A FAMILY band has been commended by "potato" royalty after sharing their version of a famous British comedian's new song.

Macca's Maracas - a four-part group created by the McCarthy family - performed and filmed their own version of Matt Lucas's reworked "Baked Potato" song on Sunday.

The band consisted of mum at the front on piano and leading the song, two daughters on ukelele, and dad at the back playing the maracas.

 

 

Lucas's jaunty tune is an adaptation of his original, which he performed on Shooting Stars.

The new version was released on March 24, going viral on social media website, Twitter, and it plays out the comedian's conversation with a potato, which reiterates the need to follow the lockdown rules.

The Macca's Maracas version made its way onto Twitter after they sent it to their school, Baildon Church of England (CofE) Primary School, in Coverdale Way.

It was so impressive, it was noticed by the man himself.

Lucas shared their video on his personal profile and responded to say: "thank you Baildon potatoes".

The video has 11,400 views at the time of writing.

The challenge was set by Head of Music, Mrs Armstrong, who tasked families to create their own bands at home.

It is just one of many that the school is running at the moment.

Tom Van Der Gucht, Lead for the Curriculum at Baildon CofE Primary, said: "It has been fantastic to see the response from our pupils and their families during what is a very stressful and challenging time for them.

"I feel it really reflects the community spirit of Baildon the manner in which people have engaged with the activities we have been setting.

"I would like to thank all our teachers, including Mrs Armstrong who set up our family band challenge, for their dedication and passion in developing engaging opportunities for our pupils.

"Getting a retweet from Matt Lucas certainly brought a smile to my face and hopefully did the same for many others across Baildon too."

One of the other main challenges, is the "Baildon 10 Challenge".

The idea is that children, and adults alike, should pick up a new physical activity, practice it, and then send in a video of themselves doing 10 repetitions of that activity.

Pupils, teachers and parents have showcased a variety of activities, from football to trampolining.

There is also the "Shoebox Challenge" where children create a scene inside a shoebox.

Meanwhile, Florentina Taylor - a school teacher at Oasis Academy Lister Park, in North Avenue - is well on the way to running a total of 175km to raise money for the NHS.

So far, she has run 82km in total and is pushing herself to not let any of her individual runs fall below 5km.

She said: "It is incredibly difficult, because I am not the athletic type, however every effort is worth it to support the NHS.

"I have friends who are doctors and health workers and they wrote to me saying that our support raises their spirits and boosts their morale in these times of high pressure."

The teacher has raised £105 so far towards a £150 target.

You can find out more and donate at: justgiving.com/crowdfunding/florentina-taylor/updates/52a31?utm_term=Z5Yxx87jV