The Finish Line is a game show on BBC One, which comes from the makers of The Chase. where contestants speed along a studio racetrack on special moving podiums while answering quick-fire questions.
The series has TV and radio host Roman Kemp in the quizmaster hotseat, with 1980s kids’ show favourite Sarah Greene as adjudicator — and they make a fantastic combo! Think of Pointless with Sarah as being Richard Osman to Roman’s Alexander Armstrong! But speed is of the essence here because if the players don’t answer the general knowledge questions quickly enough to get to the finish line, they won’t be in with the chance of scooping the £5000 cash prize!
So here’s everything we know so far about The Finish Line…
The Finish Line release date
The Finish Line starts on BBC One on Monday, August 21 at 4.30 pm, running weekly from Monday to Friday at the same time, with episodes also arriving on BBCiPlayer.
The Finish Line — how it works
Each episode of The Finish Line sees five contestants race against each other on moving podiums while answering general knowledge questions. But the more you know the further you go, with the aim of the game to make it to the finish line before your rivals and be in with a chance of scooping £5000!
After each round, a player is eliminated, until there’s a nail-biting head-to-head and then a final round, where the potential winner has to beat the track itself!
Roman Kemp and Sarah Greene on their show
How did you feel when you got the call to host The Finish Line?
Roman Kemp says: "To be honest, I was like, thank God someone trusts me! I host quizzes every day on my radio show, but when I was asked to host this it was a case of, here we go, I’ve got a step up now. The first day we shot four episodes and, honestly, it was the first time I felt like an adult on telly!"
Sarah Greene says: "I was absolutely thrilled to bits! I’ve worked in practically every single genre of television, but I hadn't done a quiz show before. When I saw a description for The Finish Line I just thought, this is addictive! And Roman, of course, was the icing on the cake!"
You have a great laugh together on screen. Had you two met before?
Roman says: "No, but I was aware of her prestige and fame. And she’d actually interviewed both my parents [Martin Kemp and Shirlie Holliman] when she hosted Saturday Superstore! She was basically like my mum on set. I’m my own worst critic and if I felt like I wasn't doing well, she'd be there going, come on darling, you're doing great!"
Sarah says: "On the first day I said to Roman, I’m your honorary godmother. You do know that, don't you? We just instantly clicked. We have a similar sense of humour and certain things make us both giggle — that’s the key to it really!"
How would you describe the format of The Front Line?
Sarah says: "In a nutshell it's got three rounds — three races, a head-to-head and a final where you could £5,000. But it’s deceptively difficult. The whole thing can literally turn on one question – and our question-setters are second to none!
Roman says: "Every single episode is nail-biting! But the great thing about The Finish Line is that it isn’t University Challenge. These are all questions that you are likely to know, but the tricky thing is answering them at speed. It’s so fast-paced and it requires me to speak at a million miles an hour. I think we’re going to hold the record for the most amount of quiz questions in a daytime quiz show. Honestly, I had to have two double espresso shots just so I could talk that fast!"
Does The Finish Line get competitive?
Roman explains: "Yeah, massively! You see people trying to figure out the best way to play the game. But really, the best way to play the game is by answering as quickly as you can, it's as simple as that!
Sarah explains: "Oh it did get really competitive. I think the closest race someone left the show because they were two centimetres behind the person in front. Sometimes I got so involved with what was going on, I forgot that I was actually on the telly!"
As it’s your first time hosting a quiz, did you do anything to prepare?
Roman says: "Lockdown was a good training ground because all my mates would always make me host all the events. I was hosting about four quizzes a week at one point! But, oh my God, I was terrified on the first day. I remember just leaving the studio and calling my mum and dad and saying, I’m rubbish, I don’t think I can do this. And my dad was like, Ro, put the phone down and just go to bed. The best thing to do is forget about today and start again tomorrow. And for some reason the next day came and I started nailing it!"
Sarah says: "I suppose I’ve been on the other side of quizzes before, like The Chase and Richard Osman’s House of Games, and that really whetted my appetite. But my role on this show is quite fun because I’m very much about keeping across the scores and the timing of it all. I’m just there being naughty on the sidelines and taking the mickey out of Roman!"
Were there any particularly funny moments that stood out for you?
Roman says: "Oh yes, Sarah loves an innuendo — and there's no limit to how dirty that innuendo is! Sometimes I had to say to her, you can’t say that on TV! There are also some funny gaffes. I think my favourite one from the series is when I asked, what’s the first consonant in the English alphabet? And the contestant answered, Antarctica! But it just shows what happens to your brain under pressure. That's why this show’s so brilliant!
Sarah says: "Oh gosh, it even happened to Roman! He thought a petticoat was a small coat! Everyone took the mickey out of him mercilessly over that!"
Would you like to do a celebrity version of The Finish Line and who would you want on it?
Sarah says: "I’d love to see Hannah Waddingham, Peter Kay, Miriam Margolyes, Bradley Walsh and Roman’s mum Shirlie on it. I think that would be a great mix!"
Roman says: "Actually, I can’t wait because we’ve nearly had the all clear on celebrity version! The one who I keep pushing to do it is [The One Show’s] Alex Jones because Alex would be terrible! I want all the people that I know would be rubbish to be on it. So Alex and my dad – they’re definitely the first two being picked!"
Is there a trailer for The Finish Line?
There's no trailer yet for The Finish Line, but take a look at these first-look pics that show the colourful studio race-track, the unique movable podiums and Sarah and Roman in the hotseat!
Behind the scenes and more about The Finish Line
The Finish Line has been commissioned by BBC Commissioning Editor, Alex McLeod with a run of 25 episodes and is produced with funding from Northern Ireland Screen by Potato, in partnership with Nice One Productions. The executive producers are Potato’s Michael Kelpie and Adam Adler, and Nice One’s Chris Jones.
