One of the many reasons for the increase in the popularity of poker in recent years has been because of the role of the media.

Like many other mainstream sports that are shown on television, poker has also found a niche for itself in programs such as PartyPoker Late Night Poker.

This show was regularly broadcast in the past on Channel 4 in the UK and became a firm favorite among novice players and professionals alike. The program, along with others of its kind, has been attributed to increasing the popularity of the game in the United Kingdom  quite significantly. 

Monday January 7th will see PartyPoker Late Night Poker make a celebratory comeback to the television circuit, after being off air for a while. Beginning at 11.50 pm local time, the show will kick off with a star-studded one-time debut, and feature a long list of entertainers, including John Thomson, the actor, David Gorman, the popular comedian and Cleo Rocos, a television personality in the UK . 

Presented by Vicky Coren, PartyPoker Late Night Poker was filmed in Cardiff . The show’s main poker tournament will begin on January 15th and will run for a period of 10 weeks until the final event. This season will feature some of the industry’s best players, as well as a team of extremely promising players who will challenge last season’s professionals. 

The current show will include last year’s favorites such as Padraig Parkinson and David “Devilfish” Ulliot who will play against a team of highly motivated up and coming stars, including Dubliner Andy Black who placed 5th in a WSOP event, the Norwegian wunderkind Annette Obrestad who won the European WSOP Main Event last year, and “El Blondie”, poker personality and player David Colclough.

The producers of this season’s PartyPoker Late Night Poker have made a few changes to last year’s formula, the most important being that it will not show the players’ hole cards from the moment they enter the pot, as so many poker shows do these days. Instead, Late Night Poker will stick to its original format and give viewers a peek at hole cards throughout the show. The program’s producer explained: 

“Twice in each show we will see the hand from one player's perspective. We'll only see their particular hole cards which gives the viewer a different perspective as the hand develops. TV poker is about creating drama and tension and in these instances the commentators will have great fun guessing what the opponent might be holding. There's also the excitement of the 'reveal' moment at the end of the hand. We believe this will enhance the viewer's enjoyment."

Author:  Renee Kingsley