“We threw out three whole scripts!”: The struggle to write satirical Spitting Image play in time of “chaotic” politics

When the show was first announced last year, it was titled “Boris: The Liar King,” and it featured the Boris Johnson puppet emblazoned on the theatrical poster for The Lion King.

At the time, who could have thought that there would be a bigger political scandal in the UK than a Prime Minister breaking his own lockdown laws?

Artistic Director of Rep and the show’s director and co-creator, Sean Foley, said: “Obviously, with satirical comedy you can’t feel old-fashioned.

“Al Murray, Matt Forde and I had written the entire script. We would have been the last people in the country who wanted Boris Johnson to stay in Downing Street. When he left, we had to throw out the script and start over.”

The creators then thought about using the Queen as the focal point for their next script, but the UK’s longest-serving monarch died in September. Another dash, gone.

And don’t forget the era of Liz Truss, who was in office for just 44 days before stepping down as prime minister amid tumbling financial markets and plummeting polls.

“Hopefully we make it to opening night and it’s not drastically out of date,” Sean laughed. “Trying to write a satirical comedy for the last six months has been so chaotic.”

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