What 7,000 teenagers talked about during The Big, Big Debate

  • Published

What happens when you put 7,000 teenagers in a room with a hashtag, free WiFi, and a referendum debate?

On Thursday afternoon, BBC Scotland hosted a Big Big Debate for 16 and 17-year-olds in Glasgow's SSE Hydro.

Before and during the show, we asked the audience to tweet using #BigBigDebate, external, which trended number one in the UK for four hours.

For those of you who didn't make it along, here's what they said.

  • If you want to watch the debate, tune in to BBC One Scotland or online at 9pm, or 10.30pm in the rest of the UK on BBC One.

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The audience started filing in early in the afternoon...

James Cook tweet

...and found out it was a little bit hot in the SSE Hydro.

Callum Davidson tweet
Megan tweet
Jack tweet

However, the young adults patiently waited for the debate to begin.

Calvin tweet
Zoe tweet
David tweet
Marty tweet

The entertainment started as the crowd was warmed up by comedian Des Clarke...

James Cook tweet

...although some didn't appreciate his outfit.

Des tweet

After the entertainment, the panel - George Galloway, Ruth Davidson, Nicola Sturgeon, and Patrick Harvie - took to the stage.

George tweet
Water tweet
Andy tweet

The serious bit of the day - the debate - got underway in the late afternoon, but we won't give too much away in case you want to watch it later.

Emmylou tweet
Debate
Debate tweet
Sturgeon tweet

Although there was still room for a bit of light-heartedness...

Freddo
Ian tweet
Slam tent tweet

As the #BigBigDebate hashtag reached the top of the trending charts, people outside the Hydro started following along with the audience tweets.

Riley tweet
Leslie tweet
Wylie tweet

But the debate ended, and the crowds dispersed with a big decision to make in seven days.

Douglas tweet
  • Want to see what all the fuss was about? Tune in on Thursday night at 9pm on BBC One Scotland and online, or 10.40pm on BBC One in the rest of the UK.