WATCH the video: Nik Martin's hit song Big Fish Little Fish gets makeover to raise cash for NHS

Songwriter and performer Nik Martin has teamed up with mates and filmed a dance to a reworking of his hit Big Fish Little Fish to raise cash for the NHS.
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Staxton-based Nik was going to make a fitness video for people in lockdown and ran the idea passed his friend Phil Laycock who suggested rewording the song and posting a fundraising video on line.

Phil, who lives in Seamer, with his wife Melanie roped in friends Chris Curtis, of Filey Road, Nicky and Craig Sweeney-Chisholm, more of their neighbours and the Sykes family, of Wykeham to make the film.

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"We messaged friends with the song and asked them to make a video and post it back. We then edited it all together," said Phil who runs P&L Sound & Lighting (Yorkshire) Ltd.

Songwriter Nik MartinSongwriter Nik Martin
Songwriter Nik Martin

The four-minute delightful video took 10 days to put together. It features balloon-modelling Mark James from Barnoldswick, an inflatable purple dinosaur, aka Craig Sweeney-Chisolm, riding a bike and blow-up polar bear, aka Phil.

"This is all for raising money for the NHS heroes," said Phil. !The money will go to hospitals locally including Scarborough," he said

It urges people to wash their hands, stay fit and stay home all to the tune of Big Fish Little Fish.

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"It amazes me how may people the song has affected around the world," said Nik.

"I’ve had people trying to get hold of a copy of the song when they have heard it in Mexico, America and even Australia. I still get people coming up to me when I’m out asking if it was me that wrote that song Big Fish Little Fish. And when I tell them yes, they usually want their photo taken with me. And quite often with some kind of line like ”my kids aren’t going to believe this,” he said.

Nik said Big Fish was just a silly idea that he came up with one evening sat in the sun with couple of drinks under his belt.

"I knew that Ravers did a crazy hand movement when they were dancing. But nobody had written any fun songs to make fun of what they were doing. In truth, the song took about half an hour to write.

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"I recorded it the next day and that was how long it took. I sent it around a few holiday parks and gave it to a few DJs and children's entertainers that I knew to see if they would promote it.

"After about a year of the Big Fish song being out there, I started to get some great feedback. Big Fish was being played every night around all the major UK Holiday Parks including Haven, Park Resorts, Park Dean and Pontins, and even now, after all these years, the song is still getting everyone on the Party dance floor. It feels great to know that I’ve left a little something, that’s made a lot of people smile around the world."

It was recorded by Neil Morrissey, a stop-frame animation video was created with Bob The Builder and it was released for Christmas.

Big Fish Little Fish was also used in the teen flic Angus,Thongs and Perfect Snogging.

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"The characters in one scene are dancing down the road singing the main chorus. I got a songwriter's mention when the credits come up at the end of the film. Sure, I’m not going to win an Oscar or get a Grammy for it. But it's a nice feeling to to see your name come up.

The Marks & Spencer advert Big Shop, Little Shop, Cardboard Shop is based on the original song Big Fish, Little Fish, Cardboard Box.

Nik also got French maitre'd Fred to do the Big Fish dance at his table when he appeared on Channel 4's First Dates .

People can make donations at: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/bigfishlittlefishnhsReaders can download the song from itunes from https://apple.co/3aSRXyk make a fun video and upload it to the Big Fish facebook page here

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