University Challenge 2024 Quarter final round - Trinity , Cambridge v. The Open University

The Teams

Trinity, Cambridge

Sarah Henderson

Agnijo Banerjee

Ryan Joonsuk Kang (Capt.)

Jeremi Jaksina

Open University

Ellie Romans

Mike Holt

Ann Gavaghan (Capt.)

James Davidson

Here we are again, dearly beloved, racing through the byzantine intricacies (as JP once put it) of the quarter final round. The fixture computer had thrown up a match between the winners of the 2 repechage matches, an interesting matchup that I found difficult to call. I’ll be honest, I don’t know much about the International typographic style, but Open skipper Ann Gavaghan knew it was from Switzerland to take the first starter. The Asian financial cash crisis of the late 90s (as opposed to the continuing Clark financial cash crisis of the last 6 decades) brought just the one bonus, although the Ringgit was certainly gettable as a bit of an old quiz chestnut. Jeremi Jaksina buzzed in too early for the next starter and lost five, putting Trinity into the red. He’d get over it. I don’t think Ann Gavaghan knew the term primate city ay more than I did but clues like – archbishops – and mammals like lemurs gave us both the answer. Bonuses on Stevie Wonder brought me a full house and Open two correct answers. Strangely, they weren’t asked which single was accompanied by a video showing pieces of flying toast. It was I just called to say I love you. Fair play to James Davidson for giving the correct answer of Ann Radcliffe to the next starter, which seemed to be tempting the contenders to answer Jane Austen. Greek mythology is a useful subject to know a bit about if you’re a quizzer, so it was disconcerting to see the Open only manage one bonus on female characters in “The Trojan Women”. The next starter wanted the name of a tree and when Amol said the word pedunculate I bet quizzers around the country screamed OAK! in unison. Both teams held their nerves until Mike Holt chanced his arm and earned his team their fourth consecutive starter. Economics for bonuses then. I have a rough rule of thumb. If a question asks for a British economist from the 20^th century I answer JM Keynes. If it asks for an earlier British economist I answer Adam Smith. Well, the first bonus asked for Keynes and the third asked for Smith! Mind you, when it asks for an American economist I always answer Milton Friedman and that was wrong! Open gave the same answers I did. This brought us to the picture starter and already Amol was feeling the need to gee up Trinity. It worked. We were shown a map of a British city with the areas of green spaces highlighted in, er, green. Jeremi Jaksina weighed up what we saw and correctly deduced that this was Liverpool. Three more cities followed. Believe it or not I recognised Edinburgh from the coastline, but not the other two. Trinity missed this one but did recognise Bristol. Jeremi Jaksina took his second starter on the bounce when he recognised a definition of the word investiture. The chemistry of pine trees was an unexpected subject for their bonuses. It brought them a full house, whatever the case. Agnijo Banerjee recognised the words of Wittgenstein, the beery swine. British thinkers of the early 20^th century brought two more bonuses which meant that the Open lead had been cut to 20 as the score stood at 70 – 50 in their favour.

Having weathered the initial Open onslaught Trinity continued taking the starters as Jeremi Jaksina correctly answered that the fresco being described in the next question was painted by Raphael. Altogether now – he could paint well considering he was a turtle. That’s Raphael, not Jeremi Jaksina. Stock characters of the Italia Commedia del’Arte followed. After getting the first one wrong, Trinity followed the time-honoured tactic of, if you don’t know anything much about the subject, then give the one answer you do know to each question in the hope that you’ll get one of them. Thus they answered Harlequin to the last two, but missed out. Ellie Romans was quickly in to answer that the two wars named after specific peninsulas were the Crimean and Korean. Cultural creations featuring in 2001: A Space Odyssey brought just the one bonus. Fair play, I didn’t get the composer either. – Astronomer – 1967 – two word term – YIPPEE! I shouted – it’s black hole! (It’s always black hole for this type of question) and I was off the sofa on my lap of honour even before Amol confirmed that Agnijo Banerjee was right to give the same answer. My exercise for the night week having been completed both Trinity and I took a full set with household insects. Like the household cavalry but smaller. This gave Trinity the lead for the first time in the contest. Ah, the music starter, and what was described as a jazz artist. One of us got it right, even though it was a ‘jazz’ artist I’ve actually heard of, Gregory Porter. My favourite starter of the night followed. Name the two countries that are members of both the Commonwealth and the EU. Both teams fell into the trap of counting the UK as one! (Alright, so did I). The answer was Malta and Cyprus. Brilliant question. James Davidson knew that Orkney and Shetland passed to Scottish control in the 15^th century, This brought the dubious reward of the jazz bonuses. None of us knew any of these. I’m afraid the next starter was completely unfathomable to me. Gawd knows how, but Ryan Kang worked out that the day after Tau day is 28^th June. No, me neither. Literary theory and criticism brought me nowt, but then I only spent three years at Uni studying literature. Trinity took one. I spent no time studying Geology but I still knew a drumlin when I heard one described for the next starter – but neither team did. The next starter asked for a North America transport hub. I had a feeling for Grand Central Station in New York and James Davidson thought so too. That earned the Open a set on Renaissance Popes. They zigged with Medici on the first when they should have zagged with Borgia but took the other two which gave them back the lead. I did not understand the incomplete next starter. I say incomplete because Jeremi Jaksina buzzed in with the correct answer of island while the orchestra was just starting to play the baby elephant walk in my head. Trinity didn’t get any of a gettable set on that old devil, Abel Tasman. This meant that both teams were level on 115 as we passed the 20-minute mark.

Squeaky bum time, then. Which team could take a decisive advantage on the buzzer? Ann Gavaghan took the next starter by recognising a photo of Mary Quant, not just a great designer but also a good score in Scrabble. More fashion designers brought a timely full house. It looked even better for the Open when Mike Holt buzzed in early to identify the Doppler effect. A full house on video games followed. Suddenly the Open had a fifty point lead. Could they take the next starter? Yes, they could. Ellie Romans gave the French city of Nice to earn a set on SI Unit prefixes. Ann Gavaghan’s body language showed her disappointment as Amol announced this set. When you’re 60 points ahead at this stage, and you haven’t got a Scooby, the sensible thing is to run the clock down a little. Ann Gavaghan had honourably been snapping out the bonus answers quickly and continued to do so with this set, but it brought no correct answers and meant that there was still time for Trinity. Really and truly Trinity had to get the next starter and in the shape of Jeremi Jaksina who gave the correct answer of Sassanids, they did. Perennial favourites the Pre Raphaelites brought two correct answers. Captain Ryan Kang also sapped his answers out quickly, but it made sense in Trinity’s case. Jeremi Jaksina’s tag team partner, Agnijo Banerjee came in with the answer constellations – Cepheus and Cassiopia featuring in the next starter. Bonuses on the mammalian heart (a lesser know 1970s prog rock group, I thought) brought just the one bonus and Trinity were still a full set behind. I knew that Praia is the capital of the Cape Verde/Cabo Verde Islands. Neither team did. Mike Holt came in too early for the next starter and lost five. A full set for Trinity would put them in the lead. Science maestro Agnijo Banerjee took the starter with Alkynes. Only one bonus on peat bog bodies (Pete Bogbodies was the original bass guitarist with Mammalian Heart, and Al Kynes was his replacement, I believe) left Trinity just five points behind. Not to be denied Agnijo Banerjee took a crucial starter on vitriol to put Trinity back in front. Cartoon catchphrases brought just the one bonus – with Trinity suffering from a lack of familiarity with Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies from Warner Brothers. Gawd knows what the next starter was all about but Sarah Henderson came in early with the correct answer of ternary form and to all intents and purposes, that was the game. The contest was gonged before they could answer the first bonus. Trinity won by 190 to 170.

A very good game, and really there was only a cigarette paper between the teams. Trinity had a BCR of 45 and Open had a BCR of 50. In the end that final burst of buzzing created just the tiniest bit of daylight between them. I’m glad that we’ll see both of these teams again.

Amol Watch

I can’t swear to it that 7 minutes and 10 seconds is the earliest that Amol has yet offered encouragement to a team but it’s pretty early. Mind you, bearing in mind what Open did in their last match – racing off to a unassailable lead – I don’t blame him.

At one point during the household insects set he referred to the answer given – yes, bed bugs, nasty little brutes, aren’t they? – I’m sure that they speak very highly of you, Amol.

With the EU/Commonwealth question Amol’s “I’m presuming you guys have all forgotten about this thing called Brexit.” was maybe a little smug, but totally forgivable in the context of the question. Oh and while we’re on the subject of smug, Amol – here’s nothing ‘mere’ about A level physics, as those of us who never even got close to an O Level in the subject will gladly admit.

Interesting Fact That I Didn’t Already Know Of The Week

A city that is overwhelmingly larger than any other city in its country and dominates that country’s political and economic life, for example Mexico City, can be called a primate city.

Baby Elephant Walk Moment

First, a major contributor to the aroma of Christmas trees is the compound pinene which occurs naturally as alpha-pinene and beta-pinene. What name is give to the family of highly aromatic hydrocarbons that includes the pinenes?

Mmmm, pienenes! Dum de dumdum dum dum dum dum dumdum.