"You Bet!" (1989) TV series 1989-1997

Directors:

Jonathan Glazier
Sue McMahon

Writer:

Richard Turner (writer)

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

Genre:

Game-Show

Plot:

Celebrities gamble on the outcome of a challenge performed by members of the public.

Plot Keywords:

Non Fiction

Cast

Matthew Kelly	...	Himself - Host (58 episodes, 1990-1995)
Bruce Forsyth	...	Himself - Host (26 episodes, 1988-1990)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Filming Locations:

Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

London Weekend Television (LWT)

Quotes:

[a JCB driver has explained that the digger is flown around the world for demonstrations]
Bruce Forsyth: I bet there's hells bells when you go through the metal detector!

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "On the Waterfront: (#2.11)" (1989)

Surprisingly Good...

This is interesting. You Bet, a slightly different game show from the traditional mold that existed when this first came out, is actually quite good. In a nutshell, an audience bets on whether somebody or a group of people can do something considerably impossible. Their percentage split is then used as points for the celebrities. So if 82% of the audience guesses that the challenger can do something, and if the celebrity also thinks he can do it (and if the challenger does do it) then the celebrity get 82 points. At the end of the show all the audience and celebrity points are added together then multiplied by 4 to give a money donation which then goes to the celebrity's choice of charity.

The show, just like most of the material that's passed through terrestrial TV these days, now lives on satellite television, although the Matthew Kelly era is the most often seen followed by the Darren Day era. Brucie's era has yet to make an appearance.

A wide range of challenges were featured throughout the run, memory challenges such as being able to identify who won a particular Grand Prix in whatever engine in whichever year given. Physical challenges such as pole vault over some high bar and throw a tennis ball at some velcro to make it stick, get 15 balls in two and a half minutes. Even little children got involved with their own challenges at times with the emphasis on the "aww, they're cute. They lost but they're still cute" factor. And of course everybody got a memento whether they won their challenge or screwed it up altogether.

The show introduced its "Celebrity Challenge" as well. When this went out initially, people at home phoned in to bet whether the celebrity completed the challenge or not and so another charity donation went out accordingly. Obviously, this "phone in to register your vote" stuff is cut out of the Challenge repeats but they left the "result" in on the start of the next show.

I do prefer the Matthew Kelly era, the Darren Day episodes look rubbish by comparison in terms of the music and general presentation. Ironically enough though, Darren Day did go on to present Don't Try This At Home which is essentially the same thing as You Bet without any of the betting stuff. And it wasn't as good either.