SCOTT DOONICAN'S
BIG NEET IN
Coronavirus... it was/is rubbish. From March 2020, for over a year and a half, it stopped every band we knew from playing gigs, took innocent lives too soon, knackered the economy, caused panic buying, tanked small businesses, decimated the festival circuit, allowed some corrupt politicians to give lots of tax-payers' cash to their mates, whilst they had parties and told us not to, and no-doubt spelled the beginning of the end for many amazing grassroot live music venues. It also forced live music ONLINE for over 18 months.
So here it is: the BIG NEET IN.
As we were asked to stay indoors and to work from home, Scott Doonican decided to do his bit for the war-effort by entertaining the troops, and why not... he loves to put on a show. And not only that, because the rest of the band were in two completely different counties at the start of the first national lockdown, he was joined each week by his partner Amanda along with her army of zany puppets and a bunch of regular socially distanced special guest appearances too. Grab a pack of beer, pour some wine, or mek a brew, but most of all enjoy the show...
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When a new show goes out live, donations are always gratefully accepted by purchasing a 'virtual' ticket from
www.ticketsource.co.uk/thebarstewardsons
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Please note that the Paypal link mentioned in the first 62 shows does not exist anymore so please don't donate anything there or it will vanish into the ether of the internet. See Show #63 for the explanation - it's a long story!
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THE BIG NEET IN ARCHIVES RESOURCE PROJECT
We are incredibly grateful for the time and effort taken by a small group of Doonifans, co-ordinated by Rob Hurst, who took the time to re-watch all of the original episodes of Scott Doonican's BIG NEET IN, in order to create something of a complete viewer's guide to the entire series of shows. They catalogued all 69 of the original broadcasts (as well as having plans to do the same for any future episodes or specials in the post-pandemic future), including the setlist played by Scott, any music videos featured in the show, notable arrivals of new puppets/characters, selected quotes from each show, the weekly quiz questions and answers, special guest appearances, trivia, and wherever possible information about the original pre-show and after-show that originally went out on 'Facebook Live' before and after each BIG NEET IN (that aren't included here in the BNI Archives). It is something of a Herculean feat, as there was over an entire week of viewing in just the first 69 shows alone, and we can't thank them enough for their time and dedication, so that people who want to relive the magic from a very strange time in the band's history, can do exactly that.
Here's what Rob Hurst, who co-ordinated the 'Big Neet In Archives Resource Project' has to say:
"What we've tried to do is to create a tool for fans to use, find things that they half remember or search for episodes where certain things happened (e.g. Amanda scaring the bejebus out of Scott with the spider!) and when our much-loved puppets debuted.
Having three main people contribute means there is a slight change of voice in what was deemed significant or not, Lin [Hulme] on her shows, documented the source of video more, whereas I normally listed them as 'video', unless it was significant. Paula [McArdle], in her pre show and aftershows, put a much more emotive voice to her writing, which I really liked, and makes my own straightforward reading very different.
As more monthly irregular shows occur, I'll try to keep updating,
Rob