Night Fever: SNL UK and Scotland's comedy scene

The start of 2026 has been pretty solid for new comedy – Mackenzie Crook’s captivating Small Prophets, a new series of Last One Laughing, the final season of Hacks – but that’s all been steamrollered lately by SNL UK.

Before it started, SNL UK had done such a number on press and socials, something screamed either ‘this will be a hot pile of crapola’ OR ‘it’ll be brilliant and you won’t want to miss it.’ Luckily, it’s been pretty excellent, largely thanks to its very talented cast, writing team, and incredibly game guest hosts.

It’s also been uniquely British. Sending up national treasures and cultural institutions (who knew Big Davey Attenborough could rival Stone Cold Steve Austin?), it’s doubled down on smartly written, savagely barbed comedy with a cast of proper UK comedy stars. There’s also been a healthy dose of British surrealism too – where else would you see a sketch about pussy-popping end by the characters turning into mysterious orbs?

It spawned some massive viral hits from the get-go. I could have died happy from breakout star George Fouracres’ ‘What Kind of Irish is your Granddad'*, and Jack Shep’s wry Diana gaze. Also the British Pork advert fever dream and the Mr Blobby mining horror, both of which would have never seen the light of day on NBC.

Ania Magliano and Paddy Young’s Weekend Update has been a highlight of every episode too, with rapid-fire savagery which wouldn’t fly Stateside. It’s also firmly put Charlie Skelton, segment head, in pole position as comedy writer of the moment.

But something no one seems to be talking about is how much the success of the show owes to Scotland.

Take Larry Dean. Announced in February as one of the main cast, the Glaswegian stand-up has proved himself a pretty versatile sketch actor on the show. He got some killer impressions in (Charles, Daniel Day Lewis, Dobby) while also being one of the most naturalistic actors on the team.

Celeste Dring, Hammed Amimashaun, Annabel Marlow, Jack Shep, Larry Dean, Ayoade Bamgboye, Al Nash, George Fouracres, Emma Sidi, Paddy Young & Ania Magliano. Source: Sky UK.

In the writer’s room, there’s Edinburgh’s own Ayo Adenekan. Having started stand-up in the last few years, and only debuted at Fringe thanks to Brass Tacks’ Red Bull partnership, he’s had quite the 12 months. The brain behind the Doctor Who sketch featuring Hammed Animashaun and Aimee Lou Wood, you’ll have also caught glimpses of him on screen (like as one of the Speed Awareness Course attendees with Hannah Waddingham’s deranged instructor).

Three more of the writers’ team have been nurtured by Scotland. Hari Kanth, Lorna Rose Treen and Humphrey Ker are all Edinburgh University alumni, with Ker and Treen being big in Bedlam Theatre, while Kanth was once the President of the University’s Comedy Society (and much less important credits like being a BBC New Comedy Award finalist and writing for Horrible Science). Ker won Edinburgh Best Newcomer in 2011 and now spends much of his time in the States (he’s been in Always Sunny, American Auto and Mythic Quest) when he’s not being an exec for Wrexham Football Club with Ryan Reynolds. And Treen’s been grafting away as a character comic and actor for a good few years (with a Dave’s Joke of the Fringe Award, a clutch of Chortle Awards, and Radio 4 sitcom Time of the Week under her belt).

And obviously, we can’t not mention the Edinburgh Fringe, where a good deal of the team were scouted. All of the core cast have appeared at the Festival, as have much of the writing team. They’re a highly decorated bunch: between them there’s two Best Newcomer winners, four Best Newcomer nominees and six Best Show nominees (and if we’re really wringing it out, Performance Director Tom Parry has three noms, Max & Ivan – thrown through a table by David Attenborough – have one, as does guest host Jack Whitehall). But if that’s not enough, you can see a heap of them at this year’s festival.

And sure, although it often feels like the whole of London moves to the Scottish capital for August, it’s easy to forget that the whole shebang simply wouldn’t happen without Scottish people – from the venue staff to journalists to the flyerers and the punters who make the Fringe what it is. 

SNL UK, you owe Scotland a lot. We’ll wait for our collective cheque in the post by next season, thanks. Can’t wait to see Scrimpch there.

*Mine was a fella from Co. Mayo.

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Ayo Adenekan: Work In Progress, Monkey Barrel, Edinburgh 20 Jun, 8pm, £7
Ania Magliano: Peach Fuzz, The Stand Comedy Club, Glasgow, 10 Jul, The Stand Comedy Club, Edinburgh, 11 Jul, 4pm, £20
Adenekan and Magliano will also be at Fringe alongside Paddy Young, Chris Cantrill, Ayoade Bamgboye, Flo & Joan’s One Man Musical (previously starred George Fouracres), Larry Dean, Celya AB, Omar Badawy, Lorna Rose Treen and Bella Hull
SNL UK will return in Sep