To ask if anyone could ever solve the riddles on quiz show 3-2-1?

[Settle59]

I suspect that most of you mumsnetters are infinitely more highbrow than I in terms of your televisual tastes.
However, these were an absolute mystery to me watching 3-2-1 in the 80s.

They typically went along the lines of:
"My first is in banana, but not in hoover
You may be talking about this around the water cooler.."

OK so my less than ideal parody of a 3-2-1 riddle, but, you know what i mean did anyone actually get them???

I love watching 3-2-1 on the Challenge TV channel just for the perms and questionable 80s fashions!!

Nope!

No! When I was a child I assumed I couldn't get them because I was too young.

Then I saw a few episodes as an adult on UK Gold and I realised I couldn't get them because they were nonsense.

I actually have a theory - I think the producers knew all along what prize they wanted to give away, so they deliberately made the riddles unintelligible so they could match them to whatever prizes they wanted.

I used to love the way the opening titles incorporated the chevron from the Yorkshire TV logo! Such innocent times!

I was only in my teens so no I don't think I ever did but I found this gem.

^You’d be dumb not to choose the prize that drives, and also rhymes with star?’

You take the first two letters from the 3rd & 15th words, which spells ‘dust’. What do you do with dust? Put it in a bin – You’ve won Dusty Bin!^

How would any one arrive at Dusty Bin from the clue, the most obvious answer would be car!

I realised I couldn't get them because they were nonsense

So relieved to hear it's not just me!!
Haha - you're theory may be correct!!

The things is - and I'm being honest - the contestants in 3-2-1 didn't really seem to be the 'university challenge demographic' if you see what I mean - they seemed like the type of people who would sit on the next table to us in our hotel restaurant on holiday in Palma Nova circa 1985 - if you catch my drift.................

Note - we were not the type of family that did driving holidays in France......

Pelleas - Yorkshire TV were the only local station that did something 'creative' with their logo! - unless you count Benny Hill ripping through the Thames TV logo!

There was another Thames one for Morcambe and Wise, but not a patch on the Yorkshire chevron magically turning a bin to life!

Palma Nova is not in France

BissueTox - I know what I meant was we were a package holiday type family that went to place like Palma Nova and loved 'evening entertainment' - we holidayed with the likes of the type of characters in the sitcom 'Phoenix Nights' - we didn't do the educated/sophisticated 'driving around France' thing..iyswim

the contestants in 3-2-1 didn't really seem to be the 'university challenge demographic'

Here's a great idea for a show - pit the Eggheads against the 3-2-1 riddles. My money's on 3-2-1!

Pelleas - good idea - Eggheads does 3-2-1!