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    Live from London, it’s Saturday night! “SNL” taking sketch comedy across the pond

    By SHOOTNo Comments516 Views
    Lorne Michaels attends the SNL50: The Homecoming Concert at Radio City Music Hall on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

    By Brian Melley

    LONDON (AP) --

    Live from London, it’s Saturday night!

    Wait, London? You heard that correctly. “Saturday Night Live” announced Thursday that it plans to launch a British version of the U.S. sketch comedy show that is celebrating its 50th anniversary across the pond.

    The U.K. version, produced with Sky Studios, will have a British cast of comedians — to be announced later — and follow the same format with famous guest hosts and star musical acts.

    “SNL” creator Lorne Michaels will be the executive producer of “Saturday Night Live UK,” while staying in the same role with the show on NBC in New York.

    “For over 50 years ‘Saturday Night Live’ has held a unique position in TV and in our collective culture, reflecting and creating the global conversation, all under the masterful comedic guidance of Lorne Michaels,” said Cecile Frot-Coutaz, chief executive of Sky Studios. “We are thrilled to be partnering with Lorne and the ‘SNL’ team to bring an all-British version of the show to UK audiences next year — all live from London on Saturday night.”

    The long-established show regularly roasts the powerful. U.S. President Donald Trump and tech titan Elon Musk have been skewered lately, and both have previously hosted the 90-minute show.

    “SNL” airs live at 11:30 p.m. Eastern time from a studio at Rockefeller Plaza and typically opens with a sketch that wraps as the actors turn to the camera, break character and announce, “Live from New York, it’s Saturday night!”

    Its mix of political satire, off-beat skits, fake commercials, comic music videos and its regular “Weekend Update” spoof on the news has launched the careers of many comedians and actors.

    Its roster of famous cast members include the late John Belushi, Bill Murray, Eddie Murphy, Mike Myers, Tina Fey, Will Ferrell, Kristen Wiig, Kenan Thompson and Kate McKinnon.

    Efforts to launch “SNL” in other countries, such as France, Japan and Italy, have typically been short-lived, though a version of the show remains on the air in South Korea.

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    Tags:Lorne MichaelsSaturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live UKSky Studios



    William Dafoe, Jonathan Bailey and Peter Dinklage join the voice cast for Starburn Industries’ “Lincoln in the Bardo”

    Friday, August 28, 2026
    Peter Dinklage (photo by Whitney Matewe)

    Actors Willem Dafoe, Jonathan Bailey and Peter Dinklage have joined the voice cast of Starburns Industries’ “Lincoln in the Bardo,” based on acclaimed author George Saunders’ New York Times bestseller and 2017 Booker Prize-winner.  Saunders adapted the screenplay, with Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Duke Johnson directing.  It was announced earlier that Tom Hanks stars as the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, in the live action portion of the film.  CAA Media Finance and WME Independent are handling sales at the upcoming TIFF: The Market.

    The film employs a unique blend of stop-motion animation and live action to explore one of the most intimate moments of Lincoln’s life, centering on his relationship with his recently deceased eleven-year-old son.  Blending history and imagination, the story unfolds through an unforgettable ensemble of characters – living and dead, historical and invented – to explore themes of love, empathy, and the human capacity for connection in the face of unimaginable grief.

    Reverend Everly Thomas – the ghost of a minister who died believing he would go to heaven, but, to his dismay, found out otherwise – is voiced by Dafoe.  Bailey is voicing Roger Bevins, the ghost of a young gay man who took his own life over a failed love affair and instantly regretted it.  Dinklage is voicing Hans Vollman, a ghost obsessed with his dream of being reunited with his much-younger wife.

    Four-time Academy Award nominee Dafoe’s credits include animated films “Finding Nemo,” “Fantastic Mr. Fox” and “The Boy and the Heron,” as well as “At Eternity’s Gate,” “The Florida Project,” “Shadow of the Vampire” and seminal Vietnam movie... Read More

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