The Crystal Maze
Categories: Channel 4 television programmes | Game shows | Acorn Archimedes games
The Crystal Maze was a game show, produced by Chatsworth Television and shown on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom from 1990 to 1995. The first four series were presented by Richard O'Brien; the final two by Edward Tudor-Pole. Each show was one hour long, including commercial breaks.
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Format
The show was loosely based on the French show Fort Boyard, but ended up substantially different. It was filmed on a very large set, divided into four 'zones' (originally Aztec, Medieval, Future and Industrial—Industrial was replaced by Ocean from series 4 onward). A team of six contestants would enter the 'maze', and choose to play games of various sorts—three or four in each zone. Games were classed as 'physical', 'mental', 'skill' or 'mystery' (usually one of the other three). These were typically puzzle games, often involving dexterity. One of the team would be sent into a chamber to play a game, and their team-mates could advise them from the outside. Successfully solving the puzzle would release a 'crystal', and the contestant would be released from the chamber.
These games were time-limited, and if the contestant failed to exit the chamber in the allotted time, or failed in such a way to void the game (for example, losing too many lives or touching the floor where it was forbidden), they were 'locked in'. The team captain could buy a contestant's freedom at any time with a crystal, or choose to leave them locked in.
After competing in all four zones, the remaining contestants went into the 'Crystal Dome' at the centre of the maze, in which gold and silver tokens were blown around. Their aim was to collect and post through a letterbox 100 more gold tokens than silver tokens to win a prize. Each crystal won earlier in the game—and not used to buy a contestant's freedom—earned the team five seconds in the dome. Prizes were typically activity holidays for the team.
Popularity
The show's heyday was around 1991-1993, when word of mouth about the quality of show and its eccentric presenter had spread. It was regularly Channel 4's highest watched programme, mainly seen by children and young adults (particularly university students who made it into a cult show), reaching a peak of 12 million viewers for the 1993 Christmas special. The Christmas specials were to cater for a younger audience, and often featured teams of children trying to crack the maze itself (of course some of the more difficult puzzles had to be edited and made more suitable).
At the beginning of the 1993 Christmas special, a short two minute film was shown which featured Richard and his "Mumsey" (played by Sandra Caron) leaving the maze for a new life with her boyfriend Dwayne (a new age biker apparently, though he was never seen). Ed Tudor Pole was then introduced and became the host for the next (final) 2 series; Ed wasn't as popular as Richard, mainly because he lacked the eccentricity and charisma that had dominated the earlier seasons, and viewing figures dropped accordingly. When Channel 4's contract with producers Chatsworth TV expired, they didn't renew it and the show ended in late 1995.
Debates abound today about which series and presenter was the best, with many fans citing seasons 3 and 4 as their favourites. Although the games in the later seasons were less repetitive than earlier, the format had started to get tired and the increased popularity of satellite and cable television meant that viewers began migrating to more advanced gameshows. Ironically, Challenge (a satellite digital channel, then known as Challenge TV) bought the rights for all six seasons and frequently shows the series throughout the year.
Highlights
Many of the highlights from the series would be at the "Crystal Dome" stage where Richard often pretended that the team hadn't done very well, only for him to then tell the team that they won by getting over a hundred gold credits in total. Sometimes, Richard would even go excitable by telling the team they got more silver credits than gold, giving them a grand non-total of, for example, minus 60. But one of the most memorable moments came in series 3, where Richard cried with contestant Claire Taylor after she tearfully exited from her puzzle game in Future World.
Cultural references
The Crystal Maze was referenced in the movie Dungeons & Dragons, which featured a maze with similar puzzles, with its owner played by Richard O'Brien.
Spin-offs
Chatsworth Television licenses a popular coin-operated game with prizes based on the TV series. A computer game based on The Crystal Maze was released in 1993 by Sherston Software for RISC OS on the Acorn Archimedes.