) I guess the next on will be Poland then...
Some facts about ¿Quién quiere ser millonario? in Spain
Sept 1, 2019 2:22:57 GMT -5
Victor, marik, and 3 more like this
Post by jotasegundo on Sept 1, 2019 2:22:57 GMT -5
Hey there!
As a big fan of WWTBAM I love to see regional differences on the format around the world, but I noticed there's very little information about the history of the spanish local versions of the format. There are some spaniards here, so I created this thread to share fun facts about the show in Spain.
Here we go:
And this is the last time we could watch WWTBAM in Spain since now. Antena3 bought the rights again years ago, but only to avoid its competitors to get them. And finally we're going to see the original format again! I supose they will test it in this "grand slam" format and then decide if maintain it or not...
The new host will be Juanra Bonet, who is hosting "Boom!" right now. The show will be recorded at Poland, maybe because Antena3 wants to make sure it has good reception before spending money building a set in Madrid.
If you too know some fun facts about QQSM, share them here!
As a big fan of WWTBAM I love to see regional differences on the format around the world, but I noticed there's very little information about the history of the spanish local versions of the format. There are some spaniards here, so I created this thread to share fun facts about the show in Spain.
Here we go:
- WWTBAM started in Spain quite soon, in 1999.
- Telecinco was the TV station that broadcasted it from 1999 to 2001.
- At first, its name was completely different from the original. It was named "50 por 15" (Fifty for fifteen). The explanation was because you could win 50,000,000 pesetas for 15 answers.
- Later, they added the original name as a tagline of the "50 por 15" brand: It was ¿Quiere ser millonario? which would translate into "Do you want to be a millionaire?"
- The show became quite popular in Spain. Older people still refer to it as "50 por 15" nowadays.
- The show was hosted by Carlos Sobera from 1999 until 2008. This was the most popular era of the show, so for many people here he is as linked to the format as Regis or Tarrant.
- The first era of the show was far from being true to the original format: It used custom awful graphics for the questions, no lights-down effect or music, no musical riff on "Final answer", no music while FFF, when a contestant begins the "Goodbye" theme is played instead of the correct one, all question used the "£100-500 Win" cue insted of their own. The show looked pretty cheap. I still don't know how Celador let them do that...
- In 2000, the show changed it all to be like to the original, with original graphics, lights and cues.
- On 2000, Enrique Chicote became the first winner of 50million pesetas. He is still the only winner in Spain; no one since today has achieved it.
- On his last question, he used 50:50 and then the "Phone-A-Friend" lifeline to call his wife only to tell her that he known the answer and he was about to win Pts50M.
- Yeah, John Carpenter did exactly the same in the US version just a few weeks before, so for many time there was a conspirancy theory about Enrique Chicote being an actor put by the TV station to bump the popularity of the show. Here it is:
- As you can see at the video, at that time the show used to have a fake cellphone when the "Phone-A-Friend" lifeline was used.
- Telecinco cancelled the show in 2001. The company changed its CEO and the new one preferred to focus on reality-shows, so they took down WWTBAM for being too expensive.
- Carlos Sobera signed a contract with Antena3 in 2004, the main competitor of Telecinco. Antena3 thought that this was an opportunity to put him into the show that made him popular, so they bought the rights and the show returned in 2005.
- For the first time, the show was renamed to its original name "¿Quién quiere ser millonario?", abandoning the "50 por 15" naming. The currency was now the Euro, so the top price became €1,000,000. It broadcasted daily Mon-Fri at 20:15.
- A musical difference: In most versions, when the contestant gets a right answer, the "Win" cue is played followed immediatly by "Lights down". Then, the host and contestant talk for a while until the question appears and the "question" cue plays. This is not the case of Spain: Here, the "Win" cue is played. Then the contestant and host talk (While lights still "up") with no music. The "lights down" cue only plays when is time for the next question to be revealed. You can see it an example here at 9:14 .
- The "final answer" mechanic is almost unused in Spain. Here, the host is who decides when is time for a real "final answer". Carlos Sobera usually make contestants doubt when they were pretty sure of an answer... And sometimes the contestant had to insist many times until the computer highlights the answer. It was used to create tension, but I feel it made the show really slow and boring sometimes.
- In 2008, Antena3 revamped the show with blue-graphics and the rave music. They also added the "Switch Question" lifeline, which was unlocked after Q5.
- At the end of 2008, Sobera decided to abandon WWTBAM because he wanted to do something new.
- In June 2008, the tv station Cuatro bought the rights of "Fifty-Fifty", the italian spinoff of the format. It was hosted by Silvia Jato. They never mentioned it was related with WWTBAM (Because it was a show from a competitor channel). The show was cancelled after 6 months due to its poor reception.
- Antena3 hired Antonio Garrido for 2009 season of WWTBAM. They also switched to the 12 question mechanic from the UK and threw off the "Switch the Question" lifeline, returning to the three classic ones. No big bad clock. The show made low audience rates, probably because of the new host. Antena3 cancelled the show.
- In 2012, the tv station laSexta bought the rights of the Hot Seat version. This tv station had low budget, so the show was. In my opinion, it looked like a cheap version of the original.
- They renamed the show "El millonario" ("The millionaire") which was quite ironic, because the top prize was only €100,000.
- Nuria Roca hosted it. First woman. The show was broadcasted Mon-Fri at 15:30. It made poor rates, so laSexta cancelled it three months after its premiere.
And this is the last time we could watch WWTBAM in Spain since now. Antena3 bought the rights again years ago, but only to avoid its competitors to get them. And finally we're going to see the original format again! I supose they will test it in this "grand slam" format and then decide if maintain it or not...
The new host will be Juanra Bonet, who is hosting "Boom!" right now. The show will be recorded at Poland, maybe because Antena3 wants to make sure it has good reception before spending money building a set in Madrid.
If you too know some fun facts about QQSM, share them here!
