Australia’s richest quiz show will unveil a series of dynamic new twists when Millionaire Hot Seat introduces an exciting one-hour format from Monday, January 23, at 5.00pm on Channel Nine.
The all-new super-charged version of the long-running program will start with contestants going head-to-head in a rapid-fire battle of Fastest Finger First.
All six contestants will face the same 15 questions, with the fastest and most accurate winning a cash prize at the half-way mark of the program.
Then the excitement will continue in the familiar Millionaire Hot Seat format that has been a favourite in Australian living rooms for eight years – before going into overdrive with one further twist.
When the winner of Fastest Finger First makes it to the Hot Seat, he or she will have the option of keeping their cash prize or swapping it for one of three Lifelines:
• 50/50 – Two incorrect answers will be removed.
• Switch – The question will be substituted for a new one.
• Ask-a-Friend – The contestant can ask a friend in the audience for help.
Since it premiered on April 20, 2009, Millionaire Hot Seat has changed countless lives and given away a total of $39,014,000.
It remains the only program on Australian television in which it is possible to win $1 million.
This is a cheap and nasty solution to the success of The Chase. Nine should have invested in a new 30 min game show or rebooted Temptation to fill the hour.
Hot Seat drags as it is, and this will only make things worse. Mind you The Chase always feels like a real effort to get through the entire hour.
This is The Price Is Right revamp all over again. When they revamped it before they axed it as DoND was on the rise to popularity.
If this flounders Hot Seat will be chopped. I agree it’s nasty and lazy really.
There aren’t any rules preventing $1m+ being won on The Chase. In fact, I reckon Seven should do an episode where $1m is offered (and lost, obviously!) just for the promotional value.
And it would also be “possible” to win $1m on The Block or House Rules, wouldn’t it?
I don’t think as a host there’s a huge problem, but I do think the outside stuff from the past few years (drowning Caroline etc) hurts the image of a family game show.
I know that many are going to disagree with me but personally, I think Andrew O’Keefe on The Chase Australia (and Deal Or No Deal before that) is possibly an even more annoying gameshow host than Eddie McGuire on Hot Seat.
That’s not to say that I think Eddie is the best TV presenter ever by any means, but AOK is worse IMO.
Andrew O’Keefe - what could I say? The only point that came into mind is that he held the show up with his constant silly laughing and his own stupid antics. I don’t think he is a good host.
Eddie McGuire - this is what I would think. He used to be a good host back in the days when he hosted prime-time WWTBAM? He did a lot of stints when he became the CEO of 9 in 2006. In 2007, he hosted 1 v 100. As time went by, he became deranged a lot when he constantly asked a lot of questions from time to time and it made the show deteriorate.
Grant Denyer - I know he provided a good rapport to the contestants but as he asked a question, he went off topic and dribbles from time to time.
I didnt get to see the first half of the new 1 hour Hot Seat, but the chap who got through the new Fastest Finger First, got through to the 2nd last question, which meant he correctly answered TWENTY questions in a row correctly with the new format, but went home empty handed.
Eddie felt sorry for him, so gave him a nice bottle of champagne as a consolation.
the Fast Finger section felt like a 20-minute Eddie monologue (not Eddie’s fault, but a fault of the format) - no interaction with anyone else whatsoever, just Eddie delivering questions and answers. Flat atmosphere as a result.
