Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris
Also known asBest Time Ever
GenreEntertainment
Based onAnt & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway
by Ant & Dec
Presented byNeil Patrick Harris
StarringNicole Scherzinger
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes8
Production
Executive producers
Production locationKaufman Astoria Studios
Running time44 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkNBC
ReleaseSeptember 15 (2015-09-15) –
November 3, 2015 (2015-11-03)
Related
Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway[1]

Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris (or Best Time Ever) is an American live television variety series adaptation of the British variety series Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway.[2] The one-hour show is hosted and executive-produced by Neil Patrick Harris featuring Nicole Scherzinger as a co-host. The series aired on NBC from September 15, to November 3, 2015. On December 15, 2015, it was announced that the show had been cancelled after one season.[3]

Production

The plan to bring the series to television was announced on October 27, 2014,[4] and was followed by a teaser promo during the 2015 Super Bowl.[5] On May 10, 2015, NBC officially added the program to its lineup.[6] The show was broadcast from Studio K of Kaufman Astoria Studios in New York.[7] It was later announced in early September that Nicole Scherzinger would be joining the team.

Episodes

No.Guest announcerSing-Along Live guest/songOther live guestsOriginal air dateUS viewers
(millions)
1Reese WitherspoonGloria Gaynor
"I Will Survive"		Carson Daly, Ant & DecSeptember 15, 2015 (2015-09-15)6.60[8]
2Alec BaldwinBonnie Tyler
"Total Eclipse of the Heart"		Seth MeyersSeptember 22, 2015 (2015-09-22)5.91[9]
3Tyler PerryCeeLo Green
"Forget You"		Micheal LongSeptember 29, 2015 (2015-09-29)5.99[10]
4Shaquille O'NealGloria Estefan
"Conga"		Andy Cohen, Bethenny Frankel & Zachary LeviOctober 6, 2015 (2015-10-06)4.45[11]
5Jack BlackB-52s
"Love Shack"		Matt Lauer & Savannah GuthrieOctober 13, 2015 (2015-10-13)4.48[12]
6Reba McEntireOmi
"Cheerleader"		Drew Scott & Jonathan ScottOctober 20, 2015 (2015-10-20)4.81[13]
7Kelly RipaRay Parker Jr.
"Ghostbusters"		Meredith VieiraOctober 27, 2015 (2015-10-27)4.18[14]
8Kelsey GrammerBackstreet Boys
"I Want It That Way"		Apolo Ohno & David Alan GrierNovember 3, 2015 (2015-11-03)5.06[15]

Episode format

Opening

Episodes 1-5
As the show's main intro plays, the episode's guest announcer reviews what will happen in this week's episode. After the intro finishes, the camera focuses on the guest announcer, who introduces themselves and usually gives a little information about themselves. Then, the announcer introduces Harris as he goes through a sign titled "Best Suit Ever", which dresses him up in his suit, before coming out. Harris then has a brief talk, which includes re-introducing himself, re-introducing the announcer, and information about the current week's happenings.

Episodes 6-8
The intro stopped playing at the beginning of each episode after episode 5, and the opening now just begins with the guest announcer welcoming the audience, then plays scenes of what will happen in the episode as the announcer reviews the events. After the scenes, the camera returns to the announcer as they introduce themselves, and then introduce Harris as he goes through the "Best Suit Ever" sign before coming out and having the brief talk.

Audience Surprise

Following the brief talk, Harris would surprise an audience member. This segment has received many different names but typically revolved around a close friend or relative sending in personal information to the producers and participating in parodies of popular media. In the end, Harris awarded the audience member with a trip or prize.

Get Lucky

Get Lucky is a trivia gameshow in which one audience member is asked a series of 50-50 trivia questions from the current week's events. With every correct answer in 60 seconds, the player chooses a number which corresponds with a variety of prizes. Prizes range from novelty items such as candy all the way to a car or Jeep. At the end, the player is given a choice to keep the prizes already won or answer a final "Make or Break" question for a chance to win all 16 prizes or walk away with nothing.

Undercover

Undercover is a pre-taped prank segment in which Harris pranked a celebrity. In some instances, the celebrities were interviewed by Harris live.

Sing Along Live

Sing Along Live is a live karaoke segment where a popular singer or group sing a karaoke-style version of one of their most well-known songs. Three viewers participate via a hidden camera as the guest singer performs. At certain points, the song stops and one of the viewers must fill in a missing lyric, similar to that of Don't Forget the Lyrics! and The Singing Bee. If they sing the right lyric, they receive $1,000.

Notes
1. In the sixth episode, an audience member took part of the segment instead of a Skyped viewer.
2. In the seventh episode, the viewers had to fill three missing lyrics instead of one.
3. In the eighth episode, due to a poor Skype connection, one viewer did not sing the song (which was I Want It That Way by The Backstreet Boys in particular). However, he was still given $1,000.

Voices in Your Head

Voices in Your Head is another pre-taped prank segment. Harris, who is joined by a celebrity, will communicate with another celebrity, giving him/her instructions on how to handle three people.

Ticket to Slide

Ticket to Slide is a live segment. The contestants are regular people who don't know that they get to take part in a 60 ft slide, covered in oil and water, to grab keys. The contestants with keys unlock suitcases containing fantastic prizes, such as trip to Australia.

Neil Vs.

In Neil Vs., Harris takes on another celebrity in a head-to-head physical or mental challenge. Challenges included trivia competitions and zipline races.

End of the Show Show

The End of the Show Show is a finale spectacular in which Harris, Scherzinger, Little NPH, Little Nicole and the guest announcer joined a popular performance group for a finale.

References

  1. ^ Littleton, Cynthia (15 December 2015). "NBC Cancels 'Best Time Ever' But Stays In Business with Neil Patrick Harris (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety.
  2. ^ Robbins, Caryn (May 7, 2015). "Just In: NBC Reveals Name of Neil Patrick Harris Variety Show!". Broadway World. Archived from the original on May 10, 2015. Retrieved May 10, 2015.
  3. ^ "Best Time Ever With Neil Patrick Harris: Cancelled by NBC; No Season Two". TV Series Finale. 16 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  4. ^ "Neil Patrick Harris To Host New NBC Series From ITV Studios America". The Futon Critic. October 27, 2014.
  5. ^ "Neil Patrick Harris NBC Promo" on YouTube (February 2, 2015)
  6. ^ Hibberd, James; Abrams, Natalie (May 10, 2015). "NBC fall schedule revealed: Heroes returns, comedy nearly extinct". Entertainment Weekly.
  7. ^ "Shot at Kaufman". Kaufman Astoria Studios. Archived from the original on 2015-09-07. Retrieved 2015-09-16.
  8. ^ Pucci, Douglas (September 15, 2015). "Tuesday Final Nationals: Positive Sampling for 'Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris' on NBC". TV Media Insights. Archived from the original on October 21, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  9. ^ Pucci, Douglas (September 22, 2015). "Tuesday Final Nationals: CBS and NBC Share Leadership, Positive Opens for 'The Muppets' and 'Limitless'". TV Media Insights. Archived from the original on October 26, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  10. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (September 29, 2015). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Update: 9.29.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on September 30, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  11. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (October 6, 2015). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Update: 10.6.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 7, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  12. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (October 14, 2015). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Update: 10.13.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 15, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  13. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (October 21, 2015). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Update: 10.20.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 21, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  14. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (October 28, 2015). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Update: 10.27.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 29, 2015. Retrieved October 28, 2015.
  15. ^ Porter, Rick (November 4, 2015). "Tuesday final ratings: 'Fresh Off the Boat' and 'Best Time Ever' adjust up". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 5, 2015. Retrieved November 4, 2015.

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