Major Fraud

Major Fraud reveals how a contestant almost cheated his way to winning the million-pound prize on the British television game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. Hosted by Chris Tarrant, the programme was once hugely popular in the UK and watched by millions of viewers nationwide.

Charles Ingram, a former British Army major, and his wife Diana Ingram were obsessed with appearing on the show. Diana had previously competed and walked away with £32,000. In September 2001, Charles also appeared on the programme but made a poor start, using two of his three ‘lifelines’ at just £4,000. The programme resumed the following day and, against all odds, he went on to win the grand prize.

Charles was denied his winnings and accused of cheating through a series of coughs made by Diana and fellow contestant Tecwen Whittock, which were used to signal the correct answers. All three stood trial and were subsequently convicted of deception. The documentary examines footage from the show to demonstrate how Charles, Diana, and Tecwen carried out their plan to cheat their way to the coveted jackpot.