By now, I’m sure you’ve seen that I appeared on the new Channel 4 quiz show Moneybags. It was so much fun to film – and if you want some behind the scenes gossip – you’ve come to the right place.

*SPOILER ALERT*

This is the part where I tell you, that there are a lot of spoilers in this blog post. I suggest you watch the episode first before you read the blog, so you know what has happened. You can catch it here:

Watch Moneybags – Series 1 Episode 21

The Auditions

Getting picked for the show was actually quite a funny experience. I applied for this show after seeing a Twitter post looking for contestants for a new show.

After I sent off an application form, I didn’t really think much about it. Until I got an email inviting me for a zoom audition.

They explained the rules of the game, and made us move back into the middle of the room on zoom – and if they read out an answer that we thought was correct – we’d have to fake ‘grab’ to signal we’d pick up the bag.

I was in my bedroom, so ended up using a pillow as a prop to grab if they read out what I thought was a correct answer.

I got pretty much every question wrong! It really wasn’t a good showing from me! But somehow, they still liked me and wanted me on – because not long after, I got a call that I’d been cast and was off up to Manchester.

I was overjoyed to be picked to come up and play. I loved the idea of the game, and it sounded like there was a big amount of money to be won.

I liked the fact that you were there for the whole week (5 shows), so there was plenty of opportunity to play!

Heading to the Studio

The journey up to Manchester was very nerve racking – knowing that in just a few days, you could be walking away with a life changing amount of money.

Once I arrived at the hotel, all 10 of us were brought together for a day before shooting brief, telling us about everything that was going to happen and sign some paperwork. 

It was the first time we met our competition too – so the first chance to size each other up!

First impressions were that everyone was so lovely. It’s a very strange experience to go on a TV quiz show – it never really seems real, so you tend to bond quite quickly with the people going through the same thing.

It was a very early start to get going and start filming – and it was really hard to sleep, partially through excitement, partially due to me doing online quizzes to revise, and partially due to the Tokyo Olympics being on at the time.

After a 6am start and a banana for breakfast – it was time to head to the studio.

It was at this point it started to feel very real. We were given the star treatment by having a cab each booked for us from the hotel to the studios, so we all went one by one on the journey in.

After checking in, we were all escorted to our dressing rooms, where we were all given our own rooms, with our own toilet, snacks and TVs – lush!

We were in one of the biggest studios in Salford, so the mind slightly boggled thinking about what celebrities had sat on the seat and been in the same bathroom as me!

We were all given our own name badges too – which I love! I still have mine with me at home – pride of place on my shelf!

After heading over to the makeup room for a quick powder (yes – even the men), it was time to head the the studio.

Before we all walked in, one of the producers told us the set looked very much like a ship out of Thunderbirds. Saffron and I being young had no idea what they were talking about – so we bonded quite quickly in our youthfulness!

Walking into the studio for the first time was daunting! We were assigned our seats and had a lot of downtime, so started chatting to our nearby fellow contestants.

Playing The Game

As we were about to start recording the very first episode, I think there was a sense of dread about being the first picked amongst the contestants – but not with me! I wanted to get up and have a go straight away.

Luckily my prayers were answered, as the second head to head round called me up to play the game – starting in pole position.

After a bit of banter with Craig and getting to size up my competition Denise (who I hadn’t spoken to yet at the time – but later bonded with quite a lot!), it was time to play the game.

The first question ‘Acts who appeared on the very first Band Aid single (1984)’ – yuk… gross.

I tried to play it cool as if I might have seen it and maybe knew some of the answers – but I didn’t have a damn clue. Music isn’t a strong point for me, especially anything past when I was born.

At this point, you start to see my ridiculously stupid poker face… at the time I thought that I should show nothing off to my opponent, but in reality I just look like a grump!

After a string of wrong answers from both myself and Denise, most of which the people I had never heard of – I didn’t think I was in a good shape to win the round.

Luckily I got back into pole position after Denise got an answer wrong – which if she didn’t do, would have definitely sealed my fate.

Then the final bag of that question came out. It was Martin Kemp.

Finally it was one that I heard of, and I knew he was at the height of his fame in the 80s, but the last thing I wanted to do was get another one wrong and be in the hole for the next question – when it could be something I DID know. So I left it.

As you can guess – Martin Kemp was a correct answer, and Craig then revealed that it was a £25,000 mistake not to pick that bag up.

Even though it was correct, I still wasn’t that mad. Being in the right place for the next question was what I wanted… and I’m so lucky that I made that choice.

The next question, in which there where 3 correct bags left remaining was “Places on a monopoly board between Go & Free Parking” – JACKPOT!

Monopoly is one of my favourite games, and I played it so much during lockdown. Even despite of this, it didn’t stop me second guessing myself on a few of them.

The power of pole position got me through however – as I bagged myself £3,000, £5,000 & £10,000 respectively. The first bag was also a steal, which took away all of Denise’s £5,000 and plopped it right into my total.

From what looked like a nightmare first round (which it was), completely turned out thanks to pole position and a great question for me. Denise knew all of the answers too, but they would never get to her – which must have been frustrating.

Through To the Next Round – Triple Header

Heading through to the triple header against Dave & John was going to be tough. I’d spoken to both Dave & John before we played the game, and we all got on very well, but of course when you play the game friendships were on hold slightly.

I quickly realised, that it didn’t really matter how much knowledge you had, the game itself is so well designed that the questions could be completely random that nobody would really have an advantage in knowledge.

It was also very clear that if you were behind in total money, you would have to just start picking bags up to have a chance of catching up.

The triple header went back and forth! I won’t go through it all (you can catch up on the episode for the full drama!) I went up to £48,000 – and then lost some bringing me down to £33,000 in total.

It got to the very last question, and the very last grab – where my competitor John picked up a bag, which I knew would be correct. I had £33,000 in my prize pot, and he had £0.

If he managed to find a big value bag or a ’STEAL’ – then it’d be him going through to the final to play for a lot of money. If he didn’t, I’d be going through to play for £33,000.

The pressure was on, and my heart was pumping. At the time, I really didn’t mind if he beat me, because it would mean I can play for even bigger amounts of money later in the week… but I still wanted to actually win something.

He ripped off the bag – and it was only worth £2,000! He didn’t have enough to overtake me – so I’d won! I now had the chance to win all of the money I’d banked!

I always play everything to win, so on my first game to go out there and bring it home was fantastic!

THE FINAL – Playing for cash

I made it. I beat off all the competition and brought through £33,000 to the final round. At the time I was mixed with feelings of relief but also sadness. I was going to be there for the whole week, and I was only able to play on day one.

Also, watching back all of the other episodes on TV now, there were people who brought through a LOT more money to the final.

But everything happens for a reason right? And I certainly think it did my case (more on that later).

It was my chance to play for the cash. I could win a percentage of my £33,000 depending on how many questions I got correct – but if I got ANY wrong, I’d go home with nothing. That played a lot with my mind.

Question 1 – for £3,300 (10% of my prize pot): What was the Mona Lisa painted with?

You got to see the question quite a bit before the bags came out, so in my head at the time, I was thinking it was either an oil painting or watercolour, but ultimately I didn’t know the answer.

Part of me was hoping to see something like ‘Crayon’ come out on one of the bags – so I’d be positive of one of them! But they wouldn’t make it that easy to win would they?

The bags came out… the options were oil & watercolour. Of course it was.

You really don’t have much time to pick up a bag when you’re playing the game, so a snap decision had to be made. I picked up the oil bag, but really was not confident.

The time came to rip off the sticker to see if I’d won £3,300 or gone bankrupt… PHEW! It was correct!

That was INCREDIBLY lucky for me, as it was really a 50/50 in my head, and something made me pick up the correct bag.

Question for £6,600

The next bag was up… my chance to win £6,600 (20% of my prize pot). The question was: What is the speed limit on a duel carriageway?

I’ve got to say, this was luckily quite an easy question. I knew straight away the answer was 70mph (though there are an awful lot of people on the road who think it’s 100mph when I’m driving!)

At this stage, I could leave both bags if I wasn’t sure and take home the money that I had won – but I could also go for it if I was confident.

When the money belt started up, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind… I’d be grabbing the bag.

‘60mph’ came out first, which I looked at disapprovingly as it went past me. Then out comes 70mph, which I promptly grabbed.

There wasn’t much nervousness on my part as I ripped the sticker off and revealed it was correct! I just won £6,600!

Question for £16,500

The next bag was time for a real money jump… up to £16,500 (50% of my prize pot). The next grab of a bag could earn me an extra £10,000 – so pressure was on.

The question came up on my screen: What is the location (continent) of the hottest temperature ever recorded?

When that question was shown, I felt like I’d hit the jackpot again. I knew the answer without having to see the bags.

Death Valley, USA, North America. I love all things to do with the USA and visited many times, so I had this fact somewhere in the back on my mind.

It also made sense to me why they’d do a question like this. To the average Joe, they would think that Africa is naturally hot, so would choose it over North America as an answer.

When the belt started up, even though I knew the answer, that slight bit of doubt started to set in. When money is on the line, it’s so easy to question yourself.

But that didn’t deter me. North America came out as the first money bag, and I swept in to grab it. I was risking my £6,600, but could increase it to £16,500 if I was right.

Slowly peeling off that sticker to reveal if I was right was REALLY frightening. That sort of money can really change lives.

But of course – it was CORRECT, and I just increased my total winnings to £16,500.

Final Question – For £33,000

There was just one more question between me and taking away my whole prize pot of £33,000.

Christ I was nervous. All it took was one more question that I knew the answer to. But I also had a lot of money that I’d already won, and would be devastated if I managed to lose it all.

Up the question came: Which Prime Minister was in power when the Titanic sunk?

Straight away, I thought I knew the answer. The year of the Titanic sinking was in 1912, and for some reason, I had the name Herbert Asquith pop straight into my head.

I didn’t know the exact dates of when he was in power, but I knew it was the early 1910s. It seems like a weird fact to know, but I went to school with a boy with the surname Asquith. It’s quite uncommon, so I remembered it, and it helped to me to remember the Prime Minister.

I said to Craig and everyone before the bags even came out… ‘I think it’s Herbert Asquith’. I didn’t have much reason for it, but it’s what my head was screaming at me.

At this point, I was at a dilemma… if Asquith came out, would I pick it up and risk it for £33,000, on something which was really just a random thought that I couldn’t pin down?

In my head, I was going to go for it – thinking that if Asquith did come out, the other bag would be a Prime Minister that I could rule out being in power in the 1910s.

I didn’t have long to really think about it before the bags came out. If I left them both, I walked away with £16,500. If I got it correct, I won £33,000… but a wrong answer would send me home with nothing.

Out they start coming… the very first bag to come out: Herbert H. Asquith.

As soon as I saw that bag come out, my heart completely sunk. In a way I wanted both bags to be people I’d have no idea about, so I could walk away with £16,500 happy that I had no clue!

But the other bag came out shortly after… it was David Lloyd George.

As soon as I saw his name, I started to panic… something told me that he was also Prime Minister during the 1910s too, and I only had about 2 seconds to piece together in my head which way round they were.

Before I could even properly think – the Herbert H. Asquith bag was coming up on me. At this point, I decided I really didn’t want to lose £16,500 – so although deep down I knew that was the answer – I let it pass in front of me.

They both went by, so it meant I was walking away with £16,500! I was absolutely elated, and was incredibly grateful that the questions fell the way they did to get me that kind of money.

But could I have won £33,000? Was I right with Herbert Asquith? Craig was the one to reveal if I could have doubled my money.

Slowly but surely, he peeled off the sticker – and alas it WAS correct. I should’ve trusted my gut and stuck to my plan, but something stopped me.

Am I still annoyed now that I didn’t go for it? Yes I am – so it’s taught me a lesson to always trust your gut, even if you don’t know why your gut is telling you that!

I can’t be too upset though – from that one show of Moneybags, I walked away with £16,500. It’s an amazing amount of money, and it can certainly set me up well for the future.

Final Thoughts

I love doing TV quiz shows, not only for the chance to win a lot of money, but the people you meet are just amazing. It sounds cringy, but it’s true!

My fellow contestants and I are all in a group chat, and have been doing monthly zoom quizzes with each other to keep in touch. We’ll all be cringing together this week as we watch the rest of the episodes.

I’m just a normal guy who managed to get on this quiz show by just applying and filling out a few application forms – so if you wanted to give it a go yourself, you could walk away with life changing money just for applying for new shows when they come out.

I’d say my general knowledge is around average – so it’s proof that anyone can win. If the questions fall your way, and it’s things that you know… it could mean a big payday!

And I know the big question you’re probably asking is ‘did you buy that big printer for your coupon magazine?’. Well – that idea is on the back burner for now unfortunately. 

I have used my time wisely though, and I’m instead going on a tour around the country with totally free tickets – so you can come out to a night out and learn all of the clever tricks to saving money! My shows are from January to March next year – so do come along, it’d be great to see you!

Have you ever been on a quiz show? I’d love to know your stories below, on Twitter @Jordon_Cox or on Facebook.