Eggheads | |
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Genre | Game show |
Presented by |
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Starring |
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Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of series | 19 (Regular) 6 (Celebrity Specials) |
No. of episodes | 1640 (Regular) (as of 17 April 2017) 55 (Celebrity Specials) (as of 20 December 2013) |
Production | |
Running time | 30 minutes |
Production company(s) |
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Distributor | ITV Studios |
Release | |
Original network | |
Picture format | 16:9 |
Original release | 10 November 2003 | – present
Chronology | |
Related shows |
Eggheads is a BBC Television quiz show that airs on weekdays. It was first broadcast in 2003 chaired by Dermot Murnaghan. In 2008 Jeremy Vine became joint chair, and subsequently sole chair. In each episode, a team of five quiz and game show champions (the Eggheads) is challenged by a team of five contestants for prize money.
The most prize money that has been won is £75,000, in 2007. Some teams have been reduced to one contestant for the final round, but have still beaten five Eggheads. Occasionally, one remaining Egghead will beat five challengers. Only once have the Eggheads lost four games in succession and only twice has a team of all five challengers won the final round.
Occasional teams of celebrities challenge the Eggheads in short series, with their own rolling prize fund.
The show has resulted in three spinoff series: Are You an Egghead? (2008), Revenge of the Egghead (2014) and Make Me an Egghead (2016).
The show began in 2003 with Dermot Murnaghan as the presenter. From 2008, Jeremy Vine presented when Murnaghan was hosting the spinoff series. After the spin-off show finished, Murnaghan and Vine continued to host the series on a rotational basis, with Murnaghan typically hosting the first half of each series and Vine taking over for the second half. From series 16 Vine became the sole presenter.
The show is played in five rounds. The first four rounds each focus on one subject category (of nine) while the final round tests general knowledge. In the first four rounds, the challengers choose a member of their own team to play, and an Egghead against whom they wish to compete. The players for that round then leave the studio to go into the "Question Room". The challenger is given the choice of going first or second. Both players are asked in turn three multiple-choice questions. If there is no winner, the round goes into sudden death with no choices given for answers.
The player who wins each round earns a place in the final round, while the losing players are eliminated from the game.