‘What Muppets!’ The 1% Club Fans Stunned as 20 Contestants Fail the Very First Question

Host Lee Mack was left gasping in disbelief after 20 contestants were eliminated within the opening moments of The 1% Club’s return to ITV.

The 1% Club kicked off its latest ITV run with an unexpected twist on Monday night, as a seemingly straightforward opening question sent one-fifth of the contestants home almost immediately.

Viewers were just as surprised as host Lee Mack, who struggled to believe that so many players had failed a question designed to be answered correctly by the vast majority of participants.

The popular quiz show, known for testing contestants’ logic and reasoning rather than general knowledge, began with 100 players. However, before the game had properly got underway, 20 of them had already lost their chance to compete for the prize money.

A ‘Simple’ Question Leaves 20 Contestants Out

The opening challenge featured an illustration of a person holding the strings of a puppet.

Lee asked the contestants: “In order to move the puppet’s left arm, does the puppeteer need to move their own left hand or right hand?”

The question was labelled the 90% question, meaning that 90 of the 100 contestants were expected to answer correctly.

The correct response was the puppeteer’s right hand. Despite the question’s apparently easy premise, 20 players selected the wrong answer and were immediately eliminated.

Lee was visibly astonished when the results appeared on screen.

“Holy flips! We’ve lost 20 people!” he exclaimed.

He went on to point out just how unusual the reaction had been, adding: “I don’t think we’ve ever had such a loud, ‘Oh my God’ on the show before!”

Among those caught out was Scarlett, a micro pig trainer, who admitted that she had struggled with the most basic part of the challenge.

Explaining her decision to Lee, she said: “I don’t actually know my left and right so it was just close my eyes and guess.”

Her candid explanation came after the question had already cost her a place in the competition.

The 1% Club Viewers React to the Shock Eliminations

The unexpectedly high number of wrong answers quickly became a talking point among fans, with viewers taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share their disbelief.

One viewer wrote: “20 already?!”

Another commented: “Unreal that 20 got that wrong!”

A third was equally baffled, posting: “Wtf 20 out on the 1st simple question.”

One particularly unimpressed fan added: “They lost 20 people on THAT? What literal Muppets!”

The reaction reflected the surprise surrounding the opening round, with many viewers struggling to understand how so many contestants had failed a question that 90% of the players were expected to answer correctly.

Three Contestants Share the £98,000 Prize

Despite the dramatic start, the episode continued to its conclusion, with three contestants successfully answering the show’s final 1% question.

Their correct answers earned them a share of the £98,000 prize pot.

The episode marked the return of The 1% Club to ITV1 on Monday evening, launching a new run of the popular quiz programme.

Four new episodes were scheduled to air from Monday to Thursday evening that week, with the schedule also featuring two Christmas specials later in December. Lee Mack was additionally set to present another episode in support of Soccer Aid.

The 1% Club Continues Its Award-Winning Run

First broadcast in 2022, The 1% Club has quickly established itself as one of television’s most popular quiz shows.

Its format challenges contestants to solve questions based on logic and common sense, with the difficulty increasing as players progress through the competition.

The programme’s success was further recognised in September 2024, when it won Best Quiz Game Show at the National Television Awards for the third consecutive year.

The show faced competition from The Wheel, Beat The Chasers, Richard Osman’s House of Games and Ant and Dec’s Limitless Win, but retained the award for another year.

While the latest episode ultimately produced three winners, its most memorable moment arrived almost immediately, when 20 contestants failed the opening challenge and left Lee Mack and viewers alike wondering how such a large group had stumbled at the first hurdle.