IT’S A LOCK OUT...

Teen lags re-enact old TV hit

DOING SHOWTIME In teens’ jail

SEVENTIES TV hit It’s A Knockout has been revived – as It’s A Nickout.

Bosses at a teenage prison decided the BBC game show was just the job for a teambuilding exercise.

And even though the young lags were not born when the show was attracting up to 19 million viewers, they got stuck in enthusiastically.

A source said: “It’s not what you might expect behind prison walls but these days bosses have to try anything to get the young men to behave.

“Once everyone realised what was going on they all got into the spirit of things.”

It is believed challenges included obstacle courses and silly stunts, the trademark of the TV show.

Contests for the 48 lags at HMP Wetherby, West Yorkshire, are thought to have included egg and spoon races, hula hoop contests and minimarathons.

Jail watchdog the Independent Monitoring Board said the fun day had “successfully promoted exercise levels, good teamwork and the development of relationships” between inmates and staff.

It’s A Knockout ran from 1966 to 1982. In 1987, Prince Edward organised a royal Grand Knockout Tournament version with family members – which was widely ridiculed.

Previous fun days for young prisoners have included a Tour de France spinning contest at

HMP Drake Hall, Staffs, and a Channel 4 SAS: Who Dares Wins- style Dartmoor bootcamp for inmates at HMP Feltham, West London.

The Prison Service said: “These programmes are for the most vulnerable young people, bettering their chances of rehabilitation.”