Before They Were Famous
Guide 10 - Famous people who were game show contestants
Contents |
Introduction
Fame. It's a fickle mistress. One minute you're the host of a popular ITV game show and the next you're doing panto in Godalming. But this Good Game Guide takes a view of the opposite side of the mountain. The North Face. The way up. For many wannabees, being a contestant on a high profile game show is a chance to be noticed by an agent, the newspapers or just have an extra 15 minutes of fame.
So we bring you our guide to celebrities who were on game shows before they were famous:
Actors/Presenters/Broadcasters
- Stephen Fry was on University Challenge.
- Michael Underwood appeared as a contestant on the children's version of The Crystal Maze. Strangely, he began a full-blown TV career by winning a BBC contract on Whatever You Want.
- Amanda Holden (actress and former wife of Les Dennis) appeared on Blind Date.
- Nicholas Crane, presenter of BBC2's "Map Man" and "Coast", was on the Oxford University team in the 1982 series of Now Get Out of That.
- Model and later It's a Knockout scorer Nell McAndrew was a hostess on the original Man O Man.
- Kieron Elliott (actor and one-time Challenge link man) was a contestant on Prickly Heat.
- Not forgetting Janice Long who first appeared on 3-2-1 with her husband in 1978, later becoming a DJ for Radio 1.
Comedians
- Michael "Johnny Vegas" Pennington was a MOTP on Win, Lose or Draw.
- Arguably Steve Coogan came to fame partly due to his Krypton Factor observation round comedy skits.
- Perrier-nominated comedian Daniel Kitson was a contestant on Blockbusters.
Sports stars
- A near miss: Kelly Holmes, double-gold Olympian and last line of Britain's war defences, was scheduled to be a con-ten-derrrr on Gladiators. However, due to a sporting commitment, she had to pull out.
Politics/News/Writers
- Moira Stuart, the BBC newsreader who was originally an actor, was an Argond on The Adventure Game.
- Other University Challenge alumni include David Mellor, Clive James, John Simpson and Malcolm Rifkind.
- Andrew Collins (pundit and 6 Music DJ) appeared with his family on Telly Addicts.
Members of the public
- Monica Rose became a household name thanks to her appearances on Double Your Money and The Sky's the Limit.
- Teenager Janice Nichols became something of a phenomenon thanks to her catchphrase "Oi'll give it five", delivered in a broad Brummie accent, on Thank Your Lucky Stars.
- Before appearing as a Housemate on Big Brother 4 and becoming one of Sky's Brainiac team, Jon Tickle appeared on Blockbusters.
