Can you Pass the Test? Australian Game Show Hosts Quiz

Answer: Tony Barber

"Sale of the Century" was based on an American game show of the same name that debuted in 1969. The Australian version first aired in 1980 and was hosted by Tony Barber until 1991. Barber had hosted an earlier version of this game show under the name "The $25,000 Great Temptation" and went on to host several other shows after 1991.

He also had a successful singing career. Gameplay involved competing against other contestants to answer general knowledge questions. A correct answer would add $5 to one's score, while an incorrect answer would be penalized with the same amount. Periodically, players would be offered opportunities to "purchase" prizes from a "Gift Shop" by sacrificing a part of their score.

The winner of the game would be the person with the highest score at the end.

Answer: Eddie McGuire

"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" originated in Great Britain, and versions of the show have been screened in many different countries. The Australian version debuted in 1999 and ran until 2006. It was revived in a slightly different version in 2007 that ran for six episodes with a maximum payout of $5 million dollars.

A third version of the show aired in 2009 under the name "Millionaire Hot Seat" and was still running in 2019. All three versions have been hosted by Eddie McGuire, an Australian radio and television presenter, who has served as President of Collingwood Australian Rules Football team and was CEO of the Channel Nine TV network from 2006 to 2007.

Answer: Graham Kennedy

Blankety Blanks, which ran from 1977-1978, was based on the American "Match Game," and like that show, contestants had to come up with answers to fill-in-the-blank questions and score points if these answers matched those given by a panel of six celebrities.

The show used a considerable amount of risqué humour, and the questions often contained double entendres. Graham Kennedy, who hosted or appeared in many TV shows, was affectionately known as "the King of Australian television" and received many awards during his long career, including the prestigious Gold Logie Award for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television on six occasions.

Answer: Tom Gleeson

"Hard Quiz" is an original Australian show that debuted in 2016. A distinctive feature of the show is that each of the four contestants nominates a specialist subject area in which they each receive five questions. Other contestants may "steal" these questions by buzzing in first.

A successful steal is rewarded with double points. The show originated as a spinoff of a segment called "Hard Chat" conducted by Tom Gleeson on "The Weekly with Charlie Pickering," a news satire that he co-hosts. Gleeson, who is also a stand-up comedian, frequently teases the contestants with off-the-cuff sarcastic remarks throughout the show. Winners are presented with a commemorative brass mug decorated with the show's logo and get to do the sign off by saying, "Thanks for playing - hard!" Gleeson won the Gold Logie award in 2019.

Answer: Adriana Xenides

The Australian version of "Wheel of Fortune" is based on the American show of the same name, and ran from 1981 to 2004 and January to July 2006. It has a similar format, involving spinning a giant prize wheel and solving word puzzles, similar to the game of Hangman. Adriana Xenides was the original co-host and letter turner when the show debuted and remained on the show for 18 years, never missing an episode. Xenides, who also had a career in modelling, was once listed in Guinness World Records as the longest-running game show host. Sadly, she died in 2010 after a long period of ill-health.

Answer: Red Symons

Red Symons, the presenter, first became famous as the lead guitarist in the Australian band Skyhooks and later became well-known as a television personality. In particular, he regularly featured as a snarky judge on "Red Faces," a talent contest that appeared on the variety show "Hey Hey It's Saturday." His cynical "man we love to hate" persona suited him to the treacherous tone of "Shafted," which ran for one season in 2002, was based on a British game show of the same name, and had similar rules.

The show takes the form of a tournament played over five rounds that starts with six players, and one player is eliminated in each round. The name of the show derives from the nature of the final round, in which the two finalists are put in a situation based on the "Prisoner's Dilemma" from economic game theory. Specifically, each player had to decide whether to "shaft" (betray) the other player or to "share" (cooperate). If both players opted to share, they would split the final prize money. If both opted to shaft, both would get nothing. If one opted to shaft and the other to share, the shafting player would win the entire prize while the other would receive nothing.

The British version of the show was so unpopular it was cancelled after only four episodes. The Australian version did somewhat better, as it lasted 40 episodes before being cancelled due to low ratings. During this time, the finalists agreed to share only once. I'm guessing that TV shows based on economic games are not sufficiently warm and fuzzy to catch on with the general public.

Answer: Ian Turpie

Ian Turpie was an Australian pop singer and frequent guest star on variety shows, who became especially famous when he began hosting "The New Price Is Right" in 1981. As the name suggests, this was an updated version of an older show, which appeared on Australian television during the 1970s, which was based on an American show of the same name. in this show, contestants compete with each other to accurately guess the prices of merchandise, with the most accurate bid winning cash and prizes. "The New Price Is Right" ran until 1985, and was revived briefly in 1989, again with Turpie as the host.

The show was revived again in 1993 and in 2003 but with different hosts.

Answer: Greg Evans

"Perfect Match" (also "Perfect Match Australia") was an Australian version of "The Dating Game," and ran during the 1980s. Like the show it was based on, it had a blind date format in which a contestant would ask questions of three candidates of the opposite sex whom they could not see, to determine which of them they would like to go on a paid holiday with.

While on holiday, they would be followed by a television crew, and would later return to the show for debriefing. Questions asked of the candidates tended to involve sly innuendo for comedic purposes but were not too overtly risqué. Greg Evans, a radio and television presenter, was the host for the first two seasons. Evans has since gone from introducing people to helping couples tie the knot, as he has become a marriage celebrant, among other things.

Answer: Julia Zemiro

RocKwiz is an original Australian quiz show that, as the title suggests, focuses on rock music and features guest artists who perform live in each episode. It ran from 2005 to 2016. The show would feature two panels of contestants from the live audience who would each be joined in the course of the game by a celebrity guest artist who would help them answer music trivia questions in subsequent rounds.

The show would close with the guest artists performing a duet accompanied by the show's orchestra. Julia Zemiro, the host, is an actress and singer who has had a successful career as a television presenter. Among her many accomplishments, she was the winner of "Australia's Brainiest TV Star" in 2007.

Answer: Andrew O'Keefe

'Deal or No Deal' is the Australian, and first international, version of a Dutch game show called "Miljoenenjacht" ("Hunt for Millions"). This is a game of sheer luck rather than a test of knowledge, as the format involves a contestant opening a series of briefcases, each of which contains a hidden prize value ranging from 50c to $200,000. Each case that is opened is eliminated from the prize pool. Periodically, contestants are presented with the choice of taking a "Bank Offer" that reflects an amount somewhat below the average of the unopened cases or continuing to open more cases. If the contestant rejects all Bank Offers they may ultimately open a briefcase they have been randomly assigned at the beginning of the game and win the amount contained therein. Andrew O'Keefe was an intellectual property lawyer before becoming a television presenter and has hosted various shows over his career. Among other roles, he has played King Herod in an Australian production of the rock opera "Jesus Christ Superstar" in 2013, for which he received critical acclaim.

He is also the nephew of famous Australian singer Johnny O'Keefe.