Jasper dangles Carrott
IT'S TIME to get off the couch and go to the pub! That message, delivered by comedian Jasper Carrott, is a sentiment no publican will disagree with.
The call to action comes from Jasper's new business venture Innterplay, which will be launching a live Sunday night quiz programme on a dedicated, pub-only entertainment TV channel this summer.
Jasper will be at Publican Live, taking place at Olympia in London from April 2 to 4, where visitors will have the first chance to find out about the new gameshow, Cash Inn. Hosted by Jasper, it will offer pub customers the chance to win cash prizes, with around £25,000 in total up for grabs initially.
Jasper, a shareholder and director of Innterplay, says: "I'm very excited about Cash Inn. It's a great opportunity for pubs to attract new customers following the smoking ban."
Cash Inn is effectively a full evening's entertainment, with half an hour of build up to the first round of questions at 8pm, and another half- hour's wind down after the last round finishes at 10pm. There will be suitable breaks between rounds, giving players and spectators plenty of time to get to the bar.
Players take part by responding to multiple-choice questions, pressing one of four coloured buttons on a pad to pick the right answer. They can compete as individuals, as a team representing the pub or as part of company or national leagues. Cash Inn is free for players to enter, while pubs pay a fee to take part.
Millionaire technology
If the multiple choice format sounds familiar, it's worth recalling that Jasper was a founder of Celador, which created Who Wants to be a Millionaire? The award-winning technology used by Innterplay was originally developed for a live stage version of Millionaire.
Jasper says: "I get a lot of wacky ideas put to me, whether it's game shows or gadgets, and to be honest, most of them go in one ear and out the other. But I like pub quizzes, and when this was put to me, I thought it had legs."
A number of pub groups have already shown strong interest, and Innterplay estimates that 800 pubs playing on the first night will enable it to offer two £10,000 prizes and five £1,000 prizes, with the pot increasing as more pubs take part.
"One thing I liked about the idea is that it's free for the punters, which makes a change from quizzes that expect them to use their mobile phones," says Jasper. "You don't have to be Stephen Hawking to take part, a lot of it is down to the speed at which players answer."
While pubs pay a facility fee, Innterplay believes this compares favourably with the cost of pay-per-view football, live entertainment or a conventional pub quiz. If Cash Inn takes off as the company expects, pubs will benefit from the extra footfall.
There is also clearly the possibility of running games and quizzes on the bespoke Innterplay system at other times.
If Innterplay helps to revitalise community pubs in the post-smoking ban era, Jasper for one will be celebrating. "Pubs are a great social asset. I know a lot are worried about the smoking ban, but I think it will transform pub culture in this country," he says.
Jasper started his a career performing on the folk club circuit in the Midlands, most of which were held in pubs. "It wasn't so much about who you had on, people came every week because it was a great social occasion. Later it was the same with comedy clubs in pubs, but that's died away now too. Pubs were a big part of my life," he says.
In those early days, Jasper was an Ansells Mild drinker, while today he enjoys a Magners or Grolsch, or increasingly, a glass of wine with a meal. "I tend to use pubs for eating now, because when you've got a famous face it can be difficult to just sit at the bar.
"The choice of pub food is amazing today - I remember the old Berni Inns where it was 7/6d for a steak and if you wanted fish there might be something at the bottom of the freezer. There's such a wide choice of pubs now - if you want a quiet local you can find one, if you want to have your ears blasted in a music venue, that's there too."
