Perdita
16-02-2009, 09:34
After a decade hosting Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?, Chris Tarrant has decided to lend another big money gameshow his presenting talents. The Colour Of Money is based around the same premise as The Bong Game from his Capital Radio days, testing a contestant's greediness and nerve. We gave Chris a call to find out how the new show works and ask whether there's still a future for Millionaire.
What are the rules of The Colour Of Money?
"Basically you get 20 massive cash machines, each with significant amounts of money inside, ranging from £1,000 to £20,000 - there must be about £250,000 altogether. You then swipe a card and a big sum of money comes up, which tends to be around £80,000. It's not Millionaire money, but it's very serious stuff. You then go through picking ten machines trying to get your total up to £80,000. It's like the Bong Game because if you get too greedy the machine will blow up and you don't get any money from that machine."
It sounds like it could be quite a tense show to watch.
"Of all the things I've done, it's the most emotionally draining. All these hard-faced cynical people who work in the show's production were in floods of tears, crying 'ooh, that poor woman!' You leave the set feeling completely battered. I've never seen so many people crying on a show. The place was awash. The machine just starts going, '£1,000... £2,000.... £3,000', meanwhile the audience are screaming, 'for God's sake stop!' The families are on the sides shouting 'what are you doing? You silly cow!' In terms of sheer drama, it's incredible."
Do you think it can get anywhere close to the success of Millionaire?
"I've seen an edit of the first two shows and I think it's very good. I am cautious because it's a new venture and you can never be sure with TV work that what happens in the studio will be communicated. Whether the tension gets through to people at home, we'll have to wait and see. The thing it does have in common with Millionaire is the 'shoutability' factor, where people will be sat screaming at their screens."
Do you struggle to keep you mouth shut when you think someone's about to get greedy and blow it?
"My job is not to show emotion. I'm actually quite an emotional guy, but the times I've sat on Millionaire and been thinking, 'For God's sake!' I'm just like everyone else at home. I'm saying to myself, 'A lifeline! A bloody lifeline on this!' On Colour Of Money, I do show a bit more emotion because there's lots of times where I can't even bare to look."
You have apparently hosted more TV gameshows that any other presenter. What keeps drawing you back to them?
"Really? I always assumed that Bob Monkhouse had done the most. Bob for me was the master. I never wanted the label 'gameshow host'. It conjures the image of an oily spiv in a spangly gold suit and being totally vile. As long as I can do my manic stuff on radio and go off filming polar bears, then I'm fine. I would never want to do just gameshows. This might sound naff, but I do love working with people. I'm good at talking to strangers off the cuff."
Have you watched Slumdog Millionaire yet?
"Millionaire is astounding. It's won everything and now there's a big bloody Oscar-winning movie based on it. It's a good film. There is a certain amount of hysteria about it at the moment, but I'm not sure it's the best film of the past 12 months. It's just really weird for me to sit and watch someone else hosting the show."
Do you watch all the international versions of Millionaire?
"Not all, but quite a lot. Bizarrely, I saw it in Kazakhstan, the land of Borat, a couple of weeks ago. There was this chap with a moustache doing all my mannerisms and I quite like it. It was surreal, but strangely complimentary. Also, when they are speaking in Kazakh, which I have to admit isn't my strongest language, they suddenly say the lifelines in English. It's all this babble and then '50/50' or 'phone a friend'."
Do you think Millionaire has an end point any time soon?
"There has to be an end point. There must be. I never imagined in 1998 that I'd still be doing it in 2010! I've always said that I'll only stop when I don't enjoy it, but I've just been in the studio all week doing it and it was honestly a complete ball. The mixture of people who come and sit next to me, eyeball to eyeball, who can win this astounding amount of money, is incredible. Everyone knows Millionaire these days and it fits like a glove. It's such a fantastic, simple format."
The Colour Of Money airs from Saturday, February 21 on ITV1.
What are the rules of The Colour Of Money?
"Basically you get 20 massive cash machines, each with significant amounts of money inside, ranging from £1,000 to £20,000 - there must be about £250,000 altogether. You then swipe a card and a big sum of money comes up, which tends to be around £80,000. It's not Millionaire money, but it's very serious stuff. You then go through picking ten machines trying to get your total up to £80,000. It's like the Bong Game because if you get too greedy the machine will blow up and you don't get any money from that machine."
It sounds like it could be quite a tense show to watch.
"Of all the things I've done, it's the most emotionally draining. All these hard-faced cynical people who work in the show's production were in floods of tears, crying 'ooh, that poor woman!' You leave the set feeling completely battered. I've never seen so many people crying on a show. The place was awash. The machine just starts going, '£1,000... £2,000.... £3,000', meanwhile the audience are screaming, 'for God's sake stop!' The families are on the sides shouting 'what are you doing? You silly cow!' In terms of sheer drama, it's incredible."
Do you think it can get anywhere close to the success of Millionaire?
"I've seen an edit of the first two shows and I think it's very good. I am cautious because it's a new venture and you can never be sure with TV work that what happens in the studio will be communicated. Whether the tension gets through to people at home, we'll have to wait and see. The thing it does have in common with Millionaire is the 'shoutability' factor, where people will be sat screaming at their screens."
Do you struggle to keep you mouth shut when you think someone's about to get greedy and blow it?
"My job is not to show emotion. I'm actually quite an emotional guy, but the times I've sat on Millionaire and been thinking, 'For God's sake!' I'm just like everyone else at home. I'm saying to myself, 'A lifeline! A bloody lifeline on this!' On Colour Of Money, I do show a bit more emotion because there's lots of times where I can't even bare to look."
You have apparently hosted more TV gameshows that any other presenter. What keeps drawing you back to them?
"Really? I always assumed that Bob Monkhouse had done the most. Bob for me was the master. I never wanted the label 'gameshow host'. It conjures the image of an oily spiv in a spangly gold suit and being totally vile. As long as I can do my manic stuff on radio and go off filming polar bears, then I'm fine. I would never want to do just gameshows. This might sound naff, but I do love working with people. I'm good at talking to strangers off the cuff."
Have you watched Slumdog Millionaire yet?
"Millionaire is astounding. It's won everything and now there's a big bloody Oscar-winning movie based on it. It's a good film. There is a certain amount of hysteria about it at the moment, but I'm not sure it's the best film of the past 12 months. It's just really weird for me to sit and watch someone else hosting the show."
Do you watch all the international versions of Millionaire?
"Not all, but quite a lot. Bizarrely, I saw it in Kazakhstan, the land of Borat, a couple of weeks ago. There was this chap with a moustache doing all my mannerisms and I quite like it. It was surreal, but strangely complimentary. Also, when they are speaking in Kazakh, which I have to admit isn't my strongest language, they suddenly say the lifelines in English. It's all this babble and then '50/50' or 'phone a friend'."
Do you think Millionaire has an end point any time soon?
"There has to be an end point. There must be. I never imagined in 1998 that I'd still be doing it in 2010! I've always said that I'll only stop when I don't enjoy it, but I've just been in the studio all week doing it and it was honestly a complete ball. The mixture of people who come and sit next to me, eyeball to eyeball, who can win this astounding amount of money, is incredible. Everyone knows Millionaire these days and it fits like a glove. It's such a fantastic, simple format."
The Colour Of Money airs from Saturday, February 21 on ITV1.