The Price Is Right (British game show)
The Price Is Right is a British television game show based on the American version of the same name. It originally aired on ITV from 24 March 1984 to 8 April 1988 and was hosted by Leslie Crowther. The show later briefly moved to Sky One for one series as The New Price Is Right from 4 September 1989 to 31 August 1990 with Bob Warman as the host.
The show returned to ITV, as Bruce's Price Is Right, from 4 September 1995 to 16 December 2001, with Bruce Forsyth hosting for seven series consisting of 116 episodes. Another series aired from 8 May 2006 until 12 January 2007, this time hosted by Joe Pasquale. Two one-off specials aired as part of ITV's [Gameshow Marathon (British game show)|Gameshow Marathon (British game show)|Gameshow Marathon] in September 2005 and April 2007. On 30 December 2017, it was revived for a one-off pilot hosted by Alan Carr on Channel 4.
In June 2019, it was announced that The Price Is Right had been chosen as one of the country's five all-time favourite game shows to be "supersized and rebooted" in new series Alan Carr's Epic Gameshow commissioned by ITV. A seven-episode series was filmed at dock10 studios and broadcast in May 2020.
Crowther era (''The Price Is Right'')
Leslie Crowther hosted the original UK version, having beaten Joe Brown to the role of host after both recorded pilot episodes. It was also notable for being produced by William G. Stewart, who made the occasional cameo appearance. The Crowther version is popular with fans of the show for its near-campiness, frenetic pace, glamour, and the endearing presentation skills of its host, not for its cheaper prizes. Its format was nearly identical to that of CBS's daytime show in the United States. It initially used the Big Wheel to decide who would go through to the Range Finder, but the IBA forced Central to abandon this because of the lack of pricing skill involved. While the show had to go off air for a while during its first season due to an electricians' strike, the format was adapted to fit into a much more tightly regulated UK broadcasting environment.After this ruling was made, the show replaced the Big Wheel rounds with a game called "Supermarket", a game loosely based on the American version's "Grocery Game" pricing game. The three contestants were shown an assortment of small retail items, such as groceries or hardware, and had 15 seconds to select up to four apiece. Duplicates of each item were provided to allow multiple contestants to select the same one if desired; however, contestants could take no more than one of any item. The prices of the chosen items were revealed and added up, and the contestant who came the closest to £20 advanced to the Showcase.
Series two saw the Big Wheel return for a spin-off to see who would have the option of bidding or passing on the first showcase; each contestant had to take two spins. If a person scored 100, £400 would be donated to charity on their behalf, and Leslie would ask the person a consumer-related question to win £100 for him/herself. The winner was the contestant who came closer to 100 in either direction.
The Crowther version later replaced Supermarket and the Big Wheel called with the "Showcase Showdown", where all six on-stage contestants played a series of estimated-guess questions and the person farthest away from the actual prize was eliminated. This was done until the last two contestants were left, and they then advanced to the Range Finder
The final round, the Range Finder, was played largely the same way as on the Showcase finale on the American version. In the first season, the winner would not win the largest prize in their showcase if their winning guess was not within 10% of the showcase total. In subsequent seasons, the game was played with 1972–74 United States rules, while it did use the rule for a double overbid.
Pricing Games
- Any Number
- Bargain Bar
- Blank Cheque
- Bonus Game
- Card Game
- Check-Out
- Cliffhanger
- Clock Game
- Danger Price
- Dice Game
- Escalator
- Five Price Tags
- Give or Keep
- Hi Lo
- Hole in One
- Lucky 7
- Master Key
- Matchmaker
- Money Game
- Most Expensive
- One Away
- Partners
- The Penny Drops
- Permutation
- Pick-a-Pair
- Punch a Bunch
- Race Game
- Range Game
- Safecracker
- Secret X
- Side by Side
- Squeeze Play
- Switcheroo
- Take Two
- Temptation
- Ten Chances
- 3 in a Row
- 3 Strikes
- Tic~Tac~Toe
- Time-Play
- Trade Up
Announcer
Models
- Marie-Elise Grepne
- Jacqueline Bucknell
- Julia Roberts
- Denise Kelly
- Sandra Easby
- Cindy Day
- Carol Greenwood
- Gillian de Terville
- Elsa O'Toole
- Judy Bailey
- Laura Calland
- Sarah Wynter
Warman era (''The New Price Is Right'')
The second version hosted by Bob Warman is considered to be a precursor to the third version hosted by Bruce Forsyth, as it was a half-hour and used the Showcase range game. Having premiered shortly after Leslie Crowther's version went off the air, it retained many elements from the set and props, but was somewhat "Americanized". The show was hence called "The New Price Is Right" and had a red, yellow and green pound sign. The Warman version also had slightly better and more expensive prizes than the Crowther version due to the program's shorter length, in-show sponsorship, and lighter government regulation of satellite television channels. The show also had a light border in the opening, used US music, and had more colour on the set.The Showcase round was played considerably differently: After three games and a single Showcase Showdown at the Big Wheel, the Showdown winner selected a range at random from £250 to £1,000; if the bid was within the selected range of the price of the presented showcase without going over, they won the Showcase.
Pricing Games
- Bargain Bar
- Cliffhanger
- Danger Price
- Five Price Tags
- Hi Lo
- Lucky 7
- Money Game
- Pick-a-Pair
- Plinko
- Race Game
- Side by Side
- Switcheroo
- Temptation
- Ten Chances
Announcers
- Bobby Bragg
- Al Sherwin
Models
- Suzie Marlowe
- Tracie Williams
- Katrina Maltby
- Julie Broster
- Peitra Caston
- Brian Tattersall
Forsyth era (''Bruce's Price Is Right'')
When it started in 1995, Bruce's Price Is Right was one of the first shows to fully take advantage of the Independent Television Commission's lifting of the prize limits and the general deregulation of the UK broadcasting environment. The Showcase Showdown was played on the Big Wheel, with the highest-scoring contestant on one spin or a combination of two spins going through to the Range Finder, and any contestant who scored 100 on one spin or a combination of two spins would win £1,000. The ranges for the Range Finder in this version went from £1,000 to £5,000.Although, it was only in a half-hour format with three pricing games per show, it still gave away more valuable prizes each week than the previous ITV version had done. Cars offered were usually superminis, from makers like Daihatsu and Daewoo, or models like a Ford Ka or Mazda Demio, but small sports cars like a Hyundai Accent or Vauxhall Tigra were offered on occasion.
On the Forsyth version, the game Plinko was played to very different rules from the US version; considerably less money could be won, and contestants could risk their cash winnings on one final Plinko chip in hopes of adding a car or other large prize to their winnings. Landing on "LOSE" would lose all the money accumulated, while landing on "WIN" won the car or other large prize plus the money.
Many European versions of the show that debuted after the Forsyth version based their games and sound cues on that show. The main theme, an update of the US theme, and the "come on down" music are from the short-lived 1994 US syndicated version.
Forsyth initially opened this version with a modified version of his trademark line of "Nice to see you, to see you...NICE!" adding "...and it's nice to meet the stars of our show, whoever you are!" In later series the original line was used, followed by "Let's meet the stars of our show, whoever you are!"
The Forsyth incarnation was a co-production between Yorkshire Television and Fremantle Productions, and not made by Central like its predecessor.
Pricing games
Introduced in series 1- Cliffhanger
- Clock Game
- Danger Price
- Double Price Tags
- Hole in One
- Master Key
- Money Game
- Most Expensive
- One Right Price
- Pathfinder
- Pick-a-Pair
- Plinko
- Race Game
- Secret "X"
- Swap
- Switcheroo
- Check-Out
- Lucky Seven
- Make Your Move
- Pick-a-Number
- Credit Card
- Most Expensive
- Split Decision
- Three Strikes
- Any Number
- Bruce's Bargain Bar
- Hi Lo
- Joker
- Side by Side
- Price Tags
- Clearance Sale
- Let 'em Roll
- Push Over
- No new games were introduced.
Announcer
Models
- Kimberley Cowell
- Emma Noble
- Emma Steadman
- Brian Tattersall
- Simon Peat
- Lea Kristensen
Ant and Dec's Gameshow Marathon (''The Price Is Right'')
On 17 September 2005, as part of a celebration of the 50th birthday of ITV, Ant & Dec hosted a one-off revival of The Price Is Right as part of Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon; they also hosted revivals of several other game shows that were once popular on the ITV network. The original titles were from the Central version, however the Yorkshire Television logo was used instead.Announcer
- Peter Dickson
Games played
- Cliffhanger ; game won
- Plinko ; gamble taken and extra prize won
- Race Game ; one prize out of four won
Other results
Carol Vorderman won the Showcase Showdown and proceeded to win her showcase.Pasquale era (''The Price Is Right'')
Talkback Thames debuted a revival on ITV on 8 May 2006, this time with former I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! winner Joe Pasquale as host. It followed the same gameplay format as Bob Warman and Bruce Forsyth's versions, with Range Finder ranges going from £500 to £3000, and the Showcase Showdown adapted the bonus spin from the Warman version, with a car at stake; later replaced by the £1000 bonus. It had a very "panto" feel to it, and it relies on nostalgia of the Crowther version, which was known for its cheap prizes because of the regulations of the time. Joe's tour manager, Ray Tizzard, made appearances as his "twin" in various pricing games.The show expanded to an hour from 3 July 2006. This involved three games being played, a Showcase Showdown, three more games, another Showcase Showdown, and then, the winners from both showdowns take part in the 'Pasquale Finale', a spin-off on the wheel to see who will go through to the Range Finder. In addition, prior to this, the maximum range in the Range Finder increased to £4000, as the budget increased.
After the first three games and Showcase Showdown, Contestants' Row was cleared of people, and a new set of four contestants was called down.
In all versions of the programme, a perfect bid in Contestants' Row resulted in a £100 bonus in either cash or, in the Warman version, gift certificates.
Pricing Games
- Any Number
- Cliffhanger
- Danger Price
- Deck of Cards
- Easy as 1, 2, 3
- Find the Lady
- Half & Half
- Hi Lo
- Hole in One
- Joe's Bargain Bar
- Joe's Lucky Bag
- Joe Ker
- Lucky 7
- On the Nose
- One Right Price
- One Wrong Price
- Pick a Number
- Pick-a-Pair
- Plinko
- Price Tags
- Push Over
- Safecracker
- Side by Side
- Swap
- Take 2
- Walk the Line
Announcers
- Peter Dickson
- Mike Hurley
Models
- Natalie Denning
- Amanda Robbins
- Richard Kyte
- Natalie Pike
Merchandise
A DVD game based on this version of the show was released by Circle Studio in November 2006.Cancellation
ITV chiefs cancelled The Price Is Right at the end of its latest run on 12 January 2007, citing the fact that while The Paul O'Grady Show on Channel 4 regularly attracted over 2.5 million viewers, Pasquale only managed to pull in 800,000.Vernon Kay's Gameshow Marathon (''The Price Is Right'')
After the success of Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon in 2005, ITV brought the show back, this time hosted by Vernon Kay, a contestant in the first series. Vernon Kay's Gameshow Marathon began on 7 April 2007 with The Price Is Right.Contestants
The winner of the show was Graeme Le Saux, who as a result advanced to the quarter-final of the show. The five remaining contestants returned in the next week's show, Blockbusters, to battle for the second spot in the quarter-final round.Announcer
- Peter Dickson
Carr era (''The Price Is Right'')
On 30 December 2017, the revival was a one-off pilot filmed at Dock10 studios that aired as a Christmas special on Channel 4 hosted by Alan Carr and was announced by Tony Hirst. According to a press release by FremantleMedia, Carr said "I'm so excited to be the new host of The Price Is Right. It's proper bucket list territory for me as I loved it when I was growing up and now for me to be at the helm of such a legendary show is a dream come true. It just leaves me with one thing to say … COME ON DOWN!". Viewers had praised Carr's hosting ability as they took it to Twitter by demanding it to become a full series. However, it has been declined since then.After five pricing games, those five players spun the wheel with the Showcase Showdown winner going through to the Showcase Final which was played exactly the same way as on Bruce’s Price Is Right. Scoring exactly 100 on the wheel won £100. A tie would be broken via spin-off with no bonus for spinning 100.
Announcer
- Tony Hirst
Models
- Nichola Dixon
- Dorretta Maynard
- Zoe Nicholas
Alan Carr's Epic Gameshow (''The Price Is Right'')
On 30 May 2019, ITV ordered a series called Alan Carr's Epic Gameshow hosted by Alan Carr and filmed at dock10 studios, who had previously hosted a reboot of The Price Is Right on Channel 4 in 2017 where like Gameshow Marathon, it would see five classic game shows being supersized and brought back such as Play Your Cards Right, The Price Is Right, Take Your Pick, Strike it Lucky and Bullseye. However, unlike GSM this would feature only civilian contestants hoping to win either a big cash reward or top of the range prizes instead of celebrities playing for their favourite charities along with a viewer at home.According to the press release, Carr said: "It is such a privilege for me to be involved in these truly iconic shows that have brought so much joy to my childhood. A little bit nostalgia but a whole load of fun. Big shoes to fill I know, these shows should be back on telly for a whole new generation to sit down and enjoy with their family just like I did all those years ago!"
Intended for April 2020, the show was broadcast on 6 June 2020. Just like the regular editions from the 80s, 90s and the early 2000s, the episode featured regular civilians as contestants with an exact bid in contestant's row earning that contestant £200. The five pricing games that were played in the episode were:
- Cliffhangers
- Hole in One
- Any Number
- Plinko
- Push Over
Announcer
- John Sachs
Models
- Matt Peacock
- Rachel Trevaskis
- Kimberley Williams