Tenable

After hearing the category for a round, the captain designates one teammate to play it. Each teammate may only play one round.

The contestant must give at least five correct ("tenable") answers in order to qualify for the final. At or beyond this point, they may stop after any answer and bank the money; completing the list automatically banks the money and allows the contestant to advance.

Most of the questions start with some guidance on what they are looking for specifically and what they cannot accept as a tenable answer. From the 2020 christmas special onwards, some of the top 10 list contains clues of the answer on the board for certain categories, in which the contestant then has to guess the answer as usual, however rather than a number on the board, the clue is seen in its place instead.

Two forms of assistance are available until the fifth correct answer has been given:

• Nominate: Three times during the game, a contestant may choose one teammate to provide an answer, and may accept or reject it at their discretion.
• Overrule: Once per round, the captain may reject an answer they believe to be incorrect and give a different one in its place. The contestant's answer is tested first; if it is correct, they are not credited with that answer or awarded any money.

In addition, the contestant is allowed to make one mistake at any time without penalty. A second mistake, or being overruled in favour of an incorrect answer by the captain, ends the round immediately; the contestant is eliminated from the game and forfeits any accumulated money.

The captain plays this round under the same rules as the first four, with the following changes.

• The overrule option is permanently deactivated from play.
• Any remaining nominates may be used to call for help from teammates who have not been eliminated.
• After any correct answer that awards money, the captain may choose to reinstate one eliminated teammate in exchange for dropping back one level on the money ladder.
• Reinstated teammates advance to the final only if the captain completes the list or chooses to stop.
• Regardless of the outcome, the captain advances to the final.
• At the end of this round, any teammates who have not been reinstated are permanently eliminated from the game and the Vortex entrance closes.

The maximum potential prize is £125,000, achieved by banking the full £25,000 in each of Rounds 1 through 5.

The remaining contestants/full team are given one final list and must give one answer at a time, starting with the captain and then proceeding through any others in the order that they played the first four rounds. Nominates and overrules are no longer in play. Any contestant who gives an incorrect answer is immediately defeated and eliminated from the game. If the team completes the list, they win all the money they banked in the first five rounds; if not the team are defeated and they leave with nothing. If a team fails to bank any money in the first five rounds, the captain plays alone for a prize of £500.

In the all-stars version the celebrities receive £1,000 for their charities if they do not complete the list and they've been defeated. In the 2019 Christmas special they receive £2,500 for their charities.