Editing Panel show (section)

==International production==

===United States===
The first known example of a panel show in the world is the radio program ''[[Information Please]]'', which debuted on 17 May 1938 on the [[NBC Blue Network]]. An evolution of the [[quiz show]] format, ''Information Please'' added the key element of a panel of celebrities, largely writers and intellectuals, but also actors and politicians. Listeners would mail in questions, winning prizes for stumping the panel.

American panel shows transferred to television early in the medium's history, with the first known example being ''[[Play the Game (American game show)|Play the Game]]'', a [[charades]] show that aired on [[DuMont Television Network|DuMont]] and [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] beginning in 1946. The celebrity charades concept has been replicated numerous times since then. The most popular adaptation was ''[[Pantomime Quiz]]'', airing from 1947 to 1959, and having runs on each of the four television networks operating at the time. Other charades shows have included ''[[Pantomime Quiz|Stump the Stars]]''; ''[[Paramount Television Network#Programs|Movietown, RSVP]]''; ''[[Celebrity Charades]]''; ''[[Showoffs]]'' and ''[[Body Language (game show)|Body Language]]''.

TV panel shows saw their peak of popularity in the 1950s and '60s, when [[CBS]] ran the three longest-running panel shows in [[prime time]]: ''[[What's My Line?]]'', ''[[I've Got a Secret]]'' and ''[[To Tell the Truth]]''. At times, they were among the top ten shows on American television, and they continue to experience occasional [[revival (television)|revival]]s. All three [[Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions|Goodson-Todman]] primetime shows were cancelled by CBS in 1967 amid ratings declines and trouble attracting younger viewers, although the programs were consistently profitable by being among the cheapest television shows to produce.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/02/14/archives/whats-my-line-leaving-tv-in-fall-whats-my-line-is-leaving-tv.html|title='What's My Line?' Leaving TV in Fall|work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref name=NYTVLoss>{{cite web|url=https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0B15F63B5F137A93C1AB1789D85F438685F9|title=Only One Prime-Time TV Show Will Be Produced Here in Fall|work=The New York Times}}</ref> Their cancellations came as attention to [[demographics]] and a focus on younger viewers gained currency among advertisers.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://docs.newsbank.com/s/HistArchive/ahnpdoc/EANX-NB/12F6D5BCF98EC1A8/8CE642B8CA5C4083BE84A2539D6E1A73|title=Mature Programs Dying As TV Woos Young Folks|publisher=The Oregonian}}</ref> The departures of these three New York–based shows were also part of a mass migration of television production to Los Angeles, leaving only one primetime show produced on the East Coast.<ref name=NYTVLoss/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-C8oAAAAIBAJ&pg=3284,647005|title=Last New York-Based Shows on the Way Out Due To Lack of Space|work=The Evening Independent}}</ref>

Later years saw several successes in the format, with ''[[Match Game]]'';<ref>{{cite news|title=Newest Quiz Game Bows|newspaper=The Telegraph-Herald|date=1 January 1963|author=Cynthia Lowry|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=V49FAAAAIBAJ&pg=5294,162737|access-date=18 May 2011|agency=The Associated Press|location=Dubuque, Iowa|quote=Skillful chefs of television cooked up a panel show called ''What's My Line?'' more than a decade ago. ... Now still another variation of the good old recipe has been launched, ''The Match Game''.}}</ref> ''[[Hollywood Squares|The Hollywood Squares]]'';<ref>{{cite news|title=Celebrities love to play TV games, but some personalities never make it|newspaper=The Modesto Bee|date=25 September 1975|author=Maxene Fabe|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0uQiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=DswFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1143,3954389&dq=hollywood-squares%7ccelebrity-squares+panel-game%7cpanel-show|access-date=18 May 2011|agency=Los Angeles Times Syndicate|quote=The most complex and entertaining panel game ever devised is ''Hollywood Squares''...}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Wally Cox (obituary)|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=15 February 1973|url=http://projects.latimes.com/hollywood/star-walk/wally-cox/|access-date=18 May 2011|quote=...was a regular on the NBC daytime panel show ''The Hollywood Squares'',...}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Hollywood Squares easy income source to its guest stars|newspaper=Eugene Register-Guard|date=25 November 1971|author=Cynthia Lowry|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=79lVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=7uADAAAAIBAJ&pg=6907,5645379&dq=hollywood-squares%7ccelebrity-squares+panel-game%7cpanel-show|access-date=18 May 2011|agency=Associated Press|quote=...NBC's ''Hollywood Squares'', the most popular game or panel show on television today.}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Dual Format TV Show Reflects Generation Gap|newspaper=Schenectady Gazette|date=21 February 1969|author=Vernon Scott|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=WONKAAAAIBAJ&sjid=tukMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2774,4214190&dq=hollywood-squares%7ccelebrity-squares+panel-game%7cpanel-show|access-date=18 May 2011|agency=UPI|quote=The daily ''Hollywood Squares'' series is a tic-tac-toe game with a panel of nine performers...}}</ref> ''[[Win, Lose or Draw]]''; ''[[Celebrity Sweepstakes]]''; ''[[Password (American game show)|Password]]''<ref>{{cite news|title=Panelist, Show Host Plan Marriage in Vegas June 14|newspaper=Ocala Star-Banner|date=17 May 1963|author=Cynthia Lowry|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SQIkAAAAIBAJ&pg=4099,3888251&dq=password+panel|access-date=18 May 2011|agency=The Associated Press|quote=Apparently romance finally bloomed on a panel show—but in truth ''Password'' had little or nothing to do with it.}}</ref> and ''[[Pyramid (game show)|Pyramid]]'' primarily running in the daytime and airing in their greatest numbers during the '70s and '80s. These panel shows marked a shift in the format: whereas CBS' primetime shows had panelists guessing secrets about the guests, these new shows largely featured civilian contestants playing games with celebrity partners, or competing to either predict how the panelists will respond to a prompt or question, or determine whether the panelist answered a question correctly. Later, [[Nickelodeon]] premiered the youth-oriented panel game ''[[Figure It Out|Figure it Out]]'' in 1997,<ref>{{cite web |title=Nickelodeon to bow 'Out' |url=https://variety.com/1997/scene/vpage/nickelodeon-to-bow-out-1117342963/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180727084753/https://variety.com/1997/scene/vpage/nickelodeon-to-bow-out-1117342963/ |archive-date=July 27, 2018 |access-date=October 5, 2020 |publisher=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=17 April 1997 |title=Nick series booming in Florida |url=https://variety.com/1997/scene/vpage/nick-series-booming-in-florida-1117434694/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180727054845/https://variety.com/1997/scene/vpage/nick-series-booming-in-florida-1117434694/ |archive-date=July 27, 2018 |access-date=October 5, 2020 |publisher=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref> the American version of ''[[Whose Line Is It Anyway? (American TV series)|Whose Line Is It Anyway?]]'' had a primetime run from 1998 to 2004 on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] and a revival in 2013 by [[The CW]],<ref>{{cite web |last=Faughnder |first=Ryan |date=17 July 2013 |title='Whose Line Is It Anyway?' debuts strong for CW |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-whose-line-is-it-anyway-cw-20130717,0,6603755.story |access-date=24 July 2013 |work=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> while ''[[Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!]]'' has become a popular weekend show on [[NPR]] since 1998.

Since 2002, the sports channel [[ESPN]] has broadcast ''[[Around the Horn]]''  as part of its daytime block of sports news and discussion shows. While presented as being a [[Round table (discussion)|roundtable]] [[debate show]], the series does contain some game show-like elements; the panel of [[Sports journalism|sports journalists]] earn points from the host based on the strength of their points and arguments in specific topics (and may also mute panelists, if needed), with the lowest scorers eliminated at points throughout the show. The winner receives 30 seconds at the end of the show to discuss any topic unopposed.<ref>{{cite news |author=RICHARD SANDOMIR |date=July 16, 2004 |title=TV SPORTS; This Debate Show Is All Con |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/16/sports/tv-sports-this-debate-show-is-all-con.html |newspaper=New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=AZARIAH GEBO |date=May 17, 2011 |title=Popular ESPN Show, Around the Horn, Scored Fairly by Host, Tony Reali? |url=http://bleacherreport.com/articles/704492-popular-espn-show-around-the-horn-scored-fairly-by-host-tony-reali |website=[[Bleacher Report]]}}</ref>

In 2015, ABC announced primetime revivals for ''Match Game'', which ran from 2016 until 2021, and ''To Tell the Truth'', which ran from 2016 to 2022.<ref>{{cite web |date=1 July 2015 |title=A Panel of Celebrities Work Together 'To Tell the Truth' on ABC's New Comedic Variety Show |url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2015/07/01/a-panel-of-celebrities-work-together-to-tell-the-truth-on-abcs-new-comedic-variety-show/425203/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150703093725/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2015/07/01/a-panel-of-celebrities-work-together-to-tell-the-truth-on-abcs-new-comedic-variety-show/425203/ |archive-date=3 July 2015 |access-date=9 July 2015 |website=TVbytheNumbers}}</ref> From 2013 to 2017, [[Comedy Central]] aired ''[[@midnight]]'', an internet culture and [[social media]]-themed panel game which used a more quiz show-styled presentation—with the celebrity guests buzzing in to earn points from the host for punchlines and responses in various segments.<ref>{{cite web|last=Andreeva|first=Nellie|title=Comedy Central's '@Midnight' Gets 40-Week Pickup|url=https://deadline.com/2013/11/comedy-centrals-midnight-gets-40-week-pickup-635807/|work=Deadline Hollywood|access-date=16 December 2013|date=15 November 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Andreeva |first1=Nellie |last2=White |first2=Peter |date=February 7, 2023 |title=‘The Late Late Show With James Corden’ To Be Replaced With ‘@midnight’ Reboot Exec Produced By Stephen Colbert On CBS |url=https://deadline.com/2023/02/the-late-late-show-with-james-corden-replaced-at-cbs-with-midnight-1235252659/ |access-date=February 7, 2023 |website=Deadline}}</ref> In 2024, a reboot of the show, now titled [[After Midnight (TV series)|''After Midnight'']] and hosted by [[Taylor Tomlinson]], premiered on [[CBS]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Taylor Tomlinson to Host 'After Midnight' After Midnight|last=Squires|first=Bethy|url=https://www.vulture.com/article/taylor-tomlinson-after-midnight-host.html|website=Vulture|date=4 January 2024}}</ref>

The streaming service [[Dropout (streaming service)|Dropout]] has received attention for many of its shows' similarities to panel shows, notably ''[[Game Changer (game show)|Game Changer]]''.<ref name="npr-lmpw-24">{{cite news |last1=Luse |first1=Brittany |last2=McBain |first2=Liam |last3=Plaxxzek |first3=Jessica |last4=Williams |first4=Veralyn |title=Sam Reich on revamping the game show - and Dropout's success as a small streamer |url=https://www.npr.org/2024/02/06/1197954697/game-changer-sam-reich-dropout |work=NPR |date=February 6, 2024}}</ref><ref name="nyt-lyons-23">{{cite news |last1=Lyons |first1=Margaret |title=How Much Watching Time Do You Have This Weekend? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/21/arts/television/game-changer-knight-fight-deadlocked.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=September 21, 2023}}</ref><ref name="esq-sg-24">{{cite news |last1=Cheong |first1=Wayne |title=ESQnA with Sam Reich, CEO of Dropout and Host of Game Changer |url=https://esquiresg.com/esqna-with-sam-reich-ceo-of-dropout-and-host-of-game-changer/ |work=Esquire Singapore |date=22 April 2024}}</ref>

===United Kingdom===
{{Main|List of British game shows#Panel games|l1=List of British game shows: Panel games}}
Panel shows are particularly popular in the United Kingdom, where they have found continued success since the [[BBC]] adapted its first radio panel shows from classic parlor games.<ref name=TelegraphPopular/> Perhaps the earliest British panel show is the BBC radio adaptation of ''[[Twenty Questions]]'', which debuted on 28 February 1947. Panel shows can have decades-long runs in the UK: ''Twenty Questions'' lasted until 1976, while ''[[Just a Minute]]'' has remained on the air, and had [[Nicholas Parsons]] as host from 1967 until 2019. Other long-running games on radio include ''[[I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue]]'' since 1972, ''[[The News Quiz]]'' since 1977, ''[[My Word!]]'' from 1956 to 1988,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/|title=Home - BBC Programme Index|website=Genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref> and ''[[My Music (radio)|My Music]]'' from 1967 to 1994.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/culture-obituaries/tv-radio-obituaries/5604727/Steve-Race.html|title=Obituaries: Steve Race|date=22 June 2009|access-date=16 July 2018|website=Telegraph.co.uk}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/steve-race-musician-and-broadcaster-best-known-for-his-association-with-the-programme-my-music-1715941.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220524/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/steve-race-musician-and-broadcaster-best-known-for-his-association-with-the-programme-my-music-1715941.html |archive-date=24 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Obituaries: Steve Race: Musician and broadcaster best known for his association|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|access-date=16 July 2018}}</ref>

The British version of ''[[What's My Line?]]'' may have been the first television panel show in the UK, with an original run from 1951 to 1963 and several remakes in later years. The word game ''[[Call My Bluff]]'' aired from 1965 to 2005, the charades show ''[[Give Us a Clue]]'' ran from 1979 to 1992, and the improv game ''[[Whose Line Is It Anyway? (British TV series)|Whose Line Is It Anyway?]]'' aired from 1988 to 1998. Current British panel shows have become showcases for the nation's top stand-up and improv comedians, as well as career-making opportunities for new comedians.<ref name="splitsiderguide" /> Regular comics on panel shows often go on to star in sitcoms and other TV shows.

The modern British panel show format of TV comedy quizzes started with ''[[Have I Got News for You]]'', a loose adaptation of [[BBC Radio 4]]'s ''[[The News Quiz]]''. ''HIGNFY'', as the show is sometimes known, began airing in 1990, and has been the most-viewed show of the night, regularly attracting as much as a 20% [[Nielsen ratings#Ratings/share and total viewers|audience share]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Curtis|first=Beth|title=BBC One's 'HIGNFY', 'Graham Norton' lead Friday's primetime ratings|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a526666/bbc-ones-hignfy-graham-norton-lead-fridays-primetime-ratings.html|work=Digital Spy|access-date=6 April 2014|date=26 October 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Curtis|first=Beth|title='Have I Got News For You' leads Friday night ratings with 4.67m|website=[[Digital Spy]]|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a524880/have-i-got-news-for-you-leads-friday-night-ratings-with-467m.html|access-date=6 April 2014|date=19 October 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Martin |first=Liam |title=Have I Got News for You Leads Friday Night Ratings with 4.68M |url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a538335/have-i-got-news-for-you-leads-friday-night-ratings-with-468m.html |work=Digital Spy |access-date=6 April 2014 |date=14 December 2013 }}</ref> The show's success grew after its transfer from [[BBC Two]] to the flagship [[BBC One]] in 2000.

After ''HIGNFY'''s success, panel shows proliferated on British TV. Notable example include ''[[QI]]'' on various BBC channels since 2003, ''[[Mock the Week]]'' on BBC Two from 2005 to 2022, ''[[8 Out of 10 Cats]]'' on [[Channel 4]] since 2005, ''[[Would I Lie to You? (British game show)|Would I Lie to You?]]'' on BBC One since 2007, and the annual special, ''[[The Big Fat Quiz of the Year]]'' on Channel 4 since 2004. 

On the radio, ''[[The News Quiz]]'', ''[[Just a Minute]]'', ''[[I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue]]'' and ''[[The Unbelievable Truth (radio show)|The Unbelievable Truth]]'' are among the most popular and long-running panel shows, all of which air on BBC Radio 4.

British comedy panel shows feature mainly male guests. A 2016 study that analysed 4,700 episodes from 1967 to 2016 found that 1,488 of them had an all-male lineup, and [[Heresy (radio series)|only one]] an all-female cast. The proportion of women rose from 3% in 1989 to 31% in 2016.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Addley|first1=Esther|title=Study of UK comedy panel shows finds just one all-female episode|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2016/dec/23/study-uk-comedy-panel-shows-finds-just-one-all-female-episode|access-date=23 December 2016|work=The Guardian|date=23 December 2016}}</ref> 

===Australia===
[[Australia]]n panel shows include advertising-focused ''[[The Gruen Transfer]]'' and its various spinoffs on [[ABC1]] since 2008, the music quiz ''[[Spicks and Specks (TV series)|Spicks and Specks]]'' on ABC1 from 2005 to 2011 and again since 2014, news quiz ''[[Have You Been Paying Attention?]]'' on Network Ten since 2013, and tabloid quiz ''[[Dirty Laundry Live]]'' on ABC1 and [[ABC2]] since 2013. News quiz ''[[Good News Week]]'' aired on ABC1 from 1996 to 1998 and on Network Ten from 1999-2000 and again from 2008 to 2012, sports quiz ''[[A League of Their Own (Australian game show)|A League of Their Own]]'' aired on [[Network Ten]] in 2013, and pop culture quiz ''[[Tractor Monkeys]]'' aired on ABC1 in 2013.

===New Zealand===
Currently running New Zealand panel shows include the news quiz ''[[7 Days (New Zealand)|7 Days]]'' since 2009, ''[[Have You Been Paying Attention? (New Zealand game show)|Have You Been Paying Attention? New Zealand]]'' since 2019, ''[[Taskmaster (New Zealand TV series)|Taskmaster New Zealand]]'' since 2020, and ''[[Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee]]'' since 2023.

===Canada===
[[CBC Radio One]] currently broadcasts two long-running radio panel shows: ''[[The Debaters]]'', which debuted in 2006, and ''[[Because News]]'', which debuted in 2015.

In 2022, [[Noovo]] began broadcasting ''[[Le maître du jeu]]'', a local [[Quebec French|French language]] adaptation of ''[[Taskmaster (TV series)|Taskmaster]]''.

====Former shows====
In 2014, [[Super Channel (Canada)|Super Channel]] ordered 36 episodes of a panel show called ''Too Much Information''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Middleton|first=Richard|title=Super packs comics into panel show|url=http://www.c21media.net/super-packs-comics-into-panel-show/|work=C21Media|access-date=23 May 2014|date=1 May 2014}}</ref> A revival of ''[[Match Game#Match Game (Canada)|Match Game]]'' aired on [[The Comedy Network]] from 2012 to 2014, the news quiz ''[[Front Page Challenge]]'' aired on [[CBC Television]] from 1957 to 1995, and the charades show ''[[Party Game (game show)|Party Game]]'' aired in syndication from 1970 to 1981.

===France===
[[France|French]] panel shows include ''{{lang|fr|[[:fr:Vendredi tout est permis|Vendredi tout est permis]]}}'' ("Friday, Everything Goes"), an improv game on [[TF1]] since 2011. Earlier panel shows include ''{{lang|fr|[[:fr:Le Francophonissime|Le Francophonissime]]}}'', a linguistic game on [[Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française|ORTF]] and TF1 from 1969 to 1981; ''{{lang|fr|[[:fr:L'Académie des neuf|L'Académie des neuf]]}}'' ("The Academy of Nine"), based on ''Hollywood Squares'' on [[Antenne 2]] from 1982 to 1987; ''[[:fr:Cluedo (jeu télévisé)|Cluedo]]'', based on the board game [[Cluedo|Cluedo/Clue]] on [[France 3]] from 1994 to 1995; ''[[:fr:Burger Quiz|Burger Quiz]]'' on [[Canal+ (French TV channel)|Canal +]] from 2001 to 2002; ''{{lang|fr|[[:fr:Incroyables Expériences|Incroyables Expériences]]}}'' ("Incredible Experiences"), about scientific experiments on [[France 2]] and [[France 3]] from 2008 to 2012; and ''{{lang|fr|[[:fr:Canapé quiz|Canapé quiz]]}}'' ("Sofa Quiz"), an adaptation of Hollywood Game Night on [[TMC (TV channel)|TMC]] in 2014.

===Germany===
[[Germany|German]] panel shows include ''[[:de:7 Tage, 7 Köpfe|7 Tage, 7 Köpfe]]'' ("7 Days, 7 Heads"), ''[[:de:Genial daneben|Genial daneben]]'' ("Idiot Savant"), ''[[:de:Kopfball (Show)|Kopfball]]'' ("Headball"), ''[[:de:Die Montagsmaler|Die Montagsmaler]]'' ("Pictionary"), ''[[:de:Noch Besserwissen – Die große Show des unnützen Wissens|Noch Besserwissen]]'' ("Even Better Knowledge"), ''[[:de:Pssst …|Pssst …]]'' (similar to ''I've Got A Secret''), ''[[:de:Die Pyramide (Fernsehsendung)|Die Pyramide]]'' (the German version of ''Pyramid''), ''[[:de:Quizfire|Quizfire]]'', ''[[:de:Sag die Wahrheit|Sag die Wahrheit]]'' ("Tell the Truth", the German version of ''To Tell the Truth''), ''[[:de:Typisch Frau – Typisch Mann|Typisch Frau – Typisch Mann]]'' ("Typical Woman – Typical Man"), ''[[:de:Was bin ich?|Was bin ich?]]'' ("What am I?", the German version of ''What's My Line?'') and ''[[:de:Was denkt Deutschland?|Was denkt Deutschland?]]'' ("What Does Germany Think?").

===Japan===
Early [[Japan]]ese panel shows include [[:ja:話の泉|話の泉]] ("Source of the Story"), based on ''Information Please'' on [[NHK Radio 1]] from 1946 to 1964; [[:ja:二十の扉|二十の扉]] ("Twenty Doors"), based on ''Twenty Questions'' on NHK Radio 1 from 1947 to 1960; [[:ja:ジェスチャー (テレビ番組)|ジェスチャー]] ("Gestures"), a charades show on [[NHK General TV]] from 1953 to 1968; and [[:ja:私の秘密|私の秘密]] ("My Secret"), based on ''I've Got a Secret'' on NHK General TV from 1956 to 1967.

Currently, a wide variety of [[Japanese variety show]]s are popular, and many of them feature [[owarai]] comedians, [[Japanese idol]]s, and other celebrities playing games.

Some games involve bizarre physical stunts. ''[[Brain Wall]]'', adapted in English-speaking countries as ''[[Hole in the Wall (UK game show)|Hole in the Wall]]'', has comedians attempt to jump through oddly shaped holes in moving walls without falling into water, ''[[:ja:DERO密室遊戲大脫逃|DERO]]'' and its successor ''[[:ja:TORE全力大挑戰|TORE]]'' have celebrities solve mental and physical challenges to escape traps and hazards or presumably die trying, ''[[Arashi filmography#VS Arashi|VS Arashi]]'' has a team of celebrities compete against J-pop group [[Arashi]] and their Plus One guest(s) in physical games, ''[[:ja:ネプリーグ|Nep League]]'' has various celebrity teams competing in various quizzes that test their combined brainpower in the fields of Japanese, English, General Knowledge, Etc., and ''[[AKBingo!]]'' similarly features members of pop group [[AKB48]] and others competing in physical challenges and quizzes.

Other shows include [[:ja:日本語探Qバラエティ クイズ!それマジ!?ニッポン|日本語探Qバラエティ クイズ!それマジ!?ニッポン]] ("Is it really!?"), a celebrity word game; [[:ja:くりぃむクイズ ミラクル9|くりぃむクイズ ミラクル9]] ("Miracle 9"), a show somewhat similar to Hollywood Squares; ''[[:ja:Numer0n|Numer0n]]'', a celebrity numbers game; and [[:ja:オールスター感謝祭|オールスター感謝祭]] ("All Star Thanksgiving"), a semi-annual celebrity quiz. There are many other games featuring celebrities within Japan's variety genre.

''[[Hikari Ota's If I Were Prime Minister... Secretary Tanaka|Prime Minister Ōta]]'' is a show featuring many comedians and politicians debating fictional proposals in a sort of game show version of a legislative chamber.