FORTUNE hunters

STEPHEN MANGAN introduces us to his sunsoaked game of deception

- VICTORIA WILSON

THE FORTUNE HOTEL NEW MONDAY-THURSDAY, 9PM, ITV1 GAME SHOW

Pack your suitcases and grab your sunglasses as ITV1 is whisking us off to a glamorous resort in the Caribbean. The only snag is, you can’t trust anyone there…

Airing Monday to Thursday across the next fortnight, new eight-part reality game show The Fortune Hotel sees its manager, actor and presenter Stephen Mangan, welcome 10 pairs of holidaymakers to its grounds, where they must navigate bluffs, challenges and subterfuge in a quest to win £250,000.

Here, Episodes and The Split star Stephen, who turns 56 on 16 May, tells us why fortune will favour the bold and the brave…

Why did being at the helm of this show appeal to you?

The opportunity to go to the Caribbean sounded very interesting on its own – that’s the thing that first got my attention! But, when the game itself was explained to me and I played it, it’s just brilliant. It’s pretty simple but fascinating. That combination was pretty irresistible.

When they arrive, each duo is given a briefcase at random. What is in those?