I'll have a P, please Bob! Blockbusters is back | The Independent I'll have a P, please Bob! Blockbusters is back The gameshow returns tomorrow, the latest 80s television programme to enjoy a revival Saturday 12 May 2012 23:00 BST Click to follow The Independent Online Bob Holness, presenter of the original Blockbusters, who died earlier this year Challenge TV To a generation, it is best remembered for the smirking students who revelled in being on television while asking: "Can I have a P, please Bob?" Tomorrow, Blockbusters returns to television screens nearly 30 years after it was first broadcast in Britain and after an absence of 11 years. There will be changes, naturally: BBC presenter Simon Mayo will replace the question master Bob Holness, who died earlier this year. The rather mundane sweatshirt and dictionaries will be replaced by e-readers, plasma televisions and five-star holidays. And the contest is open to everyone, not just students. All other aspects are the same: including the show's signature theme tune and Gold Run finale. The revival of Blockbusters is part of a wider trend for traditional quiz shows.

Jeremy Fox of DRG, the global distributor of the show Catchphrase, said: "Game show television got lost in the days of endless reality TV and the flurry of phone-in scandals. But we have passed that stage now. Britain's Got Talent and the X-Factor are the natural progression to shows like Opportunity Knocks or Kids Say the Funniest Things. It has brought families back around the television." Professor Ellis Cashmore, sociologist at the University of Staffordshire, said: "Britain is a conservative country. In times of recession these are the formats that suit the moment. They are familiar and carry affection among an entire generation. And they are returning to our screens at a time in history where many of us are vying for stable lives and security." Media guru Peter Bazalgette described the game show revival as "a safe bet". He added: "Old classics have a familiar and ready-made brand behind them. You don't lose precious episodes familiarising audiences with new rules. The only concern is that the world has moved on since 1984. Modern game shows need to have an interactive element to keep viewers entertained.

Classic revivals may bring audiences but can result in a passive experience." Here, The Independent on Sunday looks at seven classic game shows that could soon make a return to our television screens. Family Fortunes Then: Bob Monkhouse was the original host of Family Fortunes, first broadcast in 1980 and running until 2002. He was followed by Max Bygraves, Les Dennis and Andy Collins. In the show, two families answered questions supplied by the public. The show's catchphrase was: "You said... our survey said..." Now: All Star Family Fortunes is the modern celebrity-studded remake. It is still one of the most popular game shows on satellite television. Past contestants have included Edwina Currie, the former Tory minister, and Melinda Messenger, Trevor Nelson and Peter Andre. The finale of the seventh series will run at the same time as the first episode of Blockbusters tomorrow. And plans for another series are already under way. Play Your Cards Right Then: One of Bruce Forsyth's finest moments; couples were invited to guess whether a card's value would be higher or lower than the original. Attracted millions of viewers.

Forsyth was livid when the show was axed in 2003 after more than 15 years. Now: The show looked certain to make a comeback last October after an absence of nearly a decade. That was until regulators stepped in after concerns that it could endorse gambling. The Gambling Commission is expected to deliver its verdict imminently, while Vernon Kaye has been lined-up to present the new version which is in production. Surprise Surprise Then: The family reunion show presented by Cilla Black ran for 14 series between May 1984 and September 1997. The show featured unsuspecting members of the public in tear-jerking reunions with long-lost relatives. Four annual specials were produced between 1998 and 2001. Now: Holly Willoughby has been lined up to present a special episode later this year. Plans are under way for a re-launch in 2013. Should it return to our screens, the show will retain the same format. Cilla is expected to make a cameo appearance.

Catchphrase Then The picture-led game show presented by Roy Walker ran on Saturday evenings on ITV between January 1986 and December 2002. Contestants would try and decrypt pictures to form a catchphrase. Later presenters included the Australian entertainer Nick Weir and children's television presenter Mark Curry. Now DRG is in the process of resurrecting the show having recently secured rights from its US owners. The distributor is now in talks with UK broadcasters for a new format that is expected to be launched early next year. Through the Keyhole Then Hosted by David Frost, the show's format was to take contestants on a video tour of a famous guest's property. It featured Loyd Grossman who was given keys to the home of a celebrity. A spoof edition once featured Peter Cook impersonating Loyd and looking around Loyd's own home. Now Fremantle, the same firm behind the revival of Blockbusters, have bought the rights for a rescreen. Plans to bring it back on television are still in the pipeline. Blind Date Then At the peak of its popularity in the 1980s Blind Date was watched by 17 million viewers.

Its presenter Cilla Black quit after 19 series in January 2003, announcing her decision to viewers on air during the show's first ever live edition. Now Take Me Out was ITV's latest attempt to adapt the original. Trading on the nostalgia of those in their mid-thirties, the show has commanded more than five million viewers a week. Hosted by Paddy McGuinness, it was plunged into controversy when one contestant was found to be a male escort with a criminal conviction. Give Us A Clue Then The charades quiz show appeared on ITV from 1979 until 1992. It was first presented by Michael Aspel and then by Michael Parkinson. Now There have been numerous attempts to revive the show. BBC made a new series in 1997, hosted by comedian Tim Clark. But it was short-lived. A 2010 pilot with Kirsten O'Brien came to nothing. The show returned for Comic Relief last year and featured Sara Cox, Christopher Biggins and David Walliams. But plans for a new series have been shelved.

The Eighties revival Adverts The Dulux dog and the Milky Bar Kid are back on our screen as brands tap into 80s nostalgia. Confectionery The Wham bar, the 1980s classic will make a comeback this summer. Thirty million bars a year were sold at its peak. The same British firm is behind revivals of Barratt Refreshers, Sherbet Dip Dabs, Sherbet Fountains and Fruit Salads. Clothing Shows have been crammed with Eighties fashion. Milan fashion week featured heavy metal studs, leather leggings, safety pins and sequins, power shoulders and flashes of neon. Music Jason Donovan, Bananarama, Pepsi & Shirlie and Sinitta performed at a Pete Waterman gig this year. The Rewind Festival in Henley-on-Thames, has sold out and features The Bangles, T'Pau and Rick Astley. The Falklands Disputes over the islands are back in the news 30 years after the war. A row erupted last week over an Olympic advert featuring an Argentinian athlete training on a British war memorial.

Margaret Thatcher The Iron Lady, the film for which Meryl Streep won the best actress Oscar, has heralded a surge of interest in the former prime minister. Bob Holness, former Blockbusters host, dies aged 83 - BBC News BBC News Bob Holness, former Blockbusters host, dies aged 83 6 January 2012 From the section Entertainment & Arts comments Image caption Holness was the second actor to portray James Bond Bob Holness, former host of daytime quiz show Blockbusters, has died at 83. In a statement, his family said he had "died peacefully in his sleep" early on Friday morning. Holness, who had suffered a series of strokes, had been in a nursing home. He is survived by his wife Mary, three children and seven grandchildren. Holness "was also an accomplished theatre actor and his radio broadcasting career spanned over six decades", the family statement added. South African-born Holness joined the BBC in the 1960s and hosted Late Night Extra on Radio 1 and Radio 2, alongside presenters including Terry Wogan.

The show continued to air on Radio 2's AM frequency only until 1975, before Holness moved to commercial station LBC, co-hosting the morning show with Douglas Cameron. 'Positive reception' Early in his broadcasting career, he also became the second actor to portray James Bond, starring in a radio adaptation of Moonraker in 1956. In 2008, he told the BBC that the opportunity "just came up through a hole in the floor". Media captionPresenter and journalist Henry Kelly: "He was everybody's uncle Bob" "I was doing lots of radio plays at the time but I wanted to do something a bit different, so when James Bond came up I ventured in and said yes." He said he had never heard of the character but that it "became an amazing part to play and the response from listeners was terrific".

However he remains best known for hosting ITV gameshow Blockbusters, from 1983 to 1993, complete with its hexagonal board, gold runs and the classic double entendre contestant request: "Can I have a P please, Bob?" "People say 'Don't you ever get fed up with it?' but I didn't," he once said. "I loved everything to do with the show so it always got a very positive reception from me, however many times I heard it." Image caption Douglas Cameron and Holness presented together on LBC He continued to appear on the airwaves, hosting shows including a Tuesday night broadcast on Radio 2, presenting the BBC Radio Orchestra's selection of the best in popular music. He also presented the BBC World Service request show Anything Goes - a show purported to be a favourite of Aung San Suu Kyi while under house arrest - bringing him a new legion of international fans. From 1996 until 2002, he hosted the BBC's long-running panel game Call My Bluff on television.

But his health began to deteriorate in the 1990s after he suffered a mini-stroke; a more severe attack in 2002 led to temporary paralysis. Those who have paid tribute to Holness include Radio 2 controller Bob Shennan who said he was "a talented and much-loved presenter who will be sadly missed". BBC Radio 4 presenter Martha Kearney, meanwhile, said she had worked with him on the LBC AM Bob and Doug show and described him as a "real gent".

Blockbusters - UKGameshows Blockbusters Simon Mattocks (2012) Broadcast Central in association with Talbot Television and Goodson-Todman Productions for ITV, 29 August 1983 to 19 May 1993 (1160 episodes in 10 series) Central in association with Mark Goodson Productions and Talbot Television for Sky One, 18 April 1994 to 17 February 1995 (180 episodes in 1 series) (but see Regional broadcast details below) Fremantle for BBC2, 31 March to 28 August 1997 (60 episodes in 1 series) Grundy for Sky One, 30 October 2000 to 23 March 2001 (100 episodes in 1 series) ITV Productions and TalkbackThames for ITV1, 14 April 2007 ( Gameshow Marathon one-off) Thames for Challenge, 14 May to 3 August 2012 (41 episodes in 1 series) Synopsis First letter first The UK version of this original American show consisted of twenty lettered

 hexagons.

If a contestant nominated a particular space (say, W), host Bob Holness would read out a question in the format "What W is the most north-westerly state in mainland USA?" Master of ceremonies, Bob Holness Buzzing in and answering the question correctly meant that space would be turned your colour. One player had the white spaces, and a team of two players had blue. The idea of the game was to fill in as many spaces as necessary so that a contiguous line of your colour went across the board horizontally (for the blue team) or vertically (for the white player, who could make the journey in one less space than the blues to compensate for their single-ness). The 'two against one' concept proved rather contentious, with many viewers being of the opinion that the double team had an unfair advantage (even if they did have to answer more questions correctly to win), but the format was clearly such a winning one that the whole issue never really mattered that much and it certainly didn't affect the show's popularity or reputation. In any case, there were certainly plenty of single player-victories over all the series. Getting a question correct also allowed you to choose the next letter.

As you can see from the diagram, the single player had a shorter route than the pair of blue players. The board is constructed in such a way that ties weren't possible, although a frequent occurrence was the "mutual space" whereby both sides needed the same one space in order to complete their line across the board. On the run The side who won the best of three matches went on to play the Gold Run. In this game, the participant (either the white player, or a nominated player from the blue team) had to work their way across the board from left to right within 60 seconds (or "within that magic minute", as Bob often put it). The hexagons had letter combinations such as "MTOC" and the contestants had to guess what these stood for using clues given by the host. e.g. "Famous humanitarian from India" would be "Mother Theresa of Calcutta". Regardless of whether the player won the Gold Run or not, the champion(s) went on to play another team or single player. Winning successive matches earned a chance at further Gold Runs with increasingly impressive prizes.

A fourth Gold Run tended to be a holiday break somewhere in Europe, while winning the fifth and final Gold Run led to an excellent adventure holiday somewhere in the world. A failed Gold Run meant that the contestant(s) would get £10 for every correct answer. Correct answers during the main game were worth £5. Oh, and during the main game, there was always the chance that a letter chosen would emit a special noise, indicating that the contestant who got it right would win a prize for his/her school. This was usually something along the lines of a computer or science or sports equipment. Although a fair number of contestants achieved this, very few actually won more than one school-prize. In the later series of the ITV version of Blockbusters they made an effort to cut costs, err... we mean, of course, get through more contestants by limiting players to three rounds only. In fact, one UKGS correspondent reports that when he was a contestant in 1989, he was told that the reason they changed the structure was because they wanted more people to win the big prizes.

Even though it would cost more money, it was reckoned that this was a good move as it would lead to more "grand finals" and more instances of what viewers (apparently) wanted to see - kids winning the cool holidays. All contestants, successful or otherwise, took away the (apparently much-coveted) 'Blockbusters' sweatshirt (or rugby shirt, depending on the year), dictionary and personal organiser. The latter item varied over the Holness-years (and possibly wasn't even part of the package in the early years), but there was certainly always an item of clothing and a dictionary for everyone to take away. Pictures of the previous contestants wearing the sweatshirt/rugby shirt were invariably shown when Bob referred to the prizes. Champion Blockbusters An enjoyable spin-off ITV series, Champion Blockbusters, invited former winners back to play again. This time, the money was for charity (with the 'mystery letter' boosting the funds considerably when answered correctly), but the contestants still won the Gold Run prizes, all of which were relevant in some way to whatever they were now doing. Set and match There are a couple of features of the set that are worth mentioning.

The first is the game board, which was quite a feat of engineering. It took up the entire height of the studio, and was powered using 38 slide projectors, each with their own set of slides for the different letters, colours and Gold Run questions. Slides used by the projectors of the original Blockbusters board The second is the giant figureheads that adorned the top of the studio. There was a whole set of them, featuring famous people from the past. They were all made out of polystyrene that had been modelled using a hot metal wire. The chief Greek god Zeus took pride of place. Channel hopping The show was dropped by ITV after ten years, only to be snapped up by Sky (with Holness still at the helm) shortly afterwards, though these episodes were also shown in some ITV regions. During this series, a new Bonus Question feature was introduced. The regular question was asked and if the person who picked the letter got it correct, they were asked a related question for them only for the chance to win an additional £5. This question didn't affect the board in any way and was simply a general knowledge question linked to the first one.

BBC 2 experimented with a cheaper afternoon version for adults, which did not have the charm of the original show. Michael Aspel seemed very wooden and ill-at-ease as the new host - and bizarrely so, given that he was no stranger to hosting quizzes. Michael Aspel tried his luck with a modern version of Blockbusters Sky did another version they made for their channel in the new millennium with Liza Tarbuck, but let's just forget about that one. There was also a Gameshow Marathon one-off with Vernon Kay on ITV, which had celebrities playing the game as contestants. The gold run from the Gameshow Marathon version of the show After airing a successful run of repeats of the 1992 series, in 2012 game show channel Challenge recorded 41 brand new episodes, with DJ Simon Mayo at the helm. He proved to be a good host, if rather more feisty than Holness in his approach.

One or two changes occurred, such as Mayo always referring to 'hexagons' on the board, which Holness had rarely, if ever, done, and Mayo also referred to 'a flashing white (or blue) board', rather than Holness's 'flashing white or blue light', when either side was near to winning the game. A look at the set and opening titles from the Challenge version. Regional broadcast details Blockbusters' broadcast history is rather complicated. What we know is as follows: 1983 In 1983, all regions started broadcasting the series from Monday to Friday. Some stations moved Blockbusters to a earlier slot because soap operas were being broadcast at 5.15. Border, Central, Granada, HTV, UTV and Yorkshire: 5.15pm from 29 August to 4 November 1983. Anglia, Channel Television, Grampian, Scottish, Thames, TSW, TVS and Tyne Tees: 3.30pm from 5 September to 11 November 1983.

1984 - 1988 Border, Central, Granada, HTV, Tyne Tees, Yorkshire and UTV: Broadcast Monday - Friday at 5.15, Saturday at 5.05, from September to February. Anglia, Grampian, Scottish, TVS, and Thames/LWT: Broadcast: Wednesday - Friday at 5.15, Saturday at 5.05, September to April. Monday and Tuesday slot was filled with Emmerdale Farm or Sons and Daughters on TVS. Thames/LWT changed transmission from September 1985: Monday to Saturday (except Thursdays): 5.15. TSW The first 71 episodes of the 1984/5 series was not fully transmitted, because the 5.15 slot was taken up with Crossroads or Emmerdale Farm. The latter was moved into early peaktime in 1985 (as it was on Thames). The last 49 episodes of the 1984/5 series were shown on TSW during summer holiday mornings, 1 July - 24 August 1985.

The 1985/6 series aired from September 1985, at 5.15 Monday, Friday and Saturday. The next two series went out at 5.15 on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Channel Television followed TSW's schedules until January 1986, then switched to follow TVS. This meant that approx 16-20 episodes were skipped as TVS were further ahead. 1988 - 1989 All regions except TSW broadcast the show from 2 September 1988 to 10 February 1989 at 5.15 Monday to Friday and 5.05 Saturday. However, some editions were shown on Sundays by Anglia and Scottish, instead of Saturdays. TSW: Mondays to Fridays at 5.15pm and Saturdays at 5.05pm from 3 October 1988 to 10 February 1989. No episodes broadcast between 19 September to 1 October due to the 1988 Olympics.

1990 - 1992 The show was delayed by nearly all the ITV companies until January 1990, as Australian soap Home and Away had taken over the 5.10 slot and Emmerdale Farm was now being broadcast at 6.30, but was moved to 7pm in January 1990. Anglia, Central, Thames: Broadcast 3 episodes a week from January 1990, Monday - Thursday at 5.10, with Home and Away at 6pm. The days of broadcast changed from time to time, occasionally showing on all four days. LWT No longer broadcast any episodes. Scottish: January - April 1990 Tuesday and Thursday at 6.30; from May moved to a daytime slot around 1.30, 2-4 times a week. In 1992 it was at 1.45, Mondays-Thursdays. Grampian: January 1990 - December 1992, broadcast at 6.30, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Border, HTV, Yorkshire: Broadcast from 2 January 1990 at 6.30 Tuesday - Thursday all year round. Granada showed episodes Tuesday - Thursday at 6.30 in 1990, moving to 5.10 during 1991. In 1992 the series moved again to 6pm Wednesdays - Fridays. UTV also showed Tuesday - Thursday at 6.30, reducing to one episode at week from January - October 1992, then from 26 October 1992 broadcast it at 3.20, Mondays - Fridays. TVS and Channel Television aired 2 episodes a week at 6.30 for most of 1990, During 1991/1992 went back to 3 per week, plus an additional episode around lunchtime on Saturdays. TSW also followed the 6.30 Tuesday - Thursday schedule, but dropped the series to 2 per week every so often. To catch back up, the series was moved to 5.10 (Mondays to Fridays) in September 1992.

Tyne Tees had also followed the 6.30 Tuesday - Thursday pattern in 1990. For around 18 months in 1991-2 Tyne Tees broadcast more local output at 6.30, which resulted in fewer episodes of Blockbusters. In preparation for Tyne Tees and Yorkshire merging their scheduling from January 1993, Tyne Tees showed more episodes of Blockbusters to catch up (in November 1992 it was showing the series four times a week - Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays), but had to drop over 50 episodes. Anglia, Central and TSW aired repeat episodes during August - December 1989. 1993 A number of new ITV companies began transmissions, which resulted in regional news being extending to a full hour from 6pm in some areas, which in turn meant a number of stations moved the series back before CITV. Anglia and Central: Monday - Wednesday 5.10, then switching Wednesday - Friday 5.10. The series ended on 19 May 1993.

Carlton Television: Monday - Friday at 3.20, the series completed on 4 June 1993. UTV: Monday - Friday at 3.20, completing the run in July 1993. HTV: Monday - Thursday 1.45. Completed 2 August 1993. Scottish continued to broadcast the series 4 times a week, completing on 2 September 1993. Westcountry Television: 1.45 Monday - Friday, completed by 3 September 1993. Border, Meridian, Tyne Tees, Yorkshire: continued with Tuesday - Thursday 6.30, the run finished on 30 September 1993. Grampian: 1.45 Monday - Friday, completed by December 1993. Granada: Still broadcasting 3 episodes most weeks at 5.10, the series completed in January 1994. 1994 After the final ITV series, Blockbusters was no longer networked on ITV. It continued for one more series on the satellite channel Sky One.

Sky One: Weekdays at 7pm before moving to 6.30. Anglia and Central: Monday - Wednesdays 2.50 from June 1994 to 24 May 1995. Tyne Tees and Yorkshire also broadcast the Sky One episodes from July to December 1995, 6.30 Tuesday - Thursday. For the record, the BBC2 editions in 1997 began at 4pm, but later moved to 1.40. Sky One's revival in 2000 aired at 6pm, and Challenge's editions went out after dinner, at 8pm. Key moments The students showing off their "lucky mascot" toys they had brought with them. When Bob once asked, "What 'L' is a sum of money you borrow from a bank?" a girl answered, "Can I have a loan, please, Bob?" Bob's response was to get his wallet out straightaway. The famous out-take (below) where a contestant answered a biology question with the response "Orgasm" instead of "Organism". The 'O' has been chosen and now we wait for the slip-up.

"How am I going to explain this to Mum...?" And the lesser-known one where another student offered the answer "Kama Sutra" instead of "Kowtow". The 'K' has been chosen and... ...Uh-Oh, she's in trouble. On another occasion, a highly unusual answer to a question relating to London was 'Prostitutes' when in fact the answer was 'Parks'. Another was when Bob asked, "What 'L' do you make in the dark when you're making a wild guess?" and one contestant answered, 'Love' (the answer being 'Leap', of course). A lesser-known out-take goes as follows: Bob: What W are made from plastic or card for carrying papers, and from leather for... Contestant buzzes Bob: Yes, Wallet? Perhaps not an outtake as such, but two unusual answers were given when Bob asked the question, "What 'N' is meant by the phrase, 'Hit him on the Boko?'" One member of the double team buzzed and said, "Nob". The question was duly passed to the single player, who said' "Nag".

The answer was in fact "Nose", so it could be argued that 'Nob' (not in the rude sense, obviously) was actually on the right lines. On one edition, the contestants were asked, "What 'D' is a rag, usually yellow in colour, that's used for polishing furniture and ornaments?" and one unfortunate young man buzzed in and answered "Dishcloth" (the correct answer was 'Duster', of course). True, the former answer wasn't exactly a brilliant one (although, let's face it, we've all come out with wrong and embarrassing responses in the heat of the moment, whether on TV or not), but Bob, if anything, laughed rather too much at it, to the extent that the whole thing seemed unnecessarily silly and embarrassing for the contestant. Even sillier was the fact that when the latter's younger brother appeared in a later series (and fared considerably better), Bob insisted on showing the clip again - surely it would have been better not to have bothered?

One occasion when Bob couldn't help chuckling a little (more out of surprise than anything, one would suspect) was when he had to ask the question, "What 'H' is the name of the man who hosts 'Blockbusters?' - cue a mad rush for the buzzers. On another show, in which the double team were Welsh, Bob asked the question, "What 'C' is the Welsh word for 'Wales'?" The non-Welsh single player buzzed in first and gave the answer, 'Cymru', mispronouncing the word, but also spelling it correctly, and Bob accepted it because of the latter. Naturally, there were quite a few laughs - mainly from Bob, of course - at the fact that the double team had failed to answer the question, but they both took it very much in the right spirit. Probably the most unusual question, which the contestants (understandably) failed to answer on the night, was, "What 'C' has four stiff-standers, four dilly-danders, two lookers, two crookers and a wig-wag?" The answer was 'Cow' (four legs, four teats, two eyes, two horns and a tail).

Many questions were of the 'trick' variety, ie there was a twist in the second half, leading to the downfall of contestants who interrupted them too early (a self-confessed speciality of the show's original question-setter, Ann Meo ). Three such examples were, "What 'M' was the mouse created by Disney as a girlfriend for Mickey?", "What 'D' is a camel that isn't alive?" and, "What 'Y' could be a longing for some Japanese currency?" Not that the contestants to whom the questions were offered following the incorrect answer always managed to capitalise, however - one example of this was when Bob asked, "What 'J' sits in a box...?", at which point one member of the double team buzzed in and answered, 'Jack'. Bob then offered the full question to the single player: "What 'J' sits in a box and decides on the outcome of a court case?" and she answered 'Judge' - the answer was, in fact, 'Jury'. The oh-aren't-we-wacky-students (and Bob as well, of course!) always did the weird clappy-wavy dance thing (technical term: "hand jive") that ended each fifth programme.

This is because five programmes were recorded during one day, and the producers let them do it as the final thing before they went home. After extensive analysis of the tapes, we bring you the dance in full: Knee-clap That hand jive didn't make its televisual debut until three years later... Catchphrases At the beginning of the show on the original version: "And here is the host of Blockbusters - Bob Holness!" which later became: "And now - please welcome the host of Blockbusters - Bob Holness!" "Put yourself on the Hot Spot, please!" (In earlier series, Bob used to either say that or, "Take your place on the Hot Spot, please!" but as time went on, the "Put yourself" version was the one that stuck). "Gold to gold in 60 seconds or less", followed by either, "Tell us where you want to start on the left and we'll start the clock" or, "We'll start the clock when you tell us where you want to start on the left". "£10 for every correct answer if you don't make it".

"Congratulations, and this is your prize - take a look at this!" "Retake your seat and we'll carry on with the game - thank you very much!" This was often followed by, "Well, there we are!" "Let's play 'Blockbusters'!" After a winning correct answer in the main game: "....And that's Blockbusters!" Michael Aspel tried to do the same, but somehow his, "....And that is Blockbusters!" never had the same ring to it, but then neither did his version of the show. "Don't go away!" "He/she'll be doing that Gold Run - not right now, but in a couple of minutes' time - don't you dare go away!" There was a lot of joking around with the way in which contestants nominated the next hexagon to play for. It started with "Can I have a P please, Bob?" - the nation's favourite game show catchphrase, if a 2008 survey on behalf of Churchill Insurance is to be believed - and progressed to "I want U, Bob" (which only the girls said, strangely enough).

The 80s druggies got their kicks with "I want an E, Bob." One enterprising "rave" group, Skin Up, actually released a single called "Blockbuster" which revolved around this phrase (plus someone impersonating Bob Holness incredibly badly). Bob apparently found this rather amusing but the bigwigs at Central didn't agree and got it withdrawn. Booo! Contestants also quite often asked for a "B for Bob", to which Bob usually responded, "If this is the answer to the question, you're in trouble, mate!" or words to that effect - but it never was! Inventor Blockbusters started life in the USA in 1980, one of the many Mark Goodson game-shows. The idea was spotted by a producer who piloted the show in the early 1980's in the UK. Theme music " Quiz Wizard " composed by Ed Welch. Opening titles from 1983-7. Opening titles from 1987-93. Trivia One of the contestants for the pilot show was David Elias , a quiz-setter by profession who won a series of Countdown .

However, when the series was commissioned it was decided that teenagers at sixth form or in college should take part. Hence, he was the oldest ever contestant on Blockbusters - the Holness-version, anyway. Blockbusters was notable for being the first game show on British TV to run five times a week ( Countdown was still only on four nights at this stage, only expanding to five in October 1984, more than a year after Blockbusters). Many thought this was overkill, but this was subsequently shown to be wrong as the show ideally slotted into the invariably tricky 5.15pm slot, this being in the days when Home and Away was a purely Australian institution. Indeed, throughout most of the 1980s, the show ran for 6 days a week, being shown at 5.05pm on Saturdays in addition to the weekday broadcasts. However, in 1990, it was only shown 3 days a week and then at the rather less convenient time of 6.30pm, which clashed with the BBC's regional news programmes. Later still, it became a daytime show, which resulted in a considerable drop in ratings and the show was axed as a result.

Different regions also lagged behind in broadcasting the show, and if you lived somewhere where you could get more than one ITV region, it was not uncommon to be able to switch from one to another and see a completely episode. As a result of this, some regions finished airing the show before others - while Carlton and UTV (and presumably the originating company, Central) aired the final "networked" episodes in June 1993, most regions ran the series over the summer to finish in September. Grampian had such a backlog that it didn't finish airing the show until November. (See also 'Regional Broadcasting Details', above). Bob once revealed that the young man who had famously said 'Orgasm' instead of 'Organism' had not had such a rough deal as one might think. Of course, he would have been horribly embarrassed at the time, especially with the whole studio cracking up laughing - and no doubt he also took a lot of flak from his friends back at school - but apparently, every time the outtake is shown on 'Alright On The Night', 'TV Nightmares' or any other outtake show, he gets a small repeat fee. Not bad going, really.

Although the letter-sequences in Gold Runs usually made up phrases, a notable exception occurred in an early edition of the show when a contestant chose the combination 'ZZZ' and was asked to name 3 African countries. She managed to name two of them (Zimbabwe and Zambia), but was unable to get the third, which was Zaire. The question-setters for the original version were Ann Meo (1983-7) and Hilary Murphy (1987-93). Meo revealed in an interview in the 1989 'Blockbusters' annual that the letters that began the most words in the English language were P and S, while the ones that began the least (bearing in mind that X and Z were never used on the main board) were J, K and Q. She claimed that she used to sit in the studio cursing as a string of questions on the most difficult letters fell by the wayside, thus creating more work for her. She also stated that another of her most thankless tasks was to adjudicate on dubious answers, especially as the audience were always on the side of the contestants and didn't like to see them fail.

As Meo put it, "Sometimes I was lenient and sometimes strict - but I always had a reason". In addition to the main Zeus figurehead that was above Bob, there were many others which were displayed in the studio on a rotation basis. These included: Abraham Lincoln, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Tina Turner, Mother Teresa, George Bernard Shaw, Amy Johnson, John Wayne, Harold Macmillan, William Shakespeare, Charlie Chaplin, Winston Churchill, Meryl Streep, Einstein, Lenin, Harrison Ford, Mao Tse Tung, Kenny Dalglish, Bob Geldof, Beethoven, Martina Navratilova, Hilda Ogden, Woody Allen, Toyah Willcox, Confucius, Queen Elizabeth I, a Punk Rocker, Moses, Daley Thompson, Marilyn Monroe, a Teacher, an Astronaut, a Diver, a Rastafarian and Tutankhamun. They were made out of polystyrene, and moulded by cutting out the relevant sections using a hot wire. Some of the polystyrene figures from Blockbusters being auctioned off The format was so successful in Dubai that shops and offices closed early so that everyone could rush home to see it.

In the mid-90s, there were two editions of the show for kids in Israel - one in Hebrew, one in Arabic. Mathematically speaking, it doesn't make any difference which space a contestant picks at any point in a game. Since whoever selects a space, it is decided by an equal race to the buzzer (so that whenever in the game a space is chosen, the same team should theoretically win it), and because a completed game board can only have one winner on it, the process of playing can be thought of as uncovering the final grid to "see" who wins. Therefore, the best tactic is arguably to simply choose the spaces that will delay the ending of the game and hence accrue a player the most cash (or, of course, to choose the letters with the most potential for hilarious innuendo). Former contestant Stuart Langley writes: "Interested to read the point about the best tactic being to fill the board and take the money as that is exactly what Anita Garrad and I did when we were on the show (many years ago). We were apparently the first and only people to do this. However, at the next ad break we were taken to one side by the producer and told not to do it again.

I guess they were worried it would catch on and bankrupt the show." And Tim Allison observes: "While it may not make any mathematical difference what space is picked, I am sure that it makes a psychological difference. There seemed little benefit to me going round the board on the 1984 series when it might increase opponents' confidence. The gold run prizes were far better than the cash and not worth the risk - not that I was much good at gold runs." In the Simon Mayo series, one contestant named Ryan decided to do the equivalent in his first Gold Run, lighting up extra hexagons in the hope of making some extra money before completing his run - not realising that he would only get the money if he didn't win the prize, which as he rightly surmised, was worth quite a bit less than the £80 he thought he'd made. In his second Gold Run, he deliberately didn't finish the run and just lit as many hexagons as he could, only for Simon to tell him (with, we fancy, a little too much pleasure) that the prize he would have won, was worth considerably more than the cash. After that, he wised up and just played his third Gold Run straight.

Bob's trademark "sign off" of saluting his right hand into the air (usually accompanied with "Goodbye now!" or "Cheers!") was compained about by viewers who thought he was imitating the Nazi "Zeig heil" salute. In later series, a bell (annoyingly loud, might we add?) would ring indicating when an advertising break was about to talk place. Bob would read out one more question before going into the ads. What purpose this served is unknown, but it seems most likely that it arose because breaks previously only occurred in between games, therefore there had to be an indicator that a game was due to be interrupted. No excuse for such an ear-splitting bell, though. During the Sky/Holness era, the item of clothing given away was a t-shirt designed by a viewer. On it was the famous Zeus figurehead with a speech bubble saying "Can I Have A P Please, Bob?". The fan in question was interviewed by Bob in front of the gameboard after the first Gold Run of the series.

During the rehersals of the first Sky One series, when someone did a test Gold Run they'd put up gag prizes; two of them included an old rusty lawnmower, and the contents of the producers' drinks cabinet (a couple of cracked tumblers and an almost-empty bottle of booze). The actions for the Blockbusters hand-jive are in fact the secret forbidden arm movements for Riverdance. Admittedly this may not be literally true, but wouldn't you love to see someone try it? In August 1987 there was a special episode called Blockbusters Abroad following Gold Run winners on their prize holidays. Konnie Huq was a contestant in 1992. She returned for a celebrity special at the end of the Simon Mayo-fronted revival series, in which she and Boyzone/Corrie star Shane Lynch were beaten by the quizzing behemoth that is... Alex James from Blur. Merchandise Twelve Blockbusters quiz books were published by Sphere, plus five "Gold Run" books. A very successful board game was also made, which became the British Association of Toy Retailers' Game of the Year for 1986. There was a "Gold Run" travel card game as well.

In 1989, an annual was printed although this was the only one to be published to our knowledge. Web links ACE4ENTERTAINMENT- Use Your Skills: Greatest Game Show Catchphrase Greatest Game Show Catchphrase Recently we conducted a poll for the greatest game show catchphrase in the UK and guess which game show came out as number 1. Please see below: “Nice to see you, to see you... Nice”, has been named the greatest game show catchphrase of all time, in a new poll. The famous line, uttered by Bruce Forsyth at the start of this shows scooped more than 20 per cent of the votes. Although it was first heard in The Generation Game, in 1972, Forsyth claimed the catchphrase as his own and went on to use it as an introduction to most of the programmes he fronted. Second place in the poll, went to Mastermind’s ‘’I’ve started so I’ll finish’’, which was said by host Magnus Magnusson if the time ran out before he reached the end of a question.

Blockbusters’ ‘’Can I have a P please Bob?’’ is at number three followed by Jim Bowen’s line, ‘’Look what you could have won’’, in Bullseye. ‘’Say what you see’’, said by Roy Walker in Catchphrase finished off the top five. A spokesman for cash prize competition site which carried out the poll, said: ‘’Bruce Forsyth is a game show legend and his phrases have become just as famous as his personality. “And the fact that Bruce has two of the lines in the top ten shows just what a game show star he is.” ‘’Yet all the lines in the line up have become iconic catch phrases that are so well known they are quoted in everyday life.” ‘‘We would definitely welcome Bruce Forsyth to host our Cheqmate quiz competition where two players can cheqmate each other for the chance to win a £50,000 cash prize’’ The poll, of 2,500 people, by , also named The Generation Game as the most popular game show, with more than 10 per cent of the vote.

The show, which was first aired in 1972 with Bruce Forsyth as host, saw four teams, each made up of two family members from different generations, battle it out. Arguably the most famous part of the show is towards the end of the competition when one family member from the winning team has to memorise a number of items that pass by on a conveyor belt – one of which was always a cuddly toy. It’s popularity saw it on our screens for more than 30 years, with Larry Grayson and then Jim Davidson taking over the presenting duties from Forsyth, Second in the poll, is The Crystal Maze, in which a team of six had to complete various challenges to win a crystal. Chris Tarrant’s big money show Who Wants to be a Millionaire is at three, followed by popular channel four show Deal or No Deal, presented by Noel Edmonds. Have I got News for You was voted in at number five. A spokesman for ACE4ENTERTAINMENT.com – added: ‘’The Generation Game has entertained the nation’s families for over 30 years so the programme definitely deserves the game show crown.

“All the game shows listed in the top ten have been a huge part of our lives over the years and show just how popular family competitions are. ‘’But you needn’t go on television now to take part - we offer players the chance to use their skills to win cash prizes in studio based quiz shows or competitions online.” Bruce Forsyth was also voted the most popular game show host of all time, while Anne Robinson, who fronts The Weakest Link, was named as the least popular. Top 10 game show catchphrases of all time 1. Nice to see you, to see you... Nice – Bruce Forsyth 2. I’ve started so I’ll finish – Magnus Magnusson, Mastermind 3. Can I have a P please Bob? - Blockbusters 4. Look what you could have won – Jim Bowen, Bullseye 5. Say what you see – Roy Walker, Catchphrase 6. Didn’t they do well – Bruce Forsyth, Generation Game 7. It’s good but it’s not right – Roy Walker, Catchphrase 8. What’s on the scores, George Dawes – Shooting Stars 9.

You are the Weakest Link...Goodbye – Anne Robinson, The Weakest Link 10. Is that your final answer? – Chris Tarrant, Who Wants to be a Millionaire Top 10 greatest game shows of all time 1. The Generation Game 3. Who Wants to be a Millionaire 4. Deal or No Deal 5. Have I got News for You 6. The Krypton Factor 8. It’s a Knockout 9.

Catchphrase Catchphrase - UKGameshows Catchphrase Jonathan Gould (2013-) Broadcast TVS in association with Action Time for ITV, 12 January 1986 to 28 October 1994 (169 episodes in 9 series + 4 specials) Co-produced by Meridian, 1993-4 Action Time and Carlton for ITV, 4 November 1994 to 23 April 2004 (183 episodes in 8 series) STV Productions in association with DRG for ITV, 7 April 2013 to present Synopsis Two people attempted to solve Catchphrases (picture puzzles which revealed a phrase, saying, title, whatever - think Dingbats) to win money. Before each round one person stopped the flashing light and that determined how much money each one in this round was worth. Then, a puzzle came on screen which, after the bell but not before, it was first on the buzzers. If they were right they won the money.

An example puzzle (answer below) One of the most distinctive things about Catchphrase was that it was one of the first shows to use proper computer animations as part of the game, and even by the end it remained pretty cutting edge. Many of the animations featured a robot called Mr. Chips. Mr. Chips giving us a wink, the cheeky devil After each puzzle, that person got a chance at the Bonus Catchphrase. This was covered by nine squares. One was picked at random and removed then they were allowed a guess. If they got it right, they won whatever was in the Bonus Bank (originally a flat 100+(round number x 50), eventually turning into 100+ round number times 50, take away 10 for every square already uncovered, plus the number of letters in the month etc...). If wrong, they did another puzzle and so on until someone got it. Repeat as required, sprinkle liberally with extra money for each round. Host Roy Walker on the set of Catchphrase - surely one the most durable in the business, it hardly changed in over a decade except for the logo. After the break, there was always the faster-moving Ready Money Round where there was no bell.

Which was nice. Incidentally, we're told that one of the reasons that the show had a bell was to slow down the rate that money was earnt, the show gave away potentially large cash prizes and back in the day there were limits TV companies had to adhere to in the prizes they gave away. Mr Chips can't believe his luck - it's the Ready Money Round The person with the most money at the end of the show went forth to the Super Catchphrase. A grid of 25 lettered squares flashed up. Behind each one was a Catchphrase. If they got 5, they won an extra £50 (or £500 from 1997). However, if they did that by going through the 'M' square (which they claimed to be the "difficult" one but we personally didn't believe that for a moment) they won a lovely holiday in somewhere exotic like Bali! PLUS! Spending money. Only 6 seconds into her minute and she's already cracked the M square. Popular show that very rarely had an exciting finish to it - one player nearly always dominated the other. But it still lasted a zillion series. Oh, and the answer is "dishing the dirt".

Catchphrase for The New Millennium Someone had the sense to give the show a complete re-vamp for its 2000 series. The graphics engine was made sexier and given a new cartoon style. The bonus game was covered by nine shapes as usual, but they weren't necessarily squares. The Ready Money Round was replaced by the Cash Countdown, and the end game was now a Blockbusters -style "get to the other end of the board" thingy, using the same 5x5 letter grid. Walker was replaced by Nick Weir , who broke his leg during the recording of the first series (in true Matthew Kelly Game for a Laugh style) - and, on his return, welcomed us all to 'Crutchphrase'. He sometimes gave away too many hints, but his performance was much improved since his debut on Waffle . This package of changes gave the idea a new lease of life, but we weren't sure about the spot prizes, though.

But this relaunch completely bombed with the public, who simply missed Walker, and even a last ditch attempt in 2002 to save the show by moving it to daytime (with new host Mark Curry, who invented a running joke about not having any catchphrases of his own) didn't help. The 'Catchphrase Countdown' just didn't quite have the same ring to it... in fact, they tried avoid any references to cash and points as far as they could and left the viewer to fill in the blanks, in a hilarious and unsuccessful bid to fool slow-witted viewers that it still was a big money gameshow, presumably. Mark 'Who the hell is he?' Curry See also: Family Catchphrase , which started as a one-off special of the main show before spinning off into its own series on a different channel. Catchphrase for the Toy Story generation And there we thought the story would end. Oh, Catchphrase remained popular on the gameshow rerun channel Challenge, and Chris Moyles had the long-running "Carpark Catchphrase" feature on his Radio 1 Breakfast Show. But the last thing we expected for spring 2013 was a new run of episodes, this time presented by Stephen Mulhern.

There are lots of nods towards the classic era, such as the theme tune being a re-working of the original, a neon light set and all of the original buzzers and jingles still being used. As well as this, there are lots of things to keep the show fresh such as new 3D CGI animations for the catchphrases, a bigger prize and some changes to the rounds. Don't look behind yourself Stephen Mulhern, it's a scary looking Mr.Chips. Round 1 begins with a elimination round with three contestants having to guess quickfire catchphrases until two contestants have guessed three catchphrases correctly. The two winning contestants then proceed to the next round, but the third contestant is sent home. We really don't understand why this was added in at the top of the show with one contestant being eliminated very early because the elimination round is really just padding to fill in the 45 minute time slot and a waste of time for the eliminated contestant. The big giant egg set and screen. Round 2 is what we call "Classic Catchphrase", which is basically the show as we know with the same rules that applied from the past years.

The values of money for the bonus catchphrase are higher than the past years with £500 to be won in round 2 and £1,000 to be won in round 3, but the only difference is that there is no £10 reduction punishment for every square that is removed if the contestant doesn't know or incorrectly guesses the catchphrase. Did you get that catchphrase right? 5 seconds, here we go. The final round is as always the dreaded Super Catchphrase. As always, the same rules applied from the past years but the contestant now has to guess five catchphrases correctly by climbing up a pyramid of fifteen numbered blocks consisting of catchphrases within 60 seconds. Each time the contestant guesses a catchphrase correctly on each level from bottom to top, the money increases every time from £2,500, £5,000, £10,000, £25,000 and £50,000. But wait, there's more, No. 11 on the third level has a star in the middle, where if the contestant chooses that number and correctly guesses the catchphrase, they could win a holiday as well.

The leaning tower of catchphrases. Despite a rather padded start to the show with its elimination round, it is a warm welcome back to the game show from our past. Key moments When a contestant said something really stupid, Walker still insisted, "It's good, but it's not right.". Come on, Roy, it quite blatantly wasn't. Why couldn't you have said "I'm sorry, that was rubbish. Never grace me with your voice again. Ever."? "Say what you see" was a bonus catchphrase around 1998. Amazingly, no-one got it. Additionally, "Catchphrase" was a catchphrase once... they got that, though. In one outtake, Roy was caught out with a polo mint in his mouth. "I swallowed it and it came back up!" Walker gave the wrong answer to a catchphrase that neither contestant had identified. He claimed it was 'Columbo' when it fact it was 'Blue Heaven'. How he managed to confuse the two completely different phrases is anyone's guess. That bonus catchphrase in 1994: Ooh, Mr. Chips!

Catchphrases (At the beginning of the show): "And now - please welcome your host - Mr Catchphrase himself - Rooooy Waaalker!" "Say what you see" "If you see it, say it, and you'll win it" "It's good, but it's not right" "Riiiiiiiiiiight!" "We're taking out the bell" "It's fast and furious in the Ready Money Round" "Five seconds... here we go" "The M square, that's the difficult one" "What's Mr Chips doing?", or, "There's Chips - what's he doing?" "There's no such expression" "Watch your screens...

here we go!" "Keep pressing and guessing!" "You can't win if you don't buzz in!" "Lots of time - a minute - and if you get stuck, just say 'pass' and we can come back to it - the best of luck - call me a letter" "Be lucky!" Theme music 1986-94: Ed Welch 1994-2002: Simon Etchell (A remixed version of Etchell's theme was used for the Weir and Curry version.) 2013-present: Marc Sylvan & Richard Jacques Trivia In the original US show, popular gameshow mascot Mr Chips is called Herbie. Roy Walker once recounted the ancedote of the show once running out of catchphrases. The second of the four shows being recorded that day had got through a huge number of phrases that neither contestant knew. The computer files were being flown in on disc from the US, so a bike was rushing to the airport to pick them up. During the filming break, one of the contestants kept nipping back to his dressing room. It turned out that he was taking swigs of booze, and eventually became legless.

The reserve contestant was telephoned, but he put the phone down not realising that they needed him immediately and went back to working on his allotment. So a car was dispatched to find him in the gardens and take him back to the studio. But then that car broke down causing a delay, and to cap it all the bike bringing back the catchphrases also broke down. Nick Weir revealed in an interview that, after he broke his leg, "My TV career flashed before me", but as it happened, he needn't have worried, because the show's producer came to visit him in hospital and told him that, if he (Weir) was happy to carry on with the show, so were they. Thus, he was reprieved - a shame, then, that his version of the show didn't last very long. Transmission details Transmissions of Catchphrase were confusing, to say the least. We think the following synopsis is accurate. Our story starts from 30 September to 28 October 1994, with the last five TVS/Meridian episodes recorded in 1993.

Following straight on, the 1994 recording block began for viewers on 4 November 1994, and ran until 3 February 1995 with the first 13 episodes. 4 episodes were pushed back and weren't aired until 2 to 23 March 1996. The series made in 1995 didn't air on ITV for three years - 16 episodes from 10 July to 27 September 1998, and the last 3 episodes from 13 to 21 April 1999. The 1997 series aired before the 1995 series, with the first 15 episodes airing from 3 January to 9 May 1998 and the last episode on 1 November 1998. The 1998 series aired 11 episodes from 21 November 1998 to 27 February 1999 and the last 5 episodes from 3 October to 13 November 1999.

When Nick Weir took over hosting the show, the 2000 and early 2001 series were aired in a regular slot. The late 2001 series started on 24 November 2002 with only the first episode of that series being aired on that date. Episodes 2-8 were scattered all over the schedules in the summer of 2003 from 5 May to 7 September 2003 Episodes 9-21 were finally settled in the daytime schedule in spring 2004 from 5 to 23 April 2004. The 2002 series with Mark Curry had a regular slot in the daytime schedule. 49 episodes aired from 24 June to 30 August 2002 (not 26 August, a bank holiday schedule was used) until Family Fortunes took over its place. The last 3 episodes aired during the Christmas period from 17 to 19 December 2002. And after the Nick Weir episodes ended, Catchphrase was off to Challenge for ten years, until Stephen Mulhern's revival.

Merchandise There was also a Catchphrase puzzle book, board game and a video featuring 500 catchphrases. Web links

Question: ‘Can I have a P please Bob’ is a catchphrase from which UK television game show?
Answer: Blockbusters