Ian J. Lygo (born September 1958) is a British civil servant from

Hemel Hempstead Hemel Hempstead () is a town in the Dacorum district in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of London, which is part of the Greater London Urban Area. The population at the 2011 census was 97,500. Developed after the Second World War as a new ...

, who made 75 appearances on the UK game show '' 100%'' in late 1998, with the 75th appearance occurring on 14 December of that year.Lamer, Tony (July 11, 1999). "Trivia of Channel 5's most successful show", '' Sunday Mercury'', p. 32
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On 30 November 2004 this record was tied by

Ken Jennings Kenneth Wayne Jennings III (born May 23, 1974) is an American game show host, author, and former game show contestant. He is the highest-earning American game show contestant, having won money on five different game shows, including $4,522,70 ...

on ''

Jeopardy! ''Jeopardy!'' is an American game show created by Merv Griffin. The show is a quiz competition that reverses the traditional question-and-answer format of many quiz shows. Rather than being given questions, contestants are instead given gene ...

''. However, because Jennings lost on his 75th appearance, Lygo became the sole holder of the record for ''most consecutive wins'' on a game show. This record has since been broken, with a team from the Spanish version of the game show Boom! holding the current record at 505, although he still holds the record for English-language game shows. Since he won £100 for each game, his total winnings were £7,500. After his 73rd win, Grundy Productions, the producers of ''100%'', informed Lygo that they had changed the rules. From now on they were limiting the number of wins to only twenty-five, after receiving letters from viewers saying they were fed up of him winning day after day, week after week (by that time, he was in his fifteenth week on the programme). "I was given no warning," Lygo told '' The Daily Mirror''. "The producer came up and said, 'We are changing the format.' He said there was a new limit. I had no choice in the matter. I was told I could do two more shows and that was that. I wanted it to be made plain on the show that I was being stopped, but that didn't happen. The announcer (

Robin Houston Robin Houston (born London, 1947) is a British voiceover artist and former announcer, radio and television newsreader and quiz show host. After starting his career as an announcer and stage manager, he became one of the pioneers of commercial ra ...

) just said, 'Well done' and 'goodbye.'"Arnold, Harry (December 17, 1998). "Tv Quiz Chiefs Drop Mister 100 Per Cent: They alter rules after his 75th win", ''

Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print c ...

'', p. 27. According to UKGameShows.com, he believed that retiring after 100 episodes would have been more fitting with the show's theme. Lygo was, however, given a bottle of

champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, ...

by Grundy for his achievement. After Lygo's run, the producers later decided to restrict the number of consecutive wins to 25. Lygo has a degree in history from the

University of Kent , motto_lang = , mottoeng = Literal translation: 'Whom to serve is to reign'(Book of Common Prayer translation: 'whose service is perfect freedom')Graham Martin, ''From Vision to Reality: the Making of the University of Kent at Canterbury'' ...

. He was chosen for the show after an audition at a hotel in

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

. He works for the

Highways Agency National Highways, formerly the Highways Agency and later Highways England, is a State-owned enterprise, government-owned company charged with operating, maintaining and improving Roads in England, motorways and major A roads in England. It al ...

References

;Additional sources
IMDB News
17 December 1998. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lygo, Ian Alumni of the University of Kent British civil servants Contestants on British game shows Living people 1958 births People from Hemel Hempstead