Dear LPG,

I wonder if there are any readers who, like me found themselves using a particular genre of TV programme to keep me sane having brought my collection of rowdy children from school each evening back in the day. They would then be making lots of noise as they got rid of all their pent up energy and I would be preparing dinner and watching (or listening to) one of the many early evening offerings.

Television game shows are much more sophisticated these days with all the visual distractions, but while lots of aspects of them change some things remain the same.  There was, and still is, the ‘get it wrong and lose it all’ aspect of the game although there were more’ booby prizes’ available back in the day.  Do you remember dusty bin and the ‘Take your pick’ box number 13?   But the climax of the programme would always be the end game where there would be a new television, holiday or car as the prize, although these days we just go for the ‘Big money’, even though when I first watched them the audience would be making those ‘Ohhhhhhhhh’ noises for money and prizes worth amounts that we would laugh at now.  The only real exception was Blockbusters where I don’t remember there being an actual prize, but I still watched.

Have you also noticed that more of the games these days have all the applause but there is often one aspect of older shows missing?  I am talking about the audience, although it did not really matter because the best thing about watching and cooking (or doing something else) at the same time was that you didn’t really miss anything by not being able to see the show. 

Then there were the gameshow hosts who were just as popular then as now, although then we usually knew most of them exclusively for the game they hosted.  Now they just do that as a part-time job while they are either actors, comedians, ex sports people or ex reality stars.  I am sure that a few of the theme tunes are rolling around in your mind while you are reading this. 

I think that there have always been two kinds of game show watchers; the ones who sit at home and cheered or commiserated for the contestants depending on how well they did, or the viewers who joined in with trying to answer the questions and I was the second kind.  The first set of viewers would spend their time working out which contestant had a chance of winning while the second would be offering random answers from time to time.  Being of the second persuasion, I think that I was not too bad, although University Challenge and the Krypton Factor left me looking quite ignorant.  

I still find myself ready for the Chase, Pointless and Tipping Point, although I have more time to actually sit and watch these days, and I also don’t mind an hour or two of whatever retro quiz show is on challenge TV if I can’t sleep in the middle of the night.

 CL Lewisham

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