Playing for Time was a BBC Television

BBC Television

BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...

 daytime quiz programme that aired 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...

 from 13 November 2000 until 2001. The programme was hosted 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:...

.

Gameplay

The game is played in a best two-out-of-three rounds format. In all three rounds, each player is allotted 60 seconds; when one player runs out of time, the other player wins the round and keeps the time left on their clock.

Play for Time (Rounds 1 and 2)

Eamonn asks a three-choice question. Both players' clocks start simultaneously; when a player selects their answer, their clock stops. If both players are right, Eamonn asks another three-choice question.

If a player answers a question incorrectly, they are asked "Time-waster" questions, "brain-bender"-style questions, until they get one right, thus resuming the three-choice questions.

If both players are wrong, the Time-waster question is asked in a buzz-in format; a correct answer forces their opponent to answer a Time-Waster correctly; a wrong answer forces them to do so themselves.

If one player wins both rounds of "Play For Time," they win the match; if they split the first two rounds, they play "Extra Time."

Extra Time (Round 3; only if necessary)

As before, both players start with 60 seconds. Starting with the player who won less time, Eamonn asks general knowledge questions. When a player answers a question correctly, they stop their clock and pass control to their opponent, similar to a chess clock or the game show Grand Slam

Grand Slam (TV Series)

Grand Slam is a television quiz show first created for Britain's Channel 4 in 2003. In its first and only series in the UK, the main host was Carol Vorderman. She was joined in the studio by analyst James Richardson...

. When one player runs out of time, the other player wins the match, and keeps their remaining time as usual.

The winning player is permitted to see the next contestant in line, and some biographical information on that contestant, and then has a decision to make: either use the time that they won to play the bonus round, "Playing for Time Away," for a trip, or face the new contestant to try to win more time, knowing that should they lose against the new contestant, they must leave the show, and that in any event, they are only permitted one attempt at the bonus round.

Playing For Time Away (Bonus Round)

Before playing the bonus round, the player selects one of three trips that they would like to go on, provided that they win the round. The player must answer 5 questions correctly to win the trip; their time limit is equal to the time that they won in their match or matches. Whether they win the trip or not, they must leave the show after attempting the bonus round.

External links

• Playing for Time at UKgameshows.com