Distraction (game show)
| Distraction | |
|---|---|
| Created by | David Taylor |
| Written by |
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| Presented by | Jimmy Carr |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 16 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes (inc. adverts) |
| Production company(s) | Talkback |
| Distributor | FremantleMedia |
| Release | |
| Original network | Channel 4 |
| Picture format | 16:9 |
| Original release | 31 October 2003 – 11 June 2004 |
Distraction is a game show that aired on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom from 31 October 2003 to 11 June 2004. Presented by comedian Jimmy Carr, the show involved contestants answering questions while being distracted in various bizarre, painful and humiliating ways.
Carr was aided by "distractors", who as the name suggests, attempted to distract the contestants painfully or emotionally. Examples include losing contestants, nudists, creepy carny guys, tattoo/piercing experts, wrestlers, midgets, Roller Derby girls, professional athletes, paintball players, and a large bouncer-type male nicknamed "Tiny". Occasionally, a number of female assistants helped with some of the distractions; depending on the stunt being played, they could be referred to as "Jimmy's interns", "farmer girls", "schoolgirls" or "ammo ladies."
A quiz book, featuring most of the distractions seen on the show, was released by Carlton Books in late 2004.
Gameplay
At the start of the show, there are four contestants, usually two women and two men. Before the first round, they "get to know each other", finding out about each other's embarrassing moments, unique hobbies, strange talents, or previous unflattering occupations.
The first three rounds are usually quizzes involving rather easy questions. However, these rounds feature various distractions to cause pain and/or discomfort while contestants try to answer them. The distractions may be endured throughout the round, activated in order to answer questions, as punishment for incorrect answers, or as a result of getting a question right. On occasion, the contestants inflict an additional distraction on themselves (such as attaching clothespins to their own faces), with bonus points being awarded to the most successful of the four. At the end of each round, the player who has performed worst is eliminated and receives nothing.
Distractions have included being shocked with electricity (such as with electric dog collars), pushing buzzers surrounded by cacti while blindfolded, sticking one's hand in live mousetraps to answer a question, being shot with paintballs, urinating in a specially designed toilet to activate one's buzzer, drinking shots of hot sauce or their own urine, and being hung upside down and tickled on the soles of the feet.
In the fourth and final round, instead of answering questions to win prizes, the prizes are given to the winner upfront; however, the contestant must then answer several further questions to prevent these prizes from being damaged and/or destroyed. For example, if the prize is a car, getting a particular question wrong could result in the losing contestants getting to spray paint graffiti on the side of it, smash the windscreen, or key-scratch the door(s) of the car. If a set of smaller prizes is at stake, each incorrectly answered question will result in a prize being destroyed outright (say, by being blown up or hit with a wrecking ball) or disastrously modified in some way (for example, a stereo being cut apart to make a bookshelf). If cash is at stake, the player must answer questions quickly enough to prevent its destruction (such as being burned in a toaster or thrown into a cement mixer).
Transmissions
| Series | Start date | End date | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 31 October 2003 | 19 December 2003 | 8 |
| 2 | 16 April 2004 | 11 June 2004 | 8 |
International versions
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 Israel |
Behafraa |
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 Italy |
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 Paraguay |
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 Serbia |
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 United States |
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External links
- Distraction program description @ Fremantlemedia (via Internet Archive)
- Distraction Official (U.S.) website (via Internet Archive)
- Behafraa Official (Israelian) website
- Distraction Official (Italian) website (via Internet Archive)
- 'Distraction' at channel4.com.
- Distraction at UKGameshows.com.