About Weakest Link

Nine contestants must play as a team to build up the prize fund and then act ruthlessly to remain in the game as, round by round, the weakest link is removed, hosted by TV's toughest quiz hostess, Anne Robinson.

The format features a team of contestants who take turns answering general knowledge questions. The object of each round is to create a chain of consecutive correct answers to earn an increasing amount of money for a communal kitty, within a time limit.

An incorrect answer breaks the chain and deletes the accumulated money; however, a contestant can say "bank" prior to being asked a question, and the accumulated money is stored and a new accumulation is initiated from zero.

The first round lasts for three minutes and each round begins with the words "Let's play The Weakest Link!". Unbanked money is lost at the end of a round. The round ends if the team successfully banks the maximum amount for the round before the allotted time expires. If a host is in the middle of asking a question when time runs out, the question is left uncompleted; however, if the host completes the question when time runs out, whether the contestant is able to answer correctly or not, the host gives the correct answer.

At the end of each round, contestants must vote one player out of the game. An announcer reveals to the television audience which player is statistically the strongest link and who statistically is the weakest link. The players themselves, however, are not given this information. The votes are revealed one at a time, after which the host customarily interrogates some or all of the contestants about their votes. The player who receives the most votes, regardless of statistical data, is declared the weakest link and is dismissed from the show. The presenter, Anne Robinson, declares "You are the Weakest Link, goodbye!".

In the event of a tie, the statistical strongest link gets to cast the deciding vote. The dismissed player leaves the stage in what is called "The Walk of Shame", and a short interview with this contestant is shown before the next round begins.

As contestants get eliminated, each round gets shorter, normally by 10 seconds. The next round starts with the strongest link (or second strongest, if that player had been voted off) from the preceding round.

Final Two Rounds
When only two contestants remain, they work together in one final round, identical to previous rounds except that all money banked at the end of the round is doubled and there is no elimination: the game moves to the head-to-head round instead.

For the head-to-head round the remaining two players must each answer five questions in a penalty shootout format, the stronger link from the previous round choosing who goes first. Whoever has the most correct answers at the end of this round wins the game unless there is a tie; in which case the game goes to sudden death. Each player is asked a question in turn indefinitely, until one gets a question right and the other wrong.

The winner of the game takes home all the money accumulated in the prize pool; the loser, like all the other eliminated players, goes home with nothing. In most countries, the show ends with the host saying, "Join us again for The Weakest Link. Goodbye!".

Comments

1. Can you please show the very first series of The Weakest Link?

   Hakim Colclough 07 December 2012

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