The Golden Shot
Encyclopedia
The Golden Shot is a British television
game show
produced by ATV for ITV
between 1 July 1967 and 13 April 1975, based on the German TV show Der goldene Schuss. It is most commonly associated with host Bob Monkhouse
, though, three other presenters also hosted the show during its lifetime. Hostess Anne Aston
(who appeared to struggle with mental arithmetic) was on hand to read out the scores achieved by the contestants, and each month a "Maid of the Month", usually a glamour model of the era, would demonstrate the prizes and announce the contestants. When Bob Monkhouse returned to present the show in 1974, he was joined by co-hostess (to Anne Aston) Wei Wei Wong. This was notable as one of the earliest regular appearances by an Asian woman on British TV.
attached to a television camera guided by a member of the public shooting a bolt at an exploding target embedded in an apple positioned on a topical backdrop. In the first round, the crossbow was operated by blindfolded cameraman Derek Chason receiving instructions from a contestant, either playing at home by phone, or in studio from an isolation booth ("Up, up, up, left a bit, down a bit, left a bit, FIRE!"). In later rounds, the contestants operated the crossbow themselves. Contestants who successfully negotiated seven (later four) rounds of targets won a reasonable prize; those who missed got a negligible prize.
In his autobiography, host Bob Monkhouse
recounted the story of a person who competed on the show from a telephone kiosk while watching a television in a rental shop over the road. While the contestant was directing the bolt around, however, an assistant came in and switched the televisions off or changed the channel.
. Bob Monkhouse was a guest star on the tenth episode, and his autobiography reveals he did so fully intending to demonstrate to the producers that he should replace Rae as host. The plan worked, and Monkhouse took over as host from the 15th show onward. His quick wit, and willingness to revel in the show's chaotic nature led the Monkhouse era to be regarded as the show's golden age – by programme #26, the viewing figures were up by 50%. Due to the programme being live, (a requirement, because contestants took part over the telephone) Bob Monkhouse often chatted to the contestants to fill in whilst the crossbow was adjusted after the previous round.
In January 1968, the show moved to Sunday afternoons at around 16:40. Michael Grade
has claimed that this resulted from a remark he made to his uncle, Lord Lew Grade
, ATV's deputy chairman and joint managing director, that the cinemas were full on Sunday afternoons because there was nothing to watch on television. However, the Midlands and North weekend franchisee ABC Television
had been showing the programme in this slot since late September 1967, so Grade must share the credit with ABC's programme controller Brian Tesler. The scheduling change coincided with a move of the production from ATV's Borehamwood
studios near London
, to the Alpha studios at Aston
in Birmingham
. Audience levels peaked at 16 million. The studio facilities in Birmingham, situated in a converted cinema, were rather run-down and unreliable (they dated from the start of ATV's franchise in 1956) and simply not well-suited to a fast-moving live show like The Golden Shot; as such, technical failures were common, but Monkhouse was well able to cover for them through his quick-witted humour. From 1970, the show moved to the new ATV Centre in Birmingham.
In 1972, Monkhouse was spotted accepting a gift from Wilkinson Sword
representative Bob Brooksby. The following week, a Wilkinson Sword "his and hers" grooming kit was the bronze prize on the show. ATV's Production Controller Francis Essex smelt collusion
and fired Monkhouse, although publicly it was announced that he "was being released to find opportunities for his abilities elsewhere". The gift was in fact the collectible book The Shy Photographer and there was no collusion, however, the full story was not made public until Monkhouse's autobiography Crying with Laughter was published in 1993.
The next host was comedian and entertainer Norman Vaughan
, who was assisted by regular Hostess Anne Aston
and for several months "Maid of the Month" Cherri Gilham
. On paper, Norman Vaughan was an ideal host for the show, however the pressure of the live show seemed to overwhelm him and he was never as confident a host as Monkhouse. Audience figures began to drop and in late 1973, he was replaced by comedian (and former footballer
) Charlie Williams
. Williams, of Barbadian ancestry, was rather a novelty on British TV at the time, being a black man with a broad Yorkshire accent
. Despite his cheerfulness and amiability he proved unsuited to handling the pressure of a live TV show where things frequently went wrong. After six months, Williams was also replaced.
On 20 March 1974, Francis Essex met with Bob Monkhouse to invite him back onto the show. Monkhouse had no hesitation in accepting the offer, though, his agent negotiated that he would only return if ATV took up an option on the American game show The Hollywood Squares
. This was agreed, and Monkhouse returned as host of the new season of The Golden Shot on 14 July 1974. Very soon it was obvious that the show was back at its peak; However, the last edition of the show was transmitted on 13 April 1975. ATV felt that the show had a long successful run, and it was retiring various old shows to make way for new ones, including Monkhouse's version of Hollywood Squares, Celebrity Squares, which debuted on 20 July 1975.
). There was an element of mystery associated with the crossbow loaders, as they were not introduced by name and said nothing.
In 1991, the idea was used for the final round of the later Bob Monkhouse game Bob's Your Uncle
, under the name "The Dart Through the Heart". A game show for newly-married couples, the winning couple would compete for a jackpot where one partner was blindfolded and the other guided them in trying to shoot a dart into a heart-shaped target. The armourer for this was female, and introduced as "Donna, the Dart".
On 1 October 2005, as part of their Gameshow Marathon
celebrating 50 years of the ITV
network, Ant & Dec
hosted a one-off revival that was the only edition of the series to be broadcast live. The show was revived again as a one-off on Vernon Kay's
Gameshow Marathon
on 28 April 2007.
British television
Public television broadcasting started in the United Kingdom in 1936, and now has a collection of free and subscription services over a variety of distribution media, through which there are over 480 channelsTaking the base Sky EPG TV Channels. A breakdown is impossible due to a) the number of...
game show
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...
produced by ATV for ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
between 1 July 1967 and 13 April 1975, based on the German TV show Der goldene Schuss. It is most commonly associated with host Bob Monkhouse
Bob Monkhouse
Robert Alan "Bob" Monkhouse, OBE was an English entertainer. He was a successful comedy writer, comedian and actor and was also well known on British television as a presenter and game show host...
, though, three other presenters also hosted the show during its lifetime. Hostess Anne Aston
Anne Aston
Anne Aston is an actress and television presenter best known as the hostess of the The Golden Shot in the late 1960s and early 1970s....
(who appeared to struggle with mental arithmetic) was on hand to read out the scores achieved by the contestants, and each month a "Maid of the Month", usually a glamour model of the era, would demonstrate the prizes and announce the contestants. When Bob Monkhouse returned to present the show in 1974, he was joined by co-hostess (to Anne Aston) Wei Wei Wong. This was notable as one of the earliest regular appearances by an Asian woman on British TV.
Gameplay
The show involved a crossbowCrossbow
A crossbow is a weapon consisting of a bow mounted on a stock that shoots projectiles, often called bolts or quarrels. The medieval crossbow was called by many names, most of which derived from the word ballista, a torsion engine resembling a crossbow in appearance.Historically, crossbows played a...
attached to a television camera guided by a member of the public shooting a bolt at an exploding target embedded in an apple positioned on a topical backdrop. In the first round, the crossbow was operated by blindfolded cameraman Derek Chason receiving instructions from a contestant, either playing at home by phone, or in studio from an isolation booth ("Up, up, up, left a bit, down a bit, left a bit, FIRE!"). In later rounds, the contestants operated the crossbow themselves. Contestants who successfully negotiated seven (later four) rounds of targets won a reasonable prize; those who missed got a negligible prize.
In his autobiography, host Bob Monkhouse
Bob Monkhouse
Robert Alan "Bob" Monkhouse, OBE was an English entertainer. He was a successful comedy writer, comedian and actor and was also well known on British television as a presenter and game show host...
recounted the story of a person who competed on the show from a telephone kiosk while watching a television in a rental shop over the road. While the contestant was directing the bolt around, however, an assistant came in and switched the televisions off or changed the channel.
Broadcast history
The show's first host was Canadian singer and record producer Jackie RaeJackie Rae
Jackie Rae, CM DFC was a Canadian singer, songwriter and television performer.He was born John Arthur Rae in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1922. Rae began performing at the age of three with his brother and sister on the vaudeville circuit in Canada...
. Bob Monkhouse was a guest star on the tenth episode, and his autobiography reveals he did so fully intending to demonstrate to the producers that he should replace Rae as host. The plan worked, and Monkhouse took over as host from the 15th show onward. His quick wit, and willingness to revel in the show's chaotic nature led the Monkhouse era to be regarded as the show's golden age – by programme #26, the viewing figures were up by 50%. Due to the programme being live, (a requirement, because contestants took part over the telephone) Bob Monkhouse often chatted to the contestants to fill in whilst the crossbow was adjusted after the previous round.
In January 1968, the show moved to Sunday afternoons at around 16:40. Michael Grade
Michael Grade
Michael Ian Grade, Baron Grade of Yarmouth CBE is a British broadcast executive and businessman. He was BBC chairman from 2004 to 2006 and executive chairman of ITV plc from 2007 to 2009.-Early life:...
has claimed that this resulted from a remark he made to his uncle, Lord Lew Grade
Lew Grade
Lew Grade, Baron Grade , born Lev Winogradsky, was an influential Russian-born English impresario and media mogul.-Early years:...
, ATV's deputy chairman and joint managing director, that the cinemas were full on Sunday afternoons because there was nothing to watch on television. However, the Midlands and North weekend franchisee ABC Television
ABC Television
ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas....
had been showing the programme in this slot since late September 1967, so Grade must share the credit with ABC's programme controller Brian Tesler. The scheduling change coincided with a move of the production from ATV's Borehamwood
Borehamwood
-Film industry:Since the 1920s, the town has been home to several film studios and many shots of its streets are included in final cuts of 20th century British films. This earned it the nickname of the "British Hollywood"...
studios near London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, to the Alpha studios at Aston
Aston
Aston is an area of the City of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England. Lying to the north-east of the Birmingham city centre, Aston constitutes an electoral ward within the council constituency of Ladywood.-History:...
in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
. Audience levels peaked at 16 million. The studio facilities in Birmingham, situated in a converted cinema, were rather run-down and unreliable (they dated from the start of ATV's franchise in 1956) and simply not well-suited to a fast-moving live show like The Golden Shot; as such, technical failures were common, but Monkhouse was well able to cover for them through his quick-witted humour. From 1970, the show moved to the new ATV Centre in Birmingham.
In 1972, Monkhouse was spotted accepting a gift from Wilkinson Sword
Wilkinson Sword
Wilkinson Sword is a brand name for companies that make gardening tools and razors. Wilkinson Sword's origins are in the manufacture of swords. The company was founded in London in 1772. The brand is currently owned by Energizer Holdings. Past product lines have included guns, bayonets, and other...
representative Bob Brooksby. The following week, a Wilkinson Sword "his and hers" grooming kit was the bronze prize on the show. ATV's Production Controller Francis Essex smelt collusion
Collusion
Collusion is an agreement between two or more persons, sometimes illegal and therefore secretive, to limit open competition by deceiving, misleading, or defrauding others of their legal rights, or to obtain an objective forbidden by law typically by defrauding or gaining an unfair advantage...
and fired Monkhouse, although publicly it was announced that he "was being released to find opportunities for his abilities elsewhere". The gift was in fact the collectible book The Shy Photographer and there was no collusion, however, the full story was not made public until Monkhouse's autobiography Crying with Laughter was published in 1993.
The next host was comedian and entertainer Norman Vaughan
Norman Vaughan (comedian)
Norman Vaughan was an English comedian who led a long and successful career in the television and theatre, appearing occasionally in the cinema.-Early life:...
, who was assisted by regular Hostess Anne Aston
Anne Aston
Anne Aston is an actress and television presenter best known as the hostess of the The Golden Shot in the late 1960s and early 1970s....
and for several months "Maid of the Month" Cherri Gilham
Cherri Gilham
Cherri Gilham , also known as Cheryl Gilham, also known as Cherry Gilham is a former comedy actress, who was one of the first Page 3 Girls and is now a writer and musician.- Modeling and acting career :...
. On paper, Norman Vaughan was an ideal host for the show, however the pressure of the live show seemed to overwhelm him and he was never as confident a host as Monkhouse. Audience figures began to drop and in late 1973, he was replaced by comedian (and former footballer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
) Charlie Williams
Charlie Williams (comedian)
Charles Adolphus Williams MBE was a mixed-race English professional footballer , and later became Britain's first well-known black stand-up comedian.He became famous from his appearances on Granada Television's The Comedians and ATV's The Golden Shot, delivering...
. Williams, of Barbadian ancestry, was rather a novelty on British TV at the time, being a black man with a broad Yorkshire accent
Yorkshire dialect and accent
The Yorkshire dialect refers to the varieties of English used in the Northern England historic county of Yorkshire. Those varieties are often referred to as Broad Yorkshire or Tyke. The dialect has roots in older languages such as Old English and Old Norse; it should not be confused with modern slang...
. Despite his cheerfulness and amiability he proved unsuited to handling the pressure of a live TV show where things frequently went wrong. After six months, Williams was also replaced.
On 20 March 1974, Francis Essex met with Bob Monkhouse to invite him back onto the show. Monkhouse had no hesitation in accepting the offer, though, his agent negotiated that he would only return if ATV took up an option on the American game show The Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares is an American panel game show in which two contestants play tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The "board" for the game is a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by a celebrity seated at a desk and facing the contestants...
. This was agreed, and Monkhouse returned as host of the new season of The Golden Shot on 14 July 1974. Very soon it was obvious that the show was back at its peak; However, the last edition of the show was transmitted on 13 April 1975. ATV felt that the show had a long successful run, and it was retiring various old shows to make way for new ones, including Monkhouse's version of Hollywood Squares, Celebrity Squares, which debuted on 20 July 1975.
Bernie, the bolt!
The show's catchphrase became "Bernie, the bolt!" (originally "Heinz, the bolt!" Heinz had been brought over from Germany when the show was imported) – The instruction from the host to the armourer that the crossbow bolt should be loaded. Three people acted as "Bernie the Bolt" on the show – Alan Bailey, Derek Young, and Johnny Baker (a film unit gripGrip (job)
In the U.S. and Canada, grips are lighting and rigging technicians in the filmmaking and video production industries. They constitute their own department on a film set and are directed by a key grip. Grips have two main functions...
). There was an element of mystery associated with the crossbow loaders, as they were not introduced by name and said nothing.
Revivals
The programme was revived again in two forms.In 1991, the idea was used for the final round of the later Bob Monkhouse game Bob's Your Uncle
Bob's your uncle
Bob's your uncle is an expression commonly used mainly in Britain and Commonwealth nations. Typically, someone says it to conclude a set of simple instructions to mean, "And there you have it", or "You're all set". For example, "To make a ham sandwich, just put a piece of ham between two slices of...
, under the name "The Dart Through the Heart". A game show for newly-married couples, the winning couple would compete for a jackpot where one partner was blindfolded and the other guided them in trying to shoot a dart into a heart-shaped target. The armourer for this was female, and introduced as "Donna, the Dart".
On 1 October 2005, as part of their Gameshow Marathon
Gameshow Marathon (UK game show)
Gameshow Marathon is a British game show, broadcast from 17 September 2005 to 26 May 2007 on ITV .After a quick retrospective look at the history of the particular show, the show itself is recreated. This involved recreating the original set and using original opening programme titles, including...
celebrating 50 years of the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
network, Ant & Dec
Ant & Dec
Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly , known collectively as Ant & Dec, are an English comedy and TV presenting duo from Newcastle upon Tyne, England...
hosted a one-off revival that was the only edition of the series to be broadcast live. The show was revived again as a one-off on Vernon Kay's
Vernon Kay
Vernon Charles Kay is a British television presenter, radio DJ, american footballer and former model. He began television presenting on the BBC children's programme FBi, a spin-off of Fully Booked. Since he has presented various programmes, most notably T4, Beat the Star and All Star Family...
Gameshow Marathon
Gameshow Marathon (UK game show)
Gameshow Marathon is a British game show, broadcast from 17 September 2005 to 26 May 2007 on ITV .After a quick retrospective look at the history of the particular show, the show itself is recreated. This involved recreating the original set and using original opening programme titles, including...
on 28 April 2007.
External links
.- The Golden Shot at BFI..