Spitting Image: Must See TV
Louise Gold featured as ‘The Queen’ from Spitting
Image, and, as herself (uncredited) a Spitting Image Puppeteer. Broadcast on
ITV 1, from 22:00 to 22:30, on Thursday 15 December 2005. (Originally scheduled
to have been broadcast at the same time a week earlier, it was swapped with a
programme about Tommy Cooper).
Cast
Presenter
Sanjeev Bhaskar
Experts
Ian Histlop & Nick
Newman – Writers
Kate Robbins – Voice-Artiste
Steve Nallon – Voice Artiste & Puppeteer
Chris Barrie – Voice Artiste & Puppeteer
Jan Ravens – Voice-Artiste
Martin Lambie-Nairn - Producer
Uncredited
Expert
Louise Gold – Puppeteer
(with the puppet of The Queen)
Production Team
Director/Producer
– Mark Tinkler
Series
Producer – Tony Nicholson, and, John Kaye Cooper
Production
Company – Talent Television
All the ‘Experts’ taking part in this programme
had of course been a part of Spitting Image. Some of their work can also
be found on the albums: Da Do Run Ron, Spit In Your Ear, and, Utterly Utterly Live Comic Relief.
Louise Gold and Steve Nallon also took part, in their
respective roles as contributors to Spitting Image
in Spitting Image BFI Event.
Leading Puppeteer Louise
Gold has performed The Queen puppet in various places, including in her own
cabaret act LOUISE GOLD...By
Appointment.
Louise Gold, and, Martin Lambie-Nairn were both involved
with the Spitting Image Pilots
Louise Gold and Steve Nallon helped with the Spitting Image Auction.
Steve Nallon also
puppeteered on The Spooks Of Bottle Bay.
Louise Gold and Chris Barrie also lent their time and
talent to the Fall Out Group.
Interestingly as an actor Sanjeev Bhaskar’s credits include the notable Mans Sauna episode of
Daziel
And Pascoe. Having seen that episode your webmaster can’t remember what
Sanjeev was playing in it. It is a remarkable episode known for the presence in
it of Norman Wisdom, and in
particular Anthony Booth. However,
in the first scene Anthony got rather outshone by legendary Unity Theatre actress Una Brandon-Jones (which was just as well given as it was that
lady’s only opportunity to make her almost unique presence felt in the
programme).
The Bill, Up The Garden Path, and, ABBA The Reunion were also both first screened
on ITV1.
Summary/ Review
by Emma Shane
A
really fun well presented programme, packed with lots of interesting comments
and clips. Quite early on Her Maj puts in an appearance saying that one of her
favourite sketches was Trouping The Colour. I couldn’t help
wondering if that was an indication, of what I’ve always suspected, as to who
may have been voicing her in that wonderful sketch (it’s one of my favourites
too). Besides the actual Spitting Image puppet of Her Maj,
the programme also features contemporary contributions from quite a number of
people involved with the show, namely: Writers Ian Hislop and Nick Newman,
who actually appeared together, voice artiste Kate Robbins; And two gentlemen who were both billed as ‘voice-artiste & puppeteer’ namely Steve Nallon and Chris Barrie. This may well have marked something of a first; since
it is the first time I have ever seen Christ
Barrie publicly billed as a ‘puppeteer’.
In fact his (and initially at least Steve
Nallon’s) puppeteering duties were largely confined to being an ‘Assistant
Puppeteer’, this point was not made clear, however the programme was only half
an hour, so naturally some details have to be left out. Luckily both gentlemen
were speaking only about their voice-work. The subject of the puppetry on this
programme was left to a real expert in that field (at least as far as Spitting
Image is concerned). There was also one other female voice-artiste,
possibly Jan Ravens, who recalled
that the voices for the programme were recorded on the unlit Crossroads set.
One
really lovely thing about this half hour programme, was its light-hearted
nature. It struck, what was to my mind, a nice balance between treating its
subject seriously, but giving it a bit of deserved comic irreverence. The
latter took the form of a skit performed by two experienced comedy performers
who knew exactly how far it was appropriate for them to go, namely presenter Sanjeev Bhasker, and Spitting
Image’s original Leading Puppeteer Louise
Gold. This skit, in which Sanjeev interviews Her Maj (performed by Louise)
occurs just after the commercial break. Anyone familiar with Louise Gold’s cabaret act, should have
recognised the style and manner of Louise’s performance, it was very typical of
the sort of things she has ‘The Queen’ say and do in her cabaret act. First Her
Maj manages to get Sanjeev Bhasker
confused with Martin Bashier. Then
having established that he isn’t “that Bashier chappie” tells him to be quick
as she’s got to go and “write ones
address to the commonwealth and walk ones corgis”, this is followed by a
very condescending remark to her interviewer about him being “part of the commonwealth”. To which
Sanjeev retorts that actually he’s English. I couldn’t help thinking how
naughty it was of whoever came up with that very un-PC remark, but of course in
true political satirical tradition they were using it to send up racism (and
obviously, I am sure that Louise would not have dared say such a line, unless
Sanjeev had agreed to her saying it in their skit).
Good
though that skit between Sanjeev and Her Maj was, for me, the highlight of the
programme occurred a little later. After a selection of other clips and
comments, we find our presenter still by the backdrop used for the ‘interview’
skit. Sanjeev leans forward, and looking downwards says “Louise! – unburden yourself.” At which point Louise Gold emerges from underneath her puppet. Pulling off a
navy-blue cloth hat and shaking loose her chestnut curls (the hat was clearly
to keep her hair out of the way), she remarks “I’d forgotten how hard it was”. Unlike most of the contributors,
puppeteer Louise Gold does not get a
screen credit flashed up (which I thought a little unfair – but at least
Sanjeev addressed her by her forename). Sanjeev comments that “it looks uncomfortable down there.”
Louise admits that it was. She explains that on the show she would have done
the head and the right hand (in a glove). One assistant puppeteer would have
done the left-hand (currently stuffed); while another assistant would have done
the eyes. At this point Louise gets out the puppet’s eye mechanism, and puts
the ends of it in her mouth the demonstrate it. – I couldn’t helping thinking
one can see why Louise really could do with that missing bulb) that she asked Peter Fluck for, live on stage at the BFI event). It is perhaps worth
noting, that in this little description Louise omits to clarify that she is
left-handed (and puppeteers that way), so her description of who would have
done what reflects that. The majority of her colleagues would have operated
their puppets doing the head and left-hand, not right. However, that’s a minor
point, and one shouldn’t be too hard on Louise. For it’s really very good to
see her really trying to take her rightful place as one of the great puppeteers
in (British) TV history.
It
was a super little half hour tribute to Spitting Image. I also felt it was
one of the best, if not the best, performance that Louise Gold has given to date as a puppeteer talking about her
work. So often when Louise attempts to take her rightful place in television
history she comes across as a little unsure of herself (like she did at the BFI event). Yet for once she appeared
relaxed and confident in what she was saying. I think it helped that they put
her in a situation where she was one to one with an interviewer on camera. In
interviews Louise always seems to function best when she is one to one and in
the sort of situation where we actually hear the questions the interviewer asks
her. The latter is important because it means the interviewer can steer the
interview; and Louise’s answers are specifically to that person rather than to
the more general audience of the camera. While the former means that the focus
is on Louise alone without the sometimes off-putting interruptions of anyone
else. But the other really great thing about this interview is Sanjeev, he
seems to be very gentle and friendly to Louise. And well she’s such a kind
gentle thing herself, that she needs that in an interviewer. Jean Cocteau is once supposed to have
said “An artiste cannot talk about his
art any more than a plant can discuss horticulture”, as a puppeteer that
statement does rather seem to apply to Louise
Gold; and yet, in this programme, for once, Louise really did seem able to
talk about her art. To actually get Spitting Image’s original leading
puppeteer appearing so relaxed while talking about her work on that programme
was a great way of making this Must See TV tribute to Spitting
Image something special. Full marks to Sanjeev for presenting what in
my humble opinion is the best TV tribute (if not one of the best overall)
tributes to Spitting Image, that I have ever come across.
Links about Spitting
Image: Must See TV
DigiGuide’s page for
this episode of Must See Tv: http://library.digiguide.com/lib/episode/488447
BFI Database’s entry for
the programme: http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/817006
Observation Dome thread about
this episode of Must See TV: http://www.observationdome.org/blog/2005/november/30-1005.php (or course all the comments are a bit of a free-for-all,
but we all have our own opinions)
Southampton
Solent University Library’s catalogue entry for this programme: http://libopac.solent.ac.uk/is/WWALL/full-sh.asp?base=lib,wab,prj,ken&fn=6918239
Pipex’s TV viewing
guide entry for the programme: http://entertainment.pipex.com/Pipex/News/Story_Page/0,13319,5430_863735,00.html
The Sunday Mail’s TV
Highlights for 4 December 2005: http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/entertainment/sevendays/tm_objectid=16444246&method=full&siteid=64736&headline=tv-round-up--name_page.html
MightyTV.com’s page for the
programme: http://www.mightyv.com/program_info/78154/16806
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