Episode 24 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 challenging our resident quiz champions today

are Cowane Compendium. Now, this team of colleagues all work

in the adult learning department within Stirling's local government.

Let's meet them.

Hi, my name's Ed, I'm 43 and I'm a team leader.

Hi, I'm Linda, I'm 56 and I'm an evening course coordinator.

Hi, I'm Ian, I'm 47 and I'm an adult literacy tutor.

Hi, I'm Ruth, I'm 45 and I'm a community worker.

Hi, I'm Duncan, I'm 35 and I'm a literacy specialist.

Welcome to you, Cowane Compendium.

Now, the compendium bit of your team name, what's that referring to, Ed?

Well, we all play different roles in the team.

We've been working together for quite a good number of years now

and we thought it was a good idea,

a different mix of different staff, you know,

like the games you used to get at Christmas time

-mixed up with all the games, so different staff...

-I see.

..you know, different games, Cowane Compendium.

OK, open the box and a range of different games in there.

And just tell me a little bit about the Cowane Centre.

I mean, what kind of range of courses do you offer?

Well, we provide a range of learning opportunities for adults.

It starts with literacy and numeracy,

we've got ICT opportunities, arts and craft, drama, Gaelic,

you name it, a whole range of different opportunities.

You know, with the aim of people coming along to develop their skills

and really make significant changes in their lives,

to improve their chances of employment,

feel more confident to help their children with their learning.

a whole range, even moving into college or further education.

More power to your elbow, so to speak on that,

and plenty of power to you against the Eggheads today, Cowane Compendium.

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

however, if they fail to defeat the Eggheads,

the prize money rolls over to the next show.

So, Cowane Compendium, the Eggheads have won just the last game,

that means £2,000 says you can't beat them.

And our first head-to-head battle is on the subject of Science.

Who'd like to start off with this one from the Cowane Compendium?

-We don't want Science.

-No.

-But we've got it.

-Am I the sacrificial lamb?

-I think you might be. You go first.

-Yes.

I'm the sacrificial lamb.

Yes, OK, I will sacrifice myself for the team there.

Oh, Ruth, it's not going to happen. I have a good feeling.

Pick an Egghead, see who you think you might beat.

I can see Daphne smiling so sweetly.

THEY LAUGH

-Daphne.

-Daphne?

-Go Daphne.

-Go Daphne.

-OK.

-Daphne.

-Daphne...

-Daphne, because of that lovely sweet smile.

Mmm. Might all change when you get to the Question Room, please,

which is where you have to go as you know because you mustn't

be allowed to confer with your team-mates.

So, off to the Question Room, please, that's Ruth and Daphne.

OK, Ruth, not a lot of confidence exhibited there

before you went into the Question Room, but I confidently predict

you'll do better than you expect.

So, let's see, do you want to go first or second?

Can I go first, please?

Right, best of luck, Ruth

and let's kick you off with this question then,

which of these three planets is furthest from the sun?

Right. I remember the mnemonic that goes with this,

so most violent, Venus,

earthquake, Mars, so it must be Mars.

-LAUGHS

-OK, does it go on? Do you, er..?

Mars, junior, scripture, unions, nice, picnic.

Oh, I see, right, putting the planets in there,

-thank you very much.

-Oh, yes...

I'm sure the Eggheads all know that. Yes, it's Mars,

that is correct, well done.

In mathematics, Daphne, in mathematics,

the area of a circle is calculated by multiplying pi by what?

-LAUGHS

-I'm just about to show my complete ignorance.

Um...

Circumference of a..?

My mind's gone blank.

Radius?

-Yes, guessing, Daphne, are you?

-I'm trying to remember.

Yes, it's the right answer, yes. OK, second question, Ruth.

What type of fruit is obtained from the tree Prunus Psoriasis?

Well, I don't think it's a coconut and...

Because of how it sounds, it sounds as though it's slightly citrus.

So, I'll go with cranberry.

OK, cranberry. Not coconut?

No, not coconut, but it is cherry.

-Oh, dear.

-Cherry, you were heading in the right direction

but just didn't get there.

OK then, Daphne, see how you do with your second question.

A cartilaginous fish is so-called

because what aspect of its body is primarily made of cartilage?

That's the skeleton, like a shark.

OK, that is correct, so you have the lead and Ruth, you need to get this.

The Oxfordian,

the Jocian and Sinemurian are stages in which geological period?

Well, I can't ever have heard mentioned on Jurassic Park,

not that that really helps at all because, er...

I'm not sure if that was totally accurate about things like that.

Um... Cretaceous?

It could be that, but I'm going to go for Triassic.

-OK, Triassic.

-I will try Triassic.

-Try Triassic.

OK, I am ending the round here,

because it's the incorrect answer, Ruth.

It is Jurassic, it is Jurassic

out of Oxfordian, Jocian and Sinemurian,

which means that Daphne's taken the round,

so no place for you, Ruth.

Would you both please come back and join your teams.

Well, as it stands after that, the Cowane Compendium

have lost one of the games.

Ruth won't be eligible for the final round,

the Eggheads are all still there, but only one round gone.

Let's get another one out here, out of the box for you

and this is Film And Television.

Might be better suited to you, I don't know.

Who fancies playing this?

Do you want to try Film And Television?

-Yes, I think you should.

-Ooh.

-Good stuff, good for you.

-Ladies first.

-Ah-ha. Yes.

-Well said.

-It's going to be you then, Linda?

-It's me, yes.

-And choose an Egghead.

Just remember, you can't pick Daphne, any of the other four.

I do not think Chris goes to the movies much, I could be wrong,

but I don't think he's, I don't think he's the film buff.

This is the problem, neither am I! SHE LAUGHS

-What about Judith?

-Yes.

-Try Judith?

-Judith.

-Judith.

-Chris.

-Oh...

-Oh...

-Oh, hold on, where did that come from?

So it was Judith, Judith, Judith, they all said and you went,

-well, it's your choice, you're playing it.

-Chris, please.

Because you originally were asking whether he goes to the movies,

goes to the films much. Do you see many films in the cinema, Chris?

Mmm...

I think the last film I went to the cinema to see was Blazing Saddles.

-About '75?

-'75, '76, yes.

OK, well let's put it to the test,

Linda and Chris into the Question Room, please.

Linda, we're hoping for some modern film questions for Chris, are we?

You get to choose then.

Do you want the first set or the second set of questions?

Could I have the first set, please?

Of course you can, let's start then. First question is this,

ah-ha, which character is played by Anne Hathaway

in the 2012 film, The Dark Knight Rises?

It seems like YOU got the modern stuff to start.

I'm going, I can see two, I'm going for either Wonder Woman or Catwoman.

Um...

I'm going to go with Catwoman.

-Catwoman, yes, it's right, well done.

-Thank you.

-APPLAUSE

-Well done.

And so to Chris.

How are the actor David Suchet and the newsreader John Suchet related?

They are brothers, Dermot.

Yes, they are, and John's a former colleague of mine.

There we are. Brothers is correct.

Linda, here you go. Well, it's another film question.

Which of these Tom Cruise films

took the most money at the worldwide box office?

Um...

Rain Man's quite an old film now.

Um, perhaps, you know, I don't know if it made as much money at the time.

I'm going to go with A Few Good Men.

OK, A Few Good Men.

I suppose the problem with Tom Cruise is all his films

-seem to make so much money, don't they?

-Yes.

-Um, of those three films, it's Rain Man.

-Oh, right.

-It's Rain Man, yes.

Um, very, very popular worldwide. So, Chris, a chance for the lead.

Which actor starred in the films Downhill Racer,

Indecent Proposal and Brubaker?

Er, not Dustin Hoffman.

Was it Robert Redford? Was it Paul Newman?

Brubaker, I think, was Robert Redford, so that's who I'll go with.

Yes, it's the right answer.

So, you have that lead. You need this, Linda.

Who played DCI Tony Gates in the 2012 TV drama, Line Of Duty?

It's not something I've seen at all

and I don't even recognise any of the three actors.

Um, so it's a guess.

I'm going to go with David Harewood.

All right, David Harewood for DCI Tony Gates.

Didn't see it, so you're admitting a pure guess

and the answer is Lennie James.

Bad luck, Linda. These questions didn't fall for you.

It means you're not going to be in the final round. Chris is.

Would you both please come back and join your teams.

Two outings and so far, two exits for Cowane Compendium.

The Eggheads are all there but two more head-to-heads before the final round,

so not even halfway yet.

Let's play our next subject and this one is Politics.

Who'd like to play this?

THEY CONFER

It's either you, or it's either... Do you want to go for Duncan?

-Duncan.

-Duncan, would you do Politics?

-Yes, I think you should.

-I could have a go.

THEY LAUGH

-Yes, go for it.

-On you go.

-Yes, go for it.

-We...

-OK. I'll go for it.

-All right, Duncan, you're playing.

Chris and Daphne have played over here from the Eggheads

so we can go down the line to Barry, Pat or Judith?

-Judith.

-Judith.

-Judith.

-Definitely Judith.

-We'll go with Judith.

OK, definitely Judith.

Let's have Duncan and Judith into the Question Room then, please.

Now, do you want to start or do you want the Egghead to start

-and that of course is Judith?

-Can I start, please?

Here you go, first question.

Which of these men was Prime Minister of the UK

for the longest time?

Tony Blair.

Tony Blair, you're right.

So, it is over to you, Judith.

What was David Cameron's combined ministerial

and Parliamentary salary in 2011?

Well, I thought the Prime Minister was paid about £140,000.

Um, and an MP is paid about £60,000 basic, aren't they?

None of which adds up to the right, any of those figures, really.

But I have a feeling he might have taken a pay cut.

I have a feeling, I think it's 142.

-The first one.

-OK, £142,500.

-Yes. Yes.

It is the right answer, well done, Judith.

£142,500 for the Prime Minister.

OK, second question for each of you. Duncan,

which part of the Palace of Westminster

was renamed in 2012 in honour of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee?

I really don't know this.

I always thought the Clock Tower was Big Ben, so,

I can't imagine renaming that. But, um...

Members' Terrace, possibly. Central Lobby?

Um, I think maybe the Central Lobby.

OK, the Central Lobby. The Palace of Westminster

named in honour of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee,

it's not, Duncan, it's incorrect.

-It is the Clock Tower.

-Oh.

Now officially the Elizabeth Tower.

OK, Judith, which actress was John Hinckley trying to impress

when he shot Ronald Reagan in 1981?

I think that was Jodie Foster.

OK, Jodie Foster is the correct answer.

Well done, Judith, you have a lead. And you need to get this, Duncan.

Camille Gutt, G-U-T-T, who became the first managing director

of the International monetary Fund in 1946,

was born in which country?

Well, this is going to be a bit of a guess.

Obviously, when you see Switzerland you think of banks and bankers,

but then because of the International Monetary Fund, possibly,

you know, Brussels, Belgium,

so I'm going to go with Belgium.

Good man, it is the right answer.

APPLAUSE

But you have to sit back and hope Judith doesn't get this.

Judith, who took up the post of Black Rod in February, 2011?

This has completely passed me by.

Um, I'm just trying to let something float up.

I'm floating up, maybe wrongly, it's Michael Wilcox.

-OK, going for Michael Wilcox.

-Mmm.

-Any other Eggheads agree? Michael Wilcox?

-Yes.

-No, David Leakey.

-Oh, I would've said...

-David Leakey, that would've been interesting

if that was a final-round question. Great news for you, Duncan.

Well, for the first time in these contests we go to Sudden Death

and just to remind you, we take away those options.

In the 1960s, Maphilindo

was a proposed non-political confederation of the Philippines,

Indonesia and which other country?

It is spelt M-A-P-H-I-L-I-N-D-O.

Would it be Malaysia?

-Is that your answer?

-I think so, because they seem to have taken the

first couple of letters of each country, so, I'm thinking Malaysia.

Erm, right, so you've got MAPHILINDO - "PHIL" for Philippines,

"INDO" for Indonesia and the "MA" is Malaysia, it's correct, well done.

Good stuff, Duncan.

And, Judith, in which decade of the 20th century did the American

presidents Herbert Hoover and Dwight D Eisenhower die?

Well, Eisenhower was president in the '50s.

I can't remember if Eisenhower died quite quickly after

he stopped being president...

..or whether he staggered on into the '60s.

I think I'm going to say...

'50s. Late '50s.

OK, we only need the decade, Judith, so '50s covers all that,

from 0 to 9.

And, your worst fears have been confirmed, it is the 1960s, and, so,

well, let's concentrate on Duncan,

-you're into the final round, well done.

-Excellent, thanks.

Would you both please come back and join your teams.

Well, much better, as it stands.

Cowane Compendium have lost two brains,

but the Eggheads have now lost one.

Will it be all square in the final round, who knows?

Let's play our last head-to-head. This is Sport.

The two players remaining there are Ed and Ian, who wants to play?

I think Sport will be mine, thanks, Dermot.

OK, Ed, and, from the Eggheads, remember, Chris, Daphne

and Judith have played, so you can have Pat or Barry?

ALL: Pat.

Pat it is.

OK, it's going to be Ed and Pat in our last head-to-head.

Into the Question Room, please.

Right, well, Ed, an opportunity, as I said before the picking, there, to

make it all square in the final round.

Do you want to go first or second?

Well, I think this time, Dermot, to be different, I think

I will go second this time.

Why not? Give it a try, and Pat gets the first set of questions.

Pat, what colour medal did Tom Daley win in the 10 metre men's

platform event at the 2012 Olympics?

Well, I think Qiu Bo, he was the Chinese favourite,

but he ended up with silver.

David Boudia won the gold, and Tom Daley took the bronze.

Thanks for putting names to all those medals in front of you,

Pat, we just needed the bronze, that's the right answer, well done.

Ed, which football team won the 2012 European Championships?

Right, well, I know it wasn't Portugal.

I'm fairly sure it wasn't Italy, either.

So, I'm going to go with Spain.

Yes, the all-conquering Spanish national team, yes, right answer.

Pat, how many Grand Slam singles titles did the Australian

tennis player Margaret Court win?

She was a winning machine, in terms of total Grand Slam titles of any

sort, she has got the highest tally, I think, chased by Navratilova.

I'm not certain, but four must be too low,

so, although it seems like a huge number, I'll have to go for 24.

24, OK, I mean, it is an enormous haul, isn't it,

and it's correct, Pat.

24 Grand Slam singles titles for Margaret Court.

OK, Ed, your second question, what is the surname of the rugby union

playing brothers, Delon and Steffon who,

in February 2009, became the first brothers to represent

England in the same match since Rory and Tony Underwood in 1995.

I'm actually... just listening to their names,

I feel immediately drawn to one answer.

Therefore, I don't think it's Young.

I'm fairly sure it probably isn't Whiting so,

I'm going to go with Armitage, because

when I first heard their names, that was where I was drawn first of all.

I'll say Armitage.

OK, even without the choices there, that was the instant reaction.

And it's the right answer, well done. All square again.

Level pegging at two each.

Who is going to take the round?

Pat, your question.

Which basketball team, featuring LeBron James,

won the 2012 NBA championships?

Well, when LeBron moved to this team from Cleveland it

was a huge, stage-managed media event.

There was LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh

and they all play for the Miami Heat.

It is the right answer, and a very full one again from Pat. Correct.

OK, well, Ed, you need this.

Mark Boucher usually performed which

role in the field for the South African cricket team.

I don't think he's a wicket-keeper.

Let's go for spin bowler, I think...

yes, spin bowler, we'll try that one.

OK, spin bowler from Mark Boucher,

the South African cricketer.

I'm afraid you have dropped the catch.

Oh, never mind, he is a wicket-keeper. Ach, well.

Well, as you heard from Pat,

you're up against a good player in this category, with

all those answers on basketball and Olympic diving.

So, no shame at all in going out 3 - 2,

but no place for you in the final round.

Would you both please come back and join your teams.

And so, this is what we have been playing towards.

It is time for the final round, which, as always, is

General Knowledge,

but those of you who lost your head-to-heads

won't be allowed to take part in this round, so, Ed, Linda and Ruth from Cowane Compendium

and Judith from the Eggheads, would you leave the studio, please?

So, Ian and Duncan, you're playing to win Cowane Compendium £2,000.

Daphne, Chris, Barry and Pat, you are playing for something which

money can't buy, the Eggheads' reputation.

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

This time the questions are all general knowledge,

we have established that,

and you are allowed to confer in the final round.

So, Cowane Compendium,

the question is, are your two brains better than the Eggheads' four?

And, Ian and Duncan, first or second, how do you want to play this?

We're going to be brave and we will go first.

Good luck to you, Ian and Duncan. First question.

"Who Dares Wins" is the motto of which military organisation?

It's also the catch phrase of the Trotters, but I think it is the SAS.

-What do you think?

-It sticks in my mind that it is the SAS, definitely.

We're going to go with SAS.

Because Del Boy is not is not up there? OK.

That's a good reason.

It is the right answer, yes, the SAS, of course, "Who Dares Wins."

OK, Eggheads, Pretty Vacant,

was a UK top ten single in 1977 for which band?

Sex Pistols.

Pretty Vacant was a UK top ten single in 1977 for which band?

I'm assured by Daphne, who listens to this band assiduously, that it

is the Sex Pistols.

She dresses like them, as well, you know.

I mean, behind-the-scenes, obviously, you turn out very nicely

for Eggheads, but we know what you're like in the morning!

Those pins, and all those straps and the leather trousers.

It's something else.

It's the right answer, of course, the Sex Pistols.

And, Ian and Duncan, a jib is a sail of what shape?

I think it's probably triangular, is that the thing that swings across?

That's what I was thinking, the one, yes...

You watch out for the jib.

I thought that was the name of the bit of wood...

We have ruled out circular and rectangular,

and we're going to go with triangular.

OK, triangular, the jib is a sail of what shape?

Eggheads, do you like the cut of their jib on that one?

It's right, yes!

It's the right answer, yes, triangular.

OK, Eggheads, second question for you?

The name of which fabric also means caterpillar in French?

Happy with chenille?

Jacquard's a loom.

Yes, a jacquard is a loom, a brocade is a rich, heavy, embossed fabric,

but chenille means caterpillar in French.

OK, it's the right answer, Eggheads, so you have two.

Going well here, Cowane Compendium,

you've got to keep the pressure up on the Eggheads.

Third question, what is the title of the third opera in Wagner's

famous Ring cycle?

I know Siegfried is one of them.

I recognise that one, as well.

But then, I'm wondering, are they all parts?

You know, are they all parts of the cycle? In which case...

It's up to you, but Siegfried is the one that I'm drawn to.

That's the only name we have both come out with.

-Will we try that?

-Right.

OK, basically, we've not really got a clue,

but we're going to say Siegfried.

OK, Siegfried, you haven't got a clue,

but you have heard of Siegfried, more than the others...

It is the one name that came to both of us.

OK, well, all are in the Ring Cycle, of course,

but it is the right answer, Siegfried. Well worked out.

Well, it's 3 - 2, if it stays like that after the Eggheads have

had a go at this one, you have beaten them.

Eggheads, John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice And Men,

takes its title from a line in a work by which writer?

John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice

And Men takes its title from a line in a work by which writer?

"The best laid plans of mice and men gang aft agley,"

and it is Robert Burns.

You know it, that is correct, Robert Burns,

so, 3-3, all square, both quizzing really well.

We go to Sudden Death, remove those options.

And, I have just got to hear answers from you, so, Ian and Duncan.

Minsk and Vitebsk are cities in which country?

I'm thinking Poland.

I have to say, if I get this wrong I have got a lot of very angry

-learners.

-Why are you thinking Poland?

Erm, Minsk, it is certainly up there, it's in the north.

You see, I'm thinking it sounded more Russian,

maybe not in Russia, but certainly former Soviet Union.

OK, there's Ukraine, there's...

Belorussia, Georgia.

It needs to be port. Minsk is a port.

Shall we just go Russia and chance our arm?

I don't think it's Russia, though.

I don't think it's Georgia.

I don't think it's Ukraine. I don't think it's Belarus.

Go with your gut instincts here.

We're going to stick our neck out and say Russia.

OK, Russia for Minsk and Vitebsk.

I can tell you it's incorrect.

And, I'm sure the Eggheads will be able to furnish us with the answer.

-ALL:

-Belarus.

Belarus, which, of course, you went through, I was thinking,

"Ooh, is he going to get it...?" And Minsk, is it a port?

-No, Minsk is the capital of Belarus.

-But not a port?

-It's well inland.

But, not over yet, OK,

so, the Eggheads only win if they get one more than you,

and that means they need a correct answer here if they are to win.

"I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want,

"so tell me what you want, what you really, really want."

Lyrics from which Spice Girls song?

It's the first one, isn't it, is it Wannabe? I think it's Wannabe.

Yes. # If you want to be my lover... # Yes, it's Wannabe!

We know that this is the first Spice Girls major hit,

and it's Wannabe.

Wannabe, you say? It's the correct answer, Eggheads, you've won.

Well, that was close, guys, well done, you got very

close to getting that Sudden Death question, we remember,

of course, the Wagner question, you did really, really well

in that final round, two of you against four of them,

and, to be fair, of course, your

team-mates did well in their head-to-heads,

just didn't work out in the end for them,

but heads held high, you gave a very good account of yourselves,

and our real wishes are towards you and all the work you do with

the Cowane Centre, best of luck with all that work in the future.

I'm sure that's something we can all agree with, Eggheads?

But those 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 £2,000,

which means the money rolls over to the next show.

So, Eggheads, congratulations, and I'll ask again - who will beat you?

Join us next time to see

if a new team of challengers have the brains to defeat the Eggheads.

£3,000 says they don't. Until then, goodbye.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd.