‘The switchboards would melt’
People have been left shocked by an old clip from Bullseye which would “make Ofcom faint” if it was aired today.
The darts-themed gameshow was one of the biggest show’s on television during its run from 1981 to 1995 on ITV, regularly pulling in more than 15 million viewers.
Hosted by the late Jim Bowen, it saw three teams of two contestants take part. Each team was made up of an amateur darts player who would throw darts at a board to hit a quizzing category, and a trivia expert who would then answer a question from that category.
Affectionately known as ‘Bullie’, the show was famous for its prizes, which would often be as big as a caravan or speedboat, and catchphrases.
As host, Bowen was much-loved by viewers and was a huge part of the show’s popularity, but – like with a lot of things from the 80s – his sense of humour would probably get a bit of criticism in 2024.
And people have been left shocked by one clip in which he roasts a woman who is on the show as a contestant.
He starts off by asking her where she’s from, to which she says “Hampton.”
Bowen says: “Hampton. You play in the darts team. What’s the name of the team?”
The woman explains that she plays for Beveree, which is also the local football club.
Bowen continues: “Tell us, you went on a sponsored slim, didn’t you?” before adding: “How much do you owe?”
The joke did get a laugh from the audience, with Bowen immediately apologising to the woman. But he wasn’t done there, as he turned his attention to her teammate.
Pointing at her striped dress, he said: “That’s very unkind of me, that. I knew they were good sports – has to be, wearing a dress like that.
“Lovely to have you both with us.”
Both contestants seemed to take the joke in good faith and couldn’t help but laugh along with Bowen.
The clip recently resurfaced on X, and prompted shock from viewers.
Reacting to the clip, one person wrote: “Ofcom would faint!”
Another said: “Imagine this happening today. The switchboards would melt.”
“I remember this at the time and fell off the settee laughing… wouldn’t happen today there would be an uproar,” a third commented.
A fourth defended Bowen saying: “I’m called an old grump nowadays but to put back that smile & laughter is comedy, nothing malicious just good comedy.”
There are reportedly plans for a Bullie reboot featuring Paddy McGuinness as host, which would come off the back of a surge in the popularity of darts following Luke Littler’s heroics.
A source told the Sun: “ITV is already in discussions to bring back Bullseye after this year’s final drew in the event’s highest viewership in history.
“It’s early days, but ITV think it could be hugely successful.
“There are even plans to bring back the speedboat top prize — even if contestants live in a landlocked place, which often happened during Bullseye’s heyday.
“They think Paddy, with his Lancashire roots like Jim, would be the perfect person to host.”
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