Debuting on Saturday 12 February 1994, this phenomenally successful live travel game show for the easily-excitablewas hosted by the manic carrot-topped golden boy of British TV and featured a radical blend of traditional quiz show and Chris Evans’ untraditional approach to presenting.
An audience was invited to the television studio and told to bring a suitcase, a passport and a toothbrush, and book the following week off work.
Evans then subjected members of the audience to a series of bizarre, hyperactive and mostly embarrassing silly games and contests (eg: a woman was forced to choose a partner from an ex-boyfriend she hadn’t seen in years, her boss and a total stranger for a 30-second snog worth £1,000).
Popular segments included ‘Flashing Houses’ (where unnamed viewers at home had to throw various objects out of the windows of the house on request to win money), ‘Things We Know You Like’ (introduced with the audience dancing and singing along to the theme tune from Please Sir!) and ‘Super Fan Quiz’ (in which a fan of the week’s guest star would compete with the guest star themselves to answer questions about the star’s life and career).
At the end of each show – in a segment called ‘Light Your Lemon’ – one couple from the audience was immediately dispatched on an exotic week-long holiday to Barbados, Rio, Mauritius or the Cayman Islands, while another took the second prize of a trip to Bognor, Rhyl, Margate or Canvey Island.
Jools Holland was at the piano to lend a hand with his big band. Jadene Doran appeared as co-host in the second series.
An Australian version of the show was produced in 1995 with Tim Ferguson hosting. 16 episodes aired. Local versions were also produced in Belgium (1999), Denmark (1995 – 1996), Finland (1996 – 1998), France (1994 – 1996), Germany (1994 – 1996), Italy (1995 – 1997), Netherlands (1995 – 1999), Norway (2000), Portugal (1995), Spain (1995), Sweden (1994) and the USA (2000)
Popular segments included ‘Flashing Houses’ (where unnamed viewers at home had to throw various objects out of the windows of the house on request to win money), ‘Things We Know You Like’ (introduced with the audience dancing and singing along to the theme tune from Please Sir!) and ‘Super Fan Quiz’ (in which a fan of the week’s guest star would compete with the guest star themselves to answer questions about the star’s life and career).
Jools Holland was at the piano to lend a hand with his big band. Jadene Doran appeared as co-host in the second series.
