Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee
| Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Comedy Panel show Game show |
| Created by | Guy Montgomery |
| Presented by | Guy Montgomery |
| Composer | Mahuia Bridgman-Cooper |
| Country of origin | New Zealand |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Production | |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 60 minutes (inc. adverts) |
| Production company | Kevin & Co. |
| Original release | |
| Network | Three |
| Release | 16 February 2023 – present |
Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee is a New Zealand television comedy panel show on Three created and presented by Guy Montgomery and co-hosted by Sanjay Patel.[1][2] The show is loosely based on a spelling bee: each episode, four comedians participate in a series of rounds, where the goal is almost always to spell words or names in rounds that are "designed to be infuriating to take part in and entertaining to watch".[3] The winner of each episode competes again the following week, and the loser of each episode (the one who got last place) must wear a dunce cap in the Dunce's Corner.[1]
The first series of Guy Mont-Spelling Bee aired in 2023, and a second series has been ordered. Additionally, ABC ordered an Australian version of the series in 2024.[4]
Background and production[edit]
Guy Montgomery, inspired by the Scripps National Spelling Bee, began hosting spelling bees with other comedians over Zoom and broadcast live on YouTube during the COVID-19 pandemic.[5] Following the success of those games, Montgomery developed the concept into a show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival,[1] and then into a television programme in 2023.
YouTube broadcasts[edit]
The first YouTube series of six broadcasts took place in 2020. The contestants were Tim Batt, Tom Sainsbury, Rose Matafeo, Madeleine Sami, Paul Williams, Alice Snedden, Jackie van Beek, Kura Forrester, Chris Parker, Ayo Edebiri, Paul F. Tompkins, Blair Socci, Joe Mande, Aaron Chen, Lily Sullivan, Colin Burgess, Jamie Loftus and Amy Hoggart.[5]
A shorter, second series of contests were streamed in 2021, featuring Laura Daniel, Urzila Carlson, David Correos, Rebecca Lucas, Alexei Toliopoulos, Angella Dravid, Brynley Stent, Concetta Caristo, Chris Parker, Alice Snedden, and Pax Assadi.[5]
Live shows[edit]
After the streaming broadcasts, Montgomery took the spelling bee to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 2022, performing four shows across April. The guests for each show were Becky Lucas, Urzila Carlson, Chris Parker, and Suren Jayemanne; Melanie Bracewell, Sam Campbell, Phil Wang, and Rhys Nicholson; Emma Holland, David O'Doherty, Luke Heggie, and Fern Brady; and Danielle Walker and Vidya Rajan.[3]
Guy Mont-Spelling Bee returned to the MICF in 2023, with five shows. The guests this year were Tim Batt, Josie Long, Patrick Golamco, and Patti Harrison; Anne Edmonds, Mark Watson, Jason Leong, and Frankie McNair; Ed Gamble, Courtney Dawson, Tim Key, and Chloe Petts; Kitty Flanagan, Urzila Carlson, Sam Pang, and Ed Kavalee; and Michael Hing, Rosie Jones, Geraldine Hickey, and Guy Williams.[6] The next month, in May 2023, Guy Mont-Spelling Bee premiered in Sydney.[7]
A bee was held in August 2023 in Auckland, featuring Abby Howells, Courtney Dawson, Joe Daymond, and David Correos.[8]
Television[edit]
Guy Mont-Spelling Bee was developed into a television programme by Montgomery together with comedian Joseph Moore and the production company Kevin & Co.[1] Financial support comes from NZ On Air. Montgomery also serves as the showrunner.
The "retro" feel of the show is intentional, as Montgomery wanted the set to feel "timeless" by using physical props and as few screens as possible. Sacha Young was the stylist for the production. Additionally, Montgomery notes that the "hokey" title of the show "sets the tone for the experience".[9]
Series 1 was filmed in November 2022 in Auckland,[10] and was broadcast for eight weeks starting in February 2023 in the 7:30 p.m. timeslot on Three.[9] On 10 July 2023, it was announced that the show had been renewed for a second eight-episode series.[11]
Format[edit]
Every episode begins with The Spelling Round, a standard spelling bee round in which the contestants select a word from three containers with varying levels of spelling difficulty ranging from 1–3 points: the Coward's Cup, the Person's Purse, or the Bucket of Bravery.[1][2] Other rounds include:
- Celebrities: Guests spell a celebrity's name given their picture.
- Choose A Letter: Guests pick a letter, and then must spell a given animal name without using that letter.
- Feelings: Guests must identify an item by touch and then spell it.
- Flags: Guests pick words from a board covered in flags, national or otherwise.
- Hard Words For a 13 Year Old: Guests are each joined by a 13-year-old, who may win a prize.
- High School Photo: Guests bring in photos from their time in high school and Montgomery picks a winner; "hardly even a game at all."
- Homophones: Guests must spell the correct word from homophones.
- Household Adjectives: Guests pick household items and then must spell a given adjective related to the item.
- How Many Letters: Guests guess how many letters are in a jar.
- Instruments: Guests hear a musical instrument and must spell it.
- Invent A Word: Guests must create the best new word for a given concept.
- Object Round: Guests spell a given word using physical objects.
- Punctuation: Guests are shown punctuation marks and must spell them.
- Social Media: Montgomery confronts guests with past social media posts, and they must recreate or rectify typos, or spell a given related word.
- Spell It Better: Guests invent a new and improved spelling for an existing word.
- Spell It On A Calculator: Guests must use a calculator to spell a given word.
- Spell Like a Six Year Old: Guests must match the spelling of a 6-year-old child.
- Spell The Animal: Montgomery wears a series of animal masks which inspire the words that the guests must spell.
- Spell The Audience Name: Guests choose a member of the audience and then must spell their full name.
- Spell The Colour: Guests pick words to spell from a multi-coloured board.
- Wingdings: Guests must translate a word displayed in Wingdings.
Each episode ends with The Buzz Round, a themed, timed, fast-paced round in which contestants hit a buzzer first for the chance to spell each word; they lose a point if the spelling is incorrect.
Episodes[edit]
Series 1 (2023)[edit]
| No. in series | Guests | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Abby Howells, Matt Heath, Hayley Sproull, Josh Thomson | 16 February 2023 |
| 2 | Brynley Stent, Chris Parker, Courtney Dawson, Hayley Sproull | 23 February 2023 |
| 3 | Urzila Carlson, Tim Batt, James Mustapic, Brynley Stent | 2 March 2023 |
| 4 | Angella Dravid, Guy Williams, Audrey Porne, James Mustapic | 9 March 2023 |
| 5 | Laura Daniel, David Correos, Becky Lucas, James Mustapic | 16 March 2023 |
| 6 | Ray O'Leary, Mel Bracewell, Jamaine Ross, David Correos | 23 March 2023 |
| 7 | Kura Forrester, Jack Ansett, Karen O'Leary, Jamaine Ross | 30 March 2023 |
| 8 | Paul Williams, Bubbah Olo, Dai Henwood, Jamaine Ross | 6 April 2023 |
- Winners in bold, dunces in italics.
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e Ward, Tara (February 16, 2023). "'Everybody spells': Guy Montgomery on the buzz of making a comedy spelling show". The Spinoff.
- ^ a b Croot, James (February 16, 2023). "Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont Spelling Bee: Three's shockingly hilarious new game show". Stuff.
- ^ a b "Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee (NZ)". Archived from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
- ^ Beckett, Tyson (27 April 2024). "Comedian Guy Montgomery is making being a funny guy serious business". The Post.
- ^ a b c "Guy Montgomery's Guy-Mont Spelling Bee". RNZ. July 18, 2022.
- ^ "Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee (NZ)". MICF. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
- ^ "Guy Mont-Spelling Bee | Sydney". Allevents. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
- ^ "Guy Montgomery's Guy-Mont Spelling Bee". Q Theatre. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
- ^ a b Newall, Steve (16 February 2023). "Guy Montgomery chats about his new show, Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee". Flicks.
- ^ Montgomery, Guy. "It is happening! Eight episodes of Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee are going to be recorded on high definition cameras in front of a live studio audience and YOU ARE INVITED!". Instagram. @guy_mont.
- ^ "Lifting The Lid On Aotearoa New Zealand – More Stories To Engage Audiences | Scoop News". www.scoop.co.nz. Retrieved 2023-07-10.