'I'm the black Jeremy Beadle': Mastermind contestant claims record low score was a prank
By Paul Revoir
Last updated at 11:20 AM on 20th November 2009
He has become famous as the man who got the worst ever score on Mastermind.
But now Michael Burton is claiming that the joke is on the BBC...because he deliberately got the questions wrong.
Yesterday, as the 45-year-old faced national ridicule for his lamentable showing on last Friday's show where he managed a miserly seven points, he claimed the whole episode had been a stunt on his part.
Mr Burton, a gas technician, from Peckham, south London, has claimed he purposely got the joint worst score as a prank because he wants to be 'the black Jeremy Beadle'.
He said he decided to get seven points for the notoriety and as a cheeky tribute to his children, of which he has seven - the same points he scored.
Struggling: Michael Burton struggled to come up with correct answers as he appeared on Mastermind
On the show, hosted by John Humphrys, Mr Burton got a pitiful first round score of two out of 13 on his chosen subject, which was followed by five out of 15 in the general knowledge round. He passed on 15 questions, including seven on the subject he was meant to be an expert on.
He became the worst performer since Colin Kidd who got the same score in 2005.
The contestant claims that after his first round score he threatened to quit the recording of show unless they promised to let him return in a future series.
They agreed and he now wants to return on the next series and show what he would have got if he had actually been trying.
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He claimed that when you go on the show you are given three encyclopedia style books to read on your specialist subject and he read just one.
Mr Burton told the Daily Mail: 'The idea was to get seven points because I knew it matched the lowest and that I have got seven children..... I got a point each for my seven children.'
'It kind of sounds far fetched at the end of the day that's how it worked out, that's how it was and now I have to deal with the consequences of it all.'
He added: 'The idea was that I can get seven points and people would remember me for the lowest score rather than 20 or 15 or whatever.'
Mr Burton claimed he did not want to undermine the programme as he was keen to make a return appearance.
While some are cynical about his claims the divorced father of seven managed to get through the preliminary rounds with his general knowledge skills.
He said: 'I was told by one of the producers on the second round (of preliminaries) that I had scored very highly.'
Mr Burton said: ' 'When John Humphrys said this is the most daunting gameshow, and I have been on quite a few, I though maybe this prank is a bit too serious for primetime.
'It did get serious once I was actually getting ready for it.....But once there you take it in your stride I suppose, you do feel under pressure and I did not want to make it feel like I had come there for a laugh, because then it really wouldn't go out.'
He claims he told one of the producers on the show that 'something' was going to happen on the show that had never happened before.
The contestants claims to have been on a variety of prank shows before as well as quiz shows and says he has been on about 20 TV programmes.
He claimed that for people who know him what not be surprised about his antics.
Mr Burton admitted show bosses would be 'perturbed' that someone has come on a serious prime time show and 'belittled it'.
He said: 'People that don't know me think I am dunce. But when I go back on there I will show them different.'
He added: 'The bottom line was that I was not going to do well and I have averaged it out on Mastermind anyway and I do quite well. So thought getting seven points is not going to be a problem.'
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Yeah. Right. That sounds about as likely as Gordon Brown being presented with the man of the year award...
- Mick, Leeds, 20/11/2009 13:00
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