Update (November 2021): Sir Trevor McDonald OBE has been named the new GamesMaster. The first episode in the new series will air on November 21st on the E4 YouTube channel.
Other influencers and personalities have joined the show too, including Sunpi, MC Fixer, Ketchup and Mustard.
Original article (September 29th 2021):
Before Twitch, before YouTube, before Instagram and Twitter, there was a time when us old folks had to get our gaming news and entertainment from magazines and TV.
GamesMaster was THE video games show on TV in the ’90s and now it’s returning to Channel 4’s E4, which has today announced its hosts.
The actual ‘GamesMaster’, formerly the late Sir Patrick Moore, who would set challenges to contestants, has been announced as Sir Trevor McDonald OBE, the well-known Trinidadian-British newsreader and journalist.
The new GamesMaster presenter is Scottish comedian, writer and host Robert (aka Rab) Florence, who will also serve as creative consultant on the show. He will be joined by fellow Brits Frankie Ward and Ty Logan as co-hosts.
Frankie is a well-known British esports host and personality, while Ty is an actor and entertainer.
The series will see ‘celebrities, gaming stars and super fans all take part in challenges, races and epic fights’. Through virtual battles across a range of games, the competitors will compete to claim a legendary Golden Joystick trophy.
Rab hosted The Independent Charles Show on Xbox Live years ago, and also contributed to publications such as Eurogamer in the past, for whom he wrote a controversial piece around the start of Gamergate, titled: Lost Humanity 18: A Table of Doritos.
He’s worked on a range of BBC comedies, including Burnistoun and The Scotts, as well as computer games show, VideoGaiden. He is also one half of the UK’s longest running online videogame review show, Consolevania.
Frankie Ward is an established face in esports, known for desk and stage hosting, as well as interviewing players across numerous game titles including CSGO, League of Legends, Overwatch, Call of Duty and more. Ty has been named as one of E4’s Faces of the Future, and has had roles in major short films such as Exposed, The Essence 2 and The Re-Up 2.
The original host in the ’90s was Dominik Diamond, and Dexter Fletcher also hosted one series.
“GamesMaster was a household name back in the ’90s and this new revamped version for social and E4 retains the elements that made this show so special, whilst also bringing it bang up to date, improving game quality and bringing in fresh and current names to tackle the trickiest GamesMaster challenges yet.”
Sacha Khari, Channel 4
GamesMaster returns after a 23-year break, and was responsible for giving us some classic TV gaming moments like this.
Sir Trevor McDonald OBE said: “I am delighted to be taking on this iconic role for a new generation of viewers.”
Frankie Ward said: “It’s absolutely WILD to me firstly that I get to be part of GamesMaster and secondly that it’s with E4, a decade after I used to work on their website. I can’t wait for you to see what we’ve been working on, and for the gaming challenges to commence!
“I couldn’t be more excited to be part of the GamesMaster team, especially as the one thing I love almost as much as playing games is watching other people play them – and believe me when I say I take the art of celebrating their triumphs and failures very seriously indeed…”
Robert Florence added: “I’m hugely honoured that I’ve been trusted with ushering a new generation of challengers to their glory or humiliation, under the unflinching gaze of the GamesMaster. I look forward to finding out how much I can get away with.”
Ty Logan commented: “I’m so excited to be joining the presenter team on GamesMaster. From being an E4 Face of the Future to fronting such a brilliant show, with this incredible team, is a dream come true. Let’s go!”
In the new E4 Digital Original Commission co-produced by Barcroft TV, a Future PLC company and Alaska TV, the three 60-minute series will premiere on E4’s YouTube before a linear TX on E4.
E4 has also partnered with Oculus from Facebook to showcase the Oculus Quest 2 VR headset.
Sacha Khari, head of digital commissioning at Channel 4, said: “GamesMaster was a household name back in the ’90s and this new revamped version for social and E4 retains the elements that made this show so special, whilst also bringing it bang up to date, improving game quality and bringing in fresh and current names to tackle the trickiest GamesMaster challenges yet.”
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
