TWO of TV's most talked about quiz shows give out the wrong message for Christmas, according to a prominent local cleric.

The Rector of Bury Parish Church, Rev John Findon argues that the shows, whose catchphrases have become a part of everyday banter, carry an underlying message of greed and selfishness.

Chris Tarrant's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" has an overwhelming theme of materialism, while BBC show "The Weakest Link" encourages the belief that the weak in society can be disregarded in the pursuit of wealth, according to the Rev Findon.

He said: "The thing I really take issue with about "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" is that anybody's serious problems are going to be helped by money, because I don't think they are.

"For every person I see in Bury who's in a muddle because they don't have enough money there's another with problems because they've got too much."

But Rev Findon's strongest criticisms were aimed at "The Weakest Link", hosted by Anne Robinson, where contestants vote to get rid of the players they consider to be least able to win the team money.

He said: "That seems to be a wretched attitude. To have Anne Robinson encouraging people to stick knives into each others backs, just for the sake of it, seems wrong.

"It's the wrong tone and encourages instincts we ought to try to kill in ourselves."