The Hit List
The Hit List, BBC One’s Saturday night music quiz in which contestants try to recognise as many hit songs and artists as possible, returns for a second series.
Published: 12 November 2019
I think there are some people in the new series who perhaps watched series one from their sofa and got loads of answers right. But when you are actually in the studio, the environment can make you nervous you can end up flapping!
Hosted by Marvin and Rochelle Humes, each episode of The Hit List sees three pairs of music-lovers compete for the chance to win £10,000 by naming as many song titles and artists as possible.
Across three exciting rounds, the pairs are put to the test as they attempt to identify huge hits from across the years - whether it is a song from the swinging 60s or the number one track from today’s charts, the teams must prove their ability to recognise songs and artists from all genres of music: From pop to rock, R&B to country and many more.
Viewers should get ready to shout answers at the telly and be impressed with how quickly they can recognise some of the world’s biggest hits!
BP
The entire first series of The Hit List is available to watch on BBC iPlayer until the end of December 2019.
The format
Round one is all about speed. The teams are played a selection of clips from hit tracks and must press their button whenever they recognise a song. All the songs in this round are themed: Whether it is having to identify two songs written by the same songwriter or attempting to remember what song was at number two in the charts when another was at number one, the teams must rely on their music memory to answer quickly enough. The first two teams to give five correct answers progress though to round two.
Round two is all about the intros. The two remaining teams must identify a range of song titles and artists by listening to the very beginning of the songs and recognising them before their time runs out. The teams are given visual clues to help them - whether it’s a map showing where the singer is originally from or an image of a famous person whose name is mentioned in the song’s lyrics, each team must work against the clock to ensure their time doesn’t run out. The first team to run out of time will be sent home.
Only one team will make it through to the last round, guaranteed to get your heart racing: The Final Chart Rundown. This round sees the final team attempting to make it to the number one spot by recognising ten songs and artists before their money runs out. The team will start the round with £10,000 available in their prize pot but after five seconds of each track has played, the money starts to drop. If the team can correctly name ten song titles and artists before the money disappears, they’ll go home with whatever is left in the pot. This highly intense and exciting round is the ultimate test in how quickly the Hit-Listers can recognise songs: The longer they take, the less they make.
Q&A with Marvin and Rochelle Humes
It’s series two of The Hit List, how is it to be back?
Marvin: “It’s amazing to be back on the second series. The first series was incredible to be a part of. For the second series to be commissioned so quickly was absolutely brilliant news.”
“The programme has been so popular and the series will be on each week before Strictly Come Dancing in the winter months - it has blown us away.”
Rochelle: “We are so passionate about the show and we enjoy it so much, and to have two series in one year is not bad going at all. I think it has the perfect time slot as well.”
Can viewers look forward to any memorable moments in the second series?
Marvin: “There was a girl in the first series that me and Roch nicknamed Shazam Girl, her actual real name was Jumi. She was absolutely incredible, I’d never seen anything like it before - she was a brilliant and very memorable contestant for sure.”
Rochelle: “She was like a machine!”
Marvin: “We were worried that we wouldn’t get anyone as good as Jumi this time around, but we didn’t need to worry as there are some people who really are equally as good.”
What’s the standard of contestants like this time around?
Marvin: “People didn’t know what to expect on series one as the show was brand new, but this time around the amount of applications we had was huge! We have some amazing music fans who have blown us away with their music knowledge. It’s been incredible to watch and see how quick they are when they answer their questions. It’s been unbelievable.”
Rochelle: “For the second series, the standard has gone up. I think it’s because the first series was brand new, so contestants didn’t really know about the ins and outs of how the game worked before they applied to take part. This time around the amount of applicants went through the roof!”
Do you think nerves ever get to contestants when they are in the studio?
Rochelle: “I think there are some people in the new series who perhaps watched series one from their sofa and got loads of answers right. But when you are actually in the studio, the environment can make you nervous you can end up flapping! When you are doing it for real, the pressure is on and you see the money counting down, so I can see how the contestants would find it a lot more stressful, rather than playing from the comfort of their sofas.”
If you took part in the show as a pair, how do you think you would do?
Rochelle: “If the category was 90’s R&B I would do really well!”
Marvin: “I’d like to think I’d do OK. The best partnerships in this show are when you get two complete opposites. So something like a Grandparent and Grandchild, whose musical tastes span such a long timeframe, so generally speaking those are the pairs that tend to fair the best rather than two mates who go to Uni together and listen to the same type of music. I reckon if Roch and I took part we would do alright though - we’d be OK!”
