Saturdays, 8pm,
ITV
“Hang on Brig, this is just an extension of the brand, shouldn’t you just be pointing to the previous You Bet show discussion page and leaving it there?”
Possibly. Possibly. I was as prepared to write this off as much as anyone, the two “specials” being a fabulously aggravating, poorly directed, poorly formatted watch.
But. But but but but. We were alerted to the On Tour pre-titles in the ITV Press Centre and this actually looks… quite fun? Certainly much looser than the studio one (people have noticed tonal simularities with In For A Penny) – if you don’t want to invite comparisons with the original then making it completely differently might be quite smart. It looks like if you succeed at your challenge you win £5,000, and I believe the best celeb bettor also wins £5,000 for charity, but there’s been no mention of any forfeits (although that looks like Holly Willoughby on a rollercoaster so they might not have been completely removed). I don’t even know if they’ve even kept the audience betting – each episode was recorded over two days, they could have just had whoever was around going to a website on their phone or something.
We might be getting overexcited about a show that sounds like it’s basically the best bits of shows that are a bit like You Bet! but aren’t You Bet! from the past twenty years, and there will still be the nagging feeling that the editing and direction will still have been designed to irritate everyone over the age of 25. But for now I’m willing to give the benefit of the doubt. Let us know what you think in the comments.
Taking it outside is a plus as in the studio it felt too much like BGT and multiple other shiny floor shows.
If the format is to change in that it’s more like the old You Bet! in that people aren’t competing against each other and if they fail they fail plain and simple then that’s another good thing, and it also gets rid of the BGT-esque attempts at crocodile tears to win the money.
One of the things in this series is apparently a guy who can do Rubik’s Cubes with his feet. Which sounds awfully familiar to a guy who could do Rubik’s Cubes with his feet on Stephen Mulhern You Bet-u-like Go For It! a decade ago, although that was for a thousand pounds. I wonder if it’s going to be the same guy?
It would be good to find out how many contestants are known about and scouted by the show, possibly also given challenges to do as opposed to genuine people who write in.
We know that a lot of challenges from the one at Xmas were taken directly from the Germans and presumably they found some people who best fit. I’ve always wondered in the original how much back and forth there was with producers with regards to challenges.
A different man – he is a relative of mine.
Audience voting confirmed, so points still work as winning the Yes/No equivalent
Was this looser and more fun than the studio one? Yes. Was it still quite irritatingly edited, especially with the sound that was all over the place? Also yes.
Also the winning celeb wins a medal and there’s no forfeit, so it’s You Bet in name only really.
1.4m ep 1 overnight.
Much more fun than the last attempt, with the location opening up the challenges in an entertaining way.
I only bothered with the first episode of the last one – it dragged too much. This one sped along, though edited with a chainsaw, as is the style of the time.
I agree with other comments. Having the show taking place in different open air locations allows the freedom for a better variety of challenges and allows them to push the boundaries more compared to in a studio where you are limited for space and ideas
I rather miss the celeb forfeit part at the end for me that was the cherry on top of the cake from the first run, I liked the way they got different musical performances in the first reboot in the studio made it more of a variety show.
One thing I noticed which others might not have picked up on is that all the challenges was themed around their location which I thought was quite smart. Frisbees, Picnics, Ice Cream, Swimming Trunks, Sticks of rock, Coconuts all beach related. The way it was themed made it better and more focused.
The sound was fairly poor, up and down through the whole of the episode bit all over the shot some parts it felt pegged back. Not sure if this was the way it was edited poorly or my tv but other programs the sound on my tv have been fine. Is it me ? or has everyone found this ?
The fact they put it in the 8pm slot It needed extending that extra 15 minutes to make it feel like the main event of the Saturday night schedule also considering this was the only new show last night on ITV it felt it was left floating hence the viewing figures if there was a new show before it or after it might have been higher figures. Next week Win Win might boost it up a bit
Will 100% watch again. Enjoyable Saturday night entertainment for the whole family
Although disappointing to lose the forfeit cutting that extra 15 minutes to take it back to an hour was absolutely the right call.
1.3m episode 2 overnight.
I actually thought it was slightly more polished this week and the sound and edit was better. Last week I felt like I was watching a good enough version of a tv show but this week the challenges had stepped up a notch and it felt like I was watching a live proper show that’s how engaged I was last night.
Maybe the location being at Goodwood changed my perspective being more high obtain and gaining more energy and a buzz from the audience compared to just a beach.
The drift car challenge was my favourite, very edge of your seat stuff the fact she slipped up a few times got the crowd and us at home backing her it was honestly nail biting. Also the horse racing was a fascinating result took me by surprise how it turned out.
The open air locations more now working in their favour by pushing the boat out for bigger better challenges.
Basketball challenge looks so cool in next weeks ep can’t wait already!
An improvement last night for me such a shame it fell a bit on viewing figures.
I don’t really understand why it’s got this weird field-removed style effect placed over it, but it’s quite annoying.
Also why is the music so dramatic? They’re identifying cars not walking into Mordor.
First ep has a Thinkbox consolidated figure of 1.54m so won’t be making BARB, it’s demos aren’t that great either, actually less good than Fortune Hotel despite a higher overall figure.
Ep 2 Thinkbox 1.42m.
This is moving to 6pm from the 20th September.
Probably not a show of confidence, but that feels a better slot for it. Similar to Gladiators – it’s family telly to watch with dinner.
1.07m overnight ep 3. You’d think the move to 6pm can’t be much worse, but The Hit List is a solid performer.
9pm is entirely the wrong slot for it though. I didn’t even realise it was on, having thought I’d missed it. What the hell are they playing at, putting Big Family Guess Show on after the watershed?
1.07 is shocking. Wrong slot but deserves far more. It’s a better show than last year but obviously not good enough for people to want to watch. Too different to last year? I know I said moving outdoors was a plus but maybe most preferred the studio?
I think lots of people watched the Xmas ones for curiosity, but once you’ve decided it’s not your thing it’s difficult to get those people back.
Whispers going around inside the industry this won’t be returning in 2026.
Oh I think unless it suddenly doubles its audience moving to 6pm that’s a given. It’s not doing a great deal on catch-up to make up for it, demos aren’t amazing.
What was the overnight figure last night’s episode please ?
Did it work moving it very early in the 6pm time slot ?
Thinkbox (+7, big screen only) has updated, week 3 1.21m, not in the A16-34 commercial Top 50, although does sneak into 16-24 with 25k.
Week 4 Thinkbox 1.22m, so the move to 6pm hasn’t hurt it, which is the positive way of looking at it.
I wonder if people are getting Mulhern fatigue? He’s a decent presenter, but ubiquitous for the last couple of years. And if you’re bored of him, you’re not watching another of his shows.