Ian J. Lygo (born September 1958) is a British civil servant from

Hemel Hempstead Hemel Hempstead () is a town in the Dacorum district in Hertfordshire, England. It is located north-west of London; nearby towns and cities include Watford, St Albans and Berkhamsted. The population at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 cens ...

, who made 75 appearances on the UK game show '' 100%'' in late 1998, with the 75th appearance occurring on 14 December of that year.Lamer, Tony (July 11, 1999). "Trivia of Channel 5's most successful show", ''

Sunday Mercury ''Sunday Mercury'' is a Sunday Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid published in Birmingham, UK, and now owned by Reach plc. History The first edition was published on 29 December 1918. The first editor was John Turner Fearon (1869–1937), w ...

'', p. 32
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On 30 November 2004 this record was tied by

Ken Jennings Kenneth Wayne Jennings III (born May 23, 1974) is an American game show host, former contestant, and author. He is best known for his work on the syndicated quiz show ''Jeopardy!'' as a contestant and later its host. Jennings was born in Edm ...

on ''

Jeopardy! ''Jeopardy!'' is an American television game show created by Merv Griffin. The show is a quiz competition that reverses the traditional question-and-answer format of many quiz shows. Rather than being given questions, contestants are instead g ...

''. However, because Jennings lost on his 75th appearance, Lygo became the sole holder of the record for ''most consecutive wins'' on a game show. This record has since been broken, with a team from the Spanish version of the game show Boom! holding the current record at 505, although he still holds the record for English-language game shows. Since he won £100 for each game, his total winnings were £7,500. After his 73rd win, Grundy Productions, the producers of ''100%'', informed Lygo that they had changed the rules. From now on they were limiting the number of wins to only twenty-five, after receiving letters from viewers saying they were fed up of him winning day after day, week after week (by that time, he was in his fifteenth week on the programme). "I was given no warning," Lygo told ''

The Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid newspaper. Founded in 1903, it is part of Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), which is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead ...

''. "The producer came up and said, 'We are changing the format.' He said there was a new limit. I had no choice in the matter. I was told I could do two more shows and that was that. I wanted it to be made plain on the show that I was being stopped, but that didn't happen. The announcer (

Robin Houston Robin Houston (born London, 1947) is a British voiceover artist and former announcer, radio and television newsreader and quiz show host. After starting his career as an announcer and stage manager, he became one of the pioneers of commercial ra ...

) just said, 'Well done' and 'goodbye.'"Arnold, Harry (December 17, 1998). "Tv Quiz Chiefs Drop Mister 100 Per Cent: They alter rules after his 75th win", ''

Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily Tabloid journalism, tabloid newspaper. Founded in 1903, it is part of Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), which is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the tit ...

'', p. 27. According to UKGameShows.com, he believed that retiring after 100 episodes would have been more fitting with the show's theme. Lygo was, however, given a bottle of

champagne Champagne (; ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, which demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

by Grundy for his achievement. After Lygo's run, the producers later decided to restrict the number of consecutive wins to 25. Lygo has a degree in history from the

University of Kent The University of Kent (formerly the University of Kent at Canterbury, abbreviated as UKC) is a Collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom. The university was granted its roya ...

. He was chosen for the show after an audition at a hotel in

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

. He works for the

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References

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17 December 1998. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lygo, Ian Alumni of the University of Kent British civil servants Contestants on British game shows Living people 1958 births People from Hemel Hempstead