Michael Barrymore has admitted he thinks Strike It Lucky was a terrible format.

His series became one of the most successful game shows in TV history after running for 13 series between 1986 and 1999, but he is convinced the idea was a dud.

He told the Daily Star: "The format of Strike It Lucky is s***. It’s crap. It's a terrible game. It doesn’t work."

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Michael, 71, reckons the show was only a hit because viewers loved the banter he had with contestants.

He added: "Strike It Lucky wasn’t about the game – that was just a vehicle for me to do all the nonsense.

"We sold the format to all these other countries based on my recordings. But they didn’t make it work because it wasn’t about the format."

It has been 24 years since the show ended and it remains one of the most iconic shows ever.

Michael thinks it wouldn’t work if a new series was made now because penny-pinching bosses would want to make it on a budget.

He said: "I've been told that if I did Strike It Lucky today, I’d have to make five in a day because of costs. But you can’t make those sorts of shows like that. They wouldn’t be the same.

"The way I made my shows, they all overran. They were all improvised and that costs money. If you want decent shows like that, you’ve got to pay for them."

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Michael fears the quality of TV shows will decline unless something changes

.He said: "You’re never going to have shows like Strike It Lucky again. They require investment, a bit of talent and being brave.

"If you’re going to tick boxes when making art like they do now, it’s never going to be great."

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