U.K. Weakest Link

[cac8383]

First saw this at tvgameshows.net, then confirmed it on the FAQs section of BBC America's website and it's official. the UK version of The Weakest Link will make it's way onto BBC America starting May 31st. Click on this link: http://www.bbcamerica.com/about/faq_schedule.jsp#newprograms

and it should take you there to that portion. I've actually been wanting to see the U.K. version of it for a while now. Opinions?

[itiparanoid13]

Besides the fact that I broke this news about 3 days ago, pretty good.  I received the first word of it.  I made sure and rushed the info over to Beverly ASAP.  But if you want opinions, instead of starting another thread, just check out the one I made a while ago.  Is there a way we can just edit the 2 threads together instead of cluttering the space up with two posts about the same thing.

[Craig Karlberg]

And besides, it's not your fault anyway.  His web site got hacked by spyware this week, hence the delay in updates.

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'Craig Karlberg\' date=\'Apr 10 2004, 02:18 AM\'] His web site got hacked by spyware this week, hence the delay in updates. [/quote]
 Huh?

[starcade]

He has it on his site.  A couple of spyware sites were able to hack into his server and basically brought down the entire mess, at least for updating purposes, for a while.

OK, you who don't like the guy here -- FESS UP...  (only somewhat joking...)

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'starcade\' date=\'Apr 10 2004, 02:47 PM\'] He has it on his site.  A couple of spyware sites were able to hack into his server and basically brought down the entire mess, at least for updating purposes, for a while.

OK, you who don't like the guy here -- FESS UP...  (only somewhat joking...) [/quote]
 Yeah, I read that, and I still firmly believe he doesn't know what in the blue hell he's talking about.

Here's a hint, Perf: Spyware doesn't get installed on your machine unless YOU LET IT. You clicked Yes to something, whether it was installing a piece of shareware with it packed in, or agreeing to download it while surfing the Web. So suck it up, be a man, get AdAware, and take responsibility for your actions.

[Michael Brandenburg]

Well, to get back to the topic, my mother has missed that show and can't even watch the reruns of the U.S. syndie version on PAX because that channel is not on her cable system (Adelphia of Morrow, Ohio), not even on the digital tier.

She'd have to upgrade to the system's digital tier to get either this version or the reruns of Anne Robinson's old NBC prime-time episodes on GSN, but I suppose there is a little incentive here.  (GSN is Channel 108 on that tier; BBC America is Channel 109.)

For those of you who do have BBC America on your system, here's what to expect on the U.K. version of the show when they will start carrying it:

1. Anne Robinson will be back on our shores as host -- need I say more?

2. Shows are 45 minutes -- a time length I once suggested for the NBC prime-time version for a reason I'll mention later.

3. Nine contestants at the start of each episode.

4. Maximum potential prize: £10,000.

5. Target amount for Rounds 1-7: £1,000.  Can be reached by banking one chain of nine consecutive correct answers, or two or more shorter chains totalling that amount.

6. First link in the answer chain is worth £20; subsequent links are worth £50, £100, £200, £300, £450, £600, £800, and £1,000.

7. One player is voted off the show at the end of each of the first 7 rounds of play by the other contestants, as usual -- and hears Anne say those dreaded words to the whole world: "You ARE the Weakest Link -- good-bye!"

8. Last two players get one more chance to add to the prize pot before the head-to-head shootout, as on the NBC prime-time version and the first season of the U.S. syndicated version.  However, the money they succeed in banking in this round is tripled, rather than doubled.

9. Anne addresses the home audience only at the very beginning and end of the show.  ("Join us next time on The Weakest Link -- good-bye!")

10.  However, and very likely -- no "slam-dunking" of Anne on the part of BBC America, as was the case with NBC a couple of years ago!


Michael Brandenburg
(Which is why I once suggested that the old Sunday-night NBC prime-time version of Weakest Link be simply cut to 45 minutes and only 7 players in order to accommodate those long-running NBA basketball games on that network!)

[uncamark]

[quote name=\'Michael Brandenburg\' date=\'Apr 11 2004, 07:57 AM\']2. Shows are 45 minutes -- a time length I once suggested for the NBC prime-time version for a reason I'll mention later.[/quote]
However, with the commercials added it will end up being an hour (which was true with the U.S. network version--take out the commercials and you had around 45 minutes of program, as in most of prime time).  BBCA is not commercial-free, like the parent corporation.

[gameshowguy2000]

Here's some more info that I found out about the UK version:

Jon Briggs is the announcer.

3 minutes on the clock for the first round (which begins with the player whose name is first alphabetically, not the player in the first position as on the US versions), then 10 seconds shorter, until 2 are left, at which point they play the 90-second round (which as pointed out earlier, the money that's banked gets tripled).

After the triple round, they go straight into the shoot-out, and on both versions, it's the same rule as the US Primetime version.

Also, there was a primetime version, and just like the US versions, the players had the little push-buttons on the podiums to reveal who they want gone. On the daytime version, they wrote the names down on boards, which they flip over to reveal.

The primetime version had some changes throughout the years, and you can find those at: http://www.geocities.com/yatwl2/theshow.html

[tommycharles]

[quote name=\'uncamark\' date=\'Apr 12 2004, 02:51 PM\'] [quote name=\'Michael Brandenburg\' date=\'Apr 11 2004, 07:57 AM\']2. Shows are 45 minutes -- a time length I once suggested for the NBC prime-time version for a reason I'll mention later.[/quote]
However, with the commercials added it will end up being an hour (which was true with the U.S. network version--take out the commercials and you had around 45 minutes of program, as in most of prime time).  BBCA is not commercial-free, like the parent corporation. [/quote]
 Here's a question: if they aquire some of the primetime eps, will they still run them as an hour and just add 20 mins of commericals? This wouldn't be that out of the ordinary - there's 11 minutes of commericials per half an hour of Karn Feud.

I wonder if they'll bother getting the 7 person version from BBC Choice/BBC3 ? Is it any good?

[passwordplus]

I can't remember the site, but there was a clip of the UK show beginning on somebody's site. And it was 9 contestants. The logo is slightly different too from what I saw of it.

[gameshowguy2000]

[quote name=\'passwordplus\' date=\'Apr 12 2004, 07:35 PM\'] I can't remember the site, but there was a clip of the UK show beginning on somebody's site. And it was 9 contestants. The logo is slightly different too from what I saw of it. [/quote]
The UK logo? Yep. that's different from the US logo. It was used on the Aussie, Japan, and Taiwan versions as well as some of the other versions. However, I don't like the animation of it, as I think it looks a little choppy.

Anyway, the UK logo had THE WEAKEST LINK, and sometime in the run, the "THE" was dropped.

Other versions of the show, like Hong Kong, duplicated the logo animation for their shows.

[tommycharles]

[quote name=\'passwordplus\' date=\'Apr 12 2004, 07:35 PM\'] I can't remember the site, but there was a clip of the UK show beginning on somebody's site. And it was 9 contestants. The logo is slightly different too from what I saw of it. [/quote]
 That one still baffles me, the changing of the logo. All the cynical Britons in my family are saying that's to make it easier to read, but I'm not sure. Anyone have a clue? Randy?

[familyfeudfan]

Is the UK version still in production?

[Brig Bother]

Yes.