The Teams
Leeds
Finn Thompson
Ingrid Banerjee Marvin
Alex Tan (Capt.)
Jayan Patel
Edinburgh
David Alton
Jess Mellor
Greg Myles (Capt.)
Caitlin Self
You had to wait with the first starter of the evening. We
were looking for a weather phenomenon and when we were finally given the clue –
Diane Fossey (Bob to her mates?) it was Greg Myles who won the buzzer race to
identify mists. Film soundtracks composed by Jonny Greenwood got Edinburgh off
to the best of starts with a full house. Did you know that the Florentine Codex
is all about the Aztecs? I guessed it and so, I guess, did Greg Myles. The 1924
UK General Election slowed Edinburgh down somewhat, and they managed just 1
bonus. Algorithms to produce random numbers stumped all of us for the next
starter. Greg Myles took his third starter with the words nit, not nut – which can
be sung to the tune of Neil Diamond’s Song Sung Blue as it happens. Gawd knows
how I guessed magnetic flux for the first bonus on magnetism but I was happy to
take the money and run, er, stagger, off on my lap of honour around the Clark
sofa. I also took the last bonus with Faraday meaning I got as many bonuses on
this as Edinburgh. So to the picture round and a photo of a rack and pinion
gearing system. Jayan Patel opened the Leeds account with that one. More gearing
systems brought two bonuses. A very quick buzz from David Alton identified the
Art movement Dada to bring a set of bonuses on the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
I remember watching the movie and somehow feeling it ought to have been better
than it was. Eventually Edinburgh managed a full house and this meant that they
led by 80 – 20 at just over the 10 minute mark.
Anna Bijns helped establish the vernacular literary
tradition in Dutch apparently. Finn Thompson didn’t seem to have much
confidence in this as an answer, but it was right. This brought Leeds bonuses
on pairs of names differing only in their first letter. They gave one correct
answer. David Alton untangled some gobbledygook to come up with the theory of
General Relativity for the next starter. The artist Douglas Who (Gordon)
brought a full house of bonuses for Edinburgh. Jess Mellor came in very quickly
for the music starter, identifying the dulcet tones of double Eurovision winner
Loreen, after whom the malt loaf was named, I believe. More artists who won the
Eurovision on significant anniversaries brought two correct answers, but shame
for missing out on Dana International, though. Nobody knew that Mr. Bumble
thought that the law is an ass. For the next starter Leeds skipper Alex Tan
knew James II and earned his team a set on esters. No, Rantzen wasn’t one of
them. Only one was taken. They were going to need to do better than this if
they were to have a chance of coming back. Now, if you get asked a question
about quarks, mentally flip a coin. Heads strange, tails charm. This time it
was strange as Finn Thompson confirmed. 2 bonuses were taken on Australia.
Nobody could take the next starter on various terms for fish sauce. This meant
that Edinburgh led by 125 to 65 as we approached the 20 minute mark.
Alex Tan knew that Prince Edward Island is the smallest Canadian
Province. Bonuses on Angels in America brought 1 correct answer. So to the
second picture starter, a still showing Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch in To
Kill A Mockingbird. Caitlin Self won the buzzer race to give the answer. Other
courtroom dramas brought two bonuses. Ingrid Banerjee Marvin identified the
Bloomsbury group for the next starter. The late Alexander McQueen brought two
correct answers. Jayan Patel knew the Cardinals American sports teams and this gave
them a set on Latin American dances, of which they knew one. This burst of
Leeds scoring had pulled them up to within striking distance of Edinburgh, just
a full house behind. They were even closer after Finn Thompson correctly
answered that Swansea were one of the non London, Manchester or Liverpool teams
to win the League Cup this century. British birds with reduplicative scientific
names – pica pica for example – failed to bring any more points. -That’s quite
close enough – said Jess Mellor – metaphorically – as she took the next starter
with the film Jojo Rabbit. Cultural references of the word rose brought two correct
answers and Leeds once more would need at least two visits to the table to take
the lead. Neither team could do it with the next starter. Now, if you’re asked
for a french cemetery, if you give the answer Pere Lachaise you’ll be right a
lot more often than you’ll be wrong. Greg Myles did just that, and that gap was
stretching again. Edinburgh didn’t get any of the bonuses on canals, but it
didn’t matter. There just wasn’t enough time left for Leeds. Especially when
Greg Myles capped an effective evening’s work by answering with genes for the
next starter. Australian actor David Gulpilil was the subject of the bonuses,
but Amol didn’t have time to complete the first question. In the end Edinburgh
won by 175 to 125.
Leeds had a relatively modest BCR of 42 compared with
Edinburgh’s 64, and essentially that is why Leeds never quite got onto terms
with them. Will they make the repechage? On balance I’d say no, but then what
do I know?
Amol Watch
Kudos to Amol for not laughing when Leeds confused Rosa Luxembourg
with Ethel Rosenberg. I can only imagine what a vintage Jeremy Paxman might
have made of that one.
Interesting Fact That I Didn’t Already Know Of
The Week
The chough has a scientific name meaning flame-coloured
raven. Choughing hell!
Baby Elephant Walk Moment
I need the two word name of a specific scientific theory
here. Using gamma-ray emissions from iron-57, vibrated by a loudspeaker cone
22cm above a detector, the Pound-Rebka Experiment was an experimental test of
which specific theory’s prediction that the gravitational field will affect the
frequency of protons? Dum de dumdum dum dum dum dum dumdum.
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