The Cellar

Hello kids, sorry, slow updates this week (it’s basically Christmas party season, you know how it is I’m sure), although fingers crossed we’re getting a report on the Play Your Cards Right pilot on Friday. Anyway, a few things that have been bought up that probably require wider recognition:

• The Exit List is premiering in the ITV Tuesday night flopzone on January 10th. This is a shame, I thought it was alright from the game I saw being filmed. I do not know how it is being edited and I largely suspect there are not many winners, is my initial impression given this news, but I do think it is a lot better than the rubbish High Stakes.
• However the The Exit List press release people ought to learn how to count, the maze was 24 rooms in the pilot, but it’s 26 rooms in the actual broadcast show – that second row of five has become a second row of seven. It is never a good sign when your press releases aren’t accurate, is it?
• Fear Factor IS BACK! and it’s done very well, two episodes last night averaging a 3.4 rating in the demo between them (and picking up on the second episode). The show hasn’t changed much, although I’m not entirely convinced it’s more extreme than before – a couple of set pieces are combined, and the explosions are bigger, but the claims feel like more mouth than trousers. It is still plenty entertaining if you like that sort of thing (and it is very much the sort of thing we quite like) and it’s nice to see Joe Rogan is still basically being a hilarious twat.
• Meanwhile You Deserve It (shall we take to calling it Clue or No Clue?) scored a 0.9 rating at the same time. Proof, if proof were needed, that watching people eat scorpions is scientifically about four times more entertaining than charity.

Well tonight at 8pm is the second episode of High Stakes with Jeremy Kyle (or if you prefer it’s the final episode of Minute To Win It on ITV2), but HS certainly isn’t the first show to offer gambles that nobody is ever going to take, but probably the biggest example of this was CBS’ worldwide non-hit (pulled after two episodes in several countries) The Power of 10 with Drew Carey. TPoT is a state-of-the-nation predicting game, and after battling an opponent over a number of questions you start earning money, multiplying by “the power of ten” (they do in fact just mean “ten”) each time you are right up to a whopping $10m.

I’ve always been of the opinion that offering gambles nobody in their right mind is going to take is poor formatting.

Speaking of things which might not work, Celebrity The Chase begins 6pm on Saturday 29th October.

8pm, ITV1

(aka “KYLE’ll be the judge of that” – Thanks Dan)

We can hold it off no longer – tonight is the inaugural episode of High Stakes, a show I’ve not been backward in suggesting “sounds a bit rubbish”. But I’ve changed my mind before, will I do so again? Is picking numbers going to be exciting? A prize structure that nobody is going to gamble on a good thing? Will ex-gambling addict Jeremy Kyle be any use whatsoever? Ignore the idea that it’s the first show where the host can help contestants, it isn’t (see Treasure Hunt, Nick Weir’s Catchphrase passim).

If nothing else, we quite like the exciting floor screen from the adverts.

Once again, we wonder what Jeremy is pondering in that photograph.

History of High Stakes on the Bar: Pilot recording, Series recording.

I’m convinced I’ve forgotten something off of this list, so if you remember it do say something:

• The Amazing Race (Sunday, CBS)
• Deal or No Deal – LIVE! “What, you mean it isn’t live already???” Anyway two weeks of live Deal start on Monday. It will be interesting to see how they keep to time. (4pm, Monday-Friday, C4)
• Only Connect – The first quarter final is between the Social Networkers and the Antiquarians. From this week you will be able to playalong LIVE! with the Connecting Walls online. I’m not massively convinced it will work very well, but then it’s not as if you have to do it. (8:30pm, Monday, BBC4)
• Coral Late Night Poker – It will never be quite the same as it was with the rather smokier atmosphere, but at least Vicki Coren is an amusing commentator. Probably needs a looser partner than James Akenhead, though. This is the second half of the first game. (1am, Monday night, C4)
• Minute to Win It (8pm, Tuesday, ITV2)
• High Stakes – Well, you never know. (8pm, Tuesday, ITV1)
• Impossible? – Well nobody watched it last week but I’m going to bill it anyway because I think it deserves a bit better even if the charity angle of the celebrity specials is a bit misguided. This week, the folks from OKTV have a go by the looks of things. (11pm, Wednesday, Five)
• Ton of Cash – This has proven so popular on VH1 in the US they’ve moved it to two in the morning to as to not show up the other programmes on the network. (God knows when, VH1 in the US)
• Schlag den Raab – We’re now looking to bill Stefan Raab every week. The jackpot is €500,000. Pro Sieben have scheduled Zombie Strippers afterwards. (7:15 UK time, Saturday, Pro 7 and hopefully naughty internet streaming)

High Stakes begins Tuesday October 11th on ITV1.

I’m having nightmares that having slagged the idea off for so long, I’m going to watch it and end up enjoying it. Brr.

The teriffic Barney Sausage has written up High Stakes for us and sent in some photos.

I’m going to thank him here publically because my SMTP mail server is playing up.