I don't know if it would have been axed anyway, but it certainly ended at least one series earlier than it would have, because William G decided he didn't want to host it anymore. There were rumours that someone else would take it over, but I don't think C4 were interested in having anyone else host the show.
Yeah, I think it was a kind of coincidence in a way. William G Stewart didn't want to present it any more, and Channel 4 didn't want to broadcast it any more.
i do miss that show. it was slightly camp in an quaint sort of way. old women wearing cardys and weird specs apleanty.
the most interesting show they did (i think they did it twice?) was a special "15-1 facts" (or named something similar) edition.
william, voiceover woman (who you only ever saw before these editions presenting the trophy) and voiceover man presented the show at a desk. they basically went through their post bag answering questions from viewers. a bit like the daily mail's answers to correspondence, but on telly.
id love ch4 to repeat some of the older series on more4.
I think a big problem with 15 to 1 was because they invited previous winners back, the same people kept winning over and over - and it did damage the show.
It's replacement Beat the Nation was quite frankly awful and appears to have been dumped. I did quite like Number One though, hosted by Krishnan Guru Murphy a couple of years ago. It had a good format and would have been a better replacement.
It also didn't help that C4 pushed the show to 2.15/2.45 in the schedule, therefore losing audience share and giving a better reason to axe the show.
Shame, as it was one of the better quiz shows where a top-form knowledge was required - and watching the show helped if you wanted to become a contestant given that most of the questions came up again and again, I enjoyed the aspect of returning champions myself as you got to see some of the best quiz talent in the UK up against other contestants.
A question about 15-1... does anyone know where Laura the voiceover woman began her duties on the show? I have a clip of the end titles from Series 1 back in 1988 (Bill has a moustache) and the voiceover was provided by Anthony Hyde.
It also didn't help that C4 pushed the show to 2.15/2.45 in the schedule, therefore losing audience share and giving a better reason to axe the show.
When it did move it was often shown at 12.30pm because of the racing. I think the show could have worked well in that slot permanently, considering now the BBC's lunchtime quiz offerings barely run two weeks without interuption from "public service" documentaries or needless changes to the schedule.