The Cellar

This is quite an exciting week actually.

• The Great Escape – I think it’s the last in the series tonight which actually I think is a shame. (Sunday, TNT)
• Who Wants to be a Millionaire School’s Out – just five weeks into the Summer holidays as well. This has rather snuck up. (8pm, Sunday)
• Only Connect – It’s baaaack! This week the Joinees play the Draughtsman whilst Victoria Coren casts a wry eye over the proceedings. (8:30pm, Monday, BBC4)
• Catchphrase – Pilot with Stephen Mulhern films in London on Monday. I expect there will be a recording report. (Monday, London)
• The Line Up – keep all your fingers crossed, I’m hoping to record a podcast on Thursday. It may be terrible. But it might be brilliant. It probably won’t come out for a few days after though.
• Fort Boyard – Last in the main run for 2012 of what’s been an enjoyable year, but I’m especially looking forward to the night-time one-offs over the next few months. (Saturday, 7:35pm UK time, France 2)

ITV1
9pm Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday

Yeah, wooh! The public.

Three special live editions where not only do members of the public get to sit in the hotseat, but everybody playing along at home can get their name and lights and even help out the contestants in the studio. Here’s the Millionaire site where you should be able to play along.

Edit: Although it sounds like Ask the Nation has been ditched.

Exciting!

In other news, Lost in TV is suggesting there’s a special recording of Millionaire? on Saturday 7th July, including new elements, presumably trialling things before the live days start on the Monday. Interesting! Thanks to @Buzzerblog for the tipoff.

July 7th a very exciting date, there.

Thanks to @ogbajoj for that, yes Civilian Millionaire is back in the Summer for good old forward thinking ITV1.

Details here, good luck!

Will they opt for the killer combo of thick people and really hard questions? Can’t wait to find out!

It’s the Board of Excitement Mother’s Day SPECIAL! I say special, it’s exactly the same as all the other ones. Still, this one comes with extra freaking-out-American-ness, as they celebrate their Mother’s Day on a different day because they have to be different.

• The Bother Series of Poker Round Six - Mother’s Day SPECIAL! I say special, it’s exactly the same as all the other ones. £5.50 to enter, open to all regardless of ability or league ambition. We’re halfway after this game! (8pm, Sunday, Pokerstars)
• Don’t Stop Me Now – aka 101 Ways To Leave a Talent Show (joke copyright Buzzerblog) (8pm, Sunday, Sky One)
• Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? Mother’s Day SPECIAL! I say special, it’s exactly the same as all the other ones. Steve Pemberton, Anthony Cotton and Samantha Womack team up with their mums to win lots of money for charity, and hopefully a viewer at home. (8:30pm, Sunday, ITV1)
• Only Connect Sport Relief Special – it’s a shame Sport Relief doesn’t really have a “thing” like Pudsey’s eyepatch or Comic Relief’s red noses. Maybe Victoria Coren will do the missing vowels round whilst running a mile. But one thing YOU won’t be running a mile from, right, are these celebrities!  The teams are the Cutters (Nick Hornby, Mark Gatiss, Samira Ahmed) and the Backhanders (Ian Hislop, Stephen Mangan and Allison Pearson). (8:30pm, Monday, BBC4)
• Four Rooms – Last year’s surprise hit is BACK! (8pm, Wednesday, C4)
• Accumulate! – It’s the last one ever! Now into its second season, according to the website. Dan Peake won some sort of lifetime student television acheievement award the other night, apparently. (Wendesday, RU:ON)
• The Apprentice - This has started a little bit earlier this year. Exciting. (9pm, Wednesday, BBC1)
• Sport Relief – Please give generously. (Basically all day, BBC)
• Winter Wipeout Celebrity Special – why they’re showing this now and not before the rugby and saving Pointless Celebs for a full run I do not know. (6pm, Saturday, BBC1)
• The Voice UK - It’s been a long build up, but it’s finally here. (7pm, Saturday, BBC1)
• Britain’s Got Talent - It’s the Saturday night TV clash we’ve all been waiting for. (8pm, Saturday, ITV1)
• The Million Pound Drop – Live! Now at one hour and forty five minutes, The Drop returns next weekend on Saturday and Sunday before going back to trad. Friday and Saturday rotation. This Saturday (the day) two of The Saturdays (the band) will be playing for charity. Apparently this series will be featuring some exciting twists – fingers crossed for a shoehorned in prisoner’s dilemma element!!!! (9:20pm, Saturday, C4)

We might try and watch Elton vs Simon – The Liveshow on Pro Sieben next Saturday as well. It probably won’t last six hours like Schlag den Raab did last night.

2012, there.

• Fort Boyard: Ultimate Challenge – First British (sort of) episode in over eight years, and now with teenagers. If you missed it this morning, it’s repeated tomorrow at 5:00pm on CITV. New episodes 9am on Saturday mornings, repeated Mondays at 5pm. We saw the US broadcast and came to the conclusion it’s probably the best version of the show you’re going to do in 22 minutes, and the tournament structure helps the feeling that it’s not really all that exciting when one team goes into the end game with a massive advantage because it’s all about the long game.
• World’s Strongest Man - The Final (8pm, Sunday, Five)
• Perfection – Nick Knowles returns with the true or false quiz. (4:30pm, Weekdaily, BBC2)
• Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is – This won’t get another billing, but when I was very ill last year I ended up watching quite a lot of it and enjoying it, so. (5:15pm, Weekdaily, BBC2)
• Channel 4 Mash-Up Night -  To celebrate the channel’s 30th anniversary, er, in November, Channel 4 are doing a special event night where stars of C4 shows do different Channel 4 shows. Highlights from our perspective include Davina as a contestant on The Million Pound Drop (spread throughout the evening in typical C4 irritatingness) and 8 Out Of 10 Cats doing Countdown. (From 6:30pm Monday, C4)
• Only Connect – The Stainer vs Stainer Champion of Champion of Champions smackdown we’ve all been waiting at least a year for.  (8:30pm, Monday, BBC4)
• The Bank Job – Endemol’s newest hope – people answer questions and try and steal money from an apparent ACTUAL bank vault without being locked in it. The online game was fun, hopefully that will translate to the screen. Not sure about George Lamb though. (10pm weekdaily, 8:30pm Saturday, Channel 4)
• Pointless – All new episodes! It’s so difficult to keep track. They’re filming a ton of new episodes from this week, and a new round is promised. (Weekdaily from Tuesday, 5:15pm, BBC1)
• The Chase – New series, I think. (5pm, Weekdaily from Tuesday, ITV1)
• Celebrity Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? New Year’s Special - Featuring Richard Madeley and Sara Cox, Lee Mack and Stacey Solomon (can’t wait to see that) and Tom and Douggie from McFly. This one isn’t live. (9pm, Tuesday, ITV1)
• The UKGameshows.com Festive Fifty - Why not come and play poker on Thursday for free, to win actual money? Fifty quid to be given away! All the details. (Thursday, 8pm, Pokerstars)
• Celebrity Big Brother – 12 celebrities go into the house on Thursday night, and some of them will still be there in three week’s time. (9pm, Thursday, Five then variously every day on Five)
• The Magicians - Well I didn’t think the first series was all that, but it was pulling good numbers and you can’t argue with success. This year Darren McMullen (from Minute To Win It) is the new host, and the show’s going LIVE! with lots of pre-records and a viewer vote. (6:35pm, Saturday, BBC1)
• Take Me Out – No likey, no watchey. Now has its own ITV2 spin-off show. (7:30pm, Saturday, ITV2)
• The National Lottery: Who Dares Wins – God knows? No, Nick Knowles! (7:50pm, Saturday, BBC1)
• Celebrity Juice – I’ve just noticed this is getting late night repeats on ITV1. Is this new? Anyway apparently the one on next Saturday is the one with Ant and Dec on, and is not for the faint of heart or easily offended. (10:45pm, Saturday, ITV1)

Blimey, what a lot there. AND IT DOESN’T STOP THERE EITHER, we’ll be launching the Poll of 2011 later this evening. Can you wait? Well you’ll just have to.