Takeshi's Castle (Japanese: 風雲!たけし城, Hepburn: Fūun! Takeshi-jō) is a Japanese game show that aired between 1986 and 1990 on the Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS). It features the Japanese comedian Takeshi Kitano (also known as Beat Takeshi) as a count who sets up difficult physical challenges that players (or a volunteer army) must overcome in order to reach him in his castle.
The original show involved between 86 and 142 contestants whom General Tani (Hayato Tani) "forced" into a series of elimination-style physical challenges, which were similar to those found in It's a Knockout. At the end of each episode, the contestants who survived all challenges faced off directly against Takeshi and his army in one final assault on his castle, with the goal of claiming it for Tani.
