Mental Floss

4 U.K. Game Shows Worth Seeing

By David K. Israel

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The U.K., as you probably know, is the quiz show/game show capital of the world. Most of the hit shows here in the states are mere adaptations of the original, which were first aired across the pond. Yes, they'll make a game show on any topic in the U.K. "“ obscure poetry, episodes of The West Wing, even extinct animals. Here are four recent shows I've been following with some interest as I get ready to pitch my own quiz show.

1. Eggheads

I'm not sure why this one hasn't caught on here in the States. It's a fun, simple show in which five amateur quizzers take on five quiz professionals called the Eggheads. Check out the clip below and watch some pretty smart Oxford students cracking the Eggheads and whipping them good.

2. Postcode Challenge

In this one, four teams of six neighbors—sorry, neighbours—compete for a big cash prize by answering general knowledge questions. Okay, so what's so interesting about the show? You guessed it: each team shares the same or similar postcode. Brilliant! As you'll see in the clip, there are also lots of questions that revolve around postcodes and censuses. Only in the U.K.!

3. Dirty Rotten Cheater

A new-ish BBC show in which honest players have to out the cheater. Every contestant is given the opportunity to vote off contestants who they suspect of cheating. A majority vote is needed. If they're correct, the cheater is forced into the Losers Lounge. If they're wrong, the innocent player still leaves the game empty-handed and the money of the remaining players is halved. If they can't agree, everyone still loses half their money and the cheater gets to eliminate the contestant he or she likes by pressing a secret button.

4. PokerFace

This is another bizarre one, sorta similar to the above, in which we have to discern the truth. In fact, in PokerFace, contestants don't necessarily need to get the questions right in order to win. As the name implies, they can bluff their way through the game and pressure their opponents into folding. Home viewers get to see who's telling the truth and who's lying.