SNL UK After Party 9/26/26 - S2 E3 “I’m a Big Fan of Oasis, and Not Just the Good Albums”
Host: Amelia Dimoldenberg
Musical Guest: Rachel Chinouriri
Can the host of a YouTube show involving dates while eating chicken host a finger licking good episode, or will it just be….fowl? (And for some reason no show has ever hired me as a writer).
Let’s find out in the SNL UK After Party!
Cold Open
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham (George Fouracres) returns to No. 10 North in Manchester following a UN speech in New York.
Russia, apparently “hate because we’ve got freedom and Greggs.”
The Prime Minister receives a visit from Oasis stars Noel and Liam Gallagher, who attempt to trick him into a phishing scam, as they are - in fact - Russian spies, whose songs were created in a lab in Russia. Apparently “Wonderwall” was originally “Wonderful Wall” and was about the Berlin Wall.
It’s a silly opening sketch, but gets solid laughs and at least it isn’t Trump-centric!
Monologue
Host Amelia Dimoldenberg is best known as the host of Chicken Shop Date, a YouTube show in which she interviews celebrities under the premise they are meeting for a date at a chicken restaurant.
She announced that she is ending the show because she determined the celebrities don’t actually want to date her, they are just trying to promote stuff.
She adds that a lot of the restaurants she shoots at are “basically KFC without the same quality, reputation, or star quality. Which is why I wanted to host SNL UK.”
She talks about the celebrities she’s interviewed, including a red headed puppet with a hand up it’s (censored) with someone telling him what to say. The graphic shows her speaking with Elmo, but she says “Not him, the other one,” and the picture switches to Ed Sheeran.
She says she is awkward and to not expect much from the show because just like the chicken she eats, she doesn’t have a lot of range.
Dimoldenberg’s deadpan delivery works well here, and one suspects her range exceeds that of most chickens.
Harry Kane Goes on an Adventure
Al Nash plays British soccer mega-star Harry Kane who drops a Babybel cheese in the toilet. He dives in after it, and runs into FIFA president Gianni Infantino, a pack of rats, the guy who breaks up fatbergs, and British journalist Fiona Bruce, who turns into a murderous vampire.
The remainder of the sketch has Kane fighting to recover his Babybel waxy cheese.
In the end, this is a very weird ad for Babybel super waxy cheese.
This sketch is aggressively weird, and is one you’d expect to see as the last sketch of the night. Certainly not the first.
It’s so strange that I have to give it credit for originality and for being comedy of the absurd.
It’s not, dare I say, a cheesy sketch.
Wax Museum
In this sketch Nash training Dimoldenberg as a security card in a wax museum. He warns that the statues come to life and try to trick people into letting them out.
This leads to a sketch that is an excuse for arbitrary impersonations.
There’s Chris Martin! Next up The Beatles (“That’s the wax Fab Four!”), and we get a Charlie Chaplin, who is actually Hitler in a funny hat, and then Tom Hiddleston, who claims he is the real Tom Hiddleston who was trapped by his wax counterpart. This proves to be a lie, as he ends up melted into a pile of wax.
Finally, Nash’s character asks to be let out so he can fix a fusebox, but it is all a ruse! For you see, he is actually wax Elvis!
There’s nothing wrong with this sketch, but its humor relies mainly on the “Hey, that’s (BLANK) school of comedy.”
Fashion Sense and Sensibility
A gentleman caller comes to woo Dimoldenberg whose family is on the brink of ruin. He asks for her hand, but there is a pause when everyone notice he is wearing cargo jorts.
Fouracres, who is Dimoldenberg’s father declares, “You look like a lesbian on safari!”
Nash points out they are useful, and that he can hold much in his pockets, including receipts and some weird Skittles.
At that point Nash’s father (Hammad Animashaun) shows up and reveals he is wearing a pair of jorts with the Juicy logo emblazoned on the back. He also points out the family’s hypocrisy, as there are wearing toe shoes.
“I suppose we are two families with horrible past,” Dimoldenberg says, and the wedding is on!
This sketch was funny and original. The whole jorts thing got genuine laughs, and the proceedings were definitely helped by Fouracres’ overplaying of the father role.
This was a fresh piece that really gave the show a jolt of energy.
Love is Blind UK
In this overlong parody of realty dating shows, Maximus (Nash) is half horse while Dimoldenberg is a brand manager for a glue factory.
Despite this seemingly insurmountable difference, they reveal that both their fathers died by breaking their legs “and subsequently being shot.”
The two become engaged.
The whole joke here is that Nash is half-man and half-horse. I’m not sure he’s a centaur because the horse half is not….you know what, I’m not doing this.
Our One Thing
This sketch plays on the whole question of what is the one thing you’d save if your house were on fire. In this case, a couple (Nash and Dimoldenberg) decide they want to keep their L-Shaped sofa.
A firechief (Fouracres) haunted by the loss of a nice piece of furniture, helps them remove the sofa.
After they leave, we see they left their daughter behind in the blaze.
This was funny in concept, but went on too long. Once we know it’s the sofa that they want to rescue, we know it’s going to be a whole thing. And it is.
Still, a funny sketch is in here. It just goes on too long.
Weekend Update
We led off with Chinese leader Xi’s visit to Washington. (“As a sign of respect Trump wore a bright red tie, the color of communism. Xi wore a purple tie to honor the color of Trump’s prostate.”). There is also mention of Trump meeting with British Prime Minister Burnham (The meeting was “not memorable as he has dementia.”) There’s discussion of Netanyahu’s U.N. speech. (“He made the podium his own, and the podium next to him, and the tables, and chairs…”). And there was a recreation of the stabbing of anti-immigrant activist Danny Tommo with action figures that turns gay.
Joining Ania and Paddy at the desk are East London mosquitos (Nash and Meredith). They declare “We don’t spread viruses, we spread vibes.” They ask about Ania’s sleeping habits, and are sad to learn she uses a mosquito net.
In other news, there’s an incredibly dumb joke that made me laugh. “It’s been revealed this week that the Leader of the liberal democrats, Ed Davey, has a name that sound like Egg Gravy.”
And there are some jokes that wouldn’t clear American censors, and that I won’t even repeat, but just know the AI glasses joke is one you wouldn’t see broadcast from Studio 8H in New York.
The One Show
Fouracres and Ayoade Bamgboye host a news show, and cut to a man traveling the UK shoreline by only doing the worm. (Meredith). He’s battered and mentally rattled. He’s also overed in blood. “My nipple came off and was eaten by a crow. So that’s gone!”
Dimoldenberg interviews and hugs him, causing him immense pain. She informs him he’s raised millions to help cure wide feet, but that will only be paid once he completes his journey. At his current rate of speed, that should take about 19 years.
The humor of this sketch hinges on Meredith’s screams and physical comedy chops. Fortunately he does them well, and the bit works.
How to How
Dring and Dimoldenberg do a podcast. I have no idea what this is, but it’s very short, so that’s something.
The Goodbye Wave
Best Sketch: Fashion Sense and Sensibility. While the Babybel sketch was interesting, this one was coherent and had some strong laughs. Leave it to the Brits to make literary comedy that works.
Worst Sketch: I’d say How to How, but it was so mercifully short, I’ll give it a pass. Instead, I’m going with Love is Blind, UK. Dude’s half horse. That’s really all there is to it.
Random Notes:
- SNL UK_ gets a brief hiatus, with the next episode being October 10.
- I’ve never heard of Rachel Chinourri, but she’s been around a while.
- The next episode in October 10.
Amelia Dimoldenberg was a natural on the show. If you didn’t know better, you might mistake her for a regular cast member. She is very comfortable in sketch comedy, and her comedic presence is strong. I wouldn’t be shocked to see her return as host relatively soon. I also wouldn’t be shocked to see her get her own show on BBC.
Whether the material was great or not, she was a strong player and a good fit for the SNL UK stage.
Grade: C+
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