1997 In January, Three Lions won an NME Brat Award for Musical Event Of The Year. The Frank Skinner Show returned for Series 2 in January. Scrutiny from the BBC censors and TV watchdog Biteback resulted in sketches and material that were considered too risqué being cut from his chat-show.  “We did a piece about a bloke who’d been accused of getting over familiar with his next door neighbours’ dog. I said the police had gone round his house looking for leads - but he’d been seen outside getting into a brown Rover.”  Guests included Gene Wilder, Ozzy Osbourne, Michael Palin, history-making astronaut Buzz Aldrin, millionaire Ivana Trump, Jerry Lee Lewis’ child-bride - Myra Lewis-Williams, former KGB Spy Oleg Gordievsky, world champion boxer Marvellous Marvin Hagler and Drew Barrymore’s mother - Jade. Frank headlined the Melbourne Comedy Festival, in March in Australia.  Following the success of a sell-out four week run he enjoys a fortnight run in Sydney. In May, having shared a flat with David Baddiel for five years Frank got his own place - 100 yds. down the road “I lived by myself for seven years after I left home and I actually quite liked it. I used to like eating baked beans out of a tin and sitting naked watching Sergeant Bilko at 11 O’clock at night. You can’t do that if you share a flat with someone. Other people’s nakedness, unless you’re in love with them is a pretty off-putting thing.” From September to November, Frank embarked on a 100 date national tour playing to an audience in excess of 250,000 people.  Over the four months Frank covered 11,300 miles on the road - the equivalent of driving from London to Auckland, New Zealand.  Frank Skinner’s last stand-up tour, in 1994, completely sold-out in advance for a 60 date run. Frank performed at London’s Battersea Power Station in December, making the Guinness Book Of Records as Britain’s biggest solo comedy performance. The specially built venue took three weeks to build, involving 35 trucks and 2 65 foot cranes. The 6000 seat auditorium was also used for the hand over ceremony in Hong Kong in June.