Kentish Express Ashford & District
Party plans after £50k win on TV game show
A dad and his three sons scooped £50,000 in The Million Pound Drop, the Channel 4 show hosted by Davina McCall.
Frazer Thompson and his sons Patrick, 25 and twins Will and George, 23, are celebrating their triumph in the Endemolproduced show.
The show involves placing wads of money on what contestants think are the right answers to a series of questions. Putting the money on the wrong answers can cost the lot. The Thompsons had already missed out on £900,000 the previous week when Frazer got a Take That lyric question wrong.
But they came back for a second week, gave the right answers to several questions, and took home £50,000. It could have been double if they had known which landmark was nearer to London – Victoria Falls or Niagara Falls. But they decided to stick and guarantee the £50,000.
Frazer, managing director of English Wines Plc which runs Tenterden Vineyard at Smallhythe, was animated throughout the contest, with broad smiles, clenched fists and high fives, embracing his sons with each right answer.
Patrick had applied on behalf of the family. When Frazer received a phone call from Endemol, he thought it was a spoof. But convinced it was authentic, he and Patrick went for an interview and screen test. When Endemol heard that Frazer had twin sons, producers asked for them to be involved too.
“What a fantastic thing for them to do at their age,” said Frazer, who astutely changed team selection according to who was most likely to know the answer.
He said: “It was fantastic. Probably more stressful than most things I have been through in business life but much more fun. You’ve got to be excited about free money. After losing the previous week, we were 100% relaxed. We just thought we might as well go for it.”
Now preparations are being made for a celebration. Mum Susan, who runs a bed and breakfast at the family’s home in Sissinghurst, is being treated to a holiday. Frazer said: “We’ve now got to think about the party. We’ve got to make sure we look after mum because she does work hard. The prize will enable us to get staff in for a weekend or so and enable us to go on a nice holiday with mum.”
The money would also help with university debt and his sons’ housing costs.