We all love a gameshow and many have been made and broadcast on tv. It's so compelling to watch the contestants pit there wits against the clock a question or even a manual task. Who could forget such classics as Takeshi's Castle The price is right, Family fortunes, The Crystal Maze and Blind Date. These great shows have entertained for many years and still do so today even if they are reruns. Bullseye 321 and the price is right are firm favourites but who could forget Blockbusters and who wants to be a millionaire, Gameshows are a staple of TV and the afternoons are a good time to broadcast. Many famous people host the shows and they also invent new shows like Bradley Walsh and Noel Edmunds. Prizes vary from ridicoulous to extravagant, On blankety blank the prizes are awful really a cheque book and pen but shows like deal or no deal you can win £250000 or more. A great show will have a mix of bonus prizes like breaks away and material ones like jewellery and clothing. A decent amount of money should be given away I dont believe in poor prizes thats where the fun is in watching them win, Ok let's have a look now at some of the best gameshows to grace our screens.
Watching this show always brought a smile to my face as it was hilariously funny at times. At the start of the show between 100 and 142 participants would all have to perform a task and out of these so many would go through to the next round.
In Animuddle contestants have to grab a piece of a jigsaw that is scattered over the ground. There are many pieces but as soon as you get a piece you must find three other contestants with pieces that join yours, Once you find your matches you must sit down with the jigsaw pieces above your head and when the whistle blows to end the game you will go to the next round if you successfully formed an animal everyone else loses and is out.
Animuddle Game
Avalance is a game where a contestant must climb a steep hill to get to the top where a fortress is standing. It is hard to do as giant boulders are falling down and the contestant must avoid these by hiding in gaps strategically placed on the hill, Once he comes out the gap he cannot go back, Guards can also be in the gaps and push you out into the oncoming boulder and smaller rocks. If you get hit by the boulder you are out even if it does not knock you down the hill.
Avalanche Game
Ball Cupping, This game is like a giant pinball machine, The contestant will start the game by hitting the ball with a wooden mallet it goes into the pinball machine bouncing from left to right and the contestant must run to the bottom and with his plastic bucket try and catch the ball as it leaves the machine, most miss and fall into a dark brown mud swamp which is hilarious to watch.
Ball Cupping Game.
Big Bird Game
This game requires the contestant to dress up in a big bird type of suit with big floppy wings and feet. They are propelled along a wire to a central reservation where they must grab a rabbit by there bird feet, if they succeed they then drop it into a nest, If it is knocked down missed or they miss the nest they get a face full of steam, Later in the game they also get shot at with popcorn to make it even harder.
Bite the Bun,
This game has many contestants who have to grab a bun with there mouths, they cant use there arms as a rubber ring is around them, Some buns are higher than others and require them to climb on other people to get them, if anyone at the end does not have a bun they are out.
Bite the Bun Game
Blueberry Hill
This game requires contestants to hop forward up a hill wearing giant darumas like tomatoes, They have to stop when the guard has finished chanting Daruma-san ga koronda" (meaning "The Daruma fell down. If any contestants have not stopped in time they are pushed down the hill and are out. Any that get to the top without being spotted win, this is a funny game as the contestants fall and roll over themselves its impossible to get back up once fallen.
Bridge Ball,
A simple game where the contestant must cross a thin rope bridge while being shot at with balls by the emerald guard, if they fall which most do they are out but they do land into a safety net.
Bridge the Gap
the player must try and get across 2 rotating planks and back again but there are mats which can knock you off.
Catch It
a crazy version of baseball where the contestants are wearing darudas in a team colour and have to catch a ball that a is wacked by another player, virtually impossible as they bounce over each other like fat marsmallows.
Deep Float
Taking place on the beach a 100 or so contestants have to run and swim to a floating raft, guards and a large statue are on the raft so there is not much space to clamber aboard, but they have to try and clamber aboard as many as possible will try, the guards will try and push them off but they can also push the guards off insane action.
Die or Pie,
In die or pie there is a large cake with 6 holes in it, the contestant rolls a huge dice and whatever number they get they go to that hole, a pie chucker will throw a pie at there head if they miss they win if they get pie in the face they lose no 6 is best as its farthest away from the pie chucker,
Dino Ride,
similar to bronco billy the contestant has to spray a pink bat that flies across and if they get it wet enough it falls to the floor if not it goes back in and they lose, they also lose if they fall off the gettasaurus and sometimes get sprayed with steam by rock-kun.
Showdown Final game
The final game has five contestants facing up to five guards. Each has a motorised cart that they drive around trying to soak each others rings with water. If a guard or contestant has there paper ring broken they are out of the game. If a contestant manages to evade the guards and reach takeshi at the top of a castle they must try and soak his paper ring but it is much harder to do. If a contestant or more manage to do this they and the general have won the game. It is very difficult to beat the guards as they drive around in pairs or even three to every cart. Takeshi's cart is much bigger and has more water power. In later games the water pistols were replaced with laser guns and sensors that when they hit the carts in the right spot they would go up in smoke.
Final Fall is the last game played before contestants go into the final showdown. In this game contestants run down a tunnel to reach five holes in the ground. They must avoid the boxing monster who is waiting at the end. Three of the holes are safe and let the contestants go to the final showdown but the other two are not and you will meet Katsuo and Makoto who are waiting in the holes and you are eliminated.
Katsuo and Makoto capture a contestant.
This is not the entire game list as there are many more games that I have not covered.
Hayato Tani was the general on the show and was called General Lee in the UK version of the show. He orders the contestants and tells them when to start the games, Takeshi's Castle first aired between 1986 and 1990. It is a Japanese game show. Prizes for winning were one million yen at the time which was about £5000 sterling. Only nine contestants won during the shows complete duration which was 133 shows. The UK version of the show had Craig Charles as the host and sound dub he was funny and well suited to the job. Kateshi Kitano born 18th Jan 1947 is a Japanese comedian TV personality director actor author Video game creator and screenwriter and is known more famously as Beat Takeshi. Abroad he is known mainly for his film works as a Director and an actor such as Outrage 2010, Achilles and the Tortoise 2008 and Boiling point from 1990. Acting parts include the movie Ghost in the shell from 2017 and Blood and Bones from 2004, He has directed and acted in many films and also has done much television work also.
Takeshi Tikano in Blue was the count of Takeshi's castle and the ultimate goal was to reach him.
Craig Charles presented the sound for the English version of the show, This image is of Craig competing in the show I'm a celebrity get me out of here in 2014.
Ultraman has appeared on the show many times, In the kids only special Ultraman helped the children through a number of challenges Another occasion was in the Monster's special along with other members of the ultra brothers, Due to a licensing dispute the monster special episode was heavily edited and all Ultraman characters were removed.
Brad Lesley Born September 11th 1958 starred in Takeshi's castle. He was an American professional baseball player who became an actor and media personality. A large man at 6.6" tall and weighing 100kg he is fondley remembered as The Animal, Born in Turlock California he played for two major baseball teams, In 1978 he played for the Cincinnati reds as a pitcher, He was only 23 when he made his big league debut on July 31st 1982, His last MLB apperance was on October 4th 1985 when he played for the Milwaukee Brewers, He also played for the Hankyu Braves from 1986 to 1987. His role was as Animaru Resuri in Takeshi or Animal Leslie, He participated in games Stuck up and devil's domain. Sadly Brad died as he was suffering from Kidney problems but passed away due to heart problems and not a failed kidney, He was 54 years old,
Brad Lesley in Takeshi's castle as Animaru Resuri.
Karaoke is a Japanes invention so it had to be one of the games on the show and was actually quite funny to watch. The goal of this game is to go on stage and sing but sing your best as you are trying to impress the customers and the bar's boss, If you fail in such a simple task you will be thrown off stage by the bar bouncer, The Geisha bunny girls.if you do impress will take you back stage to the next round. The contestant will not know what song will be playing and in most cases will just have to make up there own lrics and dance in an effort to impress, Later episodes replace the boss with a steaming statue that will blow it's top if the contestant fails to impress. Black hearted bouncers will storm the stage to remove you hard luck.
Quake is another game I remember, This game requires five contestants who each dress up as old people, They have to sit down on a pile of cushions that will start to vibrate violently. They must keep perspective and balance and try not to fall over or off the piles of cushions, Any contestant who manages this balancing feat will have won at the end of the quake. There was a couples special version and a family version of the game. The family version has children balancing on top of the parents and have to stay without falling, The parents were all dressed as turtles for this game.
Honeycomb Maze or Square maze has contestants running through 12 rooms at 4 x 3 in diameter. Each room has four doors one for each side and they open inwards and outwards. But some doors are dummies and do not open, Contestants enter at the top right and have to find an exit to the bottom left as quickly as possible because two black handed black hearted guards are inside waiting to catch the contestant. If you are caught your face will be painted black and you will be thrown out of the maze. Later games added an extra exit to the top left room that when entered you would fall out into a muddy pool of water or the guards would help to throw you out. In this game you had to be fast as the guards were very close and it was just a matter of choosing the right door combination that got you out safely. A one off version of the game had the contestants blindfolded including the guard Strong, They made it even harder by locking four of the doors shut.
The Great Wall has contestants trying to scale a wall to enter into the castle grounds, If they manage to climb the wall they have to slide down a slope on the other side but can easily land in water mud and traps, There is only a limited time to perform the task anyone who has not managed to climb the wall is out once the whistle blows,
Home Run has contestants inching along a tall balancing beam while giant baseballs are swung at them, They are dressed in giant foam baseball uniforms to make the task even harder, Animal will try and knock them off using three giant baseballs on ropes that he aims and swings towards you, Winning is getting to the other side of the platform not an easy task.
Prod involves a contestant choosing a coloured ball from a sack without looking at the balls. The colour of the ball indicates the guard who he or she has to fight. Two round platforms sit in the middle of a pool. Contestant and guard each have a long lance with a rounded end and they must when the whistle goes prod and push each other until one falls into the water. Whoever is left standing wins the game.This game reminds me of Gladiators that was broadcast back in 1992 and aired for 112 episodes.
Takeshi's Castle originally aired on the Tokyo Broadcasting System and each episode had a running time of 54 minutes, Kunihiko Katsura and Elichi Mitsumi were the producers, Composers consisted of Tadakazu Onodera and Noriiaki Sato, Narrated by Shizuo Miyauchi and Runpei Masui.
Kunihiko Katsura one of the producers of the show occasionally participated in the game. He would be spotted as a guard for the game Sumo Rings and various other roles.
Producer Kunihiko Katsura participating in Takeshi's Castle.
In Sumo Rings there are five different rings each with a different colour and fighter. The contestant will start by choosing a coloured ball from random from a box. The colours are Red Blue Purple Green and Yellow, What ball comes out will respond to the same colour as the ring. Some of the guards the contestant has to fight are easier than others and it's a matter of luck what guard you will have to sumo fight. So the winner will be the one that get's there opponent out of the ring not an easy task,
Sumo Rings
This Sumo fighter contender is called Spud and hides inside a Konishiki Yasokichi head costume. This fighter is the easiest to beat and every contestant would like to challenge him to a sumo fight.
Spud is a Sumo Fighter.
Shin Suganuma is another sumo fighter contestants may have to face, This weedy character is slightly harder to beat than Spud and shouldn't pose much of a problem.
Shin Suganuma poses in episode 83.
This is the contender no one wants to meet as he is a pro sumo wrestler and very hard to beat. Going by the name of Shinoburyo or Porker a fat guard. Some contestants have cried pulling out a purple ball as this will put you in Shinoburyo's ring.In a special family show the parent and child fight the wrestler guard at the same time, In another special version contestant and guard would only use there backside to try and push each other off into water this time.
Shinoburyo professional sumo wrestler
This game requires a lot of skill as the contestants have to swing out to a platform using a rope. If they miss the platform they fall into a muddy mess of water if they manage to stay on the platform they win simple but fun,
Takeshi's Castle is about to make a return with your host Jonathan Ross as the commentator, The new series will be filmed in Thailand and will have 100 participant's who like the original show will be trying to storm the castle and take on some crazy obstacles and games. It will be aired on Comedy Central and Vice president Louise Holmes of Comedy central UK had to say, We cant wait to bring back the delightful mayhem which was Takeshi's castle the Gold standard in physical game shows, Jonathan's style of comedy and wit will bring back a long overdue level of funniness to this well loved gameshow, Made for the original fans and hopefully to create a whole new generation of Keshi heads. Comedy duo Dick and Dom previously did the voice over for the reboot of Takeshi's castle in 2013 but were disliked by fan's of the programme. Craig Charles was by far the best commentator for UK fans and was sadly missed when replaced by dick and dom. Lets hope this show is a success and Jonathan can fluently and naturally keep the flow of jokes and banter without resorting to scripts.
Louise Holmes Comedy Central Vice President.
You can't beat a bit of Bully.
Bullseye was a dart's and general knowledge gameshow that starred Comedian Jim Bowen as the host and was aired on TV between 1981 and 1995. First made for the ITV network by ATV IN 1981 then by Central from 82 to 95. The show had an animated mascot called Bully which was anthropomorphic which means it portrayed human like characteristic's and mannerism's. Bully wore a Red and White shirt and Blue Trousers. It was a big feature of the show and gave it super realistic quality and feel to the show. This show was just great and I have fond memories of watching when I was a young boy at school. I alway's looked forward to Bullseye and a Sunday spread of ginger cake and sandwiches with the family.
Bully was a pub sign called The Bull, In the animated cartoon which play's at the beginning of the original series Bully jumps out of the sign just leaving the outline artwork and walk's into the Bull pub with his dart's in hand ready for a game. Bully throws a bullseye at the board and the human voice say's Its a Bullseye and here's your host Jim Bowen. Chas and Dave could easily have wrote the music for this show.
Bullseye was alway's recorded to a live audience who were immaculately dressed. Old people young people it appealed to everyone and Jim would kindly comment on his great audience.The show's contestant's consist of three team's of two people. The duo would take turn's to come onto the show and talk a little about themselves. Are you married and who do you work for general questions to break the ice.Firm's could not be mentioned then so they had to say something like I work for a building manufacturer.Jim will also ask if you have any hobbies or interest's and family.
To start the game one of the team sit's in the chair asking for categories and the other team mate will play the category board and try and get a dart into the chosen subject. Subjects are Faces, Places, Sport, Showbiz, Affairs, History, Books, Words, Britain, and Spelling. Cash rewards from the top of board start at £30 then £50 then £100 and then £200 for a correct answer. The Bullseye is £200 but is hard to get. After a question that category will be used and another must be chosen, If a contestant missed the question segment on the board his team mate could not answer the question but another opponent could try and answer to steal the money. After the third round the lowest scoring team will be eliminated leaving just two teams for the next series of games. From series 8 all teams progressed to the next game. Scoring correctly on the board gives you that sum of money but can be doubled by answering a question which Jim pulls from a large box on a round table, This always reminded me of the game Trivial Pursuit. If a contestant can't answer a question Bully comes onto the corner of the screen and Moo's in disapointment. Losing teams get some darts and any money they have incrued which is normally a few hundred at most.
The second round is pound's for points, One dart player from each remaining team will throw three rounds of dart's, Each round will consist of three dart's and what ever they score will be converted into cash. Who ever scores the highest in each three dart round has control of the game and his team mate will have to answer a question to get the cash. The team at the end of the nine dart shootout with the most cash points will move onto the the next game which is called Bully's Prize Board. An incorrect answer allowed the next team player to try and answer the question, The team that goes on will have the most cash after all cash win's have been added from all the games played. The losing team's all received there cash winning's plus pens Tankard's and Goblet's if you were a female contestant, and bendy bully rubber doll's in the likeness of the show's mascot.
Half way through the show after pound's for point's has been played through there is always a famous dart's player or celebrity that comes onto the show to throw dart's for charity. They are given nine dart's and every point is worth £1, If they manage to score 301 or more with there nine darts the points are doubled into cash which is always donated to a charity of the winning teams choice.
David "Alan" Evans born 14th June 1949 was a Welsh professional dart's player and a former world No 1. Evan's was one of the early faces of televised dart's and was one of the first player's to be on TV after reaching the final of the News Of The World Championship which was broadcast on ITV In 1972. Evan's also reached the final of the Yorkshire Television Indoor League tournament which was broadcast in 1973 and 1974. Evan's also won the 1975 British open which was the first televised dart's tournament on the BBC, later he won the 1975 World Masters his biggest singles tournament. When the darts world cup started in 1977 his welsh team of Leighton Rees and David Rocky Jones won the team championship and the overall Championship. He played Muhammad Ali at an exhibition match dart's event at the Gypsy Green Stadium in South Shields England, Under the handy cap rules Evan's could only score points if he hit treble's. Ali was able to hit the Bullseye and win tyhe match proclaiming to be the dart's champion of the world. Evan's went on to Bullseye to throw for charity and amazingly scored 401 point's which is the highest Bronze Bully score ever in the history of the show. He scored two 180 points after 6 darts and then scored 1 then 2 20's to score 401 this was doubled to £802 for charity. Evans died on the 11th April 1999 he was 49.
David Evan's scores 401 on Bullseye, The highest score ever reached on the show.
The Indoor League was a pub games competition series that was produced by Yorkshire Television and hosted by English Cricketer Fred Trueman. The show aired from 1972 until 1977. From the 1974 season onwards the winner of the men's dart's tournament qualified for the BDO World Masters the following year. Sport's covered were Pool Bar Billiards, Bar Skittles, Table Football, Arm Wrestling and Shove ha-penny, Trueman often smoked a pipe and wore a cardigan and his last word's to end the show were ah'll see thee.
Eric Bristow aka "the crafty cockney"chat's with Jim Bowen on Bullseye He also mentored Phil Taylor who he sponsered £10000 to develop his game. He met him in Stoke on Trent in the late 1980's
David "Alan" Evans
Bully's Prize Board.
Bully's Prize Board consisted of 8 segments divided into Red and Black stripes. The winning team moved on to this third game with a good chance to bag some prizes. On Bullseye you will notice only one of the team is actually any good at throwing dart's and the other is not so good. In this game the best dart's player will go first then the not so good and then the the dart's player again. Six dart's will be played by the good dart's player and three by the not so good. If a player hit's a red segment of the board they will win what ever prize is behind that number, If they manage to hit the bullseye they will win Bully's special prize which has a higher value than the 8 segments. Most players go for the bullseye knowing it's a good prize but throw away valuable darts while trying to hit the bullseye. If a player hits the same red segment twice on there 3 darts they will lose the prize it will be forfeited. The saying goes Keep out of the black and into the red nothing in this game for two in a bed, This catchpraze is embedded in bullseye viewers minds I even remember this catchpraze today.
Prizes range from In 1 a hamper of Champagne,In 2 Grandfather clock, In 3 Cordless Telephone,In 4 BMX Bike, In 5 Sunbed, In 6 Travelling Luggage, In 7 Disk Camera, In 8 Wash and dry Washing Machine, And Bully's special prizes included Video Camera and recorder, Motor Scooter, Automatic Dishwasher, and Convertible Sofa amongst other things,
For most of the show's original run prize's that could be won were restricted in value by the Independent Broadcasting Authority, The prizes were still deemed lavish at the time compared to other shows that gave out mediocre prizes and money. The prizes won and all cash earnt to that point could now be gambled on the final game of the show. Bully's star prize gamble allowed the team to choose between keeping all prizes and cash won or gambling everything they have won to that point on a six dart game. To win Bully's star prize the players need to score 101 or more with six darts, That is 3 darts each so both players must throw to win and non dart's player goes first. The first ten series of the show safe guarded your money but from series eleven money and prizes must be gambled. Bully's star prize hides behind a screen and will be revealed at the end of the show even if the team lost. The host would joke that if they lost they would only receive there BFH that is there bus fare home so the stakes were high and the pressure was on, they only had the time the board took to revolve around to make there decision. They could choose to decline the gamble and take the prizes and money, This would bring out the second team who would be given the opportunity to gamble with there cash and so on to the third team if they also declined, I dont think I have seen the third team ever decline on this show as it is rare the third team get the chance but also they have little to lose. If by a miraculous chance all three teams decline the gamble the star prize will still be revealed.
Bully's star prize normally consisted of a Caravan, a speedboat, Car, Holiday abroad and after prize limit's had been lifted which was in the last two series you could win Bully's Treasure Chest which was £5000. In earlier series sometime the prizes were not so lavish and you sometimes won a fitted kitchen, a three piece suite, or a fashion clothes wardrobe as an example. But it was never made clear if the winning team had to share there prizes or got one each. I always thought they sold there prizes and split the money who knows.From series 8 onward's if the winning team declined the gamble the two remaining teams were both given the chance if they both decided to gamble. In this instance one player from each team would throw 3 darts and the highest scoring team went on to play for the special prize.
Anthony John "Tony" Green born 29th January 1939 in Kingston upon Hull East riding of Yorkshire is a English sports commentator and television presenter. Green was the announcer and co host of the show, He would referee all dart's games and is best known for Bullseye. He has been the BBC's lead commentator for the World Professional Dart's Championship's which was staged at the Lakeside Country Club in Frimley Green Surrey. He played county dart's for Lancashire and has been a chairman for the International Dart's Players Association (IDPA) and the players union.
Jim Bowen is an English stand up comedian and TV personality. Born on 20th August 1937 his earlier career was as a school teacher. He has hosted Bullseye from September of 1981 to 1995 which was the fourteenth series ending in July of that year. Born in Heswall Wirral in Cheshire he was adopted by Joe and Annie Whittaker who were from Clayton le moors Lancashire. At 15 years old he was working as a dustman in Burnley but later on in his life became a deputy head master of Caton primary school near Lancaster. Bowen married his work colleague in 1959 she was called Phyllis and was a P.E teacher, They have two children called Susan and Peter.
In the 1960's Bowen worked as a stand up comedian on the Northern club circuit working as a teacher at the same time. Granada TV'S The Comedians gave him his first break as he was on national tv which ultimately helped him and made him decide to become a full time entertainer. Television opportunities followed and he has appeared on The Wheeltappers and Shunter's social club, as well as Thames TV on the late night chat show programme Take Two. He also appeared in the childrens sketch show "You must be joking from 1975 to 1976. He starred alongside Ray Burdis, Pauline Quirke and the pop group Flintlock.He has also done radio work for BBC Radio Lancashire in 1999.
George Best makes an appearance on Bullseye playing for charity.
Flintlock sing the theme tune to the Thames TV Series "You Must Be Joking" which featured Ray Burdis, John Blundell, Elvis Payne, Pauline Quirke and the sole adult Jim Bowen and, of course Michael Holoway of The Tomorrow People and Flintlock.
The first time in four years of Bullseye no one wants to gamble and look at what they could of won.
Grotbags throws for charity from 1984. Carol Lee Scott was an actress singer and comedian. Born on 20th September 1942 in Bridgewater Summerset she died on 4th July 2017, Originally Grotbags appeared in the Rod Hull television show Emu's World in 1982 and she remained the main baddie throughout the rest of the decade in the programme's various other incarnations. She got her break after working for Pontins for 19 years and played in many Northern England and Scotland working men's clubs sharing the bill with The Four Tops, Morecambe and Wise and Tommy Cooper. She has also released two albums, In Time 1974 and Your Place is Here With Me 1976.
Grotbags sings Gimme That Thing.
The original opening from Bullseye in 1981 broadcast on ATV
Another opening sequence from Bullseye from 1981, This is a different version to the one on the right.
Jim Bowen on The Comedians.
The theme music for Bullseye was written by John Patrick who was Head of music department for ATV and Central.There was two closing theme tune arrangements, If contestants lost and did not win the star prize a bluesy minor key arrangement was played, If contestant's won a more rapid upbeat version plays out in the style of American musician and bandleader Lindley Armstrong "Spike" Jones with comical effects. Other entertainers have also presented the show after the original series finished. Ant & Dec 2005 Gameshow Marathon, Dave Spikey 2006 Remake, and Vernom Kay 2007 Gameshow Marathon 2 have all presented the Bullseye show.
Ant & Dec presenting Bullseye in 2005.
Bullseye was created by Andrew Wood with help from comedian Norman Vaughan, Vaughan came up with the idea after researching game shows and finding out the best features of a particular show that when put together would create mass appeal. Mickey Brennan and Roger Edwards were the programme associates for the show.
The original Bullseye is one of those programme's that made the 80's what it was, It was a family orientated show and was fun to watch. It's success was down to a great host Jim Bowen and having the ability to bring famous people in from the sport of dart's each week that kept the gameshow interesting. Also the charities it regularly donated to and the average contestants not doctors and business people but normal working class people with low paid jobs in some instances, I don't suppose the original can be beaten for it's nostalgic feel and flow but Bullseye will always be a show remembered.
Supermarket Sweep is a British Game show that is based on the American version, The show first broadcast on 6th September 1993 until 6th September 2001. Hosted by Dale Winton this marathon show aired for 569 episodes over eight series but 20 episodes did go unbroadcast. It was produced by Central in association with Talbot television from 1993 to 1997, After this time the show was produced by Grundy and Carlton from 1998 to 2001, From 12th February to 31st August 2007 Talkback Thames produced the show in a revival.
Are you ready to go shopping, Step inside are very special supermarket, The only supermarket in the world that gives you money, £2000 is waiting on our shelves to be won by some lucky person in this store, The aim of the game is to shop faster and smarter than the next person, Everything in this supermarket is up for grabs, Go on fill your trolley as high as you can because shopping has never been so much fun, Yes there's prize's in store and much much more when you play supermarket sweep, so let's welcome today's shoppers who are .....
The game starts with each pair of players being called out, They run over to there checkout one slightly behind the other, This game consist's of three pair's of two.Each team has a clock which has 60 second's displayed on it, With each question a contestant asnswer's correctly will add an extra 10 second's to there total, The more time accumalated equals more time contestant's have to go shopping for prizes and money.
Mini Sweep
Mini sweep is a question round that is open to all players on the buzzer. If a contestant answer's correctly 10 second's is added to there time. Question's asked are related to a product in store. For example Dale asked the question Orange Lemon or Lime to put on your toast at breakfast time. A contestant buzzes in and then Dale offer's the contestant a £25 bonus if they can find a jar of Specially marked Marmalade in the store within 30 second's. The item will have a Sweep sticker attached so the contestant know's it's the right jar. At this point the contestant who is not answering question's the one slightly back from the other run's off to find the item, The live audience can be heard cheering and her team mate will shout out try isle 6 for example if found she run's back to Dale a happy camper. A short interlude allow's Dale to ask a few question's about the contestant's at this time. £2000 Of prize money in 1993 seemed a substantial reward and Dale would emphazize on this fact to the players.
Dale hold's a Sweep sticker that can be found on item's around the store.
Unlike some show's that never changed schedule Supermarket Sweep was unique in having different games that changed from week to week. These were Counting Calories, Rhyme Time, In Between's, True or False, Theme's, Total's, Memory Game, Higher Or Lower, Pick a Pair, Random Reveal, Reverse Reveal, Scrambled Letter's and Dale's Bluff. The next game shuffle's the player's from the back to the front for there chance to answer question's and the three contestant's who were at the front at the start of the show leave for a short time.
In this game two letters are revealed and the contestant's must buzz in as quick as possible if they know the answer. This word when revealed spell's GRAVY POWDER. If a contestant answer's correctly they are rewarded with 10 second's on there clock. If none of the contestant's can answer a question a duck sound will be heard after a short time.
The next game is a proverb game where a choice of possible word's displayed relate to a proverb or another, Some are unusual and some are well known, Contestant's must fit the Proverb to the word, Dale will then read out a quote which relate's to a word displayed. In this instance Dale ask's the contestant's Lucky at blank and Luck in Love, The answer here is Cards and give's 10 seconds to the contestant who answered correctly. This game could possibly put a huge 40 second's onto a team's clock if they got every proverb correct.
A new blank sweeps clean is the next question which is Broom.
Put your trust in God but keep your BLANK dry, This answer is Powder.
Half a BLANK is better than none. The answer is Loaf.
After four proverb's have been answered the three contestant's that went away come back onto the show and change place's again.Dale will give a little summary and then the contestant's who played the proverb game now leave for a short while. The next game is called Theme's, In this game all the answer's all the word's Dale is looking for all belong to a particular theme or setting. This particular theme was called Dinner Party and the contestant's get five chances.
Dale say's Paper and Liz first from left wearing Green answers correctly the word Napkin. Dale continues Decoration Romantic Player center called Donna answer's with Candle for an extra 10 seconds. Dale say's Thin Chocolate and Liz in Green answers with After Eight's for an extra 10 seconds. Dale continues Savoury Dairy Product Board, Liz buzze's in with Cheese for another 10 seconds on the clock. Last question from Dale, Chill Alcohol, Donna buzze's in for 10 seconds.
That finishes The Theme's game and moves on to True or False. This is a simple game where by Dale will read a question quote and the contestant's have to decide if it is True or False. They press the True or False button located below there buzzer.
True of False questions.
Kiwi fruit's are also known as Chinese Goosberries True Or False, The answer is True.
Topside and Brisket are cut's of Lamb True or False, The answer is False The correct answer is Beef.
Barley is used for making Malt Liquor. True or False, The answer is True
The choice for this particular show was Movies here come the questions.
The next stage of the show bring's back the partner's and Dale give's a roundup of who is leading and the scores. What Dale say's is often at the end of the day it isan't how much time you've got but how well you shop.
The Round Robin is the next game and returning player's go first. Dale will read some question's out and who ever get's the question correct will gain 10 seconds. Categories can be TV,Music, Movies or Hot Gossip. If a contestant answer's incorrectly it can be answered by another team, Once the question has been answered right or wrong player's then switch with there partner's for there chance to answer.
Which comedian on meeting fan's instead of giving out autograph's hand's out card's reading This certifies that you have had a personal encounter with me, And that you found me warm Polite Intelligent and Funny, He was also a star of the movie Dirty Rotten Scoundrel's. The answer is Steve Martin.
Bruce Willis Goldie Hawn and Meryl Streep star in which Movie, Answer Death Becomes Her. This movie is an American Black Comedy Fantasy Film directed by Robert Zemeckis and written by David Koepp and Martin Donavan, The film focuses on a pair of rivals (Hawn and Streep) who drink a magic potion that promises eternal youth, But they experience unpleasant side effects when they physically die becoming walking talking corpses. The movie won an academy award for visual effect's and was a commercial success grossing over $149 million worldwide.
In which city is the commitments set. Answer DUBLIN
The Commitments cast which was filmed in Dublin northside 1991. The Commitments is an Irish British and American musical comedy drama based on the 1987 novel by the same name by Roddy Doyle. Directed by Alan Parker. Story is about Jimmy Rabbitte a young music fanatic who assembles a group of working class youth's to form a soul band named The Commitments.
Left to right, Meryl Streep, Bruce Willis, Goldie Hawn.
Who did Adam West and Burt Ward portray in the 1966 series. Answer Batman and Robin.
Name the feature film and sitcom which starred Reg Varney. Answer On The Buses. On The Buses is a British sitcom that was first broadcast in 1969 until 1973. Seven series were made producing 74 episodes on the ITV network. Created by Ronald Chesney and Ronald Wolfe, Written by Chesney, Wolfe, Bob Grant and Stephen Lewis, Music was by Tony Russell, Despite a poor critical reception the show went on to become a hit with viewers. The Guinness Book Of Classic Tv describe's On The Buses as ITV'S longest running and most self consciously unfunny series.
From Left to Right, Stephen Lewis, Robert St Clair Grant, Reg Varney
Created by William Dozier it tell's the story of two crime fighting heroes who defend Gotham City from a variety of Arch villians, Three seasons were created over 120 episodes of the original series, January 12th 1966 to March 14th 1968. It is known for it's camp style and upbeat theme music, It's target audience was teenagers and it had a intentionally humorous simplistic morality.
Which movie stars Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner, Answer is The Bodyguard.The Bodyguard is an American Romantic Thriller directed by Mick Jackson and written by Lawrence Kasdan. Costner was one of the producer's on the movie with music by Alan Silvestri. This film was Houston's acting debut and was the secong highest grossing film of 1993, The soundtrack to the movie became the best selling soundtrack of all time selling more than 45 million copies worldwide, The movie made $411 million worldwide. Costner star's as a former secret service agent turned bodyguard who is hired to protect Houston's character on screen, she is an unknown music star that is being stalked. The story was originally written for Diana Ross and Ryan O Neal by Kasdan in the mid 1970's.
After the Round Robin game has played out it's time for a short interlude and to find out who how many second's each team has ready for the Big Sweep portion of the game.
Big Sweep is an exciting part of the show where the team's have the opportunity to run around the supermarket grabbing as many high value item's as possible in the time frame they have earnt. The team with the highest shopping total at the end of the time period will go on to have a chance at winning the £2000 jackpot.
The team with the highest time total go first and then the second highest and so on, Various inflatable bonuses are carefully placed around the store, A team are allowed to grab only one of these and each inflatable item can be worth from £25 to £100 in value.
Here is a list of all the inflatables that could be found around the supermarket in Big Sweep.
Shoppers have to be careful not to break any of the item's and also to be very careful not to drop any item's onto the floor. A penalty of £25 will be given to any team that does drop or break anything. His regular joke was there would also be a penalty for knocking over the camerman.
Bonuses are given for a range of task's shopper's can do while running around the store. Dale will tell the team's if they bring back three item's he has asked for they will receive a £100 bonus. Other bonuses are:
Pick N Mix - For a £50 bonus player's must pick and weigh 500 grams of sweets from five different varieties.
Free Range - Fill up a carton of egg's for a well earned £50 bonus.
Dale's Display - Stack up a set of can's for a £50 bonus.
Manager's Special - Dale's Sale, The contestant's must find a tin marked with there own team color's for a tasty £50 bonus.
Pricing Gun - Contestant's price up 12 can's for a £50 bonus.
The race is on and contestant's are ready to rumble, Dale give's a count down 3 2 1 go and there off, Highest scoring team go first, Only one of the team will run around the store the other wait's shouting and encouraging there team partner to do well and not to forget anything, Some funky jazzy upbeat tempo music heavy on piano play's in the background to set the mood great. After the mayhem has finished and the time has run out all item's are checked through the supermarket sweep tills for a grand total for each team. Dale's checkout assistant's Caroline Justin and Sam check through the item's.
Supermarket Sweep - Big Sweep soundtrack Awesome.
One of the assistant's start's adding up the items.
SUPER SWEEP
Super Sweep is the final game that all team's are trying to get to, In this final game the team with the highest grand total including any bonuses penalties will go through to the Super Sweep. In this final game both contestant's are allowed to run around the store solving riddle's, With each riddle they find it will lead them on to the next item and the next riddle. If they manage to reach the third item they will win the jackpot which back in 1993 was £2000. They only have 60 second's to complete the challenge so time is critical and they have to think fast on there feet.
Dale will start by reading out the first clue riddle and when he has finished the contestant's will shout out the answer and as soon as they do this they will start the challenge and run into the store to find the specially marked item.
Clue 2 - The Swiss are known for chocolate, The Italian's for Gorgonzola, American's the home of steaks Of hamburger's and fizzy diet ---- - The answer is COLA
Clue 1 - You can give your baby medicine If he seems to have the gripes, But perhap's he just need's cleaning up With some extra thick baby ----- Answer here is Wipes. Contestant's will run to the baby section to find the next clue.
The third son of the Monarch, is only a Prince, But this root vegetable is the head of the family. Answer to this clue is King Edward Potato.
The winner's are elated to have won £2000, And Dale could not be happier as he say's at the end of the show " Just remember the next time your at the checkout and you hear that beep, Think of all the fun you could be having on Supermarket Sweep.