Wheel of Fortune logo

Wheel of Fortune 1975-1982 (Daytime) 1983-present (Nighttime) is a game show on television. It was created by Merv Griffin in 1975. It was first hosted by Chuck Woolery from 1975 until 1981. Pat Sajak has been hosting the show since 1981. The show has been aired in syndicated format since 1983. The show is currently in its 37th season (44 years overall). on September 9th, 2019.

Nov 12, 2008  On one puzzle, the contestants select a used letter 3 times! The letter frequencies of Wheel of Fortune puzzles need not be similar to the letter frequencies in typical texts. Regardless of the caveats, it seems that the choice of RSTLNE was traditional enough that it didn't make sense for the show's producers to pick any other fixed letter combination, given that they wanted to expand the number of revealed letters.

Introduction[changechange source]

Three contestants compete. The game combines the game of hangman with a prize wheel. At the beginning of the show, there is a $1,000 Toss-Up puzzle. During a Toss-Up puzzle, one letter at a time appears on the board. Contestants can ring in to solve the puzzle before the last letter is revealed. An incorrect solution locks out that contestant for the rest of that Toss-Up.

Next, a second Toss-Up is worth $2,000 and determines who starts round one. There are 24 spaces on the wheel. A contestant who lands on a cash space is credited with that amount multiplied by how many of a particular letter is in the puzzle.[1] A contestant can buy a vowel for $250. A, E, I, O, and U are the 5 Vowels.

Hey, you're on Wheel of Fortune, the most popular game show in the history of the world - so you're already a winner! If selected as a contestant, how long will it take to appear on the show? Contestants have 18 months to make an appearance on Wheel of Fortune. Check out episodes of Wheel of Fortune by season. Don't miss any episodes, set your DVR to record Wheel of Fortune. Contestants guess hidden phrases by guessing letters one at a time. But they have to pay to see what vowels are in a puzzle. The contestant that has amassed the most winnings at the end of a game goes on to play the bonus. Nov 21, 2019  Letters to the Editor. We Can’T Rely On The Wheel Of Fortune To Build Our Future. There’s no escaping these problems but as it stands we don’t see anywhere that blue-sky thinking.

Any contestant who lands on Lose a Turn loses his or her turn but not the winnings they have earned during the round. Landing on Free Spin space means they must guess a letter in the puzzle to earn it. If a contestant lands on Bankrupt, he or she will lose all of his or her winnings they have earned during the current round as well as a Wild Card, or any prizes they have at that point, plus loss of turn (unless they possess the Free Spin). The Wild Card is used to call for another consonant while the wheel is still on the cash space a contestant landed on. Also on the wheel are two '1/2 Car' tags. If a contestant wins a round with both tags, they win a car. Both tokens offer $500 per letter if claimed. There is also a prize wedge and a Gift Tag. The prize wedge is a prize announced before the first round. To win it, a contestant has to land on the wedge, call a correct letter, and solve the puzzle without hitting Bankrupt. The Gift Tag is $1,000 credit for purchases from a company. Both tokens offer $500 per letter if claimed. In the first three rounds, there is a special $1,000,000 wedge that, if claimed and brought to the bonus round, allows the contestant a chance to play for $1,000,000 in the bonus round. If a contestant lands on Free Play, the contestant can do anything without any risk. They can buy a vowel even if they have no money. If they do have money, the vowel is free. If they call a letter that is not in the puzzle, they don't lose their turn. They can even choose to solve the puzzle, and if they're wrong, they don't lose their turn. A consonant on the Free Play is worth $500. The top dollar value on the wheel is $2,500 in round one, $3,500 in the second and third rounds, and $5,000 from the fourth round on.

In round two, two mystery wedges are added to the wheel. One hides $10,000 and the other hides a Bankrupt. A contestant who lands on a mystery wedge calls for a letter. He or she may take $1,000 per letter occurrence or turn over the wedge. The $10K is a cash prize, and it can only be won if the person who has it solves the puzzle without landing on Bankrupt. If one wedge was turned over, the other acts as a regular $1,000 space and cannot be turned over. Round three is the Prize Puzzle round. The contestant who solves the puzzle wins a prize. Also in round three is an Express wedge. If a contestant lands on this wedge and calls a correct letter, they can continue playing the game like normal, or choose to play for $1,000 per letter without spinning. If a contestant chooses to play for $1,000 per letter without spinning and calls a wrong letter, or takes too long to call a letter, it will count as a Bankrupt.

Starting in Season 37, there is a Triple Toss-Up, in which there are three consecutive puzzles worth $2,000 apiece and under the same category. The third puzzle determines who starts Round 4. When time runs short, a bell sounds. The host spins the wheel. Remaining consonants are worth $1,000 plus the value in front of the left-most contestant. The contestants take turns calling for letters. A vowel can be called at no cost. Then, the contestant in control has three seconds to solve.[2]

The contestant with the most cash at the end of the game advances to the bonus round. If the game ends in a tie, another toss-up puzzle is played to determine who goes to the bonus round. The contestant who wins the game gets to pick from one of three categories for the bonus round, starting in Season 35. The contestant spins the bonus wheel, which has 24 prizes, just like the main wheel. The category is announced. A bonus puzzle is revealed. The contestant is given the letters R, S, T, L, N, and E. In the early 1970s and on the 1988 Present Season 6, the contestant then calls for three more consonants and a vowel. If a contestant has a Wild Card in the bonus round, a fourth consonant is called. Then, the contestant has 10 seconds to solve the puzzle. If the puzzle is solved, the contestant wins the prize that they landed on. If they don't, then the board shows the correct answer. The host then shows the prize in the envelope regardless of the result. Prizes include cash amounts ranging from $35,000 to $50,000 in $5,000 amounts, again, prior to season 35, a car with $5,000 cash, and a top prize of $100,000. If the Million Dollar Wedge is bought to the bonus round, the $100,000 envelope is replaced with a $1,000,000 one.

References[changechange source]

  1. Newcomb, Horace (2004). Encyclopedia of television. CRC Press. p. 2527. ISBN1-57958-411-X.
  2. Sajak: 'I'll give the wheel a final spin, and ask you to give me a letter. If it's in the puzzle, you have three seconds to solve it. Vowels are worth nothing, consonants worth [dollar amount].'

Other websites[changechange source]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wheel of Fortune (U.S. game show).
  • Wheel of Fortune on IMDb
Retrieved from 'https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wheel_of_Fortune_(US_game_show)&oldid=6744373'
Wheel of Fortune
GenreGame show
Created byMerv Griffin
Presented byNicky Campbell
Bradley Walsh
John Leslie
Paul Hendy
StarringAngela Ekaette
Carol Smillie
Jenny Powell
Tracy Shaw
Terri Seymour
Voices ofSteve Hamilton
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original language(s)English
No. of series14
No. of episodes746
Production
Running time30 minutes (inc. adverts)
Production company(s)Scottish Television Enterprises
DistributorKing World Productions
The Walt Disney Company Limited and Action Time Productions (1988-1989)
Buena Vista International Television (1991)
Release
Original networkITV
Original release19 July 1988 –
21 December 2001
Chronology
Related showsWheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune is a British television game show based on the American show of the same name created by Merv Griffin. Contestants compete to solve word puzzles, similar to those used in Hangman, to win cash and prizes. The title refers to the show's giant carnival wheel that contestants spin throughout the course of the game to determine their cash and/or prizes. The programme aired between 19 July 1988 and 21 December 2001 and was produced by Scottish Television in association with King World Productions[a], and with for the ITV network - having effectively replaced Now You See It as STV's prime time game show offering for the ITV network. It mostly follows the same general format from the original version of the programme from the United States, with a few minor differences.

  • 2Prizes
  • 7Transmissions
    • 7.2Specials
      • 7.2.1Regional transmissions information

Gameplay[edit]

Unlike the American version, where the numbers on the wheel correspond to the amount of money won by each contestant, the British version instead referred to these amounts as 'points' – they had no cash value, their only purpose was to determine the grand finalist, or to choose a winner for a particular round. There was a reason for this: between 1960 and 1992, the Independent Broadcasting Authority and for the last two years its successor the Independent Television Commission imposed caps on the top prize game shows could give away per week, and standardising the prize on offer per episode ensured the programme did not breach the set limits.

Points earned from all players carried on to proceeding rounds, and only scores for the current round were susceptible to Bankrupts, meaning a winner could be crowned that never solved a puzzle, but acquired a large number of points. This rule would actually encourage sacrificing a player's turn if he or she did not know the puzzle rather than risking his or her points by spinning again.

For the first three series, before the recording of each episode, each contestant spun the wheel; the contestant with the highest score would start the first round. In the programme proper, the contestant was asked a 50/50 trivia question, and if the contestant answered correctly, they spun the wheel. If the contestant landed on a number, they had to pick a letter. If the letter appeared on the puzzle board, the contestant earned the value multiplied by the number of times the letter appeared. A player was allowed to purchase a vowel for a flat rate of 250 points for any number of repetitions as long as that vowel appeared in the puzzle. The contestant would then spin the wheel again, but the contestant's turn would end if the contestant either (a) landed on a number but picked a letter that did not appear on the puzzle board, earning the contestant no points (but not deducting the number the contestant landed on); (b) bought a vowel that did not appear in the puzzle (still costing the 250 points); (c) landed on the 'LOSE A TURN' space; (d) landed on the 'BANKRUPT' space, losing the contestant's total score for that round (but not from previous rounds); or (e) attempting to solve the puzzle but giving an incorrect answer.

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If the contestant landed on the 'FREE SPIN', the contestant would be given a 'FREE SPIN' token and would spin the wheel again. If the contestant landed on a number but picked a letter that did not appear on the puzzle board, or landed on the 'LOSE A TURN' space or the 'BANKRUPT' space, the contestant could give their 'FREE SPIN' loop to the host and spin again. They could alternatively hand over play to the next contestant.

If the contestant answered the 50/50 trivia question incorrectly, they would not spin the wheel; play would move on to the next contestant.

In the speed round, the host would spin the wheel with the centre player's arrow determining the point value for each contestant. Vowels were worth nothing, and consonants were worth whatever the value spun. The left player would go first. No more 50/50 questions were asked.

From the fourth series onward, the 50/50 trivia individual questions were dropped. Instead, at the start of each round, the contestants would be asked a general knowledge question and the first contestant to buzz in and answer correctly would gain control of the wheel (this included the speed-up round).

Also from the fourth series onward, from Round 3 to the end, the points on the wheel were worth double (although the wheel did not show the values at double points).

The yellow (centre) player's arrow determined the point value for each consonant in the speed-up round (and during the final spin both Walsh and Leslie employed the catchphrase 'No more spinning, just winning!' while explaining how the speed-up round worked). Vowels were worth nothing, and consonants were worth the value spun. In case of a tie, each player tied for the lead spun the wheel and the player who spun the higher number went through.

In the Grand Finale, the winning contestant chose from one of three bonus prizes to play for: a car, a luxury holiday, or a cash prize. The series in 1994 differed, in that the prize the contestant won for solving the puzzle was a car plus the cash prize of £10,000. In one episode in 1994, the prize was two cars and £10,000.[citation needed] From 1995 to 1998, the player chose one of two envelopes, one with the car and the other with £20,000. The prize chosen, the Grand Finale continued with the contestant choosing five consonants and a vowel. The contestant had 15 seconds to solve the puzzle to win the prize. Unlike other versions, the player could solve any one word individually, and then work on any other word in the puzzle. For example, if the puzzle was 'A CUP OF TEA', the player could solve 'OF', then 'A', then 'TEA', and finally 'CUP' to complete the puzzle.

Letters

In the final series, 'LOSE A TURN' was changed to 'MISS A TURN', for reasons unknown, and a '500 Gamble' wedge was added. If a player landed on the latter wedge, they had the option of going for 500 points per letter or gambling their round score. If they chose to gamble their points and called a correct letter, their score would be multiplied in for each of that letter in the puzzle with 1,000 (2,000 starting in the third round) added to the sum;[clarification needed] an incorrect letter was the same as Bankrupt.

In the rare event two or all three players were tied for first place, the host had each player spin the wheel once, and the highest number spun won the game. Spinning a 'BANKRUPT,' 'LOSE A TURN/MISS A TURN,' or 'FREE SPIN' did not allow another spin and thus counted as a zero score.

Prizes[edit]

Unlike the original American version, instead of cash prizes, successful spinners from each round were rewarded with a choice of three prizes which might contain household appliances, a holiday, etc. In 1988 the prizes for the final were a trip (an oriental furnished living room on 6 September and a luxury bathroom on 13 September), a new car (or sometimes a new boat), or a cash jackpot at £3,000 (£2,000 on the last two episodes of the first series). In 1989, the cash value increased to £4,000, from 1993 the Cash value increased again to £5,000. On the celebrity specials, solving the final puzzle donated £5,000 to the celebrity's favourite charity. During the 1994 series, solving the final puzzle won both £10,000 and a new car. In some episodes in 1994 this was increased to two cars and £10,000. The prize was later increased to £20,000 or a car from 1995-1998, with the winning contestant randomly selecting his/her prize by choosing one of two sealed envelopes.

During the daytime series, winners of each round were able to chosen from an array prizes laid out in the studio, such as a CD player, dishwasher etc. The cash prize for the final puzzle was dropped to £2,000. Players also could pick the same prize more than once, and on some occasions contestants made requests for an opponent who had won nothing to pick a prize, and Leslie always upheld the request.

All contestants in all series, win or lose, went home with a Wheel of Fortune watch (and sometimes other Wheel-related merchandise).

Now our characters were on a desert island, in different parts. Fire and ice games. Use Arrows to move, to issue a special weapon use the space character. Another variation of the well-known Action. In one man there are two personalities, one puts all around, and the second on the contrary everything ignites. The meaning of the game - to connect together.

In the final, the winning contestant had a free choice of five consonants and one vowel in order to help them identify the answer within 15 seconds to the puzzle and win the prize.

Special prizes[edit]

  • During the peak time series, the second and third round began with the hostess presenting a special prize (usually jewellery) which could be won by landing on a prize star and going on to solve the puzzle. (prime time series).
  • During Bradley Walsh's run, the first player in the third round to land on a special disc and also put a letter on the board won the contents of 'Brad's Box'.[1] This bonus carried over into the prime time John Leslie series and was renamed 'Leslie's Luxury' but during Leslie's series, there were two boxes; one would be for the men, and the other one would be for the women (prime time series).
  • Starting in 1996, one puzzle would contain a 'cash pot' letter (gold in 1996 and 1997, red thereafter) that would net that player £100 for solving the puzzle immediately after finding the letter (both formats).
  • The winning contestant had a chance to win another £100 by guessing a special partially-revealed 'puzzler' related to the puzzle just solved. (daytime series).
  • During the second round on the daily series, a mystery prize would be awarded to the contestant if he/she picked up the token and solved the round two puzzle.

Special episodes[edit]

In the ninth episode of the second series and the thirteenth episode of the fourth series, the contestants were brides and in the twelfth episode of the third series and the eleventh episode of the fourth series, the contestants (two women and one man) were retired.

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One memorable episode took place in 1998, when Elizabeth Jensen took on the wheel. On her way to the final, Liz won a petrol lawnmower, but narrowly missed out on the main prize when she failed to work out the TV programme she was looking for was 'working lunch'. After filming, John Leslie was quoted as saying, 'Liz is the greatest contestant we've ever had. The fact she is such a looker was an added bonus'.

Studio designs[edit]

From 1988 to 1993, the host would emerge from the right stairs. Then as the presenter introduces the letter spinner, the letter spinner would walk down the left stairs. Between 1994 and 2000, the host and the letter spinner would emerge from the puzzle board that rotated clockwise. And in 2001, the host and the letter spinner would emerge from the prize pod.

The original design of the wheel was based on the American design, placed above ground on top of layers with lights. From 1994 to the end, the wheel was placed on the ground.

Wrong way spin outtake[edit]

One notable outtake from the show involved a man who spun the wheel in the wrong direction, forcing the show to be postponed until the next day. As the British wheel has a gearing mechanism to regulate its speed, this action promptly broke said gears, and the studio technicians spent hours trying to fix it.[2]

Wheel Of Fortune Letter Turners

Wheel configurations[edit]

The top point space was 1000 points, with one such space in round 1. One more space was added in round 2, along with a second Bankrupt, and a third 1,000-point space was added in round 3. Also, starting from series 4 in 1992, values were doubled beginning from round 3 onward, making the top point spaces worth 2,000 points.

Unlike the board used on the American version since 1997, the United Kingdom version's puzzle board was never electronic, so the regular puzzle would be placed at the top portion of the board while the puzzler would fill any unused lines below. The puzzle board's shape from 1994 to early 2000 was the same as the current American puzzle board. From 1988 to 1993, its border was styled like the one on the American puzzle board used from 1981 to 1993. The background colour for unused trilons on the UK's puzzle board was green from 1988 to 1993, after which it was changed to blue.

In 2001, Lose A Turn was renamed Miss A Turn and a 500 Gamble space was added. When 500 Gamble was landed on, the player had a choice of going for the regular 500 points or gambling their round score on a correct letter. Each appearance of a correct letter increased their score by 1,000 points plus their current score while an incorrect letter took away all the points they accumulated in the round.

The round one wheel used in 1988. The following year, this layout was reversed and the red 250 next to 750 was decreased to 200. The resulting layout was used until 1991.
The round one wheel used from 1992 to 1993.
The round one wheel used from 1994 to 2000.
The round one wheel used in 2001. Note the 500 Gamble and Miss A Turn spaces.

Transmissions[edit]

Series[edit]

SeriesStart dateEnd dateEpisodesHost
119 July 1988[3]27 September 1988[3]12Nicky CampbellAngela Ekaette
25 September 1989[3]19 December 1989[3]16Carol Smillie
34 June 1991[4]27 August 1991[5]13
418 May 1992[6]24 August 1992[7]13
57 June 1993[8]30 August 1993[9]13
611 July 1994[10]12 December 1994[11]23
730 August 1995[12]27 December 1995[13]18Jenny Powell
824 July 1996[14]24 December 1996[15]23
93 January 199712 December 199750Bradley Walsh
101 June 19987 December 199826John Leslie
112 March 199920 December 1999135
123 January 20008 December 2000250
132 January 20014 August 2001125Terri Seymour
1412 November 200121 December 200130Paul Hendy

Specials[edit]

DateEntitle
22 December 1988[3]Christmas Soap Stars Special[3]
29 December 1988[3]Christmas Celebrity Special[3]
31 December 1988[3]Hogmanay Special[3]
26 December 1989[3]Christmas Celebrity Special[3]
31 December 1989[3]Hogmanay Special[3]

The two Hogmanay Specials were only broadcast to the Scottish and Grampian Television regions.[3]

  • 1988: With Amanda Laird, Teri Lally and Andy Cameron.[3]
  • 1989: With Andy Cameron, Paul Coia and Viv Lumsden.[3]

Regional transmissions information[edit]

1988–1998[edit]

For the first ten series, the show was broadcast once a week in a primetime slot. With series 8, a number of regional ITV stations did broadcast episodes a few days later including the last episode on 31 December 1996.

1999[edit]

During the eleventh series, the programme was moved to a five-shows-a-week daytime slot and it aired at 2.40pm each afternoon from 2 March, after the sixth series of Dale's Supermarket Sweep concluded its run. It took a break from 28 May to 10 September 1999.

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2000[edit]

The twelfth series began at the start of the year, and lasted until the start of December. During this series, the show's slot varied in different ITV regions.

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  • Carlton (London and Westcountry), Grampian and Scottish aired the episodes at 5:30pm.
  • Anglia, Border, Granada, Meridian, Tyne Tees, Ulster and Yorkshire aired the episodes at 2:40pm until 31 March 2000, then Friday afternoons only from 18 May to 9 June. From 12 June, it was moved back to five-times-a-week at 1.30pm and then from 17 July, it was moved to 2:40pm, so not all the episodes aired.
  • HTV followed Anglia's pattern until 8 May before switching to the 5:30pm slot.
  • Carlton (Central) also followed Anglia's pattern until 12 June before moving the show to 5.30pm.

Additional episodes were broadcast by all ITV regions on Sundays during May.

2001[edit]

During the thirteenth series, most ITV regions broadcast episodes at 5.30pm from 2 January to 22 June 2001, except for Meridian, Yorkshire, Tyne Tees, before being switched to a Saturday afternoon slot until 4 August 2001. The final thirty episodes (series fourteen) were networked at 2.40pm, from 12 November to 21 December.

Wheel

Wheel Of Fortune Letters Given

References[edit]

  1. ^Bradley Walsh :: TV :: Wheel Of Fortune
  2. ^http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/Wheel_of_Fortune
  3. ^ abcdefghijklmnopq'Evening Times'. Retrieved 15 October 2012.
  4. ^'04 June 1991, 36'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  5. ^'29 August 1991, 32'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  6. ^'18 May 1992, 36'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  7. ^'24 August 1992, 32'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  8. ^'07 June 1993, 70'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  9. ^'30 August 1993, 20'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  10. ^'11 July 1994, 59'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  11. ^'12 December 1994, 21'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  12. ^'30 August 1995, 40'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  13. ^'27 December 1995, 21'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  14. ^'24 July 1996, 43'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  15. ^'24 December 1995, 47'. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  1. ^Alongside King World, for the show's first two seasons, the show was co-distributed in association with The Walt Disney Company Limited and Action Time Productions, with Buena Vista International Television taking over for Seasons 3-4 before King World became the sole-distributor for the show from Season 5.

External links[edit]

  • Wheel of Fortune (UK) on IMDb
  • Wheel of Fortune (UK) at BFI
  • Wheel of Fortune (UK) at UKGameshows.com

Cant See Letters On Wheel Of Fortune Game Download

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