Episode 71 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.

They are the Eggheads.

And taking on our awesome quiz champions today are...

This team of old school friends

attended King's College in London together

and now regularly meet up to play football and socialise together.

Let's meet them.

Hi, I'm George. I'm 25, and I'm a luxury travel consultant.

Hi, I'm Chris. I'm 25, and I'm a PhD student.

Hi, I'm Henry. I'm 26, and I'm a lawyer.

Hi, I'm John. I'm 26, and I'm a journalist.

Hello, I'm Josh. I'm 26, and I'm a financial consultant.

George and team, welcome.

-Thank you.

-You were at school together - doing the same subjects, or what?

-Um...not really.

In the same classes, the same sports teams, and then as a group of friends

we just sort of came together and haven't really split up yet.

That's good, particularly if it doesn't happen this afternoon! How's the quizzing going?

It's all right. We've done a few quizzes every now and then, recently, to prep up for the show.

But we've been doing quizzes since we were 16, 17 years old.

We have this fantasy that we are big on campuses.

We don't have any evidence, but we like to believe that students are watching.

I can speak for Josh and myself, because we were at university together.

-We spent a lot of time watching the show.

-Really?

-Yeah.

OK, it's official, everyone.

So, every day, there's £1,000 of cash up for grabs.

However, if our challengers fail to defeat the Eggheads, the prize money rolls over to the next show.

So, Kings of Kings, the Eggheads have won the last five games,

which means £6,000 says you can't beat them today.

-Would you like to try?

-Yes, please.

First head-to-head battle is on film and television.

So, who would like to take this?

That's going to be George.

George?

OK, a team captain against which Egghead?

Good question. >

Barry?

Maybe Barry, I don't know.

Could be Barry.

If you think Barry...

We're going to go with Barry.

All right, so it's George from Kings of Kings versus Barry. Film and TV?

Strong for you?

Er, it's getting stronger.

OK, versus Barry from the Eggheads.

To ensure there's no conferring, please take your positions in the question room.

What are you up to, George, professionally?

I work as a luxury travel consultant to Latin America,

so I put together honeymoons and anniversary trips,

and luxurious trips to a very interesting continent.

-And business has withstood the crash, has it?

-Very much so.

Always growing and very interesting.

Do you do any of those trips, Barry, with Mrs Barry?

Yes, I went to South America a couple of years ago, to Peru.

Loved every minute of it.

-OK, and Peru came up the other day, didn't it?

-Comes up quite often.

That's why you were there, I expect.

I'll ask you each three multiple-choice questions in turn.

Whoever answers the most correctly is the winner.

George, you can choose the first or second set of questions.

I'll go second, please.

OK, film and TV. Here we go, Barry.

Kelly, Jill and Sabrina were the first names

of the original main characters of which 1970s TV series?

Oh, they were the inimitable Charlie's Angels.

They were indeed Charlie's Angels.

OK, George. Your question.

Which TV location is bounded by Rosamund Street and Viaduct Street?

That's an interesting question.

I don't know the answer. I don't think it would be Holby General.

Um...

I think I'm going to go with Albert Square.

No, that's not right.

It is Coronation Street.

OK.

Barry, your second question.

In which of his films does Arnold Schwarzenegger deliver the line,

"Hasta la vista, baby"?

I think in Terminator one, Arnold Schwarzenegger said 80 words.

And yet it's an iconic role.

But he says, "Hasta la vista, baby,"

I'm pretty certain that's in Terminator 2.

Terminator 2 is the right answer, well done - Judgement Day.

OK, George, it's Judgement Day for you if you don't get this right.

In order to qualify for the Oscars,

a film generally needs to have played

for at least one week in which city?

Well, I'm quite a big fan of cinema -

I listen to some podcasts and reviews.

I'm pretty confident that would be a local cinema in Los Angeles.

You're absolutely right, well done.

So, you have a point now.

And we wait to see whether Barry takes the round with this answer.

Barry, what was the surname of the woolly hat-wearing Benny

played by Paul Henry in the TV soap, Crossroads?

Ooh, I've got to dredge this one out of my mind.

Benny Dutton...

Benny Mason...

Dutton and Mason don't ring any bells,

but Benny Hawkins does, so I'll go for Hawkins.

-Benny Hawkins, you think. Do you young guys know?

-No idea.

Chris is nodding, so...

It was a real collector's item, I must say.

It went on for years, didn't it? How long did it go on for?

I think the first incarnation was about 20-odd years,

then it came back again.

I think it came back, briefly, and then...

Who was the famous ginger-haired lady?

-Noele Gordon.

-That's right.

-Meg Richardson, Mortimer, whatever.

To put you out of your misery, Barry, it is correct. Well done.

You're in the final. George, sorry.

You've been knocked out by our Egghead,

so please, both of you re-join your teams.

So, we have a situation where the Kings of Kings have lost one brain - the captain's brain.

Eggheads have lost no brains.

The next subject is science.

-Who's the scientist?

-Literally, Chris.

-It's got to be Chris.

-Literally, the scientist. OK.

Against which Egghead?

Um, any thoughts?

Daphne?

I think...Dave.

Dave or Daphne.

-Could be...

-What about Dave?

We don't know. Um...

-Your pick.

-Or Kevin.

Nah.

I think we'd like to go with "Tremendous Knowledge" Dave.

OK, so it is Chris from Kings of Kings

-versus "Tremendous Knowledge" Dave. Have you done science, Dave?

-Yeah, I lost.

OK. There we are, that's quite encouraging.

To ensure there's no conferring,

would you please take your positions in the question room.

Somebody said, Chris, you are literally the scientist.

Um, yeah, I guess so. I work in a lab all day every day,

um, studying things you can't see from the naked eye.

That sounds to me like you ARE a scientist!

If there's any doubt about it, I think you probably are one.

Do you wear a white lab coat?

I wear a white lab coat, lab specs, the whole thing.

That's as close to a scientist as we've got for quite some time.

OK, that's good.

-What have you been studying?

-I study chemical biology,

so I'm studying the mechanism that the malaria parasite uses

to invade red blood cells,

um, upon infection by a mosquito.

OK, so three questions on science. Right up your street.

-Chris, you can choose the first or the second set.

-First, please.

Here is your question. Nickel metal hydride, often abbreviated to NiMH,

is found what everyday items?

Well, I've never heard of it.

I know a little bit about nickel, chemistry, but...

I think I'll go with rechargeable batteries.

Spot on, it is correct.

Rechargeable batteries.

OK, Dave, your question.

What name is given to the propulsive pressure exerted by a rocket?

I don't think it's shove or lunge. I think it's thrust.

It is thrust, well done.

One each. Chris.

Which part of a flower produces pollen?

Well, I am a chemist, so biology is a little big for me.

Erm, well, in terms of flowers, anyway.

I'm certain it's not petal.

Erm...

I'm torn between stigma and anther.

Anther?

It's a real 50/50 now.

I think I'll go with anther.

You've got it, well done. Anther it is - two out of two.

Good play. Over to you, Dave.

Second question. Peccaries, found in the Americas,

are mammals which closely resemble which other creature?

Can you spell it for me, please?

P-E-C-C-A-R-I-E-S

I don't think it's cat, and I don't think it's goat. I'm going for pig.

Dave, well done. Pig is correct.

This is a close round. Back to you, Chris.

The scientist.

What was the nickname of Intelsat I,

the communications satellite launched in 1965?

I've never heard of it.

I was minus 21 on that date.

I was zero, so don't remind me. That was the year I was born.

Erm, I don't think they'd call it Early Bird.

Some sort of satellite would look like a star in the sky,

so I'm going to go with Morning Star.

Let's find out from somebody who might have been aware at the time.

Early Bird.

Early Bird. And significant, because in those days,

throwing something up into space was an amazingly rare event.

Mmm, it was the first commercial communications satellite, yeah.

OK, sorry, Chris.

So, third question to Dave.

If he gets this right, he is in the final.

In 2011, the scientist Steven Sirr used CAT scan technology

to build his version of what type of instrument?

Hmm, I've not heard of this at all. Right...

It's a pure guess.

Just because of the nature of the value of it,

I would go for a Stradivarius violin.

Very good play, that. You've got it absolutely right.

Well done. It is a Stradivarius violin.

Anyone know the history of that?

He was using... What was he doing? A CAT scan?

Well, I assume this is part of the much-vaunted 3D-printing techniques

that are gradually coming in now.

They say eventually you'll be able to produce more or less anything.

-Print a shoe box, or print a shoe.

-Yeah.

Well, you got it, Dave. Well done. Chris, I'm sorry.

You've been knocked out. No shame in that.

"Tremendous Knowledge" does have some tremendous knowledge.

Please, both of you come back and re-join your teams.

So, as it stands, the challengers have now lost two brains,

the Eggheads have not lost a brain yet from that final round.

The next subject is Arts and Books.

Who would like this?

THEY CONFER

-I think Josh.

-Really?

OK, against who? Who do we think?

We want to leave our strongest people to the final round.

I think I'll be stronger on general knowledge than Arts and Books, honestly.

-Yeah, I'll do it.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-John. Before you go, John, choose an Egghead.

-Um...

-Let's see.

-I think Chris.

Er, Chris.

Arts and Books, this was what you played last time.

As long as it's not "chick lit" or that rubbish, I'm quite happy.

John from Kings of Kings versus Chris from the Eggheads.

Please go to the question room now.

John, tell me about what you do.

Er, I work for a political news website.

-Is it fun?

-Yeah, it's great fun. I really enjoy it.

It's that whole move, isn't it? People not reading newspapers - just Twitter and all that.

Yeah, definitely. We've only been going since 2007 ourselves,

so we're a bit of a trend-setter in that respect, I suppose.

-And does it make money, or are you still at the early stages there?

-No, I think we make money now.

-Erm, I'm more on the editorial side than the sales stuff, but...

-Do you go into the House of Commons a lot?

Er, I go a bit.

I've started going a bit more as time's gone on and I've got a bit more experience.

I go to a lot of meetings with MPs.

I guess, in a way, we're seeing the new generation of journalists, aren't we?

-This is the future.

-Of course.

OK, well I'll ask each of you three questions on Arts and Books.

-John, choose the first or second set.

-I'll go first.

Here we go. Good luck, John.

What is commonly used to thin artists' acrylic paint?

I don't think you would use sand to thin something.

Er, nor, I don't think you would use oil with acrylic paint,

because you have oil paints.

I'm going to go with water.

Water is quite right, well done.

Chris, your question. Arts and Books.

In a theatre, a cyclorama, usually shortened to "cyc",

is most likely to be seen where?

It's the wall at the back of the stage, Jeremy.

-Is that right?

-It is, yeah.

-Why is it called that?

You can light it in such a way that it looks like it's in the open air.

It is at the back of the stage, you're quite right. Well done.

What are the two girls holding

in John Singer Sargent's famous 1886 painting,

"Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose"?

I have absolutely no idea, but...

it sounds like... Well, you said it was two girls.

I suppose girls play with dolls, so I'm going to go with China dolls.

I totally understand why you did that, but it's Japanese lanterns.

So, Chris can pull ahead.

The photographer Don McCullin is best known for his images of what?

McCullin?

Did he not take the iconic image

of the US marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima?

In which case, it's warfare.

It is warfare, but is that the one he took?

-Right answer, but the wrong reason.

-He didn't take that image, no.

-That was Joe Rosenthal.

-That was Joe Rosenthal, Barry says.

-Oh, it was. Aha.

-John, it seems unfair.

Chris has got the right answer

with false memory.

So, you need to get this one right, John.

What is the name of the fictional Sussex village that is the setting

for Stella Gibbons's comic novel, Cold Comfort Farm?

I have, again, I have no heard of this.

Erm, but the one which sounds to me

most like it would be a real town is Wittering,

so I'm going to go with Wittering.

The answer is Howling.

John, sorry. Howling is the answer.

You've been knocked out by Howling Chris the train.

LAUGHTER

-You look really happy, Chris.

-East and West Wittering, I actually know where they are.

Exactly, that's not a made-up place, is it?

OK, so do both of you come back and re-join your teams, please.

The challengers have lost three brains. The Eggheads haven't lost any.

But believe me, teams have come back from this point and won, really.

And the next round is History. Which of you would like this round?

-What do we think?

-I think you've got the best overall knowledge,

-so I think Josh.

-OK.

-Josh?

-Are we sure?

-Yeah, absolutely.

And it has to be Daphne, this time.

-Daphne or Kevin, so it has to be Daphne.

-Daphne or Kevin.

Kevin never loses on History, so...

-Daphne's pretty good too.

-You will have to face Kevin at some point.

If you don't dislodge him, he will be in the final.

Two brains will be better than one, if we get that far.

-Kevin is a history buff.

-I think it would be suicidal to take him on.

So, Josh from Kings of Kings against Daphne from the Eggheads, on History.

And then we'll do the final after that. Do go to the question room.

-Josh, you are a financial consultant, is that right?

-Correct. That's the short-hand version.

-Meaning that you do, what, stocks and shares and stuff?

-No, we don't do any trading ourselves.

We tend to more advise companies

on their relationships with the investment community,

i.e. so our advice is completely independent.

I see. And also, when you are free, and this is kind of crucial now,

-you read historical books.

-I enjoy historical books, yes,

but my knowledge is specific and patchy,

rather than broad and general.

So, this is going to really depend on the questions, how this goes.

Daphne, in this game, is specific and patchy actually better

-than broad and general, do you think?

-Yes, I think so.

And he's probably going to be very lucky!

All right, let's see. I'll ask each of you three questions on History.

-Josh, choose the first or the second set.

-I'll take the first set of questions, please.

Here we go, and good luck, Josh.

See if you can get into the final.

Viscount Melbourne and Lord Salisbury were the first and last prime ministers, respectively,

during the reign of which British monarch?

I'm relatively confident on this,

because I did watch the Young Victoria film

on a long, long flight a couple of months ago,

so I'll go with Victoria.

That's very handy, isn't it?

It is Victoria, well done. Queen Victoria.

Daphne...

At what time of day did the 1944 D-Day beach landings begin?

Gosh, I've never heard it.

Um...

It's June, it's quite...

Um, 6.30 - daylight. I don't know.

I guess.

-Your guess is 6.30, is it?

-Yes.

-OK, you're right.

Well done.

Because it was the earliest moment we got the light?

Yeah, well they'd been dropping paratroopers since about 3am.

The naval bombardment opened up about 6am,

and the first troops went ashore about 6.30am, yeah.

OK, over to you, Josh.

The Clean Air Act was passed in 1956,

in response to what environmental hazard?

Um, I think this is where pea soupers originate from

and the concern about respiratory health,

so I'm going with London smog, please.

You're quite right. London smog it is, well done.

See what happens to Daphne now.

Daphne, who was King of England

when the Danes conquered the country in 1013?

What's the date again?

1013.

1013...

Ethelred the Unready.

I wonder if the hint is in the name, there.

Was he just not ready?

No, Unready was short for "unraed" and "raed" means "advice",

so "unraed" means you don't take advice.

His nickname was the king who didn't take advice.

He didn't take advice. OK, well it is Ethelred the Unready, well done.

How she does it... It's like a laser.

OK, Josh, this is the big one.

See if you can get this right, put some pressure on our Egghead.

Maybe she'll crack.

From 1948 to 1957, Curtis LeMay was head of which section of the US military?

I'm pretty certain that General Curtis LeMay

was head of the bombing campaign in the Pacific

during the Second World War

and then developed the nuclear strategy

in response to the Soviet threat,

so I'm going with Strategic Air Command.

I think that needs a round of applause. Very good.

Very good indeed. Strategic Air Command is quite right.

Daphne, the pressure is on you.

If you get this wrong, you take the long walk.

What was the name of the first English royal yacht,

presented to Charles II on the restoration of the monarchy?

Oh!

Well, it's not Katharine,

but I can't make up my mind between the other two.

Um...

Oh, dear.

-Henrietta.

-Do you know, Josh, by any chance?

I wasn't so quick to dismiss Katherine,

but it would have been 50/50 - maybe I would have gone for Mary.

You would have got it right. It is Mary, Daphne. There we go.

APPLAUSE

You've been cleared away by somebody who's very modest about his history knowledge.

-I think you played very well, Josh.

-Thank you very much.

Daphne's out, you're in the final.

Come back to us and we'll play that final round.

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 your head-to-heads won't be allowed

to take part in this round.

George, Chris and John from Kings of Kings,

and also Daphne from the Eggheads, would you please leave the studio?

So, how are you feeling, Henry and Josh?

Um, I'm very pleased Josh won that round so I'm not here by myself!

-Yeah, and Henry, you're a lawyer.

-I am, yeah.

-Training?

-Yeah, another year to go.

-OK, hard work?

-I should probably think about what I'm saying

in case my employer's watching,

-but pretty hard work, yeah.

-Harder than this?

Er, not as nerve-wracking,

-but we'll see. Ask me in an hour or so.

-Let's see how you do.

You're playing to win, Kings of Kings, £6,000.

Kevin, Dave, Chris and Barry,

you're playing for something that money can't buy -

the Eggheads' reputation.

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

The questions are all general knowledge, you are allowed to confer.

So, Kings of Kings, the question is -

are your two brains better than the Eggheads' four?

And do you want to go first or second, Henry and Josh?

We're going to go first. Yeah, first, please, Jeremy.

Good luck to you, guys - here we go, first question.

What colloquial term is used to describe an ordinary man

behaving as if he were aristocratic?

I've never heard of any of those before.

Er, I mean, my instinct is saying Lord Muck, but...

Lord Muck was my instinct too.

That could just be because we heard it first.

I mean, Lord is usually the kind of thing you use in those, kind of...

-Maybe Sir Dribble...

-Let's go for Lord Muck.

-If you...

-Lord Muck?

-Lord Muck. Why not? We don't know.

I can confidently say, Lord Muck.

Well done. It's right, Lord Muck is correct.

Right, Eggheads. Your first question.

What is the term for the method

by which a person can declare a change in his or her name?

-Deed Poll.

-Deed Poll.

That's Deed Poll.

Deed Poll is quite right. Well done, Kevin.

Back to you, Kings of Kings.

Vegas Vic, erected on the side of Las Vegas's Pioneer Club in 1951,

is a 40-foot tall sign in the shape of what?

-Any ideas?

-I don't think it's a cowboy,

because the cowboy one is the Marlboro Man, isn't it?

Erm...

-A soldier, I don't know.

-Have you been to Vegas?

-I haven't been to Vegas.

Erm, an astronaut?

I mean, the '50s is when Vegas kind of started off.

It's not just... Area 51, Nevada...

I think we've got to go for astronaut.

We'll go for astronaut, but again, we don't really know!

Yeah, er, astronaut is our answer.

No, it's not. It is cowboy, as a matter of fact.

I don't know if the Marlboro Man is different.

-I guess he is.

-Yeah, the Marlboro Man is on the poster.

Vegas Vic is a free-standing figure,

standing on the end of a building, doing that, for some reason.

-What, moving his arm?

-Yeah, with the thumb up.

He's crossed at the ankles as well, the legs.

Looking very casual.

So, you had the glimmer there, but not astronaut, cowboy. OK, Eggheads.

Catterick is the location

of an important training centre for which uniformed service?

-ALL: It's the Army.

-Army. Yep.

-Yep, Catterick Camp is an Army base.

-Army is your answer.

It is correct, well done.

So, third question.

You need to get this right or the contest is over.

In architecture, a hypostyle hall

is an interior space whose roof rests on what?

Can you think back to your classics, Henry? Any Greek or Latin?

What does "hypo" mean? Style, columns, stylistic...

There was a hypocaust, wasn't there which was...?

-That was hippo...

-Was it hippocaust?

Hypo... Can we think of anything with hypo?

-Anything else?

-OK, but I mean...

there were little columns, holding up the floor.

-It's just a thought.

-Columns?

-You want to go for columns?

Yeah.

Again, uncertain, but I think we're going to go for columns.

Ended up with columns.

You're right.

Well done. You've got two out of three.

BARRY: The most famous one

is in Karnak, in Egypt, which I was in, last year.

I like the way you solve the questions by actually going,

-physically, and looking at things, Barry.

-It's the way to do it!

-It sits on the top of the columns, does it?

-Yes.

-And hypo?

Hypo means "low", normally, doesn't it?

Under. As in hypodermic.

Right, right.

So the columns are under the roof that they're supporting.

I see, OK. So, if you get this right, Eggheads,

you've taken the contest, despite some good play from these guys.

Hunding and Sieglinde are characters in which opera by Richard Wagner?

-Die Walkure.

-It's the Valkyrie, isn't it?

Yeah, they're not in either of the others.

They're not in Gotterdammerung or Das Rheingold.

They're in Die Walkure.

Die Walkure.

-Are they right, do you think?

-Yeah, they look pretty confident.

They are. Eggheads, you've got three out of three,

so congratulations, you have won.

Very satisfying to see you get columns, there.

If you hadn't, it would have ended the contest there, but you've done well.

-Saved some face.

-Very much so. And played against all four of them here, that's never easy.

-Was it good.

-Good fun. We gave it a go.

Commiserations, challengers. The Eggheads have done what comes naturally to them

and their winning streak continues.

I'm afraid you won't be going home with the £6,000, so the money rolls over to our next show.

Eggheads, congratulations. Who will beat you?

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

have the brains to defeat the Eggheads.

£7,000 says they don't. Until then, goodbye.