Take It Or Leave It (game show)
Encyclopedia
Take It or Leave It? was a British game show
, developed by Dutch format company Intellygents, that aired on the digital channel Challenge. Challenge tends to air repeats of classic game shows that have been commissioned by other broadcasters, but it is rare that they produce original content. It originally aired from 23 October 2006 to 18 July 2008 and was hosted by Richard Arnold
.
If the team gives a right answer, the answer flashes green and the "Wall of Safes" is brought up on screen. The Wall of Safes has 20 safes with cash values from 1p to £15,000. There are also two "Booby Traps", which can knock the team in control out of play by making them go to the Sin Bin, placing their rivals in play. Each member of the team selects a safe to open. The first safe opened can either be banked by the team or (especially, if it is a low value safe) can be rejected for the second chosen safe. The risk here is that they might open a lower value safe or even eliminate themselves from play by revealing a Booby Trap or have one of the top amounts in their second choice.
If the team decides to take an answer and it is wrong, the answer flashes red and the team must swap places with the team in the Sin Bin.
£15,000>
£12,500>
£7,500>
£5,000>
£3,500>
£2,000>
£1,000>
£900>
£750>
£600>
£500>
£350>
£250>
£150>
£5>
50p>
10p>
1p
In series 3, the values for the Wall of Safes were as follows:
£15,000>
£12,500>
£7,500>
£5,000>
£3,500>
£2,500>
£1,500>
£1,000>
£800>
£700>
£500>
£350>
£250>
£150>
£5>
50p>
10p>
1p
Before the numbered safes are jumbled up at the start of the show, the two Booby Traps appear between the £1,000 or the £1,500 and the £900 or the £1,000 as well as the £500 and £350 on the board. Once the Booby Traps have been played or rejected the teams still need to give right answers and discover the larger amounts of cash in play.
There are five final questions that the team must answer. The only difference here is that they are answered without it being revealed if they are right or wrong until later. Once all five questions have been answered, the computer brings back the questions that have been answered correctly first.
For each correct answer, the team decide to play, an empty safe is eliminated, thus increasing the chances of the team discovering the safe with the jackpot. If the team is worried that they have taken a wrong answer earlier, they can decide not to play that answer and to open a safe at any time.
If the team has answered all questions correctly and play all the answers, then, they do not need to guess which safe the jackpot is in, as it will be the only one left. If the team take a wrong answer and decide to play it to try and eliminate an empty safe, they lose immediately, without the chance to open a safe.
The show was originally meant to be fronted by Michael Barrymore
. However, Arnold was settled upon.
The show was hailed as the next Deal or No Deal?
, but has not found the same success.
The show was filmed in the famous Pinewood Studios
, where the popular James Bond
movies have been filmed.
During its original run, the show aired weekday nights at 21:00 on Challenge. Before each break, Cawood would give the details for a viewers' competition, much like Challenge's version of The Pyramid Game
. This was during the original run only and did not return for the afternoon repeats.
The claim that you can win up to £50,000 on the show was originally wrong; the ten most valuable safes only contained £48,750. From series 3, some of the amounts of money were changed and the promised £50,000 could be won, but it was never won. The highest amount won was £49,300.50 by Joakim and Chioma. They got every question correct, including the first ten in the main game and the last five in the final. They then correctly guessed the safe with the jackpot inside on a 50/50 gamble, as they did not play the fifth question.
, Greece, Macedonia
and Italy as Il Malloppo. Hungary: The show started to air in Hungary from 27 December 2007 and it is called A Széf (The Safe). It took the timeslot of the very successful first season of PókerArc (PokerFace) at weekdays 19:00. It aired for four weeks and, after that, the new season of Legyen Ön is milliomos! (Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
) replaced it. A Széf was very successful, but the return of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? was not, so "the safe show" permanently took that timeslot.
If the players choose the highest possible combination of the safes, they can win 20,000,000 Ft (€80,000). The highest prize in a safe is 7,000,000 Ft (€28,000). The show airs on RTL Klub
.
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
, developed by Dutch format company Intellygents, that aired on the digital channel Challenge. Challenge tends to air repeats of classic game shows that have been commissioned by other broadcasters, but it is rare that they produce original content. It originally aired from 23 October 2006 to 18 July 2008 and was hosted by Richard Arnold
Richard Arnold (TV presenter)
Richard Arnold is a British television presenter. He is currently employed by Seven Network.-Early life:Arnold was born in a house in Hampshire, grew up in Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, and attended University of Edinburgh, gaining a MA in English Language and Literature. He then studied journalism at...
.
Format
The game is played by two pairs of players. The players have some sort of connection to each other (friends, married, siblings). The first pair of players are welcomed onto the set. They must make their first choice by deciding who they are going to play against. Cawood or Arnold reads a brief introduction of the first couple as we see them on the screen backstage. The original players then decide if they would like to take the couple they have seen or risk taking another couple of which they don't know anything about. Once the choice has been made, the second team arrive on set and take their place on the seating area to the right of the stage. This area is called the "Sin Bin".Phase One
The aim of the game is simple. There are ten steps to the final phase and for each step there is a question. In the first phase, the players must answer questions and make money to go into the jackpot, which will be played for in the final phase. To win money, they must answer questions correctly. The questions are presented with an answer, which the team can decide to either "Take It!" as their answer or "Leave It!" in the hope that the next answer they are presented with is the correct answer.If the team gives a right answer, the answer flashes green and the "Wall of Safes" is brought up on screen. The Wall of Safes has 20 safes with cash values from 1p to £15,000. There are also two "Booby Traps", which can knock the team in control out of play by making them go to the Sin Bin, placing their rivals in play. Each member of the team selects a safe to open. The first safe opened can either be banked by the team or (especially, if it is a low value safe) can be rejected for the second chosen safe. The risk here is that they might open a lower value safe or even eliminate themselves from play by revealing a Booby Trap or have one of the top amounts in their second choice.
If the team decides to take an answer and it is wrong, the answer flashes red and the team must swap places with the team in the Sin Bin.
Wall of Safes
In the first two series, the values for the Wall of Safes were as follows:£15,000>
£12,500>
£7,500>
£5,000>
£3,500>
£2,000>
£1,000>
£900>
£750>
£600>
£500>
£350>
£250>
£150>
£5>
50p>
10p>
1p
In series 3, the values for the Wall of Safes were as follows:
£15,000>
£12,500>
£7,500>
£5,000>
£3,500>
£2,500>
£1,500>
£1,000>
£800>
£700>
£500>
£350>
£250>
£150>
£5>
50p>
10p>
1p
Before the numbered safes are jumbled up at the start of the show, the two Booby Traps appear between the £1,000 or the £1,500 and the £900 or the £1,000 as well as the £500 and £350 on the board. Once the Booby Traps have been played or rejected the teams still need to give right answers and discover the larger amounts of cash in play.
Final Phase
Once the team has made it to the end of the walk, six different coloured safes rise up in front of them, one of which contains the jackpot that was built up in the previous round. The safes are white, red, green, blue, purple and yellow.There are five final questions that the team must answer. The only difference here is that they are answered without it being revealed if they are right or wrong until later. Once all five questions have been answered, the computer brings back the questions that have been answered correctly first.
For each correct answer, the team decide to play, an empty safe is eliminated, thus increasing the chances of the team discovering the safe with the jackpot. If the team is worried that they have taken a wrong answer earlier, they can decide not to play that answer and to open a safe at any time.
If the team has answered all questions correctly and play all the answers, then, they do not need to guess which safe the jackpot is in, as it will be the only one left. If the team take a wrong answer and decide to play it to try and eliminate an empty safe, they lose immediately, without the chance to open a safe.
Trivia
Each show begins with Arnold at the safes saying, "Ten steps, six safes and the chance to play for up to £50,000. It's all about making the right choice at the right time. Would you have the nerve to Take It or Leave It?"The show was originally meant to be fronted by Michael Barrymore
Michael Barrymore
Michael Kieron Parker , better known by his stage name Michael Barrymore, is a British comedian who appeared as a presenter of game shows and light entertainment programmes on British television in the 1980s and 1990s. These included Strike It Lucky, My Kind of People, My Kind of Music and Kids Say...
. However, Arnold was settled upon.
The show was hailed as the next Deal or No Deal?
Deal or No Deal
Deal or No Deal is the name of several closely related television game shows, the first of which was the Dutch Miljoenenjacht produced by Dutch producer Endemol. It is played with up to 26 cases with certain sums of money...
, but has not found the same success.
The show was filmed in the famous Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a major British film studio situated in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, approximately west of central London. The studios have played host to many productions over the years from huge blockbuster films to television shows to commercials to pop promos.The purchase of Shepperton...
, where the popular James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
movies have been filmed.
During its original run, the show aired weekday nights at 21:00 on Challenge. Before each break, Cawood would give the details for a viewers' competition, much like Challenge's version of The Pyramid Game
The Pyramid Game
The Pyramid Game was a United Kingdom game show based on the American format of the same name that was originally shown on ITV from 1981 to 1984 then 1989 to 1990 hosted by Steve Jones, then revived by Challenge in 2007 hosted by Donny Osmond....
. This was during the original run only and did not return for the afternoon repeats.
The claim that you can win up to £50,000 on the show was originally wrong; the ten most valuable safes only contained £48,750. From series 3, some of the amounts of money were changed and the promised £50,000 could be won, but it was never won. The highest amount won was £49,300.50 by Joakim and Chioma. They got every question correct, including the first ten in the main game and the last five in the final. They then correctly guessed the safe with the jackpot inside on a 50/50 gamble, as they did not play the fifth question.
International
The Netherlands: The show premiered in The Netherlands on 4 March 2006 and was called "Kies De Kluis". The game show ran for 2 seasons on NED1. Take It or Leave It? also aired in Turkey, DubaiDubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
, Greece, Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
and Italy as Il Malloppo. Hungary: The show started to air in Hungary from 27 December 2007 and it is called A Széf (The Safe). It took the timeslot of the very successful first season of PókerArc (PokerFace) at weekdays 19:00. It aired for four weeks and, after that, the new season of Legyen Ön is milliomos! (Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? is a television game show which offers large cash prizes for correctly answering a series of multiple-choice questions of increasing difficulty. The format is owned and licensed by Sony Pictures Television International. The maximum cash prize is one million pounds...
) replaced it. A Széf was very successful, but the return of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? was not, so "the safe show" permanently took that timeslot.
If the players choose the highest possible combination of the safes, they can win 20,000,000 Ft (€80,000). The highest prize in a safe is 7,000,000 Ft (€28,000). The show airs on RTL Klub
RTL Klub
RTL Klub is a television station owned by RTL Group and broadcast in Hungary. It was one of Hungary's first commercial TV channels and was only two days after the main rival TV2 to begin broadcasting.-About RTL Klub:...
.
Transmissions
| Series | Start date | End date | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 October 2006 | 1 December 2006 | 30 |
| 2 | 16 April 2007 | 25 May 2007 | 30 |
| 3 | 6 June 2008 | 18 July 2008 | 31 |
External links
- Take It or Leave It? at pinewoodgroup.com..