

A Margaret Thatcher puppet and the unbroadcast script and video tape for the pilot episode of Spitting Image have taken their place alongside the works of Newton, Darwin and other treasures at Cambridge University Library – after series co-creator Roger Law deposited the programme archive at the Library yesterday (November 13).



The puppet and script are just two artefacts in Law and archivist Deirdre Amsden’s large collection of material from the iconic, infamous and multi-award winning show, which held politicians, the Royal Family and celebrities to account over 18 series from 1984-1996 with its biting cultural and political satire.



Among the first 32 boxes of material that will go on deposit at the Library are hundreds of rehearsal and post-production scripts, memorabilia, puppet designs and newspaper cuttings reflecting the controversial nature of the programme. Each script records who wrote each sketch and identifies the puppeteers and voice artists.



Spitting Image, which was nominated for nine BAFTAs (winning two) and four International Emmys (winning two), launched the career of innumerable actors, satirists and voiceover artists who went on to become household names after their work on the show.



Harry Enfield, Steve Coogan, Paul Whitehouse, Alistair McGowan, Ian Hislop, John Sessions and Debra Stephenson all worked on the programme during its long run for Central Independent Television, as did Red Dwarf creators Rob Grant and Doug Naylor.

At its peak, it reached an audience of 15 million.



Other sections of the archive to be transferred to the Library over the coming months include puppets of Mikhail Gorbachev and Alan Bennett, thousands of images from the show, hundreds of video tapes, and moulds for the puppets and their teeth.

The archive also contains books, board games and files of complaints from irate viewers.

