Play to the Whistle

Last updated

Play to the Whistle
Play to the Whistle.png
Genre Sports comedy panel game
Presented by Holly Willoughby
Starring
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series3
No. of episodes20 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerDan Baldwin
Production locations
Running time
  • 60 minutes (2017)
  • 45 minutes (2015–16)
Production company Hungry Bear Media
Original release
Network ITV
Release11 April 2015 (2015-04-11) 
4 April 2017 (2017-04-04)

Play to the Whistle is a British sports comedy panel game show that aired on ITV from 11 April 2015 to 4 April 2017. A rip-off of Sky's A League of Their Own, each episode saw two teams of three compete in sports knowledge rounds and physical games to achieve points for their teams, with the team with the most points at the end declared the winner.

Contents

The show was hosted by Holly Willoughby. One team was captained by entertainer, actor and presenter Bradley Walsh and the other team by former professional footballer Frank Lampard. Lampard was joined by comedian Romesh Ranganathan as a regular panellist. Seann Walsh, also a comedian, was the resident scorer. Former professional footballer Jimmy Bullard was the host's assistant in the first series. [1]

Production

The show was commissioned as part of ITV's endeavour to find a panel show for their flagship channel after other pilot series had aired. The show was made by Hungry Bear Media and the executive producer was Dan Baldwin, Holly Willoughby's husband. Despite the sport theme, ITV said that they were not targeting sports fans specifically but producing the show for the whole family audience. Baldwin stated that the host's lack of sports knowledge would help viewers in the same position. Filming of each episode took place at the Fountain Studios in Wembley in front of a live studio audience. The first two episodes of the first series were recorded on 31 March 2015, the next two on 20 April, one on 27 April and the final two on 3 May. [1] It was revealed in November 2015 that ITV had ordered a second series. [2] Episodes for this series were recorded on 8 January, 15 January and 17 January 2016 with 2 episodes being recorded each day. Willoughby promoted the third and final series as a guest on The One Show on 27/02/17.

The show's title came from the phrase used in football; the idea that players should continue with the game, even if they believe play should be stopped for any reason, until the referee has blown his whistle to halt play. [3] In the show Willoughby blew her whistle to conclude the rounds.

Transmissions

SeriesEpisodesOriginally airedSeries ratings
(in millions)
First airedLast aired
1 811 April 2015 (2015-04-11)6 June 2015 (2015-06-06)2.53
2 716 April 2016 (2016-04-16)28 May 2016 (2016-05-28)2.66
3 628 February 2017 (2017-02-28)4 April 2017 (2017-04-04)1.60

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paddy McGuinness</span> English actor, comedian and television presenter

Patrick Joseph McGuinness is an English comedian, actor, writer, and television presenter. He rose to fame with the help of fellow comedian Peter Kay, who invited him to appear on the television comedy series That Peter Kay Thing (2000), and the sitcoms Phoenix Nights (2000–2001) and Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere (2004). McGuinness went on to present various televisions shows, including Take Me Out (2010–2019), 71 Degrees North (2011), Paddy's TV Guide (2013), Top Gear (2019–2022), I Can See Your Voice (2021–2022), and Question of Sport (2021–2023).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bradley Walsh</span> English actor, singer and television presenter (born 1960)

Bradley John Walsh is an English actor, television presenter, comedian, singer, and former professional footballer.

<i>8 Out of 10 Cats</i> British television comedy panel game

8 Out of 10 Cats is a British comedy panel show that aired from 3 June 2005 to 17 January 2021. It was first broadcast on Channel 4 from 2005 to 2015, then More4 from 2016 to 2017, and finally E4 from 2017 to 2021. The show was hosted by Jimmy Carr and featured regular team captains Sean Lock, Dave Spikey, Jason Manford, Jon Richardson, Rob Beckett, Aisling Bea and Katherine Ryan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holly Willoughby</span> English television presenter, model and author (born 1981)

Holly Marie Willoughby is a British television presenter, author and model. She has presented various television shows for ITV, including This Morning (2009–2023) and Dancing on Ice. Willoughby is also a brand ambassador for Marks & Spencer and Garnier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Shephard</span> English television personality

Benjamin Peter Sherrington Shephard is an English television presenter and journalist.

Tonight at the London Palladium is a British television variety show that is hosted from the London Palladium theatre in the West End. Originally produced by ATV for the ITV network from 1955 to 1969, it went by its original name Sunday Night at the London Palladium from 25 September 1955 until the name was changed to The London Palladium Show from 1966 to 2 February 1969.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Mack</span> English comedian (born 1968)

Lee Gordon McKillop, known by his stage name Lee Mack, is an English comedian, actor, podcaster and presenter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Mulhern</span> English entertainer (born 1977)

Stephen Daniel Mulhern is an English television presenter, magician and comedian. He began his career at CITV presenting the children’s television shows Finger Tips (2001–2004) and Tricky TV (2005–2010). Mulhern went on to present various television shows for ITV, including Britain's Got More Talent (2007–2019), Animals Do the Funniest Things (2007–2011), This Morning's Hub (2011–2014), Catchphrase (2013–present), Big Star's Little Star (2013–2018), In for a Penny (2019–present), Rolling In It (2020–2021), Deal or No Deal (2023–present) and Dancing on Ice (2024–present).

<i>Dancing on Ice</i> British ice skating competition series

Dancing on Ice is a British television series currently presented by Stephen Mulhern and Holly Willoughby. Former hosts include Phillip Schofield, who hosted from 2006 to 2023, and Christine Bleakley, who hosted in Willoughby's absence from 2012 to 2014. The series features celebrities and their professional partners figure skating in front of a panel of judges. The series, broadcast on ITV, started on 14 January 2006 and initially ended on 9 March 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christine Lampard</span> TV presenter

Christine Louise Lampard is a Northern Irish broadcaster. She has presented various television programmes with Adrian Chiles, such as The One Show (2007–2010) and Daybreak (2010–2011), while with Phillip Schofield she has presented Dancing on Ice (2012–2014) and This Morning. Lampard has also presented factual series for ITV including Off The Beaten Track (2013) and Wild Ireland (2015). Since 2016 she has been a presenter of the ITV lunchtime chat show Loose Women.

Gameshow Marathon was a British game show, broadcast on ITV from 17 September 2005 to 26 May 2007, Returned for charity in the March of 2017. After a quick retrospective look at the history of the particular show, the show itself is recreated. This involves recreating the original set and using original opening programme titles, including the appropriate producer ident. All participants are celebrities, and any prizes won go into a "Viewer Prize Mountain" which is awarded to a viewer via a phone-in competition.

<i>Celebrity Juice</i> British television comedy panel game

Celebrity Juice was a British television comedy panel game broadcast on ITV2 between 24 September 2008 and 15 December 2022. The show was written and presented by Leigh Francis in the role of his alter ego Keith Lemon. The format for the series was first suggested in 2007, after the final series of Francis’s Channel 4 sketch show Bo' Selecta!. ITV approached him to create a show featuring Lemon, and after the success of the five-part series Keith Lemon's Very Brilliant World Tour, the channel commissioned Celebrity Juice. The original premise of the show was to see which team knows most about the week's tabloid news stories, although later series focus more on the comedy factor of the participating celebrity guests and games involving them, rather than discussing the week's news.

Act Your Age is a panel game on BBC Radio 4 hosted by Simon Mayo. The series, created by Ashley Blaker and Bill Matthews, was first broadcast on 27 November 2008. The show features three teams of stand-up comedians from different generations: "The Up-And-Comers", featuring younger comedians, captained by Jon Richardson; "The Current Crop", featuring comedians popular at the moment, captained by Lucy Porter; and "The Old Guard", featuring older, veteran comics, captained by Roy Walker,. Most critics disliked the show. The readers of the British Comedy Guide went as far as voting it the "Worst British Radio Panel Show / Satire 2008".

A League of Their Own is a British sports-based comedy panel game show that was first broadcast on Sky One on 11 March 2010. The show is currently hosted by Romesh Ranganathan and features Jamie Redknapp and Jill Scott as team captains and Micah Richards and Mo Gilligan as regular panellists.

<i>Text Santa</i> British TV series or programme

Text Santa was a charity initiative set up in 2011 by ITV to support UK-based charities during the Christmas period. The appeal to the public is to donate money mainly via text donation and profits from merchandise. The telethons have been hosted by popular ITV presenters including Phillip Schofield, Christine Bleakley, and Ant & Dec. The 2015 appeal show was the last after ITV decided to axe the show to make way for an all-year appeal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Wilkinson</span> English comedian

Joseph Roland Wilkinson, is an English comedian, actor, and screenwriter. He began his comedy career in 2004 and has supported Alan Carr and Russell Howard on tour. In 2006, Wilkinson won the Hackney Empire New Act of the Year. He has also made numerous appearances on television programmes such as Live at the Electric and has been touring solo since 2011. He began appearing on 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown in 2012, initially as Rachel Riley's assistant. He has since gone on to become a frequent panellist or guest team captain. He is also in the comedy duo Two Episodes of Mash, alongside Diane Morgan. In 2019 Wilkinson won a celebrity special version of The Great British Bake Off.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungry Bear Media</span> UK television production company

Hungry Bear Media Limited is a British television production company founded in 2014 by Dan Baldwin and Juliet Denison-Gay.

<i>The Masked Dancer</i> (British TV series) British television series

The Masked Dancer was a British reality dancing competition television series that premiered on ITV on 29 May 2021. It was based on the original programme, The King of Mask Singer. In December 2021, the show was recommissioned for a second series which aired September–October 2022. In March 2024 it was officially announced by ITV that the show has been axed.

References

  1. 1 2 "Holly Willoughby to host new ITV panel show". British Comedy Guide. 26 March 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  2. "ITV order Series 2 of Play To The Whistle". British Comedy Guide. 18 November 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  3. "Weekly Football Phrase: To Play to the Whistle". languagecaster.com. 3 November 2010. Retrieved 15 April 2015.