A Who Wants to be a Millionaire? contestant shocked viewers and host Jeremy Clarkson when he admitted a life-changing accident was the reason he knew the answer to a tricky question.
A repeat episode of the popular ITV quiz show from 2018 has caught the attention of fans.
Gareth Kendall appeared on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? in 2018 and worked his way through some difficult questions until he was faced with the chance to bag £125,000.
He appeared pretty confident, telling presenter Jeremy he knew the answer because of a life-changing injury.
Jeremy asked: “The ruins of the Urquhart Castle stand on the banks of which loch?”
But Gareth wasn’t phased by the tricky question. The contestant has already discussed the fact he was involved in a serious car crash in 2012 that resulted in a leg amputation.
Gareth said this accident was the reason he knew the answer because, in a strange twist of fate, it happened near the castle.
His terrifying ordeal ended up helping him out years after his crash as he responded to that £125,000 question by saying: “I know this, and I know this because I lost my leg there.”
While the audience gasped in response, he reassured: “Not in the castle! In Inverness.
“If I remember rightly, on the loch, there’s a little inlet with a castle ruins there, so I’ll go Loch Ness.”
Gareth’s answer was correct, as he knew it would be, and he secured his £125,000 jackpot.
Viewers were so impressed with Gareth that they quickly took to X, formerly Twitter, to praise him.
One viewer called him a “legend,” while another gushed: “What a great contestant Gareth on Who Wants to be a Millionaire? And to get that question on Loch Ness based on his own experience has changed his life for a second time.”
“Well done, Gareth, you deserved to win on Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Especially when the answer was where you had your accident,” another praised.
After securing his £125,000, Gareth faced the quarter-million pound question.
One again, Jeremy asked: “The collection of Hans Sloane formed the basis of which of these London museums, founded in 1753?”
Gareth was close to making a guess, leaning toward the British Museum as his answer. However, he was not willing to risk losing so much money, so he chose to leave with £125,000.
“I think I’m gonna have to take the money, Jeremy, and one of your cars, if that’s okay,” he joked.
Kidding back, Jeremy responded: “I’ve only got the one car. It’s alright, because I’m going home in a helicopter, using the prize money that nobody else has won!”
Unfortunately, Gareth’s guess would have been correct, meaning he narrowly missed out on the £250,000. But he did go home with the life-changing sum of £125,000.
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire has offered hundreds of hopeful contestants the chance to become millionaires, but there has only been a handful of lucky winners.
There have only been five real winners so far on the show as Charles Ingram, who was the third winner of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? in 2001, had his claim to the prize thrown out because of cheating allegations.
The official winners are…
Judith Keppel
David Edwards
Robert Brydges
Pat Gibson
Ingram Wilcox
