After 17 series, the hit BBC quiz how Only Connect could have aired for the final time. London-born presenter Victoria Coren Mitchell has been at the helm of a show that proved modest productions can still make a big impact. Coren Mitchell has hosted Only Connect since the very first show aired on BBC Four back in September 2008. For six years, Only Connect developed a loyal band of followers, which explained the switch from BBC Four to BBC Two.

By October 2021, Only Connect became more popular than the iconic BBC soap EastEnders if the Monday night ratings were anything to go by. Some 2.79 million viewers tuned in to watch Coren Mitchell and Only Connect, who tests the quizzing brainpower of two teams in unorthodox fashion. These viewing figures cemented Only Connect in BBC folklore as something of an institution.

When the 17th series of Only Connect closed late last year, there was no confirmation of the show’s return in 2022. That remains the case in February 2022 too. Nevertheless, those who have always hankered to enter the show will be relieved to know that the application form to register a team for the show is still live online. This suggests that the show may either be taking something of a hiatus or the producers, Parasol Media, have simply forgotten to hide the application form online.

The low-down on Only Connect – how does it work?

Only Connect has been filmed in the Enfys Studios in south Wales since 2014. Unlike headline quiz shows such as Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? and The Chase, winners of an Only Connect show receive a modest trophy at best. Nevertheless, the quirkiness of the show means that only ardent Only Connect fans generally try to enter and get ultimate bragging rights of being a winning team.

The concept of the show itself is that two teams compete to try and find unclear connections between words that seem wholly unrelated. There are four separate rounds in the show. Round one sees teams given four words or phrases one at a time, with a 40-second time limit to guess the connection between them.

Round two sees teams having to guess the fourth word or phrase in an existing sequence of three words or phrases. Round three sees teams given a ‘connecting wall’ of 16 words or phrases and two-and-a-half minutes to guess the right four groups. The fourth and final round is a free-for-all quickfire round, with teams asked to guess the category of connected answers based on word puzzles displayed.

There at NonGamstopCasinos.net is a healthy dose of intellect and more than a hint of light-hearted entertainment along the way.

What’s next for Coren Mitchell if Only Connect is no more?

The 49-year-old has plenty of strings to her bow. Though she has been a talented and engaging TV presenter in her time, Coren Mitchell is also a weekly columnist for The Telegraph. In addition, Coren Mitchell also has a career in poker to fall back on. Coren Mitchell was enchanted by the game of Texas Hold’em poker during the midst of the online – and offline – poker boom that saw this classic card game become a global one enjoyed by billions right now. 

Coren Mitchell made history by becoming the first woman to win a large-scale poker tournament on the European Poker Tour (EPT). She now has two EPT titles to her name, as well as six money finishes in total. Coren Mitchell has also twice finished in the money when entering tournaments at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas. She’s also been a popular presenter of late night poker shows on Channel 4, ITV2 and Channel 5.

Did you know she is the wife of comedian and writer David Mitchell?

Coren Mitchell has a famous husband too. In 2012, she married David Mitchell, a hugely successful comedian, writer and actor who shot to notoriety as part of the comic duo Mitchell and Webb. He’s best-known for his appearances in Peep Show, but more recently has taken to the stage to appear in The Upstart Crow on the West End. Although it’s unlikely to be considered one of the top West End productions to review. In a recent tabloid story regarding the couple, they are said to be hopelessly in love. The pair were introduced to one another by comedian David Baddiel at a film premiere in 2007 and the rest is history.