You know what they say. You have your whole life to write your first album and only six months to write your second. The dreaded “sophomore slump,” they call it. The idea that an artist can falter under the pressure to repeat the success of their debut, leading to an ultimately disappointing return. After last week’s season opener, it’d be reasonable to worry that SNL UK was about to suffer such a fate, but this week proves there is nothing to worry about.
Taking the reins for the week is Jamie Demetriou, who opens up the show by falling down the stairs of the SNL UK Stage before faking a concussion and delivering one of the most baffling monologues in Saturday Night Live history, all while getting a tonne of laughs. Rarely can a guest host pull off such an excellent start to the show while introducing the audience to their specific brand of humour so well, but Demetriou makes it look easy.
The Stath Lets Flats (2018) star’s typical brand of absurdist humour doesn’t stop there, but pervades over the rest of the evening. The first sketch after the monologue is a real head-scratcher of a song about riding Lime bikes over London. Fit with a 90s-inspired, green-screen-infused music video, the sketch feels as though it should be too niche for its own good but, somehow, it pulls it off.
The next few segments of the episode feature Fleabag’s own Bus Rodent as an extra on the set of The Odyssey (2026) who keeps making too much noise – including sexual moaning, which he says is “friendly” – and as a game show host where the contestant must re-enact the dance he is imagining in his head. There’s also a pre-recorded sketch in the form of a reality TV show in which Emma Sidi hunts down her ex-boyfriends and asks them to explain themselves. All three are just as strange as each other, offering up plenty of laughs and a couple of highlights.
One of the best sketches of the night, however, comes from ‘Your Friendly Local CEX.’ Set in the UK’s favourite second-hand media retailer, the sketch follows Emma Sidi as she brings in her children’s Wii, hoping to trade it in for cash. The next four minutes feature an array of awkward staff members who, despite the simple request, simply cannot help the customer. It’s a fairly basic set-up, but one which allows the cast members to go wild with it, and none of them disappoint.
Weekend Update, as always, is one of the best segments of either version of SNL, and this week is no different. With their typically brutal and witty lines, Paddy Young & Ania Magliano discussed the Macklemore/Ed Sheeran issue, delivering excellent lines like “This crisis is the worst thing that has happened to Ed Sheeran fans since their head injury.” For one of the funniest sights of the night, though, look no farther than Jamie Demetriou & Al Roberts reprising their Stath Lets Flats characters at the Weekend Update desk while Magliano tries to contain her laughter..
As far as sketch of the night goes, ‘The Woman of Darkness’ takes the cake. The segment shows Emma Sidi as a Woman in Black-type figure as Jamie Demetriou tries to woo her. Easily one of SNL UK’s best performers, Sidi matches Demetriou every step of the way, and together the duo create something especially hilarious.
The night does end on a particularly strange note. A sketch replicating the 2011 X-Factor final group performance, with one performer wearing a particularly large wig. Unlike the Lime Bike song, this sketch feels a little too niche to ever get over with the crowd. That said, the entire SNL UK cast coming together for such a performance is certainly miraculous to see and more than gives the audience something to cheer for.
Sketch of the Week: The Woman of Darkness
Performer of the Week: Jamie Demetriou
SNL UK airs weekly on Sky/NOW.
