Bradley Walsh hosts a the new BBC series of Blankety Blank after the original aired in 1979

Psst... share your email to join the Secret Elves Club and get first access to exclusive reviews of this year's must-have products.

Blankety Blank is back on our screens for the first in a series of episodes hosted by The Chase star Bradley Walsh. Remaining in its original much loved format, the BBC series will also retain the famous theme tune, Blankety Blank cheque book and pen prize.

A revival series, also hosted by Walsh, premiered on October 2, 2021 and saw average audiences of 5.8million, making it the UK’s highest new launching game show of the year.

On hosting the show, Walsh says: "I absolutely love recording this show. We have some of the funniest comedians and some of Britain's most well-known faces... but for me, it's the players that steal the show."

Read more: Great British Bake-Off - what finalist Chigs is doing now a year on from show

Kate Phillips, Director of Entertainment Commissioning at the BBC, added: "It's been so brilliant having Blankety Blank back on the Beeb. And Bradley [Walsh] really is the perfect host for this very funny family show, dealing with unpredictable celebrities, contestants, and prizes!"

Despite being firmly fixed in British pop culture, Blankety Blank actually comes from a US panel show called Match Game, which premiered on NBC in 1962. It was then franchised around the world under the names Match Game, Blankety Blanks and of course, Blankety Blank.

The original UK series of Blankety Blank was hosted by Terry Wogan on BBC One from 1979 to 1983. Then, comedian and writer Les Dawson took over the show starting in 1984 until 1990.

Seven years after the series ended, it was brought back with Paul O'Grady, as Lily Savage, hosting. It ran from 1997 to 2002, across the BBC and ITV. Following David Walliams' one-off Christmas Special, actor and presenter Bradley Walsh is the new permanent host.

When Blankety Blank was relaunched in 2021, Charlie Irwin, Director of Programmes at Thames (a Fremantle label) said: "It's astonishing to think that Blankety Blank has been a part of our lives for 43 years and we're honoured to be able to continue entertaining audiences – particularly those who don't remember the original series!"

Blankety Blank begins on BBC One, Saturday, September 24 at 9.15PM. In the first episode, Walsh is joined by Denise Van Outen, Ellie Simmonds, Chris Eubank, Frank Skinner, Vick Hope and Joey Essex.