CITV Memories – Go Getters.

Go Getters (CITV, 1989-1996)

This is yet another game show that was on CITV. The idea behind Go Getters comes across as something of a combination of Challenge Anneka and Treasure Hunt, as celebrity teams had to work together to complete the tasks given to them. There was no in-vision host, but they still played a role as they announced the progress of the teams, and also judged their performances.

Three teams of three took part, in their suitably coloured attire, the reds, the yellows, and the blues. The celebrities who took part included Bruno Brookes, Craig Charles, Keith Chegwin, and Andy Crane, some people CITV viewers might’ve actually heard of. In the first series, the host was Chris Tarrant, in the second and third it was Dave Lee Travis, and in the fourth it was Loyd Grossman.

In every edition, the teams would be given three rather unusual tasks to complete. They would have a think about it, and then they would have to get in their van, wherever they happened to be in the UK at that point, and they would have to pull a few strings, to have any chance of being able to get these tasks done. There would be extra obstacles as their van would usually break down at a crucial point, and the clock began to tick down.

Every edition covered a day. At the end, the host would give teams a score out of ten based on whether they actually completed the task, and also how creative they were in organising them. The scores then added up over the editions, and presumably there was an overall winning team at the end of the series. And afterwards, Tommy Boyd back in the CITV studio wasn’t afraid of challenging DLT’s verdicts, how could he be so harsh on the yellows!

There were four series of Go Getters. Rather curiously, in the mid-90s, an almost identical idea appeared on Saturday Night BBC1 called Hit The Road, which evolved from a feature on Noel’s House Party. However, this was something of a big flop, when BBC1 were having a rather tough time finding a new enduring entertainment format (who remembers Caught In The Act now? Exactly).