and was brought back by BritBox in 2020 for two series.
Series producer John Lloyd said he used to get:
“literally two Royal Mail bags of letters every week which my PA would go through and sort them into nice and nasty”.
His responses will be displayed at Cambridge University Library alongside the letter of complaint, he agreed and said he would have cut the sketch if he could.
Speaking at the exhibition launch, he said:
“I used to say honestly what I think, whereas now the common wisdom is you get a sort of pro forma letter.
“You know, ‘we are very sorry you were offended; we never seek to offend, we hope you’re not too upset.”
Spitting Image co-creator Roger Law donated the first section of the archive in 2018, and the entire archive is now with Cambridge University Library.
The archive was accepted by the Government under the Cultural Gifts Scheme and allocated to Cambridge University Library in 2023.
The free exhibition Spitting Image: A Controversial History opens at Cambridge University Library on September 30 and runs until February 17 2024.