Episode 129 Eggheads

These people are amongst the greatest quiz players in Britain

Together they make up the Eggheads,

arguably the most formidable quiz team in the country.

The question is, can they be beaten?

Welcome to Eggheads, the show where a team of five quiz challengers

attempt to beat possibly the greatest quiz team in Britain.

Their quiz pedigree is well known, as they've won some of the country's toughest quiz shows,

they are the Eggheads.

And challenging our resident quiz goliaths today are the Antibodies.

This team all work for a national charity set up in 1991 to provide

help and advice for people with allergies. Let's meet them.

Hello, I'm Muriel, I'm 60, I'm a CEO.

Hello, I'm John, I'm 50, and I'm a nurse practitioner.

Hi, I'm Mike, I'm 61, and I'm a retired doctor.

Hi, I'm Lindsey, I'm 53, and I'm an information manager.

Hello, I'm Paul, I'm 52, and I'm a BT engineer.

So, welcome, Antibodies. Welcome, Muriel. Thank you. And team.

So, allergies, meaning, everything from hay fever to the strange ones?

Absolutely, it's very wide-ranging. Unfortunately about 20 million people suffer from allergies in the UK,

so it is many and varied, the types of things that people suffer from.

OK. So you all work together for this charity? Enjoy it?

Love it. Yes, thank you.

And are you going to enjoy this? Certainly are.

I think so. That's what we like.

Every day there's ?1,000 up for grabs for our Challengers.

If they fail to defeat the Eggheads, the prize money rolls over to the next show, as you know.

Antibodies, the Eggheads have won the last seven games, they're doing really well at the moment.

?8,000 says you can't beat them.

The first head-to-head battle is on the subject of Science.

Challengers, who wants this?

We decided that would be me, didn't we? No - John.

OK, yes, that would be correct. You can do it. John? Yes.

John. John. John on Science, against which Egghead?

Um, who are we going to pick? Now, erm...

What about Daphne?

What about Daphne?

Yeah, I think so. I'm happy with Daphne. Yes.

Is she allergic to Science? OK, John from the Antibodies versus Daphne from the Eggheads,

and to ensure there's no conferring, please take your positions in the Question Room now.

So, three multiple-choice questions on Science in turn,

whoever answers most correctly wins,

funnily enough. And, would you like to go first or second, John? First please, Jeremy.

Good luck, you Antibodies, here we go.

What name, John, is given to a celestial object that typically travels around the sun,

in an eccentric or elliptical orbit?

I don't think it's a pulsar, because I don't think

that's an object that travels around the sun,

so it's going to be either meteor or comet.

Erm...and I think the one that travels round the sun

in an elliptical orbit is probably a comet,

so I'm going to go for comet, please.

Comet is your answer, and it's right.

First point to the Antibodies.

Daphne, your question.

Which piece of laboratory equipment is used to separate solid or liquid particles of different densities

by rotating them in a tube in a horizontal circle?

Erm, is that a centrifuge?

Is that your answer, Daphne? It is.

You're right, centrifuge is correct. Thank you!

John,

in the human body, the tympanic membrane is also known by what name?

Erm, the pupil is in the eye,

and that's not the tympanic membrane, certainly.

Neither is the tonsil. The tympanic membrane is the membrane in your ear

that vibrates when you hear sounds, so it's an eardrum.

Eardrum is the right answer, well done.

Said with great certainty as well.

Daphne, over to you on Science,

which you obviously like a lot! I don't!

What name is given to a number like pi,

which cannot be expressed as a fraction of two integers,

and whose decimal neither ends nor repeats?

That would be an irrational number.

Yes. That's one I know! How do you know that?

Well, I don't know, but... It was just an irrational guess.

Yes. Irrational number is correct.

Over to you, John.

The scientific principle of Rayleigh scattering has a direct impact on what phenomenon?

Rayleigh is R-A-Y-L-E-I-G-H.

Rayleigh scattering. Well, erm...

I think the migration of animals is something a bit more organised

and defined, and it's sort of innate, isn't it, in the animals?

As far as I know. I don't think, probably, it applies to that,

and, erm, I don't know anything, really, about IT

and the processing power of computers,

but I think this might be the phenomenon that gives us things like

the northern lights and so on,

so I think it's to do with the colour of the sky.

Very good, colour of the sky is the right answer.

Daphne, what type of celestial body is Aldebaran?

And that's spelt A-L-D-E-B-A-R-A-N.

It's a star.

Are you sure?

Yes. You're right, well done. Three out of three for you both,

so, after the multiple-choice part, you are stuck level,

and we go to Sudden Death. John, you need to give me the answer here, it's a bit harder.

Ruby-tail, gall, potter and mason

are all types of which insect?

Erm... Right, I don't know the answer to this one, so it's going to have to be,

erm...a hopefully intelligent guess,

erm, and...I think I might go for bees.

Your answer is bees. Oh, you're so close, but it's wrong. Wasp.

Wasp. The potter wasp.

Daphne, your chance to take the round.

What name is given to plants, such as cacti,

that conserve water by storing it in leaves or stems?

Are they succulents?

Is that your answer? Yes.

Eggheads, has she got it? Yes, indeed.

Have I? They all say yes.

Oh! And you have, Daphne, succulents is the right answer.

Ooh, she proved to be a doughty competitor there, John,

you won't be in the final. You played well, though.

Daphne, you will be in the final. Please, both of you, come back and rejoin your teams.

So, we're a brain down. You're a brain down, I should say! Not that I'm on your side or anything!

Eggheads haven't lost any brains, but it is early on.

Next subject is Sport,

do you have a plan on Sport?

Definitely, that's our Paul!

You do look like you're dressed for the sporting round. I think so, yeah.

And, against who?

Chris. Chris, please.

You choose. We'll go with Chris, then.

Paul from the Antibodies versus Chris from the Eggheads.

To ensure there's no conferring, please take your positions.

So, Paul, you like your sport?

I do, yes. And in particular, what?

Erm, I like rugby, rugby union.

And do a lot of walking and keep fit yourself? I do, yes.

Where do you walk? I've done Spain, France, and a lot of this country.

Ben Nevis I've done twice, so...

Paul, you can choose the first or second set of questions. First, please.

Here's your first question, then. What is the par score of the famous Old Course at St Andrews?

Unfortunately golf is not one of my strong subjects,

and, erm...it'll have to be a guess, I think, erm...

For some reason...72 sticks in my mind,

I don't know why, but I'm going to go for 72, Jeremy.

Good stuff, 72 is the right answer.

Chris, your question.

Excluding the home plate, how many bases are there on a baseball pitch?

They got the home plate, one, two, three, back to home. It's three.

Three is correct.

Paul, your question.

Which team lost to England in the final of the 2003 Rugby Union World Cup?

Well, this one I hope I know and I hope I get it right.

It wasn't France, it wasn't New Zealand, it was Australia.

Australia is quite right.

Caused massive celebrations, didn't it? Yes, it certainly did.

Chris, your question. In which cricketing country are Test matches played at the Wanderers Stadium?

Ah...

Well, West Indies' are played at the Kensington Oval, aren't they?

Sri Lanka, it's Colombo, so it must be South Africa.

It is South Africa, you're right.

Great stadium, I've been there.

Paul, get this right, you put him under pressure.

Harry Redknapp spent the first years of his managerial career, from 1983 to 1992,

in charge of which football team?

I don't think it was Port Vale...

and I'm fairly sure it's not Morecambe...

I think it's Bournemouth. I'll go for Bournemouth.

You've done well, Bournemouth is correct.

So, 3-2, let's see if Chris stays in.

The Argentinean, Juan Martin del Potro, is a successful competitor in which sport, Chris?

Well, there's been some useful Argentine boxers,

and some useful Argentine tennis players,

but they do tend to throw up racing drivers,

so I'll take a punt on motor racing.

OK, I like the logic.

As always, Chris, when you get it wrong, you show massive conviction.

But it's tennis. Is it, indeed? Motor racing is wrong.

That's a game, that's not a sport!

So, on that question, Paul, well done.

He slipped up, you take the round, you'll be in the final.

Please, both of you, come back to us.

So, as it stands, the Challengers have lost one brain from the final,

while the Eggheads have lost one brain as well.

The next subject's Geography.

Geography. Which of you would like this?

That appears to be me. Mike, against who?

I'd like to play Judith, please.

All right, you said that with great, er...assurance.

So, Mike from the Antibodies against Judith from the Eggheads,

and to ensure there's no conferring, please take your positions.

Mike, you can choose the first or second set. First, please, Jeremy.

Here we go, and good luck.

Skye is an island in which British group, Mike?

It's not the Orkneys, they're very much north,

the Channel Islands are just off France, it's the Inner Hebrides.

Great, Inner Hebrides is the right answer. First point to you.

Here we go, Judith. The city of Durban is a major seaport of which country?

I think that's in South Africa.

And you are quite right, it is indeed in South Africa.

Back to you, Mike.

Keflavik International Airport serves which country?

It's the international airport for Iceland, Jeremy.

Iceland is correct.

Judith,

which German city is known to the French as Aix-la-Chapelle?

I think that is Aachen. It was Charlemagne's time, wasn't it?

And your answer then is Aachen, and it's the right answer.

Mike,

which country borders Israel and the West Bank to its west, Syria to its north,

Iraq to its east and Saudi Arabia to its south?

Turkey's very much further north in Asia Minor,

Iran is bordered by... another country,

and the answer is Jordan, Jeremy.

Well done, Jordan is right.

Your question, Judith,

to stay in it now.

Ponce, spelt P-O-N-C-E,

is a major city and port on which Caribbean island?

Erm, it's not Antigua, I don't think,

cos that's St John's, isn't it, the capital of that?

I don't know!

I think I'm going to go for Grenada.

Grenada. Yeah.

It is the wrong answer. It's Puerto Rico.

It is Puerto Rico, yeah. Is it?

It wasn't Antigua, you were right about that.

So, Judith, I'm sorry,

you're not in the final. Mike, well played, with great conviction.

You took on one of the Eggheads,

you emerged triumphant. Good news for the Challengers, cos it means Mike will be with you in the final,

and Judith, you won't join the Eggheads there. So please, both of you come back to your teams.

So, as it stands the Challengers have lost only one brain from the final,

the Eggheads have lost two brains. The last subject is Music. Who would like Music?

Lindsey or Muriel.

Uh-oh!

Oh...

Better be me, probably.

Worth a bash. Sorry. No, I'm fine.

Who do I go against?!

It's going to be Lindsey. Barry or Kevin?

Advise me. I don't know. I think, perhaps, Kevin.

Yeah? Yeah, I would say Kevin.

I would say Kevin. OK, then. Kevin. There is something glorious

about going up against Kevin, whatever happens.

So Lindsey from the Antibodies versus Kevin from the Eggheads,

please go to the Question Rooms now.

Lindsey, I understand you play country music on your guitar?

Yes, quite badly, but I do play. And keep fit by...

Belly dancing. Belly dancing.

I won't ask for a demonstration.

Thank you very much. It's not the time or the place.

Three questions on Music in turn, and you can choose first or second.

I think I'll go first, please.

Here's your question, Lindsey.

Tony Hadley is best known as the lead singer of which 1980s group?

Right, I'm pretty sure... I don't think it's Simply Red.

Simple Minds I don't know terribly well,

I'm going to go for my first choice, Spandau Ballet.

Spandau Ballet is correct.

Can you name any songs from Spandau Ballet?

True. Gold. True. Gold.

Kevin, your question.

Which French word is used to describe a piece of music inspired by, or evocative of, the night?

That is a nocturne. Nocturnal.

Nocturne is the right answer.

Lindsey,

Breathe Again and Unbreak My Heart

were the two biggest UK singles for which R n'B singer?

Really not my area of music. I would say...

I think I'm going to go for... Toni Braxton.

I'm not absolutely certain, but Toni Braxton, yeah.

You've got it, well done. Oh! Toni Braxton's correct.

Kevin,

which British comedy band, who specialised in trad jazz, had a UK number one single in 1961,

with You're Driving Me Crazy?

All novelty bands of one sort or another there,

but this was The Temperance Seven.

That's the correct answer.

Next question to you, Lindsey.

In the early 1860s, which Russian composer spent several years working as a clerk

in the Ministry of Justice in St Petersburg?

Russian...

I am just going to...

Really just going to go for it, erm, Rimsky-Korsakov.

No, not Rimsky-Korsakov,

Tchaikovsky was the answer.

So, Kevin, this for the round.

Careless Hands and I Pretend

were the first big UK hits for which singer and entertainer?

And, no, I haven't got them. It's Des O'Connor.

You're right, Des O'Connor is the answer.

Well done, Kevin,

you've taken that round. Lindsey, I'm sorry, you lost to the great Kevin so you won't be in the final.

You were beaten by our Egghead. Do, both of you, please come back and rejoin us here in the studio.

This is what we've been playing towards, it's time for the final, which, as always,

is General Knowledge. Those who lost your head-to-heads can't take part,

so John and Lindsey from the Antibodies, and Chris and Judith from the Eggheads,

please leave the studio.

Well, Muriel, Mike and Paul, you're playing to win the Antibodies ?8,000.

Daphne, Barry and Kevin, you are playing for something that money can't buy, the Eggheads' reputation.

As usual, I'll ask each team three questions in turn,

they are all General Knowledge, and you are allowed to confer.

So, Antibodies, the question is,

are your three brains better than the Eggheads' three?

And, do you want to go first or second?

I'd like to go first, please. Yes, first, please.

Here we go,

Antibodies, good luck. You've done better than the last three teams

by there being more than one of you now, so that's good. Your first question.

In the name of the British trade union, the RMT,

the initials stand for Rail, Maritime and what?

Erm, because it's Rail, Maritime... It's not Technology,

and it's not Television, so I believe it's Transport.

We think it's Transport. Yes.

You think it's Rail, Maritime and Transport.

Transport is the correct answer, good.

Eggheads,

what was the title of the singles chart rundown show on radio, presented by Alan "Fluff" Freeman

from 1961 to 1972?

Pick Of The Pops.

Yes, we all remember it well, it was Pick Of The Pops.

Pick Of The Pops is the right answer.

Back to you, Antibodies.

In the board game, Scrabble, which is the only letter tile worth five points?

I don't know, I don't play Scrabble at all! No, nor I.

I think K, K pops up.

And on the grounds that the middle one is more often than not right,

I think our inspiration will be K.

Not sure here, but we all take the blame!

We don't really know, but we'll go with K.

K is the right answer. Phew!

Well done. Eggheads, your question,

to catch up. What name is given to the tides,

just after the first or third quarters of the moon,

when the difference between high and low water is at its least?

The high ones are the spring tides.

And the low one's neap. Must be.

Do you know perigean as a term? Never heard of perigean tides.

It should be neap, because spring are after full and new,

and it does, they alternate. So it must be neap.

We're all agreed, it is the neap tide.

Neap tide is correct.

OK, third question, don't come unstuck.

Which singer famously had an 18-month-long relationship

with a woman named May Pang,

during a period known as his "lost weekend" in the 1970s?

No idea at all.

I'm sure it's not Eric Clapton. You don't think it's Eric Clapton?

Erm... Shall we choose one of the others, then?

John Lennon or Mick Jagger. Yes.

I don't know, it could be any one of them to be honest!

Well, let's just choose one. I'd go John Lennon.

OK, we'll go with you, yeah. I haven't got a clue!

No, that's fine, let's go John Lennon, then we can blame you!

We really don't know, we're going to go for John Lennon.

John Lennon.

John Lennon is the right answer. Oh!

Oh! Well done!

Well done, Muriel! Thank you!

Eggheads,

what are the two middle names of Queen Elizabeth II?

Alexandra Mary? Alexandra Mary.

Again, absolutely certain on this, it's Alexandra Mary.

Alexandra Mary is the...

If they get this wrong, then you've won the money.

..correct answer. I'm so sorry!

We go to Sudden Death.

You are level-pegging, you've both had a perfect round so far. This gets harder.

We need the answer from you.

You ready? Yes.

What's the name of the Hong Kong stock market index

that was launched as a public service in 1969?

Hang Seng. It's called the Hang Seng.

It's called the Hang Seng.

That's your answer? Yes.

It's the right answer. Well done, Mike!

Eggheads,

the University of Pennsylvania, a member of the Ivy League,

is located in which American city?

Let's go through...

Well, Philadelphia, yeah...

Philadelphia seems to be the obvious choice.

But it may be one of the other...

If you get this wrong, they've won.

I don't think it's in Pittsburgh. The state capital is Harrisburg.

I don't think it's Harrisburg. And Pittsburgh is too industrial.

The very big cities do have more, they often tend to have more than one university.

In Philadelphia, for instance, there's Temple University.

Erm, I mean, it could be Harrisburg, because it's the state capital.

But, yeah, we don't know it, so we have to play the percentage.

It's much more likely to be in Philadelphia. I'd say Philadelphia. Yeah, I think we have to.

Here we go! I'm not certain at all.

We have a fair degree of doubt on this one, because we're not sure, we've banded a few names around,

but the consensus of opinion is that it's in Philadelphia.

You're right! We took you to the cliff edge there, didn't we?

Don't worry, you're still in it.

You see how they can come unstuck?

Here's your question, Antibodies.

The fashion designer Paul Smith was born in which city, where he also established his first shop?

I haven't got a clue! One for you, Muriel!

I'm not into designer clothes!

Paul Smith. Sounds English, or at least British-ish.

So, I guess we toss a coin and choose a British city, cos I don't know.

Somewhere northern?

OK.

Well, if he'd been in Yorkshire, you would have known it, wouldn't you?! Possibly, yes.

Erm... Manchester, Liverpool... Bristol?

Let's try Manchester. I don't know, for no particularly good reason. I don't where it'll be.

I don't know, so let's... Shall we say Manchester?

Shall we say Manchester? We've got no other...

I've only just... I don't know why I've got Bristol in my head, but I'm probably totally wrong.

No, don't go by me, because I don't know designer clothes! You know about fashion, I don't!

I might know about fashion, but not about designer labels. We work for a charity, can't afford them!

Let's say Bristol, go on. Or do you want to say Manchester?

Do you feel more comfortable with Manchester? No, let's have Bristol. You said it. Let's have Bristol.

Go Manchester. OK.

We haven't got a clue, really, but we're going to take a guess at Manchester.

Manchester...

..is wrong.

I'm not surprised. Fortunately, it's not Bristol.

Who is it?

Nottingham.

Oh!

Nottingham's the answer, you got it wrong,

so now they have a chance to take the contest.

You'll be hoping they don't. Here's your question, Eggheads.

"Defend the children of the poor, and punish the wrongdoer,"

is the inscription above the entrance to which building in London?

It's the Old Bailey, isn't it? Sounds right.

Yes. Can't think of anything else. I worked next to it for a few years, it seems to ring a bell.

Yeah, OK. Well, I hope I'm right, because I worked next to this institution for a few years,

and I think it's the Old Bailey.

So your answer is the Old Bailey. If you're right, you've snatched the cash away from our Antibodies.

If you're wrong, we play on.

The answer is the Old Bailey, or Central Criminal Court.

Well done, Eggheads, congratulations, you've won again.

Thank you for coming, anyway, commiserations to you.

The Eggheads have done what comes naturally to them,

I'm afraid you won't be going home with the ?8,000. So that money now rolls over to our next show.

Eggheads, congratulations. Who will beat you?

Join us next time to see if a new team of Challengers have the brains to defeat the Eggheads.

?9,000 says they don't. Till then, goodbye.

Subtitles by Sam Parish Red Bee Media Ltd

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