It was my turn to set the quiz for the Aberavon Rugby Club last Thursday. Here's the first four rounds or so. Your target - well the team who won scored 38 on these, so the banker pays 39s and over.
1) In the news – who is Vanessa Perroncel ?
2) Which Asian capital city was designed by sir Edwin Lutyens ?
3) Christopher Trace and Leila Williams were the first presenters of which Tv show ?
4) Which Stanley Kubrick film has a title that means a type of bullet used by US Infantrymen ?
5) Which is the smallest species of mouse native to the UK ?
6) What is the connection between you last four answers ?
7) The American War of Independence effectively ended with the defeat of General Cornwallis in which battle ?
8) Which two Shakespeare plays between them contain the words All and Nothing ?
9) Who did Andy Murray defeat in the semi final of the recent Australian Open
10) What did Apple launch in January which they claim will revolutionise the way that we use the web ?
11) How is life prisoner Iliich Ramirez Sanchez better known ?
12) Which roman letter stands for 500 in roman numerals ?
13) Which British car was produced between 1972 and 2002 as a successor to the Regal, and has now been superceded by the Rialto ?
14) What is the connection between your last three answers ?
15) What was the name of the singer who provided the singing voice for many film actresses in musicals, for example, Deborah Kerr in The King and I ?
16) Which well known singer died of anorexia nervosa in 1983 ?
17) Which is the only country in the world that begins with the letter O ?
18) Who scored the first try in this year’s 6 nations ?
19) Last week thousands of Toyota cars were recalled due to a potentially deadly fault with which component ?
20) How is the AK47 Assault rifle otherwise known ?
21) Which is the largest temple in the world ?
22) The element copper is actually named after which island ?
23) Which medal is the highest civil decoration in the UK ?
24) Which ragtime composition by Scott Joplin was the first ever instrumental piece to sell a million copies of sheet music ?
25) Which British newspaper was launched in 1964 to replace the Daily Herald ?
26) How is the constellation otherwise called Crux commonly known ?
27) What is the connection between your last 7 answers ?
28) Mrs. Thatcher’s private papers, released last week, revealed that she followed which diet, named after a medical establishment ?
29) Which famous scientist once said “I do not believe that God plays dice with the world ?
30) Which of the 8 planets was discovered in the 18th century by William Herschel ?
31) In 1988, when Great Britain won the Olympic gold medal in Mens Hockey, which country did they defeat in the final ?
32) In Roman Mythology, who was the God of the Underworld ?
33) What is the connection between your last four answers
34) Which singer’s real name is Roger Nelson ?
35) In The Simpson’s, Homer works in the nuclear plant. What is he actually responsible for ?
36) Who replaced John Terry as England Captain ?
37) Ian Brown was the lead singer of which 1990s Manchester band ?
38) What name was given to the court of law, in the palace of Westminster, which lasted until 1641 ? It took its name from the distinctive decoration on the roof of the room in which it sat ?
39) Which notorious Australian TV show was set in Wentworth Detention Centre ?
40) In computer terminology, which F blocks unauthorised access to a computer system or network ?
41) Which is the capital of the American state of Arizona ?
42) What is the name of the alter ego of Wonder Woman ?
43) The word Halloween is actually short for which 3 word phrase ?
44) What is the connection between you last seven answers ?
Saturday, 13 February 2010
Friday, 12 February 2010
Answers to January's Quiz
Here’s the answers to January’s Quiz . Watch this space for the February edition..
1) In Annan in Scotland last week, a statue of which hero has finally been installed 150 year after it was commissioned ?
ROBERT THE BRUCE
2) Events of the 21st century – in which year did the Columbia space shuttle disaster occur ?
2003
3) What nickname was given to the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve, due to the stripes on the uniform ?
WAVY NAVY
4) 2 – 17 – 3 – 19 – what number comes next ?
7 ( DARTBOARD)
5) In which country would you find Mount Cotopaxi ?
ECUADOR
6) Business – what does MB as in MB, one of the world’s biggest toy manufacturers, actually stand for ?
MILTON BRADLEY
7) If you had little swords in your garden, what would actually be growing there ?
GLADIOLI
8) In TVs Gavin and Stacey, what is the name of Nessa and Smithy’s son ?
NEIL
9) Which song did the X Factor finalists take to number 1 in November 2009
YOU ARE NOT ALONE
10) Name the controversial third umpire in the final test against south Africa, who allegedly did not have the volume up on his TV set .
DARYL HARPER
11) Last week, which comedian , actor and writer publically quit twitter after using it for just 6 weeks, branding it as a pointless opportunity for celebrities to show off.
RICKY GERVAIS
12) In the 1991 gulf war, what were the names of a) The missiles fired by Iraq into Israel, and b) the American missiles used to counter the Iraqi one.
A) SCUD B) PATRIOT
13) True or false – the cake on the front cover of the Rolling stones Let it Bleed LP was actually baked for them by Jane Asher ?
FALSE – IT WAS MADE BY DELIA SMITH
14) Weybridge in Surrey was home to the world’s first ever purpose built racing circuit. What was its name
BROOKLANDS
15) Porto Novo is the capital of which west African country ?
BENIN
16) Which is the birthstone for January – is it garnet – amethyst or bloodstone
GARNET
17) Which Yann Martel novel won the Booker Prize in 2002 ?
LIFE OF PI
18) The meerkat is actually a species of which mammal ?
MONGOOSE
19) Which film about the Beatles days in Hamburg starred Ewan Macgregor as fifth Beatle Stuart Sutcliffe ?
BACKBEAT
20) Michael Schumacher is set to return to formula 1 this year. Driving for which team ?
MERCEDES ( FORMERLY BRAWN GP )
21) Which premiership manager was last week charged with two counts of tax evasion ?
HARRY REDKNAPP
22) Marion Barry the black American politician arrested and dismissed from office for drug offences, was the mayor of which major US city ?
WASHINGTON DC
23) In a novel by H. Rider Haggard, who was Ayesha ?
SHE (WHO MUST BE OBEYED )
24) Tokay wine comes from which country ?
HUNGARY
25) In which city was a plaster figure called the goddess of democracy controversially raised in May 1989 ?
BEIJING
26) True or false – the hula hula dance was developed from the activity of surfing ?
FALSE – IT WAS THE WATUSI
27) What type of creature is a galliwasp – a lizard – a bird – a mammal – an insect
A LIZARD
28) Leo McKern, Patrick Cargill, Peter Wyngarde and george Baker were among the actors who played number 2 in which cult TV series ?
THE PRISONER
29) In the 2009 animated film Disney’s A Christmas Carol, who voiced the character Scrooge ?
JIM CARREY
30) In the 1970s, Brian Clough succeeded Don Revie as manager of Leeds United, and only lasted 44 days. Who took over from Clough, and took Leeds to the final of the European Cup ?
JIMMY ARMFIELD
31) Last week who announced that they plan to quit China ?
GOOGLE
32) Which ancient people, traditional enemies of the Israelites, have given their name to people who are thought to be uncultured or uncivilised ?
PHILISTINES
33) Between 1970 and 1975, which asian country was called the Khmer Republic ?
CAMBODIA
34) Which classical composer composed the St. Matthew Passion ?
JS BACH
35) Who or what is a zoetrope ?
TOY CONISTING OF ROLL OF PICTURES, AND REVOLVING DRUM WITH SLOTS TO GIVE THE ILLUSION OF MOVING PICTURES
36) Malachite is a main ore of which metal ?
COPPER
37) In which decade of the 20th century was sliced bread introduced ?
1930S
38) Whose toy stories TV series in 2009 saw him create , amongst other things, a full size airfix spitfire, and a full size house made from lego ?
JAMES MAY
39) Which 90s song beings with the line “Confidence is a preference for the habitual voyeur “
PARKLIFE
40) Who was the first ever british boxer to win world titles at more than one weight, in the 20th century – (excluding Bob Fitzsimmons – 2 of his three titles Middleweight and heavyweight – were won during the 19th century, only his light heavyweight title was won in the 20th.)
DUKE MACKENZIE
1) In Annan in Scotland last week, a statue of which hero has finally been installed 150 year after it was commissioned ?
ROBERT THE BRUCE
2) Events of the 21st century – in which year did the Columbia space shuttle disaster occur ?
2003
3) What nickname was given to the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve, due to the stripes on the uniform ?
WAVY NAVY
4) 2 – 17 – 3 – 19 – what number comes next ?
7 ( DARTBOARD)
5) In which country would you find Mount Cotopaxi ?
ECUADOR
6) Business – what does MB as in MB, one of the world’s biggest toy manufacturers, actually stand for ?
MILTON BRADLEY
7) If you had little swords in your garden, what would actually be growing there ?
GLADIOLI
8) In TVs Gavin and Stacey, what is the name of Nessa and Smithy’s son ?
NEIL
9) Which song did the X Factor finalists take to number 1 in November 2009
YOU ARE NOT ALONE
10) Name the controversial third umpire in the final test against south Africa, who allegedly did not have the volume up on his TV set .
DARYL HARPER
11) Last week, which comedian , actor and writer publically quit twitter after using it for just 6 weeks, branding it as a pointless opportunity for celebrities to show off.
RICKY GERVAIS
12) In the 1991 gulf war, what were the names of a) The missiles fired by Iraq into Israel, and b) the American missiles used to counter the Iraqi one.
A) SCUD B) PATRIOT
13) True or false – the cake on the front cover of the Rolling stones Let it Bleed LP was actually baked for them by Jane Asher ?
FALSE – IT WAS MADE BY DELIA SMITH
14) Weybridge in Surrey was home to the world’s first ever purpose built racing circuit. What was its name
BROOKLANDS
15) Porto Novo is the capital of which west African country ?
BENIN
16) Which is the birthstone for January – is it garnet – amethyst or bloodstone
GARNET
17) Which Yann Martel novel won the Booker Prize in 2002 ?
LIFE OF PI
18) The meerkat is actually a species of which mammal ?
MONGOOSE
19) Which film about the Beatles days in Hamburg starred Ewan Macgregor as fifth Beatle Stuart Sutcliffe ?
BACKBEAT
20) Michael Schumacher is set to return to formula 1 this year. Driving for which team ?
MERCEDES ( FORMERLY BRAWN GP )
21) Which premiership manager was last week charged with two counts of tax evasion ?
HARRY REDKNAPP
22) Marion Barry the black American politician arrested and dismissed from office for drug offences, was the mayor of which major US city ?
WASHINGTON DC
23) In a novel by H. Rider Haggard, who was Ayesha ?
SHE (WHO MUST BE OBEYED )
24) Tokay wine comes from which country ?
HUNGARY
25) In which city was a plaster figure called the goddess of democracy controversially raised in May 1989 ?
BEIJING
26) True or false – the hula hula dance was developed from the activity of surfing ?
FALSE – IT WAS THE WATUSI
27) What type of creature is a galliwasp – a lizard – a bird – a mammal – an insect
A LIZARD
28) Leo McKern, Patrick Cargill, Peter Wyngarde and george Baker were among the actors who played number 2 in which cult TV series ?
THE PRISONER
29) In the 2009 animated film Disney’s A Christmas Carol, who voiced the character Scrooge ?
JIM CARREY
30) In the 1970s, Brian Clough succeeded Don Revie as manager of Leeds United, and only lasted 44 days. Who took over from Clough, and took Leeds to the final of the European Cup ?
JIMMY ARMFIELD
31) Last week who announced that they plan to quit China ?
32) Which ancient people, traditional enemies of the Israelites, have given their name to people who are thought to be uncultured or uncivilised ?
PHILISTINES
33) Between 1970 and 1975, which asian country was called the Khmer Republic ?
CAMBODIA
34) Which classical composer composed the St. Matthew Passion ?
JS BACH
35) Who or what is a zoetrope ?
TOY CONISTING OF ROLL OF PICTURES, AND REVOLVING DRUM WITH SLOTS TO GIVE THE ILLUSION OF MOVING PICTURES
36) Malachite is a main ore of which metal ?
COPPER
37) In which decade of the 20th century was sliced bread introduced ?
1930S
38) Whose toy stories TV series in 2009 saw him create , amongst other things, a full size airfix spitfire, and a full size house made from lego ?
JAMES MAY
39) Which 90s song beings with the line “Confidence is a preference for the habitual voyeur “
PARKLIFE
40) Who was the first ever british boxer to win world titles at more than one weight, in the 20th century – (excluding Bob Fitzsimmons – 2 of his three titles Middleweight and heavyweight – were won during the 19th century, only his light heavyweight title was won in the 20th.)
DUKE MACKENZIE
Mastermind - First Round Heat 18/24
There was much for the connoisseur to enjoy in tonight’s show. For one thing it was far more of a generations line up tonight than I think its been all series. All of the contenders tonight were making their first ever appearance, but I’m probably not being unfair in saying that while Ian Copping, Valerie Roebuck and Brian Weight all had the aspect of more mature campaigners, student Rob Dunne must surely be the youngest contender in this series so far. Still, as the saying goes, if you’re good enough, you’re old enough. Time would tell.
Company director Ian Copping kicked off tonight’s show with a deceptively tricky subject. He was answering questions on TV Westerns of the 1950s and the 1960s. The reason he gave was that his family’s first television was bought for the Coronation in 1953, and in the 50s and on into the 60s westerns were very popular – so the genre grabbed him in his formative years. Maybe I’m wrong , but I thought this was a difficult round. Lets be honest, how many of those westerns mentioned have you ever heard of ? Under the circumstances, Ian’s 8 looked like a pretty decent performance in a very tough round.
Valerie Roebuck was answering tonight’s Popular Author round, on the life and work of JRR Tolkien. OK, compared with the previous round this was pretty well trodden ground, but a round on Tolkien is something I for one am always ready to listen to. Valerie told us how she had written to professor Tolkien, and much to her surprise received a reply, which she still has today. All I can say is that I do hope that its insured, Valerie, since its never going to go down in value. OK, that’s the end of this edition of Antiques Roadshow, and back to the review. A fine round of 14 and one pass put Valerie into a good position, and ensured that she would be in contention going into the GK round.
If Rob Dunne was at all fazed by the situation he certainly didn’t show it. Rob’s specialist subject was the Government of Gough Whitlam, 1972 – 75. In his filmed insert he explained that Whitlam was the Prime Minister of Australia, who was controversially dismissed from office by the Governor General of Australia in 1975, but was not without significant achievements during his time. Well, during his round, Rob Dunne showed that he has the makings of a fine quizzer, and is probably a fine student, and a score of 15 and 1 pass was a fine achievement I felt.
Brian Weight gave us tonight’s Legendary Sportsman round on Dixie Dean. Dean of course holds the record for goals in an English Football League season, with a mind boggling 60. Brian explained that he has no doubt that Dean would be a star if he was playing today, but a player like Christiano Ronaldo would never have been such a great star playing on the boggy pitches, and with the heavy balls of the 1930s. I’m sure he was right. He supplied a lot of right answers as well, scoring 14 and no passes to be well placed for a dash into the penalty box and a golden goal in the GK round.
So at the halfway mark only Ian Copping looked out of contention, and it was Ian who returned first to the chair to face the GK round. I felt that he had quite a tough set of questions. I think that judging by some of his answers Ian must do a bit of quizzing in his time, but this round certainly didn’t do him any favours. A score of 9 , for a total of 17 wasn’t a bad achievement on this set at all.
Valerie Roebuck was the first of the three contenders who had a realistic chance of winning to get the opportunity to lay down a marker. I think that Valerie has probably done a bit of quizzing in her time too, as she started her round very confidently. Still, there was one particularly long pause before a pass, and for a second it looked like she might fall into a spiral. However she recovered well enough to push her score on to 10 for a total of 24. That’s a good score, but it would only do if it was a winning one – falling a little short of the leading runners-up board as it did.
Brian Weight had the advantage of fewer passes than Valerie in the first round. So if he could score 10 and 4 passes, or better, he’d take the lead. However I know from experience that chasing a double figures score is not anything like as easy a proposition as you might think it is. Brian had some good answers, but not quite enough of them, and he finished the round with an overall score of 22.
So Rob Dunne had two minutes to try to beat the target. I hope that the other contenders on tonight’s show will forgive me if I say I was rooting for him at this stage. Actually, thinking about it, it may have been this that did for him in the end. At the moment his general knowledge is not sufficient to give him the 9 points he needed, and he finished with 21 points. However, Rob, if by any chance you read this, can I congratulate you on your first round performance, and urge you to continue with the quizzing. With a very few years’ experience of quizzing you could go a very long way in this , and other competitions.
As for Valerie, congratulations on a good victory. As it was she seemed most surprised at her victory, which was very endearing. You join a select band of lady winners so far this series, with Barbara Thompson and Chloe Stone. Experience suggests that there should be at least a couple more joining you before we get to the semis.
The Details
Current Highest Scoring Runners Up
Company director Ian Copping kicked off tonight’s show with a deceptively tricky subject. He was answering questions on TV Westerns of the 1950s and the 1960s. The reason he gave was that his family’s first television was bought for the Coronation in 1953, and in the 50s and on into the 60s westerns were very popular – so the genre grabbed him in his formative years. Maybe I’m wrong , but I thought this was a difficult round. Lets be honest, how many of those westerns mentioned have you ever heard of ? Under the circumstances, Ian’s 8 looked like a pretty decent performance in a very tough round.
Valerie Roebuck was answering tonight’s Popular Author round, on the life and work of JRR Tolkien. OK, compared with the previous round this was pretty well trodden ground, but a round on Tolkien is something I for one am always ready to listen to. Valerie told us how she had written to professor Tolkien, and much to her surprise received a reply, which she still has today. All I can say is that I do hope that its insured, Valerie, since its never going to go down in value. OK, that’s the end of this edition of Antiques Roadshow, and back to the review. A fine round of 14 and one pass put Valerie into a good position, and ensured that she would be in contention going into the GK round.
If Rob Dunne was at all fazed by the situation he certainly didn’t show it. Rob’s specialist subject was the Government of Gough Whitlam, 1972 – 75. In his filmed insert he explained that Whitlam was the Prime Minister of Australia, who was controversially dismissed from office by the Governor General of Australia in 1975, but was not without significant achievements during his time. Well, during his round, Rob Dunne showed that he has the makings of a fine quizzer, and is probably a fine student, and a score of 15 and 1 pass was a fine achievement I felt.
Brian Weight gave us tonight’s Legendary Sportsman round on Dixie Dean. Dean of course holds the record for goals in an English Football League season, with a mind boggling 60. Brian explained that he has no doubt that Dean would be a star if he was playing today, but a player like Christiano Ronaldo would never have been such a great star playing on the boggy pitches, and with the heavy balls of the 1930s. I’m sure he was right. He supplied a lot of right answers as well, scoring 14 and no passes to be well placed for a dash into the penalty box and a golden goal in the GK round.
So at the halfway mark only Ian Copping looked out of contention, and it was Ian who returned first to the chair to face the GK round. I felt that he had quite a tough set of questions. I think that judging by some of his answers Ian must do a bit of quizzing in his time, but this round certainly didn’t do him any favours. A score of 9 , for a total of 17 wasn’t a bad achievement on this set at all.
Valerie Roebuck was the first of the three contenders who had a realistic chance of winning to get the opportunity to lay down a marker. I think that Valerie has probably done a bit of quizzing in her time too, as she started her round very confidently. Still, there was one particularly long pause before a pass, and for a second it looked like she might fall into a spiral. However she recovered well enough to push her score on to 10 for a total of 24. That’s a good score, but it would only do if it was a winning one – falling a little short of the leading runners-up board as it did.
Brian Weight had the advantage of fewer passes than Valerie in the first round. So if he could score 10 and 4 passes, or better, he’d take the lead. However I know from experience that chasing a double figures score is not anything like as easy a proposition as you might think it is. Brian had some good answers, but not quite enough of them, and he finished the round with an overall score of 22.
So Rob Dunne had two minutes to try to beat the target. I hope that the other contenders on tonight’s show will forgive me if I say I was rooting for him at this stage. Actually, thinking about it, it may have been this that did for him in the end. At the moment his general knowledge is not sufficient to give him the 9 points he needed, and he finished with 21 points. However, Rob, if by any chance you read this, can I congratulate you on your first round performance, and urge you to continue with the quizzing. With a very few years’ experience of quizzing you could go a very long way in this , and other competitions.
As for Valerie, congratulations on a good victory. As it was she seemed most surprised at her victory, which was very endearing. You join a select band of lady winners so far this series, with Barbara Thompson and Chloe Stone. Experience suggests that there should be at least a couple more joining you before we get to the semis.
The Details
| Ian Copping | TV Westerns of the 1950s and 1960s | 8-1 | 9-3 | 17 – 4 |
| Valerie Roebuck | The Life and Work of JRR Tolkien | 14 - 1 | 10 – 4 | 24 – 5 |
| Rob Dunne | The Government of Gough Whitlam | 15 – 1 | 6 – 6 | 21 – 7 |
| Brian Weight | The Life and Career of Dixie Dean | 14 – 0 | 8 – 3 | 22 - 3 |
Current Highest Scoring Runners Up
| John Cooper | 29 – 3 |
| Ian Scott Massie | 26 – 2 |
| Les Morrell | 26 - 3 |
| Colin Wilson | 25 - 0 |
| Peter Cowans | 25 - 2 |
| William de'Ath | 25 - 4 |
Wednesday, 10 February 2010
World's Biggest Pub Quiz - You Can Help !
Well, they always say that charity begins at home, but in this case, charity can begin at the pub quiz. I had an email earlier this week from Jacqulyn Bell, asking me if I could help publicise the World’s Biggest Pub Quiz. If you’re a regular on the IQAGB forum then you’ll already be well aware of this event. However, for those of you who aren’t , here goes.
To quote from the press release : -
“On 25 March 2010 the Family Holiday Association will be attempting to SMASH the record for the World’s Biggest Pub Quiz! Thousands of people around the UK will be taking part. Get your local pub or venue involved and help make this the LIVE event of the year! It’s a great opportunity to raise loads of cash to help the UK charity Family Holiday Association give severely disadvantaged children a much-needed family break”
The questions will be set by the IQAGB – the British arm of the International Quiz Association, and believe me, they know their onions !
Registration has been made simple. In fact, if you can see your way to clear to getting an event going for the evening, then you can even register online at
www.bigpubquiz.org
While we’re on the subject, you can pick up a handy organiser guide online too from
Organiser guide
The way I see it is that the humble pub quiz has a long and very honourable history of support for charities in this country, and so this seems to me to be a good thing to get involved in. If you want to learn a little more, then check out this website
The World's Biggest Pub Quiz
Go on ! You know it makes sense !
To quote from the press release : -
“On 25 March 2010 the Family Holiday Association will be attempting to SMASH the record for the World’s Biggest Pub Quiz! Thousands of people around the UK will be taking part. Get your local pub or venue involved and help make this the LIVE event of the year! It’s a great opportunity to raise loads of cash to help the UK charity Family Holiday Association give severely disadvantaged children a much-needed family break”
The questions will be set by the IQAGB – the British arm of the International Quiz Association, and believe me, they know their onions !
Registration has been made simple. In fact, if you can see your way to clear to getting an event going for the evening, then you can even register online at
www.bigpubquiz.org
While we’re on the subject, you can pick up a handy organiser guide online too from
Organiser guide
The way I see it is that the humble pub quiz has a long and very honourable history of support for charities in this country, and so this seems to me to be a good thing to get involved in. If you want to learn a little more, then check out this website
The World's Biggest Pub Quiz
Go on ! You know it makes sense !
Tuesday, 9 February 2010
TV Watch - Only Connect
Only Connect – Round One Match 6 – Exeter Alumni v. Gourmands
When I saw the team name Exeter Alumni I did think that maybe we had another generations match again tonight. Still, consisting of Ian Pithouse, Ben Howarth, and captain Sam Charman at least they all looked old enough to shave this week. Alumni should have given it away really . These guys while still young, have all finished their studies. The gourmands too failed to live up to my prematch expectations, as there was not one crusty, old, wine-soaked dodderer among them. To be honest I doubt that there’s much to choose between the combined ages of both teams. The Gourmands consisted of Geoff White, John Anderson, and the splendidly named Tom Paternoster. Without wishing to be mean, the winners of the last couple of weeks have struggled at times. Tonight, though, we were in for rather more of a treat.
Round One – What’s the Connection ?
It was a confident start for Exeter, on the music no less. Madonna’s Angel didn’t do it, but Duffy’s Warwick Avenue gave them the answer, and Gerry Rafferty’s Baker Street confirmed it – underground stations. Nero, Kenneth Moore and Brian Clough gave the Gourmands the actor Michael Sheen. Good connections, and a good start by both teams. The picture clues were correctly identified as parts of the body – Paul Foot – the band Elbow etc. The Alumni maintained their positive form. The Gourmands dropped the first points on a gettable set of UNESCO world heritage sites, a bonus gladly accepted by the Alumni. Thus ahead, they returned the favour. A set of tautological acronyms followed – and why didn’t I get this ? It was obvious once you knew. Good connection again. The Gourmands managed to link absinthe etc. with wormwood, and the score at the end of the round was 4 – 4.
Round Two – What comes 4th ?
The Alumni nearly got the full monty on the first set, correctly identifying - being sucked into a pipe - as what happened to Augustus Gloop in Charlie and the Chocolate factory. They took the next to be safe, and then explained what happened to Mike Teavee. Good shout. Personally I found the Gourmand’s first set harder, but they still managed to identify degrees of cloud cover. That’s a good answer. The Alumni failed on the pictures to get a set of Crosby,( Bing) Stills ( whiskey) and Nash ( Kate) , which should have given them Young ( Jimmy). The Gourmands made no mistake. The Gourmands were unlucky to identify a set of heads of MI6 as heads of MI5 , and plump the wrong way for Stella Rimmington. The Alumni were honest enough to admit they’d have gone the same way.The Alumni correctly guessed that 1 – white would complete a set of police IC codes, after being allowed a quick correction by Victoria. The Gourmands correctly identified a set of distances as belonging to the markings on a rugby union field, but went the wrong way to the centre, when they should have gone for the try line. The Alumni gratefully accepted the bonus to give them a lead of 11 points to 7
Round Three – The Connections Wall ?
Tricky walls have given the teams a very tough time for the last couple of weeks. But both teams solved their walls tonight. The Gourmands found Booker Prize winning authors, flightless birds, words meaning to cheat , but although they had the set of cat – moon – sleep and cake they failed to link them to the word walk. As for the Alumni, they solved terms of endearment, british architects, words followed by metal, and failed to get that Jones, Darling, Slick and Kelly could all be Grace. Easy when you can see it , or have it explained to you, I’m afraid that I didn’t get it myself .Jefferson Airplane had become Jefferson Starship by my time. Alumni led by 18 to 14.
Round Four – The Missing Vowels
At the start of the round Victoria had squeezed the information from the Gourmands that they fancied their chances on the Missing Vowels. They needed to be on their best form, since 4 points is a deficit to overturn on a good team like the Alumni. We began with National Dishes. The Gourmands might have been expected to dominate these. To be fair they narrowed the gap to one point, as the Alumni led by 18 to 17. Next came famous mottoes. A tricky set, and at the end the Alumni still led by 19 to 16, as the Gourmands incorrectly answered one. We moved onto former names of major cities.This stretched the lead , as the score went to 22 – 17 as we moved onto writing systems. The Gourmands answered more correctly, but a wrong answer can undo a lot of good work, as they found. At the end of this set he score was 23 – 19. The last category was They drowned. Neither team drowned, but at the end Alumni ran out winners with 23 to 20.
What a good match. I liked these teams. It was bad luck for the Gourmands, themselves a good outfit, to meet one of the most impressive teams we’ve seen this series. Still, so much depends on the way that the questions pan out for you, that I have no intention of burdening them with the Clark tip at this stage. Cue sighs of collective relief from the Alumni, I imagine. Good show.
When I saw the team name Exeter Alumni I did think that maybe we had another generations match again tonight. Still, consisting of Ian Pithouse, Ben Howarth, and captain Sam Charman at least they all looked old enough to shave this week. Alumni should have given it away really . These guys while still young, have all finished their studies. The gourmands too failed to live up to my prematch expectations, as there was not one crusty, old, wine-soaked dodderer among them. To be honest I doubt that there’s much to choose between the combined ages of both teams. The Gourmands consisted of Geoff White, John Anderson, and the splendidly named Tom Paternoster. Without wishing to be mean, the winners of the last couple of weeks have struggled at times. Tonight, though, we were in for rather more of a treat.
Round One – What’s the Connection ?
It was a confident start for Exeter, on the music no less. Madonna’s Angel didn’t do it, but Duffy’s Warwick Avenue gave them the answer, and Gerry Rafferty’s Baker Street confirmed it – underground stations. Nero, Kenneth Moore and Brian Clough gave the Gourmands the actor Michael Sheen. Good connections, and a good start by both teams. The picture clues were correctly identified as parts of the body – Paul Foot – the band Elbow etc. The Alumni maintained their positive form. The Gourmands dropped the first points on a gettable set of UNESCO world heritage sites, a bonus gladly accepted by the Alumni. Thus ahead, they returned the favour. A set of tautological acronyms followed – and why didn’t I get this ? It was obvious once you knew. Good connection again. The Gourmands managed to link absinthe etc. with wormwood, and the score at the end of the round was 4 – 4.
Round Two – What comes 4th ?
The Alumni nearly got the full monty on the first set, correctly identifying - being sucked into a pipe - as what happened to Augustus Gloop in Charlie and the Chocolate factory. They took the next to be safe, and then explained what happened to Mike Teavee. Good shout. Personally I found the Gourmand’s first set harder, but they still managed to identify degrees of cloud cover. That’s a good answer. The Alumni failed on the pictures to get a set of Crosby,( Bing) Stills ( whiskey) and Nash ( Kate) , which should have given them Young ( Jimmy). The Gourmands made no mistake. The Gourmands were unlucky to identify a set of heads of MI6 as heads of MI5 , and plump the wrong way for Stella Rimmington. The Alumni were honest enough to admit they’d have gone the same way.The Alumni correctly guessed that 1 – white would complete a set of police IC codes, after being allowed a quick correction by Victoria. The Gourmands correctly identified a set of distances as belonging to the markings on a rugby union field, but went the wrong way to the centre, when they should have gone for the try line. The Alumni gratefully accepted the bonus to give them a lead of 11 points to 7
Round Three – The Connections Wall ?
Tricky walls have given the teams a very tough time for the last couple of weeks. But both teams solved their walls tonight. The Gourmands found Booker Prize winning authors, flightless birds, words meaning to cheat , but although they had the set of cat – moon – sleep and cake they failed to link them to the word walk. As for the Alumni, they solved terms of endearment, british architects, words followed by metal, and failed to get that Jones, Darling, Slick and Kelly could all be Grace. Easy when you can see it , or have it explained to you, I’m afraid that I didn’t get it myself .Jefferson Airplane had become Jefferson Starship by my time. Alumni led by 18 to 14.
Round Four – The Missing Vowels
At the start of the round Victoria had squeezed the information from the Gourmands that they fancied their chances on the Missing Vowels. They needed to be on their best form, since 4 points is a deficit to overturn on a good team like the Alumni. We began with National Dishes. The Gourmands might have been expected to dominate these. To be fair they narrowed the gap to one point, as the Alumni led by 18 to 17. Next came famous mottoes. A tricky set, and at the end the Alumni still led by 19 to 16, as the Gourmands incorrectly answered one. We moved onto former names of major cities.This stretched the lead , as the score went to 22 – 17 as we moved onto writing systems. The Gourmands answered more correctly, but a wrong answer can undo a lot of good work, as they found. At the end of this set he score was 23 – 19. The last category was They drowned. Neither team drowned, but at the end Alumni ran out winners with 23 to 20.
What a good match. I liked these teams. It was bad luck for the Gourmands, themselves a good outfit, to meet one of the most impressive teams we’ve seen this series. Still, so much depends on the way that the questions pan out for you, that I have no intention of burdening them with the Clark tip at this stage. Cue sighs of collective relief from the Alumni, I imagine. Good show.
TV Watch - University Challenge
University Challenge – Quarter Final Elimination Match – Girton v. St. Andrews
Last week we saw a great match, in which the winner would go straight through to the semi finals. In tonight’s match no such automatic prize awaited the winners, however, instant elimination from the competition awaited the losing team. On paper it certainly looked as if St. Andrews had performed better in rounds one and two.Both teams had been well beaten , though in their first quarter final matches.
Girton took first blood by identifying various definitions of the word ‘creep’. Good answer. Three starters then went begging before Girton’s captain Cameron correctly identified the Brit awards as having originated in the Queen’s Silver Jubilee year of 1977. They took a good couple of bonuses on former world heritage sites. It was Mr. Cameron again who nailed the next starter, correctly guessing that the New Zealand All Black Haka is in fact the Ka Mate Haka. They took only one bonus on a set of famous fathers and sons.
At this stage of the game only Mr. Flaherty of st. Andrews was buzzing in, and he had yet to find his range. Mr. Cameron buzzed in to win a set of bonuses on tri – points, that is, points on the map where three countries meet. They took two out of three bonuses. The next starter foxed both sides, as they were asked for three rhyming words . Miss Cawley of Girton was unlucky not to be allowed Tramp for a seductive woman – vamp was the correct answer needed. At the ten minute mark Girton had a cruching lead of 80 points, as they led by 70 to – 10. As the second third began, though, the dynamic Christopher Flaherty swung into action, and correctly identified the word diaspora to claim back the points lost on earlier buzzes. One correct bonus, and they had a positive score on the board.
Taking his lead from Mr. Flaherty, Mr. Macleod buzzed in for the next starter, to earn a set of bonuses on dyes. After the set of bonuses the lead had been cut to 45. No points for neither side realising that Coleridge’s Kubla Khan was interrupted by a visitor from Porlock. Mr. Flaherty grabbed the next starter though, correctly saying that it was possible to travel from west coast to east coast of England passing through only two counties. After the set of bonuses on the ancient world, the lead was cut to 25 points. St. Andrews were on a roll. A music bonus on classical music followed, and the versatile Mr. Flaherty correctly identified Scarlatti. Another ten points off the lead, and Girton had been shut out for 5 minutes. Unfortunately St. Andrew's failed to identify Vivaldi, which I think is the only classical music starter or bonus I have ever correctly answered.
With the gap significantly narrowed Miss Brown Kerr of Girton correctly identified the title of a well known book by Dr. Olivers Sachs as “The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat”. A timely answer at a time when Girton were in danger of being swamped by a tidal wave of Flaherty starters. He wasn’t giving up without a fight, though, as he answered that the picture in the Smithsonian shows George Washington crossing the River Delaware.Both teams were having trouble with some of the sets of bonuses, and so the gap remained. Still, there was a clear star on the buzzer tonight, and this was Christopher Flaherty. Straightaway he answered that it is acetylene that is mixed with oxygen in welding. Still, no points for suggesting that the battle of Culloden was fought on English soil. I think that was a mishear of British for English.
The second third of the contest had clearly been St. Andrews’. By the 20 minute mark all was square at 85 points a piece. If bets had been taken you’d have got short odds on St. Andrews to pull away.It was that man Flaherty who put the next points on the board, identifying Azerbaijan from its neighbours. Well, we know from last week that from this point in bonuses would be crucial. On a set of people buried or commemorated at st. Pauls, only one was taken. However, if our man kept eating up the starters, then Girton were done for, and he took the next one by identifying the Milgram experiment. One bonus was taken.
Miss Brown Kerr put Girton back into the game by identifying Stevie Smith’s “Not Waving But Drowning “ That’s Stevie Smith, the poet, and not Steve Smith, England’s 1980 Grand Slam Winning scrum half. They took 2 bonuses. Then we saw the most fantastic interruption from Mr. Spencer of Girton, who identified Descartes from
“Which French pilosopher and Mathematician – “ woosh ! But that’s what you have to do to take back the initiative. Mind you, he got himself in a pickle with a bonus when he said – w – instead of double e – and expected our Jeremy to accept it ! Now, you and I might have expected JP to say something along the lines of – don’t argue sonny or I’ll smash yer face in – but no, this mild rejoinder – “I’m sorry but you’ve got to give the right answer “ was all that followed. It was still affecting Mr. Spencer at the end of the round, but a steadying hand from Miss Brown Kerr, and a quiet word focussed his mind back on the game – which at this point was anybody’s. Mr. Cameron of Girton took a key starter, identifying the deaths of Bacon and Byrd as having taken place in the 1620s. St. Andrews needed the next starter, but neither team got it. The gong sounded, and Girton took a close match by 140 to 115.
Very well played Girton. On paper you were the underdogs, but you scrapped and fought your way through. Hard lines to St. Andrews – and a special mention to Christopher Flaherty. With all due credit to Mr. Macleod’s starter, you single handedly kept your team in the match, and your performance tonight was outstanding. Yet one individual star can only get you so far, and the better all round team won.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
After Mr. Flaherty’s correct starter, he was able to trot out an old favourite –
“Well done ! You’ve stormed away to zero !” Still, for the most part he was on his best – ie - most boring – behaviour. When Mr.Spencer of Girton suggested that a painting of Christopher Wren was Dr. Johnson he restricted himself to a sharp intake of breath.
Interesting Fact That I Didn’t Already Know Of The Week
Dresden lost its Unesco World Heritage Site status in 2009 after the construction of a four lane bridge over the River Elbe.
Last week we saw a great match, in which the winner would go straight through to the semi finals. In tonight’s match no such automatic prize awaited the winners, however, instant elimination from the competition awaited the losing team. On paper it certainly looked as if St. Andrews had performed better in rounds one and two.Both teams had been well beaten , though in their first quarter final matches.
Girton took first blood by identifying various definitions of the word ‘creep’. Good answer. Three starters then went begging before Girton’s captain Cameron correctly identified the Brit awards as having originated in the Queen’s Silver Jubilee year of 1977. They took a good couple of bonuses on former world heritage sites. It was Mr. Cameron again who nailed the next starter, correctly guessing that the New Zealand All Black Haka is in fact the Ka Mate Haka. They took only one bonus on a set of famous fathers and sons.
At this stage of the game only Mr. Flaherty of st. Andrews was buzzing in, and he had yet to find his range. Mr. Cameron buzzed in to win a set of bonuses on tri – points, that is, points on the map where three countries meet. They took two out of three bonuses. The next starter foxed both sides, as they were asked for three rhyming words . Miss Cawley of Girton was unlucky not to be allowed Tramp for a seductive woman – vamp was the correct answer needed. At the ten minute mark Girton had a cruching lead of 80 points, as they led by 70 to – 10. As the second third began, though, the dynamic Christopher Flaherty swung into action, and correctly identified the word diaspora to claim back the points lost on earlier buzzes. One correct bonus, and they had a positive score on the board.
Taking his lead from Mr. Flaherty, Mr. Macleod buzzed in for the next starter, to earn a set of bonuses on dyes. After the set of bonuses the lead had been cut to 45. No points for neither side realising that Coleridge’s Kubla Khan was interrupted by a visitor from Porlock. Mr. Flaherty grabbed the next starter though, correctly saying that it was possible to travel from west coast to east coast of England passing through only two counties. After the set of bonuses on the ancient world, the lead was cut to 25 points. St. Andrews were on a roll. A music bonus on classical music followed, and the versatile Mr. Flaherty correctly identified Scarlatti. Another ten points off the lead, and Girton had been shut out for 5 minutes. Unfortunately St. Andrew's failed to identify Vivaldi, which I think is the only classical music starter or bonus I have ever correctly answered.
With the gap significantly narrowed Miss Brown Kerr of Girton correctly identified the title of a well known book by Dr. Olivers Sachs as “The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat”. A timely answer at a time when Girton were in danger of being swamped by a tidal wave of Flaherty starters. He wasn’t giving up without a fight, though, as he answered that the picture in the Smithsonian shows George Washington crossing the River Delaware.Both teams were having trouble with some of the sets of bonuses, and so the gap remained. Still, there was a clear star on the buzzer tonight, and this was Christopher Flaherty. Straightaway he answered that it is acetylene that is mixed with oxygen in welding. Still, no points for suggesting that the battle of Culloden was fought on English soil. I think that was a mishear of British for English.
The second third of the contest had clearly been St. Andrews’. By the 20 minute mark all was square at 85 points a piece. If bets had been taken you’d have got short odds on St. Andrews to pull away.It was that man Flaherty who put the next points on the board, identifying Azerbaijan from its neighbours. Well, we know from last week that from this point in bonuses would be crucial. On a set of people buried or commemorated at st. Pauls, only one was taken. However, if our man kept eating up the starters, then Girton were done for, and he took the next one by identifying the Milgram experiment. One bonus was taken.
Miss Brown Kerr put Girton back into the game by identifying Stevie Smith’s “Not Waving But Drowning “ That’s Stevie Smith, the poet, and not Steve Smith, England’s 1980 Grand Slam Winning scrum half. They took 2 bonuses. Then we saw the most fantastic interruption from Mr. Spencer of Girton, who identified Descartes from
“Which French pilosopher and Mathematician – “ woosh ! But that’s what you have to do to take back the initiative. Mind you, he got himself in a pickle with a bonus when he said – w – instead of double e – and expected our Jeremy to accept it ! Now, you and I might have expected JP to say something along the lines of – don’t argue sonny or I’ll smash yer face in – but no, this mild rejoinder – “I’m sorry but you’ve got to give the right answer “ was all that followed. It was still affecting Mr. Spencer at the end of the round, but a steadying hand from Miss Brown Kerr, and a quiet word focussed his mind back on the game – which at this point was anybody’s. Mr. Cameron of Girton took a key starter, identifying the deaths of Bacon and Byrd as having taken place in the 1620s. St. Andrews needed the next starter, but neither team got it. The gong sounded, and Girton took a close match by 140 to 115.
Very well played Girton. On paper you were the underdogs, but you scrapped and fought your way through. Hard lines to St. Andrews – and a special mention to Christopher Flaherty. With all due credit to Mr. Macleod’s starter, you single handedly kept your team in the match, and your performance tonight was outstanding. Yet one individual star can only get you so far, and the better all round team won.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
After Mr. Flaherty’s correct starter, he was able to trot out an old favourite –
“Well done ! You’ve stormed away to zero !” Still, for the most part he was on his best – ie - most boring – behaviour. When Mr.Spencer of Girton suggested that a painting of Christopher Wren was Dr. Johnson he restricted himself to a sharp intake of breath.
Interesting Fact That I Didn’t Already Know Of The Week
Dresden lost its Unesco World Heritage Site status in 2009 after the construction of a four lane bridge over the River Elbe.
Saturday, 6 February 2010
To sporcle, or not to sporcle -
Probably the most addicitive quiz website – in the world.
If you’re a serious, regular quizzer, then you probably already know all about the website I’m going to tell you about, in which case you’ll already either be addicted or in recovery. It’s the rest of you I’m worried about. So please, be warned. If you’re at all quiz-inclined ( and I venture to suggest that you may well be reading the wrong blog if you’re not ) then the website I’m going to tell you about should be approached with extreme caution.
I refer, of course, to sporcle.com. Like many good things, my acquaintance with this website began with a visit to the IQAGB forum : -
IQAGB Forum
where I read a recommendation which led me to give it a try for the first time about 6 months ago. Basically, sporcle is a free quiz website, where you can choose from a mind-boggling rage of quizzes, based on lists. You will be asked for a list of, for example, all the presidents of the USA, and given a time limit, usually between 5 and 20 minutes, depending on the level of difficulty of the quiz.
Personally I found myself getting hooked on the Geography quizzes. My favourite is possibly Name All The Capital Cities of the World in 20 minutes. I built up to this one with mastering all Europe’s capitals, then Asia’s, then Africa’s – and so on. You get my drift. On the continental ones, they give you the country and you have to supply the capital. On the world one, you just have to supply all the capitals in any order.
All good clean fun. The problem is, that , for a certain type of sad individual such as myself, just completing a quiz isn’t enough. That sense of achievement I got the first time I managed to remember all of the cities didn’t last long. About two minutes, in fact, until it occured to me that I really should try to do the whole thing again, only more quickly. So I did, over and over, in search of just one more personal best.
Now, I can just about excuse wasting much of my free time playing games which will help me increase my knowledge, and which may, just may, one day bring me a couple of extra points in a quiz. But wasting time on stuff that I already know, so I can do it a little more quickly next time, that’s just pointless, isn’t it ? Well, anyway, that’s how I came to look on it, and so, riddled with guilt, I went cold turkey back in the end of November, and vowed not to return until such time as I felt I could trust myself not to engage in any more three-hour sporcle binges.
Well, about ten days ago I fell off the wagon. It started innocently enough. Within an hour I had mastered the national flags of Asia. So I moved on to Africa. Then Europe. By the end of the weekend I could do the flags of the world in 10 minutes . Actually, this is a great game. But is it really worth spending hours of a Saturday playing the same game ? I tried another subject. Science. Yes, one of my Achilles heels. Surely that would put me off. No chance. Elements of the Periodic Table has been this week’s game of choice. Now, I have no doubt that this will bring me points in a quiz sooner or later. But this is my problem. I find myself so hooked on it that even when I’m miles away from my laptop, during break times, or while I’m driving to and from work I find myself reciting them – Hydrogen to Ununoctium – all 118 of them . This is just not a healthy occupation for a growing lad. I’ve become so concerned about it that I even allowed three of my kids to drag me out ice skating last Sunday . If I tell you that the only real exercise I’ve done in my own time in the last decade has been giving out team sheets and half time handouts, then you’ll appreciate what a desperate measure this was. No, actually I didn’t do myself an injury as it happens. I wasn’t that bad, in my day, and Queensway Ice Rink in London was where I first met Mrs. Londinius for the first time in 1985. Of course, you’ll know what was going through my head as I drove home ? That this would surely have earned me the right to have an hour or two on sporcle.
So please, spare a thought for those of us who are sporcle addicted. Yes, before you ask, I will give you the link, but if you get hooked, then don’t blame me. You have been warned.
sporcle.com
If you’re a serious, regular quizzer, then you probably already know all about the website I’m going to tell you about, in which case you’ll already either be addicted or in recovery. It’s the rest of you I’m worried about. So please, be warned. If you’re at all quiz-inclined ( and I venture to suggest that you may well be reading the wrong blog if you’re not ) then the website I’m going to tell you about should be approached with extreme caution.
I refer, of course, to sporcle.com. Like many good things, my acquaintance with this website began with a visit to the IQAGB forum : -
IQAGB Forum
where I read a recommendation which led me to give it a try for the first time about 6 months ago. Basically, sporcle is a free quiz website, where you can choose from a mind-boggling rage of quizzes, based on lists. You will be asked for a list of, for example, all the presidents of the USA, and given a time limit, usually between 5 and 20 minutes, depending on the level of difficulty of the quiz.
Personally I found myself getting hooked on the Geography quizzes. My favourite is possibly Name All The Capital Cities of the World in 20 minutes. I built up to this one with mastering all Europe’s capitals, then Asia’s, then Africa’s – and so on. You get my drift. On the continental ones, they give you the country and you have to supply the capital. On the world one, you just have to supply all the capitals in any order.
All good clean fun. The problem is, that , for a certain type of sad individual such as myself, just completing a quiz isn’t enough. That sense of achievement I got the first time I managed to remember all of the cities didn’t last long. About two minutes, in fact, until it occured to me that I really should try to do the whole thing again, only more quickly. So I did, over and over, in search of just one more personal best.
Now, I can just about excuse wasting much of my free time playing games which will help me increase my knowledge, and which may, just may, one day bring me a couple of extra points in a quiz. But wasting time on stuff that I already know, so I can do it a little more quickly next time, that’s just pointless, isn’t it ? Well, anyway, that’s how I came to look on it, and so, riddled with guilt, I went cold turkey back in the end of November, and vowed not to return until such time as I felt I could trust myself not to engage in any more three-hour sporcle binges.
Well, about ten days ago I fell off the wagon. It started innocently enough. Within an hour I had mastered the national flags of Asia. So I moved on to Africa. Then Europe. By the end of the weekend I could do the flags of the world in 10 minutes . Actually, this is a great game. But is it really worth spending hours of a Saturday playing the same game ? I tried another subject. Science. Yes, one of my Achilles heels. Surely that would put me off. No chance. Elements of the Periodic Table has been this week’s game of choice. Now, I have no doubt that this will bring me points in a quiz sooner or later. But this is my problem. I find myself so hooked on it that even when I’m miles away from my laptop, during break times, or while I’m driving to and from work I find myself reciting them – Hydrogen to Ununoctium – all 118 of them . This is just not a healthy occupation for a growing lad. I’ve become so concerned about it that I even allowed three of my kids to drag me out ice skating last Sunday . If I tell you that the only real exercise I’ve done in my own time in the last decade has been giving out team sheets and half time handouts, then you’ll appreciate what a desperate measure this was. No, actually I didn’t do myself an injury as it happens. I wasn’t that bad, in my day, and Queensway Ice Rink in London was where I first met Mrs. Londinius for the first time in 1985. Of course, you’ll know what was going through my head as I drove home ? That this would surely have earned me the right to have an hour or two on sporcle.
So please, spare a thought for those of us who are sporcle addicted. Yes, before you ask, I will give you the link, but if you get hooked, then don’t blame me. You have been warned.
sporcle.com
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