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The Hot Seat curse refers to a superstition on the Millionaire Hot Seat show in Australia. Every time that a contestant gets to the million dollar question, they answer it incorrectly and plummet AU$249,000, leaving them with only a measly AU$1,000, even if that particular contestant knows the correct answer (in Jeff Tarr's case). The curse is made even harder to break by the factors of contestants not having the option to walk away, so if they flunk out, they flunk out, and that they also have a strict, tight time limit to answer the question, which, if it runs out, will cause the contestant to flunk out, having the same effect as an incorrect answer, resulting in the contestant losing prize money anyway.

It wasn't until the August 29, 2016 edition of Hot Seat when South Australian man Edwin Daly finally won the AU$1,000,000 prize by answering the million dollar question correctly about Banjo Paterson, ending the curse. However, since then, only Antony McManus has since been able to repeat this achievement. On October 1, 2018, the Hot Seat curse claimed another victim, as Craig Anderson answered his AU$1,000,000 question incorrectly.

Victims of the Hot Seat curse[]

Barry Soraghan: 8 June 2009[]

AU$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 45 seconds
Which of Hollywood's four Warner Brothers died on the eve of their landmark premiere of 'The Jazz Singer'?
⬥ A: Albert ⬥ B: Harry
⬥ C: Jack ⬥ D: Sam
Total Prize Money: AU$1,000

Jeff Tarr: 28 September 2009[]

AU$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 45 seconds
Horowitz is the original surname of which American actor?
⬥ A: Matt Damon ⬥ B: Johnny Depp
⬥ C: Julia Roberts ⬥ D: Winona Ryder
Total Prize Money: AU$1,000

Paul Wolfenden: 14 June 2010[]

AU$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 45 seconds
Famous for his Chinese Theatre, Sid Grauman had earlier opened which other Hollywood theatre in 1922?
⬥ A: French ⬥ B: Egyptian
⬥ C: Roman ⬥ D: Arabian
Total Prize Money: AU$1,000

Jim Graham: 20 June 2011[]

AU$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 45 seconds
On the current flag of the United Nations, which country is shown closest to the top of the flag?
⬥ A: New Zealand ⬥ B: Norway
⬥ C: Chile ⬥ D: Iceland
Total Prize Money: AU$1,000

Alan Edwards: 16 April 2012[]

AU$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 45 seconds
In 1935, which of these countries became the first to use an image of the future Queen Elizabeth on a bank note?
⬥ A: Australia ⬥ B: New Zealand
⬥ C: England ⬥ D: Canada
Total Prize Money: AU$1,000

Kevin Short: 13 May 2013[]

AU$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 45 seconds
Which of these Gilbert & Sullivan operettas was performed first?
⬥ A: The Gondoliers ⬥ B: The Pirates of Penzance
⬥ C: The Mikado ⬥ D: The Yeomen of the Guard
Total Prize Money: AU$1,000

Craig Anderson: 1 October 2018[]

AU$1,000,000 (15 of 15) – 45 seconds
How many essential vitamins make up what is known as the ‘B-complex’ group?
⬥ A: 6 ⬥ B: 8
⬥ C: 10 ⬥ D: 13
Total Prize Money: AU$1,000
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