Happy International Rachel Stevens Day everybody! It turns out that she’s currently acting as Mel B’s assistant in the New Zealand version of The X Factor (Daily Mail link). Amazing, but she could totally be the new Dannii in the UK version. Here is your Rachel flag to print out and fly outside your office.

In other news, Only Connect starts on BBC4 tonight at 8:30pm with swish updated graphics and a double-elimination first stage. Also Channel 4’s shuffled afternoon line-up begins today next Monday (oops), 1001 Things… at 12:40, Four Rooms at 2:10, Countdown 3:10. Looks like a big upgrade for Countdown although I suspect that half hour won’t actually make a huge difference – 400-450k maybe? The interesting figure is the one that 1001 Things… gets, because we toyed with the idea of Countdown moving to lunchtime, so it will be interesting to see if it pulls any audience there.

It’s round eight of Mix It Up Real Good tonight, 8pm, free to enter, and it’s a game of Five Card Draw. Do come and join us.

That clashes with JLS Does Deal Or No Deal On Channel 4. Play and chat!

MEANWHILE, this morning I’ve been using the dark arts to watch a Canadian cable show called Panic Button, which is due to air in the US soon. I saw a trailer for it and thought it looked kind of interesting – the pitch film suggests it’s set in a haunted house, but the reality appears to be a remote institution. In it five people face their fears for apparently no other reason than to try and get over them, by completing tests set out to them by a disembodied cold computer voice. The first half of the show is taken up by a sort of more extreme version of that bit with the prisoners escaping the underground dungeons on Fort Boyard, but a bit more tailored to each person’s fears. The second half is taken up by more specific challenges the first one more proactive (put your hand in the tank of snakes to retrieve a bone), the final one more of an endurance test in the vein of I’m a Celeb. Contestants quit by hitting their panic button or by yelling “panic, panic, panic!” they win if they get through all four levels.

It’s quite clear what they’ve done here is film 30 different contestants go through the game and cut and paste  so that a) a selection of different fears and therefore tests are shown during each episode and that b) there will be enough drop outs so the final segment will have two people in it doing different things, with the likelihood that one will ‘win’ and one will ‘lose’. The graphics show people in different parts of the facility, but clearly it’s just the same course dressed up for different people.

If you like the Saw/Cube ideas and aesthetic (and I do), you’ll probably get a kick out of this, I did find it genuinely thrilling and un-nerving, the show’s biggest problem is that it’s basically too dark and whilst that might be acceptable for scaring the contestants, for the viewers the dark passages element is actually a bit irritating – it’s twenty minutes of screaming and not being able to see very much. However if you do like this sort of thing (and I rather suspect you already know if you like this sort of thing), it’s worth a look if you can get past the geoblocking.

7:15pm UK time,
Pro Sieben or naughty internet streaming

Tweet us with #bbsdr or leave Youtube comments on the commentary stream.

Again, AGAIN, for the forty-first time in fact it’s time for German überstar Stefan Raab to defend his money from people who would try and claim it, and tonight there’s a whopping €1.5m in the jackpot. And once again we’ll be providing an English language commentary which will run about ten seconds behind your internet stream of choice, and about thirty seconds behind the actual broadcast.

We know.

Still it’s normally quite good fun, and tonight’s musical guests include Hurts, Gentleman and ZAZ.

Tonight should be extra exciting, because Fifty 50 Show’s Lewis Murphy has gone through ALL the old episodes and taken notes so at least one of us this evening should sound more knowledgeable than normal.

Once again you are encouraged to join in the fun by tweeting with the hashtag #bbsdr or leaving comments on the Youtube stream, either of which will get picked up by us in the studio (we’re not in a studio) and we’ll read out the best things. The show starts at 7:15pm UK time, although the first 45 minutes is picking a contestant, the games start proper around 8pm. Recently it’s tended to finish around midnight, but it’s an open ended live show so it could finish later than that.

This is the stream we will probably be using to commentate on.

Here’s our live stream link! [Part 2] – open in a new stream to listen.

We’re limited to broadcasting in four hour bursts, so around 10pm we will need close down our first stream and start a fresh one. This will happen during an ad break or musical interlude, and we will update on here and on Twitter with the new addresses as soon as we can.

If you’re new to Schlag den Raab then welcome! I’ve included a basic FAQ under the cut.

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Slow news week.

However, @artbegotti pointed a video out to me this afternoon claiming it to be a bit Fort Boyard-esque, whilst also being from the mind of Bother’s Bar favourite Aussie comedian Shaun Micallef – as it turns out the very sketch somebody introduced me to his show with:

(Incidentally there’s usually a “gameshow segment” in The Micallef P(r)ogram(me), many of which are very funny indeed so do check them out.)

Fort Boyard already has “pied marin” – sea legs, and it’s one of our favourite games. But imagine something a bit puzzlier and spatial awareness-y, how incredible could it be? Would probably require one of the Fort’s bigger rooms, especially if it would have to rotate.

Speaking of Aussie comics, it looks like the second series of Bother’s Bar favourite 31 Questions is wrapping up filming soon, so fingers crossed it won’t be long until broadcast!

Meanwhile they’re looking for contestants for The Million Pound Drop, if you want a go you can apply here.

TERNIGHT!

• Who Wants to be a Millionaire: The People Play (ITV, 9pm) – Once again real people with real sob stories will get to sit in the chair for the chance to walk away at £20,000. But this time there’s an iOS app! Although I think you’ll be able to play along on the website as well. Tonight’s one is live, but they seem to be recording another one for future use. We’re still waiting for the JLS break-up special.
• And that’s on at the same time as The Apprentice! (BBC1, 9pm) What hilarious things will the stupid contestants come out with tonight? Episode two is on tomorrow, and further episodes go out on Wednesdays.
• First series Fun House and Knightmare on Challenge on Friday from 10pm. Kids telly in prime time, it’ll be interesting to see how that does.
• This Saturday it’s the last Schlag den Raab for a few months. We’ll be providing a live commentary again. This time there’s €1.5m in the pot and Hurts are performing live. So.

In other news, ITV are recording a pilot of Take One For The Team on Friday 24th May. Can’t go I have an engagement, but if you go do let us know what you think. Be warned, it’s at Pinewood.

And look! It’s the new Fifty 50 Show this week featuring David Bodycombe and new panellist Jack Waley-Cohen of our good friends at QuizQuizQuiz.com. Check it out.

• Direct download
• Show notes
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ENJOY your day off, I’M WORKING.

This does look great, however:

I hope they’ve got the money amounts in futuristic font, although that might be a step too far.