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Express Tribune
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire' contestant suffers biggest loss in show's history
In a jaw-dropping moment on ITV's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, host Jeremy Clarkson was left stunned after a contestant's risky gamble on the £1 million jackpot question resulted in the biggest loss in the show's history. Nicholas Bennett, a University Challenge alum from West Hampstead, breezed through the earlier rounds and found himself sitting comfortably with £125,000 guaranteed when he faced the final question. -ITV. The moment turned tense as Bennett was presented with the £1 million question: "Which of these words, each coined by a famous writer, was derived from the tale of a fairytale about three princes?" The options were A) Pandemonium, B) Serendipity, C) Utopia, and D) Yahoo. Unsure of the answer, Bennett used his Ask Jeremy lifeline, but Clarkson admitted he had no idea. The contestant then phoned a friend, his flatmate Meg, who also couldn't provide a clear answer. Despite having £500,000 secured, Bennett decided to gamble his winnings. Clarkson, sensing the risk, warned Bennett that he was about to wager a significant sum, £375,000, on a single answer. The host's reminder that "you still go away with a lot" did little to dissuade the contestant. Bennett locked in 'Yahoo' as his final answer, but sadly, he was wrong. The correct answer was 'Serendipity,' and as a result, he walked away with £125,000—no small sum, but a fraction of what he had been on track to win. Despite the disappointment, Bennett remained remarkably composed. "Still got £125,000," he said with a smile, taking his loss in stride. Clarkson, who had clearly been invested in Bennett's journey, praised him for his approach. "A couple of things I'm trying to work out is, is that the biggest loss we've had in Who Wants to Be a Millionaire history?" he remarked. 'I don't think I've had a contestant that I've enjoyed more than you.' This dramatic episode comes as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? continues to captivate audiences with high-stakes moments and unexpected twists. The tension on the set was palpable, as viewers watched one of the show's most daring contestants risk it all for the top prize. Clarkson, known for his sharp wit and no-nonsense approach, found himself in the unusual position of reflecting on the outcome with genuine admiration for Bennett's risk-taking. For Bennett, the experience clearly had its ups and downs, but his optimistic attitude and calm demeanor won him the respect of viewers and the show's host alike. Clarkson's admiration for his contestant's courage seemed to outweigh the loss of the jackpot, as he concluded the segment with a nod to Bennett's entertaining, if ultimately unlucky, run on the show.
The Herald Scotland
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Can you get this Who Wants to Be a Millionaire £1m question?
After flying through the questions, he reached the 15th and final question with two lifelines to use. However, it was not meant to be, answering the question wrong and walking away with £125,000, the biggest amount of money lost in the show's history. Fans 'gutted' at Who Wants to Be a Millionaire £1m question loss One fan of the show said: "That contestant was so good and I am actually proper gutted he didn't win the million." Another said: "Wow, what a brave guy on who wants to be a millionaire, gutted for him." Others were stunned by Bennett getting so far. One said: "12 out of 15 questions correct on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire without lifelines is impressive. Super impressive." "That bloke on who wants to be a millionaire right now is insane," a second said. Today marks 25 years since the world's most successful gameshow 'Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?' first hit our TV screens! In 25 years, this ground-breaking format has been adapted in over 130 countries, consistently ranking as the #1 best travelling format of all time in… — Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? (@MillionaireUK) September 4, 2023 Can you get this Who Wants to Be a Millionaire £1m question? Mr Bennett's final question was as follows: 'Which of these words, each coined by a famous writer, was derived from the tale of a fairytale about three princes?' His options were A) Pandemonium, B) Serendipity, C) Utopia and D) Yahoo. Nicholas used both his lifelines to try and answer, but neither Ask Jeremy nor the Phone a Friend gave him the answer. Despite this, he risked it with D) Yahoo, however, it was B) Serendipity that was correct. How many winners of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire have there been? Just six contestants have received the top prize of £1 million during the show's history. Former garden designer Judith Keppel was the first in November 2000, and went on to become part of a team of quiz experts for the BBC game show Eggheads. Former physics teacher David Edwards was second in April 2001, followed by banker Robert Brydges in September 2001. Pat Gibson, a multiple world-champion Irish quiz player, became the show's fourth winner in April 2004 and also went on to join Eggheads. Civil servant Ingram Wilcox was the fifth winner in September 2006, with history and politics teacher Donald Fear, the sixth and first winner during Clarkson's tenure as host in September 2020. Recommended reading: Charles Ingram, then an army major, was found to have cheated at winning the series in September 2001. The popular ITV game show originally ran from 1998 to 2014, with Chris Tarrant at the helm. It was then rebooted in 2018 with former Top Gear presenter Clarkson taking over the role as host.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire fans 'gutted' at £1m question loss
Viewers of ITV's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire were left "gutted" after a player lost on the £1 million question. Could you have answered it correctly? Nicholas Bennett from West Hampstead in London was on the popular quiz show last night (Sunday, May 25). After flying through the questions, he reached the 15th and final question with two lifelines to use. However, it was not meant to be, answering the question wrong and walking away with £125,000, the biggest amount of money lost in the show's history. One fan of the show said: "That contestant was so good and I am actually proper gutted he didn't win the million." Another said: "Wow, what a brave guy on who wants to be a millionaire, gutted for him." Others were stunned by Bennett getting so far. One said: "12 out of 15 questions correct on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire without lifelines is impressive. Super impressive." "That bloke on who wants to be a millionaire right now is insane," a second said. Today marks 25 years since the world's most successful gameshow 'Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?' first hit our TV screens! In 25 years, this ground-breaking format has been adapted in over 130 countries, consistently ranking as the #1 best travelling format of all time in… — Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? (@MillionaireUK) September 4, 2023 Mr Bennett's final question was as follows: 'Which of these words, each coined by a famous writer, was derived from the tale of a fairytale about three princes?' His options were A) Pandemonium, B) Serendipity, C) Utopia and D) Yahoo. Nicholas used both his lifelines to try and answer, but neither Ask Jeremy nor the Phone a Friend gave him the answer. Despite this, he risked it with D) Yahoo, however, it was B) Serendipity that was correct. Just six contestants have received the top prize of £1 million during the show's history. Former garden designer Judith Keppel was the first in November 2000, and went on to become part of a team of quiz experts for the BBC game show Eggheads. Former physics teacher David Edwards was second in April 2001, followed by banker Robert Brydges in September 2001. Pat Gibson, a multiple world-champion Irish quiz player, became the show's fourth winner in April 2004 and also went on to join Eggheads. Civil servant Ingram Wilcox was the fifth winner in September 2006, with history and politics teacher Donald Fear, the sixth and first winner during Clarkson's tenure as host in September 2020. Recommended reading: Are you a top quizzer? How to apply for ITV's next series of The 1 per cent Club Apply for ITV's Who Wants To Be A Millionaire as Jeremy Clarkson confirms return All to know about David Tennant's new ITV quiz show Genius Game Charles Ingram, then an army major, was found to have cheated at winning the series in September 2001. The popular ITV game show originally ran from 1998 to 2014, with Chris Tarrant at the helm. It was then rebooted in 2018 with former Top Gear presenter Clarkson taking over the role as host.
Scottish Sun
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire's Jeremy Clarkson left stunned as contestant makes ‘show history'
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) JEREMY Clarkson has declared one contestant 'one of his favourites' after a risky gamble on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? On Sunday night's episode, the Clarkson's Farm star returned to his presenting duties on the beloved ITV game show, with a host of new contestants trying to win the coveted cash. Sign up for the Entertainment newsletter Sign up 5 Nicholas decided to risk it all for the £1million Credit: ITV 5 Jeremy looked stunned as Nicholas took the gamble Credit: ITV 5 Nicholas was declared Jeremy's 'favourite' contestant after the moment First up was Nicholas Bennett, who earned his place in the hot seat after fastest finger first. The West Hampstead data analyst was supported by his family as he made his way through the questions, starting an impressive run as he made his way to his first safety net of £125,000 with no pressure. In an impressive run of questions, Nicholas managed to make it to the all-important £1million question with lifelines still in his back pocket. However, he then ran into trouble, and needed to use his remaining two lifelines in order to try and secure the win. Jeremy asked him: 'Which of these words, each coined by a famous writer, was derived from the title of a fairytale about three princes: Pandamonium, Serendipity, Utopia or Yahoo.' Using the lifeline to ask Jeremy, the host admitted: 'I'm loathe to say anything… because if I do say something…' Noting that all four potential answers must have been coined by an author, Jeremy struggled before admitting: 'I can't think of a fairytale that's about three princes.' Nicholas noted that it had 'twigged something in his head' – saying he had recently been to see a puppet show while in Spain about three princes, but it was in Spanish so he wasn't sure what they were saying… but thought someone was saying Yahoo. Jeremy then sadly bowed out, saying he didn't know the answer. So with that falling flat, Nicholas opted for his second lifeline to phone a friend in order to call his roommate, Meg. Who Wants To Be A Milionaire contestant forced to use two lifelines on tricky pop star question - would you know it- Once calling her, Jeremy told her just how much was on the line, but she didn't know either. Despite this, Nicholas decided he was going to gamble and pick an answer anyway, leaving Jeremy stunned. '£375,000 is what you're gambling,' Jeremy reminded him. 'I know you still go away with a lot but…' But Nicholas had made his mind up, saying Yahoo as his final answer – prompting a round of grimacing noises from the audience. Sadly, he was wrong – the right answer was Serendipity – and he walked away with just £125,000. Despite not becoming a millionaire, Jeremy noted: 'A couple things I'm trying to work out is, is that the biggest loss we've had in Who Wants To Be A Millionaire history, and I don't think I've had a contestant that I've enjoyed more than you.' But Nicholas seemed content with taking home the £125,000 – and walked away happy. As the scenes played out on screen, one fan wrote: "Unlucky to the bloke for not getting the million-pound question. But fair play to him for giving it go. "He seemed [like] a really nice guy. Gutted for him!" noted another, while a third said: "What a shame. Fair play to the lad for giving it a go." 5 Nicholas sadly went away empty handed after getting the question wrong
The Irish Sun
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire's Jeremy Clarkson left stunned as contestant makes ‘show history'
JEREMY Clarkson has declared one contestant 'one of his favourites' after a risky gamble on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? On Sunday night's episode, the Clarkson's Farm star returned to his presenting duties on the beloved ITV game show, with a host of new contestants trying to win the coveted cash. Advertisement 5 Nicholas decided to risk it all for the £1million Credit: ITV 5 Jeremy looked stunned as Nicholas took the gamble Credit: ITV 5 Nicholas was declared Jeremy's 'favourite' contestant after the moment First up was Nicholas Bennett, who earned his place in the hot seat after fastest finger first. The West Hampstead data analyst was supported by his family as he made his way through the questions, starting an impressive run as he made his way to his first safety net of £125,000 with no pressure. In an impressive run of questions, Nicholas managed to make it to the all-important £1million question with lifelines still in his back pocket. However, he then ran into trouble, and needed to use his remaining two lifelines in order to try and secure the win. Advertisement READ MORE JEREMY CLARKSON Jeremy asked him: 'Which of these words, each coined by a famous writer, was derived from the title of a fairytale about three princes: Pandamonium, Serendipity, Utopia or Yahoo.' Using the lifeline to ask Jeremy, the host admitted: 'I'm loathe to say anything… because if I do say something…' Noting that all four potential answers must have been coined by an author, Jeremy struggled before admitting: 'I can't think of a fairytale that's about three princes.' Nicholas noted that it had 'twigged something in his head' – saying he had recently been to see a puppet show while in Spain about three princes, but it was in Spanish so he wasn't sure what they were saying… but thought someone was saying Yahoo. Advertisement Most read in TV Jeremy then sadly bowed out, saying he didn't know the answer. So with that falling flat, Nicholas opted for his second lifeline to phone a friend in order to call his roommate, Meg. Who Wants To Be A Milionaire contestant forced to use two lifelines on tricky pop star question - would you know it- Once calling her, Jeremy told her just how much was on the line, but she didn't know either. Despite this, Nicholas decided he was going to gamble and pick an answer anyway, leaving Jeremy stunned. Advertisement '£375,000 is what you're gambling,' Jeremy reminded him. 'I know you still go away with a lot but…' But Nicholas had made his mind up, saying Yahoo as his final answer – prompting a round of grimacing noises from the audience. Sadly, he was wrong – the right answer was Serendipity – and he walked away with just £125,000. Despite not becoming a millionaire, Jeremy noted: 'A couple things I'm trying to work out is, is that the biggest loss we've had in Who Wants To Be A Millionaire history, and I don't think I've had a contestant that I've enjoyed more than you.' Advertisement But Nicholas seemed content with taking home the £125,000 – and walked away happy. As the scenes played out on screen, one fan wrote: "Unlucky to the bloke for not getting the million-pound question. But fair play to him for giving it go. "He seemed [like] a really nice guy. Gutted for him!" noted another, while a third said: "What a shame. Fair play to the lad for giving it a go." 5 Nicholas sadly went away empty handed after getting the question wrong Advertisement 5 Jeremy praised Nicholas for giving it a shot - but noted it as the biggest loss in the show's history
