Jury hears coughs in TV quiz show trial

An army major cheated his way to the top prize in the British version of hit TV quiz show “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” by using the coded coughs of an accomplice in the studio, a London court was told Wednesday.

Maj. Charles Ingram won $1.6 million but the prize was withheld after the producers became suspicious about a series of coughs they believed might have helped him answer the winning questions.

Ingram, 39, of the Royal Engineers, his wife, Diana, 38, and college lecturer Tecwen Whittock, 53, deny charges of conspiracy and procuring the execution of a valuable security by deception.

The first day of the trial included the jury being shown unedited footage of Ingram’s appearance on the show, recorded in September 2001 but never broadcast. The prosecution said 19 coughs that could be heard on the tape came from the direction of Whittock -- who was another contestant waiting for the chance to play -- at times when Ingram was musing out loud over which of the four possible answers he should choose.