Stockport’s Roman Dubowski shared the valuable guidance he received from host Jeremy Clarkson during his Who Wants To Be A Millionaire appearance
Who Wants To Be a Millionaire’s Stockport winner spills Jeremy Clarkson’s advice
Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? champion Roman Dubowski has revealed the one piece of advice Jeremy Clarkson gives contestants before filming gets underway. The much-loved ITV quiz show returned for a new series this past Sunday (26th April) and made history when Roman became the seventh person to scoop the million-pound jackpot.
Roman is a retired IT Analyst originally from Greater Manchester and currently residing in Stockport. Following a somewhat uncertain start to his round, in which the enthusiastic quizzer admitted to being unsure of how mayonnaise was made, he powered through to the 15th and final question without needing to use his 50-50 lifeline or seek assistance from host Jeremy.
Jeremy had previously advised Roman to ensure he deployed the 50-50 advantage at the most opportune moment, reports the Express. Speaking exclusively to Reach, Roman recalled: “He had very good advice about the 50-50 lifeline, and I’ve seen people misuse that on the show.
Jeremy Clarkson’s Who Wants To Be a Millionaire tip fans don’t hear(Image: ITV)
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“If they don’t know any of the four answers and they use 50-50, well they’ve still got two answers they don’t know. So, you really have to use it if you’ve got an inkling of one or two that could be right. I didn’t actually use it until the end, but that stayed with me throughout the show.”
Roman ultimately chose to deploy the lifeline for the very last question, which asked him to identify a trademark from 1876 mentioned in James Joyce’s Ulysses and depicted in paintings by Manet and Picasso. He had already suspected he knew the answer – Bass Ale – but used the lifeline to narrow down his options, making him considerably more confident he would be walking away with the jackpot.
Roman Dubowski won the jackpot on Sunday(Image: ITV)
Speaking to the BBC, he said: “One of my strategies was to stay calm and not rush to speak slowly and think things through rather than jump at an answer. The question referenced a painting by Manet, and I immediately remembered seeing it in the Courtauld Gallery. I could picture the barmaid and, crucially, the red triangle of Bass beer in the image.”
The Millionaire champion’s further advice for prospective contestants included selecting the right person for the Phone A Friend lifeline, as well as ensuring you sign up for the right reasons in the first place.
“If people don’t like quizzes, they shouldn’t come on this show,” he cautioned. “But a lot of people do. There’s no harm in trying, even if you don’t get to the top there’s a good chance you’ll win something, so that’s a good reason to go.”
The winner advised future contestants on the best path to victory(Image: ITV)
As for Jeremy’s presenting abilities, Roman insisted he was “very good”, despite the former Top Gear host facing some criticism for being “unhelpful” when contestants use the Ask the Host lifeline.
“He was friendly and gave some very useful advice before the show, especially about how to use the lifelines,” Roman said. “He was very forthcoming and more helpful than I expected. I came away with a very positive impression of him.”
Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? airs Sundays at 7pm on ITV and ITVX.