Christ Church Oxford v. University of Bath
Christ Church was founded by Cardinal Wolsey, so it can’t be all that far off its 500th anniversary by my reckoning. The team were Thomas Hine, Will Peveler, Nimish Telang and captain George Scratcherd. By way of contrast Bath University came in for some rather withering comments from JP who ‘praised’ the way that its functional glass and concrete buildings provide a pleasing relief from all that georgian stuff in the city. Bath were represented by Stephen Pagett, Dorian Lidell, Sam Causer and captain Adam Melling-Smith. Off we go.
First blood was drawn by Sam Causer who knew that Hilary and Tensing ate Kendal Mint Cake on Everest. 2 bonuses were taken on town halls. Bath were off and running. However so were Christ Curch when skipper George Scratcherd recognized that the title of the book The Second Sex was required for the next starter. A good UC set on homonyms – eg puttee and putty followed – 2 of which were taken. I didn’t get the second one myself either. Christ Church pulled ahead with the next starter on the Michelangelo effect. Will Peveler looked as if he was guessing, and so was I, but we were both right. A set on coastal regions provided them with 2 more correct answers. Neither team knew Hardy’s The Laodicean – not surprised either, tough question that. George Scratcherd took a good early buzz on Rorschach for the next starter, and a set of bonuses on mathematics saw that rarest of rara aves – me getting a maths question right – squaring the circle. Well, this brought up the first picture starter. This led us into controversial waters last week. Not so this week, I hope, as we were shown the emblem of a UK sports governing body. Will Peveler again looked like he was guessing – but he was guessing right anyway with weightlifting. Three more of the same followed, but proved difficult for the team, who only managed to identify handball out of the three. A very good early buzz in from Nimish Telang on Godwin’s analogy brought Christ’s Church within a couple of questions of the 100 point barrier. A little irony was in the fact that the first bonus concerned the painting “ Benefits Supervisor Sleeping “, painted by the late Lucien Freud, who has passed away since the programme was recorded. I knew Doctor Gachet, which was the only one that the team missed. Still, at the 10 minute mark the scores looked ominous for Bath, who trailed Christ Church by 20 points against 100.
Stephen Pagett buzzed in with Telekinesis as his answer to the next starter, which JP , struggling with himself, ruled as a lose 5 points interruption, allowing Thomas Hine in with teleportation. Undoubtedly the right answer. As regards the ruling, well it was correct, since the buzz happened immediately before JP said the last word of the question – ‘means’ – even though he said it before the answer was given. Hard lines – just one of those things. Christ Church managed a good 2 bonuses on accents and diacritics. I’ve met a couple of dire critics in my time, but I digress. Neither team managed to dredge up Marsh Wiggles from Narnia – shame on them ! Sam Causer finally brought Bath back into the game with compliant and complaint. Winners of the Costa Book of the Year Award didn’t help – I don’t know if this will make Bath feel any better, but I didn’t know any of them either. Will Peveler cut off the revival when he took the next starter on osteoporosis. Bonuses on islands of the Caribbean proved rather tricky and escaped them completely. This brought up the music starter. This was rather a gentle lob as the teams were asked to name the old theme music for the Antiques Roadshow – written specially for TV by JS Bach who called it The Brandenburg Concerto, though what this had to do with Hugh Scully and Royal Doulton I have no idea. This gave the team a set of bonuses on pieces of music associated with historical figures. As soon as JP asked who the next was originally dedicated to I shouted Napoleon – knowing that it was going to be the Eroica – there may well be other pieces of music whose original dedication was changed, but they don’t get asked about in quizzes so much. 2 of the3 bonuses were taken. In the next starter the Lady of Shallot once again put in an appearance, a fact gratefully noted by Adam Melling-Smith. A set of bonuses on mammalian physiology brought a bonus. “Nordic hero . . . Richard Wagner . . . title” was more than enough for Thomas Hine to buzz in correctly with Siegfried. Another UC special on pairs of place name – Essen and Essex for example - brought them a full set of bonuses. Good set, that. Dorian Lidell took his first starter on the mathematician Bernoulli, which brought up bonuses on translations of the Bible. Now, the second bonus asked who made the first complete English translation . Bath answered Wycliffe. JP told them , correctly, that the first translation of the Bible into modern English was by Myles Coverdale. However he made an error when he added that Coverdale was earlier than Wycliffe. That’s a no – no. The translation of the Bible by Wycliffe and probably his followers was made about 150 years earlier than Coverdale’s Bible – but this would have been in Middle English. Not only that, but it was before the invention of the printing press as well. Whether the Wycliffe Bible was not a complete translation, or whether it doesn’t count because it was Middle English , or it wasn’t printed I don’t know – but Coverdale’s Bible is the standard answer to the question. Sorry – lecture over. There was balm in Gilead for Bath, which actually brought them up a bonus as well. Nonetheless they still trailed by 55 points to Christ Church’s 175 at the 20 minute mark.
In all honesty it looked all over bar the shouting , especially when the impressive Will Peveler took the second picture starter, identifying Josiah Wedgewood from a postage stamp of 2009. There was more of the same in the bonuses, and Christ Church took one of them. Thomas Hine knew that ‘ciao’ was introduced into English through Hemingway’s “A Farewell to Arms” Bonuses on capacitance brought a full set to the team. Thomas Hine took a double when he knew that the entrances to many of the Paris Metro stations are in Art Nouveau style. Bonuses on chaos in literature took the score to 235. Neither team fancied Thomas a Kempis. So the next starter on particle physics fell to Sam Causer. Bonuses on typographical marks brought them another 10 points. George Scratcherd knew that as inventory is to find, and dormitory is to sleep , lavatory is to wash. Latin roots, you see. Human anatomy followed, and another 10 points were added to a formidable looking total. Nobody knew how many kilotonnes are equal to one teragram. Throwing caution to the wind Adam Melling-Smith buzzed in early with a guess that Yell and others are among the Hebrides. I don’t blame him for going for it. Bath were in might-as-well-be-hung-for-a- sheep-as-a-lamb territory here. When JP completed the question with the main town Lerwick Thomas Hine knew it was the Shetlands. Greek Mythology bonuses brought them 5 points. Adam Melling-Smith atoned for his former earlier buzz with a great interruption with Risorgimento . Famous ships brought a couple of bonuses, and when Adam Melling-Smith leapt to the buzzer again with the correct answer that three African countries were all linked by the name guinea this pushed Bath through the 100 point barrier. Good – no less than they deserved after all. That brought up the gong though, and a very convincing win for Christ Church by 270 to 105. Well played Christ Church. Three team members each hit a number of starters– a good performance which marks them out as a team to watch in the next round.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
Well there wasn’t actually that much to comment on during the quiz itself – all the action was going on around the fringes. After the withering remarks about Bath University’s architecture, I didn’t notice anything really until JP turned to Bath and said - “There’s plenty of time for you guys to come back so don’t panic now, we’re about halfway through.” I think he meant it kindly, but if I was sitting where Bath were sitting that would just have put the tin hat on it for me. You KNOW you’re struggling when JP starts encouraging you.
There was a small vignette when George Scratchered answered the lavatory question, as JP suppressed a half chuckle which he acknowledged with “ I don’t know why we smile just at the word .”
Finally at the end he congratulated Christ Church for being the best turned out team so far this series – well two of them were wearing ties – then virtually challenged them to wear elegant suits for the next round. Time will tell.
Interesting Fact Of The Week I Didn’t Already Know
Pitch Lake in Trinidad is one of the world’s largest resources of asphalt
Tuesday, 9 August 2011
Sunday, 7 August 2011
News Questions
Here you go then, don't say I don't ever give you anything : -
Who or what are the following, and why are they in the news ?
1) Reverend Neil Carter
2) Liam Tancock
3) Colin Atkinson
4) David Mackay
5) Glynn and Gregor Morris
6) Jim Devine
7) Chai Patel
8) Hayley Wilkins
9) Michael Whitaker
10) Shem Davies
11) Hama
12) Francesca Ariani
13) Jake Davies
14) Ched Evans
15) Abigail Bannatyne
16) Dealz
17) Madeleine Pulver
18) Jose Manuel Borroso
19) The White Shadow
20) Shaun Evans
21) Sean Price
22) Major General Keith Cima
23) Rhys Priestland
24) Myrtle Rose
25) Bill Bratton
26) Mark Duggan
27) Pauline Whitehouse
28) Muifa
29) Rick Perry
30) Alastair Brownlee and Helen Jenkins
Other news
1) Who won the Hungarian Grand Prix ?
2) Name the other teams in England’s World Cup Qualifying group
3) The indian cricket team showed great sportsmanship over which England batsman’s dismissal as he walked off for the tea interval ?
4) Which part of Windsor Castle has just been reopened to the public ?
5) Who criticized modern comedians for being too offensive ?
6) Who have been criticized for being shown parking electric cars in disabled parking bays ?
7) 2nd August is the 150th anniversary of the first published what ?
8) Who finally took the blame for the ‘no hurricane’ prediction of 1987 ?
9) 2nd August – a group of illegal immigrants were apprehended trying to enter UK having stowed away in what ?
10) Who took 5 wickets in the Indian second innings of the second test ?
11) What was the name of the film actor grandfather of Toby Flood ?
12) Which footballer will be given a free transfer to anyone who will take him ?
13) Where did a plane belonging to which airline fall off the runway, with nobody seriously hurt ?
14) IN an LA Fitness survey, who were the best bodies – women – men ?
15) Who was Mike Tindall’s best man ?
16) Which department store have introduced their triple boost bra ?
17) Who is joining the TV series Family Guy – to play a dolphin ?
18) Who sang Happy Birthday to barack Obama on his 50th ?
19) Which country has created its own brand scent ?
20) Which TV Presenter was hit by a foam pie ?
21) Scientists claim to have found what on Mars ?
22) Which former world champion was in court accused of attacking her former husband ?
23) Who is the new manager of Brentford FC ?
24) Heather Mills claimed that she has been hacked by which newspaper ?
25) Which team did Fulham beat in the qualifiers for the Europa League ?
26) Which team knocked Rangers out of the European Champions League ?
27) Which Leicester centre made his debut for England RFU v. Wales ?
28) From which country is Noriega being extradited to his native Panama ?
29) Which films tar is facing eviction from her home in New York ?
30) Which Holiday firm went bust, stranding holiday makers in Turkey particularly ?
31) ON which island did the polar bear attack happen
32) Who crashed his Mclaren F1 sports car ?
33) Which company have been given provisional permission to drill for oil in the Beaufort Sea ?
34) The Bratz toy doll company won $309 million damages from whom ?
35) Who was taken to hospital after having a pizza thrown in his eye by Sooty ?
36) Which 73 year old novelist died ?
37) What is the venue for this year’s USPGA ?
38) Which horse racing competition pitted teams from Ireland , The UK, and the Rest of the World ?
39) Score – England v. Wales at Twickenham ?
40) A man was shot dead by police near which station in London ?
41) What celebrated its 20th anniversary on 7th August ?
42) Where were Victorian beachhuts destroyed in an arson attack ?
43) Which town is making its own Hollywood style walk of fame ?
44) Which of his sponsors have announced that they have just ended their association with Tiger Woods ?
45) What was the final score in the Community Shield ?
46) Which team did Leeds beat in their Challenge Cup semi final ?
47) Which team did Wigan beat in their Challenge Cup semi final ?
Answers in a few days' time
Who or what are the following, and why are they in the news ?
1) Reverend Neil Carter
2) Liam Tancock
3) Colin Atkinson
4) David Mackay
5) Glynn and Gregor Morris
6) Jim Devine
7) Chai Patel
8) Hayley Wilkins
9) Michael Whitaker
10) Shem Davies
11) Hama
12) Francesca Ariani
13) Jake Davies
14) Ched Evans
15) Abigail Bannatyne
16) Dealz
17) Madeleine Pulver
18) Jose Manuel Borroso
19) The White Shadow
20) Shaun Evans
21) Sean Price
22) Major General Keith Cima
23) Rhys Priestland
24) Myrtle Rose
25) Bill Bratton
26) Mark Duggan
27) Pauline Whitehouse
28) Muifa
29) Rick Perry
30) Alastair Brownlee and Helen Jenkins
Other news
1) Who won the Hungarian Grand Prix ?
2) Name the other teams in England’s World Cup Qualifying group
3) The indian cricket team showed great sportsmanship over which England batsman’s dismissal as he walked off for the tea interval ?
4) Which part of Windsor Castle has just been reopened to the public ?
5) Who criticized modern comedians for being too offensive ?
6) Who have been criticized for being shown parking electric cars in disabled parking bays ?
7) 2nd August is the 150th anniversary of the first published what ?
8) Who finally took the blame for the ‘no hurricane’ prediction of 1987 ?
9) 2nd August – a group of illegal immigrants were apprehended trying to enter UK having stowed away in what ?
10) Who took 5 wickets in the Indian second innings of the second test ?
11) What was the name of the film actor grandfather of Toby Flood ?
12) Which footballer will be given a free transfer to anyone who will take him ?
13) Where did a plane belonging to which airline fall off the runway, with nobody seriously hurt ?
14) IN an LA Fitness survey, who were the best bodies – women – men ?
15) Who was Mike Tindall’s best man ?
16) Which department store have introduced their triple boost bra ?
17) Who is joining the TV series Family Guy – to play a dolphin ?
18) Who sang Happy Birthday to barack Obama on his 50th ?
19) Which country has created its own brand scent ?
20) Which TV Presenter was hit by a foam pie ?
21) Scientists claim to have found what on Mars ?
22) Which former world champion was in court accused of attacking her former husband ?
23) Who is the new manager of Brentford FC ?
24) Heather Mills claimed that she has been hacked by which newspaper ?
25) Which team did Fulham beat in the qualifiers for the Europa League ?
26) Which team knocked Rangers out of the European Champions League ?
27) Which Leicester centre made his debut for England RFU v. Wales ?
28) From which country is Noriega being extradited to his native Panama ?
29) Which films tar is facing eviction from her home in New York ?
30) Which Holiday firm went bust, stranding holiday makers in Turkey particularly ?
31) ON which island did the polar bear attack happen
32) Who crashed his Mclaren F1 sports car ?
33) Which company have been given provisional permission to drill for oil in the Beaufort Sea ?
34) The Bratz toy doll company won $309 million damages from whom ?
35) Who was taken to hospital after having a pizza thrown in his eye by Sooty ?
36) Which 73 year old novelist died ?
37) What is the venue for this year’s USPGA ?
38) Which horse racing competition pitted teams from Ireland , The UK, and the Rest of the World ?
39) Score – England v. Wales at Twickenham ?
40) A man was shot dead by police near which station in London ?
41) What celebrated its 20th anniversary on 7th August ?
42) Where were Victorian beachhuts destroyed in an arson attack ?
43) Which town is making its own Hollywood style walk of fame ?
44) Which of his sponsors have announced that they have just ended their association with Tiger Woods ?
45) What was the final score in the Community Shield ?
46) Which team did Leeds beat in their Challenge Cup semi final ?
47) Which team did Wigan beat in their Challenge Cup semi final ?
Answers in a few days' time
Thursday, 4 August 2011
A couple more Telegraph UC features
I noticed a couple more UC articles in the Telegraph online which you might be interested in - this one gives you the opportunity to test yourself on a set of UC questions : -
University Challenge - How well would you do ?
and this second one delves into the so-called 'curse' of University Challenge.
The Curse of University Challenge
Worth a look.
University Challenge - How well would you do ?
and this second one delves into the so-called 'curse' of University Challenge.
The Curse of University Challenge
Worth a look.
Schoolboy Error
Yes, I am sitting here , red faced, reflecting on a schoolboy error I have just committed. Allow me to elucidate. Every summer I try to spend a few days with my mum and step dad. A couple of months ago they moved from Tottenham to Worthing, and we arrived for our inaugural visit yesterday.
Now, I had an idea this morning. Its Thursday, and as regular readers will know, Thursday evening is Aberavon Rugby Club quiz evening. Strictly speaking its my turn this week, but I've had to postpone that for a week - thanks Brian for accomodating that. As the geographically aware of you will know, its just too far for me to drive home just for the quiz. So I thought that if I got on the laptop this morning, you never know, I might be able to rustle up a local quiz within easy walking distance of my folks' house.
Such a quiz was what I came up with - at the North Star in Durrington. My youngest daughter, Jess, asked if she could come with me, and without even thinking about it, I said yes.
You don't have to be a genius to see where I'm going with this one. It never occured to me once that the pub might have a problem with Jess being there since she is only 17. She has been to quizzes with me before - and before any of my regular quizzes starts to panic they can be reassured that I have no intention of putting anywhere else on the spot by naming where she has been allowed to take part. So it never once occured to me to think that maybe taking her with me was not a good idea.
Well, as soon as we got to the pub, and I went up to order, the barmaid clocked Jess, who is, to be honest , a young looking 17, and asked how old she was. Without thinking I told the truth, and the barmaid , very politely, informed me that Jess would have to leave the pub by 9 o'clock, this being company policy. It was about 10 to nine at the time.
I don't blame the pub at all - in fact they probably deserve some praise for being strict enough about this sort of thing - and I don't blame Jess at all. Which is what I'm really annoyed about. I'm sitting here in my mum's, disappointed and angry, yet the only person I have to be angry with is myself. Not a nice feeling. Dumb, dumb, dumb !
Now, I had an idea this morning. Its Thursday, and as regular readers will know, Thursday evening is Aberavon Rugby Club quiz evening. Strictly speaking its my turn this week, but I've had to postpone that for a week - thanks Brian for accomodating that. As the geographically aware of you will know, its just too far for me to drive home just for the quiz. So I thought that if I got on the laptop this morning, you never know, I might be able to rustle up a local quiz within easy walking distance of my folks' house.
Such a quiz was what I came up with - at the North Star in Durrington. My youngest daughter, Jess, asked if she could come with me, and without even thinking about it, I said yes.
You don't have to be a genius to see where I'm going with this one. It never occured to me once that the pub might have a problem with Jess being there since she is only 17. She has been to quizzes with me before - and before any of my regular quizzes starts to panic they can be reassured that I have no intention of putting anywhere else on the spot by naming where she has been allowed to take part. So it never once occured to me to think that maybe taking her with me was not a good idea.
Well, as soon as we got to the pub, and I went up to order, the barmaid clocked Jess, who is, to be honest , a young looking 17, and asked how old she was. Without thinking I told the truth, and the barmaid , very politely, informed me that Jess would have to leave the pub by 9 o'clock, this being company policy. It was about 10 to nine at the time.
I don't blame the pub at all - in fact they probably deserve some praise for being strict enough about this sort of thing - and I don't blame Jess at all. Which is what I'm really annoyed about. I'm sitting here in my mum's, disappointed and angry, yet the only person I have to be angry with is myself. Not a nice feeling. Dumb, dumb, dumb !
Wednesday, 3 August 2011
UC Flag Controversy
I awoke this morning, ate my bowl of cornflakes, and opened the Telegraph to begin the daily trawl for questions. On page 3 a large photo of the 2 teams from Monday's UC match stared back at me.
This is the problem. When shown a flag for the first picture starter, Thomas Grinyer answered that it belonged to the thirteen colonies of America, to be told that he was wrong. When Balliol also answered incorrectly the answer was given as The East India Company. Now, the flag in questions certainly did belong to the East India Company. However, according to the experts quoted in the Telegraph, it was also exactly the same as the flag used by the thirteen colonies.
Now, we all make mistakes from time to time. However this one makes it really interesting. Here are the issues of the case : -
* Balliol beat Homerton by 5 points
* That starter alone was worth 10 points, not counting a set of bonuses which may or may not have provided up to 15 more.
* As it is, Homerton will surely qualify for a highest runner up spot.
* Runners up have to play an extra match in the repechage round.
So even if you say - well - it doesn't matter, since Homerton are going through any way, well, yes, to some extent it still does matter since they are by no means guaranteed a spot in the second round. They may be beaten in the repechage. On the other hand, can you penalise Balliol for the programme's mistake ? Not really.
So my guess is that the production team will hold their hands up, say - sorry, we got it wrong, these things do happen occasionally, but the result will stand - and keep their fingers crossed that Balliol will make it through the repechage.
Watch this space
This is the problem. When shown a flag for the first picture starter, Thomas Grinyer answered that it belonged to the thirteen colonies of America, to be told that he was wrong. When Balliol also answered incorrectly the answer was given as The East India Company. Now, the flag in questions certainly did belong to the East India Company. However, according to the experts quoted in the Telegraph, it was also exactly the same as the flag used by the thirteen colonies.
Now, we all make mistakes from time to time. However this one makes it really interesting. Here are the issues of the case : -
* Balliol beat Homerton by 5 points
* That starter alone was worth 10 points, not counting a set of bonuses which may or may not have provided up to 15 more.
* As it is, Homerton will surely qualify for a highest runner up spot.
* Runners up have to play an extra match in the repechage round.
So even if you say - well - it doesn't matter, since Homerton are going through any way, well, yes, to some extent it still does matter since they are by no means guaranteed a spot in the second round. They may be beaten in the repechage. On the other hand, can you penalise Balliol for the programme's mistake ? Not really.
So my guess is that the production team will hold their hands up, say - sorry, we got it wrong, these things do happen occasionally, but the result will stand - and keep their fingers crossed that Balliol will make it through the repechage.
Watch this space
Tuesday, 2 August 2011
Doesn't time fly ? 3rd Anniversary.
Do you know, it's shaming to me to admit it, but I quite forgot that the 27th, last week, was actually the 3rd anniversary of LAM ! Quite remiss of me. Well, I have a long drive ahead of me tomorrow morning, so going out on the razz tonight ( which to be honest isn't really 'me' at all ) is not an option. So all I can do is to apologise, raise a metaphorical glass, and thank all readers and contributors who continue to make the blog such an enjoyable thing to do.
Many, many sincere thanks to all of you.
Many, many sincere thanks to all of you.
University Challenge - Round One - Match 5
Homerton College, Cambridge v. Balliol College, Oxford
Another Oxbridge match up, and so potentially an exciting one. Homerton apparently only gained full college status last year, while Balliol dates back to the 13th century. Not that this has any real bearing on the contest, but there we are. Homerton’s team were Jack Euesden, Frances Conner, Thomas Grinyer and captain David Murray.Homerton were represented by Liam Shaw, Andrew Whitby, James Kirby and captain Simon Wood.
Asked for an adjective which linked several clues, as soon as James Kirby heard the mention of the Blue Nile, and Khartoum, he buzzed in correctly with white. Two bonuses were taken on secrets. Captain David Murray opened the account for Homerton, knowing that it was none other than A.E.Houseman who wrote “A Shropshire Lad”. 3 bonuses followed on Geneva, and they confidently took all of them. Thomas Grinyer extended the lead recognising that it was King John who was nicknamed Softsword and Lackland. Speaking as a teacher, I can vouch for the fact that there are worse nicknames to have, however I digress. Homerton maintained their impressive bonus form by taking all three on 20th century history. Simon Wood struck back immediately for his team, knowing that the word flame fitted several definitions given. 2 bonuses were accepted on the platinum group of metals. The first picture starter escaped both teams. I’m not surprised. It turned out to be the flag of the east India Company. Good question, and would certainly be my interesting fact of the week if it quite fitted the format. As it doesn’t quite, we’d best just carry on. Andrew Whitby earned the bonuses which followed on other colonial flags when he took a great UC special cryptic starter on the word apostrophe. Only one colonial flag was identified – that of Ceylon, although they did see South Africa, but talked themselves out of it. A second UC Special followed , this one on rhyming words – sherry – merry and Derry. David Murray was quickest, and this enabled Homerton to take 2 bonuses on the welsh alphabet , narrowly missing a 3rd by talking themselves out of – ch – in favour of cw. So a very good, competitive opening 10 minutes saw Homerton leading by 70 to 55.
Simon Wood cut the deficit immediately when he knew that the novel of the 1890’s described as ‘obscene’ was Hardy’s “Jude the Obscure”. True to form, Balliol took 2 of the 3 bonuses on Secret Police forces, just confusing their Cheka with their Okrana. Easily done. A very good early buzz from Whitby on the term ‘norms’ followed, which brought up an amusing set of descriptions of places from the CIA. A full set followed. If that was a good buzz from Andrew Whitby, Frances Connor’s buzz for the next, to identify a piece of theme music written for Matt Smith’s Dr. Who was an excellent one. They only added one bonus on more of the same, but nevertheless, it was a timely intervention at a time when Balliol had forged ahead. Liam Shaw played the percentages well, when he knew that any list of top 10 tracks which contains Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen is most likely to come from Canada. A full set of 3 bonuses were taken on Lollards. I’ll be honest, I don’t know what the overall bonus conversion rate was for both teams last night, but I should think it was pretty high. These were good teams. A lovely starter which involved quickly identifying Essen and Essex fell to Thomas Grinyer, and this gave them 2 bonuses on animals. Liam Shaw then took his second starter with a very good shout on Emmy Noether. No, me neither. 3 bonuses were taken on 3 dimensional shapes. Andrew Whitby was the first in with the old chestnut that alphabetically the first country of the UN is Afghanistan – which does contain three consecutive consonants as well into the bargain. With 2 bonuses on the deaths of roman emperors in the words of Suetonius, this gave Balliol a healthy lead at the 20 minute mark, of 170 to 105.
Healthy, but not insurmountable. The way that Homerton had shown they could pick off the bonuses meant that they just needed to be a little sharper with the buzzer, and that gap could be whittled down quickly. Not if Simon Wood had anything to do with it. He recognised a painting of Venice as being by Renoir – which was a good shout. For bonuses they took the paintings of Venice by both Monet and Turner, but missed the painter possibly more associated with Venice than almost any other, Canaletto. Which is what happens when you’re under pressure. Jack Euesden nipped in with the Name Daphne for the next starter, and the fightback was on. 2 bonuses were taken on people surnamed Larson. Neither team knew the family name of the Earls of Orrery, but for the next Jack Euesden knew that Class comes between Phylum and Order. A full set of 3 was taken on abbreviations. Homerton, realizing that the gap was now negotiable seemed to visibly sit a little taller in their chairs, and skipper David Murray took the next starter, with Britten’s opera “Gloriana”. 2 bonuses on state capitals of the USA narrowed the gap to 20 points. A gap which was destroyed with Thomas Grinyer’s next starter, knowing a set of Hills on the Isle of Skye, and a couple of bonuses on names of metals.
All square.
No more than a couple of minutes to go at most.
A great answer from James Kirby , on the roman garment called the stola, put Balliol slightly ahead, but only one bonus was taken. The next starter asked for a greek mythological monster from Dante’s Inferno. The question mentioned Crete, and so the first person to go for it was Jack Euesden. He was right , too, with the Minotaur. One bonus, and all would be square. But there was no time ! The gong went, and that was that !
Another great game, and I hope, and in fact am sure that JP was right when he said that Homerton will surely be back having scored 200 to Balliol’s 205. Well played to everyone. I made it that 5 of the 8 players each took at least 3 starters .
Jeremy Paxman Watch
My good ness, but JP seems to have softened somewhat in this series. When offered “Burnett” for the author of the Secret Garden, he gave them the points anyway before asking for the other names. He did a similar thing later. The only other thing really worthy of note was on the Dr. who Theme bonuses. “Is it Rose Tyler ? “ suggested Homerton. The eyebrow arched upwards. “No, that’s the Master !” he explained, in tones usually reserved for those who get a Shakespeare question wrong. JP a secret Whovian ? Who would have guessed ?
Interesting Fact Of The Week That I Didn’t Already Know
The family names of the Earls of Orrery is Boyle. Robert Boyle was a member of the extended family.
Another Oxbridge match up, and so potentially an exciting one. Homerton apparently only gained full college status last year, while Balliol dates back to the 13th century. Not that this has any real bearing on the contest, but there we are. Homerton’s team were Jack Euesden, Frances Conner, Thomas Grinyer and captain David Murray.Homerton were represented by Liam Shaw, Andrew Whitby, James Kirby and captain Simon Wood.
Asked for an adjective which linked several clues, as soon as James Kirby heard the mention of the Blue Nile, and Khartoum, he buzzed in correctly with white. Two bonuses were taken on secrets. Captain David Murray opened the account for Homerton, knowing that it was none other than A.E.Houseman who wrote “A Shropshire Lad”. 3 bonuses followed on Geneva, and they confidently took all of them. Thomas Grinyer extended the lead recognising that it was King John who was nicknamed Softsword and Lackland. Speaking as a teacher, I can vouch for the fact that there are worse nicknames to have, however I digress. Homerton maintained their impressive bonus form by taking all three on 20th century history. Simon Wood struck back immediately for his team, knowing that the word flame fitted several definitions given. 2 bonuses were accepted on the platinum group of metals. The first picture starter escaped both teams. I’m not surprised. It turned out to be the flag of the east India Company. Good question, and would certainly be my interesting fact of the week if it quite fitted the format. As it doesn’t quite, we’d best just carry on. Andrew Whitby earned the bonuses which followed on other colonial flags when he took a great UC special cryptic starter on the word apostrophe. Only one colonial flag was identified – that of Ceylon, although they did see South Africa, but talked themselves out of it. A second UC Special followed , this one on rhyming words – sherry – merry and Derry. David Murray was quickest, and this enabled Homerton to take 2 bonuses on the welsh alphabet , narrowly missing a 3rd by talking themselves out of – ch – in favour of cw. So a very good, competitive opening 10 minutes saw Homerton leading by 70 to 55.
Simon Wood cut the deficit immediately when he knew that the novel of the 1890’s described as ‘obscene’ was Hardy’s “Jude the Obscure”. True to form, Balliol took 2 of the 3 bonuses on Secret Police forces, just confusing their Cheka with their Okrana. Easily done. A very good early buzz from Whitby on the term ‘norms’ followed, which brought up an amusing set of descriptions of places from the CIA. A full set followed. If that was a good buzz from Andrew Whitby, Frances Connor’s buzz for the next, to identify a piece of theme music written for Matt Smith’s Dr. Who was an excellent one. They only added one bonus on more of the same, but nevertheless, it was a timely intervention at a time when Balliol had forged ahead. Liam Shaw played the percentages well, when he knew that any list of top 10 tracks which contains Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen is most likely to come from Canada. A full set of 3 bonuses were taken on Lollards. I’ll be honest, I don’t know what the overall bonus conversion rate was for both teams last night, but I should think it was pretty high. These were good teams. A lovely starter which involved quickly identifying Essen and Essex fell to Thomas Grinyer, and this gave them 2 bonuses on animals. Liam Shaw then took his second starter with a very good shout on Emmy Noether. No, me neither. 3 bonuses were taken on 3 dimensional shapes. Andrew Whitby was the first in with the old chestnut that alphabetically the first country of the UN is Afghanistan – which does contain three consecutive consonants as well into the bargain. With 2 bonuses on the deaths of roman emperors in the words of Suetonius, this gave Balliol a healthy lead at the 20 minute mark, of 170 to 105.
Healthy, but not insurmountable. The way that Homerton had shown they could pick off the bonuses meant that they just needed to be a little sharper with the buzzer, and that gap could be whittled down quickly. Not if Simon Wood had anything to do with it. He recognised a painting of Venice as being by Renoir – which was a good shout. For bonuses they took the paintings of Venice by both Monet and Turner, but missed the painter possibly more associated with Venice than almost any other, Canaletto. Which is what happens when you’re under pressure. Jack Euesden nipped in with the Name Daphne for the next starter, and the fightback was on. 2 bonuses were taken on people surnamed Larson. Neither team knew the family name of the Earls of Orrery, but for the next Jack Euesden knew that Class comes between Phylum and Order. A full set of 3 was taken on abbreviations. Homerton, realizing that the gap was now negotiable seemed to visibly sit a little taller in their chairs, and skipper David Murray took the next starter, with Britten’s opera “Gloriana”. 2 bonuses on state capitals of the USA narrowed the gap to 20 points. A gap which was destroyed with Thomas Grinyer’s next starter, knowing a set of Hills on the Isle of Skye, and a couple of bonuses on names of metals.
All square.
No more than a couple of minutes to go at most.
A great answer from James Kirby , on the roman garment called the stola, put Balliol slightly ahead, but only one bonus was taken. The next starter asked for a greek mythological monster from Dante’s Inferno. The question mentioned Crete, and so the first person to go for it was Jack Euesden. He was right , too, with the Minotaur. One bonus, and all would be square. But there was no time ! The gong went, and that was that !
Another great game, and I hope, and in fact am sure that JP was right when he said that Homerton will surely be back having scored 200 to Balliol’s 205. Well played to everyone. I made it that 5 of the 8 players each took at least 3 starters .
Jeremy Paxman Watch
My good ness, but JP seems to have softened somewhat in this series. When offered “Burnett” for the author of the Secret Garden, he gave them the points anyway before asking for the other names. He did a similar thing later. The only other thing really worthy of note was on the Dr. who Theme bonuses. “Is it Rose Tyler ? “ suggested Homerton. The eyebrow arched upwards. “No, that’s the Master !” he explained, in tones usually reserved for those who get a Shakespeare question wrong. JP a secret Whovian ? Who would have guessed ?
Interesting Fact Of The Week That I Didn’t Already Know
The family names of the Earls of Orrery is Boyle. Robert Boyle was a member of the extended family.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
