“At the end of the day, it’s a guessing game, I’m just pointing at briefcases. Maybe I’ll point at them really fast and get it done quick. Open them now, open them now!” says Tom Gleeson ahead of his Deal or No Deal: Celebrity Jackpot Special.
The special marks his first appearance on a Grant Denyer-hosted vehicle, which he views as returning a favour to a showbiz mate.
“I didn’t have to do this. I’m just doing this for fun because it’s Grant. I was supposed to do Celebrity Name Game. But Grant went to Bali and shat himself, got too sick and they had to cancel, so I ended up not being able to do it. I’ve been meaning to go on his show for years. So I finally got asked to do this,” he explains.
“I wanted to return the favour because he came and did my Hard Chat segment three times in the end. So I felt like the least I could do was turn up whenever I got invited.”
It helps that in that time Gleeson has become a 10 host on Taskmaster Australia, but in his trademark ambivalent style, he is even non-plussed about that too.
“If we get some cross promo for Taskmaster, good luck!”
TV is arguably at peak-Gleeson right now with two editions of Hard Quiz on screen -not including repeats- plus Taskmaster seasons and now a Deal or No Deal special. That could make him a contender for Most Overexposed in 2024.
“I know, I know! It’s kind of not my fault. I do them so that they’re all spaced apart. But you know, they keep on moving the schedule,” he insists.
“I know it seems silly, especially when you look at exactly what you’re saying. Because there’s too much on. But this is what it looks like when I only say Yes to things I want to do. Hard Quiz was all in the bank, all shot last year. Taskmaster was shot earlier this year. There’s another season that’s also in the can and then there’s Hard Quiz Kids that’s already in the can. So there’s a lot of TV. I think I’ve got like 50 episodes of TV that hasn’t been aired yet and I’m going to make some more soon.
“But having said all that, right now I’m just doing one stand up gig a week. Like right now life’s pretty cruisy. So there’s a lot of stuff on air, but I’m home all week and just going out and doing one show on the weekend.”
Joining him in the special holding briefcases are the likes of Sam Taunton, Tom Ballard, Geraldine Hickey, Dilruk Jayasinha and Lizzy Hoo and more.
Further specials will feature MasterChef Australia Judges Andy Allen and Sofia Levin, cast from Gogglebox, Collingwood Premiership Captain Darcy Moore, Matildas champion Kyah Simon, and I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! winner Skye Wheatley.
All are playing for charity, with Gleeson competing for Feel the Magic.
“It’s a charity that helps families come to terms with the grief of losing a parent or significant loved one. It’s a charity I learned about recently because of a cousin I lost about nine years ago. His wife, Penny, is doing a charity lunch where she’s trying to raise money and raise the profile of the charity. So that was an easy one for me.”
But Gleeson is making no apology for any anti-Deal humour, including any punchlines about former game show hosts?
“I’ve gotten very good at knowing the edgy stuff that you can say that will make it. There are things that you just know…. I’m not the producer on this show, but I know what I’ll hit the floor. Having said that, I’ll probably just say it for my own amusement,” he teases.
“You’ve put it in my head now.”
Deal or No Deal: Celebrity Jackpot special 7:30pm Monday on 10.
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