‘SNL UK’ is running circles around ‘SNL’ right now

A few episodes into its new season and SNL is on a hot streak. Sketches are weird. Weekend Update is sharp. And the show feels alive.

Oh wait. Sorry, I left the “UK” part off SNL UK.

There are two English-language versions of SNL in existence right now. There’s SNL, the show created by Lorne Michaels in 1975. And there’s SNL UK, the British version of the series launched last year.

And SNL UK is running circles around SNL right now.

The flagship SNL franchise is in a rough place right now. Over the course of its first three episodes, the show is missing any kind of spark. There’s yet to be a standout sketch. The show continues to send James Austin Johnson’s Donald Trump out during the cold opens despite the world being tired of seeing any version of Trump on their TVs. Weekend Update is toothless.

I didn’t watch much of SNL UK when it began last year, but I’ve caught enough sketches — especially from its version of Weekend Update — to pitch the idea that the American version should start taking notes from its British counterpart.

After Michaels hinted that major changes were coming to SNL after the show’s milestone 50th season, we all started speculating that Colin Jost and Michael Che’s time behind the Update desk had come to an end.

When it turned out that Jost and Che would be back as co-anchors, possibly forever, it made sense. As The Hard Pass founder Mike Ryan pointed out on his Not Ready for Primetime podcast, sticking with Jost and Che made sense as we were entering a new Trump presidency. They would be able to get away with jokes that rookie Update anchors wouldn’t have the veteran status to pull off.

Welp, it turns out that not only are Jost and Che seemingly not interested in causing waves with their Update jokes, SNL UK proved that you can hire two rookie Update anchors in Ania Magliano and Paddy Young, let them make the sharpest jokes possible, and they’ll be just fine.

Magliano even took aim at Shane Gillis after he said “fucking” during a live sketch. “Oh, Shane, you’re not allowed to say that, you stupid fucking cunt,” Magliano said. The rules about swearing are different on British television, something that Johnson also discovered last weekend when he brought his Trump to SNL UK’s cold open.

SNL UK’s Weekend Update even has its own cast of weirdos. There’s Jack Shep’s Scrimpch.

There’s George Fouracres’s portrayal of David Attenborough. Not only did this version of Attenborough engage in an epic wrestling match with a rhino ...

... but he also appeared next to Shep’s scene-stealing take on Princess Diana.

While Chloe Fineman offered a feeble impression of Melania Trump after the First Lady shockingly called a press conference to announce that she had nothing to do with Jeffrey Epstein, SNL UK’s Emma Sidi crushed the portrayal.

The British version of SNL seems to understand that there’s comedy to be found in turning these political figures into characters instead of just having cast members (or, ugh, celebrities in cameo roles) recite things that the real people said behind a podium or desk.

SNL UK also has its fair share of super weird sketches. I wish the Doctor Who sketch from Aimee Lou Wood’s episode was online, but Wood and Fouracres as Princess Peach and Mario was great.

Unlike NBC with SNL, Sky doesn’t post every sketch from SNL UK (or even full installments of Weekend Update) on YouTube, so you’re at the mercy of what they post if you aren’t watching complete episodes on Peacock.

Thankfully “The Man Who Names Paint” was added to SNL UK’s YouTube page.

One of my favorite parts about being an American watching SNL UK is that I have very little background or cultural context for sketches like “Mr Blobby: Operation Grumthorpe.”

Check out the complete list of SNL Season 52 hosts, musical guests and reviews.

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