Saturday Night Live UK Premieres with Mixed Critical Reception
The inaugural episode of Saturday Night Live UK has aired, marking the British adaptation of the iconic American sketch show 50 years after its original debut. The reception from critics was generally positive, though some expressed disappointment with the show's comedic impact.
Initial concerns about how the format would resonate with a UK audience were somewhat alleviated by the announcement of a cast composed primarily of emerging talent rather than established stars.
Mirroring the American version, each episode features a guest host; the British premiere was hosted by Tina Fey, renowned for her tenure as a cast member on the US SNL.
The episode also included surprise appearances by notable figures such as Nicola Coughlan and Graham Norton.
The 75-minute premiere, broadcast on Sky One, featured sketches themed around Paddington, Hamnet, and Sir David Attenborough, eliciting a range of responses from viewers and critics alike.
's Lucy Mangan offered a cautiously optimistic review, stating:
"It could have been a lot worse."
She awarded the show three stars, noting that it "did work" overall, with some "proper jokes for grown-ups," particularly in the Weekend Update segment, which satirized current news events.
Mangan emphasized the need for the cast and audience to develop "a rhythm and rapport with the show," adding that it was "refreshing to see an ambition / piece of madness... even being attempted."
The debut episode, produced under the supervision of SNL creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels, adhered closely to the US format: an opening monologue by the guest host, two pre-recorded sketches, four live sketches, and two musical performances by Wet Leg.
Variety's Scott Bryan highlighted the rarity of British sketch comedy on television and acknowledged the significant investment in the production.
He remarked that the show retained the core elements of the US original while allowing British sensibilities to shape its tone, describing it as "darker and more surreal than its US counterpart."
Bryan praised cast member Jack Shep's impression of Princess Diana within a sketch featuring Sir David Attenborough reviving late British icons for a dinner party, though he noted that the sketch itself "didn't land."
He identified the more British and surreal sketches as the show's strongest points, including impressions of Cilla Black and a sketch where William Shakespeare returns to Stratford-on-Avon on a stolen scooter wearing short shorts.
The show opened with a traditional "cold open" political sketch before the credits, featuring George Fouracres portraying a bumbling Sir Keir Starmer. In this sketch, deputy Prime Minister David Lammy, played by Hammed Animashaun, and a Gen Z adviser coached Starmer on how to communicate with then-US President Donald Trump.
Tina Fey's monologue also served to introduce the show to viewers unfamiliar with the US version.
During the monologue, Derry Girls star Nicola Coughlan made a surprise appearance from the audience, astutely commenting that British people "tend to root for the failure of others." Cameos by Bridgerton co-star Rege-Jean Page and Canadian actor Michael Cera further enriched the episode.
Ed Power of the Daily Telegraph described the show as "shockingly competent," awarding it four stars despite criticizing the Sir Keir sketch as having "a whiff of hastily written student sketch" and acknowledging that much of the content was "hit or miss."
Power particularly enjoyed the Weekend Update segment, praising news anchors Ania Magliano and Paddy Young for being "full of charm, as they side-eyed the camera and struggled to keep straight faces."
In the Financial Times, Rebecca Nicholson observed that SNL UK is "clearly trying to find its own voice," highlighting the "close to the bone" Weekend Update and a "witty and dark" cosmetics advertisement parody, which humorously suggested the product made women appear too young.
Nicholson noted that the final two sketches were "the weirdest and most fun," featuring Emma Sidi's character Jugs running a bra-fitting service and Fouracres performing a "screamed song about Irish granddads."
She concluded:
"This could be a proper home for live comedy, fresh new comics, and punchlines with surprisingly sharp teeth."
Nick Hilton of the Independent gave the show three stars, remarking that it "has to work as a collection of clips" to succeed in an era where linear television is declining.
He acknowledged a "handful of hits," including a Paddington immersive experience featuring a very real, very hungry bear, while noting that some sketches fell flat but commended the show's willingness to risk offending its audience.
Charlotte Ivers of The Times found that despite the spoof skincare ad eliciting a smile, "the spark is not there yet."
She praised a physical comedy bit involving a spokesman from the helium industry but criticized the show's overall "tone and style."
Ivers appreciated the show's edginess but stated that "in many cases the jokes don't live up to the risk," comparing one joke about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to those "from four-year-olds who are learning how comedy works."
Deadline's Baz Bamigboye offered a harsher critique, labeling the show as "beyond seriously unfunny" and lamenting that he did not laugh once.
He described the sketches as "stale, pale sketches that seemed to have been exhumed from some old codger's book of gags" and questioned the 22:00 time slot, suggesting "the cool cats aren't in front of their television sets" at that hour.
However, Bamigboye acknowledged that much of SNL's success in the US derives from viral clips rather than live viewership.
The debut episode attracted 226,000 viewers, representing a 3.2% audience share according to overnight figures from BARB. On YouTube, a clip of Tina Fey's monologue had amassed over 700,000 views by Sunday afternoon.
The eight-part series airs weekly on Sky and is recorded live in front of a studio audience, as the title indicates.
Next week's episode will be hosted by actor Jamie Dornan, with Brit Award-winning band Wolf Alice providing musical performances.
While the premiere benefitted from weeks of preparation, the subsequent episode will be produced within seven days, presenting a significant challenge for the cast and writers.
