18 - The Moment of Truth

If Bruce Forsyth is the veritable father of TV hosts in the UK then without a doubt the Mother would be Cilla Black.  This particular show she presented called The Moment Of Truth for many was considered to be quite sadistic by British Game show standards.  The name of the game was to set incredibly hard tasks to complete.  The contestants were given some time to prepare for the challenge, usually a week or two and when they returned to the show they would complete their challenge live on air.

The prizes of the show varied and were tailored around the family of the contestant.  Usually a parent would be selected to complete a task and for completing it they won a showcase of prizes that were selected based on what they wanted, their partner and children.  Arguably one of the criticisms of this show was the high hopes pinned on the contestant and the inevitable failures - and yes, there were failures.

Task varied from individual and were again tailored around the contestant to put their strengths or weaknesses to the test.  Some notable examples would be the task of naming over 300 children in a primary school with only he aid of their pictures.  Reciting lists from memory and other rote learning tasks were common to the show.  The video I have linked is one example of a task they contestant had to complete, in this case they had to complete a Knight's Tour which for those of you that don't know is a movement around a chess board where a Knight visits every square once and only once, moving only in the conformed 'L' shape jump a Knight can make on a Chess board.