Finders Keepers (1991 game show)
Children race to find hidden objects in chaotic room raids.
Finders Keepers is a British children's game show adapted from an American format, originally airing on ITV from 1991 to 1996 and revived in 2006. The programme was hosted by Neil Buchanan during its original run and by Jeff Brazier for the revival. A pilot episode hosted by Andrew O'Connor was recorded in 1988.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Children's Game show
- Presenter
- Neil Buchanan; Jeff Brazier
- Starring
- Diane Youdale
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Language
- English
- Series
- 7
- Episodes
- 88
- Producer
- Tim Edmunds
Facts from the source article.
Format
Two teams, the green meanies and the yellow terrors, compete to find hidden objects across eight rooms over two rounds. Clues read by the host guide each team before a 30-second raid; a successful find earns 25 points in the first round and 50 in the second, while failure awards the points to the opposing team. During raids, streamers, confetti, and Silly String rain from the ceiling. In early series of the original run, teams first won the right to raid rooms at the garage door, then raided them; this process repeated for the second round. Later series gave both teams two rooms to raid immediately, with the remaining four rooms won at the garage door. The final original series in 1996 changed the format: teams found items in the garage for a head start, then searched for the same item on both floors of the house. The 2006 revival dropped the garage round and restored the final round time limit to three minutes. In all versions, the team with the most points enters the Super Search, a race to find eight hidden objects in three minutes (later four minutes), with better prizes for more objects found. The final original series awarded a prize for each successful room search and a grand prize in the final room. Teams were color-coded green and yellow; the US version used red and blue.
Jeremy's Joker
During the third, fourth, and fifth seasons of the Buchanan era, the Fantasy Room featured Jeremy's Joker. If a team found the object there, they won both the standard 50 points and a prize, which could range from personal stereos and club memberships to day or weekend trips. This element was named after Jeremy Stockwell, the in-vision announcer and writer for early Finders Keepers series. In the first two seasons, one room was the Surprise Prize room, announced by a fanfare upon entry. Both Jeremy's Joker and the Surprise Prize resembled the American version's Instant Prize room, but unlike that version, this room could appear in any round, and the opposing team won the prize if the searching team failed.
Celebrity Guests
In series 3, 4, and 5, celebrity guests popped up now and then, mostly in the Fantasy Room. One Sleeping Beauty-themed room had Frank Bruno snoozing behind a curtain, and players had to grab a clue without disturbing him. The last episode of series 3 saw Neighbours twins Gayle and Gillian Blakeney spring out of a giant teapot in a Mad Hatter's tea party room. Series 4 brought Olympic swimmer Adrian Moorhouse in an Underwater room, Gladiator Panther in a Jungle room, Grange Hill's Anna Quayle in a School room, and Bro & Bro from What's Up Doc? in a Little Red Riding Hood room. Series 5 added Michael Aherne and Jefferson King (Warrior and Shadow) from Gladiators, Danny John-Jules from Red Dwarf, and athlete Roger Black. These guests also made brief appearances in the Super Search, doing everyday chores as visual gags while contestants moved through the house. In the final original series from 1996, Buchanan co-hosted with Gladiators star Diane Youdale, and no celebrity guests appeared.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes of Finders Keepers (1991 game show) are there?
Finders Keepers has 88 episodes across 7 seasons.
When did Finders Keepers (1991 game show) first air?
Finders Keepers first aired on 12 April 1991.
When did Finders Keepers (1991 game show) end?
Finders Keepers last aired on 6 August 1996.
More in Television Shows Produced by Scottish Television
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