Wheel of Fortune (Australian game show)

History

In 1981, the Reg Grundy Organisation purchased the rights to Merv Griffin's American game show Wheel of Fortune and created a faithful reproduction of the American series, as they had done with many other game shows. The new show began airing on the Seven Network on 21 July 1981, and was produced at the studios of ADS-7 in Adelaide. The show's production moved to SAS-7 when ADS and SAS swapped network affiliations and channel frequencies at the end of 1987.

In 1996, as part of an attempted major revamp with the remaining of the show's famous theme music and sounds, the program relocated from Adelaide to Seven flagship ATN-7 in Sydney. Along with a new set, new music, faster game format and modified rules, John Burgess was sacked from his twelve-year stint as host and replaced by Tony Barber. By the time that Burgess' final episode went to air it had become common knowledge that the show had relocated and that changes would occur. However, Burgess' final words referred only to the show's relocation, thus suggesting that he was at the time oblivious to his sacking.

The following Monday after Burgess' final episode, Tony Barber began as host amid much controversy. Beside the fact that viewers did not appreciate the fact that Burgess was sacked without a chance to say goodbye on air, viewers had trouble accepting the new rules, faster pace and Barber's energetic hosting style. Additionally, Burgess had made media appearances saying how he had been badly treated and only found out about his sacking accidentally when a Grundy executive had to cancel a golf date with him because he was needed at the studios to continue work on the new format. The ratings for the first two nights appeared promising to begin with but plummeted badly from then on. Some ground was regained after Seven and Grundy's in an embarrassing about-face reinstated as much of the old rules as possible after the first five weeks. It regained further ground presumably due to audience curiosity when Adriana Xenides took sick leave in November 1996, but neither moves were enough to return it to a credible position as far as ratings were concerned. A 5pm nationwide pre-news news bulletin that replaced Family Feud on 1 July, also proved fatal for Wheel and the network. On 27 November 1996, the Seven Network issued a press releases in which Barber announced his resignation from the show. In his 2001 memoir Who Am I, Barber later explained that he was removed from the position by the network and was offered future projects with the network in exchange for agreeing to the press release. The future projects however never came to pass. Burgess has claimed (also backed up by Barber in his memoir) on many occasions that he was offered the job back with a heavy pay raise and declined, but the Seven Network denied this story. In any event, Burgess was quickly given a contract by the Nine Network to host the game show Catch Phrase (later retitled Burgo's Catch Phrase) that would be Wheel of Fortune's rival for a few more years.

Adriana Xenides, who had been the show's co-hostess and letter-turner since its premiere, fell sick — ultimately suffering from depression and what she called a "physical breakdown".

Barber appeared at the start of the 1997 series premiere to introduce and hand the show over to Rob Elliott with former Perfect Match hostess Kerrie Friend replacing Xenides for the next seven months.

On 18 June 2006, the Seven Network announced that they had stopped broadcasting of the program with the last episode airing on 28 July, just one week after celebrating 25 years on Australian television. The final episode was filmed on 23 June at Channel 7's Epping studios. One of the contestants on the final episode was Edith Bliss, former field reporter for Simon Townsend's Wonder World, who won the game and effectively became the show's final, undefeated champion. From the Monday following the final episode, M*A*S*H reruns returned to the timeslot. Following the finale, Seven also aired 20 unaired episodes from 2005. These were hosted by 2004 host Steve Oemcke, and clearly produced before it was decided to rest the show in 2005.

2008 revival: "Million Dollar Wheel of Fortune"

In May 2008, the Nine Network revived the show in a revamped form known as Million Dollar Wheel of Fortune, hosted by former Home and Away actor Tim Campbell, with Kelly Landry as co-host. and airing from GTV-9 in Melbourne. The biggest changes in this version included the possibility to win a new grand prize of $1 million, alongside an increased standard top prize of $200,000, and players actually playing for the cash they win. At the premiere, the number of $200,000 wedges on the bonus Wheel increased by one each episode until it was won.

To win the said grand prize, the contestant had to earn the Million Dollar Wedge (a two-pegged wedge, sandwiched between two one-peg Bankrupts) and solve the puzzle in the first round. Then, the contestant had to play the entire game without hitting Bankrupt during any portion of the remainder of the game, win the game, and reach the Million Dollar space on the Bonus Round Wheel, and win the Bonus Round, in order to win the prize.

Despite an initial report stating that Burgess and Xenides disliked the show, calling it "dry", Xenides gave positive feedback stating that it was "refreshing" and she loved the "... very cool colours ... and the opportunity of winning a million dollars, that's excellent." She also stated that John was "probably misrepresented."

Ratings for the new series were expected to top now-rival Deal or No Deal, and to lead-in to the 6:00 news. However, there were low ratings, peaking at 700,000 viewers on the first night. From then, viewership went on a decline, and by the end of its short run, Wheel had on average 450,000 viewers a night, compared to the almost-1,000,000 watchers for Deal. Due to this steep ratings decline, the series was cancelled on 27 June 2008, after only five weeks on air.

Despite the ill-fated attempt of this incarnation, the format was adopted a few months later on the U.S. version at the start of its 26th season in September 2008, except that the Million Dollar Wedge to be won in any of the first three rounds, and not the first round. If the Million Dollar space is in play during the Bonus Round, it replaces the $100,000 space on the wheel, and if the space is not selected in the round, the host will display where the Million Dollar envelope was located on the wheel after the round. Three contestants (one in 2008, one in 2013 and one in 2014) have won the million dollar jackpot.

Game play

Before the taping begins, the players draw numbers to determine their positions on stage. Play proceeds from left to right from the viewer's perspective: from the red player to yellow, then to blue, then back to red. The red player would have the first spin in round 1, the yellow player would have the first spin in round 2 and the blue/green player would have the first spin in round 3. From 1999 to 2003 when the format consisted of 4 rounds plus the major prize round, the red player would take the first spin in round 4.

From July 1996 until 1998, the host would ask a trivia question and the contestant who buzzed in with the correct answer would have the first spin. During this time the red podium was reserved for the carry-over champion as there was an opportunity for any contestant to have the first spin. The process used during this period was a form of continuous play. For example: If the red player buzzed in to start round 1, but the yellow player solved the puzzle the blue player would have the first spin in round 2.

From 2004 to 2006, the flip-up puzzle was used to determine who would be in control. If the yellow player buzzed in with the correct answer, then the yellow player would have the first spin for round 1, the blue player would have the first spin in round 2 and the red player would have the first spin in round 3. Another flip-up puzzle would be used to determine who would be in control for round 4. Like the July 1996 – 1998 era, the red podium was reserved for the carry-over champion.

Categories

The game uses a wide variety of categories for its puzzles. Some are generic, such as "Place" or "Thing." Puzzles frequently refer to popular culture or common items encountered in everyday life.

Starting In 1994

Starting In 1995

Starting In 1999

Other categories include BUILDING, and LIVING THINGS, TRUE OR FALSE?, EVENT, PHRASE.

Spinning the Wheel

The wheel has 96 pegs with 24 spaces that are each four pegs wide. These spaces represent cash values (in multiples of 5 instead of 50 in the American version), prizes and penalty spaces, three strategic elements for use in the game. The wheel also features two additional spaces that are specific to particular rounds of the game (see below).

A player who does not land on a penalty space asks for a consonant. If it is not in the puzzle, play proceeds to the next player. If the letter appears in the puzzle, the hostess reveals all instances of the letter and the player receives either cash or a prize. Unlike the American version however, the amount of money won is a flat rate and not multiplied by the number of instances of the letter. Calling a letter that has already been called results in the loss of one's turn. A "used letter board" is positioned off screen for the contestants to see to aid in their guesses. All descriptions of players being credited with cash or prizes in the remainder of this article assume that the player calls a consonant which appears in the puzzle. A player who lands on a value is credited with that amount.

"Top Dollar" values

From July 1996, although still referred to as dollars, the amounts on the wheel effectively were points which determined a player's score.

Buying a vowel

A player who has sufficient banked cash during the current round may choose to buy a vowel prior to spinning the Wheel. The cost of the vowel, $50, is deducted from the player's score and all instances of the requested vowel in the puzzle are revealed, if any. The player's score is reduced by $50 regardless if the vowel is in the puzzle or the number of times the vowel appears. If the purchased vowel is not in the puzzle, the player loses his or her turn in addition to the aforementioned cost. Multiple vowels may be purchased until either the supply of vowels is exhausted or the player's bank falls below $50. At that time, the player must spin the wheel or try to solve the puzzle.

Special Features

Solving a puzzle

From 1981 to 1996, money earned in each round was used to shop for prizes. Any remaining cash also counted towards the player's final score. When this was removed in July 1996, contestants were given a set prize upon solving a puzzle. By the end of the year upon solving a puzzle, contestants could choose one of three prizes offered to them. This would continue until 2004 when it was reduced to two prizes. On Million Dollar Wheel of Fortune, solving a puzzle allowed that player to bank any cash accumulated up to that point.

Speed-Up Round (Final Spin)

At some point, when time is running short, a bell rings to indicate the Final Spin of the Wheel. The host spins the Wheel and all remaining consonants in the puzzle are worth the value of the spin. The player in control has his/her arrow determine the round's value, compared to the red player's podium on the US version. The players take turns calling one letter each. A vowel can also be called at no cost. If the called letter appears in the puzzle, the player has five seconds after the hostess stops moving to try to solve the puzzle. If a player has a Free Spin, he/she can still use it to keep her turn in the speed-up round. Unlike the previous rounds, contestants may give multiple guesses within the time limit. On several episodes, there have been more than one speed-up round.

Like the US version, if a penalty space is hit the host spins again, not affecting any scores if a Bankrupt is hit. Unlike the US version, if a prize space is hit, the first player to call a letter receives the wedge, along the value underneath it, and must be the one who solves the puzzle in order to win it. The value under the prize wedge becomes the value for the rest of the round. However, if the final spin lands on the Car Wedge, it is out of play and nobody gets the wedge, and the host just removes it from the wheel to reveal its value for the rest of the round.

Major prize round ("Golden Wheel")

Introduced in 1986, the winning contestant spins the Golden Wheel which now has major prizes on it, including a new car. The prize that the Major Prize wheel lands on is the Major Prize played for. The contestant is given two consonants and one vowel, however the contestant can earn an additional consonant for every ($)2,000 scored in the main game. Theoretically, enough money ([$]38,000) can be earned so as to call every consonant. The winning contestant then gets 10 seconds to solve the puzzle and win the prize. Originally, they had 10 seconds to think over the puzzle, and then had to immediately solve. If a champ is unable to solve the puzzle in the bonus round, that score is carried over to the next episode; once a prize is won, the value is reset back to zero.

The bonus round has sometimes tweaked its format. In some episodes, the contestant got common letters on the board, such as R, S, and E, and providing more consonants and a vowel. On the 20th Anniversary week in 2001, the contestant was given two vowels.

At the start of its inception in 1986, there were two car wedges on the Major Prize Wheel. On the 1,500th episode in 1988, the number of car wedges was increased to three. On a few occasions, they had a temporary jackpot system in which the number of car wedges were increased by one each day it was not won. The car has never, however, regularly appeared on the wheel more than three times.

On 15 July 1996, the Golden Wheel was replaced with a selection of five envelopes. About five weeks later due to lack of public support, the Major Prize Wheel returned and the number of car wedges increased to four (featuring a Hyundai Lantra Sportswagon).

From 2000-2004, a new element was added to the Golden Wheel. A new jackpot system, coupled with the car (most of which were from Proton and Daewoo), starting at $2,000 and increasing $100 every night it was unclaimed, was installed. There were two "Jackpot" slivers on one of the "Car" wedges, and the player had to land on it, then solve the puzzle to win both the cash and the car. The highest jackpot won was $25,000 (added to the car, a combined prize of almost $50,000). This, and the $5,000 prize on show 5,000 (see below), was one of only two cash prizes offered on the show.

From 2004-2006, The Major Prize Wheel saw the amount of car wedges decreased to two when it featured a Renault and finally a Mitsubishi to the closing of its run on the Seven Network.

In 2008, the standard top prize increased to $200,000, and an additional space for the prize was added to the wheel for every night it was left not won. A top prize of $1,000,000 could also be added to the wheel if a player acquired the Million Dollar Wedge in the main game.

Celebrity weeks

Occasionally celebrities play for home viewers, with those viewers earning the prizes and total of the amounts their winning celebrity spun during the game in actual cash. At the end of the week, all those winning home viewers were entered in a drawing to win a car.

There was also a brief Saturday Night series airing in 1990 and 1991 called "Celebrity Wheel of Fortune".

The 5,000th episode

On 21 March 2006, "Wheel of Fortune" celebrated a major milestone, as its 5,000th episode went to air on the Seven Network. An extra element was added to the special show: the chance to win $5,000 in cash. Two yellow "$5,000" wedges were added to the Round 1 wheel. A third was added to Round 2's wheel. If a contestant was to spin it up and select a correct letter, they would have 5,000 added to their score, but to win the actual money, they had to solve the puzzle (in the same way as the Surprise and Mystery Wedges). In Round 2, one of the contestants did spin up the "$5,000" wedge and the Surprise Wedge and solved the puzzle, winning over $10,000 in cash and prizes for that round. The other $5,000 wedges were removed for Round 3.

Champions

Record-breaking champions include:

At the time of going to air, champion Luke Seager (2004) was the 4th biggest winner of all time, and the second longest champion in terms of nights on air represented. Luke credited his longevity on the wheel (10 nights) to the fact that most newcomers to the show did not comprehend the importance of controlling the wheel. His reign as champion still rates amongst the highest ratings period the program has ever enjoyed.

Presenters

Wheel of Fortune in Australia has had many hosts, hostesses and announcers through its long history. They include:

Hosts

Hostesses

Announcers

Fill-in hostesses

Changes to the show