University Challenge 2023: Round Two: Newnham College, Cambridge v. Cardiff

The Teams

Newnham, Cambridge

Bethan Holloway-Strong

Hannah Bowen

Roma Ellis (Capt)

Chen Zhou

Cardiff

John Wimperis

Will Balkwill-Western

Zoe Revell (Capt)

Ella Freeman

Well, the form guide looked pretty clear didn’t it? Cardiff were highest scorers in round one, and Newnham needed a repechage. Well, first round form is notoriously unreliable as a guide. Newnham had disposed of Sheffield in the repechage and were never going to be a pushover for anyone.

The first starter gave clues towards the word axis. I didn’t see it, but Bethan Holloway-Strong buzzed in to open Newnham’s account. Art nouveau was art neauneau for the first two bonuses, but quite rightly they took the last on the great Aubrey Beardsley, a man whose art was, in my opinion, decades ahead of its time. Last time out Newnham had languished in the 30 percent bonus conversion rate range, and I wondered if this was going to be repeated tonight. John Wimperis recognised various clues to the word space for the second starter. This earned a UC special set on pairs of words differing only through the addition of a letter x at the end of the first. Granted, they weren’t the most difficult items on the menu but you can only answer the questions that you’re asked and Cardiff did just that, taking a full house. The next starter about a British city with areas losing their world heritage status saw the start of a remarkable performance by Newnham skipper Roma Ellis. It wasn’t the fact she took five starters in regular time, although that was good enough. It was the speed of her buzzing, which would rock Cardiff back on their heels on several important occasions. She kicked off with the correct answer of Liverpool. The biographer Fiona McCarthy brought them nowt – a little surprising that they didn’t know Walter ‘Bauhaus’ Gropius, but there you go. For the picture starter we saw the title For Whom The Bell Tolls translated into Spanish. Bethan Holloway-Strong took her second starter with this, and more translations of titles by anglophone writers relating in some way to the Spanish Civil War brought a single bonus. “Give us the port, Edna” An Inspector Calls! Give us the points Jeremy. I must have taught it as a set book more than 30 times. Roma Ellis took her second starter with this one. Biomedical terms beginning with par delivered nowt. So as we neared the 10 minute mark, although Newnham had taken the lion’s share of the starters, they only led by 50- 25.

This gap narrowed as Will Balkwill-Western knew that the Sonderbund war was important to the history of Switzerland. The Swiss Army were a hell of a foe to defeat when the knives were out for them. Ordoliberalism promised but little and both of us only managed the last bonus on laissez-faire. The next starter on religion rewarded those with the nerve to wait for the words Emperor of Ethiopia at which a buzzer race ensued allowing John Wimperis to give the answer Rastafarianism – Ras Tafari being Haile Selassie’s former name. The report on the State of the World’s Trees brought two bonuses, and a 10 point lead for Cardiff. Hannah Bowen knew the film Waitress for the next starter, putting the teams on level terms. The US author NK Jemisin – yet another member of the large Who? family – yielded, well, yes, just one bonus. So to the music starter and the ragtime sounds of Scott Joplin. Hannah Bowen was in quickly for that one. Three more inaugural inductees to, well, it escapes me but there you go, brought – yay – a full house! Art movement – Le Figaro – 1876. Had to be Impressionism, didn’t it? Zoe Revell thought so and she was right. Cycling terms frankly did none of us any favours although I did know Quick Release wheels, having had a bike which had some, many years ago. Whether they were ever supposed to have been quick release, well that’s another story entirely. Nobody knew epistope for the next starter. I think that Lestat was the big clue that the next starter was looking for the writer Anne Rice. Ella Freeman offered her as the answer and she was right. This brought them the dubious benefit of a set of bonuses on Gottlob Frege. Gesundheit. Not a Science thing, but I still gave myself a lap of honour for guessing that Bertrand Russell was the British thinker who corresponded with him. This was the one that Cardiff had as well. Just as Cardiff were getting some go forward Newnham skipper Roma Ellis applied the brakes, buzzing early to identify FE as the letters beginning French words for farm, iron and other things. Again though they managed just the one bonus on a gettable set. This meant that the score was still close at the 20-minute mark, with Newnham leading 105 – 85.

Both of the teams were too young to recognise Sissy Spacek in Carrie for the second picture starter. Zoe Revell chanced her arm that GVA might mean Goss Value Added, and she was right. This earned the picture bonuses. Other films mentioned in Men, Women and Chainsaws – which have never been the three personal items chosen by the castaway on Desert Island Discs as far as I recall – brought just the one bonus. Nevertheless, Cardiff were no just one bonus behind. A great buzz from Ella Freeman on Ella Ferrante took the next starter, immediately putting Cardiff ahead. 17^th century poets saw Cardiff persist with Milton, and to be fair he did bring them a correct answer on the last bonus. If it’s four faces and four arms, then chances are it’s Brahma. Roma Ellis took her next starter identifying this major Hindu God. Dates of major events featuring Russian and Ottoman Empires brought 1 bonus, giving Newnham a precarious lead of five. The Newnham skipper had the bit between her teeth and extended the lead buzzing in with prime numbers for the mathematical starter that followed. 2 bonuses on Philip Glass meant that Cardiff could not take the lead in just one visit to the table. Asked for an Early 20^th century British writer predicting things like tanks, you’re always going to give yourself a chance with HG Wells. Ella Freeman did. A full house on American place names brought the teams level again.

GONG!!!!!!!

So after all the shouting it came down to this. One starter. Buzz first and answer correctly, then to the victor would go the spoils. Get it wrong and taste the bitter dregs of defeat. Cometh the hour, cometh the skipper, but which one? Well, it was Roma Ellis. She’d already had five starters, but none were more important than this one. She knew that only 1 position in netball begins with neither G nor W.

Very well played both teams, as JP set an exciting and interesting contest. Congratulations to Newnham. Again, their bonus conversion rate was some way south of fifty percent, and I worry that this may cause them problems in future matches, but let’s celebrate the win for now.

Interesting Fact That I Didn’t Already Know of the Week

Biomorphic whiplash sounds a lot of fun, but it is a term sometimes used to describe the curvilinear forms used in art nouveau decoration.