‘SNL UK’ Has Found a Way To Make ‘Saturday Night Live’s Biggest Problem Work
Saturday Night Live UK’s short turnaround for its opening sketches creates pressure, but also lets the writers respond to news while it is still fresh. At an Edinburgh TV Festival masterclass, co-head writer Jonno Johnson and cast member Emma Sidi described how the programme uses that immediacy to make topical comedy feel timely and earn strong audience reactions.
A small group of writers usually starts the cold open on Thursday evening; cue cards are due three hours before Friday’s 8 pm blocking, leaving little time for rewrites or rehearsal. Recent subjects have included Prince William’s appearance on The Graham Norton Show and a Melania Trump sketch following a press conference about her links to Jeffrey Epstein. Sidi said she was assigned the role the day before broadcast, while producer James Longman checked with the US SNL team, who were also preparing a Melania sketch.
In short
- SNL UK writes cold opens against a tight two-day deadline.
- Fresh news can become material before it loses relevance.
- A Melania sketch was cast and coordinated the day before broadcast.
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The case for
The compressed schedule can make the opening sketches feel unusually current, letting the programme respond while a story is still part of the public conversation. Supporters may see the pressure as a creative advantage: quick decisions can preserve a joke’s immediacy and give audiences the pleasure of recognising events they have just seen.
The case against
The same deadline leaves little time to revise material, rehearse, or weigh how a rapidly developing story should be treated. Critics may argue that topical immediacy is not worth the risk of less polished comedy or jokes that miss important context, especially when performers and writers have only hours to prepare.
Explained simply
Saturday Night Live UK is a British version of a long-running American live comedy programme. It features sketches, a guest host and musical performances, with some sketches drawing on current events and public figures.
The opening sketch, known as the cold open, often comments on the week’s news. Because it is written and rehearsed close to broadcast, the team has little time to make changes, but can respond to events while audiences still have them in mind.
The UK programme also has links with the US show, whose writers may be working on similar subjects. That makes coordination relevant when both versions address the same public figure or story.