The experiment
A pound, a room, one winner
We wanted to know what happens when a big group of strangers each put in the same tiny amount and one of them takes the whole thing.
The old whip round worked because everyone put in the same and nobody counted. We kept the first half and made the counting public.
1,412,000
People in the rooms
£487,300
Handed to winners
£41,200
Raised for charities
£0
Taken from the pots by us
What we're actually testing
Will people chip in when they don't have to?
Every big pot starts free. The prize only grows if the room decides it should. So far, about one in five converts.
Does knowing the room change how it feels?
You can see exactly how many people are in with you and what the odds are. No hidden numbers, no fake urgency.
What do people do with the money?
We ask every winner, and we publish what they're happy to share. Most of it is boring and brilliant: debts, boilers, a first holiday in years.
Want in?
Free entry is genuinely free and takes about twenty seconds.