Saturday Night Live UK is celebrating a major awards triumph after winning every category it was nominated in at the 2026 Where to Watch TV Awards – with the show’s ensemble cast also picking up this year’s Breakthrough Talent award, decided by the team at WhereToWatch.tv.
The Sky comedy series secured victories in both Best Comedy and Entertainment Show, following a public vote in which thousands of viewers chose their favourite television programmes.
The additional Breakthrough Talent award recognises the collective impact of the Saturday Night Live UK cast, whose performances have helped establish the British version of the iconic American comedy institution as one of the most talked-about new entertainment shows.
It means the programme has collected three awards in total, making it one of the biggest success stories of this year’s event.
The 2026 Where to Watch TV Awards celebrate the programmes and performers that have captured viewers’ attention, with thousands of votes cast across a wide range of categories. While the Best Comedy and Entertainment Show winners were decided by the public, the Breakthrough Talent award is selected by WhereToWatch.tv. More winners are due to be announced throughout the week.
SNL UK wins both public-voted categories
The programme was nominated in two public-voted categories: Best Comedy and Entertainment Show – and it has now won both.
In the Entertainment Show category, it beat competition from Michael McIntyre’s Big Show, Britain’s Got Talent, The Graham Norton Show and The Masked Singer.
Its Best Comedy nomination placed it alongside Amandaland, Ann Droid, Last One Laughing UK, Ted Lasso, Small Prophets and Mock the Week.
The double win recognises the show’s ability to combine topical sketch comedy and satire with the excitement of a live variety show, featuring a different celebrity host and musical guest each week.
The cast’s additional Breakthrough Talent award makes the result even more significant, celebrating the ensemble’s contribution to the show’s success rather than singling out one individual performer.
How SNL UK became a television and social media hit
The British adaptation has brought the familiar Saturday Night Live format to a UK audience, with a new celebrity host and musical guest each week.
The show features a live opening monologue, topical sketches, live music and its own British take on Weekend Update. Its ensemble cast includes Hammed Animashaun, Ayoade Bamgboye, Larry Dean, Celeste Dring, George Fouracres, Ania Magliano, Annabel Marlow, Al Nash, Jack Shep, Emma Sidi and Paddy Young. Freddie Meredith has also joined the returning ensemble for the second series.
The first series made an immediate impression, with its launch episode attracting 949,000 viewers. Across its run, it reached more than 3.2 million people through linear television and video-on-demand, according to figures published by Sky Media.
But it is online where the programme’s reach has been particularly striking. The first series generated 206 million organic social media views, alongside 2.1 million hours watched on social platforms. It also gained 376,000 followers in its first eight weeks and became the number one trending topic on X in seven of its eight weeks on air.
One of its most successful individual sketches attracted 13.1 million views, demonstrating how the show’s comedy can travel well beyond its original television broadcast. 7 million have already watched the Cynthia Erivo Wicked sketch, above.
That online popularity has helped give SNL UK a life beyond Saturday night, with sketches and comic moments continuing to circulate across social platforms long after each episode has aired.
A second series builds on the success
Following the response to its first run, Saturday Night Live UK returned for a second series in September 2026, with the familiar mix of live comedy, celebrity hosting and musical performances.
The format gives the cast the opportunity to respond to the week’s biggest stories and cultural talking points, keeping the sketches topical and giving each episode a distinct identity.
The second series has continued to build on the programme’s profile, with individual performances and sketches reaching audiences who may not have watched the full show on television.
Its first-series figures underline the scale of that success. Alongside its television and on-demand audience, the 206 million organic social views demonstrate the programme’s ability to generate conversation and reach viewers across multiple platforms.
More 2026 TV Awards winners to be announced
The Where to Watch TV Awards celebrate programmes and performers across a wide range of categories, with viewers deciding the winners through a public vote.
Among the categories are International Drama, Acting Talent, Best TV Presenter, Best Public Competition Series, Best Lifestyle Show, Best Drama, Best Continuing Drama, Best Celebrity Challenge Show, Best Cosy Crime Drama, Best Quiz and Factual Entertainment.
With thousands of votes cast, the awards offer a snapshot of the programmes that have captured viewers’ attention over the past year.
For Saturday Night Live UK, the result is particularly impressive: two public-voted awards, plus the Breakthrough Talent prize awarded collectively to its cast by WhereToWatch.tv.
Further winners will be announced throughout the week as the remaining results are revealed.
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