Stephen Mulhern forced to halt Deal Or No Deal as contestant breaks down in tears and gasps 'it's overwhelming!' - and even the studio audience can't stop crying

Stephen Mulhern was forced to halt Deal Or No Deal as a contestant broke down in tears during the most recent episode.

Host Stephen, 47, was at the helm of the Channel 4 show when even the studio audience couldn't stop crying at what had happened.

Midwife Paisley took her chances against the ruthless banker on Monday and while she had a good start the top £100,000 prize was eliminated early.

Despite the unfortunate loss she ended up with five boxes left - 10p, 50p, £10, £50,000, and £75,000.

She was tempted by the whopping offer of £16,750 which she quickly accepted.

She screamed: 'Thank you very much Mr Banker... because I'm going to be rich! Deal!'

She then told how she sweetly plans to take her parents on a cruise with her winnings.

One viewer in the studio was even left in tears and this led Stephen to briefly halt the show to acknowledge what had happened.

He exclaimed: 'This is absolutely joyous.'

'Sorry but can I just say, I've never seen this on anyone's game and I hope you don't mind me pointing you out but this gentleman in the back crying on your behalf. It's amazing.'

Paisley was comforted by the man's offer of a hug as the audience clapped in the background.

Stephen was drafted in replace original host Noel Edmonds , 75, for the rebooted series when it was revived by the broadcaster in 2023 after a seven-year hiatus.

Ahead of the second series starting last month Stephen said: 'I am absolutely over the moon that Deal or No Deal is returning to our screens.

'The response has been incredible and series one was an absolute rollercoaster of emotions. I loved it!..

'The contestants were a fantastic bunch facing the banker and our new batch of players need to hold their nerve if they want to walk away with the huge jackpot! It's such a phenomenal show and I'm absolutely chuffed to bits that we're going to be doing it all over again.'

Meanwhile, Tamara Gilder, Joint Managing Director for Remarkable Entertainment, said of the news: 'We were absolutely blown away by how much love there was for the show. We can't wait to make some more with the wonderful Stephen. Less so that Banker guy.'

While Katie Rawcliffe, Head of Entertainment commissioning at ITV. added: 'We are delighted the ITV viewers loved the new series Deal or No Deal, it was a triumphant return for this thoroughly enjoyable game show.

'It's a fantastic format that is both heartwarming and captivating and with Stephen at the helm it's the perfect combination.'

Airing on ITV1 and ITVX, the programme sees contestants battle it out against the notorious Banker to be in with a chance of winning a life-changing cash prize, in a nail-biting game of nerves and intuition.

Each week, a contestant will be confronted with 22 sealed boxes, each one hiding a different amount of money.

Without knowing what each one contains, the player must eliminate the boxes, which are opened one at a time to reveal the amount of money inside.

Pressure mounts as the player is tempted by the notorious Banker to accept an offer of cash in exchange for what might be inside their box.

As long as the larger cash prizes remain unchosen, the Banker's offers will get higher. But that can all change in an instant if a big cash prize is unveiled.