Science teacher ridiculed for getting simple chemistry question wrong on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Viewers joked the contestant ‘may need to go back to school’
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A retired science teacher was left red-faced after getting a question wrong on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
The contestant made it through several rounds of the long-running ITV quiz show, before being posed a question that fell squarely in her field of expertise.
To win £4,000, Pat Lucas, from Lincoln, was asked to identify the meaning of a skull and crossbones warning label.
The four multiple-choice options were: “Toxic, Hazardous to the environment, Corrosive, or Flammable”.
After using her “50:50” lifeline to narrow the choices down to just the former two possibilities, the contestant said: “I wish one of the others was gone… [though] I’m sure it means hazardous to the environment.”
She selected that as her final answer, only to be told that the correct response was, in fact, “Toxic”.
Millionaire viewers turned to social media to revel in the blunder.
“Can't get over that retired science teacher not knowing what the toxic symbol was,” wrote one person on Twitter.
“A ‘science teacher’... obviously skipped the health and safety training,” joked another.
The official Millionaire Twitter account also pounced on the chance to salt the wound, bizarrely appearing to misgender the contestant in a tweet which reads: "Pat, a retired science teacher, may need to go back to school to help him remember the symbol for Toxic!"
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments