Trivia

Doctor Who (2005) has made a parody of this in the first season. In this parody, the weakest link gets killed when voted off.

For April Fools Day 2003, a special episode saw Anne Robinson adapt a different persona. She would always present the show dressed in black, though on this occasion opted for a pink jacket, and most notably appeared joyful and supportive of the contestants. However halfway through the show, Robinson declared her frustration at the team for failing to bank enough money, and revereted to her former ways of belittling them.

There were a total of 1,693 episodes broadcast from August 2000 to March 2012, making the show one of the consecutively longest-running British quiz shows. The show ended at the request of Anne Robinson, who was wishing to pursue other projects and had stayed with the show for longer than intended.

When the show began airing in August 2000, it was aired in a daytime slot, usually on BBC Two on a daily basis. However it quickly became popular with the British public, leading to a weekly primetime edition being screened on Wednesday nights on BBC One. When repeated, it is easy to differentiate the original daytime and primetime editions because the latter, along with the celebrity specials, was filmed in front of live studio audience.

The show instantly gained notoriety due to Anne Robinson's onscreen persona. Prior to the show, quiz show hosts were always on the side of the contestant, but Robinson took a completely different approach, appearing cold and often condescending to the contestants. She earned the nickname the "Queen of Mean", but her approach was seen as a key appeal to the show, as it differentiated from other quiz shows of the time.