Bullseye (British game show)
A darts and quiz game show revived after cancellation.
Bullseye is a British darts-themed television game show created by Andrew Wood. The original series aired on ITV from 1981 to 1995, and a revival hosted by Andrew Flintoff began with a Christmas special in 2024. At its peak, the show attracted audiences of up to 20 million viewers.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Game show
- Creator
- Andrew Wood
- Presenter
- Jim Bowen
- Dave Spikey
- Andrew Flintoff
- Starring
- Tony Green; Richard Ashdown
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Language
- English
- Series
- 16
- Episodes
- 356 (inc. 11 Christmas specials)
Facts from the source article.
History
Andrew Wood created Bullseye after researching game show elements with mass appeal. Programme associates included Mickey Brennan and Roger Edwards. The series featured three teams, each with an amateur darts player and a trivia expert, competing for cash and prizes ranging from cars and caravans to consolation items like darts, tankards, and Bendy Bully dolls. The show debuted on Monday nights in September 1981, produced by ATV. In 1982, it moved to Sunday afternoons under Central Television, with Tony Green joining as co-host to track scores; he later appeared on screen from 1989. Nick Owen announced contestants for the first two series. Viewing figures reached around 17 million. From 1993 to 1995, the show aired on Saturday afternoons. A planned 15th series in 1996 was cancelled when Wood rejected changes proposed by Carlton and ITV to modernise the format, believing it would lose appeal. At cancellation, audiences were still up to 10 million. After an eleven-year hiatus, Bullseye was revived for Challenge, produced by Granada at Yorkshire Television in Leeds Studios, hosted by Dave Spikey, with Tony Green returning as co-host.
Rounds
A dartboard divided into 10 sectors was used, each representing a category and subdivided into outer, middle, and inner areas. Three rounds were played, with each team taking one turn per round. On a team's turn, the darts player threw one dart, aiming for the bullseye or a category chosen by their partner. Hitting the chosen category or bullseye awarded a cash bonus and allowed the partner to answer a question in that category. Hitting a different category still in play meant no bonus and the partner answered in that category. Hitting an out-of-play category or missing the board forfeited the turn. Questions were worth £30 in Round 1, £50 in Round 2, and £100 in Round 3. Board values from the edge inward were £30, £50, and £100; the bullseye awarded £200 and was always in play. Categories were removed after one question. In the first series, board values were £20, £10, and £30 inward, with no bonus for bullseye or chosen category; a bullseye let the contestant select any question value and awarded £50 for a correct answer. From series 3, if the contestant missed, the first opponent to buzz-in could steal the money. Early series allowed silent buzzing during the question; later, buzzing only after a miss triggered an audible signal. For the first seven series, the lowest-scoring team was eliminated after Round 1, with ties broken by a three-dart throw. From series 8, all three teams continued. Categories included Affairs, Art, Bible, Books, Britain, Faces, Food, History, Myths, Places, Pot Luck, Science, Showbiz, Spelling, Sport, Words, and World.
Remakes
In 2005, Andrew Wood signed a contract with Granada for a celebrity special hosted by Ant & Dec as part of Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon for ITV's 50th anniversary, aired on 22 October 2005. Contestants included Vernon Kay and William Roache with professional darts players Eric Bristow and Andy Fordham; Tony Green reprised his co-host role. Granada then produced a new series for Challenge, hosted by Dave Spikey, with a redesigned but similar Bully. The series aired in April 2006, maintaining original-style prizes but with no white goods; cash values had not increased since 1982, though the bullseye value dropped to £150. Some prizes, like a TFT television and MP3 player, were more modern. The revival used the original theme music and a remade title sequence with a cartoon Dave Spikey replacing Jim Bowen. It ran for thirty episodes.
Merchandise
A Bullseye DVD game was released for Christmas 2005 by Upstarts, featuring a redesigned Bully. ITV DVD released Classic Bullseye for Christmas 2006, with Jim Bowen and the voice of Tony Green, plus classic footage; an All New Bullseye version followed in 2007. Board games were also produced. Licensed video games appeared in the 1980s and 1990s for the ZX Spectrum, Acorn, and Commodore 64. A version for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 was released in June 2021 by Sabec.
More in British Television Series Revived After Cancellation
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced