Episode 2 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

pit their wits against possibly the greatest quiz team in Britain.

You might recognise them as they are goliaths in the world of TV quiz shows.

They are the Eggheads.

And taking on the might of our quiz goliaths today

are the Oxford Imps, formed in 2003.

The team are an improv comedy troupe

made up of former Oxford and Cambridge University students.

Let's meet them.

Hi. I'm John, I'm 23 and I'm a tutor.

Hi. I'm Tom, I'm 26 and I'm a political analyst.

Hi. I'm Jim, I'm 28 and I'm a student in philosophy.

Hi. I'm Rachel, I'm 24 and I'm a musician.

Hi. I'm Alex, I'm 25 and I'm a charity analyst.

Hello there, Oxford Imps -

and one Cambridge Imp as well, is there?

-At the end, yeah.

-I see, that's why you put him at the end.

-Yeah.

So, how does it work, improv comedy?

-Do you interact with the audience, pick up a word and off you go?

-Exactly that.

You get a suggestion for a scene

and then you make it up as you go along, which is great fun.

-Has it ever gone horribly wrong?

-Oh, yeah. It's supposed to...

occasionally, not all the time.

But sometimes it goes to strange places, places you wouldn't expect.

But that's good. We're pushing ourselves.

But does it ever dry up? Do you ever think, "Er... Can't do it"?

No. No, no. We're a font of creativity,

forever flowing.

Let's play the game then, guys.

See if you can improvise being Eggheads for today

and improve on the Eggheads, take their money away.

Every day there's £1,000 cash up for grabs for our challengers.

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

So, Oxford Imps, the Eggheads have won the last two games,

which means £3,000 says YOU can't beat the Eggheads.

And our first head-to-head battle

will be on the subject of one that may suit you:

Any one of you can play. Which Egghead would you like to play?

-Rach?

-Yeah, I think you should do it.

You look like you should be in films and television.

-You will be a star.

-Thanks.

-You will be a star, Rachel.

Who would you like to be your understudy in this particular drama?

Any of these Eggheads?

-Could I choose Daphne, please?

-Of course you can.

-JOHN: That's brave.

-Oh, God!

She always improvises the answers. Sometimes gets them right as well.

OK, Rachel and Daphne into the question room, please,

to make sure there's no conferring.

-OK, now, do you want to go first or second, Rachel?

-First, please.

Off we go, then.

Best of luck, Rachel. Here's your question.

What costume did the drum-bashing score keeper George Dawes usually wear

on the TV comedy quiz show Shooting Stars?

We should think about adopting this for one of our scenes.

-On that show he wore a romper suit.

-A romper suit?

Big baby, wasn't he?

And the name of the man concerned,

George Dawes, AKA Matt Lucas,

who went on to greater things. OK.

That is correct, of course. Romper suit. I can confirm that.

And first question for you, Daphne.

What was the name of the boy, played by Henry Thomas,

who befriended ET in the 1982 film ET: The Extra-Terrestrial?

I think he was Elliott, wasn't he?

Elliott. ET VOICE: Elliott...

That was quite good, wasn't it?

I remember that. It used to scare the living daylights out of me.

Wasn't scared of anything else - just ET.

ET the Extraterrestrial's friend was Elliott. Correct.

Rachel, second question.

In which country was the film actress Charlize Theron born?

Mmm...

Er...

I know the likes of Naomi Watts and Nicole Kidman are Australian.

Er...

I... I don't think it's Australia.

I think I'm gonna go for South Africa.

Charlize Theron?

John's agreeing.

It is the right answer. Yes, South Africa. Correct. OK.

Pressure on you then, Daphne. Second question.

Which town was the setting of the 1990s TV series Hamish Macbeth?

Oh, dear. Never saw it. Erm...

Er... Lochdubh.

Lochdubh. Did that just jump into your mind,

having never seen it, you said?

-Yeah. I haven't seen it.

-It starred, of course, Eggheads...?

-Robert Carlyle.

-Robert Carlyle,

before he went into, let's say, slightly meatier roles.

It is the right answer! Yes, Daphne, Lochdubh.

OK, third question apiece. Rachel's.

Which actor played young adventurer Christopher McCandless

in the film Into The Wild?

It's lucky I saw this recently, if I'm thinking of the right thing.

Erm... I think it was Emile Hirsch.

Emile Hirsch?

This is the film where the chap goes off with not many supplies

and lives in the wild.

-Isn't it the Sean Penn-directed one?

-Yeah.

And comes to a rather grisly end.

Emile Hirsch is the right answer. No grisly end for you.

OK, Daphne.

-You look like you're staring down the gun barrel.

-I know!

-And you're pointing it.

-Well, when you hear the question, it's rather appropriate.

What is the name of the secret group of assassins

in the 2008 film Wanted, starring James McAvoy and Angelina Jolie?

I have absolutely no idea.

I think it's "Bye-bye, Daphne", cos it's...

-That'd be a good film.

-Yeah.

-LAUGHTER

Oh, Angelina Jolie is in it, so hopefully it's not the Fraternity,

but... I really don't know.

Erm...

Gosh.

All right. Erm...

I'll say the Fraternity. I don't know.

-Bye-bye.

-But you said because Angelina Jolie was in it,

it wouldn't be the Fraternity - and probably not the Brotherhood.

Then I thought it won't be the Brotherhood either.

-So that leaves the Band.

-Yeah. It's right, is it?

No, it's the Fraternity.

You're just making me very upset, getting it right.

I'm so sorry, Dermot.

Something went on that you didn't vocalise there.

You thought Fraternity, then you went Brotherhood...

It's all square at three-all. A good round, both going strongly.

It means, Rachel, we go to sudden death.

Let's see if you can get this with no choices to look at.

Which actor plays an extortionist sniper

in the 2002 film Phone Booth, starring Colin Farrell?

Which actor plays an extortionist sniper

in the 2002 film Phone Booth, starring Colin Farrell?

I'm gonna have to... I know it's not right,

but I'm gonna have to go for, erm...

Wesley Snipes.

It would be appropriate, wouldn't it, the name - Snipes the sniper.

It's not the right answer, Rachel. Oxford Imps?

-Kiefer Sutherland?

-Kiefer Sutherland, yes! A biscuit for Tom.

Kiefer Sutherland plays the sniper in Phone Booth.

Which means a chance for you, Daphne.

What's the name of the pool shark played by Jackie Gleason

in the 1961 film The Hustler?

Minnesota Fats.

Please?

Yes?

Come on, don't do this!

It's the right answer, yes, Daphne. Well done.

The smile's back on your face. It had disappeared earlier.

Bad luck, Rachel. Somehow that turned against you.

It looked, for most of that round, that you'd take it, but no.

Minnesota Fats is correct. Rachel, you won't be in the final round.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

The Oxford Imps have lost one brain, the Eggheads haven't lost any.

We'll play our second round. This one is Science.

Who'd like to play this? You get to choose, Oxford Imps.

-Does anybody know about science?

-No.

-I was hoping YOU did, Jim.

-I do not.

-You know nothing about science?

-Who took science most recently?

-Me?

-I think you should go, John.

-You're the youngest.

-I'll do it. But who will I face?

-Have you been talked into it

-on the basis that you're closest to having studied science at school?

-Yes.

That's a good qualification. Who would you like to play? It can't be Daphne.

-Erm... Barry?

-OK, let's have John and Barry into the question room, please.

-John, first set or second set?

-I'll go first, please, Dermot.

Good luck, John. Here we go. It's Science.

What name is given to an organism

exploited by a parasite living on or inside it?

Unless a pub can be counted as an organism, it won't be a landlord.

I don't think it's a keeper.

-It's a host.

-A host? It certainly is.

-Correct. One to you.

-Well done, John.

Barry, the common test

whereby a patient is tapped just below the kneecap

is used by doctors to test the patient's what?

That tests the reflexes.

Reflexes is correct, yes. Barry, one to you.

John, second question.

The Earth's axis is tilted at an angle of how many degrees?

I don't know. I don't think it's particularly...

I know it's not a lot, so I'm gonna rule out 32.5.

Let's see. What do... what does 17.5 degrees look like?

I can't think of any way to figure that out off the top of my head.

That's 90... so that'd be 45...

so that's 12½ - that doesn't look that much.

23.5? 23.5?

I think 23.5 seems about right.

I did like the improv, actually, with the angles there. Very good.

-It's the right answer.

-Yes!

-Well done, John.

-Get in!

-Yeah.

23.5. OK, Barry.

Litmus, used to determine acidity, is obtained from what natural source?

It's obtained from lichen.

Litmus, used to determine acidity,

is obtained from what natural source?

Barry straight in there with lichen, and correct. Two-all.

John.

In the human body, the frontalis muscle

is involved in which activity?

-The frontalis muscle is involved in which activity?

-Frontalis.

The only thing I can cling onto is "talis", which is...

I'm thinking talon.

Talon is the only thing I can cling onto. It might be completely wrong.

-I'm gonna with wriggling the toes.

-OK.

Talons. I see, yes. A kind of linguistic link there.

Wriggling the toes.

-Barry?

-I think he might be right.

I think the talis is a bone in the foot,

so I would have gone for wriggling the toes as well.

-It's not the right answer.

-Eyebrows.

-Interesting. What is it?

-Eyebrows.

-It's eyebrows, from Judith down there.

It is the eyebrows - the old Roger Moore.

A crucial point at which to get a question wrong.

Barry can wrap the round up if he gets this.

Barry, what type of heavenly body is 6137 John Fletcher,

named after an amateur astronomer in Gloucester?

It's unlikely to be a moon,

because there are quite specific conventions on naming moons,

and most recent ones tend to be named after mythological objects.

I don't think it's a comet.

Comets, although named after their founders,

tend not to have numerical appendages.

But asteroids do have numerical appendages,

so on that basis I will go for asteroid.

OK. It's the right answer. Asteroid.

6137 John Fletcher is an asteroid discovered by John Fletcher,

presumably an amateur astronomer in Gloucester.

Bad luck, John. Just slipped up on that third question.

You're not playing in the final round. Barry, you are.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Oxford Imps, if you had a game plan when you came in,

I think you'll have to improvise a plan B, or maybe even C.

You've lost two brains from the final round, the Eggheads are all there so far.

We'll play our third head-to-head, and this subject is Arts & Books.

Who wants to play this? Tom, Jim or Alex?

-It's gonna have to be Alex.

-Alex?

-Alex.

-Alex.

Alex going for Arts & Books. Who would you like to play? It can't be Daphne or Barry.

-Chris, please.

-You had a choice of Chris, Judith or CJ and have gone for Chris.

Let's help Alex and Chris into the question room, please.

I know why you've decided to play this category. You worked on the OED, the Oxford English Dictionary.

-That's right, I did.

-So what do you do there?

Erm... Well, I was a dictionary editor,

and dictionary editors, as you might imagine, are responsible

for making new dictionary entries for words that haven't been in the dictionary yet

or making sure existing entries are up to date

and reflect the things people know about in the history of the English language.

Any that you were personally responsible for?

Dictionary writing is very much a team game.

I remember one I wrote the entry for there was "dartitis",

a performance anxiety that affects darts players

so they can't throw the dart at the right moment.

-And that's in the OED?

-It is.

-Dartitis!

-Goes back to about 1981.

-When it became really popular on television.

-Yeah.

-Dartitis - I like that. Very good.

Should be playing the Sport round. Would you like to go first or second?

I will go first, please.

Good luck, Alex. Here we go.

The English artist JMW Turner was best known for painting what?

Turner famously painted a picture of Parliament when it was burning,

so on that basis I'm gonna go for landscapes.

Landscapes,

and, of course, ships and... lots of stuff.

The Fighting Temeraire.

It's the right answer. Yes, landscapes. Well done. Good start.

-Well done, Alex.

-Chris.

What 20th-century term was coined to describe inexpensive fiction magazines or paperbacks?

Cos they were made on cheap paper that was made from wood pulp,

it was called pulp fiction.

That would have suited Alex -

not the pulp fiction bit of it, but the 20th-century terms.

It's the right answer. Yes, pulp fiction. Correct.

Alex, second question. Who wrote the award-winning non-fiction book Stalingrad?

OK. Hugh Sebag-Montefiore... I know his brother wrote a book on Stalin,

but it was Antony Beevor, I think, who wrote Stalingrad.

Antony Beevor, you think?

You think right. Well done. Two to you.

Chris, what type of artistic form is a clerihew,

named after Edmund Clerihew Bentley?

It's a short, pithy comic verse.

Which, of course, this lot would know all about.

A clerihew is a comic verse. That's correct. Two to you.

All square as we go on to the third question.

It's where John slipped up. Let's hope you don't, Alex.

Marriage A-la-Mode is a series of six engravings by which artist?

I'm not sure I would have got it if the names hadn't come up,

but I think it's William Hogarth.

OK.

Glad to have choices there.

But got it, yeah. Well done, Alex.

Three out of three, then.

Chris is facing ejection.

Chris, which US novelist created the quadriplegic detective Lincoln Rhyme?

I don't know much about American fiction. Dean Koontz writes...

horror stuff in the same genre as Stephen King,

so I don't think it's Dean Koontz.

I've not heard of Jeffery Deaver at all, but...

Michael Connelly, I think, does write detective fiction,

so as a pure guess, I'll go with him.

OK. Lincoln Rhyme, a quadriplegic detective character created by...

-Jeffery Deaver.

-Oh.

-Jeffery Deaver.

Which means the International Mastermind exits the game.

OK. Well done, Alex. You're through to the final round.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

I actually think you're still on your plan A.

That went very well indeed for you, Alex.

Played on what you thought was your strong subject and succeeded.

As it stands now, the Oxford Imps have lost two brains from the final round, the Eggheads one - Chris.

And we play our last head-to-head before the final round: Politics.

Tom or Jim, you face this one.

Gosh, It's difficult, Tom being a political analyst and all(!)

LAUGHTER

I'm a philosopher who knows lots of facts about the world...

-So that'll be you then, Jim.

-No, no.

-I say Tom.

-RACHEL: I say Tom.

-So say all of us.

-OK.

-And you've got CJ or Judith awaiting you.

-Hm...

I reckon they're both probably pretty good at politics, actually.

-Shall we go with CJ?

-Yeah.

-Yeah, let's go with CJ.

-However...

-I'll go with the decision.

-You didn't have a lot to say, Tom.

-I was volunteered by friends.

-No voting rights.

-ALEX:

-We answered for you, Tom.

More to say in the question room. Tom and CJ, head for that question room.

-Do you want to go first or second, Tom?

-I'll go first, Dermot.

Good luck. See if you can knock CJ out and level up that final round.

First question, Tom. In which year was Nelson Mandela born?

I... think he's looking a bit slow on his feet these days,

so I'm gonna count out 1948 straightaway.

I have a feeling that he's had a few big birthdays come and go,

so I think I'm gonna go with 1918, though I'm not completely sure.

A few big birthdays come and go.

He had the 90th one in July 2008.

That's correct.

1918. Well worked out, Tom.

CJ, the Bundesbank is the central bank of which European country?

If you keep them all that level, I'll be happy. It's Germany.

HE LAUGHS

It's the right answer, yes. One each.

I will, I'll try, CJ.

Tom, in which US state was Barack Obama born?

Again, I'm not completely sure, but I think he was born in Hawaii.

Hawaii is right. Well done, Tom.

Two to you. CJ knew that.

That's the American politics he knows about.

Our domestic politics next.

What does a constituent need to complete

to lobby their MP at the House of Commons?

I don't know this. I've never even been to the Houses of Parliament.

OK, you have white papers and green papers, so it's a blue card.

OK, the blue card?

-It's green!

-DAPHNE: Is it?

It's a green card.

Which means, Tom, you'll be through to the final round - if you get it.

That makes it all square there for the money.

Tom, Omar Bongo became president of which West African country

in 1967 at the age of 31?

My friend's an Africa analyst -

he'll kill me if I get this wrong, but I think it's Gabon.

You often discuss Omar Bongo with your friend?

Now and again, at the pub.

Seldom off your lips.

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

Well, look at that. CJ doesn't get to face another question.

You are through to the final round, Tom, playing for the money.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

This is what we've been playing towards. It could be a very interesting final round,

which, as always, is General Knowledge.

Those of you who lost your head-to-heads

won't be allowed to take part in this round.

So, John and Rachel from the Oxford Imps

and CJ and Chris from the Eggheads,

would you leave the studio now, please?

Tom, Jim and Alex, you're playing to win the Oxford Imps £3,000.

Daphne, Barry and Judith,

you're playing for something money can't buy: the Eggheads' reputation.

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

The questions are all General Knowledge and you are allowed to confer.

Oxford Imps, the question is, are your three brains better than the Eggheads' three?

Would you like to go first or second?

-I think we should go first.

-Yeah.

-Oxford favours the bold.

In which city were thousands of cheap bicycles for hire, known as Velibs, introduced in 2007?

In which city were thousands of cheap bicycles for hire,

known as Velibs,

introduced in 2007?

-Paris?

-I think it's Paris.

-I wrote about this. It's Paris.

-You wrote about this?

-It's a long story.

-When?

-For work.

-Political dimension...?

-A limited one, yeah.

Can you give us a link to it?

It was the mayor of Paris looking to boost his reputation.

-There we are. It's quite boring.

-But you're going for Paris.

It's the right answer. Yes, Velibs, introduced in Paris in 2007.

OK, it's one to you - Paris and the Velibs.

Eggheads, what was the nickname of the infamous peer Lord Lucan

who disappeared in 1974?

What was the nickname of the infamous peer Lord Lucan

who disappeared in 1974?

He was a great gambler, so he was called Lucky.

And it also went with his name.

Lord Lucan is Lucky Lucan is the right answer.

Well done. One each. Second question each.

Imps, in 2008

approximately how many days did it take Thomas Coville

to become the fastest man to cross the Atlantic in a multi-hull boat?

In 2008 approximately how many days did it take Thomas Coville

to become the fastest man to cross the Atlantic in a multi-hull boat?

-Days.

-I would think you could walk it in six.

Unless it's incredibly slow. I don't know.

If you think that, I'm willing to trust you.

-Old ocean liners crossed it in six.

-Let's go with that.

-We think six.

Six?

It's the right answer. Well done.

Ooh, I think you could be up against it here, Eggheads.

Let's see. Second question for you.

Who directed the 2008 film Somers Town?

Who directed the 2008 film Somers Town?

Shane Meadows. Trust me.

Cos like... the little boy, Thomas Turgoose...

he was in another Shane Meadows...

I'm sure he'd got the same little boy in the film.

I think it's Shane Meadows.

-Daphne knows.

-Daphne knows.

Daphne, I don't want you saying "Trust me."

The last person to say that to me

was doing the three-card trick outside a store in Oxford Street.

-I...

-I do trust Daphne.

-I THINK I know who it is.

-It was Shane Meadows.

Ho! Standing up, eh?

Solidarity.

-CJ there as well.

-Is he nodding?

-He is. It's the right answer, yes.

Shane Meadows is correct. Directed Somers Town. Well done.

OK, two each. Good quizzing from both teams.

Imps, third question. As you know, important not to get this wrong.

The term "bellwether" is usually applied to which animal?

The term "bellwether" is usually applied to which animal?

All one word, as you probably know. Alex, you certainly will.

But just to explain, all one word. "Bellwether", B-E-L-L-W-E-T-H-E-R.

A cat's bell? Erm...

-They wouldn't put a bell on a cat.

-Not during weather, no.

-Let's go with sheep.

-Sheep.

-That's your answer?

-Yeah.

-Sheep?

It's correct. Well done. Three out of three.

There we go. So, Eggheads, you need to get this question right.

What is the diameter of the individual clock faces

on London's Big Ben?

-Don't ask me.

-What is the diameter

of the individual clock faces on London's Big Ben?

THEY CONFER

-Let's measure.

-Three metres is nine feet.

This is about three metres here.

This desk is roughly three metres.

We had John doing his angles of the Earth,

now we've got you measuring out the clock faces of Big Ben.

I'm picturing Harold Lloyd hanging on to the minute hand.

I think it's three.

-I'm staying out of this cos I've got no...

-11 metres, 33 feet.

-That sounds too high.

-11 metres...

Seven metres would be twice this, plus some.

So from there to there to...

-Yeah, I think it's three.

-I think it's three, yes.

-I remember the picture - is it Harold Lloyd who hangs on?

-Yeah.

If you transposed his body 180 degrees,

it looks to be about the length of a body. I think it's three metres.

I mean, we, on the whole... Daphne's ducked out.

-Barry and I think...

-Blank area, the old mathematics, is it?

..seven metres would be absurdly big and 11 metres even more absurd.

-So it's three metres.

-Three metres?

-About the length of this desk.

-It's obviously diameter.

OK.

Three metres?

It's seven metres. Which means, Oxford Imps, you have won!

Well! Confounded the Eggheads there, that really did.

You'd have to squint to see it if it was only three metres.

You'd have to get the binoculars out.

I apologise for what I said to you after the first two rounds.

Rachel and John did well in their head-to-heads,

but they'd gone, you were two-nil down,

and I thought this could go against you.

You turned it round, won the next three and won the money.

-We accept your apology.

-I'm a humble man.

Well done. Great to see you here on Eggheads and doing so well.

Bad luck, Eggheads.

Join us next time to see

if a new team of challengers will be just as successful.

Until then, from all of us here, goodbye.

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