Saturday 11 June 2011

Quiz Trippers

You may recall back on 24th February I posted a call from Channel 4 for quizzers to take part in a new show. I was just over on Daniel Fullard's Quiz Addict blog - link in my recommended links on the side of the page - and I noticed that Daniel had posted this link to a press announcement about it from Channel 4 - which I take the liberty of reproducing here : -

Quiz Trippers

I'll be honest, I was invited to audition for the show, but it didn't fit in with school holidays unfortunately. So I'll be very interested to see what they actually make of it. The idea is that a team of committed quizzers tour parts of Scotland on a bus, trying to win various pub quizzes on their itinerary. From the original email I received it came across as something of mix of pub quiz, along with the Coach Trip and the Weakes Link. Oh well, as I say , I'll be interesting to see just how fair they are to the principals involved.

8 comments:

DanielFullard said...

The people on BQA who have made some comments aren't too impressed with those chose to take part.

Londinius said...

Hi Daniel

I've just been over to have a look myself. I mean no disrespect to the people they've mentioned, but I can't say that I know hardly any of the names. Which doesn't mean that they're no good at all, but does suggest that we are maybe not dealing with superstars from the world of quizzing. I can tell you one thing I learned on the Quizzing website, they turned down a very good quizzer in the audition in the person of gareth kingston. If they were turning good quizzers like that down, I have horrible visions of this being a show where maybe the team travelling from place to place were being set up as 'patsies', to give us viewers the edifying specacle of them subsisting on basic rations, and arguing when they fail to win some of the quizzes they are entered in. I hope that I'm wrong, but I have my suspicions.

Gruff said...

Dave, you are far too kind.

I liked the sound of a quiz team travelling around and playing pub quizzes. However the show as described at the audition was: 5 people in a camper van living in tents. You need to win quizzes to earn money to supplement your food budget. At the end of the week you all vote for a winner, who takes home however much cash you have won.

At the audition questions like these aroused my suspicions:

- What sort of person annoys you?
- Are you the sort of person who backs down if you think you are right?
- How tolerant are you?
- Would you be able to cope with eating beans on toast for a week?
- Do you like camping?
- Would you be upset if someone smoked in the van/tent?

It is not hard to see how a tv company might put 5 'characters' together, guaranteed to wind each other up. After all, just watching people do pub quizzes would be pretty dull, so you would need to have something else to the show.

It might well turn out to be good viewing, but it wasn't for me and I think they probably sensed that by the end of the audition.

If it is (as it seemed) a Coach Trip meets Come Dine With Me format
then it might be very watchable tv. I will probably watch, but if my assumptions about the show are correct I won't lose any sleep about not being on it.

Londinius said...

Hi Gareth

Nonsense about too kind.

Your comments just confirm my suspicions that this really isn't meant to be a variation on the Dream Team/Eggheads theme, so much as another show of the 'aren't these people funny and petty when you put them all together and lets all have a good laugh at them' genre.

All the same, I'm going to watch it when it comes on.

Dave

drgaryegrant said...

Hi Dave
Not a comment on this post as such, just want to say Happy Birthday!
And you may see a familiar face in the next series of Mastermind!
Best wishes,
Gary

Londinius said...

Hi Gary

Thanks ! And thanks to all the people who wished me the same on Facebook.

Good luck in MM ! I hope that the Clark tip doesn't prove the kiss of death for you !

Dave

Gruff said...

Feel free to tip Gary all you want. Put an advert in the Western Mail if you like! :)

Londinius said...

Hi Gareth

I didn't realise that you're in it too ! ( Am I being obtuse - that was what you meant , right ? ! ) Well, if you want to avoid the Clark tip I am always open to bribery. As a friend of mine once observed, my soul is for sale, and its a lot cheaper than you might think too !

Good luck !

Dave