October 5, 2019 Season 45 episode
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| Episode | 872 |
| Season Episode | 2 |
| Host | Phoebe Waller-Bridge |
| Musical Guest(s) | Taylor Swift |
| Song(s) performed by Musical Guest(s) |
"Lover" "False God" |
| Previous Episode September 28, 2019 |
Next Episode October 12, 2019 |
The 873rd episode and 2nd episode of Saturday Night Live's 45th season premiered on October 5, 2019, hosted by English actress, screenwriter and producer Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the creator, head writer, and star of the BBC's comedy-drama series Fleabag and showrunner, head writer, and executive producer of the first season of Killing Eve, and the hit films Goodbye Christopher Robin, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, IF and A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, with musical guest Taylor Swift, an singer-songwriter, who performed "Lover" and "False God". This was Phoebe Waller-Bridge's hosting debut, and Taylor Swift made her 4th musical guest appearance on SNL.
Taylor Swift previously made her 3rd musical guest appearance and hosted for the first time on SNL on the following dates: On January 10, 2009, the twelfth episode and first show of New Year 2009 of SNL's 34th season, hosted by actor Neil Patrick Harris, star of the ABC's classic medical sitcom Doogie Howser, M.D. and the CBS' classic hit sitcom How I Met Your Mother, as well as the CBS' classic holiday special The Christmas Wish.
On November 7, 2009, the fifth episode of SNL's 35th season, with herself as host and also served as the episode's musical guest and on November 11, 2017, the fifth episode of SNL's 43rd season, hosted by actress and comedian Tiffany Haddish.
Phoebe Waller-Bridge's goodnight speech is "Thank You, Thank You to Taylor Swift and Matthew Broderick! It's Been an Unbelievable Night Tonight. I've Had the Time of My Life, Thank You to the Amazing Cast! [ Cheers and applause], Good Night, Everyone. Thank You So Much!". (Cheers and applause again)
Cast[]
Repertory Players[]
- Beck Bennett
- Aidy Bryant
- Michael Che
- Pete Davidson*
- Mikey Day
- Heidi Gardner+
- Colin Jost
- Kate McKinnon
- Alex Moffat
- Kyle Mooney
- Chris Redd
- Cecily Strong
- Kenan Thompson
- Melissa Villaseñor+
Featured Players[]
*Credited in the opening montage, but they did not appear in episode.
+ Appeared only in goodbyes.
- Cameo by Matthew Broderick.
Sketches and Musical Performances[]
Cold Open Sketch Videotaped Weekend Update Music Performance Other
| Title | Image | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Mike Pence Impeachment Strategy Meeting Cold Opening | 
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Vice President Mike Pence (Beck Bennett) consults with William Barr (Aidy Bryant), Rudy Giuliani (Kate McKinnon) and Mike Pompeo (Matthew Broderick) to strategize about his options during Trump's impeachment investigation. Cameo by Matthew Broderick as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. |
| Opening Montage | ||
| Monologue by Phoebe Waller-Bridge | 
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As she hosted SNL for the first time, English actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge reveals the truth behind her hit shows Fleabag and Killing Eve and causing a "horn storm" with a hot priest. |
| Another What's Wrong with This Picture? | 
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Elliot Pants (Kenan Thompson) hosts a game show where contestants (Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Kyle Mooney, and Aidy Bryant) struggle to guess what's wrong with a series of photos. |
| Love Island | 
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Meet the cast of Love Island (Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Cecily Strong, Aidy Bryant, Chris Redd, Beck Bennett, Alex Moffat, and Chloe Fineman) of the British reality TV sensation that took over your summer. |
| Mid-Day News | 
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News anchors (Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Kenan Thompson, Ego Nwodim, Alex Moffat, and Chris Redd) report the local news while trying not to react to the race of each subject. |
| Next Episode Commercial Bumper | Award-winning actor David Harbour will host "SNL" for the first time on Oct. 12 and Grammy Award-nominated, multi-platinum selling Camila Cabello will make her "SNL" music guest debut. | |
| The War in Words | 
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A World War documentary reveals letters written by a separated military couple, William (Mikey Day) and Lydia (Phoebe Waller-Bridge), that take an unexpected turn. |
| Taylor Swift performed "Lover" | 
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For this performance, Swift sang a stripped-down, emotional version of the title track while playing a green piano. The backdrop featured sheet music floating in mid-air. |
| Weekend Update with Colin Jost and Michael Che | 
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Weekend Update anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che tackle the week's biggest news, like mounting evidence of corruption against Trump in his Ukraine impeachment scandal and R. Kelly's complaints from jail and a man who can't find his parked car. With guests, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Kate McKinnon) talks to Colin Jost about outfundraising Joe Biden in her 2020 bid for president and addresses a marine affair conspiracy theory, Chinese trade representative Chen Biao (Bowen Yang in his very first Weekend Update appearance on the show) stops by Weekend Update to update Michael Che about America's trade war with China, and Supercentenarian Mort Fellner (Mikey Day) stops by Weekend Update to share some news about America's oldest citizens, like a 116-year-old's first stand-up set. |
| Royal Romance | 
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A documentary looks back on the lesser-known interracial royal romance between Abigail, Duchess of Clerkenwell (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) and Jimmy Jay Robinson (Kenan Thompson). |
| Taylor Swift performed "False God" with SNL bandleader Lenny Pickett on sax. | 
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For her second song, Swift performed the jazz-infused "False God" with a full band, including Lenny Pickett on saxophone. This marked the song's live debut. |
| Gerald from Guitar Center: Kaylee, Crystla & Janetta | 
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Four friends (Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Kate McKinnon, Cecily Strong, and Aidy Bryant) get rowdy at a bar talking about their mutual ex-boyfriend (Beck Bennett). |
| Goodnights and Closing Credits | 
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Phoebe Waller-Bridge thanked Taylor Swift and Matthew Broderick and the amazing cast and everyone. It's been an unbelievable night tonight and she had the time of her life Only appearances of Heidi Gardner and Melissa Villaseñor. Also, in the good nights, three of the current cast members, Mikey Day, Chris Redd, and Ego Nwodim, point to Bowen Yang since this is his Weekend Update debut. |
Cut for Time[]
Sketches and Musical Performances[]
Cold Open Sketch Videotaped Weekend Update Music Performance Other
| Title | Image | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| New Play | The cast of a new play (Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Cecily Strong, and Beck Bennett) struggles with the characters' Nebraskan accents. | |
| Tampax Secrets | A commercial for Tampax Secrets: the only tampon hidden inside things you'd be less embarrassed to take out of your bag in public. |
Trivia[]
- Longtime current cast member Pete Davidson does not appear in this episode due to filming commitments for the film The Suicide Squad, but he is credited in the opening montage and mentioned by both Mikey Day and Colin Jost during Weekend Update.
- Heidi Gardner and Melissa Villaseñor are both credited in the opening montage, but they did not appear in this episode, although they only appear in goodbyes.
Trivia/Notes[]
- This also marked the first appearance of Chen Biao.
- This is also the 2nd and last appearance of Mort Fellner.
- Phoebe Waller-Bridge also joined the incredible reigning Emmy Award winners who went on to host SNL in this season.
- Taylor Swift joined the group of Musical Guests to headline four times on SNL.
| Preceded by: September 28, 2019 |
Saturday Night Live episode | Followed by: October 12, 2019 |