Mastermind is an Australian television quiz show aired on the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS). Produced by BBC Studios Australia and New Zealand, the series is based on the original British game show of the same name created by Bill Wright. The show features an intimidating setting with challenging questions on specialised subjects of the contestant's choice, followed by a general knowledge round.
History The program was first announced in March 2019, with Jennifer Byrne hosting the first two seasons of the show. The show was temporarily hosted by Marc Fennell for a period of about two weeks after Byrne had a fall that left her with injuries to her wrist and face.
The finals of the second season were delayed by nearly a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, returning in February 2021.
Fennell took over as host of the show from the third season, which began that same month.
Two seasons of Celebrity Mastermind have also been produced.
The sixth season of Mastermind Australia premiered on 25 March 2024. The first week features all four living past champions of the series as well as other TV quiz champions competing for a bespoke trophy dedicated to season 2 winner Jacqui Markham, who died in 2023.
A seventh season was confirmed at the SBS Upfronts event in October 2024, set to air in 2025.
Format Standard episodes consist of two rounds. In the first round, each contender will have two minutes to answer as many questions as possible about their chosen specialist subject. In the second round, contestants face 90 seconds of general knowledge questions. There are four contestants in each episode from Monday to Thursday, and the winner of each episode competes in the weekly final on Friday, in order to advance to the semi-final.
Weekly finals episodes place the general knowledge round first, followed by a Slow Burn round (from Season 2 onwards), unique to the Australian version. In Slow Burn, each contestant must pick a category from the four available. They are then presented ten clues, one at a time. The contestant can only make one guess. The earlier they answer, the more points they earn; ten points if they answer after the first clue, minus one for each clue they hear afterwards before answering. Zero points are earned if the answer is wrong.
The grand final episode of each season is 60 minutes long, instead of the usual 30 minutes, and consists of three rounds: A new specialist subject for each contestant, a Slow Burn round, and finally a general knowledge round. The winner of the grand final, and the season, is awarded a handcrafted, etched glass bowl, made by indigenous artist Dennis Golding.
Episodes
Champions +Regular seriesYear Winner Specialist subjects Heat Semi-final Final 2019 Troy Eggleston Don Bradman World Chess Championships Melbourne Cup winners 2020–21 Jacqui Markham Australia in the 2019 Netball World Cup The West Wing, seasons 1-3 The Princess Bride 2021 William Laing The Flashman Papers The novels of John Wyndham C.S. Lewis' The Space Trilogy 2022 Stirling Coates For Your Eyes Only White Lies The Incredibles and Incredibles 2 2023 Miles Glaspole Tears for Fears Dark AFL Grand Finals from 2000 to 2022 2024 Mickey Logue Canberra Raiders: 1989–1999 Socceroos at the World Cup: 2006–2022 Men Behaving Badly2025Robbie MilesJack Parlabane novels by Christopher BrookmyreFilms of Kevin SmithPreacher comics2026Ante MalenicaHistory of the Croatia national football team at the FIFA World Cup Thirty Years' WarGolden State Warriors of the 2010s
+Champions week Year Finalists (winner in bold) Specialist subject(s) 2024 Troy EgglestonWilliam LaingStirling CoatesMiles Glaspole NRL State of Origin 1985–2005The life and career of Doc EvattJohannes VermeerSparks
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