This is a fantasy DoND series. For background information, please go to this link. Key thing to bear in mind for the what-would-you-do poll: to exchange the Kytlerian currency into sterling, divide by 1.4. So a Tk7,000 offer would be £5,000, for instance.

Deal or No Deal may have been one of the most popular game shows in the universe for some time, but it's an all-new format to viewers in The Kytler Peninsulae. So after the obligatory sponsor plug (in this case for eyeeye.kyp, who sell glasses online), nobody knows what to expect.

We get an introduction that somewhat resembles the British one, but longer. Beth, resplendent in a blue blouse and red skirt, stands at the gameboard, on a set that has the standard European daytime layout - two wings of contestants flanking the board, audience all behind the player facing the board - but is much more modern, with LED screens liberally placed on dark background walls, and the furniture being mostly chrome. She then slowly paces down the walkway to the table, which itself has an LED screen built into it, and - in her distinctive husky tones - tells the viewers at home what they're about to see:

Inside this studio are twenty-four people from all over the country, each of whom could win a life-changing sum of money. Standing in front of them are twenty-four boxes, all with money inside - up to 300,000 toaks. All they need to win a fortune is luck and judgment, as they face the question that could make or break them - Deal... or No Deal?"

A very short introductory sequence is played, complete with an orchestral sting that links into a soft string bed, over which Beth continues to talk. There is no audience applause at this point, though the studio lights and LED screens have brightened, now a mixture of red and blue. The entire floor, it can be seen at this point, is clear glass, with a screen placed underneath the walkway.

"Welcome to Deal or No Deal, a brand new game show with no trivia test, no slippery stunts, just one simple dilemma - how far to push your luck for the chance of a lifetime. Trust me, it sounds a lot easier than it is. All twenty-four of these players..." (camera swings round to show the wings) "...representing a true A-Z of Kytlerian society, will find that out first-hand - each day, one of them will be called up to play for a fortune, and the others will stay to open the other boxes and provide support. As the days and weeks go by, they will themselves get their chance to play the game, but for now, we need to reveal who will be the very first contestant!"

The set goes dark, and the walkway screen displays all 24 player names, scrolling as if on a giant spinner. The camera zooms in as the scrolling slows down slightly, and Beth announces "today's player, the very first player of this game, will be..." The scrolling abruptly stops. "SORRAH!"

Sorrah walks down the table with box 3. At this point, we see that there is a touchscreen built into the table, which Beth uses in lieu of file cards for information on the player. (The screen also displays some limited instructions for Beth, in lieu of an autocue - most of Beth's speech is completely unscripted.)

We find out that Sorrah Izorigor is a 59-year-old nurse from Alaer, the fourth-largest city in the country with a population of around 400,000. Like almost a quarter of that population, she is from a family that emigrated Vephrall during its economic and political collapse some thirty years ago. Her husband, Urkero, died last year, but his relatively modest pension meant that Sorrah did not feel able to retire. She now wants to win enough money to do just that, and to look after her two sons, Whaariny and Hetag, who are both in their twenties. (Get used to these distinctive 'Vephra' names, by the way. There's more of them.) "How much do you think would be enough to retire?" "To do it right now? Maybe Tk50,000. Anything less, like ten or twenty (thousand), and maybe I can move it forward a little sooner. I was expecting to retire at 65." (This is the retirement age in The Kytler Peninsulae for both men and women.) "Of course, if I really win a lot of money, I can help spoil my kids. Hetag is getting married next year, and I'm sure he will want someone to help fund the wedding!" "Has he already spent the money before you even win it?" asks Beth with a semi-serious tone of concern. "I told him not to, and I think he listened!", Sorrah replies in kind.

"OK, we've got to know about you a little bit, now we come to the game. There are, as you can see, twenty-four sums of money on this game board..."

Tk1
Tk5
Tk10
Tk20
Tk50
Tk100
Tk150
Tk200
Tk300
Tk400
Tk500
Tk750
Tk1,000
Tk2,500
Tk5,000
Tk7,500
Tk10,000
Tk15,000
Tk25,000
Tk50,000
Tk75,000
Tk100,000
Tk200,000
Tk300,000

"...each of which is in one of the boxes, 1 to 24. Before the game began, each of you chose a box at random, and I'd like to confirm that you did choose box 3." "I did." "Before even that, an independent adjudicator secretly assigned each of the twenty-four values to one of the twenty-four boxes, and then sealed those boxes. Nobody on the production team has been able to look inside. We will now begin to open all of the other boxes, in the order of your choice. Whatever is in those boxes is not in your box, because there are twenty-four sums of money in twenty-four boxes. After five boxes, we will receive a phone call from the Banker, who wants to buy your box as cheaply as possible. He will make an offer for you to leave, based on whatever is left after your first five have been chosen. The more money you leave unrevealed, the more money the Banker will need to offer. And as the game goes on, at various points he will ring back with increasingly tempting offers. If you reject every offer from the Banker, you will win the contents of box number 3, whether that is Tk1 or Tk300,000 or anything in between. Are you clear?"

"I am clear."

"Then let's play Deal or No Deal!"

The studio lights dim, and the LED screens show only a dark abstract pattern in deep shades of blue and red. The game board remains on.

"Your first selection, please."

"It makes sense to start with number 1," Sorrah suggests. "Might as well, right? Good afternoon, Zoe, you have the honour of being the first person to ever open one of these boxes." Said boxes are almost identical to the UK boxes, except they have contrasting blue seals. "Open box 1."

Box 1 (Zoe) - Tk50

"That's good! That means you do not have Tk50 in box 3," Beth clarifies. Polite applause from the audience, who don't quite know how significant that piece of information is yet. "Your next selection, please." "Number 20." "Over to you, Elfar, for what I hope will be another low amount of money that Sorrah does not have in her box." "I hope so, too."

Box 3 (Elfar) - Tk75,000

"Oh dear!", Beth sighs. "We now know you do not have Tk75,000 in your box. Of course, you could have even more in there, we shall see. But that is not favourable in terms of the Banker's first offer. Next one?" "Number 10." "OK, 10 it is, and we go over to Jeltsje - please open number 10!" "Good luck."

Box 10 (Jeltsje) - Tk300,000

"Oh no!" Beth covers her head in her hands. "The very largest sum of money is out of the game! That is the worst possible news from that box, because it means you cannot have our top prize. You may, of course, still be able to win Tk200,000..." Polite audience applause and encouragement. "Two more boxes now. We need to see the blue numbers appear in the boxes and disappear from the board."

"Number 9," Sorrah calls for. "Melinda, please do not make matters worse. Reveal a low number, hopefully, in Box 9."

Box 9 (Melinda) - Tk10,000

"Well, it's not as bad," Beth says, "but it's not good. We need a blue value to go. One more." "Number 24." Until this point, Beth has been stuck on the right-hand side of the studio, but box 24 is with Wynke right on the audience end of the left-hand benches. "Wynke, this is our last box before the first offer, and if this is another large sum of money then that offer will be pitiful. Open box 24, to hopefully, surely, reveal a blue label inside."

Box 24 (Wynke) - Tk300

"There we go!" Applause. "So, at the end of that round, we know that one of those sums of money still on the board is sitting inside box 3. Based on that knowledge, the Banker is going to phone to make you an offer. He is not only watching the board, though - he is watching you. He does have a computer which helps him out, but the exact offer is down to him. Remember, he is trying to buy the box as cheaply as he can."

The phone rings on cue. "Hello." Silence. "OK, yes... yes, you actually enjoyed that, of course... that's the offer?... OK." Beth hangs up. "The Banker has offered you Tk3,600 for your box."

Tk1
Tk5
Tk10
Tk20
Tk100
Tk150
Tk200
Tk400
Tk500
Tk750
Tk1,000
Tk2,500
Tk5,000
Tk7,500
Tk15,000
Tk25,000
Tk50,000
Tk100,000
Tk200,000

Banker's offer:

Tk3,600

A small LED screen above the board displays the offer. "You can either accept that offer, and leave with just over three and a half thousand, or you can play on. If you do play on, there will be five more boxes to open before another offer. If you have some more luck with those five boxes, that offer will be significantly higher. If you're unlucky again, I suspect it won't."

Sorrah says she came on the show to try and win more than Tk3,600.

Beth opens up a compartment on the top of the table, next to her touchscreen. It contains a big red button. "If you wish to take the Deal for Tk3,600, press that button. If you wish to play on for another round, close the lid. Tk3,600 - Deal or No Deal?" She closes the lid - NO DEAL. Applause.

"So Sorrah has rejected the first offer from the Banker, but that's just the beginning of this game. Come back after the break!"

"Welcome back to Deal or No Deal, where Sorrah Izorigor is playing for a possible fortune. Her possibilities have dwindled, however, as we already know that her box does not contain the top prize of Tk300,000. There are other large sums of money to play for, though, and Sorrah has declined an opportunity to leave with Tk3,600 in the hope that she can possibly get her hands on one of them. We now have five more boxes to open - and then there will be another offer, possibly for a lot more money. Please pick your next box."

Sorrah turns to her left. "Number 16." "Harriet, welcome, your first responsibility is to please open box 16."

Box 16 (Harriet) - Tk500

"That's a good start to the round." Sorrah smiles. "Number 19." "OK, we're with you..." "Tose." "Oh, what a lovely name. Tor-sa. That right?" "That's right." "Well, let's make this box right for Sorrah, by keeping it on the left side!" "Our names sound so similar. This is meant to be."

Box 19 (Tose) - Tk20

"You were absolutely right!" Beth declares, as the crowd starts to get into the game. "That's another small amount you don't have in box 3. Where next?" "22." "OK, Charles, it's over to you to keep this run of small numbers going." "The very best of luck."

Box 22 (Charles) - Tk200,000

"Oohh, nooo!" Big groans. "Exactly the opposite of what we were hoping there..." Sorrah points to her lucky charm on her wrist and says that she believes that "hope is not lost", which gains applause. She then opts for box 14. "Ruud... be polite and open something low." "Hope so."

Box 14 (Ruud) - Tk1

"Perfect!", says Beth. "So now we know that, even if it goes horribly, horribly wrong from here... at least you won't be getting just one measly little toak. One more box to open before we get the offer." "Number 4, please." "Scott, you look excited and ready for this." "Oh yes, absolutely. Been waiting years to be on a game show and here I am." "And you're not even playing yet!" "I know, and I don't want to yet, I just want to soak this up for as long as I can." "Well, everyone here is going to get their chance to play eventually, and they'll stay here opening boxes until they do... and that is your duty now, Scott, to open box 4!" "Good luck - here we go!"

Box 4 (Scott) - Tk50,000

Groans. "Oh, Scott! You waited all that time and your first appearance on a game show was to create a really big problem for a little old lady? How dare you!" "I'll do better next time," Scott replied, with a grin and a wink, drawing laughter.

"Well, we can't put it any other way, this is not going that well so far. Already, you have removed most of the largest sums of money, four of the five largest in fact. But a life-changing Tk100,000 is still out there, possibly sitting in front of you in box 3. We now get an offer from the Banker, who will still want to insure himself against that possibility."

Phone rings. "Hello?... Stop laughing! It's not over!... Oh, fine... fine, then!"

Tk5
Tk10
Tk100
Tk150
Tk200
Tk400
Tk750
Tk1,000
Tk2,500
Tk5,000
Tk7,500
Tk15,000
Tk25,000
Tk100,000

Banker's offer:

Tk3,000

Sorrah says that she can still win a lot more. "Absolutely, but you'll need to be rather more fortunate than you have been so far!", Beth points out. Still, NO DEAL is quickly opted for.

"For the next two rounds, you will have to open three boxes before the Banker rings."

Sorrah opts for box 7. "Paora, welcome, it's lovely to see you here." Paora is of aboriginal descent, and Beth may well be going out of her way to welcome him in order to make a possibly-too-visible stand against continuing discrimination against this segment of the population. "Open box 7."

Box 7 (Paora) - Tk2,500

An initial groan, followed by some cheers. Sorrah doesn't really react, nor does Beth: "Could have been worse. Hopefully, won't get worse. Two more to pick before another offer." "23, please." "Heath, I understand you're a taxi driver." "That's right." "I do hope you're better than the one I got last week that took me completely the wrong way - I asked to go to Elwright's (a well-known department store in Kytler Bay City) and he misheard and took me to the red light district!" Laughter. "Take us in the right direction away from the reds by revealing something blue in box 23!"

Box 23 (Heath) - Tk5,000

"You fool!" Beth said, mockingly. "It's OK," Sorrah insists. "We do, it must be said, still have Tk100,000 in play," Beth points out. "As long as it's still in play after this box, the offer will hopefully be improved, because the prospect that you have that huge amount of money in front of you will have grown. One more to pick this round." "Box 17." "Marvin, you definitely can't afford mistakes in your job, can you?" "Not really, no." "Because Marvin here, he's a technician at a nuclear power plant. So if he does anything stupid while he's here, take the hint and move well away from Borlfield." Laughter. "We do have world-class safety systems at all the plants in this country," Marvin insists. "Well, thank you. This board isn't very safe, so don't cause an accident by opening a big number in box 17!"

Box 17 (Marvin) - Tk7,500

"Oh my goodness, it's the red box district!" Sorrah looks unpertubed and points again to the Tk100,000. The Banker rings... "Hello? Yes... oh, OK... right. Fair enough, then." "Has he gone up?" Sorrah asks. "Well, he says that because you didn't take out anything really big in that round, he has no choice but to go up. But because none of them were blue, he has no need to go higher than Tk4,000."

Tk5
Tk10
Tk100
Tk150
Tk200
Tk400
Tk750
Tk1,000
Tk15,000
Tk25,000
Tk100,000

Banker's offer:

Tk4,000

Sorrah nods. "Three boxes to open if you go on, and there are actually only three that are more than the offer. If you take them all out, you'll never see Tk4,000 again in this game, but it should be said that is very unlikely." "You never know in games of chance," says Sorrah, who declines the invitation to ask the wings for advice, and asks for the lid to be opened so she can shut it again - NO DEAL.

After a second adbreak, we get back to work with Beth talking up how Sorrah "could still win a massive Tk100,000".

Box 12 is chosen. "Ellie, we need to snap this run of red numbers. Open box 12." "I'll try my best!"

Box 12 (Ellie) - Tk5

"And what a way to do it!" Proper cheers now, as if the audience have been told in the break to be louder. Or the sound levels have been adjusted. Or something. "Tk10 is now the worst you can leave with. Two more to go before the next offer." "Number 15." "Carsten, we want that last box to be followed up with two more low numbers. Please open box 15 to hopefully provide the first of them."

Box 15 (Carsten) - Tk200

Sorrah is looking more enthusiastic, the crowd are sounding more enthusiastic, and Beth has just three words of warning: "Don't spoil it." She opts for number 21. "Azeezat... I think I've got that right?" "Yeah, pretty much." Laughter. "Open box 21, and reveal a third low number."

Box 21 (Azeezat) - Tk400

"How much better does this look?" Beth cries. "Much better!" Sorrah replies. "There are now eight boxes left. You will have to open two more in the next round if you choose to play on. You have three significant sums of money - you have a three-in-eight chance that one of them is in box 3, right in front of your nose. Who wouldn't want thousands of toaks sitting in front of their nose?"

The Banker rings. "Hello?... Yes, things really have changed in one round... you're worried now? Oh good! (laughter)... OK, thank you." Sorrah says that sounded nicer, and Beth says "that's because it was! He's doubled the offer to Tk8,000!"

Tk10
Tk100
Tk150
Tk750
Tk1,000
Tk15,000
Tk25,000
Tk100,000

Banker's offer:

Tk8,000

Sorrah says that's more like it, and she can do a lot with it. Beth says that offer warrants some real thought. Sorrah asks for advice, and Scott immediately says that she should go on as the offer is less than half of the average of what is left. Aaron says because there are three higher than the offer, Sorrah can afford to hit a big number in the next round. Marvin says that the Tk100,000 is crucial and Sorrah will be in trouble if she hits it, but says it is worth the risk.

Beth eventually pops open the Big Button... but Sorrah's not pressing it. NO DEAL.

"Now, there are only two boxes to open before the next offer. I hope they are as good as the last three."

Sorrah calls for box 11. "Iris, please provide us with the first crucial box of this round."

Box 11 (Iris) - Tk1,000

The briefest of groans turn to cheers as Beth says "that's great!", pointing out that "when compared to the big numbers on this board, that doesn't feel like a big red number at all." Sorrah says she is relieved that she can only take one big number out, and Beth then adds "you don't want to take any out though, do you? Find something blue now, and you will see another big leap in the offer."

Sorrah says she is looking at 13 but doesn't know why. "I think it will be an important box, but I don't know why." "Well, they're all important now," says Beth, possibly unhelpfully. "I'll go for 5." "Kamira, a lot rides on this box. I hope you're ready for this." "Always." "Open it."

Box 5 (Kamira) - Tk150

Big cheers from the crowd, and Kamira punches the air. Sorrah walks over to Kamira and shakes his hand. "Thank you so much." The Banker rings again... "Hello? Yes... yes it's turned around now... oh, really? We'll see... OK."

A pause.

"The Banker says this is the offer that is going to get you out - he thinks this is enough for you to get out and go home happy. Bearing in mind that you have two boxes to open in the next round, and he has promised that you will see nothing like this again if the Tk100,000 goes..."

Tk10
Tk100
Tk750
Tk15,000
Tk20,000
Tk100,000

Banker's offer:

Tk12,700

Sorrah says that it's hard to stop when three of them are higher, and Tose says she has "good insurance for a gamble". Ellie says that if the Tk100,000 goes the offer will go a long way down and she has to be ready for that.

Sorrah wonders what her children would want her to do. "Actually, they've been quite different - Hetag always liked to take more risks than Whaariny, he was rough and tumble as a kid, and I know he likes to gamble now, whereas Whaariny wouldn't do that. So I'm sure Hetag would be telling me to go on and Whaariny probably wouldn't." "So whatever you do here, one of your sons is going to be shouting at the television." Laughter. "Basically, yes!"

Scott says it is a very good opportunity to gamble and one that she should take. "It's also a very good opportunity to take Tk12,700 of tax-free money," Beth replies. "Something has got to give. And now it is up to you to decide which." Beth opens the Big Button compartment. "With two boxes to open, one huge sum of money with two backups, against an offer of K12,700... Deal... or No Deal?"

Unlike the US and Australian crowds, and like the British ones, the audience have been told to remain quiet at this point. "I think it's probably better to regret what I do than what I don't do." And down goes the lid! NO DEAL it is!

There is excited applause at that decision. "Sorrah, I hope that actually, you don't have anything to regret. I want you to actually be looking at even more money at the next offer. This is going to be tense. We'll take a break - do not go away!"

After the break, we get a US-style "previous offers" graphic at the top corner of the screen, as Beth talks about how she "had a big old think - before taking a big old chance" in turning down Tk12,700.

"Two boxes to open, and then we get an offer." Sorrah says she thinks 13 needs to be chosen now. "Yvie, she turned away from you a few minutes ago, and now we really need to prove she had nothing to fear from number 13. Open that box." "It's a lucky number for me, I hope it is for you."

Box 13 (Yvie) - Tk15,000

Nobody quite knows how to react. Sorrah and Beth included. "Well, if it had to be red, that's what it had to be. And now, this has to be blue." Sorrah scans the wings for the few remaining boxes. "Number 8." "Sharon, I really do hope this is not going to be one of those two big numbers. It will make such a difference to the next offer if they are both intact."

Box 8 (Sharon) - Tk100,000

Huge groans. Sorrah looks in shock. "The worst possible box. And now, only one significant sum of money remains in the game." Sorrah says she never expected to do that.

The Banker rings. "Hello there, you lucky so-and-so." Laughter. "You think she made a mistake?... Oh you... Fine, then." Beth looks most frustrated as she hangs up the phone. "He says Whaariny is not going to let you forget this. And now, we are right back to where we started."

Tk10
Tk100
Tk750
Tk25,000

Banker's offer:

Tk3,600

"If you play on, you will only have to open one box. Of course, it will only take one box to destroy the last remaining hope you have of winning a lot of money." Heath says that she will have regrets whatever happens if she takes this offer, but if she plays on she might get lucky and recover. Sorrah nods her head in agreement, and opts to NO DEAL.

"This is the one box that will decide if recovery continues or regret is magnified."

Sorrah looks at Aaron with box 2, and decides to go with him. "Aaron, this is crucial. This game rests on this box. Open it."

Box 2 (Aaron) - Tk100

There are big cheers of relief. Not least from Sorrah, who immediately gives Aaron a big hug. "I thought that was going to be it." The Banker rings. "Hello? Yes... one more box to open, yes, and you think this has to be taken... OK." Down goes the phone. Up goes the offer. "This is the lifeline, he says."

Tk10
Tk750
Tk25,000

Banker's offer:

Tk5,600

Sorrah says that would be a useful sum of money, but she can do a lot more with Tk25,000. Marvin says that you can't do much with Tk10, and Sorrah says that you can get a bottle of wine with it! Beth then warms to this theme, saying "and with Tk5,600 you could have the biggest hangover of your life!" Sorrah then adds that as a nurse she really mustn't be seen to encourage binge drinking, and Beth said "well, you started all this!" to much laughter.

"In all seriousness," Beth insists, "that is a lot of money to risk when one box can end it all. Find either of the other two, however, and you will be looking at a lot more money. How much more, we do not know." "That's the thing, the not knowing," Sorrah says. "But that's what it's all about, I suppose."

The lid goes up. The Big Button is there to be pressed. The question is asked... "I can't carry on, I just can't." DEAL.

Sorrah looked drained as she pressed the button. "This is not an easy game!" she says. "Absolutely," adds Beth. "It's a game that anyone can play, but it is never, ever easy. You have Tk5,600, and I know you will make good use of it. But, I'm afraid, I'm going to have to make you find out what would have happened! If you had gone on and declined that offer, you would have had to open one more box. Which one would it have been?"

Sorrah says she'd have kept 18, "so number 6 it is". "Jennifer, because Sorrah has now taken a Deal, the game has changed around - we actually do want to see Tk25,000 in here, to prove that going on would have been wrong. Open box 6." "Well done, this really doesn't look easy."

Box 6 (Jennifer) - Tk25,000

Big cheers of relief again. "Yes! If you had gone on, it would have been disaster!" A most perfunctory phone call follows to communicate the final offer...

Tk10
Tk750

Banker's offer would've been:

Tk300

"And so we know, once and for all, to prove it is fair, we shall open the other boxes, starting with yours... you took a Deal for Tk5,600, and all along, all you had was..."

Beth opens Box 3 (Sorrah) - Tk10

"Open box 18 please, Satossy. If all is well, there's Tk750 in there..."

Box 18 (Satossy) - Tk750

"Congratulations, Sorrah. Although you could have won more by stopping earlier, you fought your way back, and then got out just in time. How do you feel?" "Exhausted, really, but that's a good sum of money. I'll have to think about what I'll do with it, it's not enough that I can retire any time soon, but it'll make things easier, I might treat myself - I'll have to have a think." "Well, I hope you find that thinking much easier than you found this game, because I could tell that you had some real trouble with those decisions, but thankfully you get a useful sum of money to show for all of that. Sorrah goes away with Tk5,600!" Applause.

"And if you heard about this show and thought it was easy," Beth tells the viewers over the closing credits, "I hope you realise you were wrong. Tomorrow we'll have a new player coming into the studio, and one of the other twenty-three players who were bit-part players today will take centre stage and bid for a possible Tk300,000. Until then, it's goodbye!"