Celebrating Earth Day with David Attenborough | Spitting Image

To celebrate Earth Day we look back on David Attenborough's best moments from the original Spitting Image.

With the world getting smaller and more turbulent, the time couldn’t be more appropriate for an iconic British satirical take on global events. Produced by Avalon (Taskmaster, The Russell Howard Hour, Catastrophe, Breeders, Last Week Tonight With John Oliver) throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, over 100 puppets have already been developed by socially distanced teams of artists ready for launch, including: Adele, Angela Merkel, Baby Yoda, Barack Obama, Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, Boris Johnson, Boris Baby, The Johnson Dog, Brad Pitt, Camilla Duchess of Cornwall, Chrissy Teigen, Covid-19, Cristiano Ronaldo, Dominic Cummings, Dominic Raab, Donald Trump, Dwayne Johnson, Ed Sheeran, Elon Musk, Elton John, Emmanuel Macron, Greta Thunberg, Grimes, Gwyneth Paltrow, Harry Styles, Idris Elba, Ivanka Trump, Jacinda Ardern, James Corden, Jeff Bezos, Joe Biden, Jürgen Klopp, Kanye West, Keir Starmer, Kim Kardashian, Lewis Hamilton, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Hancock, Meghan Duchess of Sussex, Melania Trump, Michael Gove, Michelle Obama, Narendra Modi, Oprah Winfrey, Piers Morgan, The Pope, Prince Andrew, Prince Charles, Prince Harry, Prince William, Priti Patel, The Queen, Richard Branson, Rishi Sunak, RuPaul, Taylor Swift, Tiger Woods, Tyson Fury, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, all falling under the show’s legendary gaze.

A next generation of satirical writers and voice artists are working with established talent to drive a new wave of ‘public service satire’. Writers on the show include: Al Murray, Bert Tyler-Moore & George Jeffrie (The Windsors), Bill Odenkirk (The Simpsons), Brona C. Titley (The Tracey Ullman Show), David X. Cohen (The Simpsons), Gemma Arrowsmith (The Tracey Ullman Show), Jason Hazeley & Nico Tatarowicz (Charlie Brooker’s Screenwipe/Murder in Successville), Karl Minns (Russell Howard’s Good News), Keisha Zollar (Astronomy Club), Laura Major (Famalam), Matt Forde, Patric Verrone (The Simpsons), Phil Wang, Richard Herring, Sophie Duker (Frankie Boyle’s New World Order) and Travis Jay (Dave Chapelle and Friends) with many more joining the growing team. Voice artists include: Billy West (Futurama), Debra Stephenson (The Impressions Show), Debra Wilson (Family Guy), Guz Khan (Man Like Mobeen), Indira Varma (Game of Thrones), Jess Robinson (The Imitation Game), John DiMaggio (Futurama), Lewis MacLeod (Dead Ringers), Lobo Chan (Killing Eve), Luke Kempner (The Imitation Game), Matt Forde (Unspun) and Phil LaMarr (Pulp Fiction), with many more joining as the puppet cast grows.

[stevenash]

People don’t realize this was his voice like 40 years ago. Everyone thinking he sounded like he does now his entire life.

[buzzinga]

Sir David is the only character that made it from the original series, 40 years into the 2020 remake. Incredible. Such a long and full life

[iandeeley]

Sir David Attenborough at his ABSOLUTE BEST!

[evo]

I'm from the USA and didn't realize how soft spoken he was in the 80s vs now where he has more bass in his voice. Was thinking the voice was way off but then I looked up his 70s and 80s stuff.

[el]

The voice of Antony is one of the best things ever on Spitting Image.

[zeeej]

This show is a blessing. What a breath of fresh air!
So incredibly silly!

[jwwprod]

The Wildebeest's reaction at 9:43 - 9:53 is priceless! LMAO!

[BassJohn]

9:08 lol The guy on the left frantically going through the script in a panic.. It's the subtle touches... awesome work by you all again ;)

[ComicalRealm]

Ah the good old days, back when David was young and wild

[bonzomcdrumcat]

3:23 the ovary of a weasel, nutrient for the lunar module bird here seen cleaning its tweezers with octopus spittle, as talking leg warmer swims by with wiggling podules. Surely one of nature's most magical creatures. The flying angel fish. Its many coloured spores serve a double function; providing camouflage from predators, and a handy place to keep loose change

[pietroseven]

Oh no sir David, my hero from childhood. Too much ;)

[bjnz]

Thought this was part of the new show too 😂

[andreweden]

It's so great to see someone continuing in the tradition of DC Follies!😂😁

[arturs]

The"Stupid animal"(8:35) appears with few similar 1s in the Genesis video clip"Land of Confusion"

[zerotoleranceforsataniceli]

I think RA voice is very good.
I've not heard him for a few years, but he always had a soft, gentle voice.

[angelabennett]

I love spitting image, especially the political ones, so funny!!!!

[Teuchter-ahoy]

So much better than the recent effort from Spitting Image. I miss the original ones.

[BrotherInArms]

Ok, who else would love to own one of those Lion puppets !

[alzeNL]

also featuring the polar bear from Rotterdam zoo interspliced with footage to make it look it was shot in the wild

[dnakatomiuk]

I just wish the BBC would show all his old black and white footage. But he did sound like this back then