Wheel of Fortune's Graham Norton cringes over hosting forgotten 90s sex gameshow

ok.co.uk:

This week, the original spinning game show returns to TV. Wheel Of Fortune – last seen on our screens more than two decades ago and based on the US version which has run for almost 50 years – has none other than Graham Norton fronting this new revival.

Amazingly, despite his long and varied history in TV, Graham reveals he hasn’t hosted a game show since the very beginnings of career. “My first job was a middle-of -the-night, filthy version of Mr & Mrs called Carnal Knowledge,” he recalls. “We made 27 episodes in a few days! “Over the years I’ve done game show pilots and they’ve always been new formats.There is always a moment when you realise, ‘Oh that’s why this won’t work.’ “With Wheel Of Fortune, it’s a tried-and-tested formula.That’s what gave me the confidence to say yes – the game is really strong.

I think even people who haven’t actually seen the show think they have.The wheel is iconic. It’s weird, it’s like it’s in our DNA – people are born knowing about Wheel Of Fortune.” Back in 2001, the show was hosted by Paul Hendy, while famous faces Bradley Walsh, Nicky Campbell and John Leslie have also fronted the series in previous years.The format sees Graham presiding over the giant carnival wheel, with contestants spinning to win cash as well as spot prizes.

Contestants then pick a letter to help them solve a word puzzle. But the spin of the wheel can also bankrupt a player, so they could lose everything they have just won. “That’s what I like about the game play, it’s half luck,” says Graham. “If it’s all luck, what’s the point?