Cliff Notes – Michael McIntyre stunned by £106,000 Wheel win ‘I’ve never seen anything like it’
- Contestant Lauren, 23, won a record-breaking £106,000 on The Wheel, with Michael McIntyre expressing disbelief at her unexpected answer.
- The final question, regarding Aretha Franklin’s only number one single, saw Lauren choose “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)” after deliberating with celebrity advisor AJ Odudu.
- Lauren plans to use her winnings for a house deposit and a trip to Venice for her parents, while viewers praised her instinctive choice on social media.
Michael McIntyre stunned by £106,000 Wheel win: ‘I’ve never seen anything like it’
The Wheel returned for another episode on Saturday night, Another flagship show looking to get record numbers by spicing things up on the BBC.
Michael McIntyre was in shock on Saturday night as The Wheel handed out one of the biggest cash prizes in the history of the BBC show.
The game show and its giant spinning wheel returned for another instalment with a celebrity panel of Ed Gamble, Jonathan Ross, Liz Bonnin, the Rev Richard Coles, Jo Brand, Francis Bourgeois and AJ Odudu advising the contestants as they answer their way to a fortune.
Ultimately, 23-year-old Lauren – who earlier in the show admitted Michael had been her childhood crush – landed in the hot seat for the final, winning question and she chose to take the biggest cash prize on offer, £106,000, with the help of Big Brother host AJ.
The question Lauren and AJ were posed was: What is the title of Aretha Franklin’s only number one single to date?
The options on offer were Respect, Say A Little Prayer, Sisters Doing It For Themselves and I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me).
Off the bat, AJ described them as ‘all bangers’ but said she was also unsure which had been a number one record.
Lauren planned to spend the money on a house deposit
Lauren said: ‘I like that I Say A Little Prayer. What are you thinking?’
AJ posed Respect or I Say A Little Prayer, but then added: ‘I don’t know. Honestly, I think you’ve got to go with your gut, because these are all big tunes.’
Their time was then up and Michael asked Lauren to lock in her answer, to which she instantly replied I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me).
Michael was clearly shocked, replying: ‘Not even discussed. Not even discussed. Where did that come from?’
Lauren replied: ‘I don’t know. Just thinking. I’m scared.’
Michael said he could only think of two other episodes of the show that had cleared the £100,000 mark, adding: ‘It’s so much money.’
But the answer was revealed…to be correct! Michael was quick to question what had prompted her to say that, adding: ‘I’ve never seen anything like it.’
‘I’ve never seen anything like it’
‘I just went with, like, what I think everyone would love and listen to,’ she said. ‘And I just went with my gut. I don’t know what it was, I was going to go with I Say A Little Prayer, and then it just went, bang, I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me). Wow.’
She added: ‘I came on this with just wanting to be on the show that I absolutely love watching. For an experience, something to tick off my bucket list and meet people that I would never, ever meet in person. So, just thank you all for tonight.’
She said her plan was the spend the money on a house deposit with her boyfriend and also to treat her parents to a trip to Venice.
Meanwhile, viewers at home were equally stunned she had managed to guess correctly on the spur of the moment.
Taking to X as the episode aired, @TwellyWatcher wrote: ‘£106,000 for a 23-year-old is amazing. What a fantastic win and probably one of the best ‘go with your gut’ guesses I’ve ever seen on The Wheel.’
@SophiePetkar added: ‘What on earth?! How did she think to pick that one?! Unbelievable! Congrats.’
‘Lauren winning £106,000 at the age of 23 and on her childhood crush’s TV show, that’s incredible,’ wrote @jessiehxsking.
The Wheel airs Saturday on BBC One at 8pm.