Who Wants To Be A Millionaire
Popularly referred to as WWTBAM or "Millionaire", Who Wants to be a Millionaire? is one of the biggest quiz shows there has ever been. Begining in the UK where the program is hosted by Chris Tarrant, the show has become a world-wide phenomenon.
The process of appearing begins with a phone call, and answering questions before ten qualifying contestants are selected for the televised part of the program.
Perhaps the most important part of the show to win is "Fastest Finger" this is where keying in the correct order of responses to answer a question in the fastest time gives one of the competing players the chance to sit in the chair and play for the top prize.
At this point, 15 questions stand between them the million.
Contestants are given each question and set of possible ansers before deciding if they are going to "Play" or "Take the Money". All questions are multiple choice and have four options where only one is the correct answer. For most of the questions, if answered correctly, the prize level doubles. The key points on the money ladder are the 1000 and 32000 levels as if a contestant reaches one of these, they guarantee winning a prize of that value. For these questions, there is no danger in guessing when attempting to advance to the next level. If they give an incorrect answer, they drop back to the last amount of money they had guaranteed. This can be zero, 1000 or 32000. If they reach the million, they go home with that.
Another facet of the game are the "Lifelines" that the contestant can turn to for help if they are unsure about any of the questions. They can be used at any point in the game, in any order and it is allowable to use more than one on a question. Once a lifeline has been used, it cannot be used again.
"Ask the Audience". Usually the first lifeline to be used, this involves an electronic vote by the members of the studio audience on what they think the answer is from the available options. The final decision still rests with the competitor.
"50 : 50". This lifeline removes (at random?) two of the incorrect answers from the four available options, leaving the contestant with one correct and one incorrect answer to choose from.
"Phone a Friend". Players pick five friends before the show, and can choose to phone one of them if they are unsure about any of the answers. They are given 30 seconds to tell them the question and the possible answers. They can then use the usefulness of the response to make their decision.
At any point in the game, the contestant can elect to take the money. Since they are able to see each question before deciding whether to play. Answering a question incorrectly will result in prize money of 32000, 1000 or nothing depending on the question the contestant was on at the time.
The show is screened internationally. In the US, the host is Regis Philbin (pictured).
Million winners
- Judith Keppel (2000-11-20)
- David Edwards (2001-04-21)
- Charles Ingram (2001-09-18)
- Robert Brydges (2001-09-29)
- Pat Gibson (2004-04-24)
Stage show
In the summer of 2005, the show ran a stage version in theatres around the UK with the top prize of a Jaguar X-Type. The first contestant into the hot seat was Peter Ediss. At the end of the run, those who had made it into the chair were invited to Torquay for a final go to play for a million pounds cash. Mark Labbett made it into the chair and won £16,000.