- SNL UK Launch
- BBC Director General Appointment
- Huw Edwards Drama
- FAST Channels
- AI in Media
- Content Discovery
- Prince Harry vs Daily Mail
- OpenAI Sora Shutdown
In this episode of The Media Club, host Matt Deegan is joined by journalist Alex Hudson and Roku's Tom Price to discuss the launch of SNL UK on Sky One, which cost £16 million for an extended eight-episode run. They debate whether Sky's investment is justified, the show's potential to break into the US market, and its social media strategy. The conversation also covers the Channel 5 drama about Huw Edwards, which attracted 1.5 million viewers despite his criticism, and the appointment of Matt Brittin as the BBC's 18th Director General, a former Google executive with no journalism background. Tom Price discusses Roku's expansion into FAST channels in the UK, the challenges of content discovery, and the role of AI in personalization. The episode includes a quiz segment and news round-up.
Key takeaways
- SNL UK launched on Sky One with a £16 million budget and an extended eight-episode run, costing £2 million per episode.
- The Huw Edwards drama on Channel 5 attracted 1.5 million viewers despite his public criticism.
- Matt Brittin was confirmed as the BBC's 18th Director General, starting in May at a salary of £565,000.
- Roku launched five new FAST channels in the UK with ITV Studios, expanding its content offering.
- OpenAI is shutting down its Sora app, with Disney reportedly withdrawing funding.
In this episode
- Intro and plus one
- SNL UK discussion
- Huw Edwards drama
- BBC DG appointment
- News round-up
- Roku interview
- Media quiz
- Outro
Notable quotes
“I think it's great that Sky are taking a swing at this.”
“It is brave because you know. I have to commission a US multi-generational comedy comedic thing that is an institution of the US.”
“It is a sad state of affairs that the news industry should be filling this in and doing the documentary making it more difficult.”
“I'm going to be controversial. I think it is neither one thing nor the other.”
“It's a white man who understands how the world, the media world is now, not how the media world will be in five years.”
“TikTok already solved it. TikTok is the most lean back consumption platform there is.”
Discussed
Matt Brittin · Huw Edwards · Sky · BBC · Channel 5 · Roku
Mentioned or recommended
- SNL UK
- Huw Edwards drama
- Everything is Fake and Nobody Cares
- Crashed Podcast
- Spitting Image
- The Office UK
- The Office US
- Mr Bates vs The Post Office
- Jimmy Savile drama
- Prince Andrew drama
- Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past
- Mr Ben
- Sora
- Blade Runner
- Blade Runner 2049
- My Therapist Ghosted Me
- Up to Speed
- Blue Planet Live
- Ghosts
- The News Agents
