Game Show Scandal Sparks Legal Battle

Grainy photos of a game show referee appearing to tip off a winning town’s contestants with his fingers have shaken France’s leading TV network, setting off a storm of legal finger-pointing.

The popular “Intervilles,” a show drawing sellout crowds of thousands watching towns compete in grueling obstacle courses, cow-dodging and other stunts, came under fire last week when a muckraking newspaper broke the news.

The Canard Enchaine reported that during a July 2 show on the TF1 network, referee Olivier Chiabodo discreetly signaled contestants from Puy-du-Fou to pick answer No. 3 with three fingers on his thigh.

The teams from Puy-du-Fou and Ancenis were asked what Henri-Desire Landru’s final request was before the convicted murderer was guillotined at Versailles prison in 1922: 1. a haircut, 2. toothpick or 3. a footbath.

Le Parisien newspaper on Friday ran grainy front-page pictures showing what it said was Chiabodo signaling the Puy-du-Fou contestants in July and during another show last year. In both cases, the town’s contestants gave only the number of the choice.

Puy-du-Fou went on to win the championship this month for a second year in a row on Intervilles, whose final competition drew 7 million viewers according to the ratings.

Since the scandal broke, TF1 fired and sued Chiabodo, Puy-du-Fou has filed suit against the Canard for defamation, and Pont Saint Esprit, the town that lost the final last year, is also suing Chiabodo.