Thin films of metallic iridium were grown by thermal metal organic chemical vapour deposition in a horizontal hot-wall reactor. The new solid compound Ir(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-3,5-heptadione)(1,5-cyclooctadiene) was used as the iridium source. Evaporation rate experiments showed a rather poor volatility of this compound compared with Ir(acetylacetone)(1,5-cyclooctadiene). However, high growth rates of 0.25 mum h-1 could be realized at substrate temperatures of 350-degrees-C using a graphite susceptor coated with iridium and isopropanol as a component of the reaction gas. The films were pure metallic, as shown by emission spectroscopy for chemical analysis, and had typical sheet resistances of 50 muOMEGA square-1.