Before we start what is actually a fairly exciting week (by recent standards), just a reminder if you haven’t noticed that last week’s Run For Money is now up – watch it before it’s inevitably taken down. It’s got a great ending, and the next one isn’t until October, I think.
Anyway:
- University Challenge (8pm, Monday, BBC2) – Go on then.
- Wipeout (Tuesday and Thursday, ABC) – the last time for a while it’s on twice a week, I think. I believe this Tuesdays one is a couples edition.
- Big Brother US (Thursday, CBS) – Probably won’t bill this after this week, but it will be mildly interesting to see how the saboteur twist plays out. I was never a massive fan of America’s Player in honesty so I wonder what will be different here.
- Magic Numbers (Friday, The London Studios) – just noticed this, it looks like a run through of upcoming Stephen Mulhern premium rate phone-in-a-thon that is a bit like Talking Telephone Numbers. Tickets through Applause Store, do shout if you go – I’d have gone myself but I’m busy that night unfortunately.
- 101 Ways To Leave a Gameshow (6:30pm, Saturday, BBC1) – After a Total Wipeout repeat which may prove a bit of overkill, it’s been a long time comiong but finally we’ll see if Steve Jones and Nemone can entertain for more than five minutes. I hope they do have 101 ways for people to leave, and don’t think people on the internet won’t be counting.
- Fort Boyard (Saturday, France 2) – Well it’s make or break year for the fort, and the French have taken on the two-team version of the show that’s proven mildly popular in Scandinavia and Eastern Europe. They’ve tweaked it, will it work? Let’s hope so. This should be avaliable on the Fort Boyard site after the episode has gone out, although the fact they haven’t updated it yet is a bit of a worry.
Hmm… interesting… RFO Saint Pierre et Miquelon, according to the site listings on their website, are screening the FB episodes a week behind. Here’s hoping that changes!
Unrelatedly, I just heard a mixed version of the Divided theme as backing music during an ep of Crash on Dave. Hmm.
And the episode is from 2006. Double hmm.
As may or may not be already known, the upcoming series of UC was filmed entirely in the academic year gone by, so there ought to be no way the press can make a big deal about a contestant being ineligible. It does mean, though, that the series champions will have quite a wait before the final is broadcast.
Also, there are now two chances to catch each episode, the repeat being on Tuesday at 7:30pm.
But for the fourth year running, Auntie believes that the first week of July is the best time to start broadcasting the series. DOESN’T she think that a lot of potential viewers might be abroad at this time, and thus can’t even catch up on iPlayer??!? The August start for the 2006/7 series was at least some bit more convenient.
The opening match is between St Andrews, appearing in their fourth consecutive series and tenth overall in the Paxman Era, and Bristol, making only their third appearance since 2004 and eighth overall PE. In all but the Gail Trimble Series, the losers of the opening match have scored enough to play again – but it’s not impossible for a stat of this sort to be meaningless, as the current World Cup has demonstrated more often than not.
And more than likely some people might be asking: will this series go the way of the last two and be dominated by someone who, like Alex Guttenplan and GT, is so remarkably brilliant on the buzzer?
Given that the beast is on for 37 weeks a year, there’s not really a good time to launch it. If they start it in September, the winning contestants will be doing their exams by the final and be on their way out of college possibly.
Re: 101 Ways to Leave a Gameshow – judging by the promo, they all basically involve being plunged into water.
Really though if there are eight contestants an episode, and I think eight episodes, they’ll surely be 64 ways at most – 56 actually assuming the winner of each show doesn’t leave. And as this is from the guys who ruined Wipeout for the UK, we can easily half that number by the time repeats are considered.
For Fort Boyard – and everything else on France2/3/4/5 (like Mission Millenium – France 3’s new summer adventure game) , you may want to try their brand new catch-up service launched today (don’t know if any geoip block is enforced) – http://www.pluzz.fr/
Ooh, good stuff thanks Setsunael, a random episode of Teut Le Monde… seems to work OK (in the UK at least). And also thanks for reminding me about Mission Millennium (http://programmes.france3.fr/mission-millenium/?page=teaser).
Interesting appearance on BARB today with ITV’s top 30 for the week ending 27th June. The Chase has appeared twice with 26th and 30th places respectfully.
I know they had the football boosting them and primetime is struggling at the moment but I cannot recall a 5pm daytime show on ITV1 reaching the top 30 shows for a single week.
Well done them.
I am glad to see that “The Chase” is doing well for ITV. From what I have seen on YouTube, it’s got a good format. It looks to be a good general knowledge/trivia show, and reminds me in some ways of what I’ve seen of “Fifteen-To-One”, which is another good format along those lines.
Would it work in the USA? Don’t know. Producers aren’t beating down the doors to offer general knowledge game shows here, although “Jeopardy!” continues to do well.
The biggest problem I could see would be in casting the Chaser(s). Successful game show contestants here are not celebrities in their own right. I doubt that you could go through the “Jeopardy!” winners and find somebody you could mold into a Mark the Beast.
To be honest, the three Chasers weren’t exactly celebrities here either.
I suspect the obvious choice might be KJ – which would be perfectly fine! I’d then and go throw in Ogi Ogas from Millionaire, and there’s a couple of others who have done multiple shows.
Actually, that wouldn’t be a bad fit for GSN.
I think you’ve got something there! “The Chase” would be a good show for GSN, and might help restore some of the cred that some of the shows they have run have expended.
What’s more, there is precedent. GSN picked up on “Grand Slam” (another good format!) a few years back, and those episodes are, as best I am aware, still uploaded that they may be viewed by any who are interested.
Always worth researching this sort of thing properly, as they don’t say on That Other Wiki. Research shows that this is the first time a 5pm quiz has made ITV’s top 30 since the previous ratings system was introduced in 2002.
Well, almost… an episode of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” appeared at position 26 after going out at 5pm on a Thursday, but that particular Thursday was Christmas day 2003.
So, yes, well done Chasers.
The Chase today: one guy in the final. £40k. The outcome will be fairly obvious, considering he got only 4k in the minute, but…still, huge pot.
Very obvious outcome today… Mark Labett standing up and applauding the solo player. Just a shame the other players were rubbsh.