In it for the money
If you want to pay off your student loan with cash to spare your best bet is to: (a) persuade an aged aunt or anyone you happen to meet to leave you everything in their will and discretely kill them off or fervently pray for their imminent death; (b) marry into wealth and arrange for a quick divorce; (c) become a city-banker, slaving your way to the top; (d) invest in British Telecom, WH Smiths and a horseshoe.
There are no prizes for marking the last as correct, as proved by Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? winners Judith Keppel and Robert Bridges. Judith, a self-confessed "toff" from the start, had experienced a couple of divorces, but option (b) was still felt unsatisfactory. Robert, having posed as (c) for several years following his Oxford education, calculated that his chances were higher elsewhere.
Judith and Robert look smart and well-groomed but there is not a diamond in sight. Perhaps too much of a designer appearance would have played into the hands of the envious, critical public. Staying in the most expensive (but also the most convenient) hotel in town and affording to park your car in Oxford city centre for an evening is not horrendously extravagant nor is it a change of lifestyle for either winner. They differ from most of society only in their inward smugness. She attributes this to the knowledge of "security for her later years." The breadline has always been at a considerable distance. Yet there is no doubt that the money providing the buffer has ensured financial stability leading to a more contented state of mind in both cases.
Judith denies radical lifestyle changes: proudly declaring that she still lives in the same (probably very comfortable) house and still drives the same (almost certainly top of the range) car. She likes to give herself "little treats" such as a trip to the Far East.
Disappointingly, neither was ready to declare their generosity to charities or revealed plans to build hospitals, fund research projects or refurbish churches (even with their names engraved on plaques outside). Even if such ideas have been part of their private plan, rather than merely an attempt at tax evasion, neither hinted at their social obligation merely as members of a society where the proportion of people are much less well-off.
Judith, however, does relish in the type of things she has been asked to do as a result of her television success. "Opening a garden show was great fun," she enthuses. Moreover, at least she is grateful, if not a little astounded, to be asked to the Oxford Union, who have "hosted a myriad of speakers; queens, Prime Ministers and future saints." She classes herself more on the level of figures of popular culture also included in this list. She sympathises with the persecution of "real celebrities" by the media. It would be no exaggeration to describe the uninvited press hounding her home the night she won, with cameras and reporters earlier than the birds the next morning "pushing flowers through the letter-box like demented lovers. It was like something from Notting Hill," she jokes romantically.
What exactly is the attraction of Keppel and Bridges? Are their winnings "achievements"? Both claim that "anyone could do it. It's not Mastermind," professes Judith. Admitting an element of luck at getting questions to which she knew the answers (that always helps) and a couple of guesses, the feat seemed no intellectual one. Addicted to the show's "shoutability" factor beforehand, she rehearsed at home merely by being an avid watcher.
Bridges' preparation strategy was more considered. Regarding the programme as a commercial proposition, he worked out the statistical chances of getting into the hot seat and winning certain amounts of money. "It makes financial sense to have a go." Both Judith and Robert called up numerous times: Robert between 1,500 and 2,000. He then did "two weeks solid revision," (which is where the investment in WHSmiths for clearing it of quiz books comes in).
Needless to say, Judith and Robert immensely enjoyed participating on the show, praising Tarrant for his efforts to reassure contestants and establish rapport with them. Judith, "[whose] heart was going thumpety-thump" in the studio, found it a nerve-racking experience but claims that she is now prepared to take more risks in life. Robert is Mr Calm all round. Denying that this was because he was used to pressure in his job, his approach seems to be rather pragmatic.
Judith has since compiled a quiz book, and now writes a quiz column for The Telegraph in the style of Millionaire. Both are driven by the dramatic thrill (and financial gains) of such shows. Yet neither were pub quiz-goers, and Robert had never bought a lottery ticket. There is certainly no necessity now.
As no-one is exempt from Millionaire (except those who "aren't prepared to make a fool of themselves" - Robert's words, or can't afford the £2,000 in preliminary telephone calls), the advice from previous winners is "give yourself the best chances and go with the flow." I still want the satisfaction of earning my millions but maybe I'll just write about those whose lives are transformed or not so transformed by their TV quiz show successes.
27th Feb 2003