What Is Red Nose Day?

Red Nose Day is officially coming to America with a television special hosted by Seth Meyers, David Duchovny and Jane Krakowski Thursday, May 21, on NBC.

Red Nose Day on NBC

The live Red Nose Day event will contain three hours of elaborate musical and comedy performances, with pre-taped segments as well as live bits with some top celebrities. Red Nose Day has been an annual event at BBC in the UK for three decades, and aims to raise money to help poor children across the world. 2015 marks the first official Red Nose Day in the US, and the charitable day has already earned the support of Walgreens, which is selling plastic red noses, with the revenues going directly to charity, and the Gates Foundation, which has pledged to donate $25 for every Red Nose picture posted on Twitter and Instagram with the hashtag #RedNose25. (Hint: if you don’t have a red nose lying around and can’t get to Wallmart to buy one, you can download the Red nose app that will put a red nose on your photo.)

As NBC is hosting, they have been active partners in creating buzz for the event, filming bits with their hit singing competition show, The Voice, and enlisting NBC stars to help, but celebrities from other rival networks will also be joining in on the fun. Ming-Na Wen, for example, of ABC’s Agents of SHIELD has been heavily featured in the promos for the event.

Fun bits have already been released prior to the event, including feminist takes on Indiana Jones and Reservoir Dogs featuring Anna Kendrick and the cast of Orange Is The New Black.

British stars are also coming to the event to help bring Red Nose Day to the US, including Downton Abbey’s Hugh Bonneville, Robert Pattinson, and Simon Cowell. Also set to appear are Julia Roberts, Will Ferrell, Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, Julianne Moore, Jodie Foster, Neil Patrick Harris, Christina Aguilera, Pharrell, Paul Rudd, Benedict Cumberbatch, Eddie Redmayne, John Krasinski, Emily Blunt, Adam Levine, Michelle Rodriguez, Gwyneth Paltrow and John Legend, who recorded a special duet of “Lay Me Down” with Sam Smith for the cause.

Perhaps one of the most highly anticipated bits of the night will star the cast of Game of Thrones. Kit Harington, Peter Dinklage, Iwan Rheon, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Emilia Clarke, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Mark Addy, John Bradley, Rose Leslie, Alfie Allen, Charlotte Hope and Diana Riggwil perform a special GoT musical written by Coldplay.

The three-hour telecast will encourage viewers to call in and donate to the Red Nose Day, which will benefit 12 charities partnered with the event: the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, charity: water, Children’s Health Fund, Feeding America, Gavi The Vaccine Alliance, the Global Fund, LIFT, National Council of La Raza, National Urban League, Oxfam America, Save the Children and United Way.

The Red Nose Day event will begin live at 8 p.m. on NBC.