The original sketch was performed by Peter Sellers as narrator, with others, such as Benny Hill and Michael Bentine, contributing other voices.
[8] It has been invoked in the House of Lords; by Baroness Garden of Frognal in regards to tourism spending in 2011 and by Baron Greaves in a parliamentary debate regarding HS2 in 2020.
[9] The sketch was expanded in 1979 to form the script of a short (21-minute) color film of the same name directed by Micky Dolenz and starring Danny Schiller and Judy Gridley as American tourists and Robbie Coltrane in several roles, including those originally voiced by Sellers.
[10][11] In 1990, the Triangle Action Group proposed the erection of a statue of Sellers in the centre of Balham due to the sketch's impact on its tourist trade.
Upon hearing of this, the writers Frank Muir and Denis Norden penned a letter published in the Evening Standard, stating "for a trifling sum, we would be prepared to go along to the new shopping centre and stand there personally".