Big Night In returns to screens around the world telling the incredible story of The Alarm’s classic Sixty Eight Guns and how it came to be written and broadcast on the BBC’s massive TV show Top of The Pops (which was first aired forty years ago on September 22nd 1983).
The Big Night In – Sixty Eight Guns special is available to view now.
NB: Viewers who tune in via YouTube can watch on their smart TV’s in Hi Def and also on laptops etc.
Presented by Jules Jones Peters and The Alarm’s legendary former roadie and now TV broadcaster Gareth ‘Gaz Top’ Jones, the show delves into the background of how Sixty Eight Guns came to be written and the remarkable rise to fame of The Alarm in 1983 which happened simultaneously on both sides of the Atlantic.
The show features some incredibly rare footage of The Alarm’s first ever appearance on TV anywhere in the world, when they appeared (as if out of the blue), alongside presenter Dick Clark for the USA’s massive music show, American Bandstand.
There is a brand new interview with the BBC’s Mike Read who (along with Simon Bates), introduced The Alarm on Top of the Pops back in September 1983 and famously jammed with the band in the dressing room.
The show also feature brand new concert footage of Mike Peters performing at The Red Wales during the 40th Anniversary release party celebration concert which turned into an incredible night of stories and revelations including a first ever performance of the Seventeen song ‘Sounds From The Night’ which was a 1979 forerunner to Sixty Eight Guns itself.
Mike and Gareth recount the tales of those days forty years ago, with fascinating and often hilarious insights into what went on behind the scenes when The Alarm found themselves swept along by a Hurricane of success that came unexpectedly calling, along with a revelatory story of the night the band were almost killed before they had even begun to realise the scale of what was unfolding before their very eyes.
The Big Night In – Sixty Eight Guns special also feature the premiere of the brand new Upscaled / Hi Definition version of the original Sixty Eight Guns promotional video and footage from the 20th and 30th Anniversary celebrations which featured all the original members and producer Alan Shacklock.
To commemorate the 40th Anniversary celebration concert at The Red Wales, Mike Peters produced and designed a brand new T-Shirt design based on the 1983 Sixty Eight Guns Tour poster and iconic drummer boy image.
The Sixty Eight Guns 1983 – 2023 T-Shirt is available to order now
Image: Sixty Eight Guns Drummer Boy T – Front Design
Image: Sixty Eight Guns Drummer Boy T – Rear Design
Image: Sixty Eight Guns Drummer Boy T – Front Art
Image: Sixty Eight Guns Drummer Boy T – Rear Art
Image: Original 1983 Tour Poster
The Sixty Eight Guns 1983 – 2023 T-Shirt is available to order now