Gameshows. We all love them, whether we are totally open about that and watch them when we can, or whether we “accidentally” turn the channel to Challenge when everyone else has gone out and re-live the gameshows we grew up with.
Either way, we all have at least a few gameshows that we loved growing up with, and the format of the show was certainly important, but possibly the most important thing was the presenter, who could make or break a show with their talents.
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Let’s journey back to the gameshows that we grew up with and, more importantly, the gameshow hosts who were gracing our screens – which of these were your favourite?…
1. Les Dawson
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The cheeky chappy who was never afraid to make jokes at the expense of his mother-in-law, he was incredibly quick-witted, often walked very close to the line of what was acceptable before the watershed and really made us smile!
2. Bob Monkhouse
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One of the classic gameshow hosts of the era, he was a wonderful comic, and by all accounts from those who met him a lovely man to boot!
3. Henry Kelly
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The Irishman who hosted Going for Gold, the quiz show that we all said we hated to each other, but if we had a sick day from school this was always on!
4. Bob Holness
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Blockbusters was a staple of the weekday television schedule and we loved to try and watch it and compete against the university students to see if we were smarter than they were!
5. Bruce Forsyth
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The gentleman of the gameshow, Forsyth hosted many different gameshows over his career, we loved him in Play Your Cards Right and The Generation Game amongst others, “Nice to see you….”
6. Les Dennis
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Best known at the time for his turn on The Russ Abbott Show, Les Dennis went on to present Catchphrase and was brilliant as he would always make us chuckle with his quips when people gave clearly stupid answers!
7. Noel Edmonds
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The host of Telly Addicts, a great show with quizzes about different TV shows and genres, he always made the show enjoyable with his cheeky sense of humour that put contestants at ease.
8. Richard Whiteley
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The gentleman who presented Countdown from the start, he always had a way with the contestants and also a great relationship with co-presenter Carol Vorderman.
9. Jim Bowen
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He presented Bullseye, the darts gameshow with Bully the Bull as the mascot, and if you ever lost he promised you your BFH (Bus fare home)!
10. Bamber Gascoigne
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The host of the original run of University Challenge, he was on the show for years and really managed to get the right balance with his presenting style dealing with students from all walks of life.
11. David Coleman
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He presented A Question of Sport throughout the 80s and in to the late 90s, David Coleman always had a good rapport with the sports stars that made the show much more watchable!
12. Leslie Crowther
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The original presenter of The Price is Right, all through my youth I’d shout “Come on down…” at random moments, this guy was a great presenter with a sense of humour that helped get the balance just right!
13. Ted Rogers
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The presenter of 3-2-1, it was a tough call at times whether people’s favourite character in this show was the host himself or Dusty Bin – who did you prefer?
14. Cilla Black
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She hosted Blind Date for nearly 2 decades on and off, Cilla Black was the Scouser who everyone loved, she came across as genuinely caring, but loved to have a laugh with the audiences and contestants alike!
15. Terry Wogan
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Terry Wogan was a true professional, yet he was brilliant on Blankety Blank as he would have no hesitation taking the mickey out of the stars and contestants alike and was a wonderful gameshow host!
16. Roy Walker
Catchphrase has remained popular since it was first on and has had several presenters, but none have ever managed to get the right level of humour and charisma as Roy Walker achieved in every episode!
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Who was your favourite gameshow host of the 80s when you were growing up?
Have we included them on this list or have we dared to miss them off? Let us know all of your thoughts and memories in the comments as always!