Posted in: BBC, Sky One, TV | Tagged: doctor who, SNL UK

Doctor Who Showrunner Loving "Confident and Strong and Mad" SNL UK

SNL UK has a big fan in Doctor Who Showrunner Russell T. Davies, who sang the "confident and strong and mad" show's praises on social media.

First off, give Saturday Night Live UK cast members Hammed Animashaun, Ayoade Bamgboye, Larry Dean, Celeste Dring, George Fouracres, Ania Magliano, Annabel Marlow, Al Nash, Jack Shep, Emma Sidi, and Paddy Young, as well as SNL UK host Tina Fey and musical guest Wet Leg for a strong start to what will hopefully be a long run for the newest addition to the SNL family. Based on the reactions overnight, the opening show not only impressed a whole lot of folks but also saw some folks who were pooping on the idea of an "SNL UK" before it aired forced to eat their words. One person who wasted little time going public with his love for how SNL UK kicked things off was Doctor Who Showrunner Russell T. Davies, who praised the show for being "confident and strong and mad."

"Saturday Night Live UK. I loved this! Properly! I laughed a LOT, it was so confident and strong and mad," Davies shared on Instagram, including an image of the SNL UK cast. "Paddington Bear with a real bear. Shakespeare becoming a Londoner. Honest film reviews, 'Lena, you first.' Graham Norton blessing the whole show. The shy baby made me hoot. An It's A Sin joke! Tina Fey's Agatha Christie. A Princess Di for the ages, she's still making me laugh today. And that 45 Seconds teetered on the brink of a much stranger, darker show. A big success in my book, I'm in!

SNL UK Cold Open: PM Starmer Tries Breaking Bad Iran News to Trump

Sky and NOW's debut episode of SNL U.K. kept the "Saturday Night Live" Cold Open tradition going, taking on U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer (George Fouracres) as he attempted to work through his nerves enough to tell U.S. President Donald Trump that England wouldn't be joining the U.S. in its war with Iran. After worrying to his advisor (Hammed Animashaun) that Trump might get mad and yell at him, Starmer is advised to just be himself: "Yourself is who everyone likes" (which got a nice reaction from the audience). From there, Starmer opens up to his advisor in a way that screams "toxic and unhealthy relationship," with Starmer noting at one point, "I just want to keep him happy. You don't understand him like I do. I can change him!" Thankfully, Starmer's Gen Z advisor (Jack Shep) enters the scene, equipped to help out the prime minister because, "I'm an expert in messy drama, I've been in three throuples, and I'm currently gay." The solution? Leave a voice message for Trump!

"Hi, Donald. I'm afraid I can't go to war with you, but that doesn't mean that we can't be chums. America and Britain have a long, proud tradition of cooperation, and nothing can take that away. Remember the good times. Remember D-Day? Remember Live Aid? Remember Iraq? The first week and none of the rest. Remember Helen Baxterdale on 'Friends'? Remember Hugh Laurie on 'Friends'? Remember the episode of 'Friends' where they all came to London?" Fouracres' Starmer points out. "But most importantly, remember the one where Ross and Rachel were on a break? I think that's perhaps what we need. Not forever, just until you've got all this war out of your system. We want different things. I know how badly you want to start World War III, and that's great. You absolutely do that but we can't be part of it. You can, however, use the naval bases whenever you want."

After being congratulated by his advisor for doing "the bare minimum, and that's all people expect from you," Fouracres offers a fun knife twist on SNL UK ("It just goes to show, while we may not agree with everything America does, we can still be civil and embrace their wonderful, unproblematic culture"). From there, we get the trio uttering what will hopefully become iconic words: "Live from London, it's Saturday night!"

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