The 1% Club sets a record as 39 contestants pass on one question

Lee Mack was left genuinely stunned when The 1% Club made show history — not because a large number of contestants got a question wrong, but because so many were unwilling to risk answering it.

During the latest episode, just four contestants were eliminated by the 50% question. Yet an extraordinary 39 players used their one pass, setting an all-time record for the number of passes used on a single question.

39 contestants chose to pass

The 1% Club begins with 100 contestants, who face a series of increasingly difficult questions based on reason, logic and lateral thinking.

Players can use a pass once during the game if they are unsure about an answer, allowing them to avoid being eliminated.

The record-breaking moment came with the 50% question:

“Which of these is the odd one out in this CONUNDRUM?”

Contestants were given four options:

• A. cord
• B. norm
• C. noun
• D. moon

Despite being only halfway through the game, the question clearly caused widespread uncertainty.

Only four people answered incorrectly, but 39 contestants decided to use their pass rather than commit to an answer.

That meant more people used their passes than were actually eliminated — something Lee Mack said had never happened before on the show.

Lee Mack: “I’m genuinely in shock”

The unusual result immediately caught the host’s attention.

“Now here’s the interesting thing, you lot have just broken a record on The 1% Club because four people went out, but it’s not four people who didn’t know it,” Lee explained.

He then revealed the striking figure: 39 people had used a pass.

“I think that’s the only time ever in the history of this show more people used a pass than actually knew the answer,” Lee added.

“I’m genuinely in shock.”

The reaction from the contestants was equally telling, with groans heard from the audience as the scale of the uncertainty became clear.

Viewers couldn’t agree on whether it was difficult

The question also divided viewers watching at home.

One person reacted on X, formerly known as Twitter, in disbelief that 39 contestants had used their passes, while another described the 50% question as “easy peasy.”

A third viewer similarly suggested the episode had been relatively straightforward up to that point.

The contrasting reactions highlighted one of the show’s central challenges: a puzzle that appears obvious to viewers watching at home can feel considerably more difficult when contestants have to make a decision under pressure.

So, what was the answer?

For anyone who still wants to solve the puzzle before seeing the explanation, the correct answer was D. moon.

The key was hidden within the word “CONUNDRUM.”

The words cord, norm and noun can all be created using letters found in “conundrum.” Moon, however, cannot — making it the odd one out.

So while only four contestants were eliminated, the overwhelming majority of players who remained simply weren’t confident enough to risk their only pass on the answer.

The 1% Club airs on Saturdays at 8.35pm on ITV1.