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Jeopardy! sees Stephen Fry topping up his pension with a typical ITV afternoon gameshow, and I missed the first edition because I was busy counting my toenail-clipping collection.
However, I figured I hadn’t missed an awful lot in terms of plot, since this isn’t exactly The Usual Suspects. So, all I missed was that the winner of one day goes through to compete the next, that person being Mayank, although why we need to know their surnames as well, I don’t know. As a result, I’ve already forgotten them for all three.
As it begins, up pops a board – in the style of the original show, and as that took place in the US on Stage 10 (at Sony Pictures Studios), we therefore need to be told that this is filmed at DOCK 10, but at the less impressive Salford Quays, where it pisses down regularly, because it’s Manchester.
Anyhoo, the board has categories and amounts of money. Mayank took “Metal Music” for £150, the question being about David Guetta & Sia’s 2011 collaboration, the answer being (and they have to make it sound like a question), “What is Titanium?”
Once a board is completed, we have to go through another. Oh joy. I can see why Jeopardy! tanked before, since as learned as Fry is, the programme is devoid of atmosphere and quite bland to watch. At least Deal Or No Deal had the atmos, despite simply being two minutes of a guessing game, stretched out to an hour.
As an aside, there’s a random “Daily Double”, where the chosen contestant gets to wager an amount – e.g. to double the amount he can win – where they get a more complex question. Plus, for round three, there’s… Double Jeopardy, so the board prize amounts are… doubled. Gotcha there, huh?
And the final round is… Final Jeopardy. Still want more? Each contestant has to give a blind wager before they see the final clue for which to work out a question.
Finally, ok, you have seen this before. It’s been in the US for years, and now we have it over here. Well, we’ve technically had it before, but just briefly in 1983-84 on Channel 4, 1990-93 on ITV, 1996 on Sky One, and back to ITV for 2024. So, if it hasn’t lasted long before, why is it being brought back now if no-one really cares?
I’ll take “Which gameshow on UK television has been cancelled after one series in 2024?
Jeopardy! continues tomorrow on ITV at 4pm. Once aired, each episode will also be on ITVX. It’s unlikely to be released on Blu-ray or DVD.
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.