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Spitting Image hits back over filmmakers' lawsuit

The Observer

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October 12, 2025

The maker of Spitting Image, the satirical puppet show, has responded to a lawsuit over its depiction of Paddington Bear as a Peruvian-accented, cocaine-snorting podcast host with a new YouTube sketch.

- Rachael Healy

In it, Paddington uses a legal letter as toilet paper while his imagined co-host Prince Harry reminds viewers to “like and subscribe before Paddington gets cancelled”.

StudioCanal, producer of the Paddington films, and the estate of creator Michael Bond, are suing Avalon, the company behind Spitting Image, citing copyright and design concerns.

The films have grossed more than $750m worldwide and have catapulted Paddington from children's character to national mascot.

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