‘SNL UK’ Producer On The Early Criticism Of The Show

The barrage of online skepticism and discussion about SNL UK was a useful tool that the show’s producers used to shape and develop their version of the long-running series, Helen Kruger Bratt, Managing Director of Universal Television Alternative Studio, said this morning at Deadline’s Reality TV Summit in London. 

Bratt, who oversees production on the UK edition, appeared this morning at the London Summit, which is being held as part of this year’s SXSW London festival, alongside Natalka Znak (Remarkable Entertainment, Initial, Znak TV),  David Brindley (Twofour), Tim Harcourt (Studio Lambert), and Ben Crompton (Fremantle). 

“It was about a five-year labor of love,” Kruger Bratt said when quizzed on the lengthy journey that brought SNL to the United Kingdom. Most of that work, she said, predated the start of her tenure. And the final product, she explained, was helped greatly by the overarching influence of the U.S. edition. 

“What was beautiful is that it’s a legacy, so you’ve got the foundations of what it takes to make that show,” Kruger Bratt said, adding that the online criticism about the show before it ran and during the release was used by the show’s team to shape episodes. 

“What went in its favour was that it was talked about so much even before it was on air, and not necessarily in a great way, and actually, I think that played into our favour in that we were able to take on board that criticism and address them in the show,” Kruger Bratt said. “So it’s all about engaging in that conversation and not shying away from it.” 

Kruger Bratt added: “We really leaned into that.” 

Kruger Bratt continued to say that cynics about the UK edition assumed the show would be populated by the “same old faces” of the UK comedy scene when, in actuality, the producers had been “sending teams to Edinburgh and doing open auditions to bring a new generation to the comedy scene.” 

Kruger Bratt also praised Sky for its robust support of the show. 

“We were very lucky to have Sky as a partner who put the money behind it,” she said.  “It takes a lot of money to produce this show. You have to trust the process. The social and marketing campaign Sky put behind this — we were very lucky.” 

SNL UK wrapped an eight-episode run in May and was promptly renewed for a second season. The show will return in September with an extended 12 episodes. The first season has featured hosts including Aimee Lou Wood, Nicola Coughlan and Tina Fey. Ncuti Gatwa hosted the last episode. 

Elsewhere during this morning’s session, the panelists were quizzed on the general trends currently shaping the non-scripted market. Crompton described international buyers in the market right now as “risk-averse.” 

“The biggest trend from the business side is that we, as producers, need to try and remove as much of that risk as possible,” he said. “There are still massive shows being made, and really exciting shows. I don’t believe in the death of unscripted. But the audiences have just become a bit more discerning.”

Znak said the most common ways to mitigate the risk today as unscripted producers is reducing cost and working with old formats with existing fanbases. 

“It’s much easier to sell old formats than it is to sell new,” she said, “which is really tricky and not helpful for most companies who don’t have access to a format catalog.” 

Znak continued to joke that her company has some “great old shows” and she’s thought about “repackaging my own shows and pretending they’re not my shows and saying they’re from Japan to sell them.” 

“I was saying that to my development team,” she joked. “Buyers need something to go on. They need reassurance.”

The Deadline Reality TV Summit runs today at SXSW London.