Saturday Night Live had visitors from across the pond last week as its UK counterpart gears up for production.
Several members of the creative team behind SNL UK were at 30 Rock, shadowing the show as it produced its latest episode, hosted by Nikki Glaser.
The visit came as SNL UK confirmed several key hires for the new program, naming Liz Clare the show’s director and Daran Jonno Johnson its head writer. Earlier this year, former Late Late Show with James Corden executive producer James Longman was hired as SNL UK’s EP, tasking him with running the show day to day. (Lorne Michaels will retain an executive producer title.)
The UK team’s visit underscores the effort the creatives are taking to make sure the latest international adaptation of SNL gets things right. While Saturday Night Live has been staged in 13 other countries over the years to varying degrees of success, SNL UK is both the highest-profile and the only English-language adaptation of the show to date.
Michaels and other members of the US Saturday Night Live team visited SNL UK in London this past summer.
“The American team have come over to give structural advice, but they’re very mindful this has to be a very British thing,” Sky’s Executive Director of Unscripted Originals, Phil Edgar-Jones, told Broadcast earlier this year. “So the team making it are all great people with British comedy chops.”
Jones also emphasized the importance of staying true to the original SNL, explaining that the goal was to capture the “chaos” and “noise” of the American show for UK audiences. (That chaos could only be increased by the fact that, as we’ve reported, SNL UK will be able to swear.)
Seth Meyers was also on hand for the SNL UK team’s visit. He recounted their first impression of the SNL offices on his Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast, noting that the team likened the vibe to being in college.
In May, SNL UK was picked up for an initial six-episode run. The show is expected to premiere in 2026 on Sky Max and the streaming service Now.
