A spin-off version of the game show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?, called Millionaire Hot Seat, debuted on ITV in the UK tonight.
Presented by the same host, Jeremy Clarkson, many elements were familiar, but there were some key differences.
To start with, the show was shorter than the original format, running at around 30 minutes.
Players get less time to answer questions, and they’re in a rotating queue which moves along each time the player in front of them uses their one pass in the game.
Clarkson described it as ‘pure concentrated Who Wants To Be A Millionaire juice – no lifelines, no hesitating, and five people waiting to jump into the chair when someone makes a mess of things.’
But some people sounded like they wanted the original version on their screens instead.
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@ManaboutLdn on X, called it an ‘awful rehash of the show’, asking: ‘how many nights is this one?’
The show is a pre-existing format that started in Australia almost 20 years ago and has seen 15 seasons with a 16th due to start soon.
While it might be a success down under, viewers in the UK had some complaints. Oceania Sceptic said it was ‘too bitty’ and ‘hard on the contestants’. Plus KardSharp75 thought it was a ‘guessing game without any strategy and decision making.’
Others, like East Leeds Lass, enjoyed the shorter runtime: ‘I like the pace of it’.
And Jack S called it ‘a great format’.
The contestants still hope to win £1million, and it all comes down to who is in the hot seat at the end.
The first episode saw the winner take home £20,000. Simon Williams, a firefighter from Notting Hill, won the prize money on a ‘total guess’.
He was asked: ‘Which of these characters has not appeared in a filmed directed by Ridley Scott?’
His options were Hannibal Lecter, Rick Deckard, Paul Atreides and Ellen Ripley.
Simon correctly chose Paul Atreides and bagged himself 20 grand, which he said he’ll spend on taking his daughter to New York, getting his son a Manchester United season ticket, and taking his girlfriend to the Maldives.
The main show, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, saw a festive special at the end of last year, with Celebrity Traitor’s Joe Marler, and comedian Katherine Ryan try to win the prize pot for charity.
Marler won £64,000 for CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), and Ryan won the same amount for Women’s Health Information & Support Centre (WHISC).
Millionaire Hot Seat continues tomorrow at 7.30pm on ITV1.
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