Good morning. We’re working through the first round at a pretty decent pace now, although I still think there’s something funny going on with the specialists. I’ll explain later.
Kaushik Bhattacharya kicked us off with the Sherlock Holmes
stories. I feel I should tell you a story. Forty three years ago I took part in
the inaugural Elthorne High School Mastermind competition, and I am far too
vain not to admit that I won. A girl from the upper sixth, a year older than me,
took Kaushik’s subject for specialist. She thought the subject was the four
novels. The QM who set the questions thought that the subject was the four
novels AND the more than fifty short stories. Result? Well, she didn’t do very
well. It’s a massive subject that should come with a government health warning.
Under those circumstances Kaushik’s 7 was not at all a bad score. But you felt
for him a little as the higher scores piled on throughout the round.
Rachel Clapp’s was the first of these. She was answering on
Sergei Rachmaninoff, and answering very well too, I might add. I had scored
three on the Sherlock round and added another point here when I guessed Tchaikovsky
for one of the answers. That was me done, but Rachel wasn’t, and by the end of
the round I felt that her 9 would be one of the highest specialist scores in
the show.
It wouldn’t be the highest, though. Her score was beaten by
teacher – and latest recipient of the curse of support from the Clark sofa –
Laura Rutherford. Laura was answering on “The West Wing.” You know, I still
hear some people pour scorn on specialist rounds based on TV shows. All I can
say is, if you think a round about a TV series that lasts many seasons and has
many episodes is easy – you try it yourself! Laura did brilliantly, and scored
11, only really let down by a longish pause before answering on one of the
questions.
Finally school administrator John Harden answered on Red Rum.
I remember the day that the horse won his third Grand National – I was on a family
visit to the National Railway Museum in York, and as we returned to the station
to catch the train back to Kings Cross the news stands we passed all had the
news of the win plastered over them. John’s round was brilliant. He too had a
longish pause on one question, but got them all right to score 13. Which prompts
my earlier comment about the specialist rounds. A fortnight ago we saw a perfect
round from John Robinson on Futurism for which he scored 12. He hardly paused
at all. Yet John H – and this is no criticism of him whatsoever – paused a
little yet scored 13.
Well, it set up an interesting final round, that’s for
sure. Kaushik, as all contenders must, gave it a lash, but the questions really
didn’t seem to fall kindly for him. He ended with 12 points.
How must it feel to have a very good specialist round, as
had Rachel, and find yourself four points adrift at half time? Well, she
battled through her round, but it was fairly obvious that she was not going to
be able to muster the kind of score to be able to open the corridor of doubt
for the last two contenders. Rachel finished with 16.
So, Laura and John presented two different styles of
answering in their GK rounds. Laura adopted the tactic of firing out the answer
as quickly as she could after the question had been asked. Don’t knock it – I used
such a tactic myself. Well, for me it wasn’t so much a tactic as force of
habit. I have always been a blurter out, and I probably always will be. It took
Laura into double figures for the round and she finished with 11 and no passes
for a total of 22 and no passes. That would have been good enough to win quite
a few of the shows we’ve seen this year.
John’s tactic was far more measured. Think about the
question for a split second or more, then give a reasoned answer. Again, don’t
knock it if it brings success. John needed it to bring at least 9 and no passes
in order to force a tie break. But he took passes, and that meant he needed to
win outright by scoring 10. At one point it looked by no means certain, but
John carried on and in the end scored his own 11 to leave a little bit of
daylight between himself and Laura. Honours even on the tactical front.
I must mention John’s very moving piece to camera. John
explained that his wife had forced him to enter. He also explained that she had
passed away before he made this appearance. Well, John, I am sure that I have
never met either of you, but I hope you will forgive me for saying I am sure
that she would be proud of you. I sincerely wish you every success in the semi.
|
Kaushik Bhattacharya |
The Sherlock Holmes
Stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle |
7 |
0 |
5 |
3 |
12 |
3 |
|
Rachel Clapp |
Sergei Rachmaninoff |
9 |
0 |
7 |
2 |
16 |
2 |
|
Laura Rutherford |
Aaron Sorkin’s “The
West Wing” |
11 |
0 |
11 |
0 |
22 |
0 |
|
John Harden |
Red Rum |
13 |
0 |
11 |
2 |
24 |
2 |
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