Created by Amanda Wilson Original language(s) English No. of episodes 19 First episode date 17 November 2001 Presented by Ruby Wax Genre Game show | Country of origin United Kingdom No. of series 2 Running time 45 minutes Final episode date 15 June 2002 Number of episodes 19 Language English | |
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Similar Game show, Sticky Moments, Paul Merton's Birth of H, Have I Got News for You, Room 101 | ||
The Waiting Game was a Saturday night game show that aired on BBC One from 17 November 2001 to 15 June 2002 and it was hosted by Ruby Wax.
Contents
Floor cry the waiting game
Round 1
Three teams of two start the game, with one player from each team at the buzzers and their teammates standing behind them. Wax asks a total of eight questions during this round. Once she finishes reading each question, a 10-second timer starts; the point value is determined by how long the players wait to buzz in. Values start at 1 point, then increase to 3, 5, 8, 12, and finally 15 points just before time expires. When a player buzzes in, his/her teammate must answer the question without conferring. A correct answer awards the points to that team, while a miss awards them to both opposing teams. For the last three questions, a miss automatically scores 15 points for the opposing teams regardless of the current question value.
After all eight questions have been asked, the team with the lowest score is eliminated. If, on the last question, the team in third place buzzes in so early that they cannot catch up, they are immediately eliminated without being permitted to answer.
Round 2
The two remaining teams' scores are reset to zero. Game play is the same as round 1, except that the partners switch places, and only six questions are available. The team in the lead at the end of this round advances to the bonus round.
Bonus Round
Isolated from one another, the winning teammates try to answer a series of questions within 60 seconds, timed to 1/100 of a second. The timer begins to run only after Wax finishes reading each question, and stops when a player buzzes in or after 10 seconds have elapsed. The first player to buzz in must answer for him/herself, without conferring. Question values increase each second as follows:
An incorrect answer, pass, or failure to buzz in after 10 seconds awards no money and wastes the time used on that question. If the team correctly answers six questions before time runs out, they win whatever money they have accumulated; otherwise, they forfeit all of their winnings and leave with nothing. The maximum possible winnings total is £30,000.