The Bowens' first (and bad) million pound question
The Bowens' second million pound question
Laurence and Jackie Llewelyn Bowen, once played on 11 February 2006 on the UK version of the show for a Celebrity Valentine's Day special. They were originally ruled to have given a wrong answer to their £1,000,000 question, but it was a bad question, so they were asked to return and try for another £1,000,000. This time, they decided to walk away with £500,000 for their charity, Shooting Star Chase Children's Hospice.
The Bowens' Run to the Million (Partial)[]
£1,000 (5 of 15) - Not Timed
After which of these sporting events do the participants have to be weighed?
⬥ A: Horse race
⬥ B: Cricket match
⬥ C: Swimming race
⬥ D: Tennis match
£2,000 (6 of 15) - Not Timed
Yaks are native to which continent?
⬥ A: South America
⬥ B: Asia
⬥ C: Australia
⬥ D: Africa
£4,000 (7 of 15) - Not Timed
Which 1970s pop star created the stage role of Che Guevara in the musical "Evita"?
⬥ A: Leo Sayer
⬥ B: David Essex
⬥ C: Alvin Stardust
⬥ D: Noddy Holder
£8,000 (8 of 15) - Not Timed
Cosmo Kramer and George Costanza are characters from which US TV sitcom? '50:50' lifeline used
⬥ A: Seinfeld
⬥ B: Frasier
⬥ C: Ellen
⬥ D: Roseanne
Laurence and Jackie thought it was A: Seinfeld, but they were not sure enough, so they decided to use their 50:50, of eliminated B and D, still leaving A.
£16,000 (9 of 15) - Not Timed
The Scottish dish "Atholl brose" contains which spirit mixed with honey? 'Phone-a-Friend' lifeline used
⬥ A: Rum
⬥ B: Brandy
⬥ C: Gin
⬥ D: Whisky
Jackie thought it was Whisky, but Laurence could not agree with them, so they called their friend David. Jackie was the one who spoke with him, who also thought it was Whisky. In the end, the couple went for D: Whisky, which was correct.
£32,000 (10 of 15) - Not Timed
Which of these films did not star a married couple? 'Ask the Audience' lifeline used
This was another question they did not know, so they asked the audience. The majority went for D: Bringing Up Baby, so they went for it, and they were right, but it was not revealed until after a commercial break.
£64,000 (11 of 15) - Not Timed
York's National Railway Museum is associated with which London museum?
⬥ A: Museum of London
⬥ B: Design Museum
⬥ C: British Museum
⬥ D: Science Museum
£125,000 (12 of 15) - Not Timed
Kal-El was the original name of which superhero?
⬥ A: Batman
⬥ B: Spiderman
⬥ C: Superman
⬥ D: Iron Man
£250,000 (13 of 15) - Not Timed
The archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans was most associated with the excavation of which ancient site?
⬥ A: Thebes
⬥ B: Knossos
⬥ C: Troy
⬥ D: Babylon
Jackie had no idea, but when she asked Laurence, he immediately said it was Knossos. After successfully convincing Jackie to listen to him and go for it, they did just that and won £250,000.
£500,000 (14 of 15) - Not Timed
Which king of England is often credited with the invention of the handkerchief?
⬥ A: William I
⬥ B: Richard II
⬥ C: Edward IV
⬥ D: Henry V
Just like the previous question, Laurence was very sure of the answer, but Jackie was not. Laurence had to explain how it could have only been Richard II several times before Jackie was convinced.
After 14 questions, they reached the £1,000,000 question, which was:
£1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Translated from the Latin, what is the motto of the United States?
⬥ A: In God we trust
⬥ B: One out of many
⬥ C: All as one
⬥ D: Striving together
The couple thought it was A: In God we trust, so they went for it, but they were ruled to have gotten it wrong. The correct answer was B: One out of many and they lost £468,000, or so they thought...
It was later found out that the question was flawed. "One out of many" was the original motto of the United States, and it did have Latin origins (E pluribus unum), but since 1956, they have also been using "In God we trust," as a national motto, but it did not have Latin origins, so the question was ruled by the producer, Celador, as a bad question, and Laurence and Jackie were invited back for another £1,000,000 question, which was:
£1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Who was the first man to travel into space twice?
⬥ A: Vladimir Titov
⬥ B: Michael Collins
⬥ C: Gus Grissom
⬥ D: Yuri Gagarin
This time, the couple was not sure, so they decided to take the £500,000 and not risking £468,000 again. The question was then asked for the text game for the viewers at home. They would have 30 seconds to come up with the answer, and the winner would win £1,000. At the end of the 30 seconds, Jackie guessed for Laurence D: Yuri Gagarin, but if they went for it, they would have lost £468,000 twice, and this time, it would have been a legitimate loss. The correct answer was C: Gus Grissom. Total Prize Money: £500,000
Trivia[]
They became the first and only celebrity pair contestants in the UK to reach the final question.
They were the eighth contestants to win £500,000 on the British version of WWTBAM.
Their run was not repeated on Challenge, likely due to the bad question turning out to be a bit controversial to show after the original airing.
They were the first and only contestants in the UK version to answer the £1,000,000 question incorrectly and lose £468,000, even though it was on a bad question. The most money actually lost was £218,000, which occurred twice: once by Duncan Bickley on 21 October 2000 and by Rob Mitchell on 1 November 2003, when they answered their £500,000 questions incorrectly and dropped from £250,000 to £32,000.
They were the second UK contestants to be given a bad question not worth £64,000 after David Foster, who had a bad £200 question. They were also the second pair in the world to play a bad final question after Ling Wing Kuen and Ling Shuk Ling in Hong Kong, and the second celebrity contestants in the UK to be given a bad question.
Laurence and Jackie reunited to appear on the revival edition of Strike It Lucky on 23 July 2022, but went out after the first round, winning £1,800.
As of July 2022, in addition to their Millionaire winnings, they are the 27th highest game show winners in the UK.
When the Llewelyn Bowens were revealed to have lost £468,000, the £16,000/£500,000 lose cue was played instead of the £1,000,000 one. According to a producer on the documentary 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: The Million Pound Question, some producers suspected after the loss that the question was bad, which, coupled with it being for charity, may have influenced the decision not to play the track; hence, although the track was on the original 2000 Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: The Album (UK version) and UK video games, it has not yet been played on the UK series.
Laurence and Jackie Llewelyn Bowen's run to the million (Part 1)
