Sunday, 21 December 2025

LAMMY Awards 2025

Yes, my friends, it’s time for the LAMMY Awards. You didn’t think you were getting off scot free this year, did you? So, with a quick fanfare, let the awards begin

LAMMY Award for the best new quiz game show of the Year

Yes, the eagle eyed among you will have spotted that we’ve widened the parameters of this category this year. I mean, I find that I spend more time watching new shows that are basically reality shows or game shows with just a hint of quiz than I do real quiz shows. I haven’t reviewed Amanda Holden’s The Inner Circle which is actually a quiz show, but I will be honest, I didn’t really want it winning by default. I do like Amanda Holden, but I’m afraid that I can’t get over the Share or Shaft final. We know from years of watching Golden Balls that you cannot be worse off by shafting. In the wider category Chess Masters was just odd and Genius Game did not for me manage to make the most of an interesting premise. The shows that I enjoyed most were Celebrity Traitors – which is ineligible for the award since it is essentially The Traitors – and Destination X. I think there are tweaks that can be made with the latter, but nonetheless I am pleased to announce that the LAMMY for best new Game Show goes to

Destination X

The Award for Best Performance in a Broadcast Quiz

The Nominees

John Robinson – Mastermind

Christ’s Cambridge

Anniko Firman

Brendan Bethlehem Oscar Despard

Linus Luu – University Challenge

Four Opinions

Jacob Epstein

Rafi Dover

Aron Carr – Only Connect

Any of our nominees is very worthy of a LAMMY. However, this year it has to go to the most recent Teacher to become a Mastermind Champion. The LAMMY goes to

John Robinson for Mastermind

The Award for Achievements in Quiz Mastership.

The field is always rather restricted because I don’t go to a wide range of quizzes any more. Now, I would love to nominate any of the setters of the rugby club quiz who aren’t actually members of my team.

But.

The simple fact is that I don’t believe any of them deserve it. That’s cruel, But, the simple fact is that none of them seems to stick to simple, basic principles, namely, check your answers. Read your questions several times in order to make sure that you are asking what you think you are asking. Try to provide something for everyone. Like I said, simple, but there are only 3 question masters in the quiz who regularly do this (alright, 4 if you include me). So the nominations once again are:-

Jessica Ayres

Adam Cook

Dan Ayres

This year I am awarding for all round excellence rather than one specific quiz. So the LAMMY this year goes to

Dan Ayres

1 comment:

Brendon M said...

John is definitely a worthy winner. He ably handled the pressure of going last in the GK round and having a high target to chase. His GK questions were arguably a little kinder than those of his immediate competitors but that shouldn't detract from how he coped with the situation.