History Main / CandidCameraPrank

* [[DoubleSubversion DoubleSubverted]] on ''ABitOfFryAndLaurie'' in the sketch where Fry plays a rich bastard senselessly abusing Laurie's beggar character. Laurie eventually claims to be the star of a ''Beadle's About''-type show, and Fry changes his tune and starts looking around for the cameras, asking if Laurie is really a TV star, and Laurie replies, "No. But I might have been."
* ''TheDickVanDykeShow'' had an ep where pranks were played on the cast while they stayed at a cabin. The segmant was to be called 'Sneaky Camera' or something like that, and they then proceeded to lampshade the fact that it would be a ripoff of another show (Candid Camera, but not mentioned by name.)

* ''NoelsHouseParty'' with its "Gotcha" (originally "Gotcha Oscars" until the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences threatened legal action) feature on celebrities. Memorable ones include a football manager ending up doing the Christine Keeler pose and something involving "Custer's Last Hat Stand".

* Parodied in ''The Saturday Night Armistice'' when Creator/ArmandoIannucci introduces a segment where he's "played some hilarious practical jokes on celebrities", and shows a clip of one of his favourites, where he gives BobMonkhouse "the fright of his life". The clip shows Iannucci running up behind Bob and tapping him on the left shoulder while disappearing off to the right. Cut back to the studio, where Iannucci is helpless with laughter and claims it took four weeks to set up.

* ''Just For Laughs Gags'' is a Canadian version of these. Because there's pretty much no dialogue at all (overdubbing with music), it's often shown during flights. Its specialty is immense use of public service uniforms and vehicles.

* ''Just For Laughs Gags'' is a Canadian version of these. Because there's pretty much no dialogue at all (overdubbing with music), it's often shown during flights.

* Parodied in ''Series/TheSaturdayNightArmistice'' when Armando Iannucci introduces a segment where he's "played some hilarious practical jokes on celebrities", and shows a clip of one of his favourites, where he gives BobMonkhouse "the fright of his life". The clip shows Iannucci running up behind Bob and tapping him on the left shoulder while disappearing off to the right. Cut back to the studio, where Iannucci is helpless with laughter and claims it took four weeks to set up.

These types of pranks are popular enough that in fictional media, {{Muggles}} [[AllPartOfTheShow may assume]] that they're a part of an elaborate CandidCameraPrank when met with something fantastic.

* ''Scare Tactics''. Like ''Candid Camera'', but innocent people are tricked into extremely frightening situations. There's been at least one lawsuit by a victim, but the show continues.

** Parodied in ''Film/Stay Tuned'', with a show called "Sadistic Hidden Camera".

* Brent Douglas and the late Phil Stone of KMOD-FM in Tulsa, OK created "Roy D. Mercer," a country bumpkin who calls up businesses, citizens and even celebrities, asking for outlandish recompense for some wrong or another, and threatening an "ass-whoopin'" if he doesn't get it. Some believe that "Roy" is based on "Leroy Mercer," the brainchild of Tennessee native John Bean, who died in 1984 and whose [[KeepCirculatingTheTapes work was disseminated through bootleg tapes]] in the early '80s. Stone and Douglas claimed their character was original, despite the fact that "Roy's" and "Leroy's" calls share many similarities.

* ''Series/{{Jackass}}' while not an entire series built on this, it did feature gags that relied on the reactions of unsuspecting people passing buy. One example had Johnny Knoxville dress up as an old man and shoplift which ended up serving as the basis for BadGrandpa years later.

-->'''John Culshaw:''' "Hello, this is The Doctor."''
-->'''Tom Baker:''' "What, oh no, no you must be mistaken, ''I'' am The Doctor."''

* ''Series/TheDailyShow'' parodied these shows (and ''Punk'd'' specifically) at the end of a "This Week in God" segment, with a fake advertisement for a show called ''Baptiz'd''. Instead of an elaborate prank, the action involved Creator/StephenColbert throwing a paper cup of water into a coworker's face, then cracking up, showing him the "hidden cameras" (which can't be that hidden since they're just standing in the hallway by a water cooler), and informing him that he "just got ''Baptiz'd''!" (Next week: ''Circumcis'd''!)

* ''Punk'd'' is an entire American series of this.

* ''TheChasersWarOnEverything'' also does both ordinary people and celebrities. The celebrity targets are often politicians, and the pranks are more satirical than most other shows - most famously, getting into the security zone around the APEC conference thinly disguised as a Canadian motorcade.

* ''ImprovEverywhere'' does it just for the amusement of the participants, bystanders and readers of their website.
* A ''SaturdayNightLive'' sketch with ChristopherWalken had such a show, [[http://snltranscripts.jt.org/02/02mpranksters.phtml Pranksters]]. It starts with a guy pranking his rat-hating sister... and goes into a man who pranks a workmate who kept using his parking space [[DisproportionateRetribution by killing him with a tire iron]].
* ''WhatWouldYouDo'' is a variation of this, in that it's a hidden camera show not done for comedy purposes; instead, it's more along the lines of a sociological/morality experiment.
* Several of the competions between the hosts of Series/DickAndDomInDaBungalow were this; for example, Om Pom Stick where they would have to try and stick pictures of themselves to members of the public without being noticed, or Bogies! where they would shout [[CaptainObvious "Bogies"]] ([=US=] English= "Boogers") louder and louder in a public place. The producer would do a funny sports-style commentary over the footage.

** The show is referenced in BillCosby's '60s standup sketch "Noah's Ark", where an incredulous Noah, receiving construction instructions from a voice in the air claiming to be God, eventually asks "Am I on ''Candid Camera''?"

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* Brent Douglas and the late Phil Stone of KMOD-FM in Tulsa, OK created "Roy D. Mercer," a country bumpkin who calls up businesses, citizens and even celebrities, asking for outlandish recompense for some wrong or another, and threatening an "ass-whoopin'" if he doesn't get it. Some believe that "Roy" is based on "Leroy Mercer," a creation of Tennessee native John Bean, who died in 1984 and whose [[KeepCirculatingTheTapes work was disseminated through bootleg tapes]] in the early '80s. Stone and Douglas claim their character is original, despite the fact that "Roy's" and "Leroy's" calls share many similarities.

* Brent Douglas and Phil Stone of KMOD-FM in Tulsa, OK created "Roy D. Mercer," a country bumpkin who calls up businesses, citizens and even celebrities, asking for outlandish recompense for some wrong or another, and threatening an "ass-whoopin'" if he doesn't get it. Some believe that "Roy" is based on "Leroy Mercer," a creation of Tennessee native John Bean, who died in 1984 and whose [[KeepCirculatingTheTapes work was disseminated through bootleg tapes]] in the early '80s. Stone and Douglas claim their character is original, despite the fact that "Roy's" and "Leroy's" calls share many similarities.

* Brent Douglas and Phil Stone of KMOD-FM in Tulsa, OK created "Roy D. Mercer," a country bumpkin who calls up businesses, citizens and even celebrities, asking for outlandish recompense for some wrong or another, and threatening an "ass-whoopin'" if he doesn't get it. Some believe that "Roy" is based on "Leroy Mercer," a creation of Tennessee native John Bean, who died in 1984 and whose [[KeepCirculatingTheTapes work was disseminated through bootleg tapes]]. Stone and Douglas claim their character is original, despite the fact that "Roy's" and "Leroy's" calls share many similarities.