Tina Fey spills ‘dirty secret’ SNL UK can learn from NBC version

Fey joined ‘SNL’ as a writer in 1997 before becoming a cast member

Tina Fey has weighed in on the U.K. version of Saturday Night Live, sharing a piece of advice British writers and cast members may want to heed ahead of its anticipated 2026 premiere.

SNL is known for its all-night writing marathons, with the show’s scribes penning sketches late Tuesday night into Wednesday morning ahead of a table read with the cast and guest host.

But Fey, who joined the late-night sketch comedy show in 1997 as a writer before becoming a cast member in 2000, says those late nights are not necessary.

“Here’s a dirty secret: you don’t have to do it that way,” Fey told the Edinburgh TV Festival, per Deadline. “You could start in the morning.”

Fey’s comments come months after Sky announced in April that it would bring a British version of the show to audiences in the U.K. and Ireland in 2026, marking the first time the program will be produced outside the United States.

Tina Fey has offered advice to those working on the British version of ‘Saturday Night Live’ (Getty)

The British version will retain the original’s signature style — it will be aired live late at night and feature a rotating roster of celebrity hosts, musical guests, and a regular cast of British comedic talent.

Several celebrities and late night hosts have weighed in on the British version, including Seth Meyers and John Oliver.

Meyers, 51, was an SNL cast member from 2001 to 2014 and served as the show’s head writer from 2006 until his departure.

Asked in June by Variety whether he’ll consult for the new U.K. version, Meyers responded: “I would love the offer, just for a boondoggle to the U.K. But I have not been asked.”

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Tina Fey and Tom Hanks welcome Paul Rudd into the SNL hosts’ ‘Five Timer Club’ (NBC/SNL)

Expanding further on his thoughts about the new spin-off, Meyers added: “It is exciting. It’s so thrilling anytime anybody takes a big swing on anything. A lot of my former colleagues are working on it, and I think some of the funniest people in the world live in the U.K. So, it could be something special.”

As for why the New York-based show has never previously recruited British comedians, Meyers joked: “I think Lorne said, ‘For the first 50 years, I just want to see if I can do it with Americans. And once we get our feet on firm footing, maybe we’ll reach out to the international market.’ I don’t know!”

Oliver, meanwhile, was speaking to Meyers on his Late Night show in May, when he said a U.K. versionof the long-running sketch show would be “a terrible idea.”

“We have had sketch comedy before, and I just feel like something like this is such a unique group,” said Oliver.

“It’s a cult. I’m trying to not say the word — it’s a cult,” he continued. “And so, I don’t know how you can impose that cult onto the U.K.”

When Meyers then asked what made SNL seem like a “cult,” Oliver responded candidly about the cast members’ tradition of staying up all night to rehearse — exactly the aspect of the U.S. show Fey said the British version should disregard.

“I’m saying that’s the kind of thing a cult leader would make you do,” Oliver joked. “We stay up all night on Tuesdays, by the way!”