Game shows - Era - Harry Field

This is Harry Field's work.

Secondary Research

Factual Programming is a genre of non-fiction television that involves the actual events and stories on real people. Some examples of these programmes are documentaries, reality television and quiz shows.

In this Post,  will be describing 2 different contrasting quiz shows from different eras. Different eras can mean very different shows, they have a lot of different conventions and formats to eachother other.

The Cube - The Cube is a game show that has been running for a couple of years. It consists of a big cube that challenges one person to many different challenges. Every challenge they complete they go up by a certain amount of money. Until they reach the jackpot. They have 10 lives to complete them. At the start of the show, the presenter introduces the contestant and their family, he then proceeds to ask them to enter the cube. They go through a range of challenges, being cheered on by their family. The contestants run through the show similarly to 'Who want to be a Millionare'. Every time someone loses and goes out, another is introduced half way through the show. If they don't finish in the time limit of the show, it rolls on to the next show.

Catchphrase - Catchphrase is very simple. 4 people compete against each other by guessing the catchphrase the quickest. They have to go through about 4 rounds to get to the final and win the jackpot. It has recently been re made, but is an old show. Firstly, the presenter, like The Cube, introduces the contestants, however there is more than one in this show. He ask's them what they do, and where they are from. The show then rolls on into the rounds. They play until the final player and then the show ends once the jackpot has/hasn't been won

Difference? - Firstly, The Cube involves physical challenges, while Catchphrase challenged your mind. This will give the show different audiences and different times of being aired on TV, catchphrase usually being aired earlier. They are both from completely different eras, The Cube is a lot newer than Catchphrase so will bring in a younger audience because it is newer. The format of each show differs from each other immensely. There is only one contestant featured in The Cube, while Catchphrase has at least 3 contestants each show.

The conventions of each show are quite different from each other. The sets are completely from each other. It shows the difference in Era as The Cube's set looks a lot more futuristic and modern than the Catchphrase set. The Camera Shots are also very different, the Catchphrase cameras are mostly static, while The Cube has a lot of panning cameras around the studio.

Game Show Eras

In this post, i will be comparing two shows that have been made in a different era to each other. The two shows that i have chosen to use are The X Factor and Stars in their Eyes.

What is Era? 

Era is basically a long and distinct part of history. In terms of TV, different Era's have had contrasting shows. This post will explain how shows have changed throughout the years, and why they have changed.

How did the Era effect the show?

First of all, i will start with the X Factor. This show is obviously very popular in this generation of TV lovers. It is one of the most viewed live shows of all time and has been going since 2004. Stars in their eyes is a very similar show, being about singing. This show was also a huge hit back in the 90's until about the early 2000's. It stopped at around the same time as the X Factor started. This already shows that the different Era's of the show helped how popular they were/are in their peaks. 

Modern Remakes?

Star's in their eyes was recently re-made with Harry Hill as the presenter. The show only lasted one season because it was the end of an Era. The show's format is too old for these days, as different shows have come up with new ideas. One of these shows being The X Factor. A bunch of people can see The X Factor coming to the end of it's Era, as it has been going for 12 years now. The producers have been trying their hardest to modernize the format, the judges and the set, but it just isn't working out for them. Viewing figure's have decreased over the last few years.