''The Weakest Link'' was a
New Zealand game show based on the
original version in the United Kingdom. It was broadcast on
TV One and was hosted by
Louise Wallace
Louise Annette Wallace (née Hooper, born 21 November 1959) is a New Zealand television presenter, actress, and director.
Early life
Born Louise Annette Hooper in Auckland on 21 November 1959, Wallace was educated at St Cuthbert's College. ...
.
Season one aired on Tuesday nights in 2001, while season two aired in 2002 on weekends.
Format
This version of the show featured nine contestants competing for prize money of up to twenty thousand
New Zealand dollar
The New Zealand dollar ( mi, tāra o Aotearoa; sign: $, NZ$; code: NZD) is the official currency and legal tender of New Zealand, the Cook Islands, Niue, the Ross Dependency, Tokelau, and a British territory, the Pitcairn Islands. Within New ...
s. The New Zealand general knowledge questions for the show were written by Derek Bolt. In the first seven rounds there was a money tree (
$50 There are many $50 banknotes, bills, or coins, including:
* Australian fifty-dollar note
* Canadian fifty-dollar bill
* New Zealand fifty-dollar note
* United States fifty-dollar bill
* Nicaraguan fifty-cordoba note
* Hong Kong fifty-dollar note ...
, $100, $200, $400, $600, $900, $1,200, $1,600, $2,000) with $2,000 as the maximum result. The eighth round was the same, except the winnings were tripled.
The show was filmed at
Studio West Studio West may refer to:
* Studio West (school), a school in Newcastle upon Tyne in England
* Studio West (film studio), a film and television studio in West Auckland, New Zealand
{{disambiguation ...
in
West Auckland.
Special episodes
The show aired three celebrity specials, one of which was sports-themed. In each celebrity special, money was raised for nominated charities. One of the contestants in the first celebrity special was
Mayor of Invercargill Tim Shadbolt
Sir Timothy Richard Shadbolt (born 19 February 1947) is a New Zealand politician. He was the Mayor of Invercargill and previously Mayor of Waitemata City.
Early life
Shadbolt was born in the Auckland suburb of Remuera in 1947. His father died ...
. In the second celebrity special, $9,600 was raised. This was the highest amount ever achieved on the New Zealand version.
Reception and impact
The first episode pulled in 670,000 people, outperforming
Holmes.
The show's first two episodes received over six hundred thousand viewers, almost half of the national television audience. Amanda Young, one of the winners of the show said about the experience; ''"It was actually fun. I love that sort of thing of answering questions, pub quizzes, although I haven't entered that many of them."''
Television New Zealand newsreaders and reporters had been banned from participating in one of the show's celebrity specials because bosses claimed that they didn't want their media staff to look dumb to primetime viewers.
New Zealand On Air had reportedly found a new comedy for young adults, who were believed to be stunned by dumb answers.
In 2001,
then-Labour Cabinet Minister Lianne Dalziel referenced the show's catchphrase when she told members of the
New Zealand National Party
The New Zealand National Party ( mi, Rōpū Nāhinara o Aotearoa), shortened to National () or the Nats, is a centre-right political party in New Zealand. It is one of two major parties that dominate contemporary New Zealand politics, alongside ...
''"You're all the weakest link. Goodbye."''
National full of candidates for weakest link
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weakest Link (New Zealand game show)
2001 New Zealand television series debuts
2002 New Zealand television series endings
New Zealand game shows
Television shows set in Auckland
New Zealand
Television shows filmed in New Zealand
TVNZ original programming
TVNZ 1 original programming