A contestant on The 1% Club walked away with £10,000 after deciding not to risk everything on a fiendishly difficult calendar puzzle — only to discover she had been thinking along the right lines.
Saturday’s episode came down to a tense final decision, with Rebecca the only player left standing when she reached the show’s notoriously difficult 1% question.
With a potential jackpot of £96,000 on the table, she had to decide whether to protect the £10,000 she had already secured or gamble it all for the chance to take home the entire prize pot.
The question was based on a conversation between two people who had discovered they were both born in May 2001.
A contestant on Saturday’s episode of The 1% Club missed out on a whopping £96,000 jackpot after fumbling a VERY tricky calendar question – but could you have got it right?
On Saturday, just one player was still in the running for the final question, Rebecca, but would she be brave enough to risk her guaranteed prize of £10,000 to scoop the show’s jackpot…
The show’s host Lee Mack said: ‘Rebecca because you have done so well and made it to our final question, you win £10,000. But now you face a dilemma, you can leave the show now and take the £10,000 or you can risk it all by attempting the 1% question’
Could you solve the 1% question?
The puzzle read:
“On their first date Noah and Evie discovered they were both born in the same year, 2001, and in the same month May.
“Evie asked Noah on what date in May he was born and their conversation is shown below. What is Evie’s date of birth?”
Noah explained:
“If you add the two digits in the date together you get 11.”
Evie then replied:
“In that case I am exactly four weeks older than you.”
It was the kind of question designed to make contestants second-guess themselves, and Rebecca was understandably reluctant to put her £10,000 at risk.
Lee went on to reveal that Rebecca’s instinct was correct and the correct answer was, in fact, May 1 – exactly 29 days earlier than her guess
Reacting to her answer, Lee said: ‘Well done, Rebecca, you did the right thing’
Viewers of the show were quick to congratulate Rebecca for making the right call on social media
Rebecca chooses the guaranteed £10,000
With only Rebecca remaining, host Lee Mack explained exactly what was at stake.
“Rebecca because you have done so well and made it to our final question, you win £10,000,” he said.
“But now you face a dilemma, you can leave the show now and take the £10,000 or you can risk it all by attempting the 1% question.
“If you get it right you will win everything in the prize pot which stands at £96,000. So, what’s going on in your head right now?”
Rebecca admitted that she might have been more willing to take the gamble if another contestant had still been beside her.
“I kind of thought that if there was more than one person here, I would probably carry on,” she said.
“But £10,000 is a lot of money.”
She ultimately decided to protect her winnings.
Rebecca also revealed that when she plays along with the programme at home, she only gets the 1% question right around half of the time, making the £96,000 gamble seem particularly risky.
But Lee wasn’t finished.
He asked Rebecca what answer she would have given if she had decided to go for the jackpot.
Rebecca admitted she was unsure, saying:
“I was going to say the 30th but I don’t think that’s right.”
The answer leaves Rebecca relieved
Lee then revealed that Rebecca had made the right decision — but not necessarily because her original answer was correct.
The correct answer was May 1.
Noah’s date was May 29 because the two digits add up to 11. Four weeks earlier would initially appear to suggest May 1, but the calendar detail makes the puzzle particularly easy to misread.
When Lee revealed the answer, Rebecca was visibly relieved that she had not risked her guaranteed £10,000.
The host told her:
“Well done, Rebecca, you did the right thing.”
Viewers were quick to congratulate Rebecca on social media for choosing to protect her winnings.
One wrote: “Well played Rebecca. You made the correct decision. Enjoy. #The1PercentClub.”
Another celebrated: “Woop! Well done Rebecca. #The1PercentClub.”
The episode once again showed just how quickly a seemingly straightforward puzzle can become complicated when £96,000 is on the line.
The 1% Club airs on Saturday nights on ITV1 and is available to stream on ITVX.