Jeremy Clarkson's Millionaire Hot Seat rules explain how contestant won £20k with three answers
Jeremy Clarkson's spin-off show Millionaire Hot Seat produced a memorable winner in the very first episode, with firefighter Simon Williams taking home £20,000 after answering just three questions correctly.
It's a world away from the usual Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? format, where three questions only bags you a measly £300.
So why is it so different?
In Millionaire Hot Seat, six contestants compete for a single top prize, and they sit in a queue around the Hot Seat, with only the contestant in the chair able to answer the questions posed by Clarkson.
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A correct answer allows a contestant to move up the money ladder.
However, an incorrect answer eliminates them from the game and reduces the top prize available.
What a way to make an enemy!
Unlike the main show, contestants can choose to pass a question, instead of walking away with the money or using the infamous Millionaire lifelines.
There is a sting in the tail though, as passing means they move to the back of the queue, and the question is then given to the next contestant.
Players are competing against one another, while also relying on other contestants to get questions right or wrong.
The goal is to be the one sitting in the Hot Seat at the end, with the highest remaining prize available, and then answer the crucial question correctly.
ITV call it a 'fast-paced, tactical twist', while Clarkson has liked it to 'a very expensive game of musical chairs'.
The £1,000 question
Simon Williams, a firefighter from Notting Hill in London, entered the Hot Seat after another contestant was eliminated.
His first question was worth £1,000 and he was asked: "Which year was a leap year?"
The multiple choice options were 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025.
Unsure of the answer, Williams crucially chose not to guess and used his pass.
This allowed him to remain in the game, although he moved to the back of the queue.
After other contestants took their turns and either passed or found themselves eliminated, Williams returned to the Hot Seat when the game had reached the £7,500 level.
The £7,500 question
The firefighter was asked which word meant 'incapable of being wearied'.
The choices were indubitable, innominable, indefatigable and ineluctable.
This is where his luck came in, confessing he was guessing, Williams selected 'indefatigable', and was correct, which saw him progress to the £10,000 question.
The £10,000 question
His next question asked:
"Which of these UK parliamentary constituencies has not been represented by a 21st-century prime minister?"
The options were: Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, Epping Forest, Uxbridge and South Ruislip, and Holborn and St Pancras.
Williams ruled out Uxbridge and South Ruislip because it had been Boris Johnson's constituency.
He eventually chose Epping Forest, and was correct, so moved on to the £20,000 prize.
The £20,000 question
He was then asked: Which of these characters has not appeared in a film directed by Ridley Scott?
The options were: Hannibal Lecter, Rick Deckard, Paul Atreides and Ellen Ripley.
Williams selected Paul Atreides, from Dune, and it was the right answer.
Dune was directed by Denis Villeneuve rather than Ridley Scott.
Why did three answers win £20,000?
The format of the spin off show means that the amount available can change as contestants are eliminated.
Consequently, a contestant does not necessarily need to answer a large number of questions to win a substantial prize.
Williams answered three questions correctly during his successful run: one for £7,500, one for £10,000 and the final £20,000 question.
Passing his first question kept him alive in the competition, while his willingness to take guesses later allowed him to climb the money ladder.
The result also highlights what makes Millionaire Hot Seat different from the original Millionaire.
As Clarkson pointed out, it really is a game of high-stakes musical chairs: "You can be the most brilliant player and go home with nothing or you can be useless - and this happened the other day - and go home with the prize. Only one person wins and it is down to who is in that chair at the end," he explained.
A contestant can be an excellent player yet leave with nothing if another player reaches the final stage, while someone else can benefit from the decisions and mistakes made by everyone around them.
In Millionaire Hot Seat, the objective is not simply to answer the most questions, it is to survive the musical chairs, be in the Hot Seat when it matters and get the crucial question right.
After winning, Williams revealed that he planned to use the money for a trip to New York for his daughter, a Manchester United season ticket for his son and a trip to the Maldives for his girlfriend.
Topics: Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, Jeremy Clarkson, ITV, TV and Film
Jen Thomas