Midlands v. Wales
In the last show we heard Stephen Maddock and Rosalind Miles comfortably defeat the North of England. In Last Monday’s show they took on the combined might of reigning champions David Edwards and Myfanwy Alexander of Wales. Myfanwy Alexander is a writer and broadcaster, and although I doubt that my friend David needs any introduction to readers of this blog, he’s going to get one anyway. David was the 1990 Mastermind champion, won the jackpot on Millionaire, and runner up to Pat in Are You An Egghead 2. On with the show.
Wales kicked off with this first questions: -
Psychological bullying before a cricket match, creative use of hairdresser’s tongs, and the dance of death. Which one of these activities would not have been welcomed in Sochi?
Well, my first thought was sledging – as in psychological bullying in cricket, would actually not have been welcome in the Winter Olympics in Sochi. Bobsleigh – yes – luge – yes, but no actual sledge. Creative use of hairdressers’ tongs – ‘surely curling. I struggled with the Dance of Death, David brought out Danse Macabre which Tom suggested was relevant. We were looking for the name of a sport which would not be at the winter Olympics. With Tom’s help they arrived at skeletons doing the dance of death, meaning skeleton bobsleigh. Tom awarded 4 to the team, and I think that’s about what I would have got.
The first question for the Midlands was : -
2010 was in 1982; 2061 was in 1987; and 3001 came in 1997. What is this about, and which year started it all off?
Now, I was pretty sure I had a full house on this. Immediately I heard the question I thought – Space Odyssey sequels – 2010 Odyssey 2 being first published in 1982 etc. So the one that started it off - well – you could actually say that the one that started it off was Arthur C. Clarke’s short story ‘The Sentinel’ which was the basis for “2001 A Space Odyssey”. I stopped feeling quite so smug when Midlands dealt with it almost as fully and quickly as I did – they didn’t mention The Sentinel, but then they didn’t need to. 6 points for both of us.
As usual the second questions for both teams were music questions. Wales were asked,
Why, and in what circumstances, a monied man of the 18th century might have expected to come across all of them?
I didn’t recognize any of the pieces, which was no surprise. Myfanwy started by outlining the concept of the Grand Tour. That made sense, because I’d heard the word Vienna as well as they had in the first piece. It was by Beethoven, apparently, the Vienna Chorus. They eventually arrived at April in Paris for the second, and guessed Rome for the second piece. If it’s Rome, you go for Respighi, and I came in with this just before David chanced his arm, with Fountains of Rome. So overall Wales earned 3, and the best I would have had was 2, and maybe even just the one.
The Midlands are usually very secure on music – Stephen being in the business as it were. They were asked
To which late, great musician is this sequence a (rather unlikely) tribute?
I knew the second – Abba’s Money Money Money. The other pieces – not so much. Rosalind recognized Claudio’s speech from Much Ado. Claudio and Abba, as they explained, meant you just needed – do – for Claudio Abbado. Bu tthey didn’t know what it was, until given a clue , when they recognized it was Grainger, but not the title – The Immovable Doh. This gave them 5. And me 1.
Back to Wales, who were asked this little teaser: -
If London buses times Jumbo jets equal Wales, why would Wales times Eiffel Towers offer a field of contest to Phelps and Spitz?
Well, the field of contest for these two record breaking Olympic swimmers seemed like an Olympic swimming pool. Like David, I was thinking of the number 747 for jumbo jets, but this was apparently barking up the wrong tree. Apparently we were not looking for specific numbers. Let’s be honest, none of us had a Scooby doo. Tom said that we should be looking at units of measurement. Lightbulb. These are often used as comparisons – eg such and such is so many times the length of a London bus. Area – Wales – time height – Eiffel Tower = volume – Olympic swimming pool. Tom himself said it was a tough question. It didn’t stop him restricting them to only 2 points, which is about what I would have had too.
Looking good for the win already, the Midlands faced this set: -
What connects a King who became a President after a scandal, the creator of Ashburnham and Tietjens, and a director best known for his love of the great outdoors – and why might they not be as shallow as they first appear?
Well, I started barking up the Ford tree here. Gerald Ford was the president – whose original name as Leslie Lynch King. Fords certainly aren’t as deep as they seem. I didn’t know about Ashburnham and Tietjens. However Stephen put me right on that – Ford Maddox Ford being the creator of those. John Ford had already sprung to mind as the director. None of us knew that the director and writer were not born Fords either. Midlands had 5 points – they knew Ford Maddox Ford which I didn’t, but on the other hand I did know Gerald Ford’s original name. So I would have been either 4 or 5.
Already we had reached Wales’ last question: -
Why might a toccata for organ, Father Mulcahy and the north wing of the Capitol all sound as if they have no sound?I knew that Father Francis Mulcahy was the chaplain in the film and TV series MASH. David had that. He knew the toccata they were looking for which I didn’t, which is Vidor’s the one much favoured by brides when they leave the church. This made sense of the Senate being the part of the Capitol. I didn’t have it before David gave us Vidor, but Charlie Chaplin, Mack Sennett and King Vidor all directed silent movies. Chaplin and Sennett both acted in them as well, though I didn’t know if King Vidor ever did. So Wales finished with a flourish of 6, with 4 or 5 for me.
The last question Midlands were asked was: -
How would the addition of the gas constant transform:
The composer of ‘The Protecting Veil’ into the composer of the ‘Western Wynde Mass’;
A Benedictine monk and historian into a journalist and former MP;
But a double dose be required to transform a ‘fifth Beatle’ into the creator of Westeros and Essos?
For the second week running Midlands got a question apart from their own music question where a very detailed knowledge of classical music was a real help. Right, well the last part was pretty straightforward as far as I could see. To turn fifth Beatles George Martin into creator of Game of Thrones George R.R.Martin – in which Westeros and Essos are continents, I think, you add a double R. So these were all add R questions. As it was, because it is not that long ago that he passed, I also knew that John Tavener composed The Protecting Veil. So I guessed that John Taverner would have composed the Western Wynde Mass – which was right. Never heard of him. Matthew Paris and Matthew Parris was an irresistible conclusion to which I leapt for the second pair – correctly as it happened. A nice set. 6 points for all of us.
Midlands played extremely well, and deserved to win, which they did, by 22 to 15. Very well played Midlands. A word of consolation for Wales, though. It’s all in the ear of the behearer, but I thought at least 2 of the Midlands’ sets were considerably easier than anything served up to Wales. That’s just my opinion, though, and as always . . .
Saturday, 7 June 2014
In the News
In the News
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl
2. Edinho
3. John Wilkinson
4. Gareth Huntley
5. Lady Soames
6. Gerard Benson
7. Nairo Quintana
8. Ernest Gulbis
9. Alexander Shulgin
10. Eimar McBride
11. A Girl is a Half Formed Thing
12. Jos Buttler
13. ITH Pharma Ltd.
14. Chester Nez
15. Ann Barnes
In Other News
1. Who was sworn in as the new president of Ukraine?
2. The world’s oldest example of which form of clothing was found near the Great Wall of China?
3. Which national team achieved their first ever win at football when they defeated Malta 1 – 0?
4. Harvard University carried out tests on a book in its library which revealed that it is made out of what?
5. Which was the first song to gain over 2 billion hits on Youtube?
6. Why were calls made to rerun the vote for the host of the 2022 world cup?
7. What was the result in the women’s FA Cup Final?
8. – and the Froch v. Groves world championship fight?
9. Who won the Gotzis Heptathlon?
10. What was the result of the English rugby Premiership final?
11. Marc Marquez has now won how many motogp races in a row this season?
12. Which dancer is quitting Strictly, although his wife will stay on?
13. Which rally was hit by tragedy last weekend?
14. In a YouGov poll, what was voted the nation’s favourite children’s book?
15. King Juan Carlos of Spain is to abdicate in favour of whom?
16. Andy Murray defeated whom in the quarter final of the French Open?
17. Which English club will James Hook be joining?
18. Which are deadlier – ‘male’ or ‘female’ hurricanes?
19. Which actress, known for many 60s and 70s comedy roles, passed away?
20. Which ‘drug cheat’ will be returning after a 1 year ban in the Diamond League meeting in July?
21. What has President Hollande proposed for the regions of Alsace and Lorraine in France?
22. Which world leader was unreachable on a celebrity version of ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ in her own country, when they reached her answerphone?
23. What was the result of the Syrian election?
24. Who proposed the Loyal Address at the Queen’s Speech in parliament?
25. Which two ministers was it revealed last week had blamed each other for the Birmingham schools ‘trojan horse’ furore?
26. Last week saw the 25th anniversary of which world event?
27. A set of royal mail stamps featuring what was issued last week?
28. What was the score between Ecuador and England?
29. At which stage of the competition was Olympic champion Nicola Adams defeated in the European championships?
30. Which club won their return to English rugby’s premiership?
31. What was the score in the Italy friendly match against Luxembourg?
32. Which song will be used for BBC’s World Cup coverage?
33. Ed Milliband said that the NHS must be – what – after the next election?
34. Who denied that he said that fairy tales are bad for children?
35. Which classic computer game celebrated its 30th birthday? 36. Which two players won the French Open women’s singles semi finals?
37. Which England player was injured in the friendly v. Ecuador?
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl
2. Edinho
3. John Wilkinson
4. Gareth Huntley
5. Lady Soames
6. Gerard Benson
7. Nairo Quintana
8. Ernest Gulbis
9. Alexander Shulgin
10. Eimar McBride
11. A Girl is a Half Formed Thing
12. Jos Buttler
13. ITH Pharma Ltd.
14. Chester Nez
15. Ann Barnes
In Other News
1. Who was sworn in as the new president of Ukraine?
2. The world’s oldest example of which form of clothing was found near the Great Wall of China?
3. Which national team achieved their first ever win at football when they defeated Malta 1 – 0?
4. Harvard University carried out tests on a book in its library which revealed that it is made out of what?
5. Which was the first song to gain over 2 billion hits on Youtube?
6. Why were calls made to rerun the vote for the host of the 2022 world cup?
7. What was the result in the women’s FA Cup Final?
8. – and the Froch v. Groves world championship fight?
9. Who won the Gotzis Heptathlon?
10. What was the result of the English rugby Premiership final?
11. Marc Marquez has now won how many motogp races in a row this season?
12. Which dancer is quitting Strictly, although his wife will stay on?
13. Which rally was hit by tragedy last weekend?
14. In a YouGov poll, what was voted the nation’s favourite children’s book?
15. King Juan Carlos of Spain is to abdicate in favour of whom?
16. Andy Murray defeated whom in the quarter final of the French Open?
17. Which English club will James Hook be joining?
18. Which are deadlier – ‘male’ or ‘female’ hurricanes?
19. Which actress, known for many 60s and 70s comedy roles, passed away?
20. Which ‘drug cheat’ will be returning after a 1 year ban in the Diamond League meeting in July?
21. What has President Hollande proposed for the regions of Alsace and Lorraine in France?
22. Which world leader was unreachable on a celebrity version of ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ in her own country, when they reached her answerphone?
23. What was the result of the Syrian election?
24. Who proposed the Loyal Address at the Queen’s Speech in parliament?
25. Which two ministers was it revealed last week had blamed each other for the Birmingham schools ‘trojan horse’ furore?
26. Last week saw the 25th anniversary of which world event?
27. A set of royal mail stamps featuring what was issued last week?
28. What was the score between Ecuador and England?
29. At which stage of the competition was Olympic champion Nicola Adams defeated in the European championships?
30. Which club won their return to English rugby’s premiership?
31. What was the score in the Italy friendly match against Luxembourg?
32. Which song will be used for BBC’s World Cup coverage?
33. Ed Milliband said that the NHS must be – what – after the next election?
34. Who denied that he said that fairy tales are bad for children?
35. Which classic computer game celebrated its 30th birthday? 36. Which two players won the French Open women’s singles semi finals?
37. Which England player was injured in the friendly v. Ecuador?
Friday, 6 June 2014
Answers to News Questions
In the News
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Elliot Rodger
2. Petro Poroshenko
3. Wojciech Jaruzelski
4. Bill Heffernan
5. Catherine Bearder
6. Guillermo Garcia Lopez
7. Dave Smith
8. Malavath Purna
9. Mario Pocchetino
10. Lord Oakeshott
11. Meriam Ibrahim
12. Matthew Saad Muhammad
13. Chris Jordan
14. Solva
15. Quirke
16. Garbine Muguruza
17. Shoko Maru
18. Lord Rennard
19. Abdel Fattah al Sisi
20. George Hamilton
In Other News
1. Who won the Monaco GP?
2. In which position did the Lib Dems finish in the European elections
3. Who won the PGA?
4. What was the result of the Division 1 play off final?
5. – and the Heineken cup Final?
6. Which team won the Championship play off?
7. – and the Champions League?
8. Pfizer dropped their takeover bid for which company?
9. What was voted the nation’s favourite fairy tale?
10. What was the result of the League 2 play off final?
11. Who announced that he is saying his goodbye through his poetry?
12. Who announced that he is to sell Tracey Emin’s My Bed?
13. Which song did Rolf Harris sing a part of in court?
14. There were claims that attempts were being made to fix Scotland’s friendly match against which country?
15. Who was dumped out of the French Open just days after her engagement was broken?
16. Whose new British long jump record was finally ratified?
17. Name the two members of One Direction allegedly filmed smoking cannabis
18. Which finding of the British Social Attitudes Survey caused most headlines last week?
19. Name the owner of Man Utd. who passed away aged 85
20. Which celebrity announced that he is to appear on a celebrity version of the Jeremy Kyle show?
21. Maya Angelou passed away last week. What was the title of her first volume of autobiography?
22. Which company announced plans to build a self driving car?
23. Who had to apologise for sexist comments he made on Question Time?
24. In the Forbes List who retained her place as the world’s most powerful woman?
25. Panorama criticized which charity for investing in companies that manufacture arms, tobacco and alcohol?
26. The Mayor of New York repealed a ban on which creatures?
27. What was the score in the England v. Peru match?
28. Name all the goalscorers
29. Who announced he will be playing for Lancashire in the T20 blast?
30. Who resigned from The Oldie last week?
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Son of Hunger Games film director who shot 7 people
2. Chocolate tycoon who claimed victory in the Ukrainian Elections
3. Army chief who declared martial law in Poland in 1981 – passed away
4. Australian senator who took a fake pipe bomb into Parliament to demonstrate security failings
5. The only Lib Dem MEP to retain a seat
6. Player who knocked Stanislaus Wawrinka out of the French Open in the first round
7. Newly elected UKIP councilor in Redditch suspended for alleged racist and homophobic comments on social media
8. Youngest female to scale Mount Everest – 16 years old
9. Announced as new manager of Spurs
10. Peer behind alleged attempts to replace Nick Clegg with Vince Cable after European elections
11. She has been sentenced to death in Sudan for giving up her muslim faith to become a christian after marrying a christian
12. Former world Light Heavyweight boxing champion passed away aged 59
13. England bowler responsible for 2 ODI victories over Sri Lanka
14. Pembrokeshire village being used as Llareggub in new film of Dylan Thomas’ Under Milk Wood
15. BBC Crime Drama which received a slew of complaints about poor sound quality
16. Player who knocked Serena Williams out of the French Open
17. Japanese oil tanker which exploded
18. Lib Dem Peer apologized to 4 women who accused him of sexual harrassment
19. Won the Egyptian elections
20. New Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland
In Other News
1. Nico Rosberg
2. 5th
3. Rory McIlroy
4. Rotherham 2 – Orient 0 5. Toulon 23 – Saracens 6
6. QPR
7. Real MAdrid
8. AstraZeneca
9. Snow White and the Seven Dwarves
10. Fleetwood 1 – Burton 0
11. Clive James
12. Charles Saatchi
13. Jake the Peg
14. Nigeria
15. Caroline Wozniacki
16. Greg Rutherford
17. Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik
18. There has been a rise in the number of people admitting racism
19. Malcolm Glazer
20. Michael Barrymore
21. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings
22. Google
23. Joey Barton
24. Angela Merkel
25. Comic Relief
26. Ferrets
27. 3 - 0
28. Sturridge – Cahill and Jagielka
29. Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff
30. Richard Ingrams
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Elliot Rodger
2. Petro Poroshenko
3. Wojciech Jaruzelski
4. Bill Heffernan
5. Catherine Bearder
6. Guillermo Garcia Lopez
7. Dave Smith
8. Malavath Purna
9. Mario Pocchetino
10. Lord Oakeshott
11. Meriam Ibrahim
12. Matthew Saad Muhammad
13. Chris Jordan
14. Solva
15. Quirke
16. Garbine Muguruza
17. Shoko Maru
18. Lord Rennard
19. Abdel Fattah al Sisi
20. George Hamilton
In Other News
1. Who won the Monaco GP?
2. In which position did the Lib Dems finish in the European elections
3. Who won the PGA?
4. What was the result of the Division 1 play off final?
5. – and the Heineken cup Final?
6. Which team won the Championship play off?
7. – and the Champions League?
8. Pfizer dropped their takeover bid for which company?
9. What was voted the nation’s favourite fairy tale?
10. What was the result of the League 2 play off final?
11. Who announced that he is saying his goodbye through his poetry?
12. Who announced that he is to sell Tracey Emin’s My Bed?
13. Which song did Rolf Harris sing a part of in court?
14. There were claims that attempts were being made to fix Scotland’s friendly match against which country?
15. Who was dumped out of the French Open just days after her engagement was broken?
16. Whose new British long jump record was finally ratified?
17. Name the two members of One Direction allegedly filmed smoking cannabis
18. Which finding of the British Social Attitudes Survey caused most headlines last week?
19. Name the owner of Man Utd. who passed away aged 85
20. Which celebrity announced that he is to appear on a celebrity version of the Jeremy Kyle show?
21. Maya Angelou passed away last week. What was the title of her first volume of autobiography?
22. Which company announced plans to build a self driving car?
23. Who had to apologise for sexist comments he made on Question Time?
24. In the Forbes List who retained her place as the world’s most powerful woman?
25. Panorama criticized which charity for investing in companies that manufacture arms, tobacco and alcohol?
26. The Mayor of New York repealed a ban on which creatures?
27. What was the score in the England v. Peru match?
28. Name all the goalscorers
29. Who announced he will be playing for Lancashire in the T20 blast?
30. Who resigned from The Oldie last week?
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Son of Hunger Games film director who shot 7 people
2. Chocolate tycoon who claimed victory in the Ukrainian Elections
3. Army chief who declared martial law in Poland in 1981 – passed away
4. Australian senator who took a fake pipe bomb into Parliament to demonstrate security failings
5. The only Lib Dem MEP to retain a seat
6. Player who knocked Stanislaus Wawrinka out of the French Open in the first round
7. Newly elected UKIP councilor in Redditch suspended for alleged racist and homophobic comments on social media
8. Youngest female to scale Mount Everest – 16 years old
9. Announced as new manager of Spurs
10. Peer behind alleged attempts to replace Nick Clegg with Vince Cable after European elections
11. She has been sentenced to death in Sudan for giving up her muslim faith to become a christian after marrying a christian
12. Former world Light Heavyweight boxing champion passed away aged 59
13. England bowler responsible for 2 ODI victories over Sri Lanka
14. Pembrokeshire village being used as Llareggub in new film of Dylan Thomas’ Under Milk Wood
15. BBC Crime Drama which received a slew of complaints about poor sound quality
16. Player who knocked Serena Williams out of the French Open
17. Japanese oil tanker which exploded
18. Lib Dem Peer apologized to 4 women who accused him of sexual harrassment
19. Won the Egyptian elections
20. New Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland
In Other News
1. Nico Rosberg
2. 5th
3. Rory McIlroy
4. Rotherham 2 – Orient 0 5. Toulon 23 – Saracens 6
6. QPR
7. Real MAdrid
8. AstraZeneca
9. Snow White and the Seven Dwarves
10. Fleetwood 1 – Burton 0
11. Clive James
12. Charles Saatchi
13. Jake the Peg
14. Nigeria
15. Caroline Wozniacki
16. Greg Rutherford
17. Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik
18. There has been a rise in the number of people admitting racism
19. Malcolm Glazer
20. Michael Barrymore
21. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings
22. Google
23. Joey Barton
24. Angela Merkel
25. Comic Relief
26. Ferrets
27. 3 - 0
28. Sturridge – Cahill and Jagielka
29. Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff
30. Richard Ingrams
Only Connect - Qualification Match
Welsh Learners v. Record Collectors
Yes, you’re quite right. Back to work this week, hence no posting before the weekend, thanks for asking. My, but we have a lot to catch up on. Firstly, this match between two of our first round winners to gain automatic passage through to the semi finals. What a quandary. How could I not support Margaret from the Welsh Learners? Margaret is a regular player in Trevor’s Monday night quiz in the Pill Harriers – and very good it is too. On the other hand, how could I not support Rach Cherryade Neiman of the Record Collectors? Rach has been a friend and a pen, er, laptop/email pal since her appearences on University Challenge. Well, that was my problem, The Welsh Learners, are Margaret Gabica, Chris Hern, and captain Stuart Hern. They comfortably beat the Software engineers in the first round, before those same engineers knocked out the Erstwhile Athletes, containing our own Daniel Fullard. Phew – confusingly small world, isn’t it? As for the Record Collectors, well, Rachael Neiman, Adam Barr and Richard Gilbert beat . . . well they beat the Erstwhile Athletes in a close match in their first round. All in all it looked a very good match up on paper.
Round One – What’s the Connection?
The Learners kicked off with Two Reeds. New Objectivity did not mean a great deal to me. The Blue Rider, though, very much did, as Der Blaue Reiter, and I threw artistic movements on the table.When The Bridge came next I believe the Learners began barking up the wrong tree with Scandinavian TV programmes, a suggestion which actually was highly plausible. House of Construction – or Bauhaus – completed the set. The Learners stuck with the Scandinavian dramas, which gave the RCs the bonus. For their part they chose Horned Viper – conventionally voiced – and Adam seemed to have a pretty good idea from the first clue – The Grasshopper Lies Heavy. I didn’t, but the second clue – The Dancing Cavalier – I did know. That’s the (second) title of the film within a film in “Singin’ In The Rain”. Now, bearing in mind that Adam had already said that the first was a novel within a novel, then these were clearly fictional works within fictional works. Oh, the RCs were definitely barking up the right tree with fictional novels, but it was the wrong branch. Given a second bite they didn’t change their answer to encompass other media, and so a grateful Learners’ team happily accepted the bonus. The other clues were The Mousetrap and The Itchy and Scratchy Show. Right, now given the Music set, neither Learners nor RCs could make headway with The Resurrection Symphony by Mahler – (didn’t know it) – I Am the Resurrection by the Stone Roses – (didn’t know it) – Christ the Lord is Risen Again by Charles Wesley (did know it, but it didn’t help me) and – Thriller by Michael Jackson. Resurrections/rising from the dead being the connection. Hokay, moving swiftly on, Eye of Horus gave the RCs Wee – Unhyphenated - Penultimate – Pentasyllabic. Huh? Actually it was a very, in fact, conspicuously clever set. Each word is what it describes. Wee is a small word, unhyphenated really isn’t hyphenated – and so on. The only thing I would say, though, is to note that I don’t think that Pentasyllabic makes it any more obvious than any of the others, and that’s a little unsatisfying. The last clue should, in my opinion, give you half a chance of making out the connection. Yes, just my opinion, and as always . . . Now, with the next Learners set I felt sure that Margaret would have a five pointer. As soon as hyet came up I, along with a huge number of other viewers, I’m sure, shouted out –ISO! Margaret knew it as well, but they took Hel to be on the safe side. Well, I can’t argue against making sure of the points. The others were – therm and –bar. Now, I think I would also have had a five pointer on the picture set which finished the round off for the RCs. We saw a map, on which Panama was highlighted, and in particular Panama City’s location was indicated. I don’t say I would have gambled in the studio, but my guess – Capitals with the name of the country and the word City was right. The RCs took Mexico City for the second clue to be sure, then gave the correct answer. So both teams had 4 points at the end of the round. Told you it looked like it was going to be a good game.
Round Two – What Comes Fourth?
Now, the first set presented to the Learners was one of those which wasn’t as hard as it looked at first. 4th: Yekaterinburg gave some pause for thought – I’m sure that it was the city in which Tsar Nicholas II and his family were assassinated. 3rd Novosibirsk put paid to any connection with that. In fact, the best I could suggest was that these were Russia’s largest cities in order of population, which would give 1st – Moscow. The Learners took 2nd – St. Petersburg, which confirmed my hypothesis. The set behind two reeds, picked next by the RCs was a very interesting and clever set. Highway from Daytona Beach to Tampa didn’t help. However Triatomic Hydrogen suggested H3, and Weekly Guardian Supplement could only be G2. That’s exactly what the RCs thought as well, and both of us went for the same example of Grand Prix motor racing for F1. Nice, nice set. Eye of Horus gave the Learners – jik – not a Scooby – then Sung – huh? – then il. Ah, enlightenment happened. Obviously successive members of the ruling North Korean clan, and so – un would finish it. That’s what the Learners thought too, and rightly so. I wouldn’t have had the RCs next set from the first clue – Zoo. I would have had it from Legs and Co, though. Obviously we were going back through Top of the Pops dance groups to Pans People. Rach could have had it from Zoo, but needed Legs and Co to be certain. Remember Ruby Flipper, the second group? No? Well, blink and you’d have missed them. The horned viper set of pictures, selected next by the Learners was one of those sets where both teams had a pretty good idea what it was all about, without getting the vital part of it. Shown a set of Stripes – then a plate of tripe – then the Learners offered rip. Ah, they fell into the trap. They removed one letter a time, when the clues removed two. Shown a rip for the third clue, the RCs still didn’t quite get it. It would be I. Lion offered possibilities, kicking off with Elinor. This was followed by Elizabeth, and I couldn’t help thinking we were in the realm of Jane Austen here. I’ll be honest, I was glad that Rach opted to take the third clue – Fanny confirmed our suspicions, and also ruled out Mansfield Park. Persuasion was the last, so Emma from Emma, or Catherine from Northanger Abbey. Emma, I said, Anne from Persuasion, Rach said, and Emma from Emma the Learners said for the bonus. Which once again levelled the scores at 9 apiece.
Round Three – The Connecting Walls
Were we heading for tie break city, or would the walls seperate these teams? The RCs went first, and they lived dangerously. They could see a set of Italian car companies, but couldn’t isolate them for quite a while. They also saw jewelers, but again, they weren’t separating. With less than 20 seconds to go the cars fell at last with Maserati – Ferrari – Lancia and Bertone. Suddenly the lines were falling into line – as Bulgari – Cartier – Tiffany and Graff were revealed. With no more than a couple of seconds left the last two lines were resolved. Burmese – Sanction – Winston and Peggy – well, the only thing I could think of was Burmese was the Queen’s horse. Working on Burmese days and Winston Smith they ingeniously tried Orwell, but Queen’s horses was the answer. This left Fiat – Leave – Nod – Okay. This was one of those lines which is obvious once it has been explained to you, They are all terms for permission. 6 points, and I bet if you’d offered them that 30 seconds before the time ran out they’d have been delighted.
Fairly early doors the Learners could see that Cheerybles and Squeers were one half of a set of Dickens characters. They could also see a set of Australian Prime Ministers, and of horse drawn vehicles. But none of them were being isolated. Finally Menzies – Abbot – Gillard and Howard obliged. That was it until the time was up, though. When it was resolved they saw that Hawk – Gride – Cheeryble and Squeers were the Dickens characters, from Nicholas Nickleby. Drambuie – M&Co – Stagecoach and Tunnock’s, well, none of us pegged them as Scottish companies. This left Gig – Chariot – Tumbrel and Tonga as the horse drawn vehicles. 4 points, and at last one of the teams had a lead, albeit narrow. The RCs were ahead with 15 to 13.
Round Three – Missing Vowels
Well, we know that 2 points is a narrow lead that can easily be reeled in, as indeed it was in the first set, they share their names with card games. I predicted Nelson Piquet and wasn’t disappointed. These fell 3 – 1 to the Learners, and once again the teams were level. Punchlines fell evenly on both sides, and the score was 18 all. There was just enough time for the Learners to pick up two definitions of last, and that was it. It wasn’t a huge gap, just two points, but it would suffice.
So well done, Welsh Learners, Straight through to the semis with a 100% record. As for the RCs, well, you don’t need me to say that it could have gone either way, and that it’s just the luck of the draw. Best of luck in your next match. Well played all – good game.
Yes, you’re quite right. Back to work this week, hence no posting before the weekend, thanks for asking. My, but we have a lot to catch up on. Firstly, this match between two of our first round winners to gain automatic passage through to the semi finals. What a quandary. How could I not support Margaret from the Welsh Learners? Margaret is a regular player in Trevor’s Monday night quiz in the Pill Harriers – and very good it is too. On the other hand, how could I not support Rach Cherryade Neiman of the Record Collectors? Rach has been a friend and a pen, er, laptop/email pal since her appearences on University Challenge. Well, that was my problem, The Welsh Learners, are Margaret Gabica, Chris Hern, and captain Stuart Hern. They comfortably beat the Software engineers in the first round, before those same engineers knocked out the Erstwhile Athletes, containing our own Daniel Fullard. Phew – confusingly small world, isn’t it? As for the Record Collectors, well, Rachael Neiman, Adam Barr and Richard Gilbert beat . . . well they beat the Erstwhile Athletes in a close match in their first round. All in all it looked a very good match up on paper.
Round One – What’s the Connection?
The Learners kicked off with Two Reeds. New Objectivity did not mean a great deal to me. The Blue Rider, though, very much did, as Der Blaue Reiter, and I threw artistic movements on the table.When The Bridge came next I believe the Learners began barking up the wrong tree with Scandinavian TV programmes, a suggestion which actually was highly plausible. House of Construction – or Bauhaus – completed the set. The Learners stuck with the Scandinavian dramas, which gave the RCs the bonus. For their part they chose Horned Viper – conventionally voiced – and Adam seemed to have a pretty good idea from the first clue – The Grasshopper Lies Heavy. I didn’t, but the second clue – The Dancing Cavalier – I did know. That’s the (second) title of the film within a film in “Singin’ In The Rain”. Now, bearing in mind that Adam had already said that the first was a novel within a novel, then these were clearly fictional works within fictional works. Oh, the RCs were definitely barking up the right tree with fictional novels, but it was the wrong branch. Given a second bite they didn’t change their answer to encompass other media, and so a grateful Learners’ team happily accepted the bonus. The other clues were The Mousetrap and The Itchy and Scratchy Show. Right, now given the Music set, neither Learners nor RCs could make headway with The Resurrection Symphony by Mahler – (didn’t know it) – I Am the Resurrection by the Stone Roses – (didn’t know it) – Christ the Lord is Risen Again by Charles Wesley (did know it, but it didn’t help me) and – Thriller by Michael Jackson. Resurrections/rising from the dead being the connection. Hokay, moving swiftly on, Eye of Horus gave the RCs Wee – Unhyphenated - Penultimate – Pentasyllabic. Huh? Actually it was a very, in fact, conspicuously clever set. Each word is what it describes. Wee is a small word, unhyphenated really isn’t hyphenated – and so on. The only thing I would say, though, is to note that I don’t think that Pentasyllabic makes it any more obvious than any of the others, and that’s a little unsatisfying. The last clue should, in my opinion, give you half a chance of making out the connection. Yes, just my opinion, and as always . . . Now, with the next Learners set I felt sure that Margaret would have a five pointer. As soon as hyet came up I, along with a huge number of other viewers, I’m sure, shouted out –ISO! Margaret knew it as well, but they took Hel to be on the safe side. Well, I can’t argue against making sure of the points. The others were – therm and –bar. Now, I think I would also have had a five pointer on the picture set which finished the round off for the RCs. We saw a map, on which Panama was highlighted, and in particular Panama City’s location was indicated. I don’t say I would have gambled in the studio, but my guess – Capitals with the name of the country and the word City was right. The RCs took Mexico City for the second clue to be sure, then gave the correct answer. So both teams had 4 points at the end of the round. Told you it looked like it was going to be a good game.
Round Two – What Comes Fourth?
Now, the first set presented to the Learners was one of those which wasn’t as hard as it looked at first. 4th: Yekaterinburg gave some pause for thought – I’m sure that it was the city in which Tsar Nicholas II and his family were assassinated. 3rd Novosibirsk put paid to any connection with that. In fact, the best I could suggest was that these were Russia’s largest cities in order of population, which would give 1st – Moscow. The Learners took 2nd – St. Petersburg, which confirmed my hypothesis. The set behind two reeds, picked next by the RCs was a very interesting and clever set. Highway from Daytona Beach to Tampa didn’t help. However Triatomic Hydrogen suggested H3, and Weekly Guardian Supplement could only be G2. That’s exactly what the RCs thought as well, and both of us went for the same example of Grand Prix motor racing for F1. Nice, nice set. Eye of Horus gave the Learners – jik – not a Scooby – then Sung – huh? – then il. Ah, enlightenment happened. Obviously successive members of the ruling North Korean clan, and so – un would finish it. That’s what the Learners thought too, and rightly so. I wouldn’t have had the RCs next set from the first clue – Zoo. I would have had it from Legs and Co, though. Obviously we were going back through Top of the Pops dance groups to Pans People. Rach could have had it from Zoo, but needed Legs and Co to be certain. Remember Ruby Flipper, the second group? No? Well, blink and you’d have missed them. The horned viper set of pictures, selected next by the Learners was one of those sets where both teams had a pretty good idea what it was all about, without getting the vital part of it. Shown a set of Stripes – then a plate of tripe – then the Learners offered rip. Ah, they fell into the trap. They removed one letter a time, when the clues removed two. Shown a rip for the third clue, the RCs still didn’t quite get it. It would be I. Lion offered possibilities, kicking off with Elinor. This was followed by Elizabeth, and I couldn’t help thinking we were in the realm of Jane Austen here. I’ll be honest, I was glad that Rach opted to take the third clue – Fanny confirmed our suspicions, and also ruled out Mansfield Park. Persuasion was the last, so Emma from Emma, or Catherine from Northanger Abbey. Emma, I said, Anne from Persuasion, Rach said, and Emma from Emma the Learners said for the bonus. Which once again levelled the scores at 9 apiece.
Round Three – The Connecting Walls
Were we heading for tie break city, or would the walls seperate these teams? The RCs went first, and they lived dangerously. They could see a set of Italian car companies, but couldn’t isolate them for quite a while. They also saw jewelers, but again, they weren’t separating. With less than 20 seconds to go the cars fell at last with Maserati – Ferrari – Lancia and Bertone. Suddenly the lines were falling into line – as Bulgari – Cartier – Tiffany and Graff were revealed. With no more than a couple of seconds left the last two lines were resolved. Burmese – Sanction – Winston and Peggy – well, the only thing I could think of was Burmese was the Queen’s horse. Working on Burmese days and Winston Smith they ingeniously tried Orwell, but Queen’s horses was the answer. This left Fiat – Leave – Nod – Okay. This was one of those lines which is obvious once it has been explained to you, They are all terms for permission. 6 points, and I bet if you’d offered them that 30 seconds before the time ran out they’d have been delighted.
Fairly early doors the Learners could see that Cheerybles and Squeers were one half of a set of Dickens characters. They could also see a set of Australian Prime Ministers, and of horse drawn vehicles. But none of them were being isolated. Finally Menzies – Abbot – Gillard and Howard obliged. That was it until the time was up, though. When it was resolved they saw that Hawk – Gride – Cheeryble and Squeers were the Dickens characters, from Nicholas Nickleby. Drambuie – M&Co – Stagecoach and Tunnock’s, well, none of us pegged them as Scottish companies. This left Gig – Chariot – Tumbrel and Tonga as the horse drawn vehicles. 4 points, and at last one of the teams had a lead, albeit narrow. The RCs were ahead with 15 to 13.
Round Three – Missing Vowels
Well, we know that 2 points is a narrow lead that can easily be reeled in, as indeed it was in the first set, they share their names with card games. I predicted Nelson Piquet and wasn’t disappointed. These fell 3 – 1 to the Learners, and once again the teams were level. Punchlines fell evenly on both sides, and the score was 18 all. There was just enough time for the Learners to pick up two definitions of last, and that was it. It wasn’t a huge gap, just two points, but it would suffice.
So well done, Welsh Learners, Straight through to the semis with a 100% record. As for the RCs, well, you don’t need me to say that it could have gone either way, and that it’s just the luck of the draw. Best of luck in your next match. Well played all – good game.
Saturday, 31 May 2014
In the News
In the News
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Elliot Rodger
2. Petro Poroshenko
3. Wojciech Jaruzelski
4. Bill Heffernan
5. Catherine Bearder
6. Guillermo Garcia Lopez
7. Dave Smith
8. Malavath Purna
9. Mario Pocchetino
10. Lord Oakeshott
11. Meriam Ibrahim
12. Matthew Saad Muhammad
13. Chris Jordan
14. Solva
15. Quirke
16. Garbine Muguruza
17. Shoko Maru
18. Lord Rennard
19. Abdel Fattah al Sisi
20. George Hamilton
In Other News
1. Who won the Monaco GP?
2. In which position did the Lib Dems finish in the European elections
3. Who won the PGA?
4. What was the result of the Division 1 play off final?
5. – and the Heineken cup Final?
6. Which team won the Championship play off?
7. – and the Champions League?
8. Pfizer dropped their takeover bid for which company?
9. What was voted the nation’s favourite fairy tale?
10. What was the result of the League 2 play off final?
11. Who announced that he is saying his goodbye through his poetry?
12. Who announced that he is to sell Tracey Emin’s My Bed?
13. Which song did Rolf Harris sing a part of in court?
14. There were claims that attempts were being made to fix Scotland’s friendly match against which country?
15. Who was dumped out of the French Open just days after her engagement was broken?
16. Whose new British long jump record was finally ratified?
17. Name the two members of One Direction allegedly filmed smoking cannabis
18. Which finding of the British Social Attitudes Survey caused most headlines last week?
19. Name the owner of Man Utd. who passed away aged 85
20. Which celebrity announced that he is to appear on a celebrity version of the Jeremy Kyle show?
21. Maya Angelou passed away last week. What was the title of her first volume of autobiography?
22. Which company announced plans to build a self driving car?
23. Who had to apologise for sexist comments he made on Question Time?
24. In the Forbes List who retained her place as the world’s most powerful woman?
25. Panorama criticized which charity for investing in companies that manufacture arms, tobacco and alcohol?
26. The Mayor of New York repealed a ban on which creatures?
27. What was the score in the England v. Peru match?
28. Name all the goalscorers
29. Who announced he will be playing for Lancashire in the T20 blast?
30. Who resigned from The Oldie last week?
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Elliot Rodger
2. Petro Poroshenko
3. Wojciech Jaruzelski
4. Bill Heffernan
5. Catherine Bearder
6. Guillermo Garcia Lopez
7. Dave Smith
8. Malavath Purna
9. Mario Pocchetino
10. Lord Oakeshott
11. Meriam Ibrahim
12. Matthew Saad Muhammad
13. Chris Jordan
14. Solva
15. Quirke
16. Garbine Muguruza
17. Shoko Maru
18. Lord Rennard
19. Abdel Fattah al Sisi
20. George Hamilton
In Other News
1. Who won the Monaco GP?
2. In which position did the Lib Dems finish in the European elections
3. Who won the PGA?
4. What was the result of the Division 1 play off final?
5. – and the Heineken cup Final?
6. Which team won the Championship play off?
7. – and the Champions League?
8. Pfizer dropped their takeover bid for which company?
9. What was voted the nation’s favourite fairy tale?
10. What was the result of the League 2 play off final?
11. Who announced that he is saying his goodbye through his poetry?
12. Who announced that he is to sell Tracey Emin’s My Bed?
13. Which song did Rolf Harris sing a part of in court?
14. There were claims that attempts were being made to fix Scotland’s friendly match against which country?
15. Who was dumped out of the French Open just days after her engagement was broken?
16. Whose new British long jump record was finally ratified?
17. Name the two members of One Direction allegedly filmed smoking cannabis
18. Which finding of the British Social Attitudes Survey caused most headlines last week?
19. Name the owner of Man Utd. who passed away aged 85
20. Which celebrity announced that he is to appear on a celebrity version of the Jeremy Kyle show?
21. Maya Angelou passed away last week. What was the title of her first volume of autobiography?
22. Which company announced plans to build a self driving car?
23. Who had to apologise for sexist comments he made on Question Time?
24. In the Forbes List who retained her place as the world’s most powerful woman?
25. Panorama criticized which charity for investing in companies that manufacture arms, tobacco and alcohol?
26. The Mayor of New York repealed a ban on which creatures?
27. What was the score in the England v. Peru match?
28. Name all the goalscorers
29. Who announced he will be playing for Lancashire in the T20 blast?
30. Who resigned from The Oldie last week?
Friday, 30 May 2014
Put up with it, Son
It was back in the spring of 1985 that I first met Mary, in Queensway Ice Rink in London, as it happens. Yes, gentle reader, this bulky torso could once glide across the ice like a yeti on rails, however that isn’t really the point of this story. Within a few weeks of meeting we were boyfriend and girlfriend, and we used to meet on a Wednesday afternoon, when she had her half day off. I would sit waiting for her in Leicester Square, watching the road to Leicester Square tube station, whence she would come. One afternoon I was doing just that, looking down the road towards the station when I realized something was wrong with my vision. Everything was perfectly clear, except for the small area right in the centre of whatever I was trying to look at. Now, this is an extremely difficult experience to describe to anyone. It wasn’t as if there was a dark spot or a void, and anything that you could actually see. The whole point was that you knew that you were looking at something, and you knew what you were looking at, but you just couldn’t see it. I suppose the closest thing that I can compare it to is what can happen to your vision momentarily after you’ve been dazzled by a bright light.
I didn’t mention it to Mary at the time, partly because I didn’t mind thinking I was going mad myself so much, but I didn’t want her thinking it. Well, we’d only been going out for a very short time, then. However I happened to ring my mum when I got back to the student hall later that day, and I mentioned it to her. The conversation went something like this: -
ME : D’you think there’s something wrong with me?
MUM : D’you want me to give you a list?
ME : But seriously ?
MUM: But seriously, don’t get excited. You’ve got migraine. It sounds exactly the same as what I get when I have a migraine.
ME: Oh. . . well that’s a relief, I suppose. What can I do about it then?
MUM: Same as me, son. Shut up and put up with it.
Well, maybe it wasn’t those exact same words, but this was the best part of 30 years ago.
This was a strange time for me. The migraines developed so that the blind spot would last for between quarter and half an hour, and then I’d get strobing lights, which would become a swirl of fluctuating colours, not unlike the aurora borealis. Very pretty actually, although you’ll probably appreciate I was never quite in the best frame of mind to appreciate it. The headaches which would accompany this were very unpleasant, but I was never nauseous with it, nor incapacitated for hours at a stretch like my mum would be with hers.Now at the same time as all of this was going on my left arm started going a bit funny. It would start to ache as if I had been strenuously lifting weights, and let me assure you that I certainly hadn’t been strenuously lifting weights, or strenuously doing anything else with it for that matter. As time went on, and Spring wound into Summer, and Summer declined into Autumn, as the weather got colder my whole arm would start going white. Much against my natural inclination I went back home to Ealing and saw one of the GPs at my local practice. The conversation went something like this: -
DOC: What seems to be the trouble old chap?
ME: My arm keeps going white in the cold weather
(DOC Examines arm)
DOC: Hmm, you have Raynaud’s Syndrome.
ME: Really? What does that mean?
DOC: It means your arm goes white in the cold weather.
ME: Oh, OK, fine. What can I do about it, then?
DOC: Shut up and put up with it, son.
Well, OK, again, they might not have been his exact words, but they were certainly the gist. I protested a little , saying that it was actually hurting me when it happened. He replied that no, it didn’t. After a full and frank exchange of views he promised to make an appointment for me with a specialist at Hammersmith Hospital, which shouldn’t take more than 6 months to come about.
Two days later my arm went white, and no amount of rubbing it, or immersing it in warm water would get the circulation going.
I went back to the surgery and threw myself upon the mercy of the receptionist, and pleaded for an appointment with any of the other doctors than the one I had seen before. After about half an hour’s wait another doctor examine me. His first thoughts were that it certainly looked like Raynaud’s Syndrome, but then he started to closely examine my left shoulder and my neck. Then he very gently lifted my left hand onto my right shoulder, asked me not to move it, and within half an hour I was lying on a table in Hammersmith Hospital.
I will try to explain. I like to think that I’m a genetic mutation from a family of mutants. But then I’m not medically trained and I’ve no doubt that many readers could put me right on the truth of this. Please take it in the spirit that it is meant when I say, just this once, please don’t. Allow me some illusions. My condition was caused by a congenital cervical rib. That’s an extra rib growing from the base of the neck, and there’s only about 1 in 500 of us who have it. Unless you’re in my family, that is. My father probably had it his whole life and never knew, my brothers may well have it, and my son definitely has it. I would never have known, but the problem was that somehow it had started to restrict the main blood vessel into my arm, and blood clots had formed in the arm. I’m not asking for sympathy because I got fantastic treatment from the good people at Hammersmith Hospital , with no adverse affects that I know of, and two satisfyingly large scars to boast of. I’ve had fun making up stories to explain to the kids at school how I got the one on my arm. But one of the unexpected results was that although I still got headaches, some of them quite nasty, I never had the visual disturbances again for a good 20 years after my operations.
If we come forward to about three years ago, it would have been a Monday evening, when the whole staff of the school were participating in a Twilight Session. Essentially a twilight session means – DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT LEAVING THE PREMISES BEFORE 6:30. There’s more to it than that, of course, but that will suffice for our purposes. We were working as individual departments, and being The Computer Literate (just about) One, I was typing up some document, when I realized that I couldn’t see the word I was actually typing. Hello, said I, that’s familiar. Welcome back visual disturbances. Now, I’m not plagued by the things, not unless two or three a year counts as a plague. Still, I do know when they are about to come on. I can’t really explain, but there’s a change in the quality of your vision which alerts you that in ten minutes or so you’re going to have trouble.
This happened again last night. Which wouldn’t have mattered that much, but it was my turn to be questionmaster. I started asking the questions at about ten past nine, and by quarter past I could feel it coming on. By the time I was halfway through reading out the questions to round 2, I could barely make out the words to the question I was trying to read. The funny thing was, I could read the question above and the question below the one I was looking at perfectly well. Which meant that I was able to get through the next couple of rounds using a strange technique which involved looking below the question I actually wanted to read. Whether the fact that I was struggling was noticed by the teams I couldn’t tell you. I strobe my way through round 4, and rounds 5 and 6 were aurora fringed. Thankfully the visuals receded during round 7, and I was able to see clearly throughout round 8. Still, I mention all of this since it’s the first time I can remember being taken ill during a stint as Question master. I’ve played in quizzes when I’ve been suffering with colds and flu, but on each occasion I was suffering before I left the house – and for that matter I was still suffering by the time I returned home. Curiously I can remember one occasion during the old Neath League when I played looking and feeling like death warmed up – and played an absolute stormer, far better than I normally did. Still I digress. Last night was the first time I’ve been afflicted while acting as question master, and I suppose that it confirmed me in my view that when you’re the QM , if the show possibly CAN go on, then it must. Of course, that’s just my opinion, and as always, feel free to disagree . . .
I didn’t mention it to Mary at the time, partly because I didn’t mind thinking I was going mad myself so much, but I didn’t want her thinking it. Well, we’d only been going out for a very short time, then. However I happened to ring my mum when I got back to the student hall later that day, and I mentioned it to her. The conversation went something like this: -
ME : D’you think there’s something wrong with me?
MUM : D’you want me to give you a list?
ME : But seriously ?
MUM: But seriously, don’t get excited. You’ve got migraine. It sounds exactly the same as what I get when I have a migraine.
ME: Oh. . . well that’s a relief, I suppose. What can I do about it then?
MUM: Same as me, son. Shut up and put up with it.
Well, maybe it wasn’t those exact same words, but this was the best part of 30 years ago.
This was a strange time for me. The migraines developed so that the blind spot would last for between quarter and half an hour, and then I’d get strobing lights, which would become a swirl of fluctuating colours, not unlike the aurora borealis. Very pretty actually, although you’ll probably appreciate I was never quite in the best frame of mind to appreciate it. The headaches which would accompany this were very unpleasant, but I was never nauseous with it, nor incapacitated for hours at a stretch like my mum would be with hers.Now at the same time as all of this was going on my left arm started going a bit funny. It would start to ache as if I had been strenuously lifting weights, and let me assure you that I certainly hadn’t been strenuously lifting weights, or strenuously doing anything else with it for that matter. As time went on, and Spring wound into Summer, and Summer declined into Autumn, as the weather got colder my whole arm would start going white. Much against my natural inclination I went back home to Ealing and saw one of the GPs at my local practice. The conversation went something like this: -
DOC: What seems to be the trouble old chap?
ME: My arm keeps going white in the cold weather
(DOC Examines arm)
DOC: Hmm, you have Raynaud’s Syndrome.
ME: Really? What does that mean?
DOC: It means your arm goes white in the cold weather.
ME: Oh, OK, fine. What can I do about it, then?
DOC: Shut up and put up with it, son.
Well, OK, again, they might not have been his exact words, but they were certainly the gist. I protested a little , saying that it was actually hurting me when it happened. He replied that no, it didn’t. After a full and frank exchange of views he promised to make an appointment for me with a specialist at Hammersmith Hospital, which shouldn’t take more than 6 months to come about.
Two days later my arm went white, and no amount of rubbing it, or immersing it in warm water would get the circulation going.
I went back to the surgery and threw myself upon the mercy of the receptionist, and pleaded for an appointment with any of the other doctors than the one I had seen before. After about half an hour’s wait another doctor examine me. His first thoughts were that it certainly looked like Raynaud’s Syndrome, but then he started to closely examine my left shoulder and my neck. Then he very gently lifted my left hand onto my right shoulder, asked me not to move it, and within half an hour I was lying on a table in Hammersmith Hospital.
I will try to explain. I like to think that I’m a genetic mutation from a family of mutants. But then I’m not medically trained and I’ve no doubt that many readers could put me right on the truth of this. Please take it in the spirit that it is meant when I say, just this once, please don’t. Allow me some illusions. My condition was caused by a congenital cervical rib. That’s an extra rib growing from the base of the neck, and there’s only about 1 in 500 of us who have it. Unless you’re in my family, that is. My father probably had it his whole life and never knew, my brothers may well have it, and my son definitely has it. I would never have known, but the problem was that somehow it had started to restrict the main blood vessel into my arm, and blood clots had formed in the arm. I’m not asking for sympathy because I got fantastic treatment from the good people at Hammersmith Hospital , with no adverse affects that I know of, and two satisfyingly large scars to boast of. I’ve had fun making up stories to explain to the kids at school how I got the one on my arm. But one of the unexpected results was that although I still got headaches, some of them quite nasty, I never had the visual disturbances again for a good 20 years after my operations.
If we come forward to about three years ago, it would have been a Monday evening, when the whole staff of the school were participating in a Twilight Session. Essentially a twilight session means – DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT LEAVING THE PREMISES BEFORE 6:30. There’s more to it than that, of course, but that will suffice for our purposes. We were working as individual departments, and being The Computer Literate (just about) One, I was typing up some document, when I realized that I couldn’t see the word I was actually typing. Hello, said I, that’s familiar. Welcome back visual disturbances. Now, I’m not plagued by the things, not unless two or three a year counts as a plague. Still, I do know when they are about to come on. I can’t really explain, but there’s a change in the quality of your vision which alerts you that in ten minutes or so you’re going to have trouble.
This happened again last night. Which wouldn’t have mattered that much, but it was my turn to be questionmaster. I started asking the questions at about ten past nine, and by quarter past I could feel it coming on. By the time I was halfway through reading out the questions to round 2, I could barely make out the words to the question I was trying to read. The funny thing was, I could read the question above and the question below the one I was looking at perfectly well. Which meant that I was able to get through the next couple of rounds using a strange technique which involved looking below the question I actually wanted to read. Whether the fact that I was struggling was noticed by the teams I couldn’t tell you. I strobe my way through round 4, and rounds 5 and 6 were aurora fringed. Thankfully the visuals receded during round 7, and I was able to see clearly throughout round 8. Still, I mention all of this since it’s the first time I can remember being taken ill during a stint as Question master. I’ve played in quizzes when I’ve been suffering with colds and flu, but on each occasion I was suffering before I left the house – and for that matter I was still suffering by the time I returned home. Curiously I can remember one occasion during the old Neath League when I played looking and feeling like death warmed up – and played an absolute stormer, far better than I normally did. Still I digress. Last night was the first time I’ve been afflicted while acting as question master, and I suppose that it confirmed me in my view that when you’re the QM , if the show possibly CAN go on, then it must. Of course, that’s just my opinion, and as always, feel free to disagree . . .
Answers to News Questions
In the News
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Martin Bartlett
2. Shaun Walker and Trevor Duckworth
3. Xscape
4. Sean HArris
5. Olivia Colman
6. Arnold Pickering
7. Jerome Kerviel
8. Becky DOwnie
9. Evo Morales
10. Welcome to New York
11. Luis Enrique
12. Cheeky Rafiki
13. Danny Nightingale
14. Lucy Li
15. Merville
16. Spirit
17. Ghost Stories
18. Robbie Grabarz
19. Justice Russell
20. Prince Rupert Zu Loewenstein
21. Matthew Warchus
22. Nick Herbert MP
23. Lou Vincent and Naveed Arif
24. Charlie Fitch
25. Independence of the Seas
26. Steve White
In Other News
1. Which of the Dragons from Dragon’s Den was fined for using a mobile while driving?
2. Which anniversary are the Brownies celebrating?
3. Who scored Arsenal’s winning goal in the FA Cup final?
4. What was the result of the Conference final?
5. Which cycling tour was won by Bradley Wiggins last week?
6. Which tennis player won the Prague Open?
7. Which famous US novelist announced his retirement?
8. What was the aggregate score between Burton and Southend in their Div 2 play off semi?
9. Who won the Spanish Open, being the first 50 year old to win a tour event?
10. Who won his 5th Moto GP in a row?
11. Who will perform stand up in 3 languages for the D-Day anniversary?
12. Who was convicted in New York of assisting terrorist groups?
13. Which all time great from the world of motor racing passed away aged 88?
14. What action was taken over Richard Scudamore’s allegedly sexist emails?
15. Who is retiring from rugby union after the Heineken cup final to become coach with his current club?
16. Who confirmed he is retiring as a player to concentrate on football coaching?
17. What did John Inverdale blame his last year’s comments about Marion Bartoli on?
18. Which of the Rolling Stones became a great grandfather last week?
19. Which town was named the happiest place to live in Britain?
20. Which sports presenter admitted being part of the same tax scheme as three members of Take That, and pledged to repay the money?
21. Who expressed a wish to visit the tomb of Theodor Herzl, the founder of Zionism
22. Who asked Silvio Berlusconi about his comments about Angela Merkel?
23. Who was finally confirmed as manager of Man Utd.?
24. What reason did Yaya Touré give for his transfer request to Man City?
25. George Groves predicted he will stop Carl Froch in which round?
26. Which sporting couple announced an end to their engagement?
27. A polish refugee claimed that Prince Charles had made which comment to him?
28. Which announcement did Theresa May make to the Police Federation?
29. Which store announced that they will remove sweets and chocolate from the checkouts of all their stores?
30. Why was Australian PM Tony Abbott criticized for his performance in a phone in last week?
31. Which team did England’s under 17 footballers defeat in order to become European Champions?
32. Name the England fly half ruled out of the tour by injury last week?
33. What fatal flaw was discovered in new French trains last week?
34. Who was alleged to have been involved in an assault outside a wine bar in Clitheroe?
35. In which Asian country did a military coup take place?
36. Which original Radio 1 DJ appeared in court on a charge of sex attacks on boys?
37. Name the manager who left Celtic?
38. Which London building was struck by lightning last week?
39. Which Wales international footballer announced his retirement in the same week as Ryan Giggs?
40. Which iconic Glasgow building was damaged by fire?
Answers
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. He won BBC Young Musician of the Year
2. They drove a toilet at 70mph
3. Michael Jackson posthumous album currently topping the charts
4. Won BAFTA for best actor
5. Won BAFTA for best actress
6. Convicted murderer who escaped from Chadderton and was then recaptured
7. French ‘rogue trader’
8. New European Uneven Bars gymnastics champion
9. 54 year old Bolivian President, signed by pro football club
10. Controversial film starring Depardieu as Dominique Strauss Khan
11. New coach of Barcelona
12. Capsized yacht – sailors presumed lost
13. Ex SAS lost appeal against conviction for illegal possession of firearm
14. Youngest ever qualifier for US Women’s golf open (11)
15. French village up in arms because they mistakenly thought Prince Charles would be paying them a royal visit during the D Day 70th Anniversary
16. US Group who have claimed that Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin plagiarized their earlier song Taurus
17. New Coldplay album
18. Olympic high jump medalist ruled out of Commonwealth Games by injury
19. The first to be referred to as Ms. Justice – Ms. Justice Russell
20. Rolling Stones former business manager passed away
21. New artistic director of the Old Vic who will succeed Kevin Spacey
22. He was criticized for swearing on the Daily Politics
23. Both were charged by the ECB for match fixing with Sussex
24. Chosen as the referee for the Groves v. Froch fight
25. Royal Caribbean cruise ship seized by bailiffs in Alesund
26. New Chairman of the Police Federation
In Other News
1. Duncan Bannatyne
2. 100 years
3. Aaron Ramsay
4. Cambridge 2 – Gateshead 1
5. Tour of California
6. Heather Watson
7. Philip Roth
8. Burton 3 – Southend 2
9. Miguel Angel Jimenez
10. Marc Marquez
11. Eddie Izzard
12. Abu Hamza
13. Sir Jack Brabham
14. None
15. Jonny Wilkinson
16. Ryan Giggs
17. Hay Fever
18. Mick Jagger
19. Harrogate
20. Gaby Logan
21. Pope Francis
22. Jeremy Paxman
23. Louis Van Gaal
24. Because they didn’t wish him a proper Happy Birthday
25. 3rd
26. Rory McIlroy and Caroline Wozniacki
27. He allegedly compared Putin to Hitler
28. It will be stripped of private funding
29. Tesco
30. He winked and smirked when a woman caller announced she had been forced to find work as a sex worker
31. Netherlands (4 – 1 on penalties)
32. George Ford
33. They are too wide for the platforms of over 1000 stations
34. David Moyes
35. Thailand
36. Chris Denning
37. Neil Lennon
38. The Shard
39. Craig Bellamy
40. Glasgow School of Art
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. Martin Bartlett
2. Shaun Walker and Trevor Duckworth
3. Xscape
4. Sean HArris
5. Olivia Colman
6. Arnold Pickering
7. Jerome Kerviel
8. Becky DOwnie
9. Evo Morales
10. Welcome to New York
11. Luis Enrique
12. Cheeky Rafiki
13. Danny Nightingale
14. Lucy Li
15. Merville
16. Spirit
17. Ghost Stories
18. Robbie Grabarz
19. Justice Russell
20. Prince Rupert Zu Loewenstein
21. Matthew Warchus
22. Nick Herbert MP
23. Lou Vincent and Naveed Arif
24. Charlie Fitch
25. Independence of the Seas
26. Steve White
In Other News
1. Which of the Dragons from Dragon’s Den was fined for using a mobile while driving?
2. Which anniversary are the Brownies celebrating?
3. Who scored Arsenal’s winning goal in the FA Cup final?
4. What was the result of the Conference final?
5. Which cycling tour was won by Bradley Wiggins last week?
6. Which tennis player won the Prague Open?
7. Which famous US novelist announced his retirement?
8. What was the aggregate score between Burton and Southend in their Div 2 play off semi?
9. Who won the Spanish Open, being the first 50 year old to win a tour event?
10. Who won his 5th Moto GP in a row?
11. Who will perform stand up in 3 languages for the D-Day anniversary?
12. Who was convicted in New York of assisting terrorist groups?
13. Which all time great from the world of motor racing passed away aged 88?
14. What action was taken over Richard Scudamore’s allegedly sexist emails?
15. Who is retiring from rugby union after the Heineken cup final to become coach with his current club?
16. Who confirmed he is retiring as a player to concentrate on football coaching?
17. What did John Inverdale blame his last year’s comments about Marion Bartoli on?
18. Which of the Rolling Stones became a great grandfather last week?
19. Which town was named the happiest place to live in Britain?
20. Which sports presenter admitted being part of the same tax scheme as three members of Take That, and pledged to repay the money?
21. Who expressed a wish to visit the tomb of Theodor Herzl, the founder of Zionism
22. Who asked Silvio Berlusconi about his comments about Angela Merkel?
23. Who was finally confirmed as manager of Man Utd.?
24. What reason did Yaya Touré give for his transfer request to Man City?
25. George Groves predicted he will stop Carl Froch in which round?
26. Which sporting couple announced an end to their engagement?
27. A polish refugee claimed that Prince Charles had made which comment to him?
28. Which announcement did Theresa May make to the Police Federation?
29. Which store announced that they will remove sweets and chocolate from the checkouts of all their stores?
30. Why was Australian PM Tony Abbott criticized for his performance in a phone in last week?
31. Which team did England’s under 17 footballers defeat in order to become European Champions?
32. Name the England fly half ruled out of the tour by injury last week?
33. What fatal flaw was discovered in new French trains last week?
34. Who was alleged to have been involved in an assault outside a wine bar in Clitheroe?
35. In which Asian country did a military coup take place?
36. Which original Radio 1 DJ appeared in court on a charge of sex attacks on boys?
37. Name the manager who left Celtic?
38. Which London building was struck by lightning last week?
39. Which Wales international footballer announced his retirement in the same week as Ryan Giggs?
40. Which iconic Glasgow building was damaged by fire?
Answers
Who or what are the following and why have they been in the news?
1. He won BBC Young Musician of the Year
2. They drove a toilet at 70mph
3. Michael Jackson posthumous album currently topping the charts
4. Won BAFTA for best actor
5. Won BAFTA for best actress
6. Convicted murderer who escaped from Chadderton and was then recaptured
7. French ‘rogue trader’
8. New European Uneven Bars gymnastics champion
9. 54 year old Bolivian President, signed by pro football club
10. Controversial film starring Depardieu as Dominique Strauss Khan
11. New coach of Barcelona
12. Capsized yacht – sailors presumed lost
13. Ex SAS lost appeal against conviction for illegal possession of firearm
14. Youngest ever qualifier for US Women’s golf open (11)
15. French village up in arms because they mistakenly thought Prince Charles would be paying them a royal visit during the D Day 70th Anniversary
16. US Group who have claimed that Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin plagiarized their earlier song Taurus
17. New Coldplay album
18. Olympic high jump medalist ruled out of Commonwealth Games by injury
19. The first to be referred to as Ms. Justice – Ms. Justice Russell
20. Rolling Stones former business manager passed away
21. New artistic director of the Old Vic who will succeed Kevin Spacey
22. He was criticized for swearing on the Daily Politics
23. Both were charged by the ECB for match fixing with Sussex
24. Chosen as the referee for the Groves v. Froch fight
25. Royal Caribbean cruise ship seized by bailiffs in Alesund
26. New Chairman of the Police Federation
In Other News
1. Duncan Bannatyne
2. 100 years
3. Aaron Ramsay
4. Cambridge 2 – Gateshead 1
5. Tour of California
6. Heather Watson
7. Philip Roth
8. Burton 3 – Southend 2
9. Miguel Angel Jimenez
10. Marc Marquez
11. Eddie Izzard
12. Abu Hamza
13. Sir Jack Brabham
14. None
15. Jonny Wilkinson
16. Ryan Giggs
17. Hay Fever
18. Mick Jagger
19. Harrogate
20. Gaby Logan
21. Pope Francis
22. Jeremy Paxman
23. Louis Van Gaal
24. Because they didn’t wish him a proper Happy Birthday
25. 3rd
26. Rory McIlroy and Caroline Wozniacki
27. He allegedly compared Putin to Hitler
28. It will be stripped of private funding
29. Tesco
30. He winked and smirked when a woman caller announced she had been forced to find work as a sex worker
31. Netherlands (4 – 1 on penalties)
32. George Ford
33. They are too wide for the platforms of over 1000 stations
34. David Moyes
35. Thailand
36. Chris Denning
37. Neil Lennon
38. The Shard
39. Craig Bellamy
40. Glasgow School of Art
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