Canadian-American TV producer, creator of SNL, long-time force behind late-night comedy
Maureen Beattie has been cast as Lear in a new Pitlochry Festival Theatre production adapted and directed by Finn den Hertog. The show, staged by artistic director Alan Cumming, has opened a run from 4 July to 1 August 2026 and reframes King Lear as a matriarchal tragedy performed by a largely Scottish company.
A debut play, Sanctuary, has won the Leodis Prize, funding a first production at Edinburgh Fringe and potential future life in London. Sparrow, the 32-year-old casting director, wrote Shielded by personal history and rural queerness, the work charts encounters around a Suffolk hospice plan from the early 1990s.
The Independent and AP News report on upcoming SNL hosting gigs and musical guests, highlighting Brunson’s hosting debut with Katseye, Dakota Johnson promoting Verity, Oct. 3 Turnstile appearance, Navarrette’s Halloween return, and Abrams returning as musical guest. SNL UK refreshes with Freddie Meredith joining the cast and Jeff Goldblum hosting season two.