Great news for fans of knowing things!
- Mid-July feels a bit early really but yes! University Challenge and Only Connect start next week on BBC2, Monday from 8pm.
- The nation’s favourite quiz Fifteen to One starts Monday at 3pm on C4! Last series averaged about 350,000 against Tipping Point, but I’m sure BARB just put the decimal point in the wrong place and it’s the massive hit C4 and Twitter likes to think it is and well worth three more series. It also means Deal or No Deal is being rested for the first time in years. It’s up against repeats of Secret Dealers, so it will probably get 40m viewers or something. Benchmark remains off the schedule to give rival shows a chance.
- Two Tribes is also back on Monday at 6pm, and if we’re lucky the tie-in app will be released too. Eggheads once again shifts to 6:30, repeats presumably.
- New episodes of Pointless, for those of you who are keeping track! The Chase continues on ITV as well.
- Next week’s “big” show that will get its own show discussion post is Hive Minds, Tuesday 8pm on BBC4. It’s a quiz with a wordsearch element with Fiona Bruce which everyone has already declared rips off Now You See It despite looking rather different. Being BBC4 presumably the questions are quite tough and there are enough variations on the theme to fit half an hour, we’ll see.
If the questions from the test pilot are anything to go by, be prepared for some intensely difficult questions on Hive Minds.
Also we’re a week or two away from my Two Tribes episode, huzzah!
I auditioned for Hive Minds. Didn’t get through to be on the show, sadly, but from what I saw at the audition, the format looks VERY interesting.
In unrelated news, I’m doing an audition over Skype for Freeze Out this afternoon as I couldn’t make it to Manchester on Sunday, AND I’ve just filled out and sent a form in for 1000 Heartbeats Series 2. The guy who auditioned me for Hive Minds is also doing 1000 Heartbeats, so with any luck, I might get a shot at that too
Yeah, the questions were a lot more puzzle-y than I expected, and they really do more with the format than I thought they could.
Jack was it? I’m also applying to 1000 Heartbeats because he’s casting! Haha
Yep, that’s him! Jack Kisby-Carroll if my memory serves. When he rung me up to shortlist me for Hive Minds, he said he thought I was great at the game and a friendly guy so I like to think I gave him a good impression of myself. I’m hoping to carry that over for 1000HB should I get the opportunity. Although, I HAVE had to declare that to the people behind Freeze Out as it’s a stipulation that if I’m picked to be on it, I can’t apply or audition for anything until all their episodes have broadcast, which I’m sure is standard procedure for ANY TV company. If I can at least get on one of these shows, I’ll be happy
I’m on Hive Minds (should be in the third episode). Having been thoroughly unconvinced by the format during the audition, I was won over during the actual recording. I think there’s just enough variety in the rounds for it to work, and certainly a lot of play-along-and-shout-at-the-telly potential.
I think the biggest risk with it is that it might be seen a little too blatantly as an attempt to find a replacement for Only Connect now that’s moved to BBC2. Teams of three, several of whom have been on OC before; incomprehensible team names, often ending -philes; four rounds, one of which gets contestants out from behind their desks; a final quickfire buzzer round. But we’ll see – no way to tell how it’ll be received till it’s actually on.
Thanks Simon, looking forward to watching it.
How did you find the filming venue Simon? I’m intrigued because I go to university nearby and was very surprised to find out they had the space to film it!
Slightly weird as a filming venue. For those who don’t know, we were in the studio space of the Lyric Theatre in Belfast. We spent a lot of time while waiting to film hanging out in the boardroom, or in the theatre café, or in the rehearsal space. There was a show on in the main house of the theatre, which meant that only Fiona Bruce got her own dressing room (contestants had to change in the toilets). It also meant that on a couple of occasions filming had to stop because the five minute call bell could be heard.
The actual studio itself was fine though, with more than enough room for the set and cameras. Some of it was a little ramshackle at times – a few technical issues at first, but I think it got slicker as the week went on.
There’s a few clips up from the first episode: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b062mz8b/clips
Looks quite fun, although they should give the contestants a stylus rather than jabbing at the screen, I feel.
Yeah, from using it I’m not sure if the tablet technology is all there yet, a stylus would’ve been easier to use.
All growing pains I’m sure. We got the “Carry On Films” Superhive and completely borked it, ending up with some nonsense like “Carry On Cable”, the famous Liberal Democrat Carry On film
I expect there’s an app on the way, and in theory it should work quite well, especially if the questions aren’t really open ended OC-style.
It would make a lot of sense given they would just be using the same tech they use on the show. Didn’t they have an app for Antiques Roadshow? Honestly an app would make the world of difference
The producers said a play-along app or website will be a high priority if it gets a second series.