Friday 10 June 2022

You only remember . . .

 My dear, late quiz mentor, Alan Coombs said many things over the years about quizzing which have stayed with me ever since. In most things he was right on the money, too. However, he once said words to the effect of - within a day of playing in a quiz, the only questions you'll remember from that quiz are the ones you had wrong, but chances are you'll give the same wrong answer the next time it's asked. The only issue that I would have with this now is that I'd say that you also remember when you have a correct answer, and the QM gives a different one, and you know it's wrong.

Yes, I am thinking about something that happened in the rugby club last night. Dai Norwich (so called because a) his given name is David and b) he's from Norwich) asked the question, 

"Which band was Roy Wood in before he formed Wizzard?". The answer to the question that he gave was "The Move". For the first time since returning to the rugby club quiz last August my hackles really arose. "Point of order, Mr. Norwich," (or words to that effect) I replied, "but Roy Wood was in the Electric Light Orchestra - ELO - immediately prior to leaving to form Wizzard."

"Well, sorry, " he in turn replied, "but the answer I have is the Move, so it's The Move." Now, yes, on the one hand, as question master he is quite right to stick to his guns. If that's the answer he has written down, then that's the answer he has to stick to. However, on the other hand, he's in the wrong for not having checked his answer. Because, being charitable, at the very least his question allowed for more than one answer since Roy Wood was in more than one band before he formed Wizzard - in which case both answers should have been allowed. Being uncharitable, I believe that the chronology was that he was a founder member of ELO before The Move finally ended, then The Move ended, then he left ELO just as the were starting on their second album, then he formed Wizzard. In which case ELO is the correct answer to the question the way that it was asked. 

D'you know, it worries me that it matters to me. I didn't get into an argument with Dai or with anyone else, but I did make a point of shouting out "What about ELO? He left ELO to form Wizzard", which occasioned the answer I've quoted about. Up until now that's the sort of thing where the most I would have done since August is to get up and have a quiet word one to one with the QM. I don't like it that winning or losing matters to me at the club. We haven't lost since August 2021. I don't like it that I'm getting angry when I see another team cheating on their phones, even though they never win. So I am going to keep a very close eye on myself next week, when Dai is doing the quiz again. 

Behave yourself, Dave. 

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