Episode 37 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 are the Eggheads. Taking on the might of our quiz Goliaths today

are the Phoenix Knights.

They take their name from the social club they meet at,

based in Worthing. Let's meet them.

Hi, I'm Peter. I'm 72. I'm a retired tax inspector.

Hello. I'm Eddie. I'm 64. I'm a retired accountant.

Hello. I'm Paul. I'm 62 and a retired science teacher.

Hi. I'm Colin. I'm 61 and I'm an HR consultant.

Hi. I'm Kirk. I'm 49 and I'm an NHS supervisor.

Welcome to you, Phoenix Knights. Fans of Peter Kay then.

I didn't know there was a real Phoenix club.

-There it is, down in Worthing.

-That's right.

Your social club, do you have things like bands and Talent Trek

-and things like that?

-It's mainly a sports and social club.

So four of us play badminton together regularly.

Other sports are played there as well. And we also do quiz nights.

That's what I wanted to hear!

-Presumably, it's a very hard, tough, competitive quiz.

-Not too bad.

Not quite as hard, tough and competitive as this one may turn out to be.

Best of luck. Every day there's £1,000 worth of cash up for grabs.

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

The Eggheads have won the last six games.

That means £7,000 says you can't beat the Eggheads.

OK, our first battle, the first subject is Film and Television.

-Who'd like to kick us off?

-Kirk.

-Looks like it's me.

-Who are you going to take on?

-You can pick any Egghead, of course.

-Shall we have a go at Chris?

-Yeah, sure. OK.

-Chris, yeah.

-Kirk, you're going to take on Chris.

The subject is Film and Television.

Could I ask you both, please, to go to the question room?

That is so you can't confer with your team-mates.

Well, Kirk, first in to joust for the Phoenix Nights.

Would you like to go first or second?

I'd like to go first, please.

Good luck. Film and television. And your first question is this.

Which sport is featured

in the Academy Award nominated documentary film Hoop Dreams?

I think I'll rule out rugby league. It's one of my favourite sports.

I don't think it's rugby league.

Hoops I know they use in basketball,

but they also use a sort of hoop thing in croquet.

But I think the obvious answer is basketball,

so I'll go for basketball.

There was an ominous intake of breath

when you mentioned hoops in croquet as well from your team-mates.

But you were just letting us know and you got the right answer.

Basketball. Hoop Dreams. Your first question, Chris.

Kacey Ainsworth joined the cast of EastEnders in 2000,

playing which character?

I'm not Judith. I've never watched EastEnders,

having spent most of my life living in a not dissimilar area.

Kacey Ainsworth, she's a young lass. Erm...

Not Chrissie, not Sonia. Little Mo.

And the answer is Little Mo. Well done.

All square.

Kirk, who played the title roles in the 2010 film

Alice in Wonderland and the 2011 film Jane Eyre?

Well, I saw Jane Eyre...

..and I thought the lead performance was excellent.

I seem to remember that she had a Polish name.

So I think on that basis,

I'm going to go for Mia Wasikowska.

OK, well remembered.

It's the right answer.

Chris.

Which Hollywood actor directed and starred in

the 2011 political thriller The Ides Of March?

Hmm.

Think Redford's semi-retired now.

Political thriller.

Ben Affleck tends to do more cerebral stuff,

so I'll go with George Clooney.

Yeah. It's the right answer. Well done.

And third question apiece. Kirk, going really well.

Kirk, who directed the first in the Rocky series of films?

This is going to be a guess.

I'm going to rule out Sylvester Stallone...

for no particular reason, except that I know he wrote it,

so I just don't think he was ready for directing at the time.

I'm going to go for John G Avildsen.

-That's my answer.

-OK, yes.

Sylvester Stallone deeply involved with that.

I mean, it was a project

he had to tout around for a long time, wasn't it, to get it made?

And what a success it turned out to be.

Directed, though, by John G Avildsen.

Well done!

And, Chris, it means you've got to get this.

The TV sitcom The Vicar Of Dibley was set in which county?

Well, the opening credits have got the M40 where it goes through

the limestone ridge of the Chilterns,

so dropping down from there,

it should by rights be Oxfordshire.

THEY LAUGH

You with your love of transport identifying it by the roads.

-Yeah.

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

Not by the churches or anything like that, no. The roads.

OK, well, we go to Sudden Death. First round, first Sudden Death.

Kirk, this means you're both quizzing so incredibly well,

we're going to make it a lot harder to sort out a winner

and take away those choices.

So, just got to hear an answer from you.

Who played the role of Penny in the BBC sitcom Just Good Friends?

I don't remember seeing Just Good Friends, or if I did,

it was quite a few years ago.

-No, I'm going to have to pass on that, Dermot.

-OK.

Yes, I mean, it was such a huge hit, wasn't it, in the '80s?

The on-off relationship in Just Good Friends.

Do you know, Chris?

-Yeah, Jan Francis.

-Jan Francis.

Yeah, well remembered.

Just slipped your mind there, Kirk.

I'm sure you saw it at the time.

But, first chance then, for Chris.

Chris, who was the host of the TV game show Celebrity Squares

when it started on British television in 1975?

Er...

That was Bob Monkhouse, surely?

-Is that your answer?

-Yeah.

Bob Monkhouse is correct.

Well...

great round there. Bad luck, Kirk.

Jan Francis just evading you. I'm sure you would've got it

in the first three questions in the multiple choice.

But it went to Sudden Death,

and Chris has clinched it. You won't be in the final round, Kirk.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Well, great round to start us off,

but the Phoenix Knights have lost one brain from the final round.

The Eggheads are all there.

And our next subject is History.

Now, well, Knights, I would expect you all to enjoy History.

Do you think...?

I think that'll be Eddie. I think.

THEY DISCUSS

All right, Eddie, well, who do you want to go into combat against?

Which Egghead? It can't be Chris.

I don't know. They're all good.

-They're all good at History, aren't they?

-Yeah.

-Take the least good?

Go for CJ. CJ.

OK, CJ. With a grin.

THEY LAUGH

Let's have Eddie and CJ into the Question Room, please.

Eddie, would you like to go first or second?

I'd like to go first, please.

Eddie, first question for you.

The 30 Years' War was a series of European conflicts

that occurred during which century?

Well, I think we can certainly rule out the 19th century...

because there...

wasn't time for it with all the other conflicts that were going on.

So, I'm going to go...

I'm not absolutely certain, but I'm going to go for the 15th century.

OK, the 15th century for the 30 Years' War. CJ?

-17th, I think.

-It's 17th century.

Anyone give me the date?

Was this like the 100 Years' War - it wasn't 30 years?

-No, it was 30 years.

-It was 30 years.

-ALL SPEAK AT ONCE

-1618-1648, I think.

Everyone's telling me! 1618-1648.

Well, everyone apart from you, Eddie.

This was the important player here.

So, nothing there. CJ.

Which American president gave the first televised

presidential address from the White House,

in which he asked American citizens to conserve food

in order to benefit post-war Europe?

Well, it's not Eisenhower.

Depends if it was the First World War or the Second World War.

Wilson was president until 1921, I think.

Which was three years after, whereas Harry S Truman came in in 1945.

So it makes sense it was Truman after World War II,

so I'll try Harry S Truman.

Yeah, even with the Americans, I don't think TV was around much

before the Second World War.

It's the right answer, yes. Harry S Truman.

OK, and need to get you off the mark then, Eddie.

In British history, Hortense Mancini

was a popular figure in the court of which king?

It sounds like an Italian name.

But that doesn't really help me very much.

I'm going to take a complete guess again - Charles II.

Charles II...

is correct. You're on the board.

CJ, your second question.

Marie-Jose de Savoy was the last queen of which country,

reigning for just over a month in 1946?

I think the last monarch of Italy was Umberto II,

and I think the last monarch of Greece was Constan.

Constan whatever-his-name-was.

Er...

So, simply cos I know...

I think I know the last monarchs of Italy and Greece, I'll try Spain.

Yeah, but they've still got one, haven't they?

-Oh!

-THEY LAUGH

Oh, dear. Yeah.

Yeah, it's Italy. And Savoy the link there, I think.

-House of Savoy, yeah.

-House of Savoy.

Victor Emmanuel died and she was queen for a month

before they abolished the monarchy.

Queen for a month in 1946 over Italy.

CJ getting confused, Eddie, to your benefit.

It's all square now, and this puts you in the lead if you get it.

What name was given to the process of freeing serfs or slaves?

Oh, my goodness! Erm...

Again, I've got no idea.

Escheat, I think, is a modern term,

so I'm going to discount escheat.

Manumission...

again, I don't think it's that, so I'm going to go for infangthief.

Infangthief. All wonderful words...

..but I didn't want to hear that from you. It's not correct. CJ?

-I would've tried manumission.

-Manumission.

Manumission. The process of freeing serfs or slaves.

So, a chance to wrap it up, CJ.

With four different husbands,

which of Henry VIII's wives was married the most number of times?

With four different husbands,

which of Henry VIII's wives was married the most number of times?

Simply cos I know she was long-lived

and married at least one more time, I'll try Catherine Parr.

It is the right answer.

Well worked out, CJ. Catherine Parr.

Married four times in total, which puts you through to the final round.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Well, let's look at the standings after that.

Two Knights put to the sword so far.

The Eggheads all still fighting fit.

And our next subject today is Sport.

Who'd like to play this one then?

-Peter, Paul or Colin?

-Go on, then. Go on, then.

-Who am I going to take out of that lot, then?

-Oh, dear.

-Sport.

I would think, probably...

-Because he's expecting it, isn't he?

-Daphne, please.

OK, so, not Pat or Barry. Going for Daphne on Sport.

They know not what they do, do they?

THEY LAUGH

The Venus flytrap. OK.

Let's have you both into the Question Room, please,

Colin and Daphne.

All right. Colin, let's see if the tide turns here.

Do you want to go first or second?

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

Good luck, Colin. It's Sport, and your first question is this -

John Gosden became famous as a trainer in which sport?

I guess there are many more...

trainers in horse racing than swimming or boxing,

so I'll go horse racing.

I see, on the percentages. Right to do so.

Yes, John Gosden,

a very famous and prolific winning trainer.

And, Daphne -

what's the first name of the nephew of Ayrton Senna,

who made his debut as a Formula 1 driver in 2010?

Haven't heard this.

Bruno Senna,

(Boris and Bernard.)

Oh, I like the sound of Bruno.

Bruno, OK. So, a guess?

-A guess.

-Of course!

And the right answer, of course.

Of course, Daphne! Goes without saying.

Daphne has a guess and in it goes.

Not always though. OK, Colin's second question.

Who won the men's 100m final at the Athletics World Championships

in 2011 when Usain Bolt was controversially disqualified

after one false start?

We were all watching Usain Bolt, weren't we?

Erm... Christophe Lemaitre didn't, as far as I remember.

And Walter Dix sounds like a European runner.

I don't think it was an European runner. So I'll go for Yohan Blake.

Well worked out. Right answer, yes.

A really tricky question and well negotiated by Colin.

And your next question then, Daphne.

When Great Britain won tennis's Davis Cup in 1936,

it brought the total number of victories to how many?

Gosh! Eeny, meeny, miney, moe, again, I think.

Let's see, started in 1900...

I suppose we were quite good early on, so I will guess again at nine.

Yeah, that's right.

OK, both of you going magnificently and we go to a third question.

This one for Colin.

The Thomas Lipton Trophy, which took place in Italy in 1909

and 1911, is seen as a predecessor to which competition?

Goodness! Erm...

Thomas Lipton. The tea man, presumably.

Why would you be competing in Italy?

It's not the Ryder Cup because that's...

originally was between the UK and the USA.

So you wouldn't have a forerunner in Italy.

I'll go for the Winter Olympics.

The Winter Olympics in Italy. Thomas Lipton Trophy.

It's not. It's your first incorrect answer.

Daphne, of the other two options?

-Well, I might have gone for the Ryder Cup.

-No. Interesting.

-It's the Football World Cup.

-Right.

-But a chance for Daphne.

The Hungarian sportsman Pal Szekeres won both Olympic

and Paralympic medals in which sport?

Another guess coming up!

The only thing I can think of

is that the Hungarians were very good at fencing,

so I'll go for fencing.

Fencing, bit of a guess?

-Yes.

-Yeah. Well, of course it is. And of course it's right!

It is correct, Daphne. How she does it!

Colin, seeing a master...

or a mistress at her work there.

Fantastic quizzing there, Daphne.

Always a bit of information in her head that perhaps

she doesn't share with us when those guesses are landed.

But it means, Colin, you're not in the final round. Daphne, you are.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Good Knights, one and all, who've fallen so far, but fallen you have.

Three brains gone from the final round and all the Eggheads

still there, salivating over the final round!

Let's get rid of one of them, at least.

This head-to-head is Geography. And Paul or Peter can play.

-I'll take that one.

-Peter, do stay with us and choose your opponent.

-You've got Pat or Barry.

-I will go for Barry.

OK, it's going to be Peter and Barry playing Geography, both, from the question room, please.

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

-I'll go first, please.

And it's Geography, of course.

Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach are resorts in which US state?

I think I'll rule out Maine

because they've got a sort of Spanish feel to them.

In which case, it could be California or Florida.

But I suppose California is perhaps more Spanish,

so I'll go for California.

California for those beaches. Correct, yes. Good start.

Barry, what colour is the triangular section

of the Czech Republic's flag?

That's helpful(!)

Those are the three colours of the Czech Republic's flag!

I've got to try and picture it in my mind.

Blue.

-You finally saw it, did you?

-Yes, I think so!

The old brain clicking over.

The projector, somebody turned the lights on!

It's the right answer, well done! Just kept himself in it.

Nearly a big opening for you, Peter.

But started very assuredly yourself. Second question.

The archaeologically significant island group

called the Egadi Islands lies off the coast of which European island?

Erm... I will, maybe incorrectly, but I'll eliminate Cyprus.

I've been there. I did national service there.

-Oh, really?

-And the erm...other two... They sound Italian...

..so it could be either.

The biggest island is Sicily, so we'll go for Sicily.

OK.

Good knowledge there of your Mediterranean islands

and it's the right one, yes!

Sicily, with the Egadi Islands offshore. Well done, Peter.

Barry, Gaping Gill, one of the largest caverns in Britain

is located in which National Park?

I've been down Gaping Gill and it's in the Yorkshire Dales.

Wish we could throw you back down there now!

-Fell very nicely for you.

-It did indeed.

Gaping Gill in the Yorkshire Dales.

The Heights of Abraham featuring an Alpine-style cable car system

is a popular tourist destination near which English town?

Fortunately, I've been in that area.

I think it's in the county of Derbyshire, so it'll be Matlock.

Matlock. It's only fair you got that after Barry got Gaping Gill.

Let's confirm Matlock is correct. A lot of people didn't know that.

Matlock should sing that from the rooftops. Sounds great fun,

going up the Heights of Abraham.

Well, it means you've got to get this, then, Barry.

What is the capital of the French Departement of Loire?

It's certainly not Dijon. I'm trying to think where Saint-Etienne is.

-I don't think it's Saint-Etienne. I think it's Le Mans.

-Le Mans.

You could sit there for 24 hours and still be getting it wrong.

Wrong! No, it's Saint-Etienne.

So, Peter, I think, deservedly through to the final round.

Great quizzing from Peter.

Booking your place alongside Paul in the final.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

So this is what we've been playing towards. It's the final.

As always, it's General Knowledge.

Those of you who lost your head-to-heads won't be allowed

to take part, so, Eddie, Colin and Kirk from the Phoenix Knights,

and Barry from the Eggheads, would you leave the studio?

Peter and Paul, you're playing to win the Phoenix Knights £7,000.

CJ, Daphne, Chris and Pat, you're playing for something

which money cannot buy, the Eggheads' reputation.

I ask each team three questions.

This time, the questions are all General Knowledge and you are allowed to confer.

Peter and Paul, are your two brains better than the Eggheads' four?

-Peter and Paul, do you want to go first or second?

-We'll go first, please, Dermot.

Good luck to you. The first question is this.

In 2011, who became the first musician to win a second

Mercury Prize when she won for her album Let England Shake?

I don't know where it comes from,

but I would be inclined to go for PJ Harvey.

-I've never heard of Beth Orton.

-I think Beth Orton is a country singer.

And Anna Calvi I haven't heard of. I have heard of PJ Harvey.

So a 50% guess, we'll go for PJ Harvey, Dermot.

50%, narrowing it down and getting it right. Yes, PJ Harvey.

Good start there. Let England Shake.

Are the Eggheads going to be shaking after this?

Will the quiz world be aflutter?

OK, in the history of mobile telecommunications,

the first commercial 3G network was launched in which country in 2001?

-We've got to play the percentages and go for Japan.

-Yeah.

Assuming it's not Canada! Japan's the percentage answer, isn't it?

Docomo was a big mobile network.

And the Japanese public telephone crowd are huge, NKK,

or whatever they're called.

-Are we going to go for Japan?

-It's the logical answer.

-OK. Agreed?

We don't know, Dermot, but we're going for Japan.

Japan is the right answer. Japan is correct, Eggheads.

Had to think about it though.

OK, Phoenix Knights, Peter and Paul, second question.

Which President of the United States had the secret service codename Rawhide?

Which President of the United States

had the secret service codename Rawhide?

-I guess Reagan.

-Well, he was in cowboy films.

-Yes, he was.

-And I wouldn't have thought it was Bill Clinton.

-Or George Bush.

-I think the logical answer's Reagan.

-I think so.

I think we'll go for Ronald Reagan.

OK, Ronald Reagan for Rawhide. And yes, right answer.

Maybe some of those cowboy films he'd been in behind that,

as you were speculating.

Eggheads, the stage show Betty Blue Eyes, which opened

in the West End in April 2011, is based on which comedy film?

The stage show Betty Blue Eyes, which opened in the West End

in April 2011, is based on which comedy film?

That's A Private Function.

Is the right answer, yes. A Private Function.

OK. Well, all square.

This could win you the money, you never know.

The European Organisation For Nuclear Research, commonly known

as CERN, was established in Geneva in which decade?

-Not the '90s.

-Not recently.

-No. '70s?

I mean, they had the atomic bomb,

was in the '40s, wasn't it?

-Yes.

-It depends when they got their act together about it.

-And the Missile Crisis in the '60s.

-I'd go for the '70s, wouldn't you?

-Or do you think earlier?

-I'd go for the '50s, but I don't know.

-I defer to you. I think I will.

-Well, you're the spokesman.

I would say the '60s.

I think with some hesitation,

we'll go for the '50s, Dermot.

Bit of thought about that. You rather favouring the '70s.

-It's the 1950s. It is correct!

-Well done.

Can any Egghead tell me the precise date and what CERN stands for?

I think that's Centre Europeen pour la Recherche Nucleaire.

OK, and the year? 1950s, we only wanted the decade. 1954.

OK. Well, Eggheads, don't ponder on that one.

A lot of pondering on this one. You need this to stay alive.

The author who wrote historical thrillers under the name

Ariana Franklin was married to which TV personality?

Oh, dear.

I've no idea.

-No idea.

-No idea.

Presumably, that's not her real name. So...

Do we know if any of those were married to an author?

Why is Barry Norman nagging me about being married to an author?

Don't know.

His daughter's a journalist.

For some reason, Norman was nagging me about being married to a writer.

But I've got nothing to go on.

David Dimbleby kind of sounds of a bookish...type of person.

But that's not very scientific.

-Can we even eliminate any of them?

-I'm not sure we can.

They're all TV personalities. There's no reason why any of them

shouldn't be married to an authoress.

-You choose.

-It's just a wild pick.

-It's a wild pick.

A wild pick, we're at sea completely, David Dimbleby.

OK, David Dimbleby.

Married of course, previously to Josceline Dimbleby,

who wrote those cookery books. It's Barry Norman!

As CJ thought, Barry Norman. Which means you've won!

Congratulations, Phoenix Knights!

All those head-to-heads, you quizzed really well, but didn't manage to make it through to the final.

You must have thought the luck wasn't with you. You didn't need any luck in this round.

You really put it to the Eggheads. Very assured quizzing.

And then the Eggheads stumbling, which means you've won £7,000.

Take that away, followed by our congratulations. Phoenix Knights, thank you very much indeed.

You are officially cleverer than the Eggheads. You've proved they can be beaten.

Join us next time on Eggheads to see if a new team of challengers will be just as successful.

Until then, goodbye.

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