The Chair (US)

Hosted by John McEnroe this quiz/game show saw contestants previously having had their resting heart rate determined through a lengthy screening. Once in the Chair, they are spotted with a $5,000 stake and advised of their target heart rate (which starts at 160% of the rest rate and decreases 5% for each question.) Seven questions are offered, with values of $5K, $10K, $15K, $25K, $40K, $50K, and $100K. The contestant may not answer if their heart rate exceeds the target; in that case, they lose money for each second of hyper-tension ($100/second for the first 2 questions, $200 for #3, $300 for #4 and so on.) In addition, the player faces two randomly placed "heartstoppers" - surprises designed to tense them up; the same money-losing rules apply. The game ends when the player runs out of money or misses a question. The contestant gets a chance to "stabilize" their pot after Q#3 (and #5); by doing so, they guarantee themselves that much if they miss a question - but they can still drop below that amount during heart penalties.