The BBC have ordered a further 16 episodes of Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel with the new run set to begin transmission later this year on BBC One.
“I am thrilled by the success of The Wheel. The series was so much fun to host and I love how the gameplay in every show was so different but always entertaining and suspenseful. And having socially distanced strangers sing ‘The Wheel’ to me on my daily walk has been the unexpected pleasure of lockdown!” – Michael McIntyre
The format of the show sees one of three contestants ‘spun in’ to the game. They then must answer questions correctly with the help of a celebrity (1 of 7) who is selected at random by the wheel. The player must first choose a question category – one of the celebrity’s area of expertise.
A correct answer adds to the prize pot and sees the category removed from the game but if a contestant is misled by their celebrity helper and answers incorrectly, then they are out of the game. In addition, a player can exit the game if the wheel lands on a celebrity who they have chosen to ‘shut down’ for that particular round based on a belief that they won’t be able to help with the question.
The player who makes it to the end game must then choose a celebrity to help them answer one final question. The celebrities – who have answered all of the game’s questions via a keypad – are ranked according to performance with the top and weakest being worth half the prize pot and double the prize pot respectively, reflecting the level of risk in choosing them, while the middle celebrity is worth the prize pot itself. The question in the end game is determined by the wheel selecting one of four random categories.
The show is produced by Hungry McBear Media for BBC One.
“Full of edge-of-your seat jeopardy, hilarious laughs, huge stars and a colossal spinning Wheel, the feel-good entertainment programme has put a unique spin on Saturday nights, with episode one consolidating at 6.3 million viewers (28 day figure).” – BBC Press Office
For info on how to apply for the next series of Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel, visit bbc.co.uk/thewheel
