Every Friday afternoon at 4:30pm I was in front of the TV watching this show without fail. It was innovative, original, captivating and what made it stand out from other kids quiz shows at the time was its level of difficulty, very few teams completed it during its 8 series. When a team got to the promised third level you began to get excited and think, they might do it. The use of CGI was ahead of its time and having the dungeoneer having to be guided by his/her team was simply genius. Onto the host, Treguard was one of the most memorable characters on kids television, Hugo Wyatt played him perfectly and his evolution from a neutral character to outright protagonist matched the times and the good verses evil element added to the show and give the quest a sense of purpose. Lord Fear the main villain was an inspired addition and viewers wondered, what is he going to do now when he appeared, and he and Treguard are some of the most enduring images of my childhood. Another thing which made this show great was it wasn't sanitized, parts of it were frightening, it wasn't easy to complete and it actually challenged children which is what made it so captivating. Anyway I will always look on this show with nothing but fond memories, and hope for future generations shows like it can be produced.

Knightmare (1987-1994) A team of three contestants have to guide a fourth contestant (who's vision is impaired by a helmet) through a dungeon on a quest. Usually their goal was to recover a special object such as a crown or sword but they were rarely successful. During their adventure the group would have to solve riddles, avoid traps, and would encounter a wide range of characters and monsters (including goblins, wizards, dragons, witches, jesters, ogres, maidens and potion sellers). Some of these would be very pantomime-esquire such as the charismatic Hordris, the immortal Lord Fear, and of course the captivating Tregar.The dungeon is generated using painted backgrounds and the same blue screen technique used by weathermen (Chroma Key). Despite its innovative format and huge following it never quite got the attention or praise it deserved (probably because it was on ITV rather than BBC).It was recently repeated on Challenge TV during the mornings. There are apparently no plans to start a new series.For more information see: http://www.knightmare.com/

Who didn't want to be on Knightmare???? Everyone I know who was a kid in the 80's wanted to be on it. Although not many applied as no one ever wanted to wear the helmet. The classic lines of "where am I?" that followed the entry into every room by the contestant's. "Temporal disruption imminent!" That preceded the end of the show. "Enter stranger" which invited the new contestants in. For the time it was really advanced and had everything a kid needed in a TV program it made you think (with it's riddles) it made you shout at the people involved "No not there! there's a spider" and last but not least the feeling of adventure!!! It looks a little tired now with dodgy CGI but it's still my favourite show from when i was a kid.

I would venture to suggest that there has never been a kids game show made that tops this. From the inventive - and highly advanced for its year - concept, to its generous contribution to the morale of out-of-work actors who didn't mind dressing up in ridiculous outfits, the format was a winner on all levels. It became something I looked forward to without fail to kickstart my weekend. The puzzles actually took some thought, and the idea that three players guided the one who couldn't see past the end of his nose meant it must have been fun to play whether you were experiencing or controlling. The bloke who presented it was always a bit sinister as well, must've been the beard... A kind of live-action "Dungeons & Dragons" then, only infinitely more entertaining than sitting in front of a computer. It's one of my fondest favourites from childhood, and will hopefully be remembered long after Virtual Reality has become a commonplace element in all our lives. This program was very 'funky' indeed.