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Top Spanish quiz shows and TV programmes you have to get into

Expand your television repertoire in Spain by watching these ‘concurso’ programmes

Sometimes, watching Spanish-language television shows is a chore for foreigners in Spain, especially if you don’t speak the language or understand Spanish perfectly, and many people choose to watch TV programmes for their own country instead. But watching Spanish TV can actually be a good way to improve your listening skills in a judgement-free and entertaining environment, and one of the best things to watch is a quiz show.

That’s because, even if you don’t understand every word, you might still be able to get some of the answers to the questions they ask in these Spanish quiz shows or learn some new vocabulary, and it certainly gives some insight into the Spanish sense of humour and frame of mind.

So, without further ado, here’s a brief rundown of some of the best Spanish TV quiz shows of all time (known in Spanish as ‘concursos’) and where you can watch them.

1. La ruleta de la suerte

Also known as ‘La ruleta de la fortuna’, this is basically the Spanish version of ‘The Wheel of Fortune’. It is shown on the standard domestic television channel Antena Tres every day at 2pm and gives the chance for some laughs as there is plenty of dancing, singing and writing on the screen to give you a chance to slowly try and work out the meanings for yourself. If you want to try your hand at some roulette spins you can play ruleta online.

2. Pasapalabra

Sometimes dubiously translated as ‘Pass the word’, this quiz game also shown on Antena Tres every evening has some rules that take a bit of getting used to. Essentially, it’s a face off between two contestants who try to race against the clock and each other to go round the whole alphabet (the Spanish alphabet, that is, including the ‘Ñ’) to try to answer questions relating to each of those letters. If they don’t know an answer, they can choose to skip the question by saying ‘Pasapalaba!’. The questions are notoriously tough and the prize fund gets into the millions, which can make it exciting. But really the main attraction of this show are the lead-up rounds, in which the questions are much easier and which make it very fun to join in at home.

3. Saber y ganar

This extremely long-running series, whose name means simply ‘Know and win’, can be seen every day on RTVE and has been on Spanish TV sets since 1997. However, in all honesty, it’s just kind of boring.

4. Boom!

A fun-filled romp presented by Juanra Bonet, this show is on Antena Tres just before Pasapalabra and consists of two teams of contestants trying to ‘defuse’ a bomb by eliminating the wrong answers in a multiple-choice question. If they get it wrong, however, the bomb blows up in their faces, spraying them with colourful paint! A very silly and entertaining show, and the fact that the questions are multiple choice make it easier for foreigners to play along at home.

5. ¡Ahora caigo!

Another very silly and entertaining afternoon show, which is now unfortunately off the air, was ‘¡Ahora caigo!’ with beloved presenter Arturo Valls. It ran for 10 years, from 2011 to 2021, and the gimmick was that if people got the questions wrong, the floor would open up beneath them and they would be unceremoniously dropped into the floor, never to be seen again. Hence the name, which means ‘Now I fall’ but is also a pun on the phrase ‘caer’ meaning ‘to understand’, as in ‘the penny drops’. To enjoy this supremely ridiculous premise, you can still see full episodes on YouTube.

Image: Fundación Cajasol via Flickr