The 1% Club: 12 contestants eliminated by a question viewers thought was surprisingly easy

Twelve contestants were knocked out of The 1% Club after failing a calculator question that left viewers at home wondering how they had missed the answer.

The moment came during the episode broadcast on Saturday, 10 May 2025, when Lee Mack presented the latest round of ITV’s logic-based quiz. The show’s fourth series, episode 14, aired that evening.

Unlike traditional quiz shows, The 1% Club does not rely on contestants remembering facts or keeping up with current affairs. Instead, its questions are designed around logic, reasoning and common sense. ITV describes the format as a quiz where general-knowledge revision is not required, with 100 contestants initially competing for a potential prize of up to £100,000.

That approach can make some questions particularly deceptive. A puzzle might look obvious when the answer is finally revealed, yet become much harder when contestants have only seconds to think under the pressure of a television studio.

The calculator question that caught out 12 contestants

The question in question appeared at the 30 percent stage of the game.

Contestants were shown an image of a calculator and asked:

“What’s the largest four-digit number you can type using just the number keys on the bottom two rows of this calculator without using the same number key twice?”

The challenge was to identify which four digits could actually be used from the bottom two rows and then arrange them to create the largest possible four-digit number.

The correct answer was 3210.

The four digits are the only numbers available among the relevant keys on the calculator’s bottom two rows. Once the solution is explained, the logic becomes considerably easier to see.

Yet 12 contestants failed to find it and were eliminated from the competition.

The result prompted plenty of disbelief from viewers watching at home. Several took to X to question how so many contestants had been caught by what they considered a straightforward puzzle.

One viewer simply asked how 12 people could have been eliminated when the answer was 3210. Another described the calculator puzzle as “suspiciously easy”, while a third joked about the contestants’ ability to make it onto the show in the first place.

The reaction highlights one of the quirks of The 1% Club: questions that seem simple from the sofa can feel very different when contestants are faced with a ticking clock, an audience and the possibility of being eliminated.

Another 12 contestants fell at the 90 percent question

The calculator puzzle was not the only question to cause a mass exit during the episode.

Earlier in the game, another 12 contestants were eliminated by the 90 percent question, which involved a set of fridge magnets and required players to work out the name of a fruit.

The answer was mango.

Contestants had to use the letters M-A-N-G-O, while disregarding the letters F, P and H shown among the magnets. The question and answer are also recorded for the 10 May 2025 episode.

So, despite the confidence that can come from watching along at home, the episode provided a reminder of how quickly apparently simple puzzles can go wrong when the pressure is on.

For the 12 contestants who survived the calculator question, the game continued. For those who chose the wrong four digits, however, the seemingly straightforward 3210 puzzle marked the end of their run.

The 1% Club is hosted by Lee Mack and is produced by Magnum Media for ITV. The format begins with 100 contestants and gradually eliminates players through increasingly challenging logic and reasoning questions, with the ultimate goal of reaching the final 1 percent question and competing for up to £100,000.