“Saturday Night Live U.K.” has seen a bit of a drop in viewership after its first two episodes. The most recent show, featuring a sketch about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and the Epstein scandal, attracted 205,000 viewers. This is a decline from the premiere, which had 226,000 viewers.
In its timeslot on Sky One, the show was up against tough competition. For example, the BBC’s news program pulled in an impressive 1.6 million viewers, capturing over 20% of the audience share. Other shows, like “The Jonathan Ross Show” and “Britain’s Got Talent,” also performed well, with 1.1 million and 3.2 million viewers, respectively.
The ratings reveal an interesting trend. Though live viewership is down, the show’s content is gaining traction online. For instance, the Prince Andrew sketch amassed 829,000 views on YouTube within just 14 hours. In contrast, a sketch featuring Jamie Dornan and cast member Annabel Marlow had about 206,000 views in the same timeframe.
“SNL U.K.” is produced by the legendary Lorne Michaels, the mind behind the original “Saturday Night Live.” Its launch aimed to bring a fresh twist to the beloved franchise, featuring celebrities like Michael Cera and Regé-Jean Page in its debut episode.
Interestingly, these dips in viewership aren’t uncommon in television, especially for new shows. Data from the last few years shows that many new series struggle to attract and maintain an audience. According to a 2022 report by Nielsen, many shows lose about 50% of their viewers after the first episode. Engaging content on platforms like YouTube can sometimes compensate for lower live ratings.
Next week’s episode will be hosted by Riz Ahmed with musical guest Kasabian, and it’ll be interesting to see how it performs. Given the growing viewership on social media, perhaps “SNL U.K.” can turn things around.
For further insights, check out BARB’s official figures here.
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Jamie Dornan,SNL UK
