The Fantasy Footballers v. The Antiquarians
Well, if we were waiting for a noticeably weaker team to turn up on OC this season, we went away unsatisfied again on Monday night. In all other respects though this was a great contest, between the Fantasy Footballers, hereafter referred to as the Fants, and the Antiquarians, hereafter referred to as the Ants. The Fants consisted of Heidi Shaw, James Bedworth and captain Jonathan Shaw, while the Ants were Simon Belcher, Debbie Challis and Will Howells.
Round One – What’s the Connection ?
The Ants kicked off with The Eye of Horus, and scored their only real own goal of the whole show. Given Bob Hope Impersonator, Physician to inject Vitamin B12, 20 white kittens, and the real giveaway , M&Ms ( no brown ones ) they couldn’t see a connection. The Fants knew that these were famous and less famous celebrity riders. They then opted for Twisted Flax, finding On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco – Shirley Valentine – Krapp’s Last Tape and Tell Me On A Sunday. We don’t often see a team allowing the clock to run down without having a wild guess, but that’s what the Fants did. The Ants knew that these were all one person stage shows. The Ants, now warming to their task, found behind Lion – Achievement through great effort – Gentle way – Empty Hand. I think it was dawning on them with gentle way, but empty hand confirmed that we were dealing with English translations of the names of martial arts. The Fants took water, not literally, mind, and were given the music clues. Three were enough to give them the connection of prayer. Horned Viper gave the Ants Anarchy – Dry clean petroleum solvent – and these two were enough to give them symbols with a circle containing a letter. Lovely set that, and a good shout. Left with two reeds the Fants found pictures of a fish, a pair of dice, and the head of Fabien Barthez. All things you might kiss for luck, as they well knew. So after a bright and brisk first round, the Ants had a slight lead of 6 points to 5.
Round Two – What comes Fourth ?
Its not that often that we see every round two questions correctly answered by one or other of the teams, but it happened in this show. The Ants took Eye of Horus, and given Chuck, Ribs and Loins worked out that the next cut of the beast would be rump. The Fants had a lovely set with Surrey – Tuk Tuk – Segway, and knowing that we had 4 wheels, 3 wheels, and 2 wheeled vehicles, then the last should be unicycle. Lion revealed Laetare – Passion and Palm for the Ants, and they supplied Easter. Given the picture set behind Twisted flax, the Fants saw 4 strawberries, 3 plums and two pears. Working on a fruit machine theme they offered 1 bar. Given a try, the Ants answered 1 apple correctly also working on the same theme. It was an apple, but these were all things eaten in sequence by the Very Hungry Caterpillar. Mind you, the Fants were able to claim back the bonus, when the Ants were given Carson – Leno – O’Brien. They knew it was talk show hosts, but really didn’t know who took over the Tonight show from Conan O’Brien. The Fants knew that it was Jay Leno again. Finally The Fants couldn’t unravel 120 – 24 – 6. The Ants , though, knew that these were Factorials. Over which I will draw a dignified, and dare I say it, an ignorant silence, and observe that this had extended the Ants lead to 12 over 8.
Round Three - The Connecting Walls
The Fants kicked off with a wall which they managed to completely unravel before the time was up. They knew that America – Tonight – Cool – Maria were all songs from West Side Story. After a wee smidgen of a prompt from Victoria they correctly answered that Korea – Dakota – Shields and Atlantic can all be both North and South. They were pretty close on Mctwist – Shifty – Wildcat and Fakie Ollie . I thought that these were all rejected nicknames for the Spice Girls, but no, they were snowboarding terms. Finally they knw that a tomahawk – chopper – adze and ono were all types of axe. 7 points well earned.
So although they didn’t know it, the Ants’ lead was under some pressure. They too solved the wall before the end of the time. They knew that Corden – Horne – Steadman and Lamb are all actors in the regular cast of Gavin and Stacey. The second line – Finishing – Dance – Grammar and Sunday they knew were all schools. Corner – Page – Profit and Deaf Ear were all things that you might turn. Finally they worked out that Rape – Lathe – Hundred and Riding are all subdivisions of counties. A maximum score, which meant that they went into the missing vowels with a healthy lead of 22 to 15.
Round Four – The Missing Vowels
The Fants began like an express, taking the first three of Cities which were purpose built as capitals. They stumbled with the last – Abuja – giving away a hard earned point, and letting the Ants in to add one to their total. The Ants seized on this to build a buffer by taking three on legumes, with only one falling to the Fants. A herculean effort followed from the Fants, as they took the next six points , with a shut out on tallest birds on continents, and 2 points to nothing on footballers wives. In the end the effort fell a little short, but it made for a close finish, as the Ants won by 27 to 24.
Another good show, and another very handy looking team through to the quarters.
Saturday, 17 September 2011
University Challenge - Round One - Match 11
King's,Cambridge v. Queen's, Oxford
I don’t blame you if you’re feeling neglected, honestly I don’t. I really can’t say that much in my defense, other than it has been a very busy week, of which more later, and I had to choose between catching up on planning and marking, or putting the blog first. I know, even I get it wrong sometimes. Still, here we are again, and let me at least try to start making amends.
On with the show then. The producers put together an interestingly symmetrical show on Monday. On one side, King’s Cambridge , and on the other Queen’s Oxford. King’s were represented by Andrew Tindall, Bryoney Bates, Phil Davies and captain Joshua Newton. Queen’s ( and J.P. made a point of reminding us that properly speaking it should be The Queen’s ) team consisted of Peter Sloman, James Kane, Layla Hill, and their skipper, Matthew White.
The first question asked for a linking phrase, and it was first Lady, as James Kane well knew. The first set of bonuses on sporting venues were all gladly accepted. Not to be outdone King’s got off the mark themselves with the next starter, as Phil Davies answered that the word atmosphere was originally erroneously applied to the moon. One bonus was taken on National Nature reserves. Peter Sloman gratefully supplied us with the title “The Wisdom of Crowds to give Queen’s their second starter, and this brought up a tricky set on locations in novels of the 20th century. I had the first, but that was it for me. Layla Hill leapt in to provide us with the S.I. Unit the Becquerel. Already 3 members of the Queen’s team had correctly answered a starter, and skipper White wouldn’t be too long in joining them For now, though the team took a bonus on Medicine. This brought up the picture starter, and the captain of Queen’s buzzed in first to identify the volcano shown on a map as Mount St. Helens. More of the same followed as bonuses, and Queen’s took 2 of them. Matthew White was on a roll, and took the next starter on a quotation relating to the potato. A full set of bonuses followed on American Universities. Byrony Bates struck back for King’s with the writer Montaigne, and a good full set on JM Keynes reduced arrears so that the score at the 10 minute mark was 100 to Queen’s , to 40 for King’s.
This gap was further reduced when Bryony Bates answered a UC special for the next starter, recognizing that hermaphrodite comes from the deities Hermes and Aphrodite. 2 bonuses were managed on pairs of similar sounding ancient greek names – eg, Hero and Hera. Nobody fancied the next starter on Biology, but James Kane knew that James Scott was connected with the welsh town of Monmouth, being the famous duke thereof. A full set was taken on linear algebra. I don’t know what the bonus conversion rate was for this show, but I bet it was quite high. A great question on Shelley’s poem Ozymandias was answered by Phil Davies for the next starter. Again, a full set of bonuses was taken, with words containing all 5 vowels. The music starter saw the teams asked to identify who was singing Ave Maria. Matthew White offered Pavarotti, correctly. However the team were unable to identify any of the other three singers of versions of the song which we heard. A good starter followed for James Kane, who knew that the word Oriental is part of the full name of Uruguay. Queen’s were on a roll now, as Layla Hill took the next starter on the term degenerate as it applies in quantum physics. No, I don’t either. The next starter, on the musical term scordatura stumped both teams, but Peter Sloman knew that Lord Liverpool’s ministry lasted through from 1812 for the next few years. 2 bonuses on dates in novels gave Queen’s a healthy, and frankly , winning lead of 195 to 80.
The question of the week followed. The teams were shown a kiwi fruit, and then invited to spell out the four letters of its name using the names of the elements which the letters symbolize – K = potassium etc. Sounds complicated ? It is, but Layla Hill took it, and then working feverishly as a team Queen’s took 3 more of the same. Not 4 letter ones either ! Watercress and cauliflower were in there too ! I think that this took too much out of them , mind you, since neither team could answer either of the next two starters. Layla Hill, who missed nothing on Science all night, or so it seemed to me, knew all about how many of a male’s descendants would inherit his Y chromosome – or something like that. 2 more starters went begging. The second of these was a really good question, asking about which three countries have the longest borders with EU countries. Norway and Russia came to me, but amazingly Switzerland didn’t. Anyway, back to the show. Queen’s took another science starter, and amazed JP by getting two out of three bonuses on knitting right. Phil Davies managed a final flourish for King’s , knowing that BV in Dutch is the equivalent of e.g. in English. 2 bonuses followed on genetic engineering. Peter Sloman knew that the thing that Nils Bohr says is terrible difficult to predict Is the future. Time enough for 2 bonuses on codes, but that was it. Queen’s won by 280 to 95.
I take slight issue with JP on his comment that King’s had no chance to show us what they could do. They were comprehensively beaten on the buzzer, yes, but you could see enough to see that their modest score is surely not an accurate reflection of their ability. It happens. Certainly no need to take what JP called ‘the slow bus of shame back to the campus”.
As for Queen’s – well at one stage they looked very good for a 300 plus score. Even though they didn’t quite manage that, I thought that they were very good value for their win. They have a team – as I was watching I had the distinct feeling that this is a quiz team, who function as a team and not just 4 talented individuals. There’s a lovely balance in this team. I’m not going to scupper their chances by making any predictions right now, but I think that Queen’s could go far this year.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
JP is a Cambridge man himself, so it was nice to see him enjoying a bit of a rapport with the Oxford side, Queen’s, especially over the fruit n’ elements questions. His high pitched “Well done !” when Layla Hill answered the kiwi fruit question was genuine.
When Matthew White offered Pavarotti, JP replied “ If that was a guess it was a good one. “ Well, any guess that is right is a good one. But its also a percentage answer. Even now, several years after he passed away, Pavarotti is still a good cold answer to an opera question when you haven’t got a Scooby.
Interesting Fact Of The Week That I Didn’t Already Know
Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote ‘Ozymandias’ in competition with his fellow poet Horace Scott. JP only recited the first part of Scott’s own poem . It wasn’t McGonagall, but it would never have made the top 40.
I don’t blame you if you’re feeling neglected, honestly I don’t. I really can’t say that much in my defense, other than it has been a very busy week, of which more later, and I had to choose between catching up on planning and marking, or putting the blog first. I know, even I get it wrong sometimes. Still, here we are again, and let me at least try to start making amends.
On with the show then. The producers put together an interestingly symmetrical show on Monday. On one side, King’s Cambridge , and on the other Queen’s Oxford. King’s were represented by Andrew Tindall, Bryoney Bates, Phil Davies and captain Joshua Newton. Queen’s ( and J.P. made a point of reminding us that properly speaking it should be The Queen’s ) team consisted of Peter Sloman, James Kane, Layla Hill, and their skipper, Matthew White.
The first question asked for a linking phrase, and it was first Lady, as James Kane well knew. The first set of bonuses on sporting venues were all gladly accepted. Not to be outdone King’s got off the mark themselves with the next starter, as Phil Davies answered that the word atmosphere was originally erroneously applied to the moon. One bonus was taken on National Nature reserves. Peter Sloman gratefully supplied us with the title “The Wisdom of Crowds to give Queen’s their second starter, and this brought up a tricky set on locations in novels of the 20th century. I had the first, but that was it for me. Layla Hill leapt in to provide us with the S.I. Unit the Becquerel. Already 3 members of the Queen’s team had correctly answered a starter, and skipper White wouldn’t be too long in joining them For now, though the team took a bonus on Medicine. This brought up the picture starter, and the captain of Queen’s buzzed in first to identify the volcano shown on a map as Mount St. Helens. More of the same followed as bonuses, and Queen’s took 2 of them. Matthew White was on a roll, and took the next starter on a quotation relating to the potato. A full set of bonuses followed on American Universities. Byrony Bates struck back for King’s with the writer Montaigne, and a good full set on JM Keynes reduced arrears so that the score at the 10 minute mark was 100 to Queen’s , to 40 for King’s.
This gap was further reduced when Bryony Bates answered a UC special for the next starter, recognizing that hermaphrodite comes from the deities Hermes and Aphrodite. 2 bonuses were managed on pairs of similar sounding ancient greek names – eg, Hero and Hera. Nobody fancied the next starter on Biology, but James Kane knew that James Scott was connected with the welsh town of Monmouth, being the famous duke thereof. A full set was taken on linear algebra. I don’t know what the bonus conversion rate was for this show, but I bet it was quite high. A great question on Shelley’s poem Ozymandias was answered by Phil Davies for the next starter. Again, a full set of bonuses was taken, with words containing all 5 vowels. The music starter saw the teams asked to identify who was singing Ave Maria. Matthew White offered Pavarotti, correctly. However the team were unable to identify any of the other three singers of versions of the song which we heard. A good starter followed for James Kane, who knew that the word Oriental is part of the full name of Uruguay. Queen’s were on a roll now, as Layla Hill took the next starter on the term degenerate as it applies in quantum physics. No, I don’t either. The next starter, on the musical term scordatura stumped both teams, but Peter Sloman knew that Lord Liverpool’s ministry lasted through from 1812 for the next few years. 2 bonuses on dates in novels gave Queen’s a healthy, and frankly , winning lead of 195 to 80.
The question of the week followed. The teams were shown a kiwi fruit, and then invited to spell out the four letters of its name using the names of the elements which the letters symbolize – K = potassium etc. Sounds complicated ? It is, but Layla Hill took it, and then working feverishly as a team Queen’s took 3 more of the same. Not 4 letter ones either ! Watercress and cauliflower were in there too ! I think that this took too much out of them , mind you, since neither team could answer either of the next two starters. Layla Hill, who missed nothing on Science all night, or so it seemed to me, knew all about how many of a male’s descendants would inherit his Y chromosome – or something like that. 2 more starters went begging. The second of these was a really good question, asking about which three countries have the longest borders with EU countries. Norway and Russia came to me, but amazingly Switzerland didn’t. Anyway, back to the show. Queen’s took another science starter, and amazed JP by getting two out of three bonuses on knitting right. Phil Davies managed a final flourish for King’s , knowing that BV in Dutch is the equivalent of e.g. in English. 2 bonuses followed on genetic engineering. Peter Sloman knew that the thing that Nils Bohr says is terrible difficult to predict Is the future. Time enough for 2 bonuses on codes, but that was it. Queen’s won by 280 to 95.
I take slight issue with JP on his comment that King’s had no chance to show us what they could do. They were comprehensively beaten on the buzzer, yes, but you could see enough to see that their modest score is surely not an accurate reflection of their ability. It happens. Certainly no need to take what JP called ‘the slow bus of shame back to the campus”.
As for Queen’s – well at one stage they looked very good for a 300 plus score. Even though they didn’t quite manage that, I thought that they were very good value for their win. They have a team – as I was watching I had the distinct feeling that this is a quiz team, who function as a team and not just 4 talented individuals. There’s a lovely balance in this team. I’m not going to scupper their chances by making any predictions right now, but I think that Queen’s could go far this year.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
JP is a Cambridge man himself, so it was nice to see him enjoying a bit of a rapport with the Oxford side, Queen’s, especially over the fruit n’ elements questions. His high pitched “Well done !” when Layla Hill answered the kiwi fruit question was genuine.
When Matthew White offered Pavarotti, JP replied “ If that was a guess it was a good one. “ Well, any guess that is right is a good one. But its also a percentage answer. Even now, several years after he passed away, Pavarotti is still a good cold answer to an opera question when you haven’t got a Scooby.
Interesting Fact Of The Week That I Didn’t Already Know
Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote ‘Ozymandias’ in competition with his fellow poet Horace Scott. JP only recited the first part of Scott’s own poem . It wasn’t McGonagall, but it would never have made the top 40.
Sunday, 11 September 2011
News Questions - Sept 1 - 10
Who or what are the following, and why are they in the news ?
1) Nathan Hageman
2) Harbour
3) Kirani James
4) Murdo Fraser
5) Kevin Blom
6) Sophie Tyler
7) Aaron and Abbie
8) Ned Kelly
9) Katie McNeil
10) Darren Flood
11) Katia
12) Cliff’s Law
13) Mohamed Ibrahim
14) Flavia Panetta
15) Hannah England
16) Ortis Deeley
17) Rebecca Leighton
18) Julie Krone
19) Cecil Coley
20) George Kiejman
21) Abdel Hakim Belhaj
22) Margaret Moran
23) Talas
24) David Bathurst
25) Tiffany Porter
26) Carol Klein
27) Simon Negus
28) Dr. Ruth Coppard
29) Lillian Bettencourt
30) Maria Chappini
31) Candida Albicans
32) Aaron Ramsey
33) Peter Twiss
34) Georgie Thompson
35) Egypt
36) Munir Farooki
37) Blackwater
38) Chris Fox
39) Craig Williams
40) Jenny Bessant
41) Andrew Lindo
42) Lynette Freeth
43) Judit Nagy
44) VITOL
45) Colin Adlard
46) Robert Ormesher
47) Patrick Digby
48) Clare and Paul Baker
49) Gina Rinehart
50) Lindsay Doyle
51) Alberto Colto
52) Danny Roberts
53) Robin Haase
In other News
1) Where is the Walker Cup being played ?
2) Which soup has been banned in California ?
3) How long in miles is David Walliams’ attemped swim along the River Thames ?
4) Where did Brazil beat Ghana in a friendly ?
5) Which unfinishable job will finish on October 9th ?
6) Wines from which country have just gone on sale in Waitrose ?
7) A performance by which orchestra caused demos in London ?
8) Which town will be taking over repatriation from Wooton Bassett ?
9) Who won the Mercury Music prize, with which album ?
10) Which tobacco company is trying to use Freedom of Information legislation to gain access to research from Stirling University into teens’ smoking habits ?
11) Which has been voted the ugliest new building in Britain over the last 12 months ?
12) Who was conducting the BBC Radio interview which Oscar Pistorius stormed out of ?
13) Which brand of cider has been recalled because of exploding bottles ?
14) Who was criticized for lowering the tone by using the word “w*nkers” during his speech at the GQ Men of The Year awards ?
15) Who won a record breaking 6th title at Burghley ?
16) Who will face whom in the Clydesdale Bank 40 over competition ?
17) Where was the world’s biggest ever crocodile caught ?
18) Who has made the Booker Prize shortlist for the 4th time ?
19) What are McDonalds now putting onto all of their menus ?
20) What is the title of Alastair Darling’s autobiography ?
21) What have Waterstones ended ?
22) Who called Italy ‘a Sh*t country ‘ ?
23) What is now Britain’s favourite fish ?
24) Which country won the Copa America ?
25) Whose diary will be auctioned at Christie’s ?
26) What distinction is claimed by Burton Road in Eastborne ?
27) Which chocolates did the makers now admit contain fewer sweets per box than previously ?
28) Records were retrieved from which notorious prison in Tripoli ?
29) Who is the manager of the Bulgarian football team, beaten by England in a qualifier ?
30) Which actor ruled himself out of ever standing for US president ?
31) Owen Hargreaves signed a one year deal with which club ?
32) Who scored England’s only goal against Wales ?
33) What species of whale was trapped in Immingham Docks near Grimsby ?
34) Who wrote and directed the much derided film W.E. about Wallis Simpson and Edward VIII ?
35) Which country launched its first ever luxury cruise ?
36) Why did the Royal Mail reuse to deliver CDs of a reading of the Gospel of St. Mark to churches in Jersey ?
37) Why was Timothy Spall reused entry to a Thames River festival with his barge ?
38) Who is the coach of Japan in the Rugby World Cup ?
39) Which is the first county to ban second home owners from voting in local elections ?
40) Who was it revealed stood as godfather to one of Rupert Murdoch’s daughters ?
41) What are the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham giving to patients to distract them ?
42) Which club has signed Joe Cole ?
43) Prom goers have been annoyed by the removal of what from the Albert Hall ?
44) In which event did Oscar Pistorius win a world athletics championship medal ?
45) Who warned that nurses with poor English put patients at risk ?
46) Jailed rioters have swelled the prison population in Britain to a new high – at what figure ?
47) Old Boys have protested about the scrapping of what at Abingdon school ?
48) David Cameron wants which establishment to fund a free school ?
49) Whose work will be exhibited in the Bigger Picture exhibition ?
50) A set of royal mail stamps is to celebrate 100 years of what ?
1) Nathan Hageman
2) Harbour
3) Kirani James
4) Murdo Fraser
5) Kevin Blom
6) Sophie Tyler
7) Aaron and Abbie
8) Ned Kelly
9) Katie McNeil
10) Darren Flood
11) Katia
12) Cliff’s Law
13) Mohamed Ibrahim
14) Flavia Panetta
15) Hannah England
16) Ortis Deeley
17) Rebecca Leighton
18) Julie Krone
19) Cecil Coley
20) George Kiejman
21) Abdel Hakim Belhaj
22) Margaret Moran
23) Talas
24) David Bathurst
25) Tiffany Porter
26) Carol Klein
27) Simon Negus
28) Dr. Ruth Coppard
29) Lillian Bettencourt
30) Maria Chappini
31) Candida Albicans
32) Aaron Ramsey
33) Peter Twiss
34) Georgie Thompson
35) Egypt
36) Munir Farooki
37) Blackwater
38) Chris Fox
39) Craig Williams
40) Jenny Bessant
41) Andrew Lindo
42) Lynette Freeth
43) Judit Nagy
44) VITOL
45) Colin Adlard
46) Robert Ormesher
47) Patrick Digby
48) Clare and Paul Baker
49) Gina Rinehart
50) Lindsay Doyle
51) Alberto Colto
52) Danny Roberts
53) Robin Haase
In other News
1) Where is the Walker Cup being played ?
2) Which soup has been banned in California ?
3) How long in miles is David Walliams’ attemped swim along the River Thames ?
4) Where did Brazil beat Ghana in a friendly ?
5) Which unfinishable job will finish on October 9th ?
6) Wines from which country have just gone on sale in Waitrose ?
7) A performance by which orchestra caused demos in London ?
8) Which town will be taking over repatriation from Wooton Bassett ?
9) Who won the Mercury Music prize, with which album ?
10) Which tobacco company is trying to use Freedom of Information legislation to gain access to research from Stirling University into teens’ smoking habits ?
11) Which has been voted the ugliest new building in Britain over the last 12 months ?
12) Who was conducting the BBC Radio interview which Oscar Pistorius stormed out of ?
13) Which brand of cider has been recalled because of exploding bottles ?
14) Who was criticized for lowering the tone by using the word “w*nkers” during his speech at the GQ Men of The Year awards ?
15) Who won a record breaking 6th title at Burghley ?
16) Who will face whom in the Clydesdale Bank 40 over competition ?
17) Where was the world’s biggest ever crocodile caught ?
18) Who has made the Booker Prize shortlist for the 4th time ?
19) What are McDonalds now putting onto all of their menus ?
20) What is the title of Alastair Darling’s autobiography ?
21) What have Waterstones ended ?
22) Who called Italy ‘a Sh*t country ‘ ?
23) What is now Britain’s favourite fish ?
24) Which country won the Copa America ?
25) Whose diary will be auctioned at Christie’s ?
26) What distinction is claimed by Burton Road in Eastborne ?
27) Which chocolates did the makers now admit contain fewer sweets per box than previously ?
28) Records were retrieved from which notorious prison in Tripoli ?
29) Who is the manager of the Bulgarian football team, beaten by England in a qualifier ?
30) Which actor ruled himself out of ever standing for US president ?
31) Owen Hargreaves signed a one year deal with which club ?
32) Who scored England’s only goal against Wales ?
33) What species of whale was trapped in Immingham Docks near Grimsby ?
34) Who wrote and directed the much derided film W.E. about Wallis Simpson and Edward VIII ?
35) Which country launched its first ever luxury cruise ?
36) Why did the Royal Mail reuse to deliver CDs of a reading of the Gospel of St. Mark to churches in Jersey ?
37) Why was Timothy Spall reused entry to a Thames River festival with his barge ?
38) Who is the coach of Japan in the Rugby World Cup ?
39) Which is the first county to ban second home owners from voting in local elections ?
40) Who was it revealed stood as godfather to one of Rupert Murdoch’s daughters ?
41) What are the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham giving to patients to distract them ?
42) Which club has signed Joe Cole ?
43) Prom goers have been annoyed by the removal of what from the Albert Hall ?
44) In which event did Oscar Pistorius win a world athletics championship medal ?
45) Who warned that nurses with poor English put patients at risk ?
46) Jailed rioters have swelled the prison population in Britain to a new high – at what figure ?
47) Old Boys have protested about the scrapping of what at Abingdon school ?
48) David Cameron wants which establishment to fund a free school ?
49) Whose work will be exhibited in the Bigger Picture exhibition ?
50) A set of royal mail stamps is to celebrate 100 years of what ?
Saturday, 10 September 2011
Anniversary - Busy Week - New Book
Its been a very busy week. I say this by way of an excuse for having posted nothing in the way of questions, or anything other than the reviews of OC and UC this week. The first week of the new school year is always hectic. Alright, so I was actually back in school on the 1st, but we didn’t have the children back until Monday, and so to all intents and purposes its been the first week.
Not only that, but it was Mary’s birthday on Thursday, and today is also our silver wedding anniversary. Hence the fact that I am writing this first thing in the morning before Mary gets up. Fair play to her, she has earned one quiz-free day after twenty five years.
Also I’ve published a book on Kindle this week. It’s been a bit of an ambition of mine for as long as I can remember. I’ve always been writing little bits and pieces, but never had the guts enough to put anything ‘out there’ as they say. The kind comments I’ve had about some of the things I’ve written in the blog have encouraged me enough to go for it.
Still, its back to the metaphorical quiz grindstone this week. Tomorrow I need to find time to compile the quiz for the rugby club for Thursday. On Monday evening we have the Muriel Williams, which is the traditional curtain raiser for the Bridgend Quiz League. There’s the Get Connected Charity quiz. Then my quiz in the rugby club. Then a week tomorrow is the CIU final in Derby. I’m delighted to say that its all go for the quiz obsessive.
Not only that, but it was Mary’s birthday on Thursday, and today is also our silver wedding anniversary. Hence the fact that I am writing this first thing in the morning before Mary gets up. Fair play to her, she has earned one quiz-free day after twenty five years.
Also I’ve published a book on Kindle this week. It’s been a bit of an ambition of mine for as long as I can remember. I’ve always been writing little bits and pieces, but never had the guts enough to put anything ‘out there’ as they say. The kind comments I’ve had about some of the things I’ve written in the blog have encouraged me enough to go for it.
Still, its back to the metaphorical quiz grindstone this week. Tomorrow I need to find time to compile the quiz for the rugby club for Thursday. On Monday evening we have the Muriel Williams, which is the traditional curtain raiser for the Bridgend Quiz League. There’s the Get Connected Charity quiz. Then my quiz in the rugby club. Then a week tomorrow is the CIU final in Derby. I’m delighted to say that its all go for the quiz obsessive.
Tuesday, 6 September 2011
Only Connect - Round One - Match Four
Joggers v. Technologists
Lets start with the Joggers. David McGaughey, and Ronald Stewart were captained by Lesley Brewis. Any relation to my conqueror from last year, and all round good egg David Brewis, from the Epicureans ? Their opposition, the Technologists were Simon Jelly, John Loveluck and skipper Bruce Lin. On with the show.
Round One – What’s the Connection ?
The Joggers won the toss, and elected to put the Technologists into bat. A good start they made, too. Picking Water they found three paintings, and correctly deduced that they all had the word night in their title, for example , Rembrandt’s “The Night Watch”. Well taken points. The Joggers put their marker down with horned viper. Defender of London – Discoverer of Niger – South Korean Red Devil –( I had it at this stage ) and Wallace and Gromit gave them Park – Keith – Mungo – Ji Soon and Nick. Safe points well taken. Again, the Technologists took only three clues for twisted flax. JLS – Full size snooker table – Sleipnir gave them a connection of 8, and when pressed for more by Victoria, captain Bruce correctly answered that all of them possess 8 legs. Well , not each member of JLS, you understand. Mind you, I’d pay to watch them if they did each have 8 legs, but I digress. The Joggers picked up their pace with the next, taking it off 3 clues. Mickey Mouse – The Queen – Tokyo Subway attendants led them to give the answer that all of them wear white gloves, and they were correct to do so. Lion rather tripped the Technos up. This was the music set. They were rather at sea, and the grateful joggers revealed that each piece was connected by captains – Beefheart – and Tennille – Beaky and Sensible. However the Joggers failed to capitalize , when they couldn’t unravel Peshitta – Hexapla – Codex Alexandria and Vulgate. I may be wrong but I thought that one of the Joggers did actually mention the word Bible during the discussion. Still , its not the answer that they gave Victoria. Neither team knew these were early versions of the Bible. So at the end of a good first round both teams had 4 points.
Round Two – What Comes Fourth ?
Behind Lion the Technos uncovered Perth – Darwin – Adelaide, and correctly answered Melbourne. Whether they quite had the rationale worked out they were right – working west to east, the next Australian capital would be Melbourne. The Joggers found pictures behind water. These showed Lennie Henry, Tracey Ullmann – David Coperfield , who were three of a kind – then a racing circuit straight, then a loo flush. Working on poker hands, the next would be a full house. No, I’m afraid I didn’t have it any more than either team did. Neither team fared any better with Man City – Mexico – Cote d’Ivoire. I would have actually had this one on the full. They were teams managed by Montgomery C. Goran Ericson, the next being Leicester City. However the Joggers were saving something special for us. Given Quartic, they needed no more to be able to say that the answer would be linear . Quite right for a full 5 points. It’s a mathematical thing. Quartic is to 4 as linear is to 1. Great answer, and very significant for the score, especially considering that neither team knew the Technos next – Product – Price – Place - . Both knew what it was getting at , but neither could supple promotion for the points. So the Joggers could increase their lead if twisted flax would permit it. Indeed it would. Pike was followed by Jones, and so thank you very much, the 4th would be Mainwaring – Dad’s Army ranks. Private , lance corporal , sergeant captain. Yes alright, perhaps a little easier than some, but then that’s the luck of the draw. Whatever the case the Joggers were looking good value for their lead at this ateg, with 12 to the Techno’s 6.
Round Three – The Connecting Walls
The Joggers chose the Lion wall. Fairly quickly they unraveled two sets – Dollar – Roxette – Erasure and Inner City ( a good shout that one. Like Victoria, I hadn’t heard of them ). Pop duos. Then Precinct – Sector – Ghetto – Quarter, all areas of a city. However they just couldn’t untangle the other two sets. Wishbone – Nickel – Dime – and Shotgun was one of those you either knew, or wouldn’t guess, I think. All are American Football formations. They did know that Police – Steam – Slide and Penny are all whistles.
So, the door was at least ajar for the Technos to narrow the gap on the scoreboard with a good wall. Which they were happy to oblige with. Mecca – Lumbini – Fatima – Jerusalem all gave them places of pilgrimage. Breaker – Judge – Training and Diagram can all follow the word circuit. Mercy – Lourdes – Rocco and David are Madonna’s children. Finally copy – handle – rubber duck – Smokey are all CB terms. Was it my imagination, or did one of the chaps give a rather rude interpretation of what the term rubber duck meant ? Whatever the case a full set of 10 meant that they trailed the Joggers by just one point, with 16 to their 17.
Round Four – Missing Vowels
All to play for. The first set, Literary forms and genres, fell to the Technos by 2 to 1. So it was all square. The Technos achieved the relative rarity of a 4 point shut out with the next category , things discovered by Nobel Prize winners. It didn’t help the Joggers’ cause when they miscued on one of the next set , on alcoholic spirits and liquers, which fell 3-1 to the Technos. The last set, biopics about musicians was shared 2 apiece.
So what we witnessed really was a game of 2 halves. The Technologists ran out convincing winners by 27 to 19,but the score for once does not tell the whole story. The Joggers were well beaten on the missing vowels, but before that it had been a good contest, and they have nothing to be ashamed of. But its the Technos who go through, and although they might have missed some gettable stuff in the first 2 rounds, the fact is that their wall and vowels performances were extremely impressive. Ladies and gents, we may well have found a dark horse.
Lets start with the Joggers. David McGaughey, and Ronald Stewart were captained by Lesley Brewis. Any relation to my conqueror from last year, and all round good egg David Brewis, from the Epicureans ? Their opposition, the Technologists were Simon Jelly, John Loveluck and skipper Bruce Lin. On with the show.
Round One – What’s the Connection ?
The Joggers won the toss, and elected to put the Technologists into bat. A good start they made, too. Picking Water they found three paintings, and correctly deduced that they all had the word night in their title, for example , Rembrandt’s “The Night Watch”. Well taken points. The Joggers put their marker down with horned viper. Defender of London – Discoverer of Niger – South Korean Red Devil –( I had it at this stage ) and Wallace and Gromit gave them Park – Keith – Mungo – Ji Soon and Nick. Safe points well taken. Again, the Technologists took only three clues for twisted flax. JLS – Full size snooker table – Sleipnir gave them a connection of 8, and when pressed for more by Victoria, captain Bruce correctly answered that all of them possess 8 legs. Well , not each member of JLS, you understand. Mind you, I’d pay to watch them if they did each have 8 legs, but I digress. The Joggers picked up their pace with the next, taking it off 3 clues. Mickey Mouse – The Queen – Tokyo Subway attendants led them to give the answer that all of them wear white gloves, and they were correct to do so. Lion rather tripped the Technos up. This was the music set. They were rather at sea, and the grateful joggers revealed that each piece was connected by captains – Beefheart – and Tennille – Beaky and Sensible. However the Joggers failed to capitalize , when they couldn’t unravel Peshitta – Hexapla – Codex Alexandria and Vulgate. I may be wrong but I thought that one of the Joggers did actually mention the word Bible during the discussion. Still , its not the answer that they gave Victoria. Neither team knew these were early versions of the Bible. So at the end of a good first round both teams had 4 points.
Round Two – What Comes Fourth ?
Behind Lion the Technos uncovered Perth – Darwin – Adelaide, and correctly answered Melbourne. Whether they quite had the rationale worked out they were right – working west to east, the next Australian capital would be Melbourne. The Joggers found pictures behind water. These showed Lennie Henry, Tracey Ullmann – David Coperfield , who were three of a kind – then a racing circuit straight, then a loo flush. Working on poker hands, the next would be a full house. No, I’m afraid I didn’t have it any more than either team did. Neither team fared any better with Man City – Mexico – Cote d’Ivoire. I would have actually had this one on the full. They were teams managed by Montgomery C. Goran Ericson, the next being Leicester City. However the Joggers were saving something special for us. Given Quartic, they needed no more to be able to say that the answer would be linear . Quite right for a full 5 points. It’s a mathematical thing. Quartic is to 4 as linear is to 1. Great answer, and very significant for the score, especially considering that neither team knew the Technos next – Product – Price – Place - . Both knew what it was getting at , but neither could supple promotion for the points. So the Joggers could increase their lead if twisted flax would permit it. Indeed it would. Pike was followed by Jones, and so thank you very much, the 4th would be Mainwaring – Dad’s Army ranks. Private , lance corporal , sergeant captain. Yes alright, perhaps a little easier than some, but then that’s the luck of the draw. Whatever the case the Joggers were looking good value for their lead at this ateg, with 12 to the Techno’s 6.
Round Three – The Connecting Walls
The Joggers chose the Lion wall. Fairly quickly they unraveled two sets – Dollar – Roxette – Erasure and Inner City ( a good shout that one. Like Victoria, I hadn’t heard of them ). Pop duos. Then Precinct – Sector – Ghetto – Quarter, all areas of a city. However they just couldn’t untangle the other two sets. Wishbone – Nickel – Dime – and Shotgun was one of those you either knew, or wouldn’t guess, I think. All are American Football formations. They did know that Police – Steam – Slide and Penny are all whistles.
So, the door was at least ajar for the Technos to narrow the gap on the scoreboard with a good wall. Which they were happy to oblige with. Mecca – Lumbini – Fatima – Jerusalem all gave them places of pilgrimage. Breaker – Judge – Training and Diagram can all follow the word circuit. Mercy – Lourdes – Rocco and David are Madonna’s children. Finally copy – handle – rubber duck – Smokey are all CB terms. Was it my imagination, or did one of the chaps give a rather rude interpretation of what the term rubber duck meant ? Whatever the case a full set of 10 meant that they trailed the Joggers by just one point, with 16 to their 17.
Round Four – Missing Vowels
All to play for. The first set, Literary forms and genres, fell to the Technos by 2 to 1. So it was all square. The Technos achieved the relative rarity of a 4 point shut out with the next category , things discovered by Nobel Prize winners. It didn’t help the Joggers’ cause when they miscued on one of the next set , on alcoholic spirits and liquers, which fell 3-1 to the Technos. The last set, biopics about musicians was shared 2 apiece.
So what we witnessed really was a game of 2 halves. The Technologists ran out convincing winners by 27 to 19,but the score for once does not tell the whole story. The Joggers were well beaten on the missing vowels, but before that it had been a good contest, and they have nothing to be ashamed of. But its the Technos who go through, and although they might have missed some gettable stuff in the first 2 rounds, the fact is that their wall and vowels performances were extremely impressive. Ladies and gents, we may well have found a dark horse.
University Challenge - Round One - Match 10
University College London v. York
UCL are traditionally one of the strongest of the London University colleges in this competition, and last night they were represented by Howard Carver, Patrick Cook, Tom Andrews and captain Jamie Karran. York’s team were Rob Miller, Greg Melia, Heather Powell and captain Andrew Rose.
First to score were York, when skipper Andrew Rose knew that up until a relatively short time ago it was believed that the whole Universe just consisted of the Milky Way. Now we know that you could eat one and still not ruin your appetite. This brought bonuses on authors and History, of which they managed 2. A little surprisingly neither team knew that “Frost at Midnight “ and “Christabel” among other poems were written by S.T. Coleridge. Patrick Cook took UCL’s first points, knowing that if it’s a work by J.K. Galbraith, if you say that it’s the Affluent Society you’ll be right far more often than you’re wrong. No bonuses were taken on silk. Still , Howard Carver took UCL’s second starter knowing that the three anagrams referred to were serve- sever and verse. 2 bonuses followed on film quotations and years. Patrick Cook doubled up his tally with the next starter on an American writer whose name I didn’t quite catch. Not to worry. A tricky set of bonuses on Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty proved elusive. Tom Andrews continued UCL’s good work with the picture starter, where he recognised the skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus Rex. More of the same followed in bonuses, and the only one that UCL didn’t recognize was that of a velociraptor . Have they never seen Jurassic Park ? So at the 10 minute mark UCL had shown by far the more nimble fingers in the buzzer race, though a slight profligacy with bonuses meant that they only led by 60 to York’s 20.
A gap which was immediately reduced with the next starter when Greg Melia knew that a particular specialized computer language is ADA, a good early buzz. 3 good bonuses on metals were taking, and the gap had shrunk. When Andrew Rose took the next starter, and the team took a bonus on winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature the gap had disappeared completely as the teams were all square. Tom Andrew opened it up again, knowing that a mathematician referred to was Necker. One bonus was taken on toads. Captain Jamie Karran took a brave early buzz on a difficult literature question, and lost 5 – neither team knew the term Myosis. Howard Carver knew and anagram of Salvador Dali when he heard it, though, and this introduce a set of bonuses on Italian buildings. This was very much to UCL’s liking as they managed all three. The music starter followed in short order, but neither team knew a little bit of Liszt when they heard it, although they may have recognized, as I did, that it came from a well known Tom and Jerry cartoon. So the music bonuses, on other pieces of classical music used in cartoons of the 40s and 50s followed after a neat arithmetical question , which involved thinking in both binary and ternary. I am not up to such mental acrobatics, but Howard Carver certainly was, and all three musical bonuses were taken. Patrick Cook completed a virtual shut out for UCL by taking the next starter on a type of Japanese riddle, and the team managed a single bonus on dances. So at the 20 minute mark UCL’s lead of 135 to 60 looked decisive.
Tom Andrews recognized a description of Primal Scream Therapy. All well and good if you like that sort of thing. This brought bonuses on petrochemical companies. Neither team fancied the look of da Vinci’s uncompleted Adoration of the Magi for the 2nd picture starter, and so the picture bonuses rolled over. Greg Melia knew what the Golden Rule was, and so this gave them a crack at the pictures, which escaped them . Me too. Neither team knew a quotation from King Lear.Again, neither team knew that Funafuti is the capital of Tuvalu. Still, Greg Melia did know that if submarines were U-Boats, then torpedo boats were E-Boats. A set of oriental phrases commonly used in English passed York by, I’m afraid. There remained enough time for three more starters. Neither team knew that Isaak Walton wrote about angling. UCL took the other two , with Dijon mustard and nucleic acids. That was it. The final score was a win to UCL by 185 to 105. Not a classic show, by any means. However look on it this way. A run of the mill University Challenge is still way better than most other shows.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
It was Uncle Jez again tonight. There was a brief moment when he raised my hopes of something more, when UCL confused the witches of Pendle – a Mastermind SS last year – with the Tolpuddle Martyrs. “Tolpuddle ?!” spluttered JP in his very best, Lady – Bracknell – a – Handbag ? ! – mode. Other than that he seemed to be rather enjoying himself. York were commiserated with, and reminded that 105 was a perfectly respectable score. Indeed it is. Then UCL he hailed as ‘a very entertaining team ‘.
Interesting Fact Of The Week That I Didn’t Already Know
The phrase ‘conventional wisdom’ was first coined in Galbraith’s “The Affluent Society”.
UCL are traditionally one of the strongest of the London University colleges in this competition, and last night they were represented by Howard Carver, Patrick Cook, Tom Andrews and captain Jamie Karran. York’s team were Rob Miller, Greg Melia, Heather Powell and captain Andrew Rose.
First to score were York, when skipper Andrew Rose knew that up until a relatively short time ago it was believed that the whole Universe just consisted of the Milky Way. Now we know that you could eat one and still not ruin your appetite. This brought bonuses on authors and History, of which they managed 2. A little surprisingly neither team knew that “Frost at Midnight “ and “Christabel” among other poems were written by S.T. Coleridge. Patrick Cook took UCL’s first points, knowing that if it’s a work by J.K. Galbraith, if you say that it’s the Affluent Society you’ll be right far more often than you’re wrong. No bonuses were taken on silk. Still , Howard Carver took UCL’s second starter knowing that the three anagrams referred to were serve- sever and verse. 2 bonuses followed on film quotations and years. Patrick Cook doubled up his tally with the next starter on an American writer whose name I didn’t quite catch. Not to worry. A tricky set of bonuses on Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty proved elusive. Tom Andrews continued UCL’s good work with the picture starter, where he recognised the skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus Rex. More of the same followed in bonuses, and the only one that UCL didn’t recognize was that of a velociraptor . Have they never seen Jurassic Park ? So at the 10 minute mark UCL had shown by far the more nimble fingers in the buzzer race, though a slight profligacy with bonuses meant that they only led by 60 to York’s 20.
A gap which was immediately reduced with the next starter when Greg Melia knew that a particular specialized computer language is ADA, a good early buzz. 3 good bonuses on metals were taking, and the gap had shrunk. When Andrew Rose took the next starter, and the team took a bonus on winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature the gap had disappeared completely as the teams were all square. Tom Andrew opened it up again, knowing that a mathematician referred to was Necker. One bonus was taken on toads. Captain Jamie Karran took a brave early buzz on a difficult literature question, and lost 5 – neither team knew the term Myosis. Howard Carver knew and anagram of Salvador Dali when he heard it, though, and this introduce a set of bonuses on Italian buildings. This was very much to UCL’s liking as they managed all three. The music starter followed in short order, but neither team knew a little bit of Liszt when they heard it, although they may have recognized, as I did, that it came from a well known Tom and Jerry cartoon. So the music bonuses, on other pieces of classical music used in cartoons of the 40s and 50s followed after a neat arithmetical question , which involved thinking in both binary and ternary. I am not up to such mental acrobatics, but Howard Carver certainly was, and all three musical bonuses were taken. Patrick Cook completed a virtual shut out for UCL by taking the next starter on a type of Japanese riddle, and the team managed a single bonus on dances. So at the 20 minute mark UCL’s lead of 135 to 60 looked decisive.
Tom Andrews recognized a description of Primal Scream Therapy. All well and good if you like that sort of thing. This brought bonuses on petrochemical companies. Neither team fancied the look of da Vinci’s uncompleted Adoration of the Magi for the 2nd picture starter, and so the picture bonuses rolled over. Greg Melia knew what the Golden Rule was, and so this gave them a crack at the pictures, which escaped them . Me too. Neither team knew a quotation from King Lear.Again, neither team knew that Funafuti is the capital of Tuvalu. Still, Greg Melia did know that if submarines were U-Boats, then torpedo boats were E-Boats. A set of oriental phrases commonly used in English passed York by, I’m afraid. There remained enough time for three more starters. Neither team knew that Isaak Walton wrote about angling. UCL took the other two , with Dijon mustard and nucleic acids. That was it. The final score was a win to UCL by 185 to 105. Not a classic show, by any means. However look on it this way. A run of the mill University Challenge is still way better than most other shows.
Jeremy Paxman Watch
It was Uncle Jez again tonight. There was a brief moment when he raised my hopes of something more, when UCL confused the witches of Pendle – a Mastermind SS last year – with the Tolpuddle Martyrs. “Tolpuddle ?!” spluttered JP in his very best, Lady – Bracknell – a – Handbag ? ! – mode. Other than that he seemed to be rather enjoying himself. York were commiserated with, and reminded that 105 was a perfectly respectable score. Indeed it is. Then UCL he hailed as ‘a very entertaining team ‘.
Interesting Fact Of The Week That I Didn’t Already Know
The phrase ‘conventional wisdom’ was first coined in Galbraith’s “The Affluent Society”.
Friday, 2 September 2011
Round Britain Quiz
I know that I do tend to bang the drum a bit about the RBQ at the moment, but if you’re not a regular can I respectfully suggest once again that it is well worth a listen ? This week’s show, the 3rd of the series, pitted the reigning champions, Myfanwy Alexander and David Edwards of Wales against the North , represented by Jim Coulson and Diana Collecott, who won the first show of the series. The North drew the odd questions, and Wales the evens. As before I’m indebted to the BBC Radio 4 website which lists all the questions in each show. Here they are : -
1. Why would eight Kings of England measure a variable electric current; a German opera composer tell you about magnetism; and a certain physical elegance be a guide to whether something is runny?
I had the Henry as the S.I. unit of electricity, and Weber as the German composer who also shares his name with an S.I. Unit. I will admit that like the North I had never heard of the Poise, the SI Unit of viscosity. Neither had the North, but they were still comfortably off the mark.
2. Solve the following equation: Superman's father + Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar + 'The Body' = 150.
Lovely question this one. I had Jor-El as Superman’s dad straightaway, although this one took Wales longest, as they worked through Kal – El first, which was Superman’s own Kryptonian birth name. Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar is Zorro, and The Body is Elle Machperson. IN roman umnerals – three Ls are CL, or 150. Full marks to Wales.
3. (Music)
Which of these three grows most quickly?
Three pieces of music connected with fir tree , oak tree and mahogany. The answer being that the fir tree grows quickest.
4. (Music)
Can you connect these pieces with Robespierre, and with living, loving and party-going?
This was another nice question. One of the pieces was the theme music from the old ITV Robin Hood show. I had the connection as the star of the show was Richard Greene, and Robespierre was , as Carlyle called him, ‘ The Sea Green Incorruptible ‘ Merry men linked with the rest of the question.
5. From Neil Drapkin:
What an exercise class instructor does; what stage directions do; what Leonardo da Vinci did in writing; what Raphael did for tapestry-makers. Why would none of these have any meaning for the people of Nineveh?
Blimey, this show has some clever listeners. I had the first three bits, but didn’t know anything about Raphael and tapestry makers. Leonardo wrote in mirror writing, so his left became right and vice versa. Stage directions are backwards, so stage right is actually left from the audience’s viewpoint. An exercise class instructor – and I am not speaking from personal experience here – faces the class, and so his or her left is their right. I didn’t know that Raphael made his cartoons for tapestry designs back to front. But the Assyrian connection is that in the Bible the people of Nineveh were described as knowing neither their left nor right.
6. From Peter Clark:
Why might, in part, a dog, a Channel port, an early English translation of the Bible, the first Director of the FBI, the Book of Common Prayer's enthusiast for divine concord, and the ruling monarch, get you a maximum possible score of 216?
I thought that Wales really showed their class here. David immediately noticed that 216 is a cube number. Myfanwy suggested that a dog would be Rover, the port would be Dover, the FBI Director would be Hoover, and the Book of Common Prayer’s enthusiast for Divine Concord would be Lover. They didn’t get sovereign for the monarch , though. Each of those words contains the letters – over. If you add up the maximum score for that number of overs in cricket – what do you get ? 216 ! Brilliant.
7. If you sent Brucie, along with the authors of Esio Trot, The Virginian and The Crossing of Antarctica to Iowa, they'd all end up in someone's garden. How is this?
I feel that this was a gentler question. Iowa is abbreviated to Ia. Add those letters to Forsythe – (Roald ) Dahl – Wister (Owen) – Fuchs ( Vivian ) you get forsythia, dahlia, wisteria , fuchsia. I didn’t know wister, but had the rest.
8. In what order should a cinema programme Eisenstein's Ten Days That Shook The World, Pelle The Conqueror, and Woody Allen's 'play on film'?
Wales ran out of a little steam on this one. Tricky question. The bit they didn’t get . Woody Allen’s play on film I actually knew as September. Eisenstein’s Ten Days that Shook the World was also titled October 1917, I hadn’t a clue about Pelle the Conqueror. It was directed by one Bille August.
Not that it matters that much, but the result was a win for Wales, a good result considering the strength of the team from the North, who already had one win this year under their belts.
As always, the show ended with a teaser question. Here it is : -
Why might a hawk have its eye on a play by Goldsmith, the home of Harlequins, and the entrance to a New York tenement?
This time I think I’ve got all of the parts of it – but we’ll find out on Monday.
1. Why would eight Kings of England measure a variable electric current; a German opera composer tell you about magnetism; and a certain physical elegance be a guide to whether something is runny?
I had the Henry as the S.I. unit of electricity, and Weber as the German composer who also shares his name with an S.I. Unit. I will admit that like the North I had never heard of the Poise, the SI Unit of viscosity. Neither had the North, but they were still comfortably off the mark.
2. Solve the following equation: Superman's father + Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar + 'The Body' = 150.
Lovely question this one. I had Jor-El as Superman’s dad straightaway, although this one took Wales longest, as they worked through Kal – El first, which was Superman’s own Kryptonian birth name. Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar is Zorro, and The Body is Elle Machperson. IN roman umnerals – three Ls are CL, or 150. Full marks to Wales.
3. (Music)
Which of these three grows most quickly?
Three pieces of music connected with fir tree , oak tree and mahogany. The answer being that the fir tree grows quickest.
4. (Music)
Can you connect these pieces with Robespierre, and with living, loving and party-going?
This was another nice question. One of the pieces was the theme music from the old ITV Robin Hood show. I had the connection as the star of the show was Richard Greene, and Robespierre was , as Carlyle called him, ‘ The Sea Green Incorruptible ‘ Merry men linked with the rest of the question.
5. From Neil Drapkin:
What an exercise class instructor does; what stage directions do; what Leonardo da Vinci did in writing; what Raphael did for tapestry-makers. Why would none of these have any meaning for the people of Nineveh?
Blimey, this show has some clever listeners. I had the first three bits, but didn’t know anything about Raphael and tapestry makers. Leonardo wrote in mirror writing, so his left became right and vice versa. Stage directions are backwards, so stage right is actually left from the audience’s viewpoint. An exercise class instructor – and I am not speaking from personal experience here – faces the class, and so his or her left is their right. I didn’t know that Raphael made his cartoons for tapestry designs back to front. But the Assyrian connection is that in the Bible the people of Nineveh were described as knowing neither their left nor right.
6. From Peter Clark:
Why might, in part, a dog, a Channel port, an early English translation of the Bible, the first Director of the FBI, the Book of Common Prayer's enthusiast for divine concord, and the ruling monarch, get you a maximum possible score of 216?
I thought that Wales really showed their class here. David immediately noticed that 216 is a cube number. Myfanwy suggested that a dog would be Rover, the port would be Dover, the FBI Director would be Hoover, and the Book of Common Prayer’s enthusiast for Divine Concord would be Lover. They didn’t get sovereign for the monarch , though. Each of those words contains the letters – over. If you add up the maximum score for that number of overs in cricket – what do you get ? 216 ! Brilliant.
7. If you sent Brucie, along with the authors of Esio Trot, The Virginian and The Crossing of Antarctica to Iowa, they'd all end up in someone's garden. How is this?
I feel that this was a gentler question. Iowa is abbreviated to Ia. Add those letters to Forsythe – (Roald ) Dahl – Wister (Owen) – Fuchs ( Vivian ) you get forsythia, dahlia, wisteria , fuchsia. I didn’t know wister, but had the rest.
8. In what order should a cinema programme Eisenstein's Ten Days That Shook The World, Pelle The Conqueror, and Woody Allen's 'play on film'?
Wales ran out of a little steam on this one. Tricky question. The bit they didn’t get . Woody Allen’s play on film I actually knew as September. Eisenstein’s Ten Days that Shook the World was also titled October 1917, I hadn’t a clue about Pelle the Conqueror. It was directed by one Bille August.
Not that it matters that much, but the result was a win for Wales, a good result considering the strength of the team from the North, who already had one win this year under their belts.
As always, the show ended with a teaser question. Here it is : -
Why might a hawk have its eye on a play by Goldsmith, the home of Harlequins, and the entrance to a New York tenement?
This time I think I’ve got all of the parts of it – but we’ll find out on Monday.
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