Episode 72 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. They are Goliaths in the world of TV quiz shows, the Eggheads.

And challenging our resident quiz champions today

are the Earthlings.

The team all work for the Eden Project,

the world-famous visitor attraction built over a derelict China clay pit in Cornwall.

-Let's meet them.

-Hello, I'm Chris.

I'm 55 and a safety and environment manager.

Hello, I'm Phil. I'm 56 and I'm a steward.

Hello, I'm Sally. I'm 50. I'm an occupational health advisor.

Hi, I'm Dan. I'm 30 and I'm a conservation specialist.

Hi, I'm Kevin. I'm 39. I'm an electrician and a rope access technician.

Welcome, Earthlings. I do like the team name.

Now, this is more to do with the Eden Project, is it,

than your love of extraterrestrial life or anything like that?

It's one of the projects we run at Eden, cos ultimately we're a charity.

And the key thing we're trying to break down is this barrier between man and nature

and, really, we want to get people to understand

that we're all in this together,

and whatever we do has a consequence for nature

and we need nature to support us,

so it's a kind of one-for-all thing.

Yeah, we are all earthlings. OK.

Earthlings, let's see if you can win some money today playing the Eggheads.

I'm not sure they are earthlings. I think they come from another planet.

-The planet Weird.

-LAUGHTER

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

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

So, Earthlings, 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 today

is going to be on the subject of Film & Television.

Who'd like to play this? It can be any one of you, of course.

I think... is that either Kevin or Chris?

I think Kevin. No, Kevin, I think we should go with you on this.

-Oh, go on, then. I'll take it.

-Looks like Kevin.

All right, Kevin and any one of those lovely Eggheads.

-I think, um... KEVIN:

-CJ, perhaps?

CJ might be one to try out in film.

-Yeah.

-Yeah, we think we'll take CJ.

CJ. You've made CJ very happy. He very, very rarely plays Film & Television.

-He says it's one of his favourite subjects.

-LAUGHTER

So you can disprove that in the question room.

Can I ask Kevin and CJ to take their positions in the question room,

just to make sure you can't confer with your team mates there, Kevin.

Kevin, would you like to go first or second?

I would like to go first please, Dermot.

OK, good luck, Kevin. Here you go.

Which TV show celebrated its 50th anniversary

in October 2008?

OK, it's certainly not Grange Hill.

Top of the Pops has been around for a while

but I'm pretty sure it was Blue Peter.

Blue Peter, 50th anniversary?

Yes, you're right.

Good start. CJ.

In 1983, Bob Holness became the host of which TV quiz show?

Most famous for a catchphrase that he never said himself,

Blockbusters.

We won't go there with the catchphrase.

You never tried to appear on it, CJ, back in your youth?

-What do you mean "back" in my youth?

-Well, it was school children.

I did try for it but I didn't get through.

OK. Blockbusters is the right answer. Yes, well done.

OK, Kevin, second question.

The 1955 Alfred Hitchcock film To Catch A Thief,

which stars Carey Grant as cat burglar John Robie,

is set in which country?

OK, um...

I'm going to go for France.

OK, straight in on France.

Why? Is that an informed guess or a guess?

It's a bit of an informed guess, I think.

To Catch A Thief is set in France.

It's the right answer. You must be informed. Well done.

CJ, which actor was married to Angelina Jolie

from 1996 to 1999?

It's Jonny Lee Miller.

Jonny Lee Miller it is. Correct, CJ.

So two each.

Third question, Kevin.

Which actor co-starred with Diane Lane

in the films Unfaithful, Nights In Rodanthe and The Cotton Club?

I think that was Mickey Rourke.

Mickey Rourke. Shaking your head, CJ.

-It was Richard Gere.

-It's Richard Gere.

It is Richard Gere, so, well, there's a chance now for CJ.

Who plays the role of the criminal Tom Price

in the TV series Survivors?

Daphne watches this but I don't.

Aha.

Max Beesley's in it, I think.

I don't know if Robson Green's in it. I don't think so.

I'll have to go with Max Beesley because I know he's in it

but I don't know if it's the right role.

It is the correct answer, CJ.

Max Beesley plays Tom Price in Survivors,

which means you're through to the final round.

Kevin, just edged out there on the third question, means no place for you, sorry to say.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Well, as it stands, one of the Earthlings has been knocked out.

All the Eggheads are still there. Our next head-to-head is Science.

And who'd like to play this? It can't be Kevin.

But it might suit, I would think, some of you there?

I think it's me, sorry.

OK, Dan, who would you like to play from the Eggheads? It can't be CJ.

I'd quite like to take Chris on but I think it's going to be Judith. Sorry.

Just as a sort of icon,

but I think to try and win the round, I'm going to take Judith on.

He's been called a lot of things. I haven't heard icon. Rather suits you.

-I-con merchant, more like it.

-LAUGHTER

OK, but it's going to be Judith, then, is it?

Let's have Dan and Judith into the question room, please.

So, Dan, you're conservation specialist.

What does that mean in plain English, then?

At Eden, we try to do a lot of special projects

so we fundraise for them, work on them

and communicate and educate the public about this sort of work.

So we have projects all over the world,

from Thailand to South America to Kosovo,

and I work on a few of them.

-What kind of things?

-Well, my speciality is rainforest work.

So you've probably all heard about the destruction of the Amazon

but there are lots of other forests around the world that need some special attention too.

So we're restoring rainforest in Thailand in the Chiang Mai province,

and also particularly in Argentina.

Is it economic pressures that are leading to the destruction of rainforests?

It's typically driven by commodity price -

so the price of soya, cattle, palm oil, for example -

and the higher those prices go, then the more the rainforest suffers

because people are after a quick buck.

You say a quick buck, but they want to make a living. We can't blame them for that.

After all, we cut down all our own forests about 1,500 years ago.

-Yep, that's the tragic irony of it all.

-Yeah.

You've chosen to play Science. I can see why.

Would you like first or second?

I'd like to go first, please.

OK, first set of questions coming your way.

The cerebrum is located in which part of the human body?

Well, I'm pretty sure heart is cardiac,

kidney stuff is renal,

and things to do with the brain are cerebral,

so I hope it's the brain.

It is the brain, and yours is working very well there.

Get that first answer out. OK.

Judith, in the hydrological cycle,

what name is given to the transfer of water

to the atmosphere by plants and vegetation?

Well, precipitation is when it comes down out of the sky.

I think it must be evaporation.

It's transpiration. It is transpiration, not evaporation.

There we are.

Dan, you're in the lead and will go further in the lead if you get this.

Movement energy is also known by what name?

Movement energy is also known by what name?

Well, my worst subject at school was probably physics,

but I'm fairly certain this is kinetic energy.

Kinetic energy

is also movement energy - it's the right answer.

Well, Judith, got to get this, then.

Which country launched its first unmanned mission to the moon in October 2008?

Which country launched its first unmanned mission to the moon

in October 2008?

I think I read about India launching something,

so India.

India...

is the right answer, Judith. Kept yourself in it.

OK, but you win the round, Dan, if you get the right answer here.

The baluchitherium, which measured over five metres at the shoulder

and is believed to be the biggest land mammal of all time,

is an extinct ancestor of which animal?

Baluchitherium.

-Can you spell baluchitherium?

-Yeah, of course, Dan.

It's B-A-L-U-C-H-I-T-H-E-R-I-U-M. It's all one word.

Baluchitherium.

Right, I used to be pretty good on prehistoric animals,

but I don't remember coming across this one.

CJ SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY

I would have been OK if it was something like megatherium

but baluchitherium...

It's an extinct ancestor of which animal?

I don't think it's hippopotamus,

so I'm 50/50 between rhino and elephant.

I can't remember seeing any pictures of any huge ancient hippopotami,

but there have definitely been some very large elephants

and some very large rhinos.

I think most of the large elephants were in the mammoth group.

I think I'm going to go for rhinoceros.

OK, rhinoceros. Right.

Thought you might have gone for the elephant there

but you weren't misled.

You got the right answer! Rhinoceros is correct.

Well done there, Dan. Well worked out, very good round.

Means you're playing in the final round.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Well played, Dan.

Most people, I think, would have gone for elephant - woolly mammoths.

These must have been big rhinoceroses.

I think the biggest elephant type was the mastodon.

Ah! OK, well, as it stands now, it's all square.

Both the Earthlings and Eggheads have lost one brain from the final round.

Our next subject today is Geography.

And who'd like to play this from Chris, Phil or Sally? Geography?

No. Do you fancy it?

-Yes, I'll do Geography.

-You sure?

-Yeah.

-Excellent.

OK, now, Judith and CJ have played.

That leaves Chris, Daphne or Kevin.

I think I would like to go for Daphne.

-Please.

-Is that all right, Daphne?

Yes, it's fine, but I can get lost anywhere.

CJ: Hopefully. We wish.

LAUGHTER

CJ, take her for a long walk and abandon her somewhere.

Let's have Sally and Daphne into the question room, then, please.

Sally, you look after the health of the staff at the Eden Project, don't you?

That's right. I like to think I look after the people rather than the plants.

How many people work there altogether?

-Up to about 650 in the summer.

-In peak season?

That's a lot. It must be a pretty healthy environment to work in.

Even when you're inside, you're outside, if you know what I mean.

That's right. There's lots of different environments.

There's all sorts of places.

It's not just the outdoor, the gardens and so on.

Why have you chosen to play Geography?

Well, I've travelled a bit.

I'm just interested in the world in general, shall we say.

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

I'll go first, please.

Good luck, Sally. Here you go.

Imperial College, the science-based university founded in 1907

is located in which British city?

I think, if I remember correctly,

it's near Kensington or in Kensington,

so it's in London.

Imperial College - in London, that's the right answer. Well done, Sally.

Daphne, first question. Dortmund is a city in which European country?

Dortmund is a city in which European country?

Dortmund is in Germany.

Yes, it is. Just treble-checking there, were you, Daphne?

I thought you'd fire that back instantly. It's the right answer.

So, one each.

Sally, which river flows through the town of Merthyr Tydfil?

Well, Merthyr is in Wales.

The Avon is on the other side of the Bristol Channel.

The Severn also flows into the Bristol Channel.

I think it's the Taff.

The Taff is the right answer. Yes, Sally.

Daphne, Vancouver is located in which Canadian province?

Well, I have been to Canada but we only did the east coast,

and Vancouver's on the west coast in British Columbia.

We're going to go there one day.

-It's on the list, is it?

-Yes.

Things To Do.

You know where it is. That's the right answer.

British Columbia. OK, all square.

Next two questions might throw up a winner, might not.

Might take us to sudden death. Let's find out.

Sally, Port Louis is the capital of which island in the Indian Ocean?

Port Louis... It sounds like a French name.

Mauritius is part-French.

Zanzibar...

I'm going to go for Reunion.

OK, Reunion. You just kind of came out with that, didn't you?

Reunion. It's not right.

I thought you were going for Mauritius, which is correct.

Mauritius, because you were going with the French influences there.

So, not Reunion, and a chance for Daphne.

Daphne, in terms of surface area,

what is the second-largest island in the Orkney Islands?

What is the second-largest island in the Orkney Islands?

The minute you say, "How large is...", my heart sinks.

Oh, dear.

Hoy?

Hoy.

I don't know.

The answer is Hoy. It is correct, Daphne.

-That guessing...

-It's the only one I'd heard of.

It deserted you a while back

but you seem to be back on form in recent games.

Hoy is correct and Sally, again, just like Kevin,

just squeezed out on the third question.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

The Eggheads have gone ahead again.

Two Earthlings knocked out of the final round, one Egghead gone.

If you succeed in our next head-to-head, Earthlings,

that'll make it square in the final round.

And the head-to-head is sport, and Chris or Phil to play. Sport.

I'm happy to try that. Are you happy?

-I am happy for you to try.

-You're happy for me to try.

OK, Phil, and would you like to play Kevin or Chris?

I know Chris has some weaknesses on sport, I think,

so I think we'll choose Chris.

OK, hoping to expose the weaknesses you think he may have.

Let's have Phil and Chris into the question room, please.

Oh, Bolsover!

LAUGHTER

Well, Phil, you've done television quizzing before, haven't you?

I was lucky enough to be chosen for the University Challenge team

when the Eden Project was invited to field a team.

And I'm glad to say we did not disgrace ourselves

so managed to get a few questions right.

Very good. OK, well, no buzzer work here, of course, and no starters for 10.

Would you like to go first or second?

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

Good luck, Phil.

Mario Andretti was a leading name in which sport in the 20th century?

I believe he was famous in the '70s,

and I don't remember many Italian names in snooker

and he's not a tennis player, but definitely a Formula One

so it's motor sport.

It's absolutely right. Yes, Mario Andretti. OK, well, there we are.

Mario Andretti involved in motor sports.

So, first question for Chris now.

Chris, which jockey won the 2007 Epsom Derby on his 15th attempt?

Well, Pat Eddery and Frankie Dettori are both very well-known.

I think they'd have won the Derby at more than...

..at less than their 15th attempt.

I don't know the name Tony McCoy.

Yeah, I'll say Tony McCoy.

The others are too good. They must have won it before.

That question, if you knew about horse racing,

is quite easy, actually, cos Tony McCoy's the other code.

He's the champion National Hunt jockey,

so I don't think he'd be riding in the Epsom Derby.

Probably too heavy for it.

So it's not Tony McCoy and it is the legendary Frankie Dettori.

-15th attempt?

-Frankie Dettori, yes.

Didn't do it till 2007 on which horse, Eggheads?

Authorized.

Authorized carried Frankie to victory there.

So a real chance for you to get through here, then, Phil.

Second question.

Which boxer suffered the first defeat of his professional career

against Marco Antonio Barrera in 2001?

Right, boxing's not one of my stronger sporting subjects.

I know, I think, they were all boxing then

but it's difficult to choose which one.

I can't remember whether Ricky Hatton recently lost his unbeaten record.

Actually, I'll go for Naseem Hamed.

I don't know why, but I'll go for Naseem Hamed.

Don't know why? Well, you've landed the blow.

It's the right answer. Naseem Hamed.

So, Chris, you lose to Phil if you don't get the right answer here.

Kyran Bracken made his debut for England in which sport in 1993?

He plays rugby union.

Rugby is correct. Well done, Chris.

Well, still in it but only just.

A correct answer here puts Chris out.

Which former Davis Cup tennis player

became the coach of Andy Murray in 2007?

Which former Davis Cup tennis player

became the coach of Andy Murray in 2007?

2007?

Cos I know he was with an American before that for a while.

Um...

I...

I'm not certain

and I can't remember hearing the name Neil Broad

at all, to be honest.

I've heard the other two.

But I thought Andy Murray was really...

..didn't have too many coaches at present.

So Arvind Parmar and Miles Maclagan - it's a toss-up, really.

-I'll go for Miles Maclagan, Dermot.

-OK, Miles Maclagan.

Couple of guesses from the last two questions

and you've got it again!

My word.

You were down to 50/50, to be fair. You were down to 50/50 there.

And, CJ, our tennis correspondent on the Eggheads side.

Phil was right, wasn't he?

-Who did he have as a coach?

-He had Brad Gilbert.

Neil Broad is some time ago. He won silver at the Olympics with Henman.

And Arvind Parmar does do coaching, but I think he's juniors now.

OK, but the right answer supplied there by Phil - Miles Maclagan -

gets you through to the final round, Phil.

Prepare yourself. No place for you, Chris.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

So, this is what we've been playing towards.

It's time for the final round, which as always is General Knowledge.

Those of you who lost head-to-heads won't be allowed to take part.

Sally and Kevin from the Earthlings, Judith and Chris from the Eggheads,

would you leave the studio now, please?

So, Chris, Phil and Dan, you're playing to win the Earthlings £3,000.

Kevin, CJ and Daphne, you're playing for something which 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.

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

Would you like to go first or second?

I'd like to go first.

-We've gone first and it's worked for us.

-First, please.

Off we go.

All general knowledge, final round. Good luck to you, Earthlings.

Here's your question.

Who was the last Democrat to be elected President of the United States before Bill Clinton?

Got any ideas? I have, yeah.

I'm pretty sure it wasn't Lyndon B. Johnson.

No, he wasn't elected to start with.

-But then was elected after '64.

-He followed Kennedy.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure it wasn't Gerald Ford.

Yeah, because he followed Richard Nixon.

-It's definitely Jimmy Carter.

-Don't ask me, I'm redundant.

OK, Dermot, we're going for Jimmy Carter.

Dan saying he's redundant.

I'm sure your knowledge

will be required for some subsequent questions.

Jimmy Carter, on this one, is correct.

A one-term president.

Unlucky, though, as to when he got elected.

Just at the wrong time, with the oil crisis

and post-Vietnam blues. He did better than he was given credit for.

He was the first president to actually start international pressure

for human rights

and made a huge thing about this in the UN.

But he got a lot of adverse publicity.

It didn't go down well with the American public,

when he went on TV and said,

"You've got to tighten your belts. It's your fault."

Which was true but not what the American people wanted to hear.

Jimmy Carter is right. Eggheads, your question.

On a car, which term refers to the distance

between the centres of the front and rear axles?

On a car which term refers to the distance

between the centres of the front and rear axles?

That's the wheelbase.

The wheelbase?

It is, Eggheads, yes.

One to you. OK, Earthlings, second question.

Who designed the wedding dress worn by Victoria Adams

when she married David Beckham in 1999?

Where's Sally when we need her?

Well, I've never heard of Vera Wang.

I have a feeling it is Vera Wang.

If I had to guess I would go Stella McCartney but it would be a guess.

I would go for Stella McCartney.

But if you've got an idea that it's Vera Wang, then...

I don't think it's a Versace dress.

Donatella Versace. I've heard of her but I don't think...

Stella McCartney was the original one, initial one, that came up.

If you think that's right, Dan, I'd be happy with it.

Not if you two prefer the middle one.

What do you want to do?

Two for Stella McCartney, one for Vera Wang. Do we take the plunge?

What, with the two? The one with the...

-Stella McCartney?

-OK, go for Stella McCartney.

OK, we're not sure, Dermot, but we're going for Stella McCartney.

You should've listened to Dan.

He wasn't any use on the first one, he admitted himself,

but this one he was spot on - Vera Wang.

Vera Wang, first instinct from Dan as well.

OK, well, chance for the Eggheads to take the lead.

Eggheads, Fortunes Of War is the collective name given to a series of novels by which author?

Fortunes Of War is the collective name

given to a series of novels by which author?

Turned into a TV series with Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson

back in the '90s. It's Olivia Manning.

Olivia Manning is correct, the author of Fortunes Of War,

which means you've got to get this, Earthlings.

Blue Turns To Grey, a top 20 hit in 1966

for Cliff Richard And The Shadows

was written by which duo?

I think we can rule out Lennon and McCartney.

-This is our era, Chris.

-Yeah, I know.

Mick Jagger, I don't think...

Sounds like a Ray Davies, to be fair, to me, but I don't know.

Ray and Dave Davies ring a bell cos they did write quite a few songs.

I think I would know it if it was a Lennon-McCartney song. Definitely.

So we're going to rule out Lennon and McCartney?

-Yeah.

-Yeah. Mick Jagger.

-And rule out Jagger?

OK, if we've...if you've got an inkling with Ray and Dave Davies.

I'm just going on the timeline

but, as you said, Phil, I don't think it's...

I haven't heard of John Lennon and Paul McCartney writing that.

-Right, Ray and Dave Davies?

-Ray and Dave Davies.

Dermot, we'll go for Ray and Dave Davies.

Ray and Dave Davies wrote Blue Turns To Grey, you think?

It's Jagger and Richards. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.

Yeah, The Rolling Stones writing for Cliff Richard and the Shadows -

not one they really boast about these days, I think.

Which means, Eggheads, you've won.

It's amazing how quickly things change in Eggheads.

When Phil and Dan had to guess -

a bit of guessing in your head-to-head -

you had such an assured touch,

and then in the final round, it just disappeared.

You were really unlucky there.

Oh, we should have listened to Dan on Vera Wang.

Not to be. I'm afraid you only get one chance.

Thank you for coming along to play Eggheads and telling us all about the Eden Project.

More power to your elbows and the good work you do.

The Eggheads have done what comes naturally to them

and they still reign supreme over quiz land.

I'm afraid you won't be going home with £3,000,

which means the money rolls over to the 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.

£4,000 says they don't. Until then, goodbye.

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