The Big Performance is a CBBC

CBBC

CBBC is one of two brand names used for the BBC's children's television strands. Between 1985 and 2002, CBBC was the name given to all the BBC's programmes on TV for children aged under 14...

 reality series which sees 10 shy children, who are terrified of performing in front of the public, sing at a huge event. The first series, which started in September 2010, saw the contestants perform at Proms in the Park, while the second series which started in September 2011 and is currently running is seeing the children perform at Children in Need

Children in Need

Children in Need is an annual British charity appeal organised by the BBC. Since 1980 it has raised over £500 million. The highlight of the Children in Need appeal is an annual telethon, held in November. A teddy bear named "Pudsey Bear" fronts the campaign, while Terry Wogan is a long...

 live on 18 November 2011.

Format

The series recruits ten shy children aged 11-13 to take part in the show and improve their confidence, as well as their singing skills. These children have usually been bullied in the past. There is a theme (musical genre) to each episode, and sees the children learn a song of that genre and having one of the children be the 'soloist' for that theme, which each child has to do. Gareth Malone

Gareth Malone

Gareth Malone is a British choirmaster and broadcaster, self-described as an "animateur, presenter and populariser of choral singing"...

 helps the children to achieve this.

Series 2: 2011

September- December
2011 series table of episodes

Episode	Original air date	Details
1	13 September 2011	It all kicks off in London, in the TV studios they will return to for their final performance, and Gareth introduces the all-important song - Avril Lavigne Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne is a Canadian singer-songwriter. She was born in Belleville, Ontario, but spent most of her youth in the small town of Napanee. By the age of 15, she had appeared on stage with Shania Twain; by 16, she had signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records worth more... 's hit "Keep Holding On Keep Holding On "Keep Holding On" is a pop rock power ballad song recorded by Avril Lavigne and is the theme song for the film Eragon . It also appears as the last track on Lavigne's third album, The Best Damn Thing which was released on April 17, 2007. Lavigne has described the rest of the album as being upbeat... ". But there is a long way to go before they are ready to sing in front of the nation. With just eleven weeks until Children in Need, the group will take a musical tour of the country, compete for the coveted solo spot, and face increasingly difficult performance challenges until they are ready for their final big performance. Their first challenge is to find the courage to sing in front of each other, so to ease them in gently Gareth has chosen duets for the group to perform in pairs. To get them ready for this, Blue Peter Blue Peter Blue Peter is the world's longest-running children's television show, having first aired in 1958. It is shown on CBBC, both in its BBC One programming block and on the CBBC channel. During its history there have been many presenters, often consisting of two women and two men at a time...  star Barney Harwood Barney Harwood Barney Harwood is an English television presenter and actor, known for his work with CBBC.-Television:For CBBC, he presented Prank Patrol and was a voice-over commentator for The Smokehouse, while on BBC Two, he co-presented Basil's Swap Shop , alongside Basil Brush.Previous work for CBBC included...  is on hand to give the children a presenting masterclass to get them relaxed on camera.
2	20 September 2011	The group take on their first musical theme, power ballads. They will be learning Leona Lewis Leona Lewis Leona Louise Lewis is a British singer and songwriter. Lewis first came to prominence in 2006 when she won the third series of the British television series The X Factor.... ' "Run Run (Snow Patrol song) "Run" is a cover of the Snow Patrol song by Leona Lewis on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge on 31 October 2007. She later released the song as a single from Spirit: The Deluxe Edition in November 2008. At the time, "Run" was the UK's fastest-selling digital only release ever, selling 69,244 copies in just... ". The children face the public for the first time, performing on an open-top bus in the town centre. Gareth wants their performance to attract an audience of passers-by. They are all going to struggle, but perhaps none more so than the soloist, local girl Molly. Molly has been bullied in the past and it has left her confidence at zero. To help Molly, and all the children, find their inner Leona, Gareth has brought onboard EastEnders EastEnders EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...  star Ricky Norwood Ricky Norwood Richard Colin "Ricky" Norwood is a British actor who plays Fatboy in the soap opera EastEnders and its online spin-off EastEnders: E20. He was born in Tower Hamlets, London, and lives in Forest Gate. From the age of 12 he attended the Theatre Royal Stratford East's Youth Theatre, and he also... . Ricky wants the group to act out the song and really connect with the lyrics. Also paying the children a visit are a group who know a thing or two about putting power into a performance - the Leeds Youth Opera Leeds Youth Opera Leeds Youth Opera is an acclaimed opera company for 12- to 25-year-olds, based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The Yorkshire Post newspaper described the group as a '...national cultural treasure...' -Background:... .
3	27 September 2011	The Big Performance tour bus rocks up in Leeds, where Gareth is hoping he can shake, rattle and roll his group of shy singers into letting their hair down and having some fun. To do this, he has chosen a music style that was the soundtrack to the teenage revolution in the 1950s - rock and roll. Gareth wants to encourage the group to leave their cares behind and focus on how performing a song can change the way you feel - but he may have his work cut out convincing this group that the song Jailhouse Rock Jailhouse Rock Jailhouse Rock may refer to:*Jailhouse Rock , a 1957 film starring Elvis Presley*"Jailhouse Rock", a song first recorded by Elvis Presley*Jailhouse rock...  is fun to perform. Also, Gareth decides that to really get into this new style, they should start dancing as well as singing, so Strictly Come Dancing Strictly Come Dancing Strictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...  duo Ali Bastian and Robin Windsor turn up to give a master class. This episode's soloist, Namibian-born Charlize, is particularly reluctant to embrace rock and roll, and finds the tongue-twister lyrics difficult to get her head around. But she and the rest of the group must learn the complicated words in time for the performance. So far the group have only performed to each other, and a few passers-by on the street. This time the stakes are raised as they sing in front of professional performers, who are experts in rock and roll.
4	4 October 2011	Gareth asks the children to write their own song to perform later that day. To get his group writing a meaningful song of their own, Gareth suggests drawing on their personal experiences and it does not take long for a common theme to arise - being bullied. By focusing on feelings they have all shared, Gareth hopes their spirit will inspire others, because their final performance will reach thousands as they will be singing live on BBC London radio. Local lad Taylor has his own concerns about singing to London listeners, as he has been teased in the past for his love of singing and he has started to believe what he has been told - that singing high notes is girly. So Gareth has a struggle on his hands to convince Taylor to just go for it. To help prepare for such a major performance, the group are joined on the bus by a special celebrity guest mentor, who knows a thing or two about singing for thousands of people - former Spice Girl Melanie C.
5	11 October 2011	The tour bus arrives in Manchester, and the famous music venue the MEN Arena is playing backdrop to a Big Performance first. Gareth has decided some rivalry may help the shy singers overcome their performance nerves, so splits them into two groups - girls versus boys. The girls are trying to channel the feistiest female group ever, the Spice Girls, by performing their track Spice Up Your Life, whilst the boys are taking on classic anthem Never Forget by enduring boy band Take That. Both groups must work together to beat their rivals, and beat their own nerves. Will the prospect of performing to real girl band Wonderland and boy band Encore, as well as a record company executive, be enough of an incentive to get both groups working well together? With two bands come two soloists. Joan is taking the lead for the girls, but she does not like being the centre of attention and cannot even bring herself to join her mum's choir. Gareth hopes that by making her confront her fear and sing for them, she will find the courage to become a member. The boys' soloist is Mohammed, whose family is used to seeing him excel academically, but he has never shown them his creative side - now that is all about to change. Can both Joan and Mohammed take strength from their personal challenges? And which will lead their group to victory? It is the Big Performance battle of the bands.
6	18 October 2011
7	25 October 2011
8	1 November 2011
9	8 November 2011
10	15 November 2011
11	26 November 2011	Its the day of their big performance and they are buzzing! They meet One Direction, JLS and many other famous people on the way to the stage. They enjoy having their make-up being put on.
12	29 November 2011