Last but not least of this week’s round ups we have Brain of Britain. Third semi final time, and the line up was Michael Frankel – Alan Hay – Rob Milnes – Richard Peterson. Michael was runner up to Hamish in heat 5, where he scored 12. Alan won heat 11 with 10. Rob won Heat 8 with 18, and Richard the following heat with 19. A Rob v. Richard battle then ? Time would tell.
Michael kicked off well with 2 answers, but probably should have got that both Judge Jeffreys and Roy Bean were Hanging Judges. Richard opened his account with that bonus. Alan didn’t know that the treaty of Paris ended the Crimean War – Michael was happy to take that one off his hands. Rob took his own first two, but missed out on the German mastiff – the Great Dane to you and me. Michael took that too. Richard took his own first, but missed out on the fact that it was Sam Pepys who called Nell Gwyn pretty and witty.
It had been a good round for Michael, but that was as far as his luck went for the rest of the show. None of his questions were exactly gimmes. Mind you, he might have guessed that Elisha Gray launched a long and ultimately unsuccessful lawsuit against Alexander Graham Bell. Alan was glad for that one. He also managed his own first, but missed out on T.H.Huxley, which kept Richard ticking along. Rob, yet to really show his class, took one, but could have done better with Billy Batson, alter ego of Captain Marvel. That was another one for Alan.Richard didn’t know the rather chestnutty buteo buteo – Rob buzzed with buzzard. So at the end of round 2, Rob had pulled up to equal Michael on 5. Michael took his own first starter in round three, but nobody could answer which plant has seeds called crossbills – well, it was something like that anyway. Geraniums. Fair enough. Alan didn’t know that former presidents Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died on the same day. Rob did, and then he took three of his own on the bounce. He might have gone on for a full set, but couldn’t bring to mind that it was Earl Stanley Gardner who created Perry Mason. Alan had that. Richard got one of those horrible questions that nobody can answer about the study of algae. So that meant that Rob now had a three point lead of 9 to Michael’s 6, as we entered the Beat the Brains Interval.
For those of us interested in Olympic History – and the Brains seemed certainly to fit into this category – the two questions were relatively gentle. Which was the first Scandinavian city to host an Olympic Games – being Stockholm in 1912. Which city was scheduled to hold the 1940 Olympics ? The answer being Tokyo. No book token there, I’m afraid.
Michael got a rather tricky one on a survey of the London poor. Well done to Rob for getting Charles Booth for that. Alan didn’t know that the name of Carthage was a Phoenician word – Michael took that. Rob took two, but didn’t know the Hebrew name of the Song of Solomon – and once again, full marks to Richard for knowing that one. Richard took one, but quoted the first line of the Move’s Flowers in the Rain leapt in with Blackberry Way. To be fair he did sound as if he was kicking himself. Rob had the bonus. That three point lead had now doubled, and it was looking like Rob’s win. Still a few rounds to go though.
Michael took one, but might have known that Count Vronsky was Anna Karenina’s lover in the novel. Rob accepted that one. Alan didn’t know that Douglas Hurd preceded David Cameron as MP for Witney. Almost inevitably Rob knew it. Rob took two, but then was stopped by a pig of a question about Golliards. As in golli – that’s ‘ard, I suppose. Richard took one, but didn’t know that the original Star Wars film is now called A New Hope. Popular culture – it’s funny how often it trips up some very good quizzers when it comes to BoB. Michael was tripped up by a question about artist G.F.Watts. Nobody knew it, nor did I. Alan made a brief spurt with two answers to take his score to 6, but the world conkers championship did for him, and the six he had now scored was to be his final total. Nobody knew Rob’s starter, a quote from Dickens’ Captain Cuttle in “Dombey and Son”. Finally Richard took one, but nobody knew that the world’s most reproductive marsupial is a bandicoot. Fancy that.
Two rounds to go, and Rob led by 9. It looked pretty cut and dried to be honest, and you had to say that Rob had shown the best all round knowledge in the contest so far. Michael didn’t know the old quiz chestnut that Shakespeare has Casca strike the first blow against Caesar. Richard took that. Nobody knew Alan’s question – that A Kiss For Corliss was the last film to star Shirley Temple – she quit the movies at the age of 21 . Or the movies quit her. Anyway Rob missed his own first, giving Richard a bonus with the Ram headed Egyptian God Amun. Richard, only one to increase his score during this round, added two more until he was stopped in his tracks by William Smellie. Well, quite. Going into the last round Rob led by 18, from Richard with 11. Theoretically, Richard could win. If Rob didn’t answer any, and Richard got bonuses on the other three, and a full set on his own he’d score 9. Well, that was ruled out when nobody could answer Michael’s first, about invar metal , an alloy used in clock manufacture. Alan’s first fell to Rob, who knew the german for late picked wine. He answered his first, but didn’t know that the aboriginal throwing device alluded to is the woomera. Richard finished off the contest with the Black War Leader. The brains suggested many Central American peoples, but not the Mayans, who were required.
A good win for Rob, then, who thus becomes a very credible finalist. It could be a close one. A small note too to say best of luck to my mate Rob Merrill, who goes for South Wales in the final semi on Monday .
The Details
Michael Frankel – 9
Alan Hay – 6
Rob Milnes – 20
Richard Peterson - 11
Saturday, 25 February 2012
News Questions
News 25th Feb 2012
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news ?
1. Abdulaziz A-Hiiji
2. Jean Claude Baumgartner
3. Christian Wulff
4. Johan-Friso of the Netherlands
5. Mervyn Westfield
6. The Death of Leon Klinghoffer
7. Hoy Hill
8. Schmallenberg Virus
9. Stephen Farrow
10. Heidi Thomas
11. Petr Skyllberg
12. LOCOG
13. Skye Gyngell
14. Zach Avery
15. Peter Rippington
16. Derek Thompson
17. June Hautot
18. Ed Sheeran
19. Madamoiselle
20. Edinburgh Woollen Mills
21. Marie Colvin
22. Nikki Sinclare
23. Eric Joyce
24. Emma Harrison
25. Christopher Tappin
In Other News
1. Which MP asked the official portrait painter to paint him looking a little taller ?
2. Heston Blumenthal will be making hot cross buns for Waitrose using which flavor ?
3. Which European politician admitted that David Cameron was right to veto the Euro Treaty ?
4. In which two team events did GB win gold medals in the Olympic Velodrome test event ?
5. Administrators were called in to which film studios last week ?
6. Which team knocked Arsenal out of the FA Cup ?
7. Who is the new manager of Leeds Utd ?
8. Which former cabinet minister in the Heath Government passed away last week ?
9. Which two events at the Olympic test event were won by Sir Chris Hoy ?
10. Which lowly team drew in the FA Cup with Spurs last week ?
11. Who won the Welsh Open Snooker title ?
12. The first test tube what was created last week ?
13. What did a survey reveal to be the healthiest city in the UK last week ?
14. Team which scored 3 own goals v. Liverpool in FA Cup last week ?
15. What went wrong with the Brighton half Marathon ?
16. Who called the BBC a “Declining Empire “ ?
17. Which filesharing website has been declared illegal in the UK ?
18. Which country announced it will be officially free of polio by next year ?
19. Which boxer is facing an enquiry over his admission that he has gone easy on opponents in fights in order to help his family win bets ?
20. Which BBC set will be used as temporary housing ?
21. Who won the Brits for Best Female and Best Album ?
22. Who announced profits of £2.4 billion ?
23. Which comedian passed away aged 85 ?
24. To whom did Adele gesture with her middle finger when her acceptance speech at the Brits was cut short ?
25. ITV news apologized last week for using which word during a report ?
26. Man City beat which team 4 – 0 in the Europa League ?
27. Which popular TV presenter was hurt when she fell from a horse last week ?
28. The US Supreme Court rejected whose appeal against his murder conviction last week ?
29. An inquest into whose death finally opened in Australia last week ?
30. JK Rowling announced that she has signed a deal to write what ?
31. Who plays the Queen in a new TV drama based on the Michael Fagan intrusion incident in the 80s ?
32. Where did the new Blue Peter garden open last week ?
33. Who opened it officially ?
34. Man Utd were beaten 2 – 1 by which team in the Europa League ?
35. Which university’s Conservative association has been stripped of its recognition over an unpaid bill ?
36. Which airline asked a kidney patient to pay for a seat for his dialysis machine ?
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news ?
1. Abdulaziz A-Hiiji
2. Jean Claude Baumgartner
3. Christian Wulff
4. Johan-Friso of the Netherlands
5. Mervyn Westfield
6. The Death of Leon Klinghoffer
7. Hoy Hill
8. Schmallenberg Virus
9. Stephen Farrow
10. Heidi Thomas
11. Petr Skyllberg
12. LOCOG
13. Skye Gyngell
14. Zach Avery
15. Peter Rippington
16. Derek Thompson
17. June Hautot
18. Ed Sheeran
19. Madamoiselle
20. Edinburgh Woollen Mills
21. Marie Colvin
22. Nikki Sinclare
23. Eric Joyce
24. Emma Harrison
25. Christopher Tappin
In Other News
1. Which MP asked the official portrait painter to paint him looking a little taller ?
2. Heston Blumenthal will be making hot cross buns for Waitrose using which flavor ?
3. Which European politician admitted that David Cameron was right to veto the Euro Treaty ?
4. In which two team events did GB win gold medals in the Olympic Velodrome test event ?
5. Administrators were called in to which film studios last week ?
6. Which team knocked Arsenal out of the FA Cup ?
7. Who is the new manager of Leeds Utd ?
8. Which former cabinet minister in the Heath Government passed away last week ?
9. Which two events at the Olympic test event were won by Sir Chris Hoy ?
10. Which lowly team drew in the FA Cup with Spurs last week ?
11. Who won the Welsh Open Snooker title ?
12. The first test tube what was created last week ?
13. What did a survey reveal to be the healthiest city in the UK last week ?
14. Team which scored 3 own goals v. Liverpool in FA Cup last week ?
15. What went wrong with the Brighton half Marathon ?
16. Who called the BBC a “Declining Empire “ ?
17. Which filesharing website has been declared illegal in the UK ?
18. Which country announced it will be officially free of polio by next year ?
19. Which boxer is facing an enquiry over his admission that he has gone easy on opponents in fights in order to help his family win bets ?
20. Which BBC set will be used as temporary housing ?
21. Who won the Brits for Best Female and Best Album ?
22. Who announced profits of £2.4 billion ?
23. Which comedian passed away aged 85 ?
24. To whom did Adele gesture with her middle finger when her acceptance speech at the Brits was cut short ?
25. ITV news apologized last week for using which word during a report ?
26. Man City beat which team 4 – 0 in the Europa League ?
27. Which popular TV presenter was hurt when she fell from a horse last week ?
28. The US Supreme Court rejected whose appeal against his murder conviction last week ?
29. An inquest into whose death finally opened in Australia last week ?
30. JK Rowling announced that she has signed a deal to write what ?
31. Who plays the Queen in a new TV drama based on the Michael Fagan intrusion incident in the 80s ?
32. Where did the new Blue Peter garden open last week ?
33. Who opened it officially ?
34. Man Utd were beaten 2 – 1 by which team in the Europa League ?
35. Which university’s Conservative association has been stripped of its recognition over an unpaid bill ?
36. Which airline asked a kidney patient to pay for a seat for his dialysis machine ?
University Challenge - Quarter Final Sudden Death - Match 1
Manchester v. Clare, Cambridge
While I was busy getting beaten in the Bridgend League again on Monday night, Manchester and Clare were getting on with the serious business of their sudden death quarter final match. The Manchester team of Luke Kelly, Michael McKenna, Paul Joyce, and captain Tristan Burke lost to UCL in their first quarters match, but then went on to survive an elimination match, knocking out a distinctly useful Newcastle outfit. The Clare team of Kris Cao, Daniel Janes, Jonathan Foxwell, and captain Jonathan Burley beat Homerton in their first quarter to earn two further bites at the cherry. They lost their first attempt to qualify in a thrilling match against Pembroke. On paper, an exciting match seemed to be ahead.
Luke Kelly knew that Live Aid came about as a result of a 1984 news report. Nicknames of politicians brought Manchester a full set of three. First blood duly taken, and then some. Daniel Janes buzzed too early on a series of historical figures with the forename Robert. This let in Michael McKenna , and a series of single name pseudonyms saw the team take another full set. Gresham’s Law escaped both teams. Kris Cao buzzed in too early for the pituatry gland, which again let the predatory Michael McKenna in. For the first time the team dropped a bonus on Egyptian Gods, but that gap was still growing. Neither team could identify a quote from Byron. Daniel Janes stopped the rot for Clare, knowing that Donegal is one of the three counties of Ulster situated in the Republic of Ireland. Bonuses on fishing gave a full set, and put them comfortably into the black. The first picture starter saw Daniel take a double , by identifying Baroness Ashton. Good shout, that. More of the same, female politicans and leaders, gave them 2 , and a near miss on Julia Gillard. Neither team knew Bramante was a chief architect on St. Peter’s Basilica. Paul Joyce, always an influential buzzer for Manchester, took his first of the evening with the famous bust of Queen Nefertiti. Ooh, matron. Innuendo overload. Another full set of bonuses on joules saw Manchester end the first ten minutes on a very healthy 95 to Clare’s 35.
Pandar from “Troilus and Criseyde” fell to Daniel Janes. The bonuses, on the Emperor Aurelian, yielded 2 bonuses. Luke Kelly answered that Nunavut is closest in size to Mexico. A UC special set of bonuses, involving arithmetic with numbers form the titles of books followed. It’s easier than it sounds – for example Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse ,multiplied by Bennett’s Towns = 25. Manchester managed two of these. Daniel Janes, who was having a storming game by this time, knew about the tonsure to earn bonuses on firs.A couple of bonuses were taken. That man Janes again took the next starter, knowing that Cher was a star of Moonstruck. Epithets from the Iliad gave them another full set. Both teams were mightily impressive on the bonuses in this first half of the contest. Kris Cao took the music starter, recognizing the work of composer Philip Glass. More music followed, with other avant guard composers. Clare impressed me by taking a full set. That was enough to push Clare into the lead. Daniel Janes recognized a DH Lawrence quote about Thomas Hardy. This brought up a set of bonuses on circuits and superconductors and that sort of thing. Stop me if I’m getting too technical. Luke Kelly knew that George III was the last King of Britain to claim the title of King of France. Well, he thought that a tree in Windsor Great Park was the King of Prussia, so what do you expect ? The following bonuses put Manchester 5 behind, and Michael McKenna correctly identified rhinoceros to bring up another UC special set. These were names of food and drink items where the first word ends with the first two letters of the second – eg orange gelato. Great set , and well done to Manchester for managing to get 2 of them. Neither team knew the sacral vertebrae, but Michael McKenna buzzed early and lost five. Paul Joyce put matters to right by getting the next starter, recognizing the line of succession to the throne. Bonuses on catalepsy brought Clare a 30 point lead at the 20 minute mark – with 170 to 140. All to play for.
Daniel janes won the buzzer race on The Affluent Society. Bonuses on sensory receptors bridged most of the gap. Paul Joyce recognized the style of Van Gogh for the second picture bonus. Works of art that were once stolen followed. Yet another full set. Just as the gap widened, so it narrowed, and it was Daniel Janes who did the business once again for Clare, recognizing that a quote from Shakespeare would be completed with the phrase “measure still for measure “. Fine work. Short story writers gave 2 bonuses. Tristan Burke wrongly zigged with Thomas More, allowing Daniel Janes to zag with Thomas Cromwell. Regnal names meant that Clare were first of the two teams through the 200 point barrier, With 5 minutes to go it was anyone’s game. Kris Cao buzzed in too early for a fungicide used in vineyards, but Manchester couldn’t capitalize. Skipper Tristan Burke , who’d had a quiet night, buzzed in with lacuna for the next starter. Indian states gave a couple of bonuses. Daniel Janes knew that Herbert Asquith was PM when Taft was President. Names for bones proved no match for Clare, who gobbled up the lot. Poor Kris Cao twitched on the next starter, and couldn’t answer how many black keys there are on a piano. Michael McKenna knew. Islands which can be reached from specific ferry terminals brought two bonuses, and the narrowest of leads for Manchester. Michael McKenna ran the buzzer race to identify monotremes as those mammals that lay eggs. Bonuses on scientific lines brought a welcome 10 points. Jonathan Burley took the next starter on the letter K. Cookery bonuses brought them 15 points. All square. Skipper Tristan Burke took the next starter on a priori reasoning. Common names of animals whose latin names contain domestica or domesticus passed them by. Luke Kelly took what looked like the last starter on fairs – and so it was. For the record Manchester won by 270 to 250, but what a match. Many many congratulations to both teams. I’m looking forward to seeing what the bonus conversion rate was – very good I should imagine. Hard lines particularly to Daniel Janes. I made it that he had 10 starters, a fantastic performance.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
Is it me, or has JP been overdosing on his happy pills this series ? He was veritably chuckling when Daniel of Clare was so keen to get points on the board for the fishing bonuses that he didn’t hardly let JP finish any of the three questions. “Slowing things down a bit , “ he said genially as he moved to the next starter. When playing the John Cage Bonus – presumably from 4’33 – he added “I can assure you you’re hearing it correctly. “
He still doesn’t do words of consolation very well, mind. At the end he hailed Clare’s magnificent effort with,
“You nearly did it. . . but you didn’t.”
Interesting Fact Of The Week
David Starkey once described Thomas Cromwell as “Alastair Campbell with an axe. “ Brilliant, although I always thought that Mr. Campbell played the bagpipes rather than the guitar.
While I was busy getting beaten in the Bridgend League again on Monday night, Manchester and Clare were getting on with the serious business of their sudden death quarter final match. The Manchester team of Luke Kelly, Michael McKenna, Paul Joyce, and captain Tristan Burke lost to UCL in their first quarters match, but then went on to survive an elimination match, knocking out a distinctly useful Newcastle outfit. The Clare team of Kris Cao, Daniel Janes, Jonathan Foxwell, and captain Jonathan Burley beat Homerton in their first quarter to earn two further bites at the cherry. They lost their first attempt to qualify in a thrilling match against Pembroke. On paper, an exciting match seemed to be ahead.
Luke Kelly knew that Live Aid came about as a result of a 1984 news report. Nicknames of politicians brought Manchester a full set of three. First blood duly taken, and then some. Daniel Janes buzzed too early on a series of historical figures with the forename Robert. This let in Michael McKenna , and a series of single name pseudonyms saw the team take another full set. Gresham’s Law escaped both teams. Kris Cao buzzed in too early for the pituatry gland, which again let the predatory Michael McKenna in. For the first time the team dropped a bonus on Egyptian Gods, but that gap was still growing. Neither team could identify a quote from Byron. Daniel Janes stopped the rot for Clare, knowing that Donegal is one of the three counties of Ulster situated in the Republic of Ireland. Bonuses on fishing gave a full set, and put them comfortably into the black. The first picture starter saw Daniel take a double , by identifying Baroness Ashton. Good shout, that. More of the same, female politicans and leaders, gave them 2 , and a near miss on Julia Gillard. Neither team knew Bramante was a chief architect on St. Peter’s Basilica. Paul Joyce, always an influential buzzer for Manchester, took his first of the evening with the famous bust of Queen Nefertiti. Ooh, matron. Innuendo overload. Another full set of bonuses on joules saw Manchester end the first ten minutes on a very healthy 95 to Clare’s 35.
Pandar from “Troilus and Criseyde” fell to Daniel Janes. The bonuses, on the Emperor Aurelian, yielded 2 bonuses. Luke Kelly answered that Nunavut is closest in size to Mexico. A UC special set of bonuses, involving arithmetic with numbers form the titles of books followed. It’s easier than it sounds – for example Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse ,multiplied by Bennett’s Towns = 25. Manchester managed two of these. Daniel Janes, who was having a storming game by this time, knew about the tonsure to earn bonuses on firs.A couple of bonuses were taken. That man Janes again took the next starter, knowing that Cher was a star of Moonstruck. Epithets from the Iliad gave them another full set. Both teams were mightily impressive on the bonuses in this first half of the contest. Kris Cao took the music starter, recognizing the work of composer Philip Glass. More music followed, with other avant guard composers. Clare impressed me by taking a full set. That was enough to push Clare into the lead. Daniel Janes recognized a DH Lawrence quote about Thomas Hardy. This brought up a set of bonuses on circuits and superconductors and that sort of thing. Stop me if I’m getting too technical. Luke Kelly knew that George III was the last King of Britain to claim the title of King of France. Well, he thought that a tree in Windsor Great Park was the King of Prussia, so what do you expect ? The following bonuses put Manchester 5 behind, and Michael McKenna correctly identified rhinoceros to bring up another UC special set. These were names of food and drink items where the first word ends with the first two letters of the second – eg orange gelato. Great set , and well done to Manchester for managing to get 2 of them. Neither team knew the sacral vertebrae, but Michael McKenna buzzed early and lost five. Paul Joyce put matters to right by getting the next starter, recognizing the line of succession to the throne. Bonuses on catalepsy brought Clare a 30 point lead at the 20 minute mark – with 170 to 140. All to play for.
Daniel janes won the buzzer race on The Affluent Society. Bonuses on sensory receptors bridged most of the gap. Paul Joyce recognized the style of Van Gogh for the second picture bonus. Works of art that were once stolen followed. Yet another full set. Just as the gap widened, so it narrowed, and it was Daniel Janes who did the business once again for Clare, recognizing that a quote from Shakespeare would be completed with the phrase “measure still for measure “. Fine work. Short story writers gave 2 bonuses. Tristan Burke wrongly zigged with Thomas More, allowing Daniel Janes to zag with Thomas Cromwell. Regnal names meant that Clare were first of the two teams through the 200 point barrier, With 5 minutes to go it was anyone’s game. Kris Cao buzzed in too early for a fungicide used in vineyards, but Manchester couldn’t capitalize. Skipper Tristan Burke , who’d had a quiet night, buzzed in with lacuna for the next starter. Indian states gave a couple of bonuses. Daniel Janes knew that Herbert Asquith was PM when Taft was President. Names for bones proved no match for Clare, who gobbled up the lot. Poor Kris Cao twitched on the next starter, and couldn’t answer how many black keys there are on a piano. Michael McKenna knew. Islands which can be reached from specific ferry terminals brought two bonuses, and the narrowest of leads for Manchester. Michael McKenna ran the buzzer race to identify monotremes as those mammals that lay eggs. Bonuses on scientific lines brought a welcome 10 points. Jonathan Burley took the next starter on the letter K. Cookery bonuses brought them 15 points. All square. Skipper Tristan Burke took the next starter on a priori reasoning. Common names of animals whose latin names contain domestica or domesticus passed them by. Luke Kelly took what looked like the last starter on fairs – and so it was. For the record Manchester won by 270 to 250, but what a match. Many many congratulations to both teams. I’m looking forward to seeing what the bonus conversion rate was – very good I should imagine. Hard lines particularly to Daniel Janes. I made it that he had 10 starters, a fantastic performance.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
Is it me, or has JP been overdosing on his happy pills this series ? He was veritably chuckling when Daniel of Clare was so keen to get points on the board for the fishing bonuses that he didn’t hardly let JP finish any of the three questions. “Slowing things down a bit , “ he said genially as he moved to the next starter. When playing the John Cage Bonus – presumably from 4’33 – he added “I can assure you you’re hearing it correctly. “
He still doesn’t do words of consolation very well, mind. At the end he hailed Clare’s magnificent effort with,
“You nearly did it. . . but you didn’t.”
Interesting Fact Of The Week
David Starkey once described Thomas Cromwell as “Alastair Campbell with an axe. “ Brilliant, although I always thought that Mr. Campbell played the bagpipes rather than the guitar.
Answers to News Questions
In the news – 18th Feb
Who or what are the following, and why have they been in the news ?
1) Dan Evans
2) Jean Dujardin
3) Bakers
4) Kisses on the Bottom
5) Ian Ayre
6) Dave Pearson
7) Andrea Masi
8) Les Ebdon
9) Moodys
10) Ali Dizaei
11) Derek Chisora
12) Uggie
13) Craig Whyte
14) Synchronised
15) Reverend John Suddards
16) Caroline Spelman
17) Nigel Keer
18) Lee Clark
19) Aaron Large
In Other News
1) How old was Whitney Houston when she passed away ?
2) Whose newly finished lost symphony was premiered on Radio 3 ?
3) Which film won the BAFTA for Best Film ?
4) Who won the BAFTA for Best Actress ?
5) – and what did she lose on her way to the podium ?
6) What specifically were criticised by the National Trust last week ?
7) Which country won the African Cup of Nations ?
8) How many Grammys did Adele win ?
9) Which county council made headlines for replacing metal road signs with plastic ones in order to foil scrap metal thieves ?
10) According to figures released last week, how many drivers aged 100 or over are still driving in the UK ?
11) Who sang “I will Always Love You” as a tribute to Whitney Houston in the Grammys ?
12) Which company angered Venetians by revealing plans to build a megastore along the Gran Canale in Venice ?
13) Which monarch entered hospital for bypass surgery last week ?
14) A Belgian court refused to ban which book last week ?
15) Who returned to Man city last week ?
16) Which club threatened to go into Administration over a tax bill ?
17) Who scored 137 for England in the first ODI v. Pakistan ?
18) Cardiff Blues returned to play a game in which venue last week ?
19) British Olympic competitors had to sign an agreement preventing them from doing which 2 things ?
20) What did Barbara Hulaniki criticize last week ?
21) Where was it announced will become a caravan park during the Olympics ?
22) A manuscript by which composer was found in a council building ?
23) Where was it announced that Whitney Houston’s funeral would be held ?
24) Last week saw the 70th anniversary of the fall of which British garrison to the Japanese ?
25) Which country have GB been drawn against in the Fed Cup ?
26) How did actress Caroline Quentin describe the X-Factor last week ?
27) An advert for which series on Channel 4 was criticized last week ?
28) Prince Charles revealed last week that he is a supporter of which football team ?
29) Which team destroyed Arsenal 4 – 0 in the Champions League ?
30) Last week Alastair Cook became the first England captain to achieve which feat ?
31) Which University are facing a fine for over recruiting students ?
32) Whose trial date last week was set for March 2nd ?
33) Which welsh town was revealed last week as the most misspelled place in Britain ?
34) Which artist revealed his plans to build 500 eco homes ?
35) The new £5 coin commemorates the 100th anniversary of what ?
36) In which country was the world’s worst ever prison fire ?
37) Who signed a deal with Harper – Collins to write her story for a reported £2.5 million ?
Answers
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news ?
1) Tennis player whose win in the final rubber against a player ranked 100 places above him brought an Andy Murray-less GB team a win over Slovakia in the Davis Cup
2) Star of The Artist, and winner of the BAFTA for Best Actor
3) Make of dog food. They made the first ever advert specifically for dogs rather than their owners. It was broadcast during Emmerdale last week, a pastiche of the Italian Job.
4) New album by Sir Paul McCartney
5) Liverpool Chief executive who issued immediate apology for Suarez’ refusal to shake the hand of Patrice Evra at the start of Liverpool v. Man Utd.
6) Referee blamed for calling off the France v. Ireland 6 Nations match in Paris.
7) Italian full back whose kick was charged down by Charlie Hodgson to give England a win in Rome
8) Nominated as government Universities Czar by Vince Cable, despite opposition from Cameron
9) Credit rating agency who warned the UK that they risk having credit rating downgraded from triple A.
10) Met Police senior officer jailed again.
11) British Heavyweight boxer who slapped Vitaly Klitschko at the weigh in
12) Dog – star of The Artist who won the inaugural Golden Collar Award – the Oscar for dogs
13) Owner of Glasgow Rangers
14) Horse given top weight of 11st 10lbs for the Grand National
15) Church of England clergyman murdered in his own home
16) Cabinet Minister who took out an injunction to prevent the papers printing a story
17) Naked rambler who kept a score of the number of times he got away with taking a walk in the nude
18) Sacked manager of Huddersfield Town
19) Street cleaner who handed in watches he found which were worth thousands of pounds to the police.
In Other News
1) 48
2) Schubert
3) The Artist
4) Meryl Streep
5) A shoe
6) Windmills
7) Zambia
8) 6
9) Surrey
10) 121
11) Jennifer Hudson
12) Benetton
13) Emperor Akihito of Japan
14) Tintin in the Congo
15) Carlos Tevez
16) Rangers
17) Alastair Cook
18) Cardiff Arms Park
19) Criticise teammates or sell kit
20) The use of thin models
21) Windsor Great Park
22) Elgar
23) Newark, New Jersey
24) Singapore
25) Sweden
26) Psychologically Damaging
27) My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding
28) Burnley
29) AC Milan
30) Score centuries in two successive One Day Internationals
31) London Metropolitan University
32) Chris Huhne and Vicki Pryce
33) Betws – y – Coed
34) Damien Hirst
35) The sinking of the Titanic
36) Honduras
37) Amanda Knox
Who or what are the following, and why have they been in the news ?
1) Dan Evans
2) Jean Dujardin
3) Bakers
4) Kisses on the Bottom
5) Ian Ayre
6) Dave Pearson
7) Andrea Masi
8) Les Ebdon
9) Moodys
10) Ali Dizaei
11) Derek Chisora
12) Uggie
13) Craig Whyte
14) Synchronised
15) Reverend John Suddards
16) Caroline Spelman
17) Nigel Keer
18) Lee Clark
19) Aaron Large
In Other News
1) How old was Whitney Houston when she passed away ?
2) Whose newly finished lost symphony was premiered on Radio 3 ?
3) Which film won the BAFTA for Best Film ?
4) Who won the BAFTA for Best Actress ?
5) – and what did she lose on her way to the podium ?
6) What specifically were criticised by the National Trust last week ?
7) Which country won the African Cup of Nations ?
8) How many Grammys did Adele win ?
9) Which county council made headlines for replacing metal road signs with plastic ones in order to foil scrap metal thieves ?
10) According to figures released last week, how many drivers aged 100 or over are still driving in the UK ?
11) Who sang “I will Always Love You” as a tribute to Whitney Houston in the Grammys ?
12) Which company angered Venetians by revealing plans to build a megastore along the Gran Canale in Venice ?
13) Which monarch entered hospital for bypass surgery last week ?
14) A Belgian court refused to ban which book last week ?
15) Who returned to Man city last week ?
16) Which club threatened to go into Administration over a tax bill ?
17) Who scored 137 for England in the first ODI v. Pakistan ?
18) Cardiff Blues returned to play a game in which venue last week ?
19) British Olympic competitors had to sign an agreement preventing them from doing which 2 things ?
20) What did Barbara Hulaniki criticize last week ?
21) Where was it announced will become a caravan park during the Olympics ?
22) A manuscript by which composer was found in a council building ?
23) Where was it announced that Whitney Houston’s funeral would be held ?
24) Last week saw the 70th anniversary of the fall of which British garrison to the Japanese ?
25) Which country have GB been drawn against in the Fed Cup ?
26) How did actress Caroline Quentin describe the X-Factor last week ?
27) An advert for which series on Channel 4 was criticized last week ?
28) Prince Charles revealed last week that he is a supporter of which football team ?
29) Which team destroyed Arsenal 4 – 0 in the Champions League ?
30) Last week Alastair Cook became the first England captain to achieve which feat ?
31) Which University are facing a fine for over recruiting students ?
32) Whose trial date last week was set for March 2nd ?
33) Which welsh town was revealed last week as the most misspelled place in Britain ?
34) Which artist revealed his plans to build 500 eco homes ?
35) The new £5 coin commemorates the 100th anniversary of what ?
36) In which country was the world’s worst ever prison fire ?
37) Who signed a deal with Harper – Collins to write her story for a reported £2.5 million ?
Answers
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news ?
1) Tennis player whose win in the final rubber against a player ranked 100 places above him brought an Andy Murray-less GB team a win over Slovakia in the Davis Cup
2) Star of The Artist, and winner of the BAFTA for Best Actor
3) Make of dog food. They made the first ever advert specifically for dogs rather than their owners. It was broadcast during Emmerdale last week, a pastiche of the Italian Job.
4) New album by Sir Paul McCartney
5) Liverpool Chief executive who issued immediate apology for Suarez’ refusal to shake the hand of Patrice Evra at the start of Liverpool v. Man Utd.
6) Referee blamed for calling off the France v. Ireland 6 Nations match in Paris.
7) Italian full back whose kick was charged down by Charlie Hodgson to give England a win in Rome
8) Nominated as government Universities Czar by Vince Cable, despite opposition from Cameron
9) Credit rating agency who warned the UK that they risk having credit rating downgraded from triple A.
10) Met Police senior officer jailed again.
11) British Heavyweight boxer who slapped Vitaly Klitschko at the weigh in
12) Dog – star of The Artist who won the inaugural Golden Collar Award – the Oscar for dogs
13) Owner of Glasgow Rangers
14) Horse given top weight of 11st 10lbs for the Grand National
15) Church of England clergyman murdered in his own home
16) Cabinet Minister who took out an injunction to prevent the papers printing a story
17) Naked rambler who kept a score of the number of times he got away with taking a walk in the nude
18) Sacked manager of Huddersfield Town
19) Street cleaner who handed in watches he found which were worth thousands of pounds to the police.
In Other News
1) 48
2) Schubert
3) The Artist
4) Meryl Streep
5) A shoe
6) Windmills
7) Zambia
8) 6
9) Surrey
10) 121
11) Jennifer Hudson
12) Benetton
13) Emperor Akihito of Japan
14) Tintin in the Congo
15) Carlos Tevez
16) Rangers
17) Alastair Cook
18) Cardiff Arms Park
19) Criticise teammates or sell kit
20) The use of thin models
21) Windsor Great Park
22) Elgar
23) Newark, New Jersey
24) Singapore
25) Sweden
26) Psychologically Damaging
27) My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding
28) Burnley
29) AC Milan
30) Score centuries in two successive One Day Internationals
31) London Metropolitan University
32) Chris Huhne and Vicki Pryce
33) Betws – y – Coed
34) Damien Hirst
35) The sinking of the Titanic
36) Honduras
37) Amanda Knox
Mastermind - First Round - Heat 18
On with the second show. First into the chair was Joyce Wilson. Joyce was answering questions on The Human Body. Joyce had a low score of 4. Sometimes you see a contender fail to do as well as they would have hoped because there seems to be a difference between the contender’s understanding of what the subject entails and the question setters. This may have been the case in Joyce’s round. Without wanting to be horrible, though, I have to say that the questions seemed pretty fair to me. I managed 7 , just from general knowledge, and quiz knowledge. Ossicles and sartorius for example have both been asked in quizzes I’ve attended in the last couple of months. It may well have been nerves, and if the nerves get to you, then there’s nothing you can do. However it may have been a lack of preparation. Weeks and weeks of preparation for your specialist subject is no guarantee of success, but a failure to prepare is asking for trouble. Well, whatever the case, John certainly seemed to be feeling the pressure himself. When asked her last question , which was something along the lines of – what name is given to joints named after the fluid which cushions them, Joyce answered “joints “, and John even prompted her with “Which type of joints ? “ The poor man seemed very upset. Joyce on the other hand managed a smile at the end of the round, and I always salute people who manage to treat the two imposters just the same when they leave the chair.
Ian Jones offered the Life and Works of James Brindley. I had my lowest specialist score of the night with 2. Having said that , I scored a point on the question which saw Ian drop a point he could have had. Asked about the engineer who had also designed the Eddystone Lighthouse, Ian answered JAMES Smeaton, and didn’t get his point since the answer is JOHN Smeaton. Had he merely answered Smeaton, as I did, he’d have had his point, I’m sure. Remember, it’s first names for show, and surnames for dough. Still, 12 was a good score and gave him a chance, even if it did put the repechage threshold beyond anything but an excellent GK round.
My favourite SS round of the whole night came from Ewen McPherson. He was answering on the Soviet Space Programme. I’ve said before that as a nipper during the late 60s and early 70s I was a little bit space mad at the time, and a lot of this stuff has still stuck. As a result I was delighted with my 10 points on this round. Granted , some of these weren’t all that difficult. The second Russian in space – the name for the three man vostok – the name of the cosmonaut who was killed when the parachutes on his capsule failed to open – the first man to do a spacewalk – the first manmade object to hit the surface of the moon for example all could be got without real in-depth knowledge of the subject. Not that I blame Ian for this. He knew the difficult stuff as well. However as a small point of technique, when asked for names Ian insisted on giving the full three names , first name, patronymic and surname. This used up valuable time when I’m sure that just the surname would have been accepted. It might well have bought him the time for another question.
Our last contender , Chris Cummins, will have been recognized by many viewers for being a member of the Strategists, Grand Finalists in the 3rd series of Only Connect. “That’s the winner !” I confidently announced to no one in particular. Chris answered questions on the TV career of Victoria Wood. I managed 5 answers on the AS Seen On TV series, but although I remember watching Wood and Walters back in the day, I couldn’t recall any of the details which were asked for. Chris, who wouldn’t even have been born when that series was broadcast , I’m sure, had no such problem. He scored 15, and Gypsy Rose Clark for once looked to have made a pretty safe prediction.
Joyce, having gone first in the first round, had been sitting for a long time waiting to get back in the chair, and she could have been forgiven for brooding over her specialist . Not a bit of it. She kept a ready smile, and didn’t seem too upset at all, even though things weren’t honestly all that much better in the GK. She ended with 9, but kept an admirable calm throughout the whole experience. Now, I said that Ian needed an excellent GK round to make a realistic run at the repechage board at the very least. Well, that’s exactly what he produced. I found the GK round sin this show slightly easier than the previous, but it’s all subjective anyway. Ian kept his composure, kept the correct answers coming, and whacked in 15. A score of 27 and 1 pass certainly gave him the chance of a repechage spot at the least , provided that it wasn’t beaten by both of the remaining contenders.
Which was by no means a given. Ewen started on 12, as had Ian, and so needed to equal his score with no passes to go into the lead. Well, he passed on 4, and although he too had a fine GK round, it wasn’t quite as good as Ian’s. His 13 put him 2 points back on 25. For the record I scored a point more on Ewen’s than on Ian’s – 19 to 18. In order, then, to beat the Clark curse Chris needed to score 13. That was a challenging total, even off a two and half minute round. Chris has been in pressure situations on telly shows before , though, and he knows how to handle it. It wasn’t a better round than Ian’s, but it was pretty much as good – 15 points and 3 passes enabling him to reach the magical 30 point mark. Very well done Chris ! Well done Ian as well. I don’t know whether he’ll stay on the board until the end of the first round, but he certainly earned his place there for now.
The Details
Ian Jones offered the Life and Works of James Brindley. I had my lowest specialist score of the night with 2. Having said that , I scored a point on the question which saw Ian drop a point he could have had. Asked about the engineer who had also designed the Eddystone Lighthouse, Ian answered JAMES Smeaton, and didn’t get his point since the answer is JOHN Smeaton. Had he merely answered Smeaton, as I did, he’d have had his point, I’m sure. Remember, it’s first names for show, and surnames for dough. Still, 12 was a good score and gave him a chance, even if it did put the repechage threshold beyond anything but an excellent GK round.
My favourite SS round of the whole night came from Ewen McPherson. He was answering on the Soviet Space Programme. I’ve said before that as a nipper during the late 60s and early 70s I was a little bit space mad at the time, and a lot of this stuff has still stuck. As a result I was delighted with my 10 points on this round. Granted , some of these weren’t all that difficult. The second Russian in space – the name for the three man vostok – the name of the cosmonaut who was killed when the parachutes on his capsule failed to open – the first man to do a spacewalk – the first manmade object to hit the surface of the moon for example all could be got without real in-depth knowledge of the subject. Not that I blame Ian for this. He knew the difficult stuff as well. However as a small point of technique, when asked for names Ian insisted on giving the full three names , first name, patronymic and surname. This used up valuable time when I’m sure that just the surname would have been accepted. It might well have bought him the time for another question.
Our last contender , Chris Cummins, will have been recognized by many viewers for being a member of the Strategists, Grand Finalists in the 3rd series of Only Connect. “That’s the winner !” I confidently announced to no one in particular. Chris answered questions on the TV career of Victoria Wood. I managed 5 answers on the AS Seen On TV series, but although I remember watching Wood and Walters back in the day, I couldn’t recall any of the details which were asked for. Chris, who wouldn’t even have been born when that series was broadcast , I’m sure, had no such problem. He scored 15, and Gypsy Rose Clark for once looked to have made a pretty safe prediction.
Joyce, having gone first in the first round, had been sitting for a long time waiting to get back in the chair, and she could have been forgiven for brooding over her specialist . Not a bit of it. She kept a ready smile, and didn’t seem too upset at all, even though things weren’t honestly all that much better in the GK. She ended with 9, but kept an admirable calm throughout the whole experience. Now, I said that Ian needed an excellent GK round to make a realistic run at the repechage board at the very least. Well, that’s exactly what he produced. I found the GK round sin this show slightly easier than the previous, but it’s all subjective anyway. Ian kept his composure, kept the correct answers coming, and whacked in 15. A score of 27 and 1 pass certainly gave him the chance of a repechage spot at the least , provided that it wasn’t beaten by both of the remaining contenders.
Which was by no means a given. Ewen started on 12, as had Ian, and so needed to equal his score with no passes to go into the lead. Well, he passed on 4, and although he too had a fine GK round, it wasn’t quite as good as Ian’s. His 13 put him 2 points back on 25. For the record I scored a point more on Ewen’s than on Ian’s – 19 to 18. In order, then, to beat the Clark curse Chris needed to score 13. That was a challenging total, even off a two and half minute round. Chris has been in pressure situations on telly shows before , though, and he knows how to handle it. It wasn’t a better round than Ian’s, but it was pretty much as good – 15 points and 3 passes enabling him to reach the magical 30 point mark. Very well done Chris ! Well done Ian as well. I don’t know whether he’ll stay on the board until the end of the first round, but he certainly earned his place there for now.
The Details
| Joyce Wilson | The Human Body | 4 - 1 | 5 - 1 | 9 – 2 |
| Ian Jones | The Life and Works of James Brindley | 12 - 0 | 15 - 1 | 27 – 1 |
| Ewen McPherson | The Soviet Space Programme | 12 - 0 | 13 - 4 | 25 – 4 |
| Chris Cummins | The TV Career of Victoria Wood | 15 - 2 | 15 - 3 | 30 – 5 |
Mastermind - First Round - Heat 17
Yes, it was back to work for me this week, hence the fact that I haven’t had the time to post since last weekend. Apologies for that. Still, I’m here now, and so we can get on with the show.
Now, before you ask , I think I’d better say for the record that I didn’t actually take the wiki challenge myself yesterday. I was under a bit of time pressure for one reason and another , but I’ll be interested to hear if anyone else tried. For the record, with no preparation I found the specialists in the first show much harder than those in the second. I’m not talking about the relative difficulty of the questions – I don’t know enough about many of the subjects to comment on that – merely that in the first show all 4 contenders chose subjects about which I had no knowledge.
The first of these , the Life and Work of Thomas Jefferson-Hogg was tried by Nick Smith. I may be wrong, but I think that Nick was captain of the Bridge Players in series 4 of Only Connect. So I have to say that I was expecting a good round. I wasn’t disappointed either. Nick wisely avoided any passes at all, and supplied 13 correct answers. As we know, 13 and no passes is a competitive SS score, and will usually give you at least a shout at the halfway stage.
I must admit, I’m rather glad that I didn’t undertake the wiki challenge, for I think that if I had then I would have spent valuable time learning about the democratic egalitarian radical group which arose during the English Civil War for David Buck’s subject , The Diggers. Which would have been a complete waste since it wasn’t even about them. It was about the San Francisco anarchist collective of the mid 60s. I scored precisely zero on this round, and indeed my only point of the whole of the specialist rounds had already come and gone in Nick’s round. Just as Nick had done, David skillfully avoided scoring any passes, and his 12 was a good return.
Paul Jenkins earned the dubious honour of support from the Clark sofa when it emerged that he is from Penarth – about 30 odd miles down the road from LAM Towers. He was answering on the Life and Short Stories of Raymond Carver. Nope – never read any. Paul had, though. Alright, he sounded just a little nervous – understandably – but he too whacked in 12. Would he regret that single pass ? What a good first round this was turning out to be,
Finally Alan Clarke, who offered us Luton Town FC. I searched my meager store of facts about Luton Town – Eric Morecambe – David Pleat dancing across the pitch when relegation was avoided – but these yielded me no points whatsoever. Alan, however literally raced through the whole round. He hit top gear from the first question, and hardly relented until he had whacked in 15 correct answers, without conceding any passes. In a first round of this quality that 2 point lead looked a pretty useful advantage to have earned.
David Buck made the customary useful start to the GK round, but I’m afraid that the mid-round slump set in early, and it never released him from its vice like grip until the end of the round. His final score of 18 never looked as if it was likely to lead for much longer than another 2 and a half minutes. I managed 16 sitting on the sofa at home. I also managed 16 on the next GK round, from Paul Jenkins. Notwithstanding Paul’s nerves, which still seemed pretty much to the fore, he did what you have to do, by treating each question on its merits, answering correctly what he knew, guessing what he could guess, and passing when all else failed. This accrued a useful 12, to set the target at 24. It wouldn’t challenge for a repechage place, but it might just be enough.
Nick only had a point’s lead over Paul at the halfway stage, and after about 30 seconds I had a feeling that he wasn’t going to overtake Paul. He just wasn’t building up any head of steam. Having said that, he did manage to grit out the round to get into double figures. I have noticed that the extra half minute does seem to affect a lot of contenders. Rounds which, while maybe not world beating, are at least decent often tail off . Nick kept going, and achieved the satisfaction of getting into double figures for the GK. His 10 gave him 23. I did slightly worse on his round than the others with 15.
Alan, for his part , could afford not to get into double figures and still win if he kept his passes down to less than 2. He always looked comfortable. Of all of this show’s contenders his answering style was the crispest, quickest and probably most confident. This is not to say that his GK was better than Paul’s, but it was a good round of 12 nonetheless, which brought him the competitive total of27, and a win with daylight between himself and the chasing pack. Well done – good show.
The Details
Now, before you ask , I think I’d better say for the record that I didn’t actually take the wiki challenge myself yesterday. I was under a bit of time pressure for one reason and another , but I’ll be interested to hear if anyone else tried. For the record, with no preparation I found the specialists in the first show much harder than those in the second. I’m not talking about the relative difficulty of the questions – I don’t know enough about many of the subjects to comment on that – merely that in the first show all 4 contenders chose subjects about which I had no knowledge.
The first of these , the Life and Work of Thomas Jefferson-Hogg was tried by Nick Smith. I may be wrong, but I think that Nick was captain of the Bridge Players in series 4 of Only Connect. So I have to say that I was expecting a good round. I wasn’t disappointed either. Nick wisely avoided any passes at all, and supplied 13 correct answers. As we know, 13 and no passes is a competitive SS score, and will usually give you at least a shout at the halfway stage.
I must admit, I’m rather glad that I didn’t undertake the wiki challenge, for I think that if I had then I would have spent valuable time learning about the democratic egalitarian radical group which arose during the English Civil War for David Buck’s subject , The Diggers. Which would have been a complete waste since it wasn’t even about them. It was about the San Francisco anarchist collective of the mid 60s. I scored precisely zero on this round, and indeed my only point of the whole of the specialist rounds had already come and gone in Nick’s round. Just as Nick had done, David skillfully avoided scoring any passes, and his 12 was a good return.
Paul Jenkins earned the dubious honour of support from the Clark sofa when it emerged that he is from Penarth – about 30 odd miles down the road from LAM Towers. He was answering on the Life and Short Stories of Raymond Carver. Nope – never read any. Paul had, though. Alright, he sounded just a little nervous – understandably – but he too whacked in 12. Would he regret that single pass ? What a good first round this was turning out to be,
Finally Alan Clarke, who offered us Luton Town FC. I searched my meager store of facts about Luton Town – Eric Morecambe – David Pleat dancing across the pitch when relegation was avoided – but these yielded me no points whatsoever. Alan, however literally raced through the whole round. He hit top gear from the first question, and hardly relented until he had whacked in 15 correct answers, without conceding any passes. In a first round of this quality that 2 point lead looked a pretty useful advantage to have earned.
David Buck made the customary useful start to the GK round, but I’m afraid that the mid-round slump set in early, and it never released him from its vice like grip until the end of the round. His final score of 18 never looked as if it was likely to lead for much longer than another 2 and a half minutes. I managed 16 sitting on the sofa at home. I also managed 16 on the next GK round, from Paul Jenkins. Notwithstanding Paul’s nerves, which still seemed pretty much to the fore, he did what you have to do, by treating each question on its merits, answering correctly what he knew, guessing what he could guess, and passing when all else failed. This accrued a useful 12, to set the target at 24. It wouldn’t challenge for a repechage place, but it might just be enough.
Nick only had a point’s lead over Paul at the halfway stage, and after about 30 seconds I had a feeling that he wasn’t going to overtake Paul. He just wasn’t building up any head of steam. Having said that, he did manage to grit out the round to get into double figures. I have noticed that the extra half minute does seem to affect a lot of contenders. Rounds which, while maybe not world beating, are at least decent often tail off . Nick kept going, and achieved the satisfaction of getting into double figures for the GK. His 10 gave him 23. I did slightly worse on his round than the others with 15.
Alan, for his part , could afford not to get into double figures and still win if he kept his passes down to less than 2. He always looked comfortable. Of all of this show’s contenders his answering style was the crispest, quickest and probably most confident. This is not to say that his GK was better than Paul’s, but it was a good round of 12 nonetheless, which brought him the competitive total of27, and a win with daylight between himself and the chasing pack. Well done – good show.
The Details
| Nick Smith | The Life and Work of Thomas Jefferson-Hogg | 13 - 0 | 10 - 4 | 23 – 4 |
| David Buck | The Diggers | 12 - 0 | 6 - 6 | 18 – 6 |
| Paul Jenkins | The Life and Short Stories of Raymond Carver | 12 - 1 | 12 - 3 | 24 – 4 |
| Alan Clarke | Luton Town FC | 15 - 0 | 12 - 4 | 27 – 4 |
Saturday, 18 February 2012
Quizzlepuzzles
In case you missed Hugh's comment on the previous post, he mentioned that Rob Hannah - BoB joint runner up 2010 - has started a new blog called Quizzlepuzzle - which is well worth your time and effort checking out. Here's the link : -
Quizzlepuzzles
Quizzlepuzzles
Reappearing Contenders - Ageism
Over at Daniel’s Quiz Addict blog I was interested to read a post about Pat Baker, contender in Heat 13 of Mastermind last week. Daniel had linked to an article in Thursday’s Daily Mail. I’m not a devotee of that paper myself, and so I’d missed it. The article was pointing out that Pat had appeared on 3 BBC shows in the space of a week, even though the shows had been recorded months apart. For the record the other two shows were Perfection and Pointless.
Some of the comments afterwards were interesting in themselves, and indeed I noticed one by our own Brian Pendreigh. Despite what one or two of the other comments said, there really isn’t any need to read anything into the fact that Pat appeared in the three shows at virtually the same time. it’s just one of the quirks of scheduling. We already know that BBC schedulers rarely listen to programme makers . Why should anyone be that surprised that Pat was able to get onto the three shows in the first place ? The Mail article, with something of a lack of gallantry, printed Pat’s age, and I have to say that she does look very good for it. She has a certain wit and a confidence on screen that would definitely appeal to those who select contestants . The less money that’s available to be won on a show, the less it seems to matter whether a prospective contestant has ever appeared on TV before. Indeed, in the case of Mastermind it doesn’t even matter whether a prospective contender has appeared on Mastermind before, and thank goodness it doesn’t !
No, there’s no reason to get funny about people getting on to several different quiz shows. Whoever you are you have a right to apply to whichever show you fancy, and good luck to you.
What I think is far more worthy of angry comment is the apparent ban on over 30s appearing on Channel 4 big money quiz shows. Yes, the Bank Job is back for a second series. You might recall that my twins liked this show very much. We watched it later on last night on demand, and I predicted that all the contestants would be under 30, and that there wouldn’t be a ‘minger’ among them, to use the vernacular . Guess what ? I was right ! What were the chances of that happening ? Well, actually, probably 100%. Ah yes, you might say, but that’s only right considering that this 18-30 group are really channel 4’s target audience for this time slot. Let’s put aside the argument that I would have thought that a huge proportion of the target audience would actually have been out at 9pm on a Friday evening. What really annoys me is this. I just wish that they would come clean about their selection policy. I listened to the show fairly carefully, and I never once heard George Lamb refer to it specifically as a show for the under 30’s – yet that’s exactly what it is.
You can apply to get on the show by playing in an online tournament, and winning three games. Pretty much anyone can achieve this, since the vagaries of the online game with it’s £0 boxes, and it’s Steal boxes mean that the winner won’t always be the person who answers most questions. When you apply , there is absolutely NOTHING to tell you that if you’re over 30, then you have NO chance of getting on the show. I rather wish that once you enter your age – and you HAVE to do this when you register – a message box would flash up warning you that you are too old , and you won’t get on the show. Ah, but to come clean like this would leave the makers wide open to the charge of ageism. Yet the evidence of every episode of the show so far is that only the 18 – 30s will be allowed on, and anyone older will not even be considered. Although it seems as if nobody is going to tell you this officially. Which is cowardly , certainly, and some people would be forgiven for thinking this rather deceitful.
Would a show get away without being criticized for excluding either sex ? I doubt it. Would it get away with excluding people of a different race, religion or skin colour ? No.
Yes, but you may argue that it’s not aimed at a wide/family audience. The fact is though that once you take the external trappings away from it, the lights, the set etc. what you’re left with is a fairly standard quiz game show which need be no more exclusive to the 18 – 30s than any other age group. I’ll be interested to see whether a token wrinkly makes it onto the show or not before the end of the series, but I promise you that I won’t be holding my breath. So come on Remarkable Television – who I believe are part of Endemol, who make the show, come clean. Admit that you have no intention of allowing any older contestants on the show, and then take whatever flak you get for it, if any. Confession is supposed to be good for the soul.
Some of the comments afterwards were interesting in themselves, and indeed I noticed one by our own Brian Pendreigh. Despite what one or two of the other comments said, there really isn’t any need to read anything into the fact that Pat appeared in the three shows at virtually the same time. it’s just one of the quirks of scheduling. We already know that BBC schedulers rarely listen to programme makers . Why should anyone be that surprised that Pat was able to get onto the three shows in the first place ? The Mail article, with something of a lack of gallantry, printed Pat’s age, and I have to say that she does look very good for it. She has a certain wit and a confidence on screen that would definitely appeal to those who select contestants . The less money that’s available to be won on a show, the less it seems to matter whether a prospective contestant has ever appeared on TV before. Indeed, in the case of Mastermind it doesn’t even matter whether a prospective contender has appeared on Mastermind before, and thank goodness it doesn’t !
No, there’s no reason to get funny about people getting on to several different quiz shows. Whoever you are you have a right to apply to whichever show you fancy, and good luck to you.
What I think is far more worthy of angry comment is the apparent ban on over 30s appearing on Channel 4 big money quiz shows. Yes, the Bank Job is back for a second series. You might recall that my twins liked this show very much. We watched it later on last night on demand, and I predicted that all the contestants would be under 30, and that there wouldn’t be a ‘minger’ among them, to use the vernacular . Guess what ? I was right ! What were the chances of that happening ? Well, actually, probably 100%. Ah yes, you might say, but that’s only right considering that this 18-30 group are really channel 4’s target audience for this time slot. Let’s put aside the argument that I would have thought that a huge proportion of the target audience would actually have been out at 9pm on a Friday evening. What really annoys me is this. I just wish that they would come clean about their selection policy. I listened to the show fairly carefully, and I never once heard George Lamb refer to it specifically as a show for the under 30’s – yet that’s exactly what it is.
You can apply to get on the show by playing in an online tournament, and winning three games. Pretty much anyone can achieve this, since the vagaries of the online game with it’s £0 boxes, and it’s Steal boxes mean that the winner won’t always be the person who answers most questions. When you apply , there is absolutely NOTHING to tell you that if you’re over 30, then you have NO chance of getting on the show. I rather wish that once you enter your age – and you HAVE to do this when you register – a message box would flash up warning you that you are too old , and you won’t get on the show. Ah, but to come clean like this would leave the makers wide open to the charge of ageism. Yet the evidence of every episode of the show so far is that only the 18 – 30s will be allowed on, and anyone older will not even be considered. Although it seems as if nobody is going to tell you this officially. Which is cowardly , certainly, and some people would be forgiven for thinking this rather deceitful.
Would a show get away without being criticized for excluding either sex ? I doubt it. Would it get away with excluding people of a different race, religion or skin colour ? No.
Yes, but you may argue that it’s not aimed at a wide/family audience. The fact is though that once you take the external trappings away from it, the lights, the set etc. what you’re left with is a fairly standard quiz game show which need be no more exclusive to the 18 – 30s than any other age group. I’ll be interested to see whether a token wrinkly makes it onto the show or not before the end of the series, but I promise you that I won’t be holding my breath. So come on Remarkable Television – who I believe are part of Endemol, who make the show, come clean. Admit that you have no intention of allowing any older contestants on the show, and then take whatever flak you get for it, if any. Confession is supposed to be good for the soul.
News Questions
In the news – 18th Feb
Who or what are the following, and why have they been in the news ?
1) Dan Evans
2) Jean Dujardin
3) Bakers
4) Kisses on the Bottom
5) Ian Ayre
6) Dave Pearson
7) Andrea Masi
8) Les Ebdon
9) Moodys
10) Ali Dizaei
11) Derek Chisora
12) Uggie
13) Craig Whyte
14) Synchronised
15) Reverend John Suddards
16) Caroline Spelman
17) Nigel Keer
18) Lee Clark
19) Aaron Large
In Other News
1) How old was Whitney Houston when she passed away ?
2) Whose newly finished lost symphony was premiered on Radio 3 ?
3) Which film won the BAFTA for Best Film ?
4) Who won the BAFTA for Best Actress ?
5) – and what did she lose on her way to the podium ?
6) What specifically were criticised by the National Trust last week ?
7) Which country won the African Cup of Nations ?
8) How many Grammys did Adele win ?
9) Which county council made headlines for replacing metal road signs with plastic ones in order to foil scrap metal thieves ?
10) According to figures released last week, how many drivers aged 100 or over are still driving in the UK ?
11) Who sang “I will Always Love You” as a tribute to Whitney Houston in the Grammys ?
12) Which company angered Venetians by revealing plans to build a megastore along the Gran Canale in Venice ?
13) Which monarch entered hospital for bypass surgery last week ?
14) A Belgian court refused to ban which book last week ?
15) Who returned to Man city last week ?
16) Which club threatened to go into Administration over a tax bill ?
17) Who scored 137 for England in the first ODI v. Pakistan ?
18) Cardiff Blues returned to play a game in which venue last week ?
19) British Olympic competitors had to sign an agreement preventing them from doing which 2 things ?
20) What did Barbara Hulaniki criticize last week ?
21) Where was it announced will become a caravan park during the Olympics ?
22) A manuscript by which composer was found in a council building ?
23) Where was it announced that Whitney Houston’s funeral would be held ?
24) Last week saw the 70th anniversary of the fall of which British garrison to the Japanese ?
25) Which country have GB been drawn against in the Fed Cup ?
26) How did actress Caroline Quentin describe the X-Factor last week ?
27) An advert for which series on Channel 4 was criticized last week ?
28) Prince Charles revealed last week that he is a supporter of which football team ?
29) Which team destroyed Arsenal 4 – 0 in the Champions League ?
30) Last week Alastair Cook became the first England captain to achieve which feat ?
31) Which University are facing a fine for over recruiting students ?
32) Whose trial date last week was set for March 2nd ?
33) Which welsh town was revealed last week as the most misspelled place in Britain ?
34) Which artist revealed his plans to build 500 eco homes ?
35) The new £5 coin commemorates the 100th anniversary of what ?
36) In which country was the world’s worst ever prison fire ?
37) Who signed a deal with Harper – Collins to write her story for a reported £2.5 million ?
Who or what are the following, and why have they been in the news ?
1) Dan Evans
2) Jean Dujardin
3) Bakers
4) Kisses on the Bottom
5) Ian Ayre
6) Dave Pearson
7) Andrea Masi
8) Les Ebdon
9) Moodys
10) Ali Dizaei
11) Derek Chisora
12) Uggie
13) Craig Whyte
14) Synchronised
15) Reverend John Suddards
16) Caroline Spelman
17) Nigel Keer
18) Lee Clark
19) Aaron Large
In Other News
1) How old was Whitney Houston when she passed away ?
2) Whose newly finished lost symphony was premiered on Radio 3 ?
3) Which film won the BAFTA for Best Film ?
4) Who won the BAFTA for Best Actress ?
5) – and what did she lose on her way to the podium ?
6) What specifically were criticised by the National Trust last week ?
7) Which country won the African Cup of Nations ?
8) How many Grammys did Adele win ?
9) Which county council made headlines for replacing metal road signs with plastic ones in order to foil scrap metal thieves ?
10) According to figures released last week, how many drivers aged 100 or over are still driving in the UK ?
11) Who sang “I will Always Love You” as a tribute to Whitney Houston in the Grammys ?
12) Which company angered Venetians by revealing plans to build a megastore along the Gran Canale in Venice ?
13) Which monarch entered hospital for bypass surgery last week ?
14) A Belgian court refused to ban which book last week ?
15) Who returned to Man city last week ?
16) Which club threatened to go into Administration over a tax bill ?
17) Who scored 137 for England in the first ODI v. Pakistan ?
18) Cardiff Blues returned to play a game in which venue last week ?
19) British Olympic competitors had to sign an agreement preventing them from doing which 2 things ?
20) What did Barbara Hulaniki criticize last week ?
21) Where was it announced will become a caravan park during the Olympics ?
22) A manuscript by which composer was found in a council building ?
23) Where was it announced that Whitney Houston’s funeral would be held ?
24) Last week saw the 70th anniversary of the fall of which British garrison to the Japanese ?
25) Which country have GB been drawn against in the Fed Cup ?
26) How did actress Caroline Quentin describe the X-Factor last week ?
27) An advert for which series on Channel 4 was criticized last week ?
28) Prince Charles revealed last week that he is a supporter of which football team ?
29) Which team destroyed Arsenal 4 – 0 in the Champions League ?
30) Last week Alastair Cook became the first England captain to achieve which feat ?
31) Which University are facing a fine for over recruiting students ?
32) Whose trial date last week was set for March 2nd ?
33) Which welsh town was revealed last week as the most misspelled place in Britain ?
34) Which artist revealed his plans to build 500 eco homes ?
35) The new £5 coin commemorates the 100th anniversary of what ?
36) In which country was the world’s worst ever prison fire ?
37) Who signed a deal with Harper – Collins to write her story for a reported £2.5 million ?
Answers to news questions
In the news – 11th Feb
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news ?
1. Diamante Beach Hotel – Calpe
2. Joey Barton
3. MP4 27
4. Guerilla of Time
5. Leigh Halfpenny
6. Homs
7. Hannah Clayton
8. Lord Bannside
9. New York Giants
10. M.I.A.
11. Alberto Contador
12. Bradley Davies
13. Stephen Ferris
14. Florence Green
15. Mohammed Nasheed
16. Socks
17. Edie Richie and Evie Middleton
18. Rick Santorum
19. Matt Topham and Casey Charrington
20. Bridge End Inn, Ruabon
21. Baltasar Garzón
22. Jean Paul Guerlain
23. Mary Ann Ochota
In Other News
1. Which two countries vetoed the UN rebuke to Syria ?
2. Which country have reused aid from the UK ?
3. Which sculptor created the London 2012 Orbit Tower – unveiled last week ?
4. In the 6 nations which was the only country to win at home last weekend ?
5. Who was voted the favourite Dickens character of all time ?
6. Which South American president pledged his readiness to go to war with the UK over the Falklands ?
7. Which team knocked Rangers out of the Scottish Cup ?
8. Where will England play against Italy in the 6 Nations this weekend ?
9. Which make of car was revealed to be both the most reliable new and the most reliable used car?
10. What is the first name of Amanda Holden’s baby ?
11. Which is the first town in Wales to become an official ‘bilingual town’ ?
12. Who won the Republican Primary in Nevada ?
13. What was named the most read children’s book last week ?
14. Who was the headline act in the halftime show at the Superbowl ?
15. Whom did Karl Lagerfeld call fat last week ?
16. Who is the ‘Oldie of the Year ‘ ?
17. Who retired from international rugby following last week’s Calcutta Cup match ?
18. After whom has Argentina named its current domestic football season ?
19. What is the name of Millie Dowler’s killer who has been refused permission to appeal against his sentence ?
20. Kimi Raikonen is returning to formula One with which team ?
21. Who received a £40,000 pay out over phone hacking last week ?
22. Who won the joke of the year ?
23. Who was acquitted of tax evasion ?
24. Which tennis prodigy of years gone by claimed that her parents cheated her out of her fortune ?
25. Which two teams won the semi finals of the African Cup of Nations ?
26. How long did last week’s eruption of Mt. Etna last ?
27. Which artist was fined for drunk driving in possession of amphetamines ?
28. Who denied that she had let Piers Morgan listen to her voicemail ?
29. Who is the England football team’s caretaker manager ?
30. Which Grand National winning trainer passed away last week ?
31. Which actress will play Princess Diana in the new movie “Caught in Flight “ ?
32. Which British actor has quit his hit US show after 8 years ?
33. Which supermarket chain has been criticised for stocking Monsanto GM foods ?
34. Who admitted eating wolf stew while making his latest movie ?
Answers
Who or what are the following and why are they in the news ?
1. Hotel where there was an outbreak of legionnaire’s disease
2. Being investigated over his tweets about John Terry
3. Brand new McLaren car
4. The autobiography of Fidel Castro
5. Kicked the winning penalty in the fantastic Ireland v. Wales match in the 6 Nations last week
6. Syrian city being bombarded by Assad’s government forces
7. British designer who has redesigned redcoat uniforms for Butlins
8. Rev. Ian Paisley , in hospital after heart attack
9. Winners of the Superbowl
10. Rapper artist who made an obscene gesture in the Superbowl half time show
11. Cyclist stripped of his win in the 2010 Tour De France due to drug offences
12. Welsh rugby player cited for tip tackle in last week’s Wales v. Ireland match
13. Irish rugby player cited for tip tackle during last week’s Ireland v. Wales match
14. Last UK veteran of World War 1 who passed away
15. Ousted president of Maldives
16. Real name of ‘Anfield Cat’ who invaded the pitch during Liverpool’s match against Spurs
17. The world’s oldest twins
18. Republican candidate who beat Mitt Romney in primaries in Minnesota, Missouri and Colorado
19. They won a £45 million lottery jackpot
20. Won the title Pub of the Year
21. Spanish Human rights judge disbarred for abuse of power
22. French parfumier accused of racism
23. Co presenter of Time Team at the centre of the row which saw Professor Mick Aston quit the show.
In Other News
1. Russia and China
2. India
3. Anish Kapoor
4. France
5. Ebeneezer Scrooge
6. Hugo Chavez
7. Dundee United
8. Olympic Stadium Rome ( Not the Stadio Flaminio )
9. Skoda
10. Hollie
11. Wrexham
12. Mitt Romney
13. The Very Hungry Caterpillar
14. Madonna
15. Adele
16. Ken Clarke
17. Dan Parks
18. General Belgrano
19. Levi Bellfield
20. Lotus
21. Steve Coogan
22. Tim Vine
23. Harry Redknapp
24. Arantxa Sanchez – Vicario
25. Ivory Coast and Zambia
26. 5 hours
27. Jack Vettriano
28. Heather Mills
29. Stuart Pearce
30. Josh Gifford
31. Naomi Watts
32. Hugh Laurie
33. Waitrose
34. Liam Neeson
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news ?
1. Diamante Beach Hotel – Calpe
2. Joey Barton
3. MP4 27
4. Guerilla of Time
5. Leigh Halfpenny
6. Homs
7. Hannah Clayton
8. Lord Bannside
9. New York Giants
10. M.I.A.
11. Alberto Contador
12. Bradley Davies
13. Stephen Ferris
14. Florence Green
15. Mohammed Nasheed
16. Socks
17. Edie Richie and Evie Middleton
18. Rick Santorum
19. Matt Topham and Casey Charrington
20. Bridge End Inn, Ruabon
21. Baltasar Garzón
22. Jean Paul Guerlain
23. Mary Ann Ochota
In Other News
1. Which two countries vetoed the UN rebuke to Syria ?
2. Which country have reused aid from the UK ?
3. Which sculptor created the London 2012 Orbit Tower – unveiled last week ?
4. In the 6 nations which was the only country to win at home last weekend ?
5. Who was voted the favourite Dickens character of all time ?
6. Which South American president pledged his readiness to go to war with the UK over the Falklands ?
7. Which team knocked Rangers out of the Scottish Cup ?
8. Where will England play against Italy in the 6 Nations this weekend ?
9. Which make of car was revealed to be both the most reliable new and the most reliable used car?
10. What is the first name of Amanda Holden’s baby ?
11. Which is the first town in Wales to become an official ‘bilingual town’ ?
12. Who won the Republican Primary in Nevada ?
13. What was named the most read children’s book last week ?
14. Who was the headline act in the halftime show at the Superbowl ?
15. Whom did Karl Lagerfeld call fat last week ?
16. Who is the ‘Oldie of the Year ‘ ?
17. Who retired from international rugby following last week’s Calcutta Cup match ?
18. After whom has Argentina named its current domestic football season ?
19. What is the name of Millie Dowler’s killer who has been refused permission to appeal against his sentence ?
20. Kimi Raikonen is returning to formula One with which team ?
21. Who received a £40,000 pay out over phone hacking last week ?
22. Who won the joke of the year ?
23. Who was acquitted of tax evasion ?
24. Which tennis prodigy of years gone by claimed that her parents cheated her out of her fortune ?
25. Which two teams won the semi finals of the African Cup of Nations ?
26. How long did last week’s eruption of Mt. Etna last ?
27. Which artist was fined for drunk driving in possession of amphetamines ?
28. Who denied that she had let Piers Morgan listen to her voicemail ?
29. Who is the England football team’s caretaker manager ?
30. Which Grand National winning trainer passed away last week ?
31. Which actress will play Princess Diana in the new movie “Caught in Flight “ ?
32. Which British actor has quit his hit US show after 8 years ?
33. Which supermarket chain has been criticised for stocking Monsanto GM foods ?
34. Who admitted eating wolf stew while making his latest movie ?
Answers
Who or what are the following and why are they in the news ?
1. Hotel where there was an outbreak of legionnaire’s disease
2. Being investigated over his tweets about John Terry
3. Brand new McLaren car
4. The autobiography of Fidel Castro
5. Kicked the winning penalty in the fantastic Ireland v. Wales match in the 6 Nations last week
6. Syrian city being bombarded by Assad’s government forces
7. British designer who has redesigned redcoat uniforms for Butlins
8. Rev. Ian Paisley , in hospital after heart attack
9. Winners of the Superbowl
10. Rapper artist who made an obscene gesture in the Superbowl half time show
11. Cyclist stripped of his win in the 2010 Tour De France due to drug offences
12. Welsh rugby player cited for tip tackle in last week’s Wales v. Ireland match
13. Irish rugby player cited for tip tackle during last week’s Ireland v. Wales match
14. Last UK veteran of World War 1 who passed away
15. Ousted president of Maldives
16. Real name of ‘Anfield Cat’ who invaded the pitch during Liverpool’s match against Spurs
17. The world’s oldest twins
18. Republican candidate who beat Mitt Romney in primaries in Minnesota, Missouri and Colorado
19. They won a £45 million lottery jackpot
20. Won the title Pub of the Year
21. Spanish Human rights judge disbarred for abuse of power
22. French parfumier accused of racism
23. Co presenter of Time Team at the centre of the row which saw Professor Mick Aston quit the show.
In Other News
1. Russia and China
2. India
3. Anish Kapoor
4. France
5. Ebeneezer Scrooge
6. Hugo Chavez
7. Dundee United
8. Olympic Stadium Rome ( Not the Stadio Flaminio )
9. Skoda
10. Hollie
11. Wrexham
12. Mitt Romney
13. The Very Hungry Caterpillar
14. Madonna
15. Adele
16. Ken Clarke
17. Dan Parks
18. General Belgrano
19. Levi Bellfield
20. Lotus
21. Steve Coogan
22. Tim Vine
23. Harry Redknapp
24. Arantxa Sanchez – Vicario
25. Ivory Coast and Zambia
26. 5 hours
27. Jack Vettriano
28. Heather Mills
29. Stuart Pearce
30. Josh Gifford
31. Naomi Watts
32. Hugh Laurie
33. Waitrose
34. Liam Neeson
Mastermind - The Wikipedia Challenge - The Results are in.
If you read Malcolm Sumner’s account of his win in Heat 13 last week, you’ll have seen that he prepares to watch each show by spending 15 minutes on Wikipedia to prepare to see how many specialist questions he can predict, which has made the specialist rounds a lot more interesting for him. My original thought was – great idea, and I’ll definitely give it a try .
Then I had another idea. What if – I thought – I used this as an opportunity to test how well you could prepare yourself by just looking at the Wikipedia article on a specialist subject, on the same day that you’re actually on the show. I love this sort of speculation, so I immediately set about coming up with a set of rules for this challenge : -
• In order to be able to avoid the possibility that a successful round might be a one-off, or a terrible round might be a one off, I would select 4 categories from the 8 on offer last night- leaving the other 4 as a ‘control group’ against which to judge the results.
• As far as possible a cross section of subjects should be chosen- ones which looked wider, ones which looked narrower, ones which I might already know a bit about and ones about which I knew nothing.
• Mastermind began at 8pm last night. I began work at 4pm. Which gave me a maximum of an hour for each subject.
• For each subject I would read the article, and select 30 potential questions.
• I was allowed to go to other linked wikipages, but not other sites.
• I had to try to learn the answers before the start of the show. My written questions and answers were not allowed to be used during the show.
• Answers had to be given either before, or at the same time as the contender answered on the show. Answers given afterwards would not be counted, to avoid the temptation to cheat.
• My daughter Jennifer would act as independent referee.
All of which begs the question – how well did I do, and what do the results suggest ? The 4 categories I selected were : -
The Life and Music of Kate Bush. I felt this one would be probably the best for me. Potentially I reckoned in the normal run of things this would give me 2 or 3. Actually, I would have been able to answer just one of them without my wikiprep. Now, bear in mind that I have heard a lot of the singles, and I used to own The Hounds of Love, but that’s it. I haven’t deliberately listened to her music for years. Playing in real time, using no notes, I managed 10 points on the round.
The Franco Prussian War. I guessed that this would be a wider subject than Kate Bush. It’s one of the more traditional subjects , and through a general interest in History I reckoned that I might have had 3 or 4 anyway. Actually, when the questions came up I realized I would have had precisely two of them. Despite the width of the subject I was surprised that my wikiprep meant that I also scored 10 points on this round.
Passenger Liners 1939 – 1979. Yes, I couldn’t duck out of taking at least one really wide subject, and believe me, it wasn’t until I started that I realized just how wide the subject was. I only allowed myself to look at Wikipedia for the challenge, so this meant starting with the general ocean liners page , and looking at the pages about some of the most famous liners. I would have had none of the answers without wikiprep. As it was I only managed 4 anyway.
The Life and Films of Frederico Fellini. Another life and work subject this one, but one about which I had next to no knowledge to begin with. As far as I can recall I have never watched a Fellini film – which doubtless is more my loss than his. Bearing in mind that the rules of the challenge meant that I could only revise from the wiki page, I was very pleased with my 7.
Conclusions
I wanted to see whether it was possible to spend just a couple of hours before the show using Wikipedia to prepare for a specialist subject, and do well enough to get a competitive score. I take the two tens as competitive scores. I was also pleased with the Fellini score, considering that I was starting from a position of next to no knowledge at all. Having said that it would still not have made me very competitive in the show , a good GK score notwithstanding.
• It is certainly possible to use Wikipedia to help you gain a decent score with an hour or so of revision.
• It works a lot better for certain types of subject than for others. Life and work subjects seem to work better than others.
• The more finite and clearly defined a subject, the easier it seems to prepare for from Wikipedia. Hence the good score on the Franco Prussian war, which was a fairly clearly defined historical event which took place over the space of about 6 months.
• It didn’t work very well on a wide and slightly more nebulous subject like ocean liners. Having said that , though, it still provided me with 4 answers that I wouldn’t have had anyway.
• Most of my correct answers came from questions I’d prepared myself, but a small number did come from other remembered facts from the Wikipedia articles that I hadn’t turned into questions.
If anyone else ever fancies repeating the challenge, I’d love to hear how you get on with it.
Then I had another idea. What if – I thought – I used this as an opportunity to test how well you could prepare yourself by just looking at the Wikipedia article on a specialist subject, on the same day that you’re actually on the show. I love this sort of speculation, so I immediately set about coming up with a set of rules for this challenge : -
• In order to be able to avoid the possibility that a successful round might be a one-off, or a terrible round might be a one off, I would select 4 categories from the 8 on offer last night- leaving the other 4 as a ‘control group’ against which to judge the results.
• As far as possible a cross section of subjects should be chosen- ones which looked wider, ones which looked narrower, ones which I might already know a bit about and ones about which I knew nothing.
• Mastermind began at 8pm last night. I began work at 4pm. Which gave me a maximum of an hour for each subject.
• For each subject I would read the article, and select 30 potential questions.
• I was allowed to go to other linked wikipages, but not other sites.
• I had to try to learn the answers before the start of the show. My written questions and answers were not allowed to be used during the show.
• Answers had to be given either before, or at the same time as the contender answered on the show. Answers given afterwards would not be counted, to avoid the temptation to cheat.
• My daughter Jennifer would act as independent referee.
All of which begs the question – how well did I do, and what do the results suggest ? The 4 categories I selected were : -
The Life and Music of Kate Bush. I felt this one would be probably the best for me. Potentially I reckoned in the normal run of things this would give me 2 or 3. Actually, I would have been able to answer just one of them without my wikiprep. Now, bear in mind that I have heard a lot of the singles, and I used to own The Hounds of Love, but that’s it. I haven’t deliberately listened to her music for years. Playing in real time, using no notes, I managed 10 points on the round.
The Franco Prussian War. I guessed that this would be a wider subject than Kate Bush. It’s one of the more traditional subjects , and through a general interest in History I reckoned that I might have had 3 or 4 anyway. Actually, when the questions came up I realized I would have had precisely two of them. Despite the width of the subject I was surprised that my wikiprep meant that I also scored 10 points on this round.
Passenger Liners 1939 – 1979. Yes, I couldn’t duck out of taking at least one really wide subject, and believe me, it wasn’t until I started that I realized just how wide the subject was. I only allowed myself to look at Wikipedia for the challenge, so this meant starting with the general ocean liners page , and looking at the pages about some of the most famous liners. I would have had none of the answers without wikiprep. As it was I only managed 4 anyway.
The Life and Films of Frederico Fellini. Another life and work subject this one, but one about which I had next to no knowledge to begin with. As far as I can recall I have never watched a Fellini film – which doubtless is more my loss than his. Bearing in mind that the rules of the challenge meant that I could only revise from the wiki page, I was very pleased with my 7.
Conclusions
I wanted to see whether it was possible to spend just a couple of hours before the show using Wikipedia to prepare for a specialist subject, and do well enough to get a competitive score. I take the two tens as competitive scores. I was also pleased with the Fellini score, considering that I was starting from a position of next to no knowledge at all. Having said that it would still not have made me very competitive in the show , a good GK score notwithstanding.
• It is certainly possible to use Wikipedia to help you gain a decent score with an hour or so of revision.
• It works a lot better for certain types of subject than for others. Life and work subjects seem to work better than others.
• The more finite and clearly defined a subject, the easier it seems to prepare for from Wikipedia. Hence the good score on the Franco Prussian war, which was a fairly clearly defined historical event which took place over the space of about 6 months.
• It didn’t work very well on a wide and slightly more nebulous subject like ocean liners. Having said that , though, it still provided me with 4 answers that I wouldn’t have had anyway.
• Most of my correct answers came from questions I’d prepared myself, but a small number did come from other remembered facts from the Wikipedia articles that I hadn’t turned into questions.
If anyone else ever fancies repeating the challenge, I’d love to hear how you get on with it.
Friday, 17 February 2012
Mastermind - First Round - Heat 16
I expect that the chairs were all still warm in the studio since the second show followed on with almost indecent haste after the first. Alison Rawlinson offered us Children’s Fiction by Rudyard Kipling, some of which is certainly exceedingly good. By way of comparison I thought that these questions seemed pretty much of a level with the set on Agatha Christie in the previous show, which was nice to see. The first two – what was Baloo, and who was ‘the friend of all the world’ were pretty much gimmes, but they were the only ones that I managed in the whole round. Now – if they’d asked about the lyrics of “The Bare Necessities “, then I’m your man. But apparently Kipling left the songs out of his novelization of the film. All of which chaff is just delaying me from coming to the point and telling you that Alison scored 8 points.
Euan McCulloch was answering on Passenger Liners 1939 – 79. Apart from being an interesting contrast to Ancient and Primitive boats in the previous show, this was one of the two subjects in this show which I selected for the wiki challenge, so I’ll tell you how I got on in the next post. As for Euan, well, he got on very well indeed. My goodness, but he had to know his subject in order to do well in this one – well, that’s how it seemed to me, anyway. 14 points and no passes was a finer performance on those questions, and mid teens in SS will always give you a fighting chance in the GK round.
Motorhead provided the popular culture option in this second show. I once met Lemmy at a gig . He said those immortal words to me “Who are you and get out of me way. “ No, he didn’t really. He said “Cheers mate. “ Which wasn’t actually the answer to any of the questions in Martin Smith’s round. I knew enough anyway to bag 4 points. Martin, on the other hand, knew enough to bag 14 . I suppose that the closest comparable round in the previous show would have been the Kate Bush round, and as far as I could see these two rounds were pitched pretty much at the same level. Martin’s performance gave him an excellent chance going into the GK round.
Finally to George Ferzoco. I’m not the world’s finest at pinpointing a person’s country of origin from their accent, but I’d be fairly confident that George is originally from the States. He was answering on the Life and Films of Frederico Fellini. This was the last of the 4 subjects I selected for the wiki challenge tonight. George seemed to be one of the more tactical players we’ve seen in quite a while. His answers were crisp, concise and quick. Moreover, if he didn’t know an answer at once, out came the stock answer – Smith. That’s good technique – no time wasted and no passes conceded, but believe me, it needs a considerable amount of concentration to be able to do it. Right at the end of the round George was asked for the name of a particular medical condition suffered from by Fellini. He almost, but not quite got the very long name of it right – but John announced that he would be given it anyway. I agreed, but I couldn’t help wondering whether it was really fair to give a question which had to be answered with such a long , tongue twisting answer anyway. Answers on a postcard to the usual address.
Only Alison seemed out of the contest at the halfway stage, so bearing that in mind you have to say that she did a pretty good job with her GK round. It certainly wasn’t the quickest GK round we’ve seen, but then her priority was getting the answers right, and as such 12 was a pretty good round . I only managed 14 on that round myself. George maintained his form from the SS round for the first 90 seconds or so, but started to lose momentum in the second half of his round. He kept going though, and gritted out 14 points, which looked pretty handy to me at the time. What it meant was that either Euan or Martin were going to have to match his GK round to beat him outright without having to refer back to passes. For the record I had my highest score of this show on George’s round, but I think it’s probably because he was going that bit faster than anyone else did, certainly for the first and last parts of his round.
Euan McCulloch fell behind the clock within the first minute of his round, and it was pretty clear that he wasn’t going to be able to really challenge George’s score. He too gritted his teeth, and pulled out 8 points, which gave him a final score of 22. Not a winning score, no, but perfectly respectable. Which just left Martin to challenge George. Martin kept his composure, and was probably just about neck and neck with George for the first part of the round. With 15 seconds to go you fancied he’d do it by one, but those seconds just kept ticking away, and in the end he’d scored one less than George, with 13. All of which meant that both of them finished with 27. Who had the fewer passes ? George - all of those Smiths paid off, you see. Well played both, though. That was a good show.
The Details
Euan McCulloch was answering on Passenger Liners 1939 – 79. Apart from being an interesting contrast to Ancient and Primitive boats in the previous show, this was one of the two subjects in this show which I selected for the wiki challenge, so I’ll tell you how I got on in the next post. As for Euan, well, he got on very well indeed. My goodness, but he had to know his subject in order to do well in this one – well, that’s how it seemed to me, anyway. 14 points and no passes was a finer performance on those questions, and mid teens in SS will always give you a fighting chance in the GK round.
Motorhead provided the popular culture option in this second show. I once met Lemmy at a gig . He said those immortal words to me “Who are you and get out of me way. “ No, he didn’t really. He said “Cheers mate. “ Which wasn’t actually the answer to any of the questions in Martin Smith’s round. I knew enough anyway to bag 4 points. Martin, on the other hand, knew enough to bag 14 . I suppose that the closest comparable round in the previous show would have been the Kate Bush round, and as far as I could see these two rounds were pitched pretty much at the same level. Martin’s performance gave him an excellent chance going into the GK round.
Finally to George Ferzoco. I’m not the world’s finest at pinpointing a person’s country of origin from their accent, but I’d be fairly confident that George is originally from the States. He was answering on the Life and Films of Frederico Fellini. This was the last of the 4 subjects I selected for the wiki challenge tonight. George seemed to be one of the more tactical players we’ve seen in quite a while. His answers were crisp, concise and quick. Moreover, if he didn’t know an answer at once, out came the stock answer – Smith. That’s good technique – no time wasted and no passes conceded, but believe me, it needs a considerable amount of concentration to be able to do it. Right at the end of the round George was asked for the name of a particular medical condition suffered from by Fellini. He almost, but not quite got the very long name of it right – but John announced that he would be given it anyway. I agreed, but I couldn’t help wondering whether it was really fair to give a question which had to be answered with such a long , tongue twisting answer anyway. Answers on a postcard to the usual address.
Only Alison seemed out of the contest at the halfway stage, so bearing that in mind you have to say that she did a pretty good job with her GK round. It certainly wasn’t the quickest GK round we’ve seen, but then her priority was getting the answers right, and as such 12 was a pretty good round . I only managed 14 on that round myself. George maintained his form from the SS round for the first 90 seconds or so, but started to lose momentum in the second half of his round. He kept going though, and gritted out 14 points, which looked pretty handy to me at the time. What it meant was that either Euan or Martin were going to have to match his GK round to beat him outright without having to refer back to passes. For the record I had my highest score of this show on George’s round, but I think it’s probably because he was going that bit faster than anyone else did, certainly for the first and last parts of his round.
Euan McCulloch fell behind the clock within the first minute of his round, and it was pretty clear that he wasn’t going to be able to really challenge George’s score. He too gritted his teeth, and pulled out 8 points, which gave him a final score of 22. Not a winning score, no, but perfectly respectable. Which just left Martin to challenge George. Martin kept his composure, and was probably just about neck and neck with George for the first part of the round. With 15 seconds to go you fancied he’d do it by one, but those seconds just kept ticking away, and in the end he’d scored one less than George, with 13. All of which meant that both of them finished with 27. Who had the fewer passes ? George - all of those Smiths paid off, you see. Well played both, though. That was a good show.
The Details
| Alison Rawlinson | Children’s Fiction by Rudyard Kipling | 8 - 3 | 12 - 2 | 20 – 5 |
| Euan McCulloch | Passenger Liners – 1939 - 1979 | 14 - 0 | 8 - 4 | 22 – 4 |
| Martin Smith | Motorhead | 14 - 1 | 13 - 4 | 27 – 5 |
| George Ferzoco | The Life and Films of Frederico Fellini | 13 - 0 | 14 - 1 | 27 – 1 |
Mastermind - First Round - Heat 15
Well, I won’t lie to you, the wiki challenge certainly enlivened tonight’s two shows for me.The wiki what ? I’ll say a little bit more about that in another post, but I don’t want it to get in the way of the shows themselves. So let’s get started. James Cullen was first of tonight’s eight contenders, and he answered on our first popular culture subject of the evening, Kate Bush. Ahhh, Kate Bush. Sorry, I was miles away there. If you’re a chap who was an impressionable teenager when she first burst onto the scene, you’ll know what I mean. James Cullen was certainly not a teenager – in fact he can’t have been born when Kate Bush first burst onto the scene, but notwithstanding that he put in a fine round. 15 points and 1 pass was a very good return for 2 minutes’ mental effort.
Edwin Deady took the prize for the most unusual subject of the evening, with Ancient and Primitive Boats, which come to think of it was one of Sealink’s less successful advertising slogans, wasn’t it ? Yes, showing my age again. I was happy to take a point for knowing that the coracle men can be found on the Teifi, and that was it for me. Poor Edwin I think was expecting something rather different from what he was given in this round. I may be wrong, but it looked to me very much like a textbook case of the contender’s and the setter’s conception of the parameters of the subject being somewhat at odds. I think that Edwin was expecting a lot more about the construction of various ancient boats, and a lot less about the people who actually built them. He seemed so shell shocked by the time the first minute was up that he was probably missing stuff he’s known for years as well, poor chap. It’s not pleasant when it happens, I’m sure.
A good old, more traditional SS followed , as Jackie Heaton answered questions on the Detective novels of Agatha Christie. Everyone seemed to be on pretty solid ground here, as the setters posed questions which needed quite a detailed, in depth knowledge of the books for anyone to do well. I’m not a Christie fan, and I managed just the one answer myself. Jackie’s 11 was a good score, but it left her with some work to do in the GK rounds.
Anthony Barton was answering on the Franco Prussian War. This was one of the two subjects in this show I used for the wiki challenge. Once again, I will come to that in another post. So I won’t tell you how I did with it, but Anthony did just fine, picking off 15 correct answers and one pass, albeit that he always seemed slightly surprised when one of his answers was right – even though the vast majority of them were just that. So it maybe wasn’t quite a case of being a two horse race by the half way stage, but you fancied that the winner would be Anthony or James.
Spare a thought for Edwin Deady. It must be pretty horrible having to come back to the chair after you’ve had an SS round where it’s something you clearly know a great deal about, but for whatever reason it hasn’t worked out. You’re trying to cope with the disappointment of that, and you have all the pressure of 2 and a half minutes of GK, where a win is out of the question for you, and it’s going to be a hard slog just to get something like a decent score. So well done to him for keeping his head enough to get eight points to take him to respectability. Jackie did a little better with her own round, to the tune of one point, putting her up to a total of 20. That was never really going to be enough to win, not with 2 players still to come. One of them might have a ‘mare of a round, but surely not both of them. For the record I had my lowest score – 15 , on James’ GK round, my highest on Jackie’s with 19, and 16 on Edwin’s, and 18 on Anthony’s.
Well, James Cullen certainly won’t have enjoyed his GK round very much. He struggled, and passed a few, and became becalmed in the middle of the round. Having said all that, although his GK score of 7 was the lowest of this show, it was still enough to put him ahead of Jackie with 22. Which meant that Anthony needed 7 and no more than 3 passes to win the show. Surely he’d do it comfortably. Well, at the start of the round it didn’t necessarily seem that way. He took a long time to get into his stride, but unlike many contenders maintained his pace through the tricky last minute, and even picked up a little. His 11 wasn’t the most impressive GK round we’ll see all series, but in the context of what seemed to be a very nervous show, it wasn’t bad at all – certainly good enough to put daylight between James and himself. Well played, sir.
The Details
Edwin Deady took the prize for the most unusual subject of the evening, with Ancient and Primitive Boats, which come to think of it was one of Sealink’s less successful advertising slogans, wasn’t it ? Yes, showing my age again. I was happy to take a point for knowing that the coracle men can be found on the Teifi, and that was it for me. Poor Edwin I think was expecting something rather different from what he was given in this round. I may be wrong, but it looked to me very much like a textbook case of the contender’s and the setter’s conception of the parameters of the subject being somewhat at odds. I think that Edwin was expecting a lot more about the construction of various ancient boats, and a lot less about the people who actually built them. He seemed so shell shocked by the time the first minute was up that he was probably missing stuff he’s known for years as well, poor chap. It’s not pleasant when it happens, I’m sure.
A good old, more traditional SS followed , as Jackie Heaton answered questions on the Detective novels of Agatha Christie. Everyone seemed to be on pretty solid ground here, as the setters posed questions which needed quite a detailed, in depth knowledge of the books for anyone to do well. I’m not a Christie fan, and I managed just the one answer myself. Jackie’s 11 was a good score, but it left her with some work to do in the GK rounds.
Anthony Barton was answering on the Franco Prussian War. This was one of the two subjects in this show I used for the wiki challenge. Once again, I will come to that in another post. So I won’t tell you how I did with it, but Anthony did just fine, picking off 15 correct answers and one pass, albeit that he always seemed slightly surprised when one of his answers was right – even though the vast majority of them were just that. So it maybe wasn’t quite a case of being a two horse race by the half way stage, but you fancied that the winner would be Anthony or James.
Spare a thought for Edwin Deady. It must be pretty horrible having to come back to the chair after you’ve had an SS round where it’s something you clearly know a great deal about, but for whatever reason it hasn’t worked out. You’re trying to cope with the disappointment of that, and you have all the pressure of 2 and a half minutes of GK, where a win is out of the question for you, and it’s going to be a hard slog just to get something like a decent score. So well done to him for keeping his head enough to get eight points to take him to respectability. Jackie did a little better with her own round, to the tune of one point, putting her up to a total of 20. That was never really going to be enough to win, not with 2 players still to come. One of them might have a ‘mare of a round, but surely not both of them. For the record I had my lowest score – 15 , on James’ GK round, my highest on Jackie’s with 19, and 16 on Edwin’s, and 18 on Anthony’s.
Well, James Cullen certainly won’t have enjoyed his GK round very much. He struggled, and passed a few, and became becalmed in the middle of the round. Having said all that, although his GK score of 7 was the lowest of this show, it was still enough to put him ahead of Jackie with 22. Which meant that Anthony needed 7 and no more than 3 passes to win the show. Surely he’d do it comfortably. Well, at the start of the round it didn’t necessarily seem that way. He took a long time to get into his stride, but unlike many contenders maintained his pace through the tricky last minute, and even picked up a little. His 11 wasn’t the most impressive GK round we’ll see all series, but in the context of what seemed to be a very nervous show, it wasn’t bad at all – certainly good enough to put daylight between James and himself. Well played, sir.
The Details
| James Cullen | The Life and Music of Kate Bush | 15 - 1 | 7 - 4 | 22 – 5 |
| Edwin Deady | Ancient and Primitive Boats | 4 - 0 | 8 - 6 | 12 – 6 |
| Jackie Heaton | Detective Novels of Agatha Christie | 11 - 3 | 9 - 6 | 20 – 9 |
| Anthony Barton | The Franco Prussian War | 15 - 1 | 11 - 5 | 26 – 6 |
Wednesday, 15 February 2012
Malcolm Sumner - Mastermind Heat 13 Winner
Just in case you missed this, the winner of Heat 13 of this year's Mastermind posted a detailed comment on my review of the show, which I think would be of much interest to regular readers, and so I've taken the liberty of reproducing most of it here .In case you forget, Malcolm answered questions on Bing Crosby in the first round of Friday night's first show.
"I was pleased to do justice to my musical and cinematic hero and even received a congratulatory message from the Bing Crosby Fan Club! As the filming took place mid-July (the day after end of term) my preparation time was limited to one weekend (quick reading of three biographies) so glad I’d chosen a subject where I had some prior knowledge – good enough for about half the questions. Bing starred in over 60 full-length films, usually playing interchangeable versions of himself with names like Jeff or Jim, so decided I would only memorise the big films or ‘character’ roles, which paid off with the question on Bing’s character in the ‘Stagecoach’ remake. Questions on the name of his chauffeur and the church where he married his second wife were obscure even for diehard fans and I was glad I’d filed them away under ‘unlikely-but-possible’.
I had no recollection at all of many GK ‘misses’ so the questions (and my answers) were as much a surprise to me as to the viewing audience! The Seikan Tunnel (Japan) and ‘A Man of Parts’ (about HG Wells) were both guessable, I’d forgotten the ‘Tornado’ (UK’s newest steam loco) and the Malcolm Arnold / film theme connection was new to me (though I pretended to JH – out of politeness – that it was on the tip of my tongue).
Fellow-contenders were lovely: Pat Baker is a telly quiz veteran but admitted this was the ‘big one’, Diana Muir was seriously jetlagged and could have won on another day as could Pat or John Tanner. A ‘charm’ of production assistants was the most appropriate collective noun, and the only Southerner-style gripe was the trek to Salford, although having the hotel literally next door to Media City made the day itself very convenient.
(Re the ongoing debate on the specialist subject round, I try to ‘prepare’ with 15 minutes on Wikipedia and see how many questions I can ‘predict’ – usually about 40%. Has definitely made first half more enjoyable, though I realise that this would appeal to quiz addicts, not ordinary punters! That’s why I personally chose specialist subjects with a broad-ish appeal.)
Was relieved on my recording that there would be no half-way ‘banter’ but in retrospect feel that this may put subject choices in some kind of context without the fatuous waffle of other quiz shows (excluding the witty and courteous preamble on ‘Pointless’!)"
Thanks Malcolm ! Here at LAM we wish you the very best of luck in your semi ! Oh, and I DO like the idea of what I shall call the wikipedia challenge. I'll be having a go at that myself on this coming Friday.
"I was pleased to do justice to my musical and cinematic hero and even received a congratulatory message from the Bing Crosby Fan Club! As the filming took place mid-July (the day after end of term) my preparation time was limited to one weekend (quick reading of three biographies) so glad I’d chosen a subject where I had some prior knowledge – good enough for about half the questions. Bing starred in over 60 full-length films, usually playing interchangeable versions of himself with names like Jeff or Jim, so decided I would only memorise the big films or ‘character’ roles, which paid off with the question on Bing’s character in the ‘Stagecoach’ remake. Questions on the name of his chauffeur and the church where he married his second wife were obscure even for diehard fans and I was glad I’d filed them away under ‘unlikely-but-possible’.
I had no recollection at all of many GK ‘misses’ so the questions (and my answers) were as much a surprise to me as to the viewing audience! The Seikan Tunnel (Japan) and ‘A Man of Parts’ (about HG Wells) were both guessable, I’d forgotten the ‘Tornado’ (UK’s newest steam loco) and the Malcolm Arnold / film theme connection was new to me (though I pretended to JH – out of politeness – that it was on the tip of my tongue).
Fellow-contenders were lovely: Pat Baker is a telly quiz veteran but admitted this was the ‘big one’, Diana Muir was seriously jetlagged and could have won on another day as could Pat or John Tanner. A ‘charm’ of production assistants was the most appropriate collective noun, and the only Southerner-style gripe was the trek to Salford, although having the hotel literally next door to Media City made the day itself very convenient.
(Re the ongoing debate on the specialist subject round, I try to ‘prepare’ with 15 minutes on Wikipedia and see how many questions I can ‘predict’ – usually about 40%. Has definitely made first half more enjoyable, though I realise that this would appeal to quiz addicts, not ordinary punters! That’s why I personally chose specialist subjects with a broad-ish appeal.)
Was relieved on my recording that there would be no half-way ‘banter’ but in retrospect feel that this may put subject choices in some kind of context without the fatuous waffle of other quiz shows (excluding the witty and courteous preamble on ‘Pointless’!)"
Thanks Malcolm ! Here at LAM we wish you the very best of luck in your semi ! Oh, and I DO like the idea of what I shall call the wikipedia challenge. I'll be having a go at that myself on this coming Friday.
Tuesday, 14 February 2012
Brain of Britain - Semi Final 2
Lining up for yesterday’s semi-final were Hamish Cameron, Ian Clark, Angus Douglas and Brendan O’Connor. Our rough form guide put Ian Clark as favourite. Ian scored 21 in his heat, which actually was the second highest score of all the heat winners. Hamish Cameron had the 5th highest score with 17. Brendan Connor was in joint 9th on the list with 12. However it should be remembered that Brendan was actually runner up in the Brain of Britain equivalent of the group of death, and so his 12 was by no means a negligible score at all. Angus was the outsider for the contest, holding the 15th highest score of the qualifiers, although this was only 1 point behind Brendan's.
Hamish kicked off with a point, but nobody knew that a Kipps apparatus produces gases. Ian didn’t know of the recent stage show based on Roald Dahl’s Matilda, giving Brendan a bonus. Angus took his own first, but didn’t know which disease enteric fever is usually associated with. Ian did to break his duck. Brendan knew his first, but perhaps a little surprisingly didn’t know that the god Krishna is depicted with blue skin. That gave Angus another point. So in the first round the two outsiders took an early lead, with 2 each, to the others’ one. Hamish took his first two, but didn’t know the term quarter horse. Ian took that one. Ian then took two of his own, but failed to identify a quote about the American Declaration of Independence. Nobody took that one. Angus missed his first on Clement Atlee, which gave Ian another point, and the lead on the road, as it were. Brendan took two, but couldn’t link a babirusa with a domestic pig. Again, Ian was first in for the bonus. So in a reversal of fortune, Ian now led with 6, from Hamish with 5.
Hamish didn’t know that Prince Arthur of Connaught had served as Governor General of South Africa. Another point for Ian. Ian, though, couldn’t supply two occasions on which a 21 gun salute is fired. Hamish took a tit for tat bonus on that one. Angus took his first, but then got a typical BoB stinker on an Italian prize for literature. Nobody had that one. Brendan really should have known that Reims was the cathedral in which Kings of France were traditionally crowned. Hamish made no mistake with that one. This put him level with Ian on 7, with daylight between the pair of them and Angus on 5. Hamish took his first couple, but didn’t know the first group with which Midge Ure had a UK number 1. This was one of very few questions that I could answer that the Brains couldn’t. “It was Slik – forever and ever !” I shouted at the radio. Russell obligingly confirmed that I was right. Ian took his first, but didn’t know when the first Christmas stamps could be bought from Post Offices. Nobody did. Angus took one, but nobody knew that the cutis is the skin. Well, I’m very sorry, but moisturiser or not, my skin hasn’t been the least bit cutis for years. Brendan’s first was one of the others I knew that the Brains didn’t, that Palmerston was the Prime Minister during the American Civil War. Did you know that Queen Victoria and Prince Albert referred to Palmerston as Pilgerstein in private ? it’s a literal German translation of Palmer, which is an alternative word for pilgrim, and stone. Please yourselves. Hamish was tied with Ian at this stage on 7.
This brought us to the Beat the Brains interval. The first question didn’t. The Brains came up with a cracking answer to a question asking what linked about 50 villages in Britain – some examples being given. The Brains knew that they were ‘blessed villages’ , all of whose soldiers who went away to the First World War came back alive. However when asked which Suffolk town came into being when an established market had to be moved due to the Black Death, they zigged with Stowe Market when they should have zagged with Newmarket. Back to the show.
Hamish missed a gettable one, not knowing that Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets. No bonus for anyone. Not easy, but gettable, which is more than I could say about many of the questions I heard in this show. Yes, I know it’s all in the ear of the behearer, but I found this show to be difficult. Ian didn’t know Origen, neither did the others, and neither did I. Angus managed his first, but couldn’t give the chemical compound from which pearls are made. I don’t know if Ian was guessing with calcium carbonate , but if he was it was a good guess. Brendan missed his own first. It was incredibly tight, and it was due to get even tighter in round 6. Everyone missed their own first question. I’ll be honest, I wouldn’t have had any of them, although I probably should have known Pskov as the place where Nicholas II abdicated. Both Hamish and Ian ended the round on 8. It looked unlikely that there could be more than 2 rounds left, and I couldn’t pick a winner. Both Hamish and Ian were capable of getting a 6 pointer if they were given the sniff of a chance by the questions. But would either of them be given that chance ? It certainly didn’t look like it if the previous rounds were anything to go by. Hamish didn’t know that Washington state is nicknamed the Evergreen State. Nobody knew that. Ian took two , and it was looking good. Then he got another one nobody could answer, a piece of music which everyone recognised, but nobody could give the title of – Elgar’s Salut d’Amour. Fair enough. Angus didn’t know that the Battle of Kadesh was a scrappy away win for the Egyptians over the Hittites. Hamish took that to narrow Ian’s lead to 1 point. Brendan didn’t know that Hannah was the mother of Samuel, and Hamish took that to ensure that he and Ian were still tied going into the final round.
Hamish took his first, but missed the distinctly gettable fructose, which allowed Angus in for a bonus. Ian took two, but didn’t know that St. Nicholas’ Island, which had also been St. Michael’s Island, is now called Drake’s Island. Join the club. The arithmetic was simple. Hamish had to take bonuses off both Angus and Brendan to win. Ian needed one bonus off either to win. Nobody could answer Angus’ question, about Rupert Sheldrake. Ian had one foot in the final, but Brendan didn’t know off two people linked by the YMCA. Hamish came in first. . . and he had it. We had a draw. However, as we know , you can’t have a draw in BoB. So we had a tie break. Asked what was the significance of a gold stripe on uniforms of british soldiers from 1916, it was Ian who chanced his arm first. he told us that it denoted a soldier who had been wounded in action, and that was correct. On such small margins. Very well done Ian. A terrific display of nerve. Very hard lines Hamish. Getting that last bonus to tie the show demanded nerves and determination as well. A good show, albeit that correct answers from the Clark sofa were in particularly short supply during this show.
The Details
Hamish Cameron – 12
Ian Clark – 13 AET
Angus Douglas – 6
Brendan O’Connor - 6
Hamish kicked off with a point, but nobody knew that a Kipps apparatus produces gases. Ian didn’t know of the recent stage show based on Roald Dahl’s Matilda, giving Brendan a bonus. Angus took his own first, but didn’t know which disease enteric fever is usually associated with. Ian did to break his duck. Brendan knew his first, but perhaps a little surprisingly didn’t know that the god Krishna is depicted with blue skin. That gave Angus another point. So in the first round the two outsiders took an early lead, with 2 each, to the others’ one. Hamish took his first two, but didn’t know the term quarter horse. Ian took that one. Ian then took two of his own, but failed to identify a quote about the American Declaration of Independence. Nobody took that one. Angus missed his first on Clement Atlee, which gave Ian another point, and the lead on the road, as it were. Brendan took two, but couldn’t link a babirusa with a domestic pig. Again, Ian was first in for the bonus. So in a reversal of fortune, Ian now led with 6, from Hamish with 5.
Hamish didn’t know that Prince Arthur of Connaught had served as Governor General of South Africa. Another point for Ian. Ian, though, couldn’t supply two occasions on which a 21 gun salute is fired. Hamish took a tit for tat bonus on that one. Angus took his first, but then got a typical BoB stinker on an Italian prize for literature. Nobody had that one. Brendan really should have known that Reims was the cathedral in which Kings of France were traditionally crowned. Hamish made no mistake with that one. This put him level with Ian on 7, with daylight between the pair of them and Angus on 5. Hamish took his first couple, but didn’t know the first group with which Midge Ure had a UK number 1. This was one of very few questions that I could answer that the Brains couldn’t. “It was Slik – forever and ever !” I shouted at the radio. Russell obligingly confirmed that I was right. Ian took his first, but didn’t know when the first Christmas stamps could be bought from Post Offices. Nobody did. Angus took one, but nobody knew that the cutis is the skin. Well, I’m very sorry, but moisturiser or not, my skin hasn’t been the least bit cutis for years. Brendan’s first was one of the others I knew that the Brains didn’t, that Palmerston was the Prime Minister during the American Civil War. Did you know that Queen Victoria and Prince Albert referred to Palmerston as Pilgerstein in private ? it’s a literal German translation of Palmer, which is an alternative word for pilgrim, and stone. Please yourselves. Hamish was tied with Ian at this stage on 7.
This brought us to the Beat the Brains interval. The first question didn’t. The Brains came up with a cracking answer to a question asking what linked about 50 villages in Britain – some examples being given. The Brains knew that they were ‘blessed villages’ , all of whose soldiers who went away to the First World War came back alive. However when asked which Suffolk town came into being when an established market had to be moved due to the Black Death, they zigged with Stowe Market when they should have zagged with Newmarket. Back to the show.
Hamish missed a gettable one, not knowing that Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets. No bonus for anyone. Not easy, but gettable, which is more than I could say about many of the questions I heard in this show. Yes, I know it’s all in the ear of the behearer, but I found this show to be difficult. Ian didn’t know Origen, neither did the others, and neither did I. Angus managed his first, but couldn’t give the chemical compound from which pearls are made. I don’t know if Ian was guessing with calcium carbonate , but if he was it was a good guess. Brendan missed his own first. It was incredibly tight, and it was due to get even tighter in round 6. Everyone missed their own first question. I’ll be honest, I wouldn’t have had any of them, although I probably should have known Pskov as the place where Nicholas II abdicated. Both Hamish and Ian ended the round on 8. It looked unlikely that there could be more than 2 rounds left, and I couldn’t pick a winner. Both Hamish and Ian were capable of getting a 6 pointer if they were given the sniff of a chance by the questions. But would either of them be given that chance ? It certainly didn’t look like it if the previous rounds were anything to go by. Hamish didn’t know that Washington state is nicknamed the Evergreen State. Nobody knew that. Ian took two , and it was looking good. Then he got another one nobody could answer, a piece of music which everyone recognised, but nobody could give the title of – Elgar’s Salut d’Amour. Fair enough. Angus didn’t know that the Battle of Kadesh was a scrappy away win for the Egyptians over the Hittites. Hamish took that to narrow Ian’s lead to 1 point. Brendan didn’t know that Hannah was the mother of Samuel, and Hamish took that to ensure that he and Ian were still tied going into the final round.
Hamish took his first, but missed the distinctly gettable fructose, which allowed Angus in for a bonus. Ian took two, but didn’t know that St. Nicholas’ Island, which had also been St. Michael’s Island, is now called Drake’s Island. Join the club. The arithmetic was simple. Hamish had to take bonuses off both Angus and Brendan to win. Ian needed one bonus off either to win. Nobody could answer Angus’ question, about Rupert Sheldrake. Ian had one foot in the final, but Brendan didn’t know off two people linked by the YMCA. Hamish came in first. . . and he had it. We had a draw. However, as we know , you can’t have a draw in BoB. So we had a tie break. Asked what was the significance of a gold stripe on uniforms of british soldiers from 1916, it was Ian who chanced his arm first. he told us that it denoted a soldier who had been wounded in action, and that was correct. On such small margins. Very well done Ian. A terrific display of nerve. Very hard lines Hamish. Getting that last bonus to tie the show demanded nerves and determination as well. A good show, albeit that correct answers from the Clark sofa were in particularly short supply during this show.
The Details
Hamish Cameron – 12
Ian Clark – 13 AET
Angus Douglas – 6
Brendan O’Connor - 6
Monday, 13 February 2012
University Challenge - Elimination Match 2
Balliol Oxford v. Homerton Cambridge
For the first time we found that we had a rematch on our hands at this quarter final stage. Balliol, who were Liam Shaw, Andrew Whitby, James Kirby and captain Simon Wood won their first round match against this same Homerton team by 5 points. They won an all Oxford second round clash when they squeaked past Merton, this time by 10 points. Then in their first match of these quarter finals they were well beaten by the much fancied outfit from Pembroke. As for Homerton, after that first round defeat by Balliol the team of Jack Euesden, Frances Conner, Thomas Grinyer and captain David Murray comfortably beat the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in the repechage match. In round two proper they had another comfortable win against a team from Durham who had set the highest score in the first round. Then in their first quarter final match they lost a close contest to Clare. The form guide suggested that there really wasn’t a lot in it, and as always, whoever got their buzzing game together quickest would have an advantage.
James Kirby won the first starter, buzzing in to identify a group of people all linked by the surname Grey. A set of bonuses on medieval history passed without them managing to add to the score. Homerton hit back immediately with Thomas Grinyer who knew about the semaphore system. If Homerton were going to progress they needed Thomas Grinyer back to his best. He had consistently been the fastest buzzer on their team, but he had been surprisingly twitchy in the previous match, and buzzed too early on a number of occasions. One bonus on quotations about porridge put Homerton in the lead. Andrew Whitby knew that it was Graham Greene who came to regret his use of the word ‘seedy’ . Once again, though, Balliol missed out on the bonuses, this time on women’s organisations. Neither team were familiar with Feuerbach’s Theorem. No, of course I wasn’t either. Frances Conner put Homerton back in front, knowing that the new Olympic sport of 1996 which was being referred to was beach volleyball. Two bonuses were taken on French writers’ pseudonyms. The first picture starter was a good UC special. We saw a line from a Shakespeare play rendered in characters of the international phonetic alphabet. Liam Shaw identified the play as Julius Caesar. Balliol went on to take their first bonus of the night by identifying another play in the same way. Liam Shaw took his second starter in a row by giving us Newton, and this time Balliol managed two bonuses on spheres. It had been a fairly bright and breezy first 10 minutes, and Balliol had a narrow lead of 55 to 35.
Andrew Whitby took the next starter on Milton Friedman. Again, Balliol managed a brace of bonuses on varieties of the colour blue. Jack Euesden, trying to buzz Homerton back into the contest, twitched too early on the next starter on the Etruscan language, but Balliol couldn’t capitalise on the error. The next starter went begging as well, on a rather involved question about the relative difference between the weights of the heaviest oarsman, and the lightest crew member in the University Boat Race. Liam Shaw, who was having a good night, took the next with the website Chat Roulette. Fair enough. No bonuses could be taken though. You got the idea that Balliol had the measure of Homerton in this part of the contest, but they were only pulling out the gap relatively slowly. Neither team recognised a work by Mendelssohn for the music starter, nor did they know a starter about Mark Anthony either. However the impressive Liam Shaw knew that a series of observatories could all be found on Mauna Kea, a good shout that one. This brought one bonus on the music set. Jack Euesden managed points for Homerton with the term lawn. 2 bonuses followed on Medicine and Literature. Again, it was Liam Shaw who brought home the bacon on the next starter with inverse square law. One astronomy bonus was his reward. Andrew Whitby recognised a group of actresses, all of whom had played the role of Ophelia, and this time Balliol managed two bonuses on logic. Neither team recognised a painting of Madame de Pompadour. Well, to be fair the painter seemed to have deliberately left out the Doctor and the clockwork robots. This brought us up to the 20 minute mark, and Balliol had extended their lead to 135, as against Homerton’s 50.
In a low scoring contest you fancied that Balliol should close the match out fairly comfortably. However the fact was that it had been a low scoring contest, and if Homerton could switch into top gear that 85 point gap could be gobbled up relatively quickly. David Murray took the next starter on a set of definitions of the rhyming words – elope – Pope and horoscope. A full set of three bonuses on , erm, royal mistresses, was a step in the right direction for them. James Kirby supplied the term altruism for the next starter, and two bonuses followed on the city of Samarkand. David Murray took his second starter, recognising clues to a series of words beginning with – oz. Only one bonus followed on probability distribution. Probably. Neither team fancied a starter on chemistry, but Liam Shaw knew the word matrix. 2 bonuses on the US Department of Justice were enough to give Balliol a bit of security. Not that Homerton were going to lie down until the gong. Frances Conner knew that Hobsbawm said that the 19th century actually ended in 1914. 3 bonuses on homonyms in French were despatched over the boundary rope. Thomas Grinyer, subdued this match when compared to his performances earlier in the series, knew the Kalahari Desert. This brought two bonuses on words beginning with Kie. The gap was now down to 40 points. Theoretically it was just about possible that Homerton could still pull it out of the bag, but it was going to be a very close run thing. James Kirby lost 5 on the next starter, but nobody for Homerton could dredge up the word stigma. That effectively ended their chances. Jack Euesden took the last starter with the greek letter psi, but that was all we had time for, as the gong sounded before any of the bonuses were asked. In the end, Balliol lived on to fight another day with 170, while Homerton were bidden farewell with 145. Hard lines, but well played for your performances throughout the series. Well played Balliol. One more win will put them through to the semis.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
I liked the way that JP accelerated his delivery to a veritable devil’s gallop in the last 10 minutes, which raised the unlikely possibility that Homerton might just claw their way back. Other than that I enjoyed his response to the term ‘chat roulette’ – “We’ll enquire no further”, and also his description of Lillie Langtry as “Edward VII’s main squeeze.”
Interesting Fact Of The Week That I Didn’t Already Know
The word matrix is derived from a latin word for womb.
For the first time we found that we had a rematch on our hands at this quarter final stage. Balliol, who were Liam Shaw, Andrew Whitby, James Kirby and captain Simon Wood won their first round match against this same Homerton team by 5 points. They won an all Oxford second round clash when they squeaked past Merton, this time by 10 points. Then in their first match of these quarter finals they were well beaten by the much fancied outfit from Pembroke. As for Homerton, after that first round defeat by Balliol the team of Jack Euesden, Frances Conner, Thomas Grinyer and captain David Murray comfortably beat the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in the repechage match. In round two proper they had another comfortable win against a team from Durham who had set the highest score in the first round. Then in their first quarter final match they lost a close contest to Clare. The form guide suggested that there really wasn’t a lot in it, and as always, whoever got their buzzing game together quickest would have an advantage.
James Kirby won the first starter, buzzing in to identify a group of people all linked by the surname Grey. A set of bonuses on medieval history passed without them managing to add to the score. Homerton hit back immediately with Thomas Grinyer who knew about the semaphore system. If Homerton were going to progress they needed Thomas Grinyer back to his best. He had consistently been the fastest buzzer on their team, but he had been surprisingly twitchy in the previous match, and buzzed too early on a number of occasions. One bonus on quotations about porridge put Homerton in the lead. Andrew Whitby knew that it was Graham Greene who came to regret his use of the word ‘seedy’ . Once again, though, Balliol missed out on the bonuses, this time on women’s organisations. Neither team were familiar with Feuerbach’s Theorem. No, of course I wasn’t either. Frances Conner put Homerton back in front, knowing that the new Olympic sport of 1996 which was being referred to was beach volleyball. Two bonuses were taken on French writers’ pseudonyms. The first picture starter was a good UC special. We saw a line from a Shakespeare play rendered in characters of the international phonetic alphabet. Liam Shaw identified the play as Julius Caesar. Balliol went on to take their first bonus of the night by identifying another play in the same way. Liam Shaw took his second starter in a row by giving us Newton, and this time Balliol managed two bonuses on spheres. It had been a fairly bright and breezy first 10 minutes, and Balliol had a narrow lead of 55 to 35.
Andrew Whitby took the next starter on Milton Friedman. Again, Balliol managed a brace of bonuses on varieties of the colour blue. Jack Euesden, trying to buzz Homerton back into the contest, twitched too early on the next starter on the Etruscan language, but Balliol couldn’t capitalise on the error. The next starter went begging as well, on a rather involved question about the relative difference between the weights of the heaviest oarsman, and the lightest crew member in the University Boat Race. Liam Shaw, who was having a good night, took the next with the website Chat Roulette. Fair enough. No bonuses could be taken though. You got the idea that Balliol had the measure of Homerton in this part of the contest, but they were only pulling out the gap relatively slowly. Neither team recognised a work by Mendelssohn for the music starter, nor did they know a starter about Mark Anthony either. However the impressive Liam Shaw knew that a series of observatories could all be found on Mauna Kea, a good shout that one. This brought one bonus on the music set. Jack Euesden managed points for Homerton with the term lawn. 2 bonuses followed on Medicine and Literature. Again, it was Liam Shaw who brought home the bacon on the next starter with inverse square law. One astronomy bonus was his reward. Andrew Whitby recognised a group of actresses, all of whom had played the role of Ophelia, and this time Balliol managed two bonuses on logic. Neither team recognised a painting of Madame de Pompadour. Well, to be fair the painter seemed to have deliberately left out the Doctor and the clockwork robots. This brought us up to the 20 minute mark, and Balliol had extended their lead to 135, as against Homerton’s 50.
In a low scoring contest you fancied that Balliol should close the match out fairly comfortably. However the fact was that it had been a low scoring contest, and if Homerton could switch into top gear that 85 point gap could be gobbled up relatively quickly. David Murray took the next starter on a set of definitions of the rhyming words – elope – Pope and horoscope. A full set of three bonuses on , erm, royal mistresses, was a step in the right direction for them. James Kirby supplied the term altruism for the next starter, and two bonuses followed on the city of Samarkand. David Murray took his second starter, recognising clues to a series of words beginning with – oz. Only one bonus followed on probability distribution. Probably. Neither team fancied a starter on chemistry, but Liam Shaw knew the word matrix. 2 bonuses on the US Department of Justice were enough to give Balliol a bit of security. Not that Homerton were going to lie down until the gong. Frances Conner knew that Hobsbawm said that the 19th century actually ended in 1914. 3 bonuses on homonyms in French were despatched over the boundary rope. Thomas Grinyer, subdued this match when compared to his performances earlier in the series, knew the Kalahari Desert. This brought two bonuses on words beginning with Kie. The gap was now down to 40 points. Theoretically it was just about possible that Homerton could still pull it out of the bag, but it was going to be a very close run thing. James Kirby lost 5 on the next starter, but nobody for Homerton could dredge up the word stigma. That effectively ended their chances. Jack Euesden took the last starter with the greek letter psi, but that was all we had time for, as the gong sounded before any of the bonuses were asked. In the end, Balliol lived on to fight another day with 170, while Homerton were bidden farewell with 145. Hard lines, but well played for your performances throughout the series. Well played Balliol. One more win will put them through to the semis.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
I liked the way that JP accelerated his delivery to a veritable devil’s gallop in the last 10 minutes, which raised the unlikely possibility that Homerton might just claw their way back. Other than that I enjoyed his response to the term ‘chat roulette’ – “We’ll enquire no further”, and also his description of Lillie Langtry as “Edward VII’s main squeeze.”
Interesting Fact Of The Week That I Didn’t Already Know
The word matrix is derived from a latin word for womb.
Sunday, 12 February 2012
I'll have a P please, Simon
Have you been over to check out this week's Weaver's Week yet ? If you're not in the habit, it's a habit well worth acquiring. It's a good read, and they always have interesting news. Like the fact that Simon Mayo will be the presenter of the resurrected Blockbusters. He's done a few game and quiz shows in his time, and he's a safe enough pair of hands who won't offend anybody, I suppose. Personally as a DJ I find him a little bit bland, but then on his radio 2 show, but I guess that's precisely the quality that the producers are looking for.
Saturday, 11 February 2012
News Questions
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news ?
1. Diamante Beach Hotel – Calpe
2. Joey Barton
3. MP4 27
4. Guerilla of Time
5. Leigh Halfpenny
6. Homs
7. Hannah Clayton
8. Lord Bannside
9. New York Giants
10. M.I.A.
11. Alberto Contador
12. Bradley Davies
13. Stephen Ferris
14. Florence Green
15. Mohammed Nasheed
16. Socks
17. Edie Richie and Evie Middleton
18. Rick Santorum
19. Matt Topham and Casey Charrington
20. Bridge End Inn, Ruabon
21. Baltasar Garzón
22. Jean Paul Guerlain
23. Mary Ann Ochota
In Other News
1. Which two countries vetoed the UN rebuke to Syria ?
2. Which country have reused aid from the UK ?
3. Which sculptor created the London 2012 Orbit Tower – unveiled last week ?
4. In the 6 nations which was the only country to win at home last weekend ?
5. Who was voted the favourite Dickens character of all time ?
6. Which South American president pledged his readiness to go to war with the UK over the Falklands ?
7. Which team knocked Rangers out of the Scottish Cup ?
8. Where will England play against Italy in the 6 Nations this weekend ?
9. Which make of car was revealed to be both the most reliable new and the most reliable used car?
10. What is the first name of Amanda Holden’s baby ?
11. Which is the first town in Wales to become an official ‘bilingual town’ ?
12. Who won the Republican Primary in Nevada ?
13. What was named the most read children’s book last week ?
14. Who was the headline act in the halftime show at the Superbowl ?
15. Whom did Karl Lagerfeld call fat last week ?
16. Who is the ‘Oldie of the Year ‘ ?
17. Who retired from international rugby following last week’s Calcutta Cup match ?
18. After whom has Argentina named its current domestic football season ?
19. What is the name of Millie Dowler’s killer who has been refused permission to appeal against his sentence ?
20. Kimi Raikonen is returning to formula One with which team ?
21. Who received a £40,000 pay out over phone hacking last week ?
22. Who won the joke of the year ?
23. Who was acquitted of tax evasion ?
24. Which tennis prodigy of years gone by claimed that her parents cheated her out of her fortune ?
25. Which two teams won the semi finals of the African Cup of Nations ?
26. How long did last week’s eruption of Mt. Etna last ?
27. Which artist was fined for drunk driving in possession of amphetamines ?
28. Who denied that she had let Piers Morgan listen to her voicemail ?
29. Who is the England football team’s caretaker manager ?
30. Which Grand National winning trainer passed away last week ?
31. Which actress will play Princess Diana in the new movie “Caught in Flight “ ?
32. Which British actor has quit his hit US show after 8 years ?
33. Which supermarket chain has been criticised for stocking Monsanto GM foods ?
34. Who admitted eating wolf stew while making his latest movie ?
1. Diamante Beach Hotel – Calpe
2. Joey Barton
3. MP4 27
4. Guerilla of Time
5. Leigh Halfpenny
6. Homs
7. Hannah Clayton
8. Lord Bannside
9. New York Giants
10. M.I.A.
11. Alberto Contador
12. Bradley Davies
13. Stephen Ferris
14. Florence Green
15. Mohammed Nasheed
16. Socks
17. Edie Richie and Evie Middleton
18. Rick Santorum
19. Matt Topham and Casey Charrington
20. Bridge End Inn, Ruabon
21. Baltasar Garzón
22. Jean Paul Guerlain
23. Mary Ann Ochota
In Other News
1. Which two countries vetoed the UN rebuke to Syria ?
2. Which country have reused aid from the UK ?
3. Which sculptor created the London 2012 Orbit Tower – unveiled last week ?
4. In the 6 nations which was the only country to win at home last weekend ?
5. Who was voted the favourite Dickens character of all time ?
6. Which South American president pledged his readiness to go to war with the UK over the Falklands ?
7. Which team knocked Rangers out of the Scottish Cup ?
8. Where will England play against Italy in the 6 Nations this weekend ?
9. Which make of car was revealed to be both the most reliable new and the most reliable used car?
10. What is the first name of Amanda Holden’s baby ?
11. Which is the first town in Wales to become an official ‘bilingual town’ ?
12. Who won the Republican Primary in Nevada ?
13. What was named the most read children’s book last week ?
14. Who was the headline act in the halftime show at the Superbowl ?
15. Whom did Karl Lagerfeld call fat last week ?
16. Who is the ‘Oldie of the Year ‘ ?
17. Who retired from international rugby following last week’s Calcutta Cup match ?
18. After whom has Argentina named its current domestic football season ?
19. What is the name of Millie Dowler’s killer who has been refused permission to appeal against his sentence ?
20. Kimi Raikonen is returning to formula One with which team ?
21. Who received a £40,000 pay out over phone hacking last week ?
22. Who won the joke of the year ?
23. Who was acquitted of tax evasion ?
24. Which tennis prodigy of years gone by claimed that her parents cheated her out of her fortune ?
25. Which two teams won the semi finals of the African Cup of Nations ?
26. How long did last week’s eruption of Mt. Etna last ?
27. Which artist was fined for drunk driving in possession of amphetamines ?
28. Who denied that she had let Piers Morgan listen to her voicemail ?
29. Who is the England football team’s caretaker manager ?
30. Which Grand National winning trainer passed away last week ?
31. Which actress will play Princess Diana in the new movie “Caught in Flight “ ?
32. Which British actor has quit his hit US show after 8 years ?
33. Which supermarket chain has been criticised for stocking Monsanto GM foods ?
34. Who admitted eating wolf stew while making his latest movie ?
Answers to News Questions
Who or what are the following, and why are they in the news ?
1. Sir Philip Hampton
2. Spanair
3. Victoria Azarenka
4. Crawley Town
5. Robert Rock
6. Andy Thomson
7. Sea Ceptor
8. The Cathedral of Middlesex
9. Colin Tarrant
10. Hugo
11. Gary Dobson and David Norris
12. Kweku Adoboli
13. Slav Mitev
14. Wukan
15. Sutton St. James
16. HMS Dauntless
17. Ed Lester
18. Suzanne Greenaway
19. Top Totty
20. John Randall
21. K’Naan
22. Ed Davey
23. Jacques Brunel
In Other news
1. Senior executives of which newspaper were arrested last week ?
2. Women’s Institute jam has gone on sale in which supermarket chain ?
3. Which organisation has halted operations in Syria ?
4. Who won Celebrity Big Brother 2012 ?
5. Disneyland has announced that it will at last allow employees to wear what ?
6. Who was voted the UK’s most influential standup ?
7. This is the Chinese year of the what ?
8. What was England’s score in the second innings of the 2nd test against Pakistan ?
9. Which Oscar winner was announced as having gained a role in Downton Abbey ?
10. Who will captain England in the Calcutta Cup ?
11. Which of the teaching unions has backed down on the pensions deal ?
12. In a survey – which was chosen as the saddest song of all time ?
13. A wax cylinder has been found , with a recording of the voice of which 19th century statesman ?
14. Djibril Cisse has moved to which Premier League club ?
15. What was the result of the Florida Primary ?
16. Which formula 1 driver was given a suspended sentence for a nightclub assault ?
17. Where will Adele be making her comeback performance ?
18. Who will be the guest star on the 500th episode of the Simpsons ?
19. Andy Murray has dropped out of the Davis Cup tie against which country ?
20. 73 people died in a football riot in which country ?
21. Which French politician was attacked with a flour bomb last week ?
22. Where did the Duke of Cambridge begin a tour of duty last week ?
23. A goose cull will take place on which lake ?
24. What was the UKs most borrowed book in 2011 ?
25. Which hugely respected boxing coach died last week ?
26. What caused consternation when it was found on a Royal Navy helicopter last week ?
27. With which offence has Chris Huhne been charged ?
28. A report says that cars of which colour are more likely to have hidden defects ?
29. Which two teams are contesting this weekend’s Superbowl ?
30. In tennis, which team did GB beat in the Federation Cup ?
Answers
Who or what are the following and why are they in the news ?
1. Chariman of RBS who turned down his £1.4 million bonus, thus putting pressure n the CEO
2. Spanish government funded airline allowed to go bust last week
3. Tennis player from Belarus who won the ladies’ singles at the Australian Open
4. Non league football club who knocked Hull City out of the FA Cup
5. English golfer beat Tiger Woods in the Abu Dhabi championship
6. Winner of world Indoor Bowls championship
7. New Royal Navy anti missile missile
8. Harmondsworth Barn, saved for the nation
9. Bill actor , passed away , possible suicide
10. Martin Scorsese’s Oscar nominated film
11. Appealing against their convictions for the murder of Stephen Lawrence
12. UBS trader accused of gambling away £15 billion
13. In court for making threatening phone calls to Paul Burrell
14. Chinese village holding free elections
15. Village in Lincolnshire with a lone gunman hold up
16. State of the art Royal Navy ship sent to the Falklands
17. Head of the student loans company allegedly helped to avoid National Insurance by government
18. Coroner for the Amy Winehouse inquest, supposedly underqualified – inquest may therefore be invalid
19. Beer withdraw from the Strangers Bar in the Houses of Parliament due to its un – PC name
20. Britain’s oldest hip replacement patient
21. US Rapper very upset that Mitt Romney has used one of his songs
22. New Energy secretary
23. Coach of Italian national rugby team
In Other news
1. The Sun
2. Waitrose
3. The Arab League
4. Denise Welch
5. Beards
6. Billy Connolly
7. Dragon
8. 72 all out
9. Shirley Maclaine
10. Chris Robshaw
11. ATL
12. everybody Hurts – REM
13. Otto von Bismarck
14. QPR
15. Romney heavily defeated Gingrich
16. Adrian Sutil
17. At the Grammys
18. Julian Assange
19. Slovakia
20. Egypt
21. Francois Hollande
22. The Falklands
23. Lake Windermere
24. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown
25. Angelo Dundee
26. A black widow spider
27. Perverting the course of justice
28. Yellow
29. New England Patriots v. The New York Giants
30. Israel
1. Sir Philip Hampton
2. Spanair
3. Victoria Azarenka
4. Crawley Town
5. Robert Rock
6. Andy Thomson
7. Sea Ceptor
8. The Cathedral of Middlesex
9. Colin Tarrant
10. Hugo
11. Gary Dobson and David Norris
12. Kweku Adoboli
13. Slav Mitev
14. Wukan
15. Sutton St. James
16. HMS Dauntless
17. Ed Lester
18. Suzanne Greenaway
19. Top Totty
20. John Randall
21. K’Naan
22. Ed Davey
23. Jacques Brunel
In Other news
1. Senior executives of which newspaper were arrested last week ?
2. Women’s Institute jam has gone on sale in which supermarket chain ?
3. Which organisation has halted operations in Syria ?
4. Who won Celebrity Big Brother 2012 ?
5. Disneyland has announced that it will at last allow employees to wear what ?
6. Who was voted the UK’s most influential standup ?
7. This is the Chinese year of the what ?
8. What was England’s score in the second innings of the 2nd test against Pakistan ?
9. Which Oscar winner was announced as having gained a role in Downton Abbey ?
10. Who will captain England in the Calcutta Cup ?
11. Which of the teaching unions has backed down on the pensions deal ?
12. In a survey – which was chosen as the saddest song of all time ?
13. A wax cylinder has been found , with a recording of the voice of which 19th century statesman ?
14. Djibril Cisse has moved to which Premier League club ?
15. What was the result of the Florida Primary ?
16. Which formula 1 driver was given a suspended sentence for a nightclub assault ?
17. Where will Adele be making her comeback performance ?
18. Who will be the guest star on the 500th episode of the Simpsons ?
19. Andy Murray has dropped out of the Davis Cup tie against which country ?
20. 73 people died in a football riot in which country ?
21. Which French politician was attacked with a flour bomb last week ?
22. Where did the Duke of Cambridge begin a tour of duty last week ?
23. A goose cull will take place on which lake ?
24. What was the UKs most borrowed book in 2011 ?
25. Which hugely respected boxing coach died last week ?
26. What caused consternation when it was found on a Royal Navy helicopter last week ?
27. With which offence has Chris Huhne been charged ?
28. A report says that cars of which colour are more likely to have hidden defects ?
29. Which two teams are contesting this weekend’s Superbowl ?
30. In tennis, which team did GB beat in the Federation Cup ?
Answers
Who or what are the following and why are they in the news ?
1. Chariman of RBS who turned down his £1.4 million bonus, thus putting pressure n the CEO
2. Spanish government funded airline allowed to go bust last week
3. Tennis player from Belarus who won the ladies’ singles at the Australian Open
4. Non league football club who knocked Hull City out of the FA Cup
5. English golfer beat Tiger Woods in the Abu Dhabi championship
6. Winner of world Indoor Bowls championship
7. New Royal Navy anti missile missile
8. Harmondsworth Barn, saved for the nation
9. Bill actor , passed away , possible suicide
10. Martin Scorsese’s Oscar nominated film
11. Appealing against their convictions for the murder of Stephen Lawrence
12. UBS trader accused of gambling away £15 billion
13. In court for making threatening phone calls to Paul Burrell
14. Chinese village holding free elections
15. Village in Lincolnshire with a lone gunman hold up
16. State of the art Royal Navy ship sent to the Falklands
17. Head of the student loans company allegedly helped to avoid National Insurance by government
18. Coroner for the Amy Winehouse inquest, supposedly underqualified – inquest may therefore be invalid
19. Beer withdraw from the Strangers Bar in the Houses of Parliament due to its un – PC name
20. Britain’s oldest hip replacement patient
21. US Rapper very upset that Mitt Romney has used one of his songs
22. New Energy secretary
23. Coach of Italian national rugby team
In Other news
1. The Sun
2. Waitrose
3. The Arab League
4. Denise Welch
5. Beards
6. Billy Connolly
7. Dragon
8. 72 all out
9. Shirley Maclaine
10. Chris Robshaw
11. ATL
12. everybody Hurts – REM
13. Otto von Bismarck
14. QPR
15. Romney heavily defeated Gingrich
16. Adrian Sutil
17. At the Grammys
18. Julian Assange
19. Slovakia
20. Egypt
21. Francois Hollande
22. The Falklands
23. Lake Windermere
24. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown
25. Angelo Dundee
26. A black widow spider
27. Perverting the course of justice
28. Yellow
29. New England Patriots v. The New York Giants
30. Israel
Mastermind - Round One - Heat 14
So then, thoroughly warmed up I was ready for the main event. What I wasn’t ready for was Gary’s T-shirt. Somehow ‘shocking’ pink seemed something of an understatement. I shouldn’t say anything myself. I was told to wear my pink shirt for the final of the 2007 SOBM, since which I have had to keep it as my ‘lucky’ shirt .
Gary, and the shirt, were drawn to go third. This meant that Catherine Goodwin took to the chair first, offering us a very traditional ‘life and work ‘ subject. In this case it was The Life and Work of Mary Wollstonecraft. “Ullo,” I thought, “slim pickings here, Dave.” I was right. My meager store of facts about Mary Wollstonecraft – married to William Godwin – mother of Mary Shelley – A Vindication of the Rights of Women – er , that’s it – didn’t bring me any answers at all. Catherine’s 11, then, looked a pretty good total.
Ebb Saxton, though, didn’t take a traditional subject. He offered us “Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads ? “ I remember this sitcom with a lot of affection, and when you look at it, it’s a thoroughbred. Great writers – Clement and La Frenais – and acted to perfection by James Bolam and Rodney Bewes, ably supported by Bridget Forsyth. All of which is just to distract you from the fact that I only had three of them right. Ebb did better with 10, but , I don’t know, if he’d prepared, and watched all 26 episodes and one Christmas special, then he should have done quite a bit better.
Now the main event. Gary, skipper of our Radio Addicts team who were runners up in Series 4 of Only Connect , semi finalist in Are You An Egghead ?, semi-finalist in Nancy’s series of Mastermind 2009, returned to the chair with a fantastic choice of subject – “The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World”. Now this is a subject I have a passing interest in myself – I answered the straightforward questions – Antipater of Sidon – Chares – Constantinople, but for all that I only managed 6 on the round , which seems about right for something I hadn’t prepared. Gary, though – well, Gary scored 17. Out of 17. A perfect round. John said that it’s rarely done, and he’s right. A fantastic performance, and you sensed that unless Eliot Wilson could throw in a great round of his own, then Gary was already home and dry.
Offering The Life and Career of Enoch Powell, Eliot Wilson managed a good round, certainly. Enoch Powell was certainly one of the most academically gifted as well as one of the most controversial figures in British Politics in the 1960s and 1970s. As I said, 13 was a good score. However it meant that even though he was in second place at the halfway stage, he was still 4 points behind Gary. Gary is a serious quizzer, and a very good quizzer, and I just couldn’t see anyway that Eliot was going to bridge that gap in the GK round.
Ebb and Catherine both struggled with their GK rounds., and neither of them managed to get into double figures. Still, at least they avoided the indignity of having their combined total outscored by Gary’s SS round – both pushed their totals up to 18.
Eliot Wilson started like an express train on his GK round. He took something like 8 points out of the first 10 questions. I don’t think there was a huge amount of difference between his and Gary’s questions, but of the two I preferred Eliot’s. I scored 19 on this round. Eliot himself managed 15. Now, 15 is a great score on a 2 minute GK round , and it’s still a pretty good one on a 2 and a half minute round. As an audience we could at least thank Eliot for setting a target and making it interesting.
Gary too started at full speed. He’s an old hand at this game now, and knows that the thing to do is just to keep answering as quickly as you possibly can. Hard lines on the pensée / pansy question - . As I mentioned earlier, I did think that Gary’s questions were a shade harder than Eliot’s - I scored 17 at home - and in such a case it’s easy to become discouraged and brood on dropped questions, and that way lies disaster. Gary kept on picking off the answers, and had passed the finishing line comfortably before the end of the round. His 14 pushed him through the 30 point barrier to a very fine 31. The only reason why I’m not making any pronouncements about Gary’s chances in the semis is that I don’t want to bring down the curse of the sofa upon him. But very well done. An impressive performance !
Gary, and the shirt, were drawn to go third. This meant that Catherine Goodwin took to the chair first, offering us a very traditional ‘life and work ‘ subject. In this case it was The Life and Work of Mary Wollstonecraft. “Ullo,” I thought, “slim pickings here, Dave.” I was right. My meager store of facts about Mary Wollstonecraft – married to William Godwin – mother of Mary Shelley – A Vindication of the Rights of Women – er , that’s it – didn’t bring me any answers at all. Catherine’s 11, then, looked a pretty good total.
Ebb Saxton, though, didn’t take a traditional subject. He offered us “Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads ? “ I remember this sitcom with a lot of affection, and when you look at it, it’s a thoroughbred. Great writers – Clement and La Frenais – and acted to perfection by James Bolam and Rodney Bewes, ably supported by Bridget Forsyth. All of which is just to distract you from the fact that I only had three of them right. Ebb did better with 10, but , I don’t know, if he’d prepared, and watched all 26 episodes and one Christmas special, then he should have done quite a bit better.
Now the main event. Gary, skipper of our Radio Addicts team who were runners up in Series 4 of Only Connect , semi finalist in Are You An Egghead ?, semi-finalist in Nancy’s series of Mastermind 2009, returned to the chair with a fantastic choice of subject – “The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World”. Now this is a subject I have a passing interest in myself – I answered the straightforward questions – Antipater of Sidon – Chares – Constantinople, but for all that I only managed 6 on the round , which seems about right for something I hadn’t prepared. Gary, though – well, Gary scored 17. Out of 17. A perfect round. John said that it’s rarely done, and he’s right. A fantastic performance, and you sensed that unless Eliot Wilson could throw in a great round of his own, then Gary was already home and dry.
Offering The Life and Career of Enoch Powell, Eliot Wilson managed a good round, certainly. Enoch Powell was certainly one of the most academically gifted as well as one of the most controversial figures in British Politics in the 1960s and 1970s. As I said, 13 was a good score. However it meant that even though he was in second place at the halfway stage, he was still 4 points behind Gary. Gary is a serious quizzer, and a very good quizzer, and I just couldn’t see anyway that Eliot was going to bridge that gap in the GK round.
Ebb and Catherine both struggled with their GK rounds., and neither of them managed to get into double figures. Still, at least they avoided the indignity of having their combined total outscored by Gary’s SS round – both pushed their totals up to 18.
Eliot Wilson started like an express train on his GK round. He took something like 8 points out of the first 10 questions. I don’t think there was a huge amount of difference between his and Gary’s questions, but of the two I preferred Eliot’s. I scored 19 on this round. Eliot himself managed 15. Now, 15 is a great score on a 2 minute GK round , and it’s still a pretty good one on a 2 and a half minute round. As an audience we could at least thank Eliot for setting a target and making it interesting.
Gary too started at full speed. He’s an old hand at this game now, and knows that the thing to do is just to keep answering as quickly as you possibly can. Hard lines on the pensée / pansy question - . As I mentioned earlier, I did think that Gary’s questions were a shade harder than Eliot’s - I scored 17 at home - and in such a case it’s easy to become discouraged and brood on dropped questions, and that way lies disaster. Gary kept on picking off the answers, and had passed the finishing line comfortably before the end of the round. His 14 pushed him through the 30 point barrier to a very fine 31. The only reason why I’m not making any pronouncements about Gary’s chances in the semis is that I don’t want to bring down the curse of the sofa upon him. But very well done. An impressive performance !
| Catherine Goodwin | The Life and Work of Mary Wollstonecraft | 11 – 4 | 7 – 5 | 18 - 9 |
| Ebb Saxton | Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads ? | 10 – 2 | 8 – 4 | 18 - 6 |
| Gary Grant | The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World | 17 – 0 | 14 -3 | 31 - 3 |
| Eliot Wilson | Life and Career of Enoch Powell | 13 – 1 | 15 – 4 | 28 – 5 |
Mastermind - Round One - Heat 13
Last night we had another double header, and I have to admit that I saw this first show as very much a curtain raiser to the return of our own Gary Grant in the second show. Nevertheless, let’s consider this first show on its own merits. Malcolm Sumner kicked off the evening with the Life and Career of Bing Crosby. I was disappointed that he wasn’t asked the old chestnut – what’s the difference between Bing Crosby and Walt Disney ? ( Well, Bing sings, but Walt does’nae. Say it in a Scottish accent. Very well, please yourselves. ) This was a fine round – alright, he was given the chestnut about White Christmas coming from the film Holiday Inn, but I have no problem with the odd chestnut in a specialist round. I managed 4 myself on this, which pales into insignificance against Malcolm’s 16.
Pat Barker interestingly described herself as a retired dogsbody. The subtitles only transcribed retired, funnily enough. Her subject was Eastenders. That’s one of those heads you win, tails I lose subjects. People who don’t know any better point to subjects like this as ‘proof’ that the show is dumbing down , and yet preparing properly for one of these is a hell of a slog, I should imagine. Yet even if you do well on such a subject, you possibly don’t get the credit you deserve anyway. Pat managed a good 12. It seemed to me that there were a disproportionate amount of questions about the last few years, but then that may just be my mind playing tricks on me.
Our next contender gave us a much more traditional sort of specialist subject. Diana Muir was answering questions on the Life and Work of Sir Joseph Banks. Banks was probably best known for his voyage with Captain Cook. As I expected, the Botany Bay chestnut came out, although not as the first question of the round. I managed a couple of others as well- the William Bligh question was a little bit of a gimme too. Overall, though, I felt it seemed like a difficult round, and Diana did pretty well to get into double figures.
Finally John Tanner, with the slightly macabre subject of the executioner Albert Pierrepoint. I make no bones about it, there were only two of these I could answer. One of these was Pentonville Prison. As for the other – well, towards the end of the round John was asked for the name of the Acid Bath Murderer. A bit of an old chestnut that. “John Haigh !” – I shouted. “Neville Haigh.” answered John, possibly using the christian name of Neville Heath by mistake, and missing out on the point. That’s a point for any aspiring contender to note. Had he just given the surname Haigh, I’m sure he would have got the point, although John Humphrys would probably have answered “Yes, JOHN Haigh.” Notwithstanding this, John still managed a highly competitive 14.
I found it difficult to assess the relative difficulty of the first two GK rounds. Without wishing to be horrible in any way, neither Diana nor Pat ever managed to gain enough of a momentum in their rounds to get through a large amount of questions. Diana did briefly take the lead with her total of 17, and Pat, who also scored 7 in her GK round, raised this to 19. John Tanner started very positively, but the mid round doldrums, which are so common in a 2 and a half minute round – saw him becalmed, and in the end he managed to cross the line with 11 points. That actually gave him 25 – not a massive score, but a pretty decent one. So anything in double figures would guarantee Malcolm Sumner the win. As GK rounds go I thought his was pretty gentle, and while it wasn’t the quickest that we’ve seen, he was always on target to achieve the 26 he needed with at least 20 seconds to spare. In the end he posted the highest GK score of the night with 12, to win with 28. For his last question, when asked who composed the theme music of the film “Bridge On The River Kwai “ he replied “Ahh. . . “ but couldn’t finish it with “. . . rnold “ which is what I think John was waiting for. Still, a good performance, even if it does mark him out as more of an outsider than a dark horse for the final.
Pat Barker interestingly described herself as a retired dogsbody. The subtitles only transcribed retired, funnily enough. Her subject was Eastenders. That’s one of those heads you win, tails I lose subjects. People who don’t know any better point to subjects like this as ‘proof’ that the show is dumbing down , and yet preparing properly for one of these is a hell of a slog, I should imagine. Yet even if you do well on such a subject, you possibly don’t get the credit you deserve anyway. Pat managed a good 12. It seemed to me that there were a disproportionate amount of questions about the last few years, but then that may just be my mind playing tricks on me.
Our next contender gave us a much more traditional sort of specialist subject. Diana Muir was answering questions on the Life and Work of Sir Joseph Banks. Banks was probably best known for his voyage with Captain Cook. As I expected, the Botany Bay chestnut came out, although not as the first question of the round. I managed a couple of others as well- the William Bligh question was a little bit of a gimme too. Overall, though, I felt it seemed like a difficult round, and Diana did pretty well to get into double figures.
Finally John Tanner, with the slightly macabre subject of the executioner Albert Pierrepoint. I make no bones about it, there were only two of these I could answer. One of these was Pentonville Prison. As for the other – well, towards the end of the round John was asked for the name of the Acid Bath Murderer. A bit of an old chestnut that. “John Haigh !” – I shouted. “Neville Haigh.” answered John, possibly using the christian name of Neville Heath by mistake, and missing out on the point. That’s a point for any aspiring contender to note. Had he just given the surname Haigh, I’m sure he would have got the point, although John Humphrys would probably have answered “Yes, JOHN Haigh.” Notwithstanding this, John still managed a highly competitive 14.
I found it difficult to assess the relative difficulty of the first two GK rounds. Without wishing to be horrible in any way, neither Diana nor Pat ever managed to gain enough of a momentum in their rounds to get through a large amount of questions. Diana did briefly take the lead with her total of 17, and Pat, who also scored 7 in her GK round, raised this to 19. John Tanner started very positively, but the mid round doldrums, which are so common in a 2 and a half minute round – saw him becalmed, and in the end he managed to cross the line with 11 points. That actually gave him 25 – not a massive score, but a pretty decent one. So anything in double figures would guarantee Malcolm Sumner the win. As GK rounds go I thought his was pretty gentle, and while it wasn’t the quickest that we’ve seen, he was always on target to achieve the 26 he needed with at least 20 seconds to spare. In the end he posted the highest GK score of the night with 12, to win with 28. For his last question, when asked who composed the theme music of the film “Bridge On The River Kwai “ he replied “Ahh. . . “ but couldn’t finish it with “. . . rnold “ which is what I think John was waiting for. Still, a good performance, even if it does mark him out as more of an outsider than a dark horse for the final.
| Malcolm Sumner | Life and Career of Bing Crosby | 16 – 1 | 12 – 3 | 28 – 4 |
| Pat Barker | Eastenders | 12 – 2 | 7 – 2 | 19 – 4 |
| Diana Muir | The Life and work of Sir Joseph Banks | 10 – 0 | 7 -2 | 17 – 2 |
| John Tanner | Albert Pierrepoint | 14 – 0 | 11 – 0 | 25 – 0 |
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