Spitting Image cancelled by BritBox
- BritBox's Spitting Image revival has been axed, impressionist Matt Forde has confirmed
- "There is a huge public appetite for Spitting Image in this country" Forde told the i newspaper. "I just can't believe it's not on a mainstream channel at a time like this"
- However, BritBox boss Reemah Sakaan described the puppet satire as "incredibly expensive" to make
Spitting Image has been axed, Matt Forde has confirmed.
The comic and impressionist, who voiced Boris Johnson and Donald Trump on the comedy puppet show, which was revived by ITV as the flagship commission for streaming service BritBox in 2020 after a 24 year absence, told the i newspaper that the satire would not be returning for a third series.
Three specials from the two revived series were also screened on ITV, BritBox's majority owner. But despite current political upheaval in the country, the channel has reportedly told producers Avalon that it will not be ordering further episodes.
Watched by 15m viewers during its 1980s peak, Spitting Image was described as "incredibly expensive" to make by BritBox boss Reemah Sakaan. Reports have suggested that each individual puppet cost around £10,000 to produce.
"There is a huge public appetite for Spitting Image in this country," Forde told the i. "I just can't believe it's not on a mainstream channel at a time like this.
"It got crazy numbers when the specials were on ITV and the online figures were going through the roof."
In overnight figures, the 2020 Halloween special shown on ITV attracted 3.2 million viewers; 2021's edition was watched by 1.97 million; and a 2021 Christmas special was watched by 2.02 million people. Although not available on standard catch-up services due to the series' availability on BritBox, later viewings took the episodes' reach to 4.4 million, 2.67 million and 2.7 million people, respectively.
Forde, who was also one of the show's writers, said: "I thought it was madness not to have the whole series on mainstream ITV. They spent all that money bringing back this mega-brand only to hide it away on BritBox. It should have been on ITV, Channel 4, the BBC or Sky, where everyone could see it."
The comic, who - following recent events in Westminster - has been forced to rewrite his current West End stand-up show and retitle it Goodbye Liz, said he fears for the future of satire on television.
"There's a dearth of satire and it's such a tragedy," he said. "There is a great public desire to see politicians lampooned but it's not reflected on TV.
"We don't have a Daily Show or a Stephen Colbert Late Show like in the US. It's bonkers not to have a topical comedy show on all the time, you can't just give it six weeks. It takes a show time to bed in and find an audience. It's never been tried here."
A spokesperson for BritBox told the i: "BritBox won't be airing any additional original commissions due to the impending launch of ITVX. A Spitting Image commission for ITV has not been confirmed or announced."
ITV is replacing on-demand platform ITV Hub with ITVX next month, offering an additional subscription service with its own original commissions and access to the BritBox library on top of free catch-up capabilities. However, Spitting Image will continue on stage.
"We're taking the puppets on the road to meet the people. There'll be a live show at Birmingham Rep next Spring, which we hope to transfer to the West End," said Forde, who is working on a Boris Johnson special of the British Scandal podcast he co-hosts with Alice Levine.
He will perform Goodbye Liz at the Bloomsbury Theatre in London on Friday.