The Crystal Maze
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| The Crystal Maze | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Game show |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Creator(s) | Jacques Antoine |
| Starring | Richard O'Brien (1990-1993) Ed Tudor-Pole (1993-1995) |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original channel | Channel 4 |
| Original run | 1990–1995 |
| No. of episodes | 80 |
The Crystal Maze was a game show, produced by Chatsworth Television and shown on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom from 1990 to 1995. There was one series per year, with the first four series presented by Richard O'Brien and the final two by Ed Tudor-Pole. Each show was one hour long, including commercial breaks.
Contents |
[edit] Format
Originally, Chatsworth Television intended to make a British version of the French show Fort Boyard, but when it became clear that the fort would not be available at the time of the pilot show, Fort Boyard's creator Jacques Antoine was consulted about developing an alternative format that could be shot elsewhere. As a result, the show ended up substantially different. It was filmed on a very large set (originally at Shepperton Studios, but in later series an adapted aircraft hangar), divided into four 'zones' (originally Aztec, Medieval, Futuristic 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 except in specific games where the team would be advised that "no conferring" was permitted. 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 (these were referred to as "Automatic Lock-In" games), 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. A small number of games did not allow contestants to exit without the crystal, usually achieved by having the crystal freely accessible but requiring a puzzle to be solved to get out.
After competing in all four zones, the remaining contestants went into the 'Crystal Dome' - a giant geometric acrylic glass bubble - at the centre of the maze, in which gold and silver tokens made of foil paper were blown around from beneath the floor by huge fans. Their aim was to collect and post through a letterbox 100 more gold tokens than silver tokens to win a prize. A balance of 50 tokens entitled team members to a second level prize in the first series but this was dropped. Each crystal held, when reaching the Dome, earned the team five seconds in the dome. In earlier series individual prizes were handed out, while in later series the prizes were activity holidays for the team. Winning teams were few and far between, a testament to how much of a challenge the show actually was.
[edit] The Zones
The four zones featured in the maze varied in terms of both games and setting - Aztec and Medieval were set in the distant past, Industrial (later Ocean) and Future were more modern. Teams began their game in one of the zones and progressed either clockwise or anti-clockwise around the maze; this meant that a team would alternate between the past and modern zones.
A general consensus amongst fans and viewers is that Future Zone was often considered the most difficult, with a higher proportion of automatic lock-in games. By contrast, in earlier seasons, the majority of crystals were won in Aztec zone, which consisted of more physical games.
[edit] Entering the Maze
When a team started The Crystal Maze, they had to overcome an obstacle to enter their first zone. These were:
Aztec: row across a river in canoes
Medieval: open or climb over a portcullis
Futuristic: answer a question set by the computer
Industrial: climb over oil kegs and wire mesh
Ocean: remove a metal grille and climb down a net ladder
[edit] Moving from Zone-to-Zone
When a team finished in one zone, they had to overcome an obstacle to get into their next zone. These were:
Aztec to Industrial/Ocean: crawl through a tunnel
Industrial/Ocean to Medieval: swing across a chasm
Medieval to Futuristic: cross a log over a bubbling swamp
Futuristic to Aztec: go up a lift and climb down a stepped wall
[edit] 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 7 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, with adapted versions of some of the more difficult puzzles.
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). Edward Tudor-Pole from the rock band Tenpole Tudor was then introduced and became the host for the final two series. Coincidentally, Ed once played Riff-Raff in The Rocky Horror Show, which Richard O'Brien wrote. O'Brien also played this role in the movie adaptation, The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Ed often referred to some companions in the maze such as Bert the horse and Starbuck the cat, and he flirted with the computer in the future zone, which he called Barbara.
When Channel 4's contract with producers Chatsworth TV expired, they didn't renew it and the show ended in late 1995. Eventually, Challenge (a satellite digital channel, then known as Challenge TV) bought the rights for all six seasons and frequently shows series 1-4 throughout the year. The two series presented by Ed Tudor-Pole are currently omitted by Challenge, but there are now plans to re-acquire these series. The kids' specials could also be acquired, in which there were five in total, screened the Christmas before the adult episodes (from Christmas 1990 to Christmas 1994). This may be to do with Ftn, another Flextech channel, planning to show the programme from January 2007.
The Crystal Maze was named Greatest UK Game Show of All Time in a 2006 poll by the UKGameshows.com website [1].
[edit] Theme Tune
The theme tune for The Crystal Maze was composed by Zack Lawrence and is entitled Forcefield. Zack Lawrence also composed the theme tunes to other Chatsworth gameshows including Treasure Hunt and The Interceptor.
[edit] Cultural references
The Crystal Maze was parodied in 1994 in an episode of Maid Marian and her Merry Men (series 4, episode 1 - Tunnel Vision). It featured the Robin Hood character acting the part of Richard O'Brien [2].
The show was referenced in the 2000 movie Dungeons & Dragons, which featured a maze with similar puzzles, with its owner played by Richard O'Brien.
The show was lampooned on The Mary Whitehouse Experience when a group of "contestants" completely failed to complete the "Making a Cup of Tea" game.
On February 18 2006, a parody of The Crystal Maze (called The Crystal Muck) appeared on Dick and Dom in da Bungalow. This featured Dave Chapman playing the part of 'Richard O'Muck' who ran in various silly ways mimicking the inter-zone travel that contestants had to perform in the original game show. The actor also played the harmonica at moments where the contestants needed to concentrate the most, another parody of O'Brien's antics. [3]
The online multiplayer game RuneScape features a maze of puzzles known as the "Rogue's Den", operated by a character called "Brien O'Richard".
The Crystal Maze parody on Adam and Joe's Fourmation Years on Channel 4 in 1997 with Star Wars.
[edit] Spin-offs
Chatsworth Television licensed a number of popular SWP gambling machines based on the TV series, originally produced by Barcrest, but now made by JPM. A computer game based on The Crystal Maze was released in 1993 by Sherston Software for RISC OS on the Acorn Archimedes, and subsequently for the PC. A quiz machine based on the show was also produced. A board game was also produced based upon the show, but based on the concept of players competing against each other as opposed to the co-operative style of the TV show.
A Choose Your Own Adventure style book based around the Crystal Maze was also produced in the mid 1990s.
The Cyberdrome Crystal Maze was an attraction usually found in larger bowling alleys and video arcades in the UK. It allowed fans an opportunity to "play" the Crystal Maze for themselves, although there were a number of differences:
- The gameplay is entirely computerised, though some of the games still involve real physical challenges.
- The players have no choice of game categories - all games are chosen by the computer.
- The players never handle any physical crystals - crystals are simply displayed on a screen when won. In some games, winning the game involves reaching and pressing a circular button depicting a crystal.
- There is no locking in. A player escapes by pressing a "Quit" button before time runs out; failure to do so results in the team losing a crystal. In some games, the "Quit" button must be pressed not by the person playing the game, but by a team-mate standing outside the space where the game is played.
- Each game ends immediately when the player wins the crystal - there are no challenges to escape again after picking it up.
- The Crystal dome had, instead of gold and silver tokens, buttons on the dome's vertices which must be pressed while lit to score (equivalent to a gold token). Pressing an unlit button scores negatively (as a silver token).
Five of the first six locations were in England, while the sixth was in Japan. Most of the Cyberdrome Crystal Mazes have since closed, as children are no longer familiar with the show. One is still running in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
The makers of the children's TV show Jungle Run openly acknowledge The Crystal Maze as an influence, particularly the current host, Michael Underwood, who was a captain in one of the Christmas specials.
