Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee

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Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee
Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee title card.png
Genre Comedy
Panel show
Game show
Created by Guy Montgomery
Presented byGuy Montgomery
StarringSanjay Patel
ComposerMahuia Bridgman-Cooper
Country of originNew Zealand
Original languageEnglish
No. of series2
No. of episodes16
Production
Camera setupMulti-camera
Running timeca. 45 minutes
Production companyKevin & Co.
Original release
Network Three
Release16 February 2023 (2023-02-16) 
present
Related
Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee (Australia)

Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee is a New Zealand television comedy panel show on Three, created and presented by Guy Montgomery and co-hosted by Sanjay Patel. [1] [2] The show is loosely based on a spelling bee: each episode, four comedians participate in a series of rounds, where the goal is almost always to spell words or names in rounds that are "designed to be infuriating to take part in and entertaining to watch". [3] The winner of each episode competes again the following week, and the loser of each episode (the one who got last place) must wear a dunce cap in the Dunce's Corner. [1]

Contents

The first series of Guy Mont-Spelling Bee aired in 2023, and the second series aired in late 2024. [4] An Australian version of the show was commissioned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) in 2024.

Background and production

Guy Montgomery, inspired by the Scripps National Spelling Bee, began hosting spelling bees with other comedians over Zoom and broadcast live on YouTube during the COVID-19 pandemic. [5] Following the success of those games, Montgomery developed the concept into a show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, [1] and then into a television show in 2023.

YouTube broadcasts

The first YouTube series of six broadcasts took place in 2020. The contestants were Tim Batt, Tom Sainsbury, Rose Matafeo, Madeleine Sami, Paul Williams, Alice Snedden, Jackie van Beek, Kura Forrester, Chris Parker, Ayo Edebiri, Paul F. Tompkins, Blair Socci, Joe Mande, Aaron Chen, Lily Sullivan, Colin Burgess, Jamie Loftus and Amy Hoggart. [5]

A shorter, second series of contests were streamed in 2021, featuring Laura Daniel, Urzila Carlson, David Correos, Rebecca Lucas, Alexei Toliopoulos, Angella Dravid, Brynley Stent, Concetta Caristo, Chris Parker, Alice Snedden, and Pax Assadi. [5]

Live shows

After the streaming broadcasts, Montgomery took the spelling bee to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 2022, performing four shows across April. The guests for each show were Becky Lucas, Urzila Carlson, Chris Parker, and Suren Jayemanne; Melanie Bracewell, Sam Campbell, Phil Wang, and Rhys Nicholson; Emma Holland, David O'Doherty, Luke Heggie, and Fern Brady; and Danielle Walker and Vidya Rajan. [3]

Guy Mont-Spelling Bee returned to the MICF in 2023, with five shows. The guests this year were Tim Batt, Josie Long, Patrick Golamco, and Patti Harrison; Anne Edmonds, Mark Watson, Jason Leong, and Frankie McNair; Ed Gamble, Courtney Dawson, Tim Key, and Chloe Petts; Kitty Flanagan, Urzila Carlson, Sam Pang, and Ed Kavalee; and Michael Hing, Rosie Jones, Geraldine Hickey, and Guy Williams. [6] The next month in May 2023, Guy Mont-Spelling Bee premiered in Sydney. [7]

A bee was held in August 2023 in Auckland, featuring Abby Howells, Courtney Dawson, Joe Daymond, and David Correos. [8] Another live bee at the 2024 Melbourne International Comedy Festival featured John Kearns, Anne Edmonds, Anirban Dasgupta, and Fern Brady. [9]

Television

Ordered by Discovery NZ, Guy Mont-Spelling Bee was developed into a television show by Montgomery together with comedian Joseph Moore and the production company Kevin & Co. [1] Funding of the show comes from NZ On Air. Montgomery also serves as the showrunner.

The "retro" feel of the show is intentional, as Montgomery wanted the set to feel "timeless" by using physical props and as few screens as possible. Sacha Young was the stylist for the production. Additionally, Montgomery notes that the "hokey" title of the show "sets the tone for the experience". [10]

Series 1 was filmed in November 2022 in Auckland, [11] and was broadcast for eight weeks starting in February 2023 at the 7.30 pm timeslot on Three. [10] On 10 July 2023, it was announced that the show had been renewed for a second eight-episode series. [12]

Series 2 was filmed in November 2023 with at least one guest, Rose Matafeo, confirmed before broadcast. [13] New episodes aired once a week for eight weeks at the slightly earlier 7.00 pm timeslot starting on 22 August 2024 on Three. [4] [14] [15]

Format

Every episode begins with The Spelling Round, a standard spelling bee round in which the contestants select a word from three containers with varying levels of spelling difficulty ranging from 13 points: the Coward's Cup, the Person's Purse, or the Bucket of Bravery. [1] [2] Other rounds include:

Rounds introduced in season 1

Rounds introduced in season 2

The Buzz Round

Each episode ends with The Buzz Round, a themed, timed, fast-paced round in which contestants hit a buzzer first for the chance to spell each word; they lose a point if the spelling is incorrect. Montgomery may interrupt the guest at any time if they make a mistake in their spelling. The contestant in last place before the round begins gets to pick one of four categories provided; if there is a tie for last place, the guest closest to Montgomery gets the choice of categories. The time limit of this round varies with episode, ending once the voice of the "spelling gods" is heard.

If there is a tie between contestants with the highest score, a tie-break word is provided among the tied contestants. The player who spells the word correctly wins the episode, while an incorrect spelling forfeits the episode.

Episodes

Series 1 (2023)

The average rating across the first three episodes was 106,000, [16] which had improved to 118,100 for the average rating across the last three episodes. [17]

No. in
series
GuestsOriginal air date
1 Abby Howells , Matt Heath, Hayley Sproull , Josh Thomson 16 February 2023 (2023-02-16)
2 Brynley Stent , Chris Parker , Courtney Dawson, Hayley Sproull23 February 2023 (2023-02-23)
3 Urzila Carlson , Tim Batt , James Mustapic, Brynley Stent2 March 2023 (2023-03-02)
4 Angella Dravid, Guy Williams, Audrey Porne, James Mustapic9 March 2023 (2023-03-09)
5 Laura Daniel , David Correos , Becky Lucas, James Mustapic16 March 2023 (2023-03-16)
6 Ray O'Leary , Mel Bracewell, Jamaine Ross, David Correos 23 March 2023 (2023-03-23)
7 Kura Forrester, Jack Ansett, Karen O'Leary, Jamaine Ross30 March 2023 (2023-03-30)
8 Paul Williams, Bubbah Olo , Dai Henwood , Jamaine Ross6 April 2023 (2023-04-06)

Series 2 (2024)

The series premiere recorded 98,800 viewers. [18] The average viewership of the episodes broadcast in September 2024 was 77,700. [19] After a brief uptick, viewership then settled at 75,600 for the final episode. [20]

No.
overall
No. in
series
GuestsOriginal air date
91Kura Turuwhenua, Tom Sainsbury , Nina Oyama , Dai Henwood22 August 2024 (2024-08-22)
The Spelling Round; ACROSTIC; The Gift of Spelling; Spell the Crime, Do the Time; Homophones; The Buzz Round (technology)
102Pax Assadi, Justine Smith, Robbie Nicol, Nina Oyama29 August 2024 (2024-08-29)
The Spelling Round; Spel Itt Wurst; The Hat Hat; Horsing: A Round; Spell the Smell; The Buzz Round (geography)
113 Rose Matafeo, Eli Matthewson, Becky Umbers, Robbie Nicol5 September 2024 (2024-09-05)
The Spelling Round; Spell the Soup; Hard Words for a 14-Year-Old (offered $1,000 in $5 notes, won by Matafeo); A Decent Proposal; The Emotional Round; The Buzz Round (music)
In the Hard Words for a 14-Year-Old round, Nicol was paired with Chris, Becky with Jordyn, Matthewson with Pearl, and Matafeo with Vinnie.
124Rhys Mathewson, Liv McKenzie, Itay Dom, Eli Matthewson12 September 2024 (2024-09-12)
The Spelling Round; Customs; Idioms; The Spelling Spell; Social Media; The Buzz Round (Space)
Rhys Mathewson holds the record for the highest score in a single episode, with 16 points.
135Maria Williams, Jason Hoyte, Julia Morris , Rhys Mathewson19 September 2024 (2024-09-19)
The Spelling Round; Spell a Swear Word; Feelings; The Animal Kingdom; Spell the Audience Name; The Buzz Round (Ancient Egypt)
146Paul Douglas, Kalyani Nagarajan, Jono Pryor , Rhys Mathewson26 September 2024 (2024-09-26)
The Spelling Round; Spelling Well; Money; Shut Up and Spell; Wifi Round; The Buzz Round (World War II)
157Rhiannon McCall, Ben Hurley , Jaquie Brown , Rhys Mathewson3 October 2024 (2024-10-03)
The Spelling Round; Spell the Crew Member's Name; Flags; A Decent Proposal; Social Media; The Buzz Round (drinks)
168 Joe Daymond, Janaye Henry, Paul Ego , Ben Hurley10 October 2024 (2024-10-10)
The Spelling Round; Spelling It Better; The Time Machine; Letters; Spell the Audience Name; The Buzz Round (New Zealand history)
Paul Ego was awarded a word after The Buzz Round had concluded, and - after answering it correctly - thus an extra point, which did not materially impact on his position against the other contestants, remaining the dunce.
Winners in bold, dunces in italics.

Australian version

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) commissioned an Australian version of the show in April 2024. [21] It premiered on 14 August 2024 on ABC TV, and the entire series of eight episodes was released on the same day on ABC iview. [22] Urzila Carlson made an appearance in the first episode of the Australian version.

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Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee is an Australian television comedy panel show on the ABC, created and presented by Guy Montgomery and co-hosted by Aaron Chen, based on the New Zealand TV show of the same name. The eight-episode first series premiered on 14 August 2024; every episode was made available on ABC iview that day.

References

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  11. Montgomery, Guy. "It is happening! Eight episodes of Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee are going to be recorded on high definition cameras in front of a live studio audience and YOU ARE INVITED!". Instagram. @guy_mont.
  12. "Lifting The Lid On Aotearoa New Zealand – More Stories To Engage Audiences | Scoop News". www.scoop.co.nz. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
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  14. "Guy Montgomery: 'I'd feel more scared of what's happening at Warner Bros if I didn't have stand-up'". NZ Herald. 13 August 2024. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
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  22. "Let's get spelling! Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont Spelling Bee premieres 14 August on ABC". ABC Help Centre (Press release). 12 August 2024. Archived from the original on 16 August 2024. Retrieved 16 August 2024. Get ready to laugh-out-loud as Guy Montgomery and his loyal assistant Aaron Chen test the spelling prowess of some of Australia's favourite faces on Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont Spelling Bee. The fast-paced eight-episode series will premiere Wednesday 14 August at 8.30pm on ABC TV, with all episodes available to stream on ABC iview.