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The great thing about it is you don\u2019t really need to know anything much about Spitting Image, really you only need to have watched the news and have a vague awareness of current affairs. People from my parent\u2019s generation will view it with fond nostalgia, but people my age and younger will appreciate it purely for what it is; a mockery of public figures they either know and love, or more likely know and hate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I knew I wanted to see it. And the storyline as set out on the website had me intrigued:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
See Tom Cruise as you\u2019ve never seen him before as he\u2019s tasked by His Majesty The King to create the U.K.\u2019s very own \u201cMagnificent Seven\u201d of celebrity misfits to save the nation from a cabal of dark forces seeking to destroy it – that\u2019s all the usual suspects. And James Corden\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\u2019s dancing. There\u2019s absolutely no respect paid to anyone\u2026 It\u2019s just like a West End musical but funnier and also doesn\u2019t have Michael Ball in it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I can only describe it as two hours of utter hilarity and chaos. We start with a warning \u2013 if you\u2019re easily offended this isn\u2019t the place of you, and they don\u2019t care if you can complain because they\u2019ve already had your money. You can\u2019t fault their honesty at least.<\/p>\n\n\n
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Ian McKellan is our puppet narrator, although with Harry and Meghan sitting in a box to the side, ready to plug his book Spare at an opportunity. A very, very tiny Tom Cruise puppet gathers a band of heroes to repair the fabric of society in time for King Charles\u2019 coronation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The warning is merited \u2013 this show is not for the faint-hearted. Paddington Bear\u2019s secret ingredient in his marmalade sandwiches is cocaine, Putin treats the audience to a musical number which ends with him in sparkly underwear, and a troupe of dancing penises are used to illustrate what male politicians think with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n But it is laugh-out-loud funny all the way through, thanks to writers Al Murray, Matt Forde and Sean Foley. It is also impressively \u2018current\u2019, touching on some of the key issues, both political and celebrity, that we are forced to witness on a daily basis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is an extensive cast of voice over artists and puppeteers that are needed to make this musical possible, far too many to name here and it\u2019s impossible to single anyone out by name. There were some terrific impersonations, Prince Harry and Donald Trump were particularly good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The puppets are a work of art. If you think Boris Johnson\u2019s hair is bad in real life, wait until you see the floppy monstrosity they\u2019ve put on his puppet. Similar care and attention to detail has gone into the sets, as the characters move effortlessly from Buckingham Palace to a Ukrainian war zone, to the Britain\u2019s Got Talent studio. There\u2019s an Air Rwanda flight in there somewhere too. (Oh yes, it went there).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some imaginative musical numbers top this chaotic spectacular off. We Will Rule You, Putin on the Blitz and a derogatory hype song from Stormzy to Tom Cruises \u2013 which manages to call him little man about a hundred times \u2013 are just some of the treats in store for you if you choose to see this one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re looking for an evening of laughs, about (when you think about it) some distinctly unfunny topics, this is the musical for you! Really it is worth going just to see the puppets on stage, but the talented writers and performers make it a truly enjoyable experience, though definitely not one to take the kids to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Idiots Assemble: Spitting Image the Musical<\/em> is doing a limited run at the Phoenix Theatre in London. There are only 10 days left to see it as it ends on Saturday 26 August, so get your tickets from the website<\/a> now. A warning of my own, the tickets are not cheap!<\/p>\n<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n