After more than a decade as one of the UK’s most popular quizzes, viewers said a fond farewell (or perhaps a curt “goodbye”) to Weakest Link in 2012.

The ruthless general knowledge quiz had been conducted by the slightly terrifying Anne Robinson for more than 1,500 episodes. His steely persona and coolness towards contestants were imbued with Weakest Link’s very identity, and audience members would sign up for the show knowing they would be ridiculed.

Which raises the question of how a new version of the show should be approached in an era of BeKind hashtags and increased mental health awareness. In order for it to be restarted, it also needs to be reinvented, starting with a new host in the form of comedian Romesh Ranganathan.

“It’s the first thing I’ve been involved in that my wife has shown real enthusiasm for,” he says before the relaunch of the show. “He couldn’t believe it, and that’s the problem with the Weakest Ring, everyone knows it and everyone loved looking at it when it was on.

“So it felt like a blessing and a curse, because it’s an honor to be in that show, but you can’t help but think, ‘I hope people like the way I do it.'”

Ranganathan’s approach will differ significantly from Robinson’s by necessity. A presenter could not, in today’s climate, treat contestants the same way Robinson did, which she admitted herself earlier this year. Back then, he chose competitors by their looks, occupation or lifestyle.

These days, the evil queen has mellowed in her new role as host of Channel 4’s Countdown, but only slightly. “He’s not the most cuddly person in the world, but now he’s just a different show and he’s making it his own,” the program’s math guru Rachel Riley told Lorraine recently.

Before the Weakest Ring reboot, Ranganathan, a little more cuddly, acknowledges, “Anne was great at that, and that was one of the main reasons that show was so popular, in the way she did.

“But I don’t think you can get anything good out of trying to emulate it or be like that, I think the way we’ve always talked about it is for me to do it my way.

“The thing is, the format is bulletproof, the quiz is great, so if you like the quiz, you will get the weakest link, you will get what you are looking for, and it’s just me doing it my way, it tastes like different – Anne brought her flavor and I’m bringing my flavor to it. “

The show sees contestants compete with each other to win, but paradoxically they also have to work as a team to maximize the prize pool. The more consecutive correct answers, the more money available to be deposited.

At the end of each round, a competitor is voted on by his teammates. This, in theory, should be the weak link in the team, i.e. the person who gives the most incorrect answers and therefore loses the most money.

However, tactical voting often means strong players are eliminated, as competitors choose to get rid of their biggest competition instead. It all creates a delightfully unforgiving atmosphere.

Of course, this being 2021, all entrants by law must be celebrities, and the new iteration of Weakest Link will see a variety of showbiz names compete to win up to £ 50,000 for their chosen charity.

Gemma Collins, Christopher Biggins, Richard Coles, Clara Amfo, Kay Burley, Chris Packham, Vanessa Feltz, Russell Kane and Anton Du Beke are among the names that will face Ranganathan and each other.

“You have eight celebrities in each show and you don’t know how people will react to a competitive situation until they’re in it,” says Ranganathan. “There were a lot of surprises in terms of how competitive some people were and how angry some people were that they didn’t do as well as they thought they were.

“I enjoyed watching the celebrities interact with each other and also seeing how offended some of them were for being voted on when they felt they didn’t do much harm, it’s so cool. The problem is they’re really competitive but they’re also on a show. so they don’t want the mask to slip. “

Viewers might be surprised to see Ranganathan host a show like this, but not as surprised as he would have been asked. “Being a primetime quiz host wasn’t on my list of things I’d seen myself doing,” he says.

The 43-year-old is usually more comfortable appearing in panels, writing sitcoms and front documentaries: his television credits include The Ranganation, A League of Their Own, The Reluctant Landlord and The Misadventures of Romesh Ranganathan.

However, he is clearly enjoying his new role. “We have all the things in there that fans of the original show will love … As soon as you step on set, it’s so intense and full, the music is there … the elements of the quiz, the tension that builds up, the people that turn against each other “.

Even though he could have avoided replicating Robinson’s character, was he tempted to keep his trademark?

“I mean, look, we recognize the elephant in the room – I always look like I’m in the middle of a wink at all times,” he jokes. “I thought about it, that was one of the things we talked about in the beginning, but there were some things Anne did that were textbook, so I made sure I didn’t.

“If I winked at any moment, it was purely coincidental.”

The weak link starts Saturday 18th December on BBC One.