the show was hosted by cilla black, and filmed in front of a live studio audience. its premise involved surprising members of the public with long-held wishes, setting up tricks to fool members of the public, prank calls to people and reuniting guests with long-lost loved ones. black was assisted for eight series by bob carolgees, famous for his glove puppetry act "spit the dog", while gordon burns and tessa sanderson were roving reporters. other featured acts were "cilla-grams," where black would perform a song in a musical sketch relevant to the surprise a person was receiving. (example: a soldier was celebrating his 21st birthday, so the featuring song black sang was "celebration" by kool & the gang.)