Hard Spell
Encyclopedia
Hard Spell is a United Kingdom
televised spelling bee
programme for children between the ages of eleven and fourteen, presented by Eamonn Holmes
, with Nina Hossain
reading the words. It was first broadcast on BBC One
in late 2004. Heats were held in different parts of the country leading to the grand final, at the end of which Gayathri Kumar was crowned Britain's best young speller.
Notable spellers apart from Gayathri included Nisha Abraham-Thomas from Wolverhampton
, Mark Jackson from Cambridge
, Dominic Harvey from Bath, Sarah Williams from Penzance
, Jack Jarvis from Chesterfield
and Anthony Collins from Barnes.
All of the televised runners-up in 2004 received a signed photograph of Eamonn Holmes and other Hard Spell memorabilia.
Soon after, the BBC prduced a one-off episode of Star Spell, which followed the same format but had celebrities taking part rather than children. This was again presented by Eamonn Holmes, with Nina Hossain reading the words. The one-off episode was won by the late Richard Whiteley
. In late 2005, the BBC
broadcast a full series of Star Spell
, again presented by Eamonn Holmes but Mishal Husain took over from Nina as word pronouncer.
As the show was such a success, Hard Spell returned to television screens at Christmas
2005 with a different age group (11-13) but the same presenters, Eamonn Holmes and Mishal Husain. In the final, the winner was Niall O'Neill from Northern Ireland
who won £10,000 worth of holiday vouchers and media equipment for his school. In 2005 the memorabilia contained a Hard Spell T-shirt
, mug
, pencil case
, pen
and a dictionary
signed by the presenter.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
televised spelling bee
Spelling bee
A spelling bee is a competition where contestants, usually children, are asked to spell English words. The concept is thought to have originated in the United States....
programme for children between the ages of eleven and fourteen, presented by Eamonn Holmes
Eamonn Holmes
Eamonn Holmes is an Northern Irish journalist and broadcaster. He is known for his work on UK and Irish television, notably presenting GMTV and This Morning. He is married to TV presenter Ruth Langsford.-Education:...
, with Nina Hossain
Nina Hossain
Nina Hossain is a British journalist, presenter and newscaster.Hossain is currently employed on a freelance basis by ITN where she is the main presenter of ITV London's regional news programme London Tonight. Nina also acts as a relief newscaster for ITV News.-Background:Hossain was born in...
reading the words. It was first broadcast on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
in late 2004. Heats were held in different parts of the country leading to the grand final, at the end of which Gayathri Kumar was crowned Britain's best young speller.
Notable spellers apart from Gayathri included Nisha Abraham-Thomas from Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
, Mark Jackson from Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, Dominic Harvey from Bath, Sarah Williams from Penzance
Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is approximately 75 miles west of Plymouth and 300 miles west-southwest of London...
, Jack Jarvis from Chesterfield
Chesterfield
Chesterfield is a market town and a borough of Derbyshire, England. It lies north of Derby, on a confluence of the rivers Rother and Hipper. Its population is 70,260 , making it Derbyshire's largest town...
and Anthony Collins from Barnes.
All of the televised runners-up in 2004 received a signed photograph of Eamonn Holmes and other Hard Spell memorabilia.
Soon after, the BBC prduced a one-off episode of Star Spell, which followed the same format but had celebrities taking part rather than children. This was again presented by Eamonn Holmes, with Nina Hossain reading the words. The one-off episode was won by the late Richard Whiteley
Richard Whiteley
John Richard Whiteley, OBE DL , usually known as Richard Whiteley, was an English broadcaster and journalist. He was famous for his twenty-three years as host of Countdown, a letters and numbers arrangement game show broadcast most weekdays on Channel 4...
. In late 2005, the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
broadcast a full series of Star Spell
Star Spell
Star Spell was a BBC game show which put celebrities against each other in spelling related games, each one was subsequently eliminated until there was one Star Spell Champion...
, again presented by Eamonn Holmes but Mishal Husain took over from Nina as word pronouncer.
As the show was such a success, Hard Spell returned to television screens at Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
2005 with a different age group (11-13) but the same presenters, Eamonn Holmes and Mishal Husain. In the final, the winner was Niall O'Neill from Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
who won £10,000 worth of holiday vouchers and media equipment for his school. In 2005 the memorabilia contained a Hard Spell T-shirt
T-shirt
A T-shirt is a style of shirt. A T-shirt is buttonless and collarless, with short sleeves and frequently a round neck line....
, mug
Mug
A mug is a sturdily built type of cup often used for drinking hot beverages, such as coffee, tea, or hot chocolate. Mugs, by definition, have handles and often hold a larger amount of fluid than other types of cup. Usually a mug holds approximately 12 fluid ounces of liquid; double a tea cup...
, pencil case
Pencil case
A pencil case or pencil box is a container used to carry pencils. A pencil case can also contain a variety of other stationery such as a pencil sharpener, pens, erasers, a stapler, and a calculator....
, pen
Pen
A pen is a device used to apply ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Historically, reed pens, quill pens, and dip pens were used, with a nib of some sort to be dipped in the ink. Ruling pens allow precise adjustment of line width, and still find a few specialized uses, but...
and a dictionary
Dictionary
A dictionary is a collection of words in one or more specific languages, often listed alphabetically, with usage information, definitions, etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, and other information; or a book of words in one language with their equivalents in another, also known as a lexicon...
signed by the presenter.