1.5m play along with Antiques Roadshow

The Antiques Roadshow play-along game, launched on the BBC Red Button service in September, has proved to be a hit with fans of the show. After just nine weeks, the game, which lets viewers guess the values of items on the programme, has been played by more than 1.5m unique users.

The play-along service has proved especially popular with older viewers, with over-55s accounting for 62% of users, whilst making up 48% of the overall audience.

Launched to coincide with the latest series of Antiques Roadshow, the Red Button interactive element allows viewers to play a live multiple-choice valuation game which follows the action on-screen and rates their performances as novice, enthusiast, connoisseur, or expert. Whether making a wild guess or an educated estimate, the game brings an extra dimension to the long-running show.

Antiques Roadshow Series Editor, Simon Shaw, says: “We’re delighted to see that the Roadshow play-along has become such a hit with our viewers. It seems a very natural development to the informal guessing games people have been playing since the programme first began 35 years ago.”

A companion app for smartphones will launch in January, expanding the play-along element and making the programme even more of an interactive experience.

How it works

Press red while watching Antiques Roadshow on BBC One and you will be asked to choose a value for each of the objects in turn as they appear in the programme. A clock will indicate how long you have left before our expert gives their valuation. The system keeps a total of the objects you value correctly and gives you a ranking based on your result at the end of the programme: novice, enthusiast, connoisseur, or expert. You’ll need to get over 75 per cent to reach expert level, so good luck!