The Wheel (game show)

Michael McIntyre's The Wheel
File:The Wheel title card.png
Genre	Game show
Created by	Michael McIntyre
Presented by	Michael McIntyre
Country of origin	Vereinigtes Königreich
Original language	Englisch
No. of series	2
No. of episodes	10
Production
Producers	Dan Baldwin Tom Blakeson Lisa Kirk
Production location	Bovingdon Airfield
Running time	60 minutes
Production company	Hungry Bear Media
Original release
Network	BBC One
Release	28 November 2020 (2020-11-28) – present

Michael McIntyre's The Wheel is a British television game show hosted by Michael McIntyre, broadcast on Saturday evenings on BBC One, with the exception of the 2020 Christmas special which was broadcast on a Friday evening. The show has been recommissioned for a second series which is currently airing throughout summer and autumn 2021.

Production

McIntyre explained that he first thought of ideas for The Wheel while taking a bath, envisioning the idea of a "human roulette wheel". He pondered that there had been "so many talent shows" on British television, but not many "brand new" game shows.

Seeking formats that could be easily produced under COVID-19 safety protocols such as social distancing (eased by design due to its large set at Bovingdon Airfield), the BBC picked up The Wheel as a de facto substitute for McIntyre's variety show series Michael McIntyre's Big Show (which was infeasible to produce due to its heavy reliance on live audience participation).

Gameplay

Main Game

Seven celebrities, each designated as an expert in a different subject, sit in chairs mounted on the outer edge of a 13-metre (43 ft) wide wheel on the main stage. They face in toward the centre, below which is a secondary stage where three contestants sit in chairs on a smaller wheel. This wheel is spun to choose a contestant at random, who is lifted up in their chair to the main stage.

In each round, the contestant chooses a subject, the seat of whose expert lights up gold, and also an expert to "shut down" -- the one they believe is least likely to know about it, whose seat lights up red. The wheel is then spun to choose an expert at random; if it does not stop on the "shut-down" one, the host asks a question with four multiple-choice answers. The contestant may discuss it with the expert before answering; a correct response adds £10,000 to the bank if the subject expert was spun, or £3,000 otherwise. If the contestant misses a question or spins an expert who has been shut down, their turn ends and they are lowered back onto the smaller wheel, which is spun to choose a new contestant. Since the selection is random and all three contestants are always eligible to be chosen, it is possible for the same contestant to return to the game immediately after being dismissed. Each subject remains in play until a contestant correctly answers a question in it.

The other six experts also answer the question, using keypads to lock in their answers. If an expert misses a question in their own subject, whether or not they were spun for it, they are automatically shut down for the next round in addition to the expert chosen by the contestant. If all seven experts answer correctly, a bonus of £5,000 is added to the bank. When only one subject remains, the seats of all other experts who are not currently shut down and who have not been spun during the game turn silver, setting the question value at £6,000 if the wheel stops on any of them.

After all seven subjects have been used, the current contestant moves on to the final and has the first chance to win the bank.

Final

The experts are ranked by how many questions they have answered correctly during the game. The contestant may choose the best, fourth-best, or worst performer to assist them; these choices respectively set the prize at 50%, 100%, or 200% of the banked total.

The wheel is spun to choose one of four new subjects at random, after which the host asks a question. The contestant may discuss it with the chosen expert for 30 seconds before locking in a response. A correct answer awards the money at stake to the contestant and ends the game. If the contestant misses, they are returned to the smaller wheel and a new contestant is chosen. The expert for the missed question and the prize associated with them are both removed from play, and the subject for that question is replaced with a new one on the wheel. If the contestants miss questions with all three experts, all of them leave with nothing.

Theoretically, the maximum potential winnings total is £210,000, achievable by correctly answering a question in all seven subjects with the help of the respective experts, having all the other experts answer these questions correctly, and giving a correct answer in the final with the worst performer.

Transmissions

Series	Episodes		Originally aired		Ave. UK viewers (millions)
			First aired	Last aired
1	9		28 November 2020 (2020-11-28)	23 January 2021 (2021-01-23)	TBA
2	16		24 July 2021 (2021-07-24)	TBA	TBA

International adaptations

NBC announced in February 2021 that an American version with a ten-episode run has been ordered. It will be produced by Warner Bros. Unscripted Television and Hungry McBear Media. In May 2021, it was announced that the show is set to premiere in the 2021–22 television season.

In May 2021, Dutch channel SBS 6 announced a local production to premiere later that year.

Land	Name	Presenter	Channel	Broadcast
Deutschland	The Wheel	Chris Tall	RTL	23 July 2021–
Niederlande		Rob Kemps	SBS6	2021
Vereinigtes Königreich (original version)		Michael McIntyre	BBC One	28 November 2020–
Vereinigte Staaten		TBD	NBC	2021–22

External links

• The Wheel at BBC Online
• The Wheel at IMDb
• The Wheel at UKGameshows.com