'In hindsight, I’m almost embarrassed by how little faith I had.'

Brooklyn Beckham incest, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor murder, a David Attenborough orgy: absolutely nothing was off the table in the first episode of Saturday Night Live UK – and it was shockingly good.

It’s been a long time since I’ve rooted for something as hard as SNL UK to succeed.

It could well have been the 2011 The X factor final when Little Mix were crowned champions.

Thing is, by that point I know Little Mix were the best British girl group since the Spice Girls, going into SNL UK I knew absolutely nothing about the comics I wanted to win.

Tina Fey’s opening monologue featured a slew of surprise A-list cameos from Nicola Coughlan, Graham Norton and Michael Cera and tapped into one of the ugliest traits of Britain – our eagerness to watch something fail – and one that was particularly paramount in the lead-up to SNL UK’s debut.

Cynics were desperate for it to flop, when at the very least, this is a completely unique opportunity to put 10 new British comedians on the map and welcome UK comedy into an entirely new arena.

In the days leading up SNL UK, its first trailer of Fey impersonating Mary Poppins appeared to confirm my worst fears: we’re in for a night of jokes by an American purely for Americans.

I braced myself for a car crash.

In hindsight, I’m almost embarrassed by how little faith I had.

Within seconds, George Fouracres tearing into a gutless Keir Starmer was all the reassurance needed: this cast of top-tier UK comics was about to defy expectations and deliver something genuinely special.

I used to think my worst nightmare would be performing stand-up to a room of people willing me to fail.

Now it’s performing live comedy to an entire nation of critics hoping for exactly that.

And yet, not for a single second did anyone on that stage seem intimidated.

It was a remarkably assured performance for such a milestone moment – particularly from a cast of relatively unknown comedians with limited live TV experience.

Many seasoned veterans would have steered a show like this straight into the iceberg.

This cast didn’t come close.

Fey’s first sketch of the night was an advert for Undérage, by Pedolay, an anti-aging cream ‘that works so well, everyone will think your husband is a nonce’.

It was an unexpectedly brilliant confirmation that SNL is going to push its comedic limits beyond anything you’ve seen in America with much greater skill and execution.

After a David Attenborough sex party sketch gave Jack Sheep the opportunity to show off his impeccable Princes Diana impression, perhaps the best bit of the night came from Hammed Animashaun as an unforgiving film critic and social media star telling two Hollywood stars their film ‘fucking sucked.

All the way through’.

Animasham may have been the biggest hit of the night, also leading a sketch about a team working around the clock to make the internet ‘as bad as it could possible be’.

With the exception of one or two misses (The Paddington Live Experience sketch was a gory mess) every single sketch was honestly as good as anything from Fast Show or Smack The Pony.

For all those comedians who insist ‘you can’t joke about anything anymore,’ SNL UK firmly proves otherwise.

Weekend Update, hosted by Ania Magliano and Paddy Young, was a defining moment.

The long-running SNL segment – two newsreaders delivering biting takes on current events – was the make-or-break test, and it passed with flying colours.

Magliano managed to crack a TV-friendly joke about the Aids crisis, referring to It’s A Sin being turned into a musical (‘as if a TV show about the Aids crisis could get any gayer’).

Young’s swipe at Dubai influencers unable to flee attacks from Iran because charted plane costs are too high was a highlight of the night.

(‘They went to Dubai to avoid income tax, now they’re avoiding incoming attacks’)
Across its 75 minutes, SNL UK was a masterclass in smart decision-making.

Fey set the tone by refusing to dominate the spotlight, instead allowing the cast to shine, while musical guest Wet Leg were the perfect accompaniment.

With such little live music on television anymore, it was so refreshing to see a band who built huge success from radio play able to show themselves off as captivating live performers.

There isn’t a single thing I would change about this debut.

I am genuinely stunned SNL UK could be this strong – that one show could platform so many brilliant new comics, bring live music back to television, and make Saturday night tele genuinely exciting again.

It’s an astonishing achievement, and one that might just mark the beginning of a new era in British comedy.

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