Tonight's The Night
BBC1
Series 1 - April-May 2009
Series 2 - July-August 2010
Series 3 - 9 July-27 August 2011
Co-produced by the BBC and Barrowman Barker Productions (the company set up by John with his manager and friend, Gavin Barker), Tonight's The Night combines show-stopping performances by world-class acts with ordinary people making their own performance dreams come true.
Friends or family are invited to nominate budding performers who are surprised by John and invited to perform on stage in front of the studio audience.
John filmed a non-transmissible pilot of Tonight's the Night on 15 February 2009. Following the pilot, the BBC commissioned a full series of six shows. Series 1 was filmed from 22 March 2009 at BBC Television Centre and broadcast on BBC1 between 18 April 2009 and 23 May 2009.
Performers in the first series included a policeman who was transformed into a big band singer and dancer, an eleven-year-old who had the time of her life performing with Aleisha Dixon and a cancer charity fundraiser who waltzed with Strictly Come Dancing's James Jordan.
The first few shows of Series 1 also pitted John against a surprise celebrity for a hair-raising competitive performance in aid of charity. One challenge even involved a spectacular fire baton-twirling routine!
After the success of the first series, a second series of seven shows was commissioned and was filmed in 2010 at the BBC studios at Pacific Quay in Glasgow. Paloma Faith, Michael Bolton, Dionne Warwick and the cast of Chicago were among the stars who appeared to help make people's dreams come true. The series also gave one charity fund-raiser the chance to sing with the late Matt Monro, in an emotional duet of live performance and historic footage.
The third series of the show will air on BBC1 from 9 July.
In March 2011, BBC Worldwide also announced that the Tonight's The Night format has been sold to broadcasters in Norway, Sweden and the Ukraine.
- See clips from Tonight's the Night from the BBC
- BBC Press Office Information
- Interview with Digital Spy - 17 April 2009
- Interview with John on BBC Breakfast - 7 May 2009
- Guardian article: John Barrowman, spangles, big dance numbers, and me - 14 May 2009
- Michael Bolton mentions John and Tonight's the Night on his blog - 9 July 2010
- Read BBC Worldwide Press Release announcing overseas sales - 22 March 2011
- Read BBC Press Release confirming third series of Tonight's The Night - 28 March 2011
John and Gavin after the Tonight's The Night pilot
John and Jodie Prenger after the pilot episode
