One Question - Deal Or No Deal?
Deal Or No Deal, an internationally-renowned game show that has been running in various countries since 2003 is a mysterious phenomenon.
It is an incredibly simplistic game of chance, akin to an extended fairground stall, where a player is given a box containing an unspecified amount of money whilst eliminating other boxes and organising a potential 'deal'.
I have only watched the UK and US versions and whilst I appreciate the hi-tech glamour evident in the American incarnation, the UK version is the one that really hooked me a few years ago.
Hosted by the always-grating personality, Noel Edmonds and his increasingly garish shirts, the show is a fairly low-key affair underlined with strikingly ominous drones whenever a box is about to be opened.
The tagline '22 boxes, 22 people, 1 question - Deal or No Deal?' sums up the programme nicely - except it's usually more than one question as Noel repeatedly asks 'Are you sure?' about every single choice. Sometimes he even gets the contestants to hold hands and chant "Blue Blue Blue!" in an effort to influence the box. No one really knows why he does this, maybe it's just so that when it's actually a red, the audience can groan even louder.
There's something weirdly hypnotising about it all - as though Noel is the leader of this bizarre and clearly brainwashed cult who have chosen to decide their fate with numbered boxes.
Filmed in Bristol, generally with around 3 episodes performed in a single day (with costume changes), the programme is a surprisingly low-budget affair. I myself was invited on to the show when I was working in an office in the Bristol area; however due to job restrictions, I simply could not find the time. With my luck I probably would have ended up as one of the 1p club anyway.
Deal Or No Deal has lost a lot of viewers recently due to a somewhat repetitive format, but when it was popular, it really was a big deal.
It is an incredibly simplistic game of chance, akin to an extended fairground stall, where a player is given a box containing an unspecified amount of money whilst eliminating other boxes and organising a potential 'deal'.
I have only watched the UK and US versions and whilst I appreciate the hi-tech glamour evident in the American incarnation, the UK version is the one that really hooked me a few years ago.
Hosted by the always-grating personality, Noel Edmonds and his increasingly garish shirts, the show is a fairly low-key affair underlined with strikingly ominous drones whenever a box is about to be opened.
The tagline '22 boxes, 22 people, 1 question - Deal or No Deal?' sums up the programme nicely - except it's usually more than one question as Noel repeatedly asks 'Are you sure?' about every single choice. Sometimes he even gets the contestants to hold hands and chant "Blue Blue Blue!" in an effort to influence the box. No one really knows why he does this, maybe it's just so that when it's actually a red, the audience can groan even louder.
There's something weirdly hypnotising about it all - as though Noel is the leader of this bizarre and clearly brainwashed cult who have chosen to decide their fate with numbered boxes.
Filmed in Bristol, generally with around 3 episodes performed in a single day (with costume changes), the programme is a surprisingly low-budget affair. I myself was invited on to the show when I was working in an office in the Bristol area; however due to job restrictions, I simply could not find the time. With my luck I probably would have ended up as one of the 1p club anyway.
Deal Or No Deal has lost a lot of viewers recently due to a somewhat repetitive format, but when it was popular, it really was a big deal.
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