Pressure Pad
Contents |
Host
Broadcast
12 Yard and BBC Scotland for BBC One, 4 November 2013 to 3 October 2014 (40 episodes in 2 series)
(but see Trivia below)
as Celebrity Pressure Pad: BBC One, 1 to 5 September 2014 (5 episodes in 1 series)
Synopsis
Two teams of five - friends, work colleagues, schoolmates - play against each other for £2000 and an increasing jackpot.
There's a team captain, and they'll play in the final round. Before then, team-mates face off in four head-to-head games. In the first series, these were:
- Borderline - find a location on a map of the British Isles
- Connection - link two parts of an answer from options given
- Deadline - answer general knowledge questions faster than the opponent
- Divider - choose the correct number from three options
- One Direction - order four things
- Orbit - answer questions in four categories faster than the opponent
- Radar - give correct answers from a list
- Right On - stand on a correct answer
- Selector - pick an option and answer a question about it
- Time Out - categorise items faster than the opponent
All games take place on the Pressure Pad, a large display unit in the centre of the studio. In some of the games, players are required to move across the Pad to stand on their answer; in others, it's used as a glorified display board or a giant clock.
Each head-to-head is the best of three, and losers are banished from the studio. The captain is allowed to consult what's left of their team in the final round, a series of multiple-choice questions. When the captain gives an incorrect answer, play passes to the other side. If they play again, the same question remains but with one less wrong answer.
The day's winning captain has £2000 to split between the team. They're offered a captain's jackpot and see six options. The captain doesn't have to take the question, because an incorrect answer sees the team leave with nothing. A correct answer scoops the jackpot, which starts at £1000 and increases by a grand every day.
Catchphrases
"When you've lost two lives, you're outta the game."
"If you can't stand the pressure, stay off the pad."
"...and many more" (concluding every list)
Inventor
Liz Gaskell, Josephine Brassey and Stefan Iriarte
Theme music
Will Slater
Trivia
Halfway through the second series, the show left its sheltered 2:15pm slot on BBC One after the first ten episodes for a more exposed slot of 4:30pm on BBC Two for the last ten episodes. It became the first new entertainment programme on BBC Two's daytime schedule since the end of 2012.
Web links
Bother's Bar report from the pilot, filmed in March 2013.
