The Simpsons is set to send up The Smiths in a new episode this weekend, marking the latest chapter in the show’s long history of paying loving homage to pop culture.
The episode, titled Panic On The Streets of Springfield, will reportedly see Lisa get a new imaginary friend – a depressed indie singer from 1980s Britain.
While the show has stopped short of getting Morrissey onboard to voice the character, they will instead be voiced by another prolific British star – Benedict Cumberbatch.
A promotional still from the episode sees Lisa and the quiff-sporting Morrissey lookalike standing outside the Springfields Lads Club – a clear reference to The Smiths’ iconic shot outside Salford Lads Club.
Okay, that’s it: best three “Simpsons Smiths songs” get a physical copy of this poster for their mopey bedroom wall. Use hashtag #SimpsonsSmiths pic.twitter.com/LXy9ozELIW
— Tim Long (@mrtimlong) April 15, 2021
While it marks the first time that The Smiths have been sent up in the show, Morrissey is said to have previously turned down an appearance in Season 15 episode ‘The Regina Monologues’.
The episode saw The Simpsons clan heading to Britain, and featured guest appearances from then-British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling.
Elsewhere, the cultural impact of The Simpsons was recently recognised by the dictionary once more.
Dictionary.com has acknowledged the use of the word “embiggens”, which was first used in a 1996 episode which saw Lisa left devastated after discovering Springfield’s town founder, Jebediah Springfield, was actually a murderous pirate.
Determined to educate residents on the real history of Springfield, Lisa instead ends up upsetting townsfolk who refuse to acknowledge their praised founder hated his people and was anything other than perfect.
It comes after “embiggened” was previously included in the Merriam-Webster dictionary and the online version of the Oxford English Dictionary in 2018.
Meanwhile, a recent episode of The Simpsons surprised fans by showing Homer as a teenager in the 1990s – which contradicts previous timeframes that have been put forward by the show.
