The Big Night In
GenreTelethon
Created by
Presented by
StarringSee below
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producersPeter Davey
Colin Hopkins
ProducerPeter Davey
Production locationsStudio V, Broadcasting House, London
Running time3:00:00
Production companyBBC Studios
Original release
NetworkBBC One
Release23 April 2020 (2020-04-23)

The Big Night In is a British telethon that was broadcast by BBC One from 7 pm to 10 pm on 23 April 2020[1] to support those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.[2][3] It is the first joint initiative between two BBC telethon charities, Children in Need and Comic Relief.[2] By the end of the programme, over £27.3 million had been raised.[4][5] The British government promised to match all public donations if the minimum of £20 million was reached.[6]

Personnel

The telethon's showrunner and executive producer for the BBC was Peter Davey.[7] The presenters, using The One Show's studio in Broadcasting House, London, included Lenny Henry, with Matt Baker and Davina McCall for the first hour and Zoe Ball and Paddy McGuinness from 8 pm.[1] They maintained social distancing, while everyone else appearing live took part remotely, via video links.[3] There were pre-recorded comedy appearances by Steve Coogan, Rob Brydon, Jack Whitehall, Catherine Tate, Romesh Ranganathan, Miranda Hart and others,[6] as well as solo music performances from Sam Smith and Celeste.[8]

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge made a surprise appearance, in a sketch with Stephen Fry, shown just before the 8 pm Clap for Our Carers.[9]

Line-up

Featured performances included:[1][6][8][10][11][4][9]

There were also appearances from Jenna Coleman, Tim Cook, Judi Dench, Sting, Rishi Sunak and others, with some repeating the UK government's directives for behaviour during the lockdown.

References

  1. ^ a b c "When is The Big Night In on TV and who is taking part in the BBC One show?". Metro. 15 April 2020. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Children In Need and Comic Relief join forces for first time for coronavirus". Metro. 7 April 2020. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  3. ^ a b "BBC Big Night In: Peter Kay, Little Britain and Vicar of Dibley to return for special charity event – follow live". The Independent. 23 April 2020. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  4. ^ a b "BBC One - The Big Night In". BBC One. 23 April 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  5. ^ "BBC One's The Big Night In raises £27,398,675 – Media Centre". BBC. 23 April 2020. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
  6. ^ a b c "Doctor Who stars unite for BBC's Big Night In". BBC News. 23 April 2020. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  7. ^ "Foo Fighters praise Live Lounge charity cover ahead of BBC's Big Night In". Your Local Guardian. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  8. ^ a b "Big Night In: The Show". BBC. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  9. ^ a b Hill, Rose (23 April 2020). "Prince William surprises Big Night In viewers with Blackadder sketch". Mirror. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  10. ^ "Little Britain to return to TV for Big Night In charity telethon". Evening Standard. 16 April 2020. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  11. ^ Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (20 April 2020). "BBC Radio 1 launches coronavirus charity song with Dua Lipa, Chris Martin and more". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 April 2020.

External links

Children in Need
Comic Relief and Sport Relief
COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories
Categories