Wot, no Mastermind?

 No, I don' intend to mention the M word again until after tomorrow's Grand Final. No, it's just that you may remember that I didn't post last week until this weekend because I was on holiday with the family in West Wales. Well, I thought it might be nice to share with you some of the ink drawings that I made on holiday.

This is Pembroke Castle, where the lad in the statue, Henry VII was born. Classic example of local boy makes good.

This is the Island Ranger Catamaran, which took us around Caldey and St. Margaret's Islands, where we saw seals, dolphins, guillemots, cormorants and puffins.

Tenby sketched from the beach while waiting for the Island Ranger

Pig in Folly Farm

Manorbier Castle - about 1 mile away from the airbnb in which we stayed. 

If you like my drawings and you'd like to look at others I've done and my other attempts at art work, the you could check out my art blog. Just click this link -

Dave Clark Art Blog

Ivory, Apes and Peacocks? Unlikely.

What, still burbling on about Mastermind, Dave? Yeah, ‘fraid so. I can’t help it and be fair, the Grand Final is tomorrow evening.

Now, contrary to popular belief, when I meet someone for the first time I don’t say “Hi, I’m Dave Clark and I won Mastermind in 2008.” Or something similar. But it happens sometimes that I might be with someone who points it out, or after I’ve known them for some time then it might come up in conversation. The person will almost invariably ask two questions. The first is always “What was your specialist subject?” Not subjects, you note. I always tell them my final subject. Then the next question is usually “What did you win?” I’ve built up a little monologue over the years, building up from if you’re beaten in the first round you get nothing, if you’re beaten in the semi final you get nothing, if you come sixth in the final you get nothing – and so on right up to, but if you win, not only do you become the Mastermind of the United Kingdom, you also get (imaginary drumroll followed by dramatic pause) – a glass bowl!

Of course, you get intangible things as well. So while you might not get ivory, apes and peacocks – well, there’s no might not about it – you probably do get a huge sense of satisfaction. In my case, relief as well. I knew I was a good quizzer by 2007, but I didn’t have a great deal to prove it. Three previous TV appearances had not gone well. The really great thing about winning Mastermind is that the show is still to some extent in the public consciousness. If you win Mastermind, then you don’t have to explain to people what it is all about. This sounds pathetic, but I had a burning desire in 2007 to do really well in the show, by which I mean to reach the Grand Final. When I won, though, it had a marvellously cleansing effect. Yes, I am still competitive. I still want to win every quiz I enter. But I haven’t had that unhealthy, burning need ever since. Yes, I entered both Brain of Britain and Only Connect, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the experiences despite being comfortably beaten in both finals. My MENSA membership has lapsed now, and so it’s unlikely that I’ll play in Brain of Mensa again, but I still enjoyed all the times I played in the competition, even though I only won it twice.

There are things which didn’t happen. I never expected to get any kind of media career out of it, and I didn’t. I never expected to get recognised in the street, and with 2 exceptions, I didn’t. I did expect to get some kind of recognition from my school and from my local education authority . . . but I didn’t. Mark “The Beast” Labbett, whom I’ve known for a long time, greeted me after the final was shown and said that he bet my local authority were over the moon and making a big fuss of me. He’d had a letter of commendation from South Gloucestershire just for appearing on Discovery Mastermind. Nope. Not even a congratulatory email from Neath and Port Talbot. Just as disappointing was that I didn’t receive any acknowledgement from my own school’s governing body. This was after 20 years’ good service, and a slew of positive publicity for the school in the local media following the win. I was invited to a reception in the Mayor’s Parlour, but the Mayor informed me that this was his own initiative and had nothing to do with the school or the authority. The Chairman of Governors turned up, and I’m glad I had the good grace not to mention the lack of acknowledgement from the Governing body he headed. Unfortunately, I’m gifted with the kind of memory that can’t forget these things. Thankfully this only cast the smallest of shadows over what was pretty much a king for a day kind of experience.

For there were things I never expected that did happen too. For example, being invited back to my old school in Ealing to make a speech and present some prizes. Getting invited to take part in the Get Connected charity quiz auction on a number of occasions. Being as my final subject was the History of London Bridge I was also invited to participate in the banquet for the 900^th anniversary of Old London Bridge held in Fishmongers Hall in the presence of the Lord Mayor of London. For a Londiniophile (or whatever the term for a lover of London is) like me, this was the most fantastic experience. I’m sure tomorrow night’s winner will have opportunities they never expected too.

The Great Fred Housego (Fred, if you ever read this, my offer to take you out for a pint which I first made years ago still stands) once offered this advice to all future winners – ride the bus for all it’s worth because it doesn’t stop twice. Amen. I can’t really add a great deal to that other than, for tomorrow night’s champion, winning Mastermind is unlikely to change your life, but for a while at least it can certainly enhance it.

Pob lwc.

Why don't Schoolteachers win Mastermind any more? (Answers on a postcard please)

Yes, gentle reader, it’s time to return to a well trodden subject in these here parts, namely, teachers and Mastermind. Specifically schoolteachers and Mastermind.

I’ll tell you what brings this on. Yesterday I tipped Thomas Nelson to win tomorrow’s grand final. I never even stopped to think what his profession might be. A quick check on the iplayer this morning revealed that he is in fact a teacher. A schoolteacher. Thomas, if by any chance you ever read this, I apologise profusely for tipping you and I sincerely hope that you will strip me of the honour of being the last schoolteacher to win a series of Mastermind.

17 years ago, in 2007 (yeah, I know the records say that I won in 2008, but the final was filmed in June 2007) I never thought that I would be in the last year of my teaching career before another schoolteacher would win. Should Thomas not win tomorrow night then I will be retired before the next schoolteacher wins. Before the next anyone wins in 2005. I should point out that I am not the last educator to win a series -the great Ian Bayley and the great Clive Dunning, both MM and BOB double winners, come to mind immediately. But none of the champions since have been schoolteachers. Why should that be?

Well, of course, I do have my own ideas about that. If you know much about the history of Mastermind you’ll know that it’s first decade was pretty much dominated by schoolteachers and college lecturers. The first two years were won by college lecturers Nancy Wilkison and Patricia Owen, while the next two were won by schoolteachers Elizabeth Horrocks and John Hart. The next two years were won by civil servant Roger Pritchard and retired ambassador Sir David Hunt. Schoolteacher Rosemary James won in 78, student Philip Jenkins (who went on to become a university lecturer) in 79. The great Fred Housego won in 1980, but the following year schoolteacher Leslie Grout followed in 1981.

Even though the number of educator winners started to tail off in the 80s and 90s, we still saw schoolteacher Margaret Harris win in 1984, schoolteacher David Edwards win in 1990 and lecturer George Davidson win in 1994. Even after the first TV version ended, educators still kept winning with Robert Gibson and Stephen Fellows in 1998 and 2000 respectively. The first TV revival, 2001’s Discovery Mastermind was won by schoolteacher Michael Penrice.

The famine really came in with the revived BBC TV series, beginning in 2003. Retired lecturer Geoff Thomas won in 2006, schoolteacher me won in 2007/8, lecturers Ian Bayley in 2011 and Clive Dunning in 2014, then . . . well, I think that’s it.

Forgive me if I concentrate on schoolteachers now but that’s really my area of knowledge and experience. All of this begs the question – why don’t schoolteachers win Mastermind any more? As a body, are schoolteachers less intelligent than they were in the 70s/80s? Is everybody else smarter than they were back then? In both cases I don’t think so. I do think that more people have more access to university education now – it was between 10 and 20 percent through the 70s and 80s and something approaching forty percent by the 2020s.

Of course, you don’t need a university education to win Mastermind. So there’s probably other factors involved. Now, when I began my teaching career in 1987 a lot of the old guys and gals in the staffroom would often make the point that teaching had changed for the worst. Nowadays, when I’m not actually off school with depression and anxiety I often say the same thing. But in all honesty, I do not know how a schoolteacher now would find the time to prepare properly for a Mastermind campaign. Nor the energy. Then there’s the change in quizzing culture since the late 80s when I started, let alone the early 70s when Mastermind did. I don’t know how much of a quiz background any of tomorrow’s finalists have but I honestly believe that if you have at least a quiz league background then you have a big advantage over anyone who doesn’t. I would argue that there is far more opportunity to play regularly in high level quizzes now than there would have been in the 70s, for example. It’s not always the highest general knowledge scorer who wins the grand final, but it’s never the lowest.

Well, whatever the case, I wish all of our finalists the very best of luck, and especially I hope that Thomas can beat the curse of the Clark tip.

Mastermind Grand Final Subjects

You don’t have to be a Mastermind yourself to figure out that I’m really looking forward to tomorrow night’s Grand Final. I’ve already given you my take on the runners and riders, so let’s do the same for the specialist subjects.

Now, by rights, with six subjects my specialist aggregate could be my highest of the whole series. Not so sure, though. Here’s the six –

Wimbledon Singles Championships since 2000. I reckon I should get two, possibly three.

The artist Francis Bacon – I’ll be disappointed if I don’t get any but gobsmacked if I manage more than a couple.

The ancient Greek poet Sappho – maybe general knowledge might brig me a point, but there’s little chance of any more

The Mercury prize – again, one maybe two maybe none.

The French Revolutionary the Marquis de Lafayette – ditto

French composer and pianist Clara Schumann – nul points.

I don’t have a ‘banker’ amongst all of these. I’d be gobsmacked if I got more than 10 altogether.

Mastermind 2024 Grand Final Preview

 The Tale of the Tape 

For each contender the top row is the semi final stats, the second row is the first round stats and the third is the average of the two.

Ruth Hart	The novels of Dame Muriel Spark	10	0	10	2	20	2
		12	0	14	0	26	0
		11	0	12	1	23	1
Helen Lippell	British Prime Ministers of the 18th century	11	0	13	0	24	0
		12	0	9	0	21	0
		11.5	0	11	0	22.5	0
Thomas Nelson	Sir Bobby Robson	12	0	14	0	26	0
		10	0	16	0	26	0
		11	0	15	0	26	0
Oli Hanson	World Athletics Championships 2011 to the Present Day	11	0	12	2	23	2
		9	0	12	0	21	0
		10	0	12	1	22	1
George Twigg	The Prose Edda	12	-	13	0	25	0
		13	0	10	0	23	0
		12. 5	0	11. 5	0	24	0
Sarah Thornton	Happy Valley	12	0	14	1	26	1
		12	0	11	1	23	1
		12	0	12. 5	1	24. 5	1

 

Okay, it’s that time of the year when I embarrass myself by making predictions about the Mastermind Grand Final. I have been singularly unsuccessful in the last few years, but there you go. For what it’s worth, and in the order in which they won their place in the final :-

Sarah Thornton

Sarah won the first semi. Now, in both heat and semi her specialist rounds were exemplary. It doesn’t automatically mean she will do well in specialist in the final, but it’s a useful indicator that she is likely to. For Sarah I can’t help thinking it will come down to GK. If she gets close to the performance from the semi, then she could be there. However her GK in the heat was good, but not outstanding. Prediction – amongst the meals, but silver or bronze most likely.

George Twigg

Like Sarah, George’s specialist rounds have been excellent. I believe tha this will be another very tight final, and the ability to bring out a top scoring specialist round could turn out to be the difference between the winner and the rest. George himself said that his 10 on GK in the heats was disappointing. I think he’ll need a round closer to the GK from his semis. Let’s not forget that George took out the top scorer from the heats, Stephen Dodding in his semi. Prediction – Silver, but gold would not be a shock either.

Oli Hanson

Oli is the opposite to Sarah and George. He’s consistently scored well in GK but only managed good rather than great rounds on Specialist. While his general knowledge has been high in both rounds, it hasn’t bee quite high enough that you can see him overhauling everyone else if he’s a couple of points behind at half time. Prediction – not on the podium.

Thomas Nelson

We are in the unusual position that the most impressive performer of his group of Mastermind finalists did not actually win his heat. Thomas lost by a point to Peter Wilson in the heats, but was brought in when one of the heat winners could not make it to the semis. Well, Peter Wilson did not make it to the final. We’ve seen enough times in the past that someone who has achieved excellence in heat and semi performs below par in the final, so this has to be born in mind, but Thomas seems to have an advantage in GK. Prediction – champion.

Helen Lippell

In all honesty the tale of the tape suggests that the final is so close that it could be won by any of these 6 contenders if they have a great performance on the night. So make no mistake, Helen is certainly in with a chance. Based on what we’ve seen I think it’s a little less likely she will win than three we’ve already mentioned. But what do I know? Prediction – not on the podium.

Ruth Hart

Well, so far it’s really been a game of 2 halves for Ruth. Along with Thomas she was the best performer out of the finalists in her first round heat. Yet she went on to have the lowest winning score of any of the semis. So you really do have to pay yer money and take yer chance on what kind of performance she will have. Can she win? Certainly. But I have to go on the balance of probability. Prediction – not on the podium.

So – Thomas, I can only apologise. The Clark tip for the top is usually the kiss of death for any contender.

University Challege 2024 Semi Final 1 - Imperial v. Trinity, Cambridge

The Teams

Imperial

Justin Lee

Adam Jones

Suraiya Haddad (Capt.)

Sourajit Debnath

Trinity, Cambridge

Sarah Henderson

Agnijo Banerjee

Ryan Joonsuk Kang

Jeremi Jaksina

It’s the semifinals, folks. No more second chances, and the only place to get a drink is in the last chance saloon. By the time we get to this stage it usually starts to seem as if both teams are very familiar to us and we don’t really want to lose either.

We began with a long-winded starter which might have qualified for the baby elephant walk moments, other than the fact I knew the answer early. Agnijo Banerjee took first blood for Trinity, with differential. Monarchs nicknamed the Conqueror did not include William of Normandy. Trinity managed one of these. Justin Lee came in too early on the Shakespeare starter that followed and lost five. Trinity could not dredge up Sir Andrew Aguecheek. Justin Lee knew Wu languages for the next starter. Imperial failed to score on German engineers – my childhood years as an Airfix modeler meant I knew Heinkel. Never mind though, Justin Lee’s buzzer finger was firing on all cylinders as he came in early recognising the names of leaders of the Children’s Crusade. I played the Pope in a play of the same name and subject when I was in the 6^th form. Ingredients in Bengali five-spice brought two correct answers to give Imperial a 10 point lead. With the picture starter Justin Lee took his third consecutive starter recognising the flag of Bougainville. Flags of three more indigenous movements in the Pacific bought a terrific full house. That man Lee took a fourth consecutive starter with Arnhem Land. Major Commonwealth cities that are not capitals brought one bonus. For the next starer on green chemistry Ryan Joonsuk Kang was just edged out in a buzzer race. By whom? Guess! Yes, Justin Lee, five starters in less than 10 minutes. Chemistry bonuses meant that Imperial had a lead of 85 – 15.

Adam Jones got in before Justin Lee for the next starter on CP Snow’s The Two Cultures speech. Two bonuses on set theory took Imperial into triple figures. Justin Lee took another starter, knowing the German tow of Wittenberg. John Dryden’s Absalom and Achitophel saw Imperial give another 2 correct answers. Amol then issued encouragement to Trinity, and lo and behold, after 7 consecutive Imperial starters Agnijo Banerjee came in with the correct answer of camera lucida. Women with the given name Marianne proved to be no help to their cause whatsoever. This took us all to the music set. Amol asked for the Central European composer of a classical piece. Usually when I hear ‘Central European composer’ I’ll go for Liszt, Dvorak or Smetana. This was Janacek (wasn’t he a TV detective played by George Peppard?) Nobody had it. Agnijo Banerjee earned the music bonuses by knowing QCD means Quantum Chroma Dynamics. One correct answer followed. Sourajit Debnath knew that the films cited for the next starter were set in Senegal. American Observatories brought just the one correct answer, but things were still looking good for Imperial with their 100 point lead. Nobody knew champions from GB in the Gymnastics floor event for the next starter. A rush of blood to the head saw Suraiya Haddad come in too early for the next starter and answer that Pygmalion constructed the first woman, Pandora. Understandable error – he created Galatea, but it allowed Agnijo Banerjee to keep his team going with the correct answer of Hephaestus. I have to be honest, the announcement of bonuses on the minimalist composer Pauline Oliveros did not elicit cheers of joy from Trinity. They didn’t get any of them, and I’m afraid when it’s not your night then this is the kind of bonus set which often comes your way. Quotations missing out the word ‘when’ fell to Adam Jones which earned the dubious reward of a set on syncretic beliefs and religion. Didn’t seem to bother Imperial, they took a full house in quick time. For the picture bonus we saw one of Diego Rivera’s murals for Ford world HQ. Jeremi Jaksina took his first starter with this. Three more 10^th century paintings of factories yielded nowt. Like I said – not your night. At the 20 minute mark, Imperial led by 160 – 60.

Justin Lee extended that lead with another correct answer that the president of Dominican Republic in 1861 asked Spain to reconquer the country. Two bonuses on two -hander plays were taken. Why was Tennessee Williams called that when he was born in Mississippi is the question which wasn’t asked, but I’d like to know the answer to. Agnijo Banerjee, still gamely banging on for his team took the next starter knowing the old chestnut that the only female judge in the Old Testament was Deborah. Sustainability bonuses were no more generous to them than their previous sets were. Justin Lee, having a quite magnificent evening, took the next starter with pyrophoric substances. A full house on Sicily took Imperial past 200, and frankly, put them well beyond the event horizon. Neither team knew Burundi or Zambia have coastlines on Lake Tanganyika. The splendid Agnijo Banerjee buzzed correctly on the Geometry starter that followed, giving the correct answer. Me? Don’t be daft. Finally they had a gettable set of bonuses on plants, but probably should have known that tequila is derived from the agave family. Bit of an old chestnut, that one. Adam Jones won the buzzer race to identify the Desai novelists. A bonus on rivers of Russia edged them closer to their average score. Jeremi Jaksina won a buzzer race to identify famous 1980s pineapple impersonator, Manuel Noriega. Sennacherib (gesundheit) yielded one bonus. Captain Suraiya Haddad took the next starer or Imperial, identifying cortisone thus ensuring that all the members of Imperial had correctly answered at least 1 starter. 3 questions on fictional bookworms yielded a full house. I’ll be honest, I was thinking Pompey when Justin Lee buzzed in with the same answer to the next starter, but given the dates it became clear we were looking for Sulla, which is the answer Jeremi Jaksina buzzed in with. Subjects of portraits by Elaine de Kooning remained unanswered as the gong ended the contest. Imperial won by 240 – 110.

Trinity were stunned by the early buzzer onslaught from Justin Lee and unhelpful bonus sets meant that they were never really able to come back on Imperial. Their BCR of 25 is no reflection of their ability but a fair reflection of the way that the bonus Gods were against them. As for Imperial, they had a BCR of 64. They’ve been impressive all series, and now need just one more win.

Amol Watch

Every now and then Amol does seem to like showing off that he knew something the teams didn’t. For example, with the Toby Belch question he couldn’t stop himself from saying ‘they go together’ after giving the answer. Not a criticism, just an observation. JP often did the same thing with literature questions.

I don’t know, but I imagine that Trinity’s hearts may well have sunk after Amol felt the need to issue encouragement after only 12 minutes,

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

Plankalkul is often cited as the first computer programming language.

Baby Elephant Walk Moment

One of the 12 principles of green chemistry set out in 1998 by Anastas and Warner, what two word term did Barry Trost introduce in 1991 to refer to the concept of maximising the use of raw materials so that the final product contains the maximum number – (and at this point we could all give thanks that Justin Lee’s buzz spared us more of this question.)