Gordon Ramsay’s primetime game show Bank Balance debuts with just 2.7 million viewers

Gordon Ramsay’s primetime game show Bank Balance kicked off with just 2.7 million viewers when it debuted on Wednesday.

The series, which was slammed by viewers for its ‘confusing’ rules and ‘cringe-worthy’ banter, lost half the viewers that had tuned in for The Repair Shop, which drew a solid 5.2 million when it aired on BBC One an hour earlier.

Gordon’s newest game show saw two teams of contestants answer questions in an attempt to accrue gold bars, which were balanced on a see-saw in the hope of winning a jackpot £100,000.

Rough start: Gordon Ramsay’s primetime game show Bank Balance kicked off with just 2.7 million viewers when it debuted on Wednesday

Bank Balance was only beaten by ITV in its time slow, with 3.38 million viewers tuning for the final episode of The Bay, while 1.41 million turned on BBC Two for the documentary Trump Takes on the World.

BBC bosses have taken a huge gamble on Bank Balance by airing the 10-part series in its prime slot of 9pm for three nights each week.

Its launch numbers were decidedly lower than other game shows on the channel, including Michael Jackson’s The Wheel, which earned around five million viewers, and Danny Dyer’s The Wall, which pulled in four million. 

Struggle: The series, which was slammed by viewers for its 'confusing' rules and 'cringe-worthy' banter, lost half the viewers that had tuned in for The Repair Shop an hour earlier

Struggle: The series, which was slammed by viewers for its ‘confusing’ rules and ‘cringe-worthy’ banter, lost half the viewers that had tuned in for The Repair Shop an hour earlier

We don't like it! Bank Balance left viewers decidedly unimpressed when it launched earlier this week, with many fans questioning the show's 'slow moving' format and 'cheap set'

We don’t like it! Bank Balance left viewers decidedly unimpressed when it launched earlier this week, with many fans questioning the show’s ‘slow moving’ format and ‘cheap set’ 

Bank Balance left viewers decidedly unimpressed when it launched earlier this week, with many fans questioning the show’s ‘slow moving’ format and ‘cheap set.’

TV critics were similarly damning, with the Daily Mail’s Christopher Stevens giving the show a two-star rating. 

‘I think it’s one and done for me with #GordonRamsaysBankBalance,’ tweeted one viewer. ‘There’s no excitement or pace to the show everything feels laboured and takes way to long plus the rules need changing.’  

Viewers were left unimpressed and questioned how the TV show was ever commissioned

Viewers were left unimpressed and questioned how the TV show was ever commissioned

The show sees a team of two contestants  answer questions from 12 subject categories and are rewarded with bars of gold for correct answers. 

As it’s accrued, the bullion must be strategically stacked on a precariously balanced platform like a four-way seesaw so that the stacks stay standing. 

Get the weighting wrong and the whole lot crashes to the ground, meaning it’s game over for that team; but get the balance right – as well as negotiating the 12 rounds of questions – and the pair can win the jackpot of £100,000.

Although Gordon declared the instructions ‘simple’, viewers were left baffled.  

Some compared it to Friends’ fictional game show ‘Bamboozled’, which had famously convoluted rules.

One posted: ‘Gordon running through how the game #GordonRamsaysBankBalance works made me think of Joey and Bamboozled in @FriendsTV Far too confusing.’ 

Another posted: ‘#gordonramsaysbankbalance can someone at the #BBC please explain why this was commissioned?’

A third added: ‘Managed 12 minutes of #BankBalance before turning over. I fear that #TheWheel has set a new bar for TV Quiz Shows for me and this comes up way short. #GordonRamsaysBankBalance.’ 

Others complained about Ramsay’s lack of ease with the contestants and pointed out he looked uncomfortable on set.

One posted: ‘Lol I’m cringing already. Stick to cooking Gordon #gordonramsaysbankbalance.’  

In his review, Stevens pointed to Ramsay’s apparent unease on set, writing: ‘It’s obvious within minutes that he doesn’t have the telly skills for this show, because he simply cannot think on his feet. Without a scripted quip, he’s floundering, ten seconds behind the action. 

New series: The show sees a team of two contestants answer questions from 12 subject categories and are rewarded with bars of gold for correct answers (pictured, the bars)

New series: The show sees a team of two contestants answer questions from 12 subject categories and are rewarded with bars of gold for correct answers (pictured, the bars)

Dramatic: As it's accrued, the bullion must be strategically stacked on a precariously balanced platform like a four-way seesaw so that the stacks stay standing

Dramatic: As it’s accrued, the bullion must be strategically stacked on a precariously balanced platform like a four-way seesaw so that the stacks stay standing

‘His first contestants, brother and sister Tosin and Tobi, were a polished double act of noisy show-offs. Bickering like children, they’d have been a gift to a real gameshow host. Alexander Armstrong and Joe Lycett wake up praying for a couple like this in the studio.

‘Gordon had no idea what to do with them. He behaved like a maitre d’ in a restaurant, politely waiting to one side until his customers finish having their public row. Simpering with embarrassment, he chipped in: “Psst! I’m still here, you know”.’ 

However a handful of Twitter users were pleased to see Ramsay taking on a new role, with one saying she ‘lives’ for him as a game show host. 

Gordon Ramsay’s Bank Balance continues tonight on BBC1

Scart: Get the weighting wrong and the whole lot crashes to the ground, meaning it's game over; but get the balance right ¿ and the pair can win the jackpot of £100,000

Scart: Get the weighting wrong and the whole lot crashes to the ground, meaning it’s game over; but get the balance right – and the pair can win the jackpot of £100,000