Only Connect fans on Reddit were left stumped by a tricky sequence puzzle inspired by the BBC quiz show – but it turns out the answer is staring you right in the face
Only Connect is one of the hardest quiz shows on TV(Image: )
If you’ve ever flicked on the telly during the late afternoon or early evening, you’ll be familiar with the array of quiz programmes that we Brits can’t get enough of. From BBC staples like Pointless and Mastermind to cherished ITV favourites including The Chase and Tipping Point, countless viewers settle in with a cup of tea to put their brains to the test.
Among the most challenging quiz programmes on television, BBC2’s Only Connect is widely regarded as a brain-bender. Presented by Victoria Coren Mitchell, the programme features teams of contestants battling it out in a tournament where they must identify connections between apparently unrelated clues. These clues can be connected in numerous ways – thematically, linguistically, or factually – and frequently demand some serious lateral thinking to crack.
As one of the toughest quiz shows around, devotees of Only Connect experience a genuine sense of achievement when they work out an answer before the contestants manage to. There’s even a dedicated Only Connect forum on Reddit where enthusiasts post their own puzzles for fellow fans to tackle.
A question shared on the forum recently had people well and truly stumped, as whilst the answer appeared “easy” once revealed, it proved “impossible” for many to work out without clues. The puzzle drew inspiration from Only Connect’s second round, where contestants are given a maximum of three clues and must work out what would come fourth in the sequence.
In this particular puzzle, the three clues provided feature two letters followed by an arrow directing you to a single letter.
The clues were: EN -> E, TR -> X, AN -> I.
To crack the puzzle, you need to figure out what comes next in the pattern. You can deduce it’s probably two letters on one side of the arrow and a solitary letter on the other – but beyond that, you’ll need to examine the actual letters used closely to suss out the solution.
Commenters beneath the post were swift to declare the puzzle appeared “impossible” initially, but after mulling it over and spreading all the information before them, it became “easy” to crack. There’s no ticking clock, so take as long as you require to solve this one.
Attempt to think creatively, and don’t get too fixated on the individual letter combinations themselves. When you’re prepared for the answer, continue scrolling to discover if you’ve cracked it correctly.
Answer
The missing element is CE -> T.
The pieces ingeniously spell “Entrance” and “Exit”. The first clue provided you with the EN of entrance and the E of exit, whilst the following clues delivered the succeeding letters. The only ones absent were the CE at the conclusion of entrance, and the T from exit.
One individual posted the answer on the Reddit forum without additional explanation, and when pressed to clarify how they’d arrived at the correct answer, another user responded to reveal the solution was: “ENTRANCE -> EXIT”.
Another person added: “This is absolutely one of those that is more obvious when you see the clues next to each other rather than scrolling through.”
Did you solve it? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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