History Main / CarriedByTheHost

* Both the Japanese and American incarnations of ''Series/IronChef'', with Chairman Kaga and the Japanese commentators/Alton Brown respectively. Gordon Elliott (in the ''IC Japan'' New York special) and Creator/WilliamShatner (the doomed ''Iron Chef USA'') have both tried to fill the host role- the former failed, the latter was damned awesome but got hamstrung by UPN's typical idiocy.

** The British version, ''You've been Framed'', was pretty much so-so and just cheap infill on an early Saturday evening, before the good stuff started- like the above mentioned ''Catch Phrase''. And then off-the-wall comedian [[Series/HarryHillsTVBurp Harry Hill]] took over doing the commentary and voiceovers. It's now the Harry Hill Show, with background film provided by members of the public.

* Viewing of ''Series/AmericanIdol'' dropped drastically every time judges were replaced. When Simon left to run the American version of ''[[TheXFactor X-Factor]]'', Idol ran it's final episode in 2016.

* It's generally accepted that, aside from the general improvement in the standards of the competitors and higher production values, the thing that really made the second season of ''Series/RobotWars'' take off was replacing Jeremy Clarkson (who was deadpan and often [[{{Jerkass}} quite rude to the contestants]]) with Creator/CraigCharles as host (it helped that, while Clarkson genuinely didn't like the show, Craig's [[LargeHam bombastic enthusiasm]] simply ''couldn't'' be faked). Whether Creator/DaraOBriain has managed to live up to Craig's legacy in the show's 2016 reboot is [[BaseBreaker a matter of some contention]].

* Creator/GordonRamsay may be the patron saint of this trope. What popular cooking and restaurant shows spring immediately to mind? In the US, three featuring Ramsay - Series/HellsKitchen, Series/MasterChef, and Series/KitchenNightmares - will place high on the list, and Ramsay's profanity-laden tirades followed by occasional heartwarming praise are both famous. As of 2015, [=MasterChef=] US is on its fifth season without signs of slowing down, the US version of Hell's Kitchen has an impressive 13 US seasons with a fourteenth confirmed, making it a LongRunner (especially in the Reality genre), and Kitchen Nightmares managed a respectable 5 UK seasons and 7 US seasons before Ramsay chose to shut it down. Despite the show's success, there was no attempt to revive it with a different key chef. It's not just the US, either. Ramsay has versions of his shows in other nations, including his native England. Even non-fans will immediately recognize Ramsay's mannerisms and speech patterns. Only his flop, ''Series/HotelHell'', didn't seem to survive on Ramsay's larger-than-life persona. Say what one will about whether he is as great a chef as his reputation would suggest; he Ramsay has an amazing television presence.

** The British version, ''You've been Framed'', was pretty much so-so and just cheap infill on an early Saturday evening, before the good stuff started. And then off-the-wall comedian [[Series/HarryHillsTVBurp Harry Hill]] took over doing the commentary and voiceovers. It's now the Harry Hill Show, with background film provided by members of the public.

* Both the Japanese and American incarnations of ''Series/IronChef'', with Chairman Kaga and the Japanese commentators/Alton Brown respectively. Gordon Elliott (in the ''IC Japan'' New York special) and Creator/WilliamShatner (the doomed ''Iron Chef USA'') have both tried to fill the hosts roles with poor results.
** While ''Iron Chef USA'' was awful Shatner himself as Chairman was thoroughly awesome.

* Viewing of ''Series/AmericanIdol'' dropped drastically every time judges were replaced. With Simon gone and now running the American version of ''[[TheXFactor X-Factor]]'', it is a safe bet Idol isn't long for life.

* Olmec of ''Series/LegendsOfTheHiddenTemple'', much more so than the actual (rather mediocre) MC, Kirk Fogg. The producers acknowledged this by giving the job of reading the {{Rules Spiel}}s for the various challenges to Olmec rather than Fogg starting with the second series.[[note]] Which is a bit hard on Fogg, who has publicly stated that he was shoved in front of the camera with little to no preparation, and the rules spiels were written on cue cards he was seeing for the first time; the fact that the punctuation on the cards was haphazard at best resulted in equally haphazard line readings.[[/note]]

* ''Series/WinBenSteinsMoney'' was carried by the father/son-like relationship between Ben Stein and Jimmy Kimmel. When Kimmel left, it went downhill in a hurry.
* No one ever, ''ever'', tuned into the original ''Series/YouBetYourLife'' for game value; they tuned in to watch Groucho Marx be, well, [[DeadpanSnarker Groucho Marx]].

* Series/TheChase wouldn't be anywhere near as entertaining without the Chasers themselves and their own comments and quips about the contestants and show itself. Or presenter Bradley Walsh and his own jokes and comments (and the tendency to burst into laughter or such like whenever someone says anything entertaining). This is also likely why the US version didn't try and find a US equivalent quiz genius and simply hired Mark Labbett from the UK version to act as the Chaser on that version of the show as well.

** Unless your name is Bill Cullen (see above), whose version lasted a respectable five years alongside Clark's in the late-1970s.

* Try and imagine ''Series/{{QI}}'' without StephenFry or Alan Davies for a second. Davies once missed a show, and they left his seat empty rather than replace him.

* Humphrey Lyttelton was ''Radio/ImSorryIHaventAClue'' to such an extent that his death in 2008 and subsequent replacement by StephenFry, Rob Brydon and Jack Dee has elicited all of the complaints listed above. It's still good, but it's definitely not the ''same''.

* Just about any show hosted by Creator/BillCullen that wasn't the original ''Price is Right''. Most of the shows he was associated with went off the air in a year or less (''Series/WinningStreak'', ''Series/HotPotato'', ''Series/ChildsPlay'', etc.) but he was such a phenomenal host that he made even the most mediocre game format watchable. Although many of those shows he hosted that did end up failing generally ended up doing so as a result of getting ScrewedByTheNetwork, not because of any formatting flaws. The lone exception, ''Series/{{Blockbusters}}'' (which also qualifies), got a ''much'' longer run in the UK, but had a much ''shorter'' run a second time in the US (with successor Bill Rafferty).

* Anderson Cooper on the first two seasons of ''Series/TheMole''. He was by far one of the funniest and most charming game show/reality show hosts out there. He also gets bonus points for being one of the only hosts witty enough to spot RealityShowGenreBlindness and tease the contestants for it.

* Marc Summers of {{Nickelodeon}}'s ''[[Series/DoubleDare1986 Double Dare]]''.

* ''NickelodeonGUTS'' wouldn't be the same without Mike O'Malley and Moira Quirk, and it really showed with ''My Family's Got GUTS'', where [[ReplacementScrappy Ben Lyons]] and Asha Kuerten replaced them. Though the former duo weren't working for Nickelodeon at the time, and Asha was praised by some fans for equalling Moira.

** The ComedyNetwork reboot definitely gets a boost from both host Darrin Rose (who, impressively, doubles as announcer), as well as Debra Digiovanni and Sean Cullen, the only permanent panelists.
* No one but Peter Tomarken could host ''Series/PressYourLuck'', but Todd Newton came pretty damn close with ''{{Series/Whammy}}!''.

** ''Total Wipeout'' (the UK version, airing on Creator/{{BBC}}) itself may count too. It's hosted by [[TopGear Richard Hammond]], and his snark makes watching the contestants fail miserably even funnier.

* In Australia, there was practically a national outcry (among people of a certain age group, anyway) when "Baby" John Burgess was dropped as host of ''WheelOfFortune''.

* Regis Philbin for ''WhoWantsToBeAMillionaire'', in spite of the show having lasted almost four times as long with successors Meredith Vieira and Cedric the Entertainer.

** And also ChrisTarrant makes the British version of the show what it is. The guy knows a heck of a lot, and never gives anything away with his [[StockCatchphrase "Is that your final answer?"]]
* ''WinBenSteinsMoney'' was carried by the father/son-like relationship between Ben Stein and Jimmy Kimmel. When Kimmel left, it went downhill in a hurry.

* Just about any show hosted by Creator/BillCullen that wasn't the original ''Price is Right''. Most of the shows he was associated with went off the air in a year or less (''Winning Streak'', ''Hot Potato'', ''Child's Play'', etc.) but he was such a phenomenal host that he made even the most mediocre game format watchable. Although many of those shows he hosted that did end up failing generally ended up doing so as a result of getting ScrewedByTheNetwork, not because of any formatting flaws. The lone exception, ''Blockbusters'' (which also qualifies), got a ''much'' longer run in the UK, but had a much ''shorter'' run a second time in the US (with successor Bill Rafferty).

* ''Series/FriendOrFoe'' just wouldn't have been the same without Kennedy's [[DeadpanSnarker Deadpan Snarking]] at anyone who went Foe, as repeatedly proven by numerous other game shows which have since used the same prisoner's dilemma gimmick, every last one of which has fallen flat on their faces.
* Series/TheChase wouldn't be anywhere near as entertaining without the Chasers themselves and their own comments and quips about the contestants and show itself. Or presenter Bradley Walsh and his own jokes and comments (and the tendency to burst into laughter or such like whenever someone says anything entertaining). This is also likely why the US version didn't try and find a US equivalent quiz genius and simply hired Mark Labbet from the UK version to act as the Chaser on that version of the show as well.

* GordonRamsay may be the patron saint of this trope. What popular cooking and restaurant shows spring immediately to mind? In the US, three featuring Ramsay - [[HellsKitchen Hell's Kitchen]], MasterChef, and KitchenNightmares - will place high on the list, and Ramsay's profanity-laden tirades followed by occasional heartwarming praise are both famous. As of 2015, MasterChef US is on its fifth season without signs of slowing down, the US version of Hell's Kitchen has an impressive 13 US seasons with a fourteenth confirmed, making it a LongRunner (especially in the Reality genre), and Kitchen Nightmares managed a respectable 5 UK seasons and 7 US seasons before Ramsay chose to shut it down. Despite the show's success, there was no attempt to revive it with a different key chef. It's not just the US, either. Ramsay has versions of his shows in other nations, including his native England. Even non-fans will immediately recognize Ramsay's mannerisms and speech patterns. Only his flop, ''Series/HotelHell'', didn't seem to survive on Ramsay's larger-than-life persona. Say what one will about whether he is as great a chef as his reputation would suggest; he Ramsay has an amazing television presence.

* Bob Saget on ''AmericasFunniestHomeVideos'' (though they try to make it seem like Tom Bergeron was always there these days...)

* Both the Japanese and American incarnations of ''IronChef'', with Chairman Kaga and the Japanese commentators/Alton Brown respectively. Gordon Elliott (in the ''IC Japan'' New York special) and Creator/WilliamShatner (the doomed ''Iron Chef USA'') have both tried to fill the hosts roles with poor results.

* Joel [=McHale=] of ''TheSoup''.

* ''UnsolvedMysteries'' was never the same without Robert Stack.

* Many American ''WhoseLineIsItAnyway'' fans feel this way about Drew Carey, has his interactions with Ryan and Colin were often the best part of the show. Aisha Tyler hasn't had nearly as much luck.

* GordonRamsay may be the patron saint of this trope. What popular cooking and restaurant shows spring immediately to mind? In the US, three featuring Ramsay - [[HellsKitchen Hell's Kitchen]], MasterChef, and KitchenNightmares - will place high on the list, and Ramsay's profanity-laden tirades followed by occasional heartwarming praise are both famous. As of 2015, MasterChef US is on its fifth season without signs of slowing down, the US version of Hell's Kitchen has an impressive 13 US seasons with a fourteenth confirmed, making it a LongRunner (especially in the Reality genre), and Kitchen Nightmares managed a respectable 5 UK seasons and 7 US seasons before Ramsay chose to shut it down. Despite the show's success, there was no attempt to revive it with a different key chef. It's not just the US, either. Ramsay has versions of his shows in other nations, including his native England. Even non-fans will immediately recognize Ramsay's mannerisms and speech patterns. Only his flop, HotelHell, didn't seem to survive on Ramsay's larger-than-life persona. Say what one will about whether he is as great a chef as his reputation would suggest; he Ramsay has an amazing television presence.

* GordonRamsay may be the patron saint of this trope. What popular cooking and restaurant shows spring immediately to mind? In the US, three featuring Ramsay - [[HellsKitchen Hell's Kitchen]], MasterChef, and KitchenNightmares - will place high on the list, and Ramsay's profanity-laden tirades followed by occasional heartwarming praise are both famous. As of 2015, MasterChef US is on its fifth season without signs of slowing down, the US version of Hell's Kitchen has an impressive 13 US seasons with a fourteenth confirmed, making it a LongRunner (especially in the Reality genre), and Kitchen Nightmares managed a respectable 5 UK seasons and 7 US seasons before Ramsay chose to shut it down. Despite the show's success, there was no attempt to revive it with a different key chef. It's not just the US, either. Ramsay has versions of his shows in other nations, including his native England. Even non-fans will immediately recognize Ramsay's mannerisms and speech patterns. Only his show HotelHell, which seems unlikely to see a third season, didn't seem to survive on Ramsay's larger-than-life persona. Say what one will about whether he is as great a chef as his reputation would suggest; he Ramsay has an amazing television presence.

* No one but Peter Tomarken could host ''Series/PressYourLuck'', as Todd Newton painfully demonstrated with ''Whammy!''

* ''ThePriceIsRight''. The seasons with Bob Barker were carried by him and has a very different feel than the seasons with Drew Carey. The version with a third host is almost unknown to people who have not seen it or read this wiki.

* ''TakeshisCastle''. Watching people falling in mud and injuring themselves: funny. Watching them do it to Craig Charles' commentary: hysterical.
* Creator/{{ABC}}'s ''[[{{Wipeout2009}} Wipeout]]'' (Not to be confused with Peter Tomarken's [[Series/{{Wipeout1988}} much older show of the same name]]): John Henson and John Anderson's commentary is as funny as watching the contestants trip and fall. And it is now clear that Jill Wagner as the interviewer was seriously underestimated, as her replacement isn't nearly as good.

* Former driver Martin Brundle's commentaries for FormulaOne racing are noted by many as being one of the main reasons to watch in many English speaking countries. He's even got his own [[http://brundleandfriends.blogspot.co.uk/ appreciation blog]].

* ''TalkinBoutYourGeneration'' wouldn't be half as fun without ShaunMicallef. What would normally be a bland family-oriented quiz show ends up hilarious due to the Shaun's PostModern Pythonesque insanity.

* The NBC version of ''TheSingingBee'' had some mediocre success with host [[Music/{{NSYNC}} Joey Fatone]]. However, when the show [[ChannelHop channel hopped]] to CMT, they hired stand up comic Melissa Peterman. It's been more successful, notably since Peterman's charisma is able to cover when a contestant is nervous, too quiet, or simply dull.

** The ComedyNetwork reboot definitely gets a boost from both host Darrin Rose, as well as Debra Digiovanni and Sean Cullen, the only permanent panelists
* Possible subversion: No one but Peter Tomarken could host ''Series/PressYourLuck'', but Todd Newton came pretty damn close with ''Series/{{Whammy}}!''.

** ''Total Wipeout'' (the UK version, airing on {{BBC}}) itself may count too. It's hosted by [[TopGear Richard Hammond]], and his snark makes watching the contestants fail miserably even funnier.

If the star is replaced by someone else (even temporarily) expect invocations of ReplacementScrappy, TheyChangedItNowItSucks and FanonDiscontinuity (as close as a nonfiction show can get anyway).

* Richard O'Brien on ''TheCrystalMaze''.

* Simon Amstell and/or team captains Phil Jupitus and Bill Bailey on ''Never Mind The Buzzcocks''.

* Robert Llewellyn on ''ScrapheapChallenge''.