For the Rest of Your Life

Host

Broadcast

Endemol for ITV1, 2006 (non-broadcast pilot), 2007 (series)

Synopsis

Couples play a game of chance in order to win large amounts of money every month for potentially the rest of their lives.

This involves standing on squares and hoping that the ball underneath the large lidded plinths was white, which increased the prize money on offer, and not red, which lowered it and forced you to play on. If you lost all your red balls, or your money fell below zero it was game over.

In round two, instead of money you played for time. One half of the couple played the game in the studio, the other half stayed out back and was relayed information via computer screen. Each white ball took you one step up the time ladder (beginning at one month and ending with "for the rest of your life" (which appears to be a straight forty years)). Red balls took you down the ladder and forces you to play on, lose all your red balls and go away with nothing. The extra jeopardy is that both contestants had to decide for themselves whether to play or stop, and the lowest place on the ladder that one of them stopped is what they'd take away. Clearly they were hoping for a moment when the player out front went all the way, whereas the player out back decided to stop on five years, say. Needless to say, the odds against anyone getting to the top of the ladder before quitting (which would involve risking as much as £500,000 on an (at best) 25% shot) were rather slim.

Besides, we fell asleep as it was all so ponderous, so it's probably just as well it was never picked up for a full series. Except it looks like they might be making a series out of it after all. Amazing.

Inventor

Dick de Rijk

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