IT,S A ROYAL KNOCKOUT TOURNAMENT BBC 1987 PART 2

It's a Knockout was a British comedy game show. It was adapted from the French show Intervilles, and was part of the international Jeux Sans Frontieres franchise.

It ran between from 7 August 1966 to 25 December 1988 on BBC1, 28 May 1990 on ITV, 3 August 1991 to 24 December 1994 on S4C and The Family Channel and from 3 September 1999 to 6 January 2001 on Channel 5, produced by Richard Hearsey and Ronin Entertainment. It featured teams representing a town or city competing tasks in absurd games, generally dressed in large foam rubber suits. Games were played in the home town's park, with weather often turning grassland into mud. The team scoring most points would advance to the next stage. Teams could double points in one round by choosing to "play their Joker". The games were refereed by former international football referee Arthur Ellis. The theme tune was Bean Bag by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass.

The GamesThe games were described as school sports day for adults. For example, teams would carry buckets of water over greasy poles or rolling logs. Other teams would interfere, squirting water cannons or throwing custard pies. Limited budgets meant games were often a variation on what could be done with a long piece of elastic, a lot of water, a portable swimming pool and a roundabout.

In its earliest form, the show emphasised skill or organization applied in a bizarre way, for instance picking up eggs with an industrial excavator, as well as traditional village sports such as climbing a greasy pole. Games of strength were included, for example, carrying a Mini Moke without wheels. From the beginning, a "mini-marathon" would run the length of the programme, with updates on progress between shorter contests. The shift to spectacular displays, with or without costumes, came later, to improve audience appeal and to follow continental traditions.

The teams scored points for how well they did in each event with the winner gaining 3, and the second placed team scoring 2 with the loser achieving one. The teams also had a joker card to before play on one event, which they would receive double points.

The winner of each edition was awarded an It's a Knockout trophy and a chance to represent the UK in Jeux Sans Frontières. Three local teams appeared in the UK show, with around 6 to 8 countries competing in the European finals.

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