Episode 42 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 challengers

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

They've won some of the country's toughest quiz shows.

They are the Eggheads.

Taking on our awesome quiz champions today,

Masters of the NHS, from Bristol.

This team of colleagues work in a variety of roles for the NHS,

and are all in the midst of studying for masters degrees.

Let's meet them.

Hi, my name's Donna, I'm 33.

I'm a community health development worker.

Hi, I'm Amy, I'm 30, and I'm a health promotion specialist.

Hi, I'm Alex, I'm 26. I'm a health promotion specialist.

Hi, I'm Mandy, I'm 52, and I'm a health promotion manager.

Hi, I'm Kate, I'm 31, and I'm a community health development worker.

Welcome to you, Masters of the NHS. "Masters" because of those degrees.

Donna, tell me how you fit that in with working, studying, as well.

We actually get day release from our work.

So some of us work part time or full time,

but we get a day to go to uni.

But, I mean, it adds to the stress.

You've got the stress of work, studying and domestic life.

You've still got to fit five days of work into four days.

-It's still the same amount of job.

-OK. And, of course,

I can see why it's a good idea to help you do this.

We kind of got made to do it!

Why did you decide to take on the Eggheads?

Bit of light relief, I suppose!

Uni was a bit easy, so... LAUGHTER

That's the kind of fighting talk I like!

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

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

Masters of the NHS, the Eggheads have won the last three games.

£4,000 says you can't beat the Eggheads.

Let's get on with it. Our first head-to-head battle today is:

Who'd like to play this?

My personal feeling would be that I'd rather do it now!

-I think that's a good plan!

-And leave you till the end.

-Are you sure?

-If Politics comes up, we need to leave Mandy, as well.

Donna, what are you trying to say?!

What do you think? Who should I play?

Any Egghead you like. It's the opening round.

Amy's going to take this and she's going to play against Chris.

Chris. OK. Amy and Chris for the opening round.

Could I ask you both please to take your positions in the Question Room?

Well, Amy, I know you do a lot of charity work.

You were involved in organising a charity quiz.

Tell me about the charity and the quality of the quizzing.

It's nothing to the standard of Eggheads!

Obviously!

It's really the raising awareness

for victims and survivors of domestic violence and abuse

and their children. So it's an awareness-raising thing.

It's general knowledge. But I'm always behind the scenes,

so this is a whole different thing for me!

OK, Amy, it's Film & Television.

-Would you like to go first or second?

-First, please.

Best of luck, Amy. Here's your first question.

In June, 2000, who made the news

when he appeared on the TV show he usually co-presented

dressed as Sacha Baron Cohen's character Ali G?

I remember this one. I don't think I watched it at the time.

But I remember it, because I remember his wife looking mortified.

I think he even won an award for how cringe-worthy it was.

I'm pretty sure it's Richard Madeley.

Yes. And "Me Judy" did look a bit, I think "nonplussed" was the phrase.

Richard Madeley is correct. Well identified, Amy.

You're on the board. Your first question, Chris.

Jones the Steam is a character in which children's TV series?

Well, look, boyo, I do not believe that you...

This is pure chance. It's got to be, hasn't it?

With Idris and Olwen the dragons living in his firebox,

trundling up and down

between Grumbly Gasworks and the other place,

it's got to be Ivor the Engine, hasn't it?

Ivor the Engine. Chris, you're a serious train enthusiast,

do you watch things like that?

-I used to when I was a kid.

-OK.

Before I ever went to school, my dear old mum taught me to read

with the first few Thomas the Tank Engine books, so...

-Maybe that's what started it. We've got them to blame.

-Yes.

Right answer. OK, Amy, second question.

Which of Alfred Hitchcock's films was advertised with the line

It's a deadly game of "tag" and Cary Grant is "it"?

I'm really not sure.

Erm, definitely not confident on this one,

so it probably will have to be a guess.

I've heard of Notorious and North by Northwest.

The third one, I'm not so sure of, so it's probably going to be that!

But I'm going to make a guess for North By Northwest.

OK, North By Northwest with Cary Grant.

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

North By Northwest. Well identified. You have two.

Chris, who starred as Charlotte opposite Bill Murray

in the 2003 film Lost In Translation?

I don't think it was Kirsten Dunst. Or Charlize Theron, come to that.

I think, I'm not too sure, I think it's Scarlett Johansson.

Scarlett Johansson is correct. Both got your film questions right.

And another question, Amy.

In the TV comedy series Flight of the Conchords,

what's the name of Bret and Jemaine's manager,

played by Rhys Darby?

Have you seen this? Do you watch it?

I have to admit, I am a fan, but I can't do a New Zealand accent.

Don't worry about that. We just want a correct answer.

Now I've said that, I'm under pressure.

I'm pretty sure that it's Murray.

Fingers crossed I've not being too confident.

Murray is the right answer! I'm glad you watched it.

OK, well, Murray is correct and that gives you the lead.

If Chris doesn't get this, it gives you a place in the Final Round.

Chris, which pop group starred in John Boorman's 1965 film

Catch Us If You Can?

This is my era.

It was set in London and it was The Dave Clark Five.

Not making Amy "Glad All Over" then.

It is the right answer. The Dave Clark Five.

Amy, you've done really well, three out of three. So has Chris.

We're going to make it harder and put you into Sudden Death.

Here's your question.

Which British actor's final film role

was playing a character named Sir Charles Litton

in Curse of the Pink Panther in 1983?

The only British actor that jumps to mind

when you think about Pink Panther is Peter Sellers.

But I don't think that was... I don't think he was in that role.

Erm...

I'm going to go with Peter Sellers, just because... Peter Sellers.

Better to say something, isn't it? But it's not Peter Sellers,

playing Inspector Clouseau, not Sir Charles Litton.

-Chris, do you know?

-David Niven.

-David Niven.

-Oh!

-The Curse of the Pink Panther.

OK, well, Chris, Anthony Quinn won an Oscar

for his famously brief performance in which 1956 film?

Er, Lust For Life.

Phew! Dredged that up! It's the right answer, yes!

-Know any more about it?

-It's a biopic of Vincent Van Gogh.

-I think he played Paul Gauguin.

-That's absolutely right.

Bad luck, Amy. Good quizzing. That Egghead being Chris

has knocked you out in Sudden Death.

He'll be in the Final Round and you won't. Sorry.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Narrow victory for the Eggheads.

It means Masters of the NHS have lost one brain.

Our second head-to-head today is Sport.

Who'd like to play this? It can't be Amy, but any of your colleagues.

You didn't want to go first, you can go second!

I'm going to play Sport.

-Who are you going to play against?

-Take CJ out.

-CJ.

-You've got a plan, haven't you? You're very quick on choosing.

So you're playing Sport and taking on CJ.

Could I ask you both please to take your positions in the Question Room?

So, Donna, would you like to go first or second?

I think I'll go first, please.

OK, good luck, Donna. Sport, first question.

Neil Fairbrother and Adam Hollioake

represented England at which sport during the 1990s?

OK, er,

I never heard of the first chap, Fairbrother,

but Adam Hollioake I have heard of, and his brother, Ben Hollioake,

and they play cricket.

Cricket is correct. Great start.

CJ, in tennis, the player to whom the ball is served is known as what?

-He or she would be the receiver.

-They most certainly would.

You received a very nice question, given your love of tennis.

Your second question, Donna.

The footballers Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard and John Terry

were all born in which year?

Erm...

I was born in 1977, so that would make them the same age as me,

and I think Ashley Cole is younger than me, I would say.

But not as... I think '83 is too late.

'77 could be too early. I'm going to go for 1980.

Very good. That's correct. Well worked out, Donna.

You have two.

CJ, long snapper is the name of a position in which sport?

Well, I haven't heard of it,

but in American football,

you have people who throw the ball a long distance

and you sort of snap your arm to throw it,

so it could be American football.

Erm... I've got a logical reason for American football, so I'll try that.

OK, American football...

..is the right answer. But the wrong logic!

The snap is when they start the game from between the players' legs.

A long snap is when they throw it a long way back on the fourth down.

-Understand?

-I don't care, though.

DERMOT LAUGHS

CJ got that right, Donna, but it's all square.

Next question for you.

In 2006, Felipe Massa made his debut for which Formula 1 racing team?

I don't think it was Renault.

I don't think it was Ferrari, either.

(Maybe it was Ferrari.)

I don't think it's Renault. I'm going to rule Renault out.

I'm going to go for Ferrari. I'm going to change my mind.

I'm going to stick with Ferrari, please.

A lot of players, including the Eggheads,

feel first instincts are the best to stay with.

Ferrari is correct!

-Well done!

-MANDY: Well done.

Worked that time.

Let's hope CJ doesn't catch up, we'll get you to the Final Round.

CJ, in which sport did Frankie Gavin

win a Commonwealth gold medal for England in 2006?

He's a boxer, so boxing.

Well done, CJ. Right answer.

So, again, second round in a row, into Sudden Death.

Donna, you've been dealing with the pressure really well.

In which sport would you be most likely

to put pressure on your opponents with a 40-20 kick?

OK, so...

I don't know.

Sumo wrestling? It's a guess. I don't know, though.

Sumo. OK, I see what you mean. Sumo wrestling.

It's not. It is rugby league.

-Oh. OK.

-Rugby league.

Well, a chance for CJ.

Which snooker player was a postman, miner and bus conductor

before turning professional at the age of 31

and winning the World Championship on his first attempt?

Another postman who won the World Championship on his first attempt

was Terry Griffiths, but I don't think he was 31,

whereas the...

Oh, hold on. Or was it Terry Griffiths?

Because... Oh, hold on.

Alex Higgins was the first player to win it

at his first attempt in 1972,

so it can't be, erm...

It can't be Ray Reardon, so it has to be...

-It has to be Terry Griffiths.

-So, your answer is...?

-Terry Griffiths.

-Terry Griffiths.

And while you were smiling, it nearly was Ray Reardon.

Until I realised he wasn't a postman!

Yes! It is the right answer. Terry Griffiths.

One of CJ's favourite subjects,

for those of you who've seen him on the World Championship coverage,

quizzing with the snooker players.

Nearly got it wrong, but that's the Egghead he is,

double checking and coming up with Terry Griffiths.

Bad luck, Donna. You won't be in the Final Round either.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Masters of the NHS, not quite mastering the Eggheads yet.

You've lost two brains from the Final Round,

but both of them in Sudden Death.

With just one more big push, you might get an Egghead knocked out.

This round is Arts & Books.

Who'd like to play this? It has to be either Alex, Mandy or Kate.

Do you want me to do that?

It's six of one and half a dozen of the other, really, isn't it?

-Do you want to be at the end on your own?

-I'll give it a go.

OK.

OK, Kate, with who would you like to play from the Eggheads?

It has to be Daphne, Kevin or Judith.

I'll let you decide.

Kate's going to play this one, Dermot,

and she will play against Judith, please.

OK, let's confirm that, then.

Kate taking this one on for Masters of the NHS,

and Judith taking it on for the Eggheads.

Would you both please make your way to the Question Room?

So, Kate, I understand you're a big Eggheads fan.

Yes, I've been watching it recently in my lunch break on BBC iPlayer.

Ah! OK! Do you demand total silence around you while you concentrate?

I share an office with Mandy, so we watch it together.

There's a lot of conferring!

All right. Would you like to go first or second?

First, please.

No conferring now. No-one to confer with.

First question, then.

The long-running Sweet Valley High series of books

about beautiful blond twins, Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield,

is set in which country?

This series of books isn't one that I'm familiar with,

but I do remember my friends reading them when they were about 11 or 12,

and I think I'm going to go with USA.

Sweet Valley High, USA is correct.

Judith, in the name of the 15th century painter Fra Angelico,

what is the meaning of the title "Fra"?

It's brother. He was a monk.

It is. Brother Angelico.

Straight back to you, Kate.

The title character of which Dickens novel

has a father called William,

who spends part of the novel imprisoned in Marshalsea Prison?

This isn't a Dickens book that I'm familiar with.

It's going to have to be a guess, I'm afraid.

I'm going to go with Nicholas Nickleby.

Nicholas Nickleby. Is Dad in prison?

It's not. Do you know, Judith?

-It's Little Dorrit.

-It is Little Dorrit.

Not Judith's question. She doesn't get a point for it.

She has to give a correct answer here.

In what decade were the Hugo Awards for science fiction first given?

I don't know anything about science fiction.

Well, the '40s was in the war,

so unless it was the late '40s, I think that's unlikely.

Erm, I think it probably might've been the...

I don't know. 1950s.

1950s for the Hugo Awards.

It is correct, Judith.

-I won't ask you for any more information.

-I haven't got any.

Hugo Awards, from the 1950s.

Judith got it, so it means you must get this, Kate.

What is the name of the decorative process

whereby incisions are made into metal,

which are then filled with coloured enamel?

This isn't a term that I've heard of before.

Erm... I'm just having a look at the words

and seeing if there's any hints in them at all, but I'm not seeing any!

Incisions being made into metal and then filled with coloured enamel.

I think I might go with cliche verre.

Cliche verre for this process.

It's not. No. Not cliche verre.

-Do you know, Judith?

-I think it's probably champleve,

because that means "raised field".

It is champleve, which you didn't identify.

So that round ends rather swiftly. Kate won't be in the Final Round.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

And then there were two.

Masters of the NHS have lost three brains from the Final Round.

The Eggheads haven't lost any.

Come on, let's get one of them out!

Our last subject is Politics.

-GIRLS LAUGH

-Oh, dear. Mandy or Alex?

OK! All right.

Alex says she wants to do this.

They're not really politicians!

-Who are we playing?

-Politics is probably our weakest subject!

But Alex is going to play this round.

-Against...

-Daphne?

-Yes.

-And she'll play Daphne.

OK, it's going to be Alex and Daphne on this one. Politics.

The Question Room is the place to do it!

-Alex, do you want to go first or second?

-First, please.

Good luck, Alex.

The Conservative Party's manifesto for the 2010 General Election

was titled "Invitation To Join" what?

Now, I'm not sure on this one.

I'm going to kick myself afterwards.

I'm pretty sure it's not The Government of Britain.

That's a bit too forward-thinking of them.

-LAUGHTER

-I think I'm going to go...

..between The Future and Next Generation.

I'm going to go with The Future.

Invitation To Join The Future.

They'd all fit, wouldn't they?

But it was not Invitation to Join The Future.

It was The Government of Britain.

Invitation to Join The Government of Britain.

OK, Daphne. What general name is given to policies

aimed at countering discrimination against minorities and women,

especially in the workplace and education?

I think that must be Affirmative Action.

Is the right answer. Yes, Affirmative Action.

We need to get you moving, Alex.

Viktor Chernomyrdin served as the prime minister of Russia

in which decade of the 20th century?

This is going to be a complete guess.

SHE SIGHS

I'm going to go down the middle. 1980s.

Viktor Chernomyrdin, prime minister of Russia.

It's not the '80s, no. Daphne?

-'90s.

-'90s. Of course, it was the USSR before the 1990s.

OK, well, it means you can win the round if you get this, Daphne.

Egyptian president Anwar Sadat shared the Nobel Prize for peace

with which Israeli prime minister

after the two had earlier signed the Camp David Accords?

I can't remember! Erm...

I really can't.

Isn't that awful?

Apologies to my team,

erm...

Begin?

-Menachem Begin...

-No?

-..is the right answer, Daphne.

-That is correct.

-My mind went blank!

It seems it did, but something inkled.

-Yes!

-The '70s wasn't it, er...

-Jimmy Carter.

-Jimmy Carter.

Got together at Camp David, the presidential retreat.

That gives you the round. Just got it there, Daphne.

It means you won't be playing in the Final Round, Alex.

Please come back and join your teams.

So this is what we've been playing towards.

It's time for the Final Round. As always, general knowledge.

I'm afraid those of you who lost your head-to-heads

won't be allowed to take part.

Donna, Amy, Alex and Kate from Masters of the NHS,

would you leave the studio, please?

So, Mandy, you're playing to win the Masters of the NHS £4,000.

Judith, Kevin, CJ, Daphne and Chris are playing for something

which money can't buy - the Eggheads' reputation.

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

They're all general knowledge. You can confer.

Mandy, the question is,

is your one brain better than the Eggheads' five?

-Mandy, would you like to go first or second?

-Second, please.

OK, let's hope your luck changes. Eggheads, the first question.

In the NATO phonetic alphabet,

which word is used to represent the letter U?

ALL: Uniform.

It's uniform.

Uniform is correct.

-How would you have been with that?

-I should've gone first.

Well, let's see what the second set holds.

The first question is this.

Wincey Willis found fame on TV in the 1980s in which capacity?

That's why they brought an older person along!

She was a weather presenter. I remember her well.

Wincey Willis, the weather presenter. It's right, yes.

Eggheads, second question.

What type of creature is the Red-crowned Amazon?

-Here we go now!

-Do we know?

-No.

-Oh, I thought... I'm sorry.

The Red-crowned Amazon, eh? Any thoughts, Chris?

-I'd go for parrot.

-That would be my instinct.

It doesn't sound like a fox with a mohican, or something like that.

-Er...

-Monkey?

-JUDITH: It could be a monkey.

It's that red-headed macaw-type thing.

We'd have heard of it, I would've thought.

Parrot. Red-crowned, yes, Amazon, yes.

-It sounds...

-Birdie.

-It sounds right.

We don't know, but we'll go for parrot.

All that brain power there

and in the end it comes down to "it sounds birdie"!

-It's the right answer.

-Thank God for that.

My goodness me. OK, well,

-let's see how you do with your second.

-OK.

Ben Grimm is the alter ego

of which member of the comic book superhero team the Fantastic Four?

I've seen the film

and so I'm trying to think who they would call Ben.

Ohh...

I can't decide if that's The Human Torch or The Thing.

I don't think it's The Silver Surfer.

So I'm going for The Hu...

The Thing is my answer. The Thing.

You started saying "The Hu...".

The Human Torch was what I started to say.

-Am I going to hit myself?

-No, you've got the right answer.

-Excellent!

-Last minute there! Last millisecond.

-It was.

-Well done. Something jumped into your mind.

-It did.

The Thing is Ben Grimm.

So, is it going to be grim for the Eggheads?

Who assassinated US president William McKinley in 1901?

Who assassinated US president William McKinley in 1901?

THEY CONFER

It's Leon, er...

I think I'd say "Zolgosh", but there we go.

It's the right answer, Eggheads. Leon Czolgosz.

They have three, which means the pressure's on you now, Mandy.

Which best-selling 1907 novel by Elinor Glyn gave rise to the rhyme,

"Would you like to sin With Elinor Glyn

"On a tiger skin?

"Or would you prefer To err with her

"On some other fur?"

I have no idea.

Never heard of it. Don't even know any of the answers.

It's going to be an absolute and pure guess.

(Would you like to decide?)

Erm...

The Man and the Moment doesn't sound like something a woman...

I'm not going to say "It".

It's between Three Weeks and The Man and the Moment.

My captain always said if I didn't know, go straight down the middle,

so I'm going to obey, The Man and the Moment.

The Man and the Moment by Elinor Glyn...

It's not The Man and the Moment. What is it, Eggheads?

-Three Weeks.

-It's Three Weeks.

Three Weeks. Which means, Eggheads, you've won.

OK, well, it means the Eggheads have won it,

but some of those head-to-heads were tight.

-You played really well in that final round.

-Thank you.

The Thing will stick in the mind.

You went from The Human Torch to The Thing in a millisecond.

The other thing about you, Masters of the NHS,

it's great quizzing, Eggheads,

with people who love the show, know all about how it works,

and quizzed with such enthusiasm? But, it must be said, no luck!

-No luck! But, hey, we've had fun.

-We've had a lot of fun having you.

Thank you for coming in to see and play the Eggheads.

Best of luck with all those studies.

The Eggheads have done what comes naturally. They still reign supreme.

I'm afraid you won't be going home with the £4,000.

That means the money rolls over.

Eggheads, congratulations. Who will beat you?

Join us next time to see if a new team of challengers

have the brains to defeat them.

£5,000 says they don't. Until then, goodbye.

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