Blue Peter is getting a makeover for Comic Relief, as it will be renamed and recolored for the first time in its 65-year history.
The Red Nose Day special, Red Peter, will contain challenges from Blue Peter presenters as well as musical performances as the long-running children’s show is given a Red Nose Day makeover.
The hosts of this year’s Red Nose Day have already been announced: broadcaster AJ Odudu, Doctor Who legend David Tennant, comedian Joel Dommett, Take Me Out presenter Paddy McGuinness, and radio DJ Zoe Ball.
‘I’m with Paddy McGuinness and it’s St. Patrick’s Day, so there will be shenanigans for sure,’ Zoe remarked of this year’s show.
‘I’ve been told lots of the epic things that are happening but I’m scared to say in case I ruin any surprises.’
Top Gear host Paddy said that attending this year without long-running Comic Relief presenter Sir Lenny Henry will be’so odd’.
He said: ‘I remember being at the side of Sir Lenny when the autocue stopped working, slap bang in the middle of a live recording. That got the auld heart pumping’.
Other sketches, including Love Island and Blackadder portions, The Traitors returning for a special including Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, and material featuring Kylie Minogue with the cast of the smash spooky comedy Ghosts, have also been announced.
Sir Tony Robinson will reprise his role as Blackadder’s dogbody Baldrick, delivering a bedtime story based on the classic historical comedy programme.
The show, which aired from 1983 to 1989, also starred Mr Bean’s Rowan Atkinson and has had various specials throughout the years, including one for Comic Relief.
There will also be a look back at the finest moments from previous Comic Reliefs, as well as a programme called When Comic Relief Did Big Brother (And things really got started!).
The BBC and Channel 4 special, which broadcast in 2001, saw Jack Dee escape the Big Brother house for the celebrity special before returning to win the season.
Jack and his other housemates, Vanessa Feltz, Claire Sweeney, Keith Duffy of Boyzone, and Anthea Turner, will reminisce on their eight days on Celebrity Big Brother.
The news comes as the reality TV show, which ran in the UK for 18 years until 2018, prepares to return to ITV in the fall.
Money generated for Comic Relief’s Red Nose Day will go towards addressing the cost-of-living crises as well as concerns such as homelessness, mental health challenges, and food insecurity in the UK and throughout the world. A percentage of the funds earned will also go towards the earthquake relief efforts in Turkey and Syria.
Red Peter will air on Friday March 17 on CBBC and iPlayer at 5pm with Red Nose Day airing on BBC One on the same day at 7pm.
Source My Celebrity Life.