Perhaps change the number of boxes, hence contestants… however if you keep the top prize money the same, that will isntatly increase the average won.

A change in the top prize money will kill the show- the $250,000 (and the penny, for that matter) is as closely related to the show as Noel is. Its like ITV creating changes to make "Who Wants To Be A Hundred-Thousand-aire?"

Cutting Noel's salary, reducing contestant care costs, and changing the first five red amounts will certainly slash costs. Will it be enough? I agree with David: probably not.

With Big Brother going in 2010, Channel 4 might simply be trying to cut ties with Endemol.

The Mail's a crazy pseudo-intellectual conservative tabloid, though. If they say it, it probably means it's false. :) Several other articles refer to the rumour but every single one is sourced from the Mail.

That said, let's get this straight. The average prize given away per show is about £16,000. Replacing the quarter-million with £2,000 – the most radical change I could see them making, budget-wise – would reduce that to just under £10k assuming a similar average win as a percentage of the starting mean, and with the more stable board and lower stakes that's a highly questionable assumption. I can't see them saving more than £5,000 per show from prize tree changes.

Noel, on the other hand, is on £20,000 per show according to this. Doing the math(s) – which is more than contestants on DoND do under his influence – the contract he signed in 2006 was £3m for 18 months, and the show averages 290 episodes per year (the recent 4th birthday edition was episode #1159). That doesn't even come to £10,000 per show, much less £20,000. On the other hand, I don't doubt you could save up to £5,000 a show with a cheaper host who could still do a job – indeed, I reckon there are plenty who could do a better (or at least more even-handed) job than Noel.

I don't see how on earth the show can cost £80,000 per show to produce either. The prize fund can now – after this many episodes – be reasonably estimated at £15k per show, give or take. I'm not nearly as knowledgable about production costs as some of you guys, but… £65k for each of three shows a day? That comes to over $300,000 for a taping day. It's not even got a flashy set!

With Big Brother going in 2010, Channel 4 might simply be trying to cut ties with Endemol.

The Mail's a crazy pseudo-intellectual conservative tabloid, though. If they say it, it probably means it's false. :) Several other articles refer to the rumour but every single one is sourced from the Mail.

That said, let's get this straight. The average prize given away per show is about £16,000. Replacing the quarter-million with £2,000 – the most radical change I could see them making, budget-wise – would reduce that to just under £10k assuming a similar average win as a percentage of the starting mean, and with the more stable board and lower stakes that's a highly questionable assumption. I can't see them saving more than £5,000 per show from prize tree changes.

Noel, on the other hand, is on £20,000 per show according to this. Doing the math(s) – which is more than contestants on DoND do under his influence – the contract he signed in 2006 was £3m for 18 months, and the show averages 290 episodes per year (the recent 4th birthday edition was episode #1159). That doesn't even come to £10,000 per show, much less £20,000. On the other hand, I don't doubt you could save up to £5,000 a show with a cheaper host who could still do a job – indeed, I reckon there are plenty who could do a better (or at least more even-handed) job than Noel.

I don't see how on earth the show can cost £80,000 per show to produce either. The prize fund can now – after this many episodes – be reasonably estimated at £15k per show, give or take. I'm not nearly as knowledgable about production costs as some of you guys, but… £65k for each of three shows a day? That comes to over $300,000 for a taping day. It's not even got a flashy set!

With Big Brother going in 2010, Channel 4 might simply be trying to cut ties with Endemol.

The Mail's a crazy pseudo-intellectual conservative tabloid, though. If they say it, it probably means it's false. :) Several other articles refer to the rumour but every single one is sourced from the Mail.

That said, let's get this straight. The average prize given away per show is about £16,000. Replacing the quarter-million with £2,000 – the most radical change I could see them making, budget-wise – would reduce that to just under £10k assuming a similar average win as a percentage of the starting mean, and with the more stable board and lower stakes that's a highly questionable assumption. I can't see them saving more than £5,000 per show from prize tree changes.

Noel, on the other hand, is on £20,000 per show according to this. Doing the math(s) – which is more than contestants on DoND do under his influence – the contract he signed in 2006 was £3m for 18 months, and the show averages 290 episodes per year (the recent 4th birthday edition was episode #1159). That doesn't even come to £10,000 per show, much less £20,000. On the other hand, I don't doubt you could save up to £5,000 a show with a cheaper host who could still do a job – indeed, I reckon there are plenty who could do a better (or at least more even-handed) job than Noel.

I don't see how on earth the show can cost £80,000 per show to produce either. The prize fund can now – after this many episodes – be reasonably estimated at £15k per show, give or take. I'm not nearly as knowledgable about production costs as some of you guys, but… £65k for each of three shows a day? That comes to over $300,000 for a taping day. It's not even got a flashy set!

With Big Brother going in 2010, Channel 4 might simply be trying to cut ties with Endemol.

The Mail's a crazy pseudo-intellectual conservative tabloid, though. If they say it, it probably means it's false. :) Several other articles refer to the rumour but every single one is sourced from the Mail.

That said, let's get this straight. The average prize given away per show is about £16,000. Replacing the quarter-million with £2,000 – the most radical change I could see them making, budget-wise – would reduce that to just under £10k assuming a similar average win as a percentage of the starting mean, and with the more stable board and lower stakes that's a highly questionable assumption. I can't see them saving more than £5,000 per show from prize tree changes.

Noel, on the other hand, is on £20,000 per show according to this. Doing the math(s) – which is more than contestants on DoND do under his influence – the contract he signed in 2006 was £3m for 18 months, and the show averages 290 episodes per year (the recent 4th birthday edition was episode #1159). That doesn't even come to £10,000 per show, much less £20,000. On the other hand, I don't doubt you could save up to £5,000 a show with a cheaper host who could still do a job – indeed, I reckon there are plenty who could do a better (or at least more even-handed) job than Noel.

I don't see how on earth the show can cost £80,000 per show to produce either. The prize fund can now – after this many episodes – be reasonably estimated at £15k per show, give or take. I'm not nearly as knowledgable about production costs as some of you guys, but… £65k for each of three shows a day? That comes to over $300,000 for a taping day. It's not even got a flashy set!

With Big Brother going in 2010, Channel 4 might simply be trying to cut ties with Endemol.

The Mail's a crazy pseudo-intellectual conservative tabloid, though. If they say it, it probably means it's false. :) Several other articles refer to the rumour but every single one is sourced from the Mail.

That said, let's get this straight. The average prize given away per show is about £16,000. Replacing the quarter-million with £2,000 – the most radical change I could see them making, budget-wise – would reduce that to just under £10k assuming a similar average win as a percentage of the starting mean, and with the more stable board and lower stakes that's a highly questionable assumption. I can't see them saving more than £5,000 per show from prize tree changes.

Noel, on the other hand, is on £20,000 per show according to this. Doing the math(s) – which is more than contestants on DoND do under his influence – the contract he signed in 2006 was £3m for 18 months, and the show averages 290 episodes per year (the recent 4th birthday edition was episode #1159). That doesn't even come to £10,000 per show, much less £20,000. On the other hand, I don't doubt you could save up to £5,000 a show with a cheaper host who could still do a job – indeed, I reckon there are plenty who could do a better (or at least more even-handed) job than Noel.

I don't see how on earth the show can cost £80,000 per show to produce either. The prize fund can now – after this many episodes – be reasonably estimated at £15k per show, give or take. I'm not nearly as knowledgable about production costs as some of you guys, but… £65k for each of three shows a day? That comes to over $300,000 for a taping day. It's not even got a flashy set!

With Big Brother going in 2010, Channel 4 might simply be trying to cut ties with Endemol.

The Mail's a crazy pseudo-intellectual conservative tabloid, though. If they say it, it probably means it's false. :) Several other articles refer to the rumour but every single one is sourced from the Mail.

That said, let's get this straight. The average prize given away per show is about £16,000. Replacing the quarter-million with £2,000 – the most radical change I could see them making, budget-wise – would reduce that to just under £10k assuming a similar average win as a percentage of the starting mean, and with the more stable board and lower stakes that's a highly questionable assumption. I can't see them saving more than £5,000 per show from prize tree changes.

Noel, on the other hand, is on £20,000 per show according to this. Doing the math(s) – which is more than contestants on DoND do under his influence – the contract he signed in 2006 was £3m for 18 months, and the show averages 290 episodes per year (the recent 4th birthday edition was episode #1159). That doesn't even come to £10,000 per show, much less £20,000. On the other hand, I don't doubt you could save up to £5,000 a show with a cheaper host who could still do a job – indeed, I reckon there are plenty who could do a better (or at least more even-handed) job than Noel.

I don't see how on earth the show can cost £80,000 per show to produce either. The prize fund can now – after this many episodes – be reasonably estimated at £15k per show, give or take. I'm not nearly as knowledgable about production costs as some of you guys, but… £65k for each of three shows a day? That comes to over $300,000 for a taping day. It's not even got a flashy set!

No way on earth BBC will take it for anything like that kind of money when Eggheads is probably 1/3 of that budget, and it would be too commercial for them anyway. Given that the show gets sponsorship from the likes of gaming websites, ITV would be the only likely home for it.

As for the Brittish version of DoND, it does put our version to shame for the most part. The thing that bothers me about the syndie season is no acknowledgement of its move to Conneticutt at all & no tweaks whatsoever. I don't see a Season 3 unless the ratings turn around soon.

This is where talent should, and WILL succeed.

I hope.