Amanda Holden on her 'empowering' new solo role after 18 years of working with male co-hosts

Amanda Holden has told how “empowering” it feels to have finally landed a TV series as a solo host. On her other television and radio shows she presents alongside the likes of Simon Cowellon Britain’s Got Talent, Alan Carr on The Spanish Job and Jamie Theakston on Heart’s breakfast show.

But on her new BBC1 gameshow The Inner Circle, which kicks off next month, Amandadoes not have a co-presenter. “I never thought it would be a space for me or that anyone would give me the opportunity to be on my own and working on a shiny floor,” she confessed. “Just to be there, on my own with no sort of man there, felt empowering and that’s because some people at the BBC have taken a lovely chance on me and I’m very grateful.” And she admitted: “I’ve never done a quiz before. It was terrifying.”

The 54-year-old said she had jumped at the chance to host the programme, because it wasn’t too highbrow and she felt she could have fun with it. “I felt like I was able to be myself in it, loads of it is unscripted - I was able to chat away and not think about what I was saying.

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“It’s very funny, lots of mistakes are made, there’s good banter. It feels like a very down-to-earth, everyperson type of show, it doesn’t feel too clever, obviously, because I’m hosting! It feels relatable and a lot of fun."

Amanda was told that she’d been picked as host because “they wanted a bit of danger” and she’d fitted the bill. “That felt brilliant that I felt trusted to be myself,” she said.

In the game the players have to guess who is lying about the amount of secret cash they have been given, while answering general knowledge questions and trying to build up the prize pot. In the final, two players can decide to split the money, or shaft the other one and try to take it all themselves.

“It’s a game of trust, human nature and seeing just how naughty people can be at the end,” Amanda laughed. “It’s real mix of things that we love; Goldenballs, the amazing gameshow with Jasper Carrott, there’s a bit of Traitors in there because people are doing the dirty on each other all the time and a bit of The Weakest Link.”

The mum-of-two said it was not for the faint-hearted. “I think we’re going to shake up the afternoons for a lot of people. This is not your run-of-the-mill, comfortable, sit-in-an armchair-and-occasionally-look-up sort of quiz show. It’s very stressful. I think people might hit the gin before 6pm.”

Recent flops including David Tennant’s The Genius Game and Gordon Ramsay’s Bank Balance have not left her feeling concerned. “It doesn’t worry me, I would just find it disappointing because I genuinely loved doing it. And because I was part of an amazing team of people, you want it to work on so many other levels. So not worried, just gutted really.”

And despite being very grateful to the celebrities who have taken part in the Saturday night version of the daytime show, Amanda confessed she wouldn’t be able to do it herself. “I don’t think I would! I’ll be honest, the amount of times I’ve been asked to go on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? and I’m too terrified. You just don’t want to make a fool of yourself - I do that really well by myself.”

To get through the 12-hour filming days, in Glasgow, she needed help to soothe her aching feet. “I did it all in a heel,” she laughed. “I invested in a footspa because my feet were like Walls cocktail sausages by the end - it was horrific.”

- The Inner Circle launches on Saturday 4 October on BBC1/iPlayer

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