Most people would crumble after losing a million dollars on TV, but ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’ contestant Nicholas Bennett’s shocking reaction has made him a viral legend.
The UK contestant had made it all the way to the £1 million question with two of his lifelines still in play.
When it came to his final question, “Which of these words, each coined by a famous writer, was derived from a tale about three princes?” Nicholas was stumped.
His multiple-choice options were: A: Pandemonium, B: Serendipity, C: Utopia, and D: Yahoo.
After phoning a friend and using the ‘Ask Jeremy’ lifeline (with little help from either), he decided to just punt it with a bit of luck.
Unfortunately, luck wasn’t on his side this time. Despite answering “D: Yahoo,” the suspenseful reveal showed that “Serendipity” was the million-pound answer.
And just like that, he dropped from having previously earned £500,000 (NZD $1.1M) to £125,000 ($283,100) in winnings.
But that legendary status was secured as Nic went out with a simple shrug, smile, and was still grateful, saying: “[I’ve] still got £125,000.”
Gotta love the humbleness of the man.
Jeremy Clarkson was stunned! “What a reaction! I would now be there sobbing,” he said, pointing at the floor, clearly more shook than Nicholas was.
“A couple things I’m trying to work out: Is that the biggest loss we’ve had in ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?' history? And I don’t think I’ve had a contestant I’ve enjoyed more than you,” Clarkson added.
Turns out, Nicholas was a winner - he’s now got the title for the largest loss of prize money on the UK version of the show. OUCH!
