Al Murray and Matt Forde have condemned a legal challenge over their portrayal of Paddington Bear as a foul-mouthed drug addict, calling it an attack on comedy and freedom of expression. StudioCanal, the production company behind the recent Paddington films, is taking high court action against the team behind Spitting Image over the character's reimagining as co-host of a satirical podcast, The Rest is Bulls*!t.
In a Radio Times interview, Murray said he was baffled by the lawsuit. “We’re baffled by that, to be honest. If we were going to expect anything, it would be a hard stare from Paddington. There obviously has been a drift towards people who want to shut other people’s jokes up, and it’s weird, it seems like an attack on comedy, really.”
Forde linked the case to broader pressures on free speech, pointing to the recent suspension of US comedian Jimmy Kimmel. “It’s terrifying that pressure can come from all sorts of different places,” he said. “I think the risk is that these kinds of authoritarian instincts exist on left and right. Comedy is an easy first target because people don’t like being laughed at, but it’s not comedy that they have an issue with. It’s the freedom of speech.”
The online show is produced by Avalon, the makers of Spitting Image, and runs on YouTube. It features Paddington and Prince Harry as hosts, parodying the stable of podcasts produced by Gary Lineker’s company, Goalhanger. In a new YouTube video responding to the lawsuit, a dishevelled Paddington is again seen snorting cocaine and using StudioCanal’s legal letter as toilet paper.
The high court complaint cites copyright and design rights concerns. StudioCanal declined to comment.
