Deal Or No Deal fans have insisted the show ‘doesn’t work anymore’ as they blasted ITV bosses for making a major change. 

The hugely popular British gameshow first aired from 2005 to 2016 on Channel 4 and was fronted by Noel Edmonds. 

After seven years off air, the programme was revived by ITV, with its launch episode airing in November last year with Stephen Mulhern at the helm. 

Deal Or No Deal, which originally ran for 11 series, started with a jackpot prize of £250,000, which was won by nine contestants upon opening the famous red boxes.

However, when the show returned there was one noticeable difference – the jackpot prize had been lowered from a quarter of a million to £100,000. 

Deal Or No Deal fans have insisted the show ‘doesn’t work anymore’ as they blasted ITV bosses for making a major change

The hugely popular British gameshow, which originally ran for 11 series, started with a jackpot prize of £250,000, which was won by nine contestants upon opening the famous red boxes

But that’s not all, as viewers also noticed the higher amounts of money available, which appear on the red side of the board, are all considerably lower. 

Taking to discussion site Reddit, user Educational-Angle717 argued that the show ‘doesn’t work anymore’ because of this, explaining that the old show reds were £1k, £3k, £5k, £10k, £15k, £20k, £35k, £50k, £75k, £100k, and £250k. 

Read More Deal Or No Deal fans livid as ITV announcer ‘ruins’ episodes with major ‘spoiler’ – raging ‘what a stupid thing to do!’

In contrast, the new reds are £1k, £2k, £3k, £4k, £5k, £7.5k, £10k, £25k, £50k, £75k, and £100k. 

The forum poster added: ‘What this means is your chances of actually going away with any decent money are now incredibly limited. 

‘The bulk of the offers seem to be around £1-3k max. They’ve lost a lot of the real jeopardy in it.’ 

It’s also been noted by viewers that the lower prize pots across multiple shows are likely due to budget cuts. 

Which leads Deal Or No Deal viewers to believe that the show is now ‘failing’. 

Organic-Daydream agreed that ‘you need the big money to make it even mildly interesting’, citing the likes of Tipping Point as an example, where the jackpot is £10,000. 

However, when the show returned there was one noticeable difference – the jackpot prize had been lowered from a quarter of a million to £100,000

But that’s not all, as viewers also noticed the reds have decreased in value 

Amounts such as £15k and £35k have gone 

Another Reddit user also added that the game show is entirely ‘luck based’ as there is ‘no skill or knowledge involved’. 

Meanwhile, other viewers have argued that the switch-up in presenters has also been detrimental to the classic show. 

A former contestant recalled their time on the series saying: ‘I was on the original series.’

‘Stephen does a good job but that show just isn’t the same without Noel either. And you are correct, it is difficult to win anything close to the big prizes we used to see.’ 

However, it appears the British version isn’t the only version to be hit by the cost of living crisis, as the Australian edition has also significantly lowered its jackpot. 

When the show first aired, a staggering £2 million was on the table for hopeful contestants. 

The show first aired from 2005 to 2016 on Channel 4 and was fronted by Noel Edmonds, however, viewers have also argued that the switch-up in presenters has been detrimental 

However, as the number of episodes began to increase, the prize unfortunately decreased becoming £200k. 

The show was then axed in 2013, however, it was picked up by Channel 4 in 2024 and Grant Denyer became host. 

It was then that the jackpot became £100k and players were also robbed of the opportunity to win a car, like previous contestants could. 

As for the UK format, despite dividing viewers, it has proven a success as in January this year, the revival was renewed for an extended second run by ITV alongside four celebrity specials. 

Deal Or No Deal is available to watch on ITV1 and ITVX.