Touch the Truck
Encyclopedia
Touch the Truck was a British Channel 5 endurance gameshow which aired in 2001.
It was hosted by Dale Winton
and involved a group of 20 contestants holding onto a truck with the last person left touching the truck winning it.
The show was filmed at the Lakeside Shopping Centre
in Thurrock, Essex.
Jerry Middleton, 39, from Winchester, Hampshire, was the winner who managed to stay awake touching the vehicle for 81 hours 43 minutes and 31 seconds. He stated that he was going to sell the vehicle to fund a political party. Middleton stood at the 2001 General Election in the Kingston and Surbiton constituency, but gained only 54 votes of a turnout of 49,093.
Contestants could also be drug tested to ensure fairness.
and Dave Hills and is owned by Vashca.
It has been subsequently licensed to the Philippines, Indonesia, Portugal and Turkey.
movie They Shoot Horses, Don't They? starring Jane Fonda
features a marathon dance where the eventually desperate participants must stay awake to win a prize. The film is based on a 1935 novel by the same name written by Horace McCoy with the dance marathon
taking place during the Great Depression
.
The documentary, Hands on a Hardbody tells the story of a nearly identical 1995 endurance contest in Longview, Texas
.
A 2001 movie, The Safety of Objects
recounts what seems to be exactly a "Touch the Truck" show -- which even relates to the plot. The film chronicles a mother's mental voyage from the losing of his firstborn son to coma till the detachment from him ending in his mercy killing. And the show connects to this as the sleep withdrawn, delirious mother realizes that she'd still have her son if they hadn't had a car -- and abruptly leaves hold of the truck.
A 2001 episode of the TV show That '70s Show
, featured a radio contest that Kelso
, Bob
and a ringer named Daniel (guest star French Stewart
) entered, where they have to keep one hand on a van until the last person left touching it won.
A 2005 episode of the TV show My Name is Earl
, Randy, Catalina and Earl take part in a contest for a local radio station where they have to keep touching a car until the last person left touching wins it.
Such competitions have occurred as a way of raising money for charity. In 2007, Bristol University did a similar competition as part of charitable RAG week (Raise and Give) where the winner gained an old BMW, and in 2009 Leeds University held a similar event for RAG where the winner won an old Ford Fiesta.
It was hosted by Dale Winton
Dale Winton
Dale Winton is an English radio DJ and television presenter.-Early life:Winton's father, Gary, was "domineering" and died when Winton was 13. Winton was brought up by his mother, actress Sheree Winton...
and involved a group of 20 contestants holding onto a truck with the last person left touching the truck winning it.
The show was filmed at the Lakeside Shopping Centre
Lakeside Shopping Centre
The Lakeside Shopping Centre is a large out-of-town shopping centre located in West Thurrock, in the borough of Thurrock, Essex just beyond the eastern boundary of Greater London...
in Thurrock, Essex.
Jerry Middleton, 39, from Winchester, Hampshire, was the winner who managed to stay awake touching the vehicle for 81 hours 43 minutes and 31 seconds. He stated that he was going to sell the vehicle to fund a political party. Middleton stood at the 2001 General Election in the Kingston and Surbiton constituency, but gained only 54 votes of a turnout of 49,093.
Rules
According to the rules of the competition, disqualification occurred when:- a contestant overran breaks which were 10 minutes every two hours and 15 minutes every six hours,
- a contestant removed both hands from the truck, or
- a contestant fell asleep.
Contestants could also be drug tested to ensure fairness.
The format
The format was devised by Glenn BardenGlenn Barden
Glenn Barden became known in the UK in 2000 for creating the controversial television endurance show Touch the Truck described by the Sunday Times as "the worst tv idea ever"....
and Dave Hills and is owned by Vashca.
It has been subsequently licensed to the Philippines, Indonesia, Portugal and Turkey.
Similar events
The 1969 PollackSydney Pollack
Sydney Irwin Pollack was an American film director, producer and actor. Pollack studied with Sanford Meisner at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City, where he later taught acting...
movie They Shoot Horses, Don't They? starring Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda is an American actress, writer, political activist, former fashion model, and fitness guru. She rose to fame in the 1960s with films such as Barbarella and Cat Ballou. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other movie awards and nominations during more than 50 years as an...
features a marathon dance where the eventually desperate participants must stay awake to win a prize. The film is based on a 1935 novel by the same name written by Horace McCoy with the dance marathon
Dance marathon
A dance marathon is an event in which people stay on their feet for a given length of time. It started as a popular fad in the 1920s and 1930s, when organized dance endurance contests attracted people to compete to achieve fame or win monetary prizes...
taking place during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
.
The documentary, Hands on a Hardbody tells the story of a nearly identical 1995 endurance contest in Longview, Texas
Longview, Texas
Longview is a city in Gregg and Harrison Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 80,455. Most of the city is located in Gregg County, of which it is the county seat; only a small part extends into the western part of neighboring Harrison County. It is...
.
A 2001 movie, The Safety of Objects
The Safety of Objects
The Safety of Objects is a 2001 independent film based upon a series of short stories written by A. M. Homes about four suburban families who find that their lives become intertwined. The film was directed by Rose Troche, and has many characters. It is often considered an "intellectual film" in the...
recounts what seems to be exactly a "Touch the Truck" show -- which even relates to the plot. The film chronicles a mother's mental voyage from the losing of his firstborn son to coma till the detachment from him ending in his mercy killing. And the show connects to this as the sleep withdrawn, delirious mother realizes that she'd still have her son if they hadn't had a car -- and abruptly leaves hold of the truck.
A 2001 episode of the TV show That '70s Show
That '70s Show
That '70s Show is an American television period sitcom that centers on the lives of a group of teenage friends living in the fictional suburban town of Point Place, Wisconsin, from May 17, 1976, to December 31, 1979...
, featured a radio contest that Kelso
Michael Kelso
Michael Christopher Kelso usually referred to simply as Kelso by his friends is one of the five male leads on Fox Network's That '70s Show, portrayed by Ashton Kutcher. Tall, lanky and long-haired , he is the dim-witted pretty-boy of the group, coasting through life on his good looks...
, Bob
Midge and Bob Pinciotti
Midge Pinciotti and Bob Pinciotti are two fictional characters on the popular Fox sitcom That '70s Show . They are the loving, lovable but dim-witted parents of the red-haired tomboy Donna Pinciotti , and Donna's less-frequently seen younger sister, Tina...
and a ringer named Daniel (guest star French Stewart
French Stewart
Milton French Stewart , better known by his stage name French Stewart, is an American actor, best known for his role as Harry Solomon on the 1990s sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun.-Early life:...
) entered, where they have to keep one hand on a van until the last person left touching it won.
A 2005 episode of the TV show My Name is Earl
My Name Is Earl
My Name Is Earl is an American television comedy series created by Greg Garcia that was originally broadcast on the NBC television network from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, in the United States...
, Randy, Catalina and Earl take part in a contest for a local radio station where they have to keep touching a car until the last person left touching wins it.
Such competitions have occurred as a way of raising money for charity. In 2007, Bristol University did a similar competition as part of charitable RAG week (Raise and Give) where the winner gained an old BMW, and in 2009 Leeds University held a similar event for RAG where the winner won an old Ford Fiesta.