Episode 59 Eggheads

These people 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.

Challenging our quiz champions today are the Offcomers from Cumbria.

This team have links to an amateur dramatics company in Ulverston

and take their name from the term used to describe people who move into their home town.

Let's meet them.

Hi, I'm Bill, I'm 57

and I'm a retired pharmaceutical plant manager.

Hi. I'm Bob, I'm 57 and I'm a supply development manager.

Hi, I'm Basil, I'm 66 years old

and I'm a retired chemical works manager.

Hi, I'm Steve, I'm 51 and I'm a senior trainer.

Hi, I'm Andrew, I'm 36 years old

and I'm a retail manager.

Welcome to you, Offcomers. Explain the phrase "offcomers".

Well, Ulverston's at one end of the Furness peninsula

and it's quite a way from anywhere by road, by land,

and in days gone by before road and rail links were established,

the easiest way to get to Ulverston from Lancaster or Morecambe

was to come across the sands.

So for the people in Ulverston,

they'd see visitors arriving in this town

having come off the sands, hence the term "offcomers".

And how long do you remain an offcomer now?

How long before you become a local? At least 30 years.

None of us has managed that yet. None of you have done your time yet?

Not yet. OK. And you also do a bit of amateur dramatics.

Do you act or...? Well, I don't act. Bob and Steve act.

I'm there on the stage.

LAUGHTER What as, a prop?

I sort of fill in a space, you know? A statue.

And quizzing - any of that going on in Ulverston?

Yeah, we quiz every Thursday night at the local pub

and sometimes we win.

Sometimes we don't but it's all good fun.

Well, let's hope you win because there's money at stake.

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

If they lose, the prize money rolls over to the next show,

so, Offcomers, the Eggheads have won the last nine games,

which means a grand total of £10,000 says

you can't beat the Eggheads today.

OK, let's have a go at it, then. The first category is geography.

Who'll take this one on from the Offcomers?

Could me, then. Geography? Geography.

That was me. That was you? Oh, well done, Bill.

That's me, Dermot. Bill, straight in.

Which Egghead would you like to challenge? Chris. We'll go for Chris.

OK, Chris playing Geography.

Chris and Bill, then, first pair into the question room, please.

All right, Bill, choose whether you want to go first or second.

I'll go first, please, Dermot.

OK, Bill, this is your first question.

What is the name of card-payment method used on New York City subways and buses?

I don't think it's an Oyster card because I've got one

and that's for the tube system in London.

Carnet-Visite sounds French to me,

so I'll go for MetroCard.

Good idea. It's the right answer, yes.

Well done.

Well done, Bill.

Chris, Furness is an area containing the town of Barrow-in-Furness...

LAUGHTER

I don't believe it. That extends into which body of water?

It's up there in the northwest, so it's the Irish Sea. Yes, it is.

Now, we've had some questions on Eggheads

where they were linked, obviously, to the teams that turn up

but I don't think we've ever had one that is...

I mean, we've just had that conversation.

Could you continue in this vein, Dermot?

Ah, but they're getting them. Maybe you gave Chris the information.

No! I know Barrow-in-Furness. Of course you do.

OK, it's your second question, then, Bill.

Herat is a city and province in which country?

Well, Herat doesn't sound Chinese, so I'll probably rule that one out.

Not too certain between Afghanistan and Israel.

Could you just spell it for me, please, Dermot? H-E-R-A-T.

Well, it's not one that I recognise

from any of the maps of Afghanistan that I've seen recently,

so I'll go for Israel.

OK. Israel for Herat.

A city and province in Afghanistan, Bill.

So a chance for Chris to take the lead.

Chris, the Margravial Opera House,

which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2012,

is situated in which German town?

It's not Bayreuth because that's where Wagner's Festspielhaus is.

Erm...

Ah, there were margraves of where was it?

Thuringia?

Ansbach is brandy. That's neither here nor there.

But because it crops up in Saxe-Coburg—Gotha,

I'll go with Coburg. OK, Coburg for the Margravial Opera House.

No, it is in Bayreuth. Is it? Yes.

Have they got two? They must have.

All right. Well, Bill, still very much in it. Level pegging.

The Rotunda of Mosta, M—O—S—T—A, also known as the Mosta Dome, is

a church and tourist attraction on which Mediterranean island?

Well, I've been to Cyprus.

Didn't see that there. Didn't visit it, I don't think.

I've not been to the other two.

Not really certain but I will take a stab at Malta.

OK, Malta for the Mosta Dome or the Rotunda of Mosta.

It's the right answer. Well done. You worked that out. Well done!

Two-one. Chris, which country was the world's biggest producer

of the commodity copper in 2010?

Mm. Interesting.

Well, there's copper mines in all three.

But probably, since they're going ahead full steam,

I'll say Kazakhstan.

OK. Kazakhstan as the world's biggest producer of copper in 2010.

Er, no, it's not the right answer. It is Chile.

Chile. Which means, well, you're through to the final round, Bill.

Well played. Well done, Bill!

Great start. Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Well, Bill, maybe they'll make you an honorary native after that performance. Possibly.

You'll lose the offcomer tag. You're into the final round.

So it means the Eggheads are, at the moment, missing one brain.

And we move on to our next head to head today.

This is Arts & Books. Who'd like to play this from the Offcomers?

Oh, whoopee. The one subject we were looking for.

I'm sure you were.

This is our favourite, so I think I volunteered to be the sacrificial lamb.

You're the man, Steve. You can do it. You've read books.

I have. And I've seen art. That's right. I'm fully qualified.

Right? I'll do that one. OK, Steve, and take on an Egghead. Any of the four remaining after Chris.

Well, after spending a lot of my...

Happy memories of youthful holidays in Weston-super-Mare,

I've got to pick Daphne. LAUGHTER

Maybe she'll be kind. OK. It's a lovely place.

Yes, I know. You tell us about it all the time.

I even took my children there a couple of years ago

to show them where I used to spend my holidays.

They've never forgiven me since.

Right, OK. You might have some trouble with Daphne now.

She doesn't like that. Let's have Steve and Daphne into the question room, please.

Steve, let's see if you can follow Bill into the final round.

Would you like to go first or second? I'd like to go first, please, Dermot.

Best of luck, Steve. First question on Arts and Books.

The 1962 novel Life At The Top is a sequel to which earlier work?

Right, I'm not 100% sure on this.

I think Live And Let Die, I'll ignore that one.

Put that to one side. To me that's just a James Bond film, so...

Catcher In The Rye? I don't think it is.

So because of the connection with "the top" being involved,

I'll go for Room At The Top.

Top answer. Yes, it's the right one. Room At The Top.

Daphne, in the novel Alice's Adventures In Wonderland,

which creatures are used as balls for the game of croquet in the Queen's garden?

They're poor little hedgehogs.

It wouldn't have been much of a game with hippos. Hedgehogs is right.

Steve, which English king is the central character in James Goldman's historical play

The Lion In Winter?

This is where you wish you'd paid a little bit more attention

in your history lessons at school.

Erm... What was the name of the novel again?

It's The Lion In Winter by James Goldman.

Right, I don't think that actually helps me at all.

Erm...

No, I've no idea whatsoever. I'll just have to take a guess.

So something's drawing me to the left-hand, to Henry II.

I think I'll go for Henry II.

OK, Henry II is the right answer, yes.

Oh, well done, Steve.

Chuckling from the Eggheads as they know you'd landed it.

Daphne, which author writes under the pseudonym Barbara Vine?

Oh, that's Ruth Rendell.

I love crime novels.

It is the right answer. Let's confirm that. All square.

And, Steve, third question.

George Orwell's novel, Keep The Aspidistra Flying,

begins with the central character, Gordon Comstock,

giving up his job in what profession to become a writer?

Again, I don't really have much of an idea on this one.

Erm... George Orwell.

The only books I know by George Orwell are 1984,

so I'm struggling a little bit there because I've never heard of this.

Erm... George Orwell himself, did he work in broadcasting at one point?

So I may discount that one for some reason.

Erm... I think I'll go with teaching.

OK. Teaching. Stick with the left.

Yes, well, of course, they would all fit

and, yes, George Orwell, he worked for the BBC, didn't he?

It is advertising, though. Advertising.

So, a slip there. Will Daphne capitalise?

The French painter Nicolas Poussin

is most closely associated with which art movement?

He is a classicist.

Classicism. Mm-hm.

I'm afraid it's the right answer, afraid from your point of view, Steve.

Just stumbling on the third question and she did capitalise that, Daphne.

You can discuss Weston-super-Mare. You should've been nicer about it.

She might have been in a better mood. You're not in the final round.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

Well, it's all square now.

The Offcomers and the Eggheads have lost one brain from the final.

Our next subject is Film & Television.

Who wants to play this?

That looks like me, then. That's you, Bob.

Well volunteered, Bob. That's me, then. I like the way he collared you, Bob.

Were you trying to get away? Straight in.

Who would you like to play? Daphne and Chris have played.

Let's go down the line - Barry, Pat or Judith.

Erm, I think Judith, please.

OK. Film & TV. It's going to have Bob and Judith playing it.

Into the question room, please.

Bob, would you like to go first or second?

Erm, I think I'll go first, Dermot, please.

Film & Television. Your first question.

Which regular character in the US sitcom Friends

had the surname Buffay?

Er... Interesting one

because I've never even heard of it.

Not Friends, I've watched Friends, but not the name Buffay.

That would be a blank, not having heard of Friends.

I don't think it was Rachel.

I can't imagine it was Chandler.

I suspect it might be Phoebe.

Phoebe Buffay is the right answer, yes. Worked that out.

And so, Judith, Vincent Simone and Flavia Cacace became famous

as part of which television show?

I was reading about them in the paper

and wondering how on earth you pronounce "Fl-AY—via's" surname.

So I definitely know it's Strictly Come Dancing.

OK. I think it is Fl-A-via.

Oh, Flavia. Well, anyway, I didn't know how you pronounce her surname.

All right. Don't quote me on it but it is the right answer, yes.

Strictly Come Dancing.

Right, all square, and second question each.

Bob, who joined the cast of Emmerdale in the year 2000,

playing the part of Rodney Blackstock?

I don't think Robert Powell or Martin Shaw has ever been in Emmerdale,

although I might be wrong.

So I suspect it's probably Patrick Mower.

Yes, elimination will do. It's the right answer, yes.

Good stuff. Judith, Acka Raga by Joe Harriott and John Mayer

was the original theme tune to which TV quiz show

first broadcast in 1967?

I thought a raga was Indian music

and I was hoping there'd be sort of an Indian clue there.

Is Daphne jumping up and down because it's Sale Of The Century, I wonder?

I wish I could see or hear. Daphne, makes some thumps so I can hear.

Erm...

I've absolutely no idea.

Er, so I'm going down the magic right

and hope it's Daphne's thing.

Sale Of The Century. Yes. Is it, Daphne?

I don't think so.

No, it's not. Oh! What do you think, Eggheads?

Ask The Family. It's Ask The Family, not Sale Of The Century.

So that is great news for you, Bob. A shot here to take you into the final round.

Steve Zodiac was the lead character

in which Gerry Anderson puppet series?

Oh, my God. Erm...

I think Supercar...

I think that was either before... Certainly before my conscious time.

Erm... Zodiac has something to do with space,

so I'd say Fireball XL5.

I think but I don't know. OK.

You've been working these questions well

and that's continued - it's the right answer.

Wow.

Excellent stuff, Bob. You are in the final round.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

It really is nip and tuck, this game, so far.

The Offcomers are in front. They've knocked out two Eggheads

and one member of the Offcomers has gone.

What will happen in our last head to head?

It's Sport, and your two remaining players, Offcomers,

it's Basil or Andrew.

Well, I think the least risk strategy is for Andrew to do it?

Andrew. Yeah. Sport. OK.

Are you happy with...? Well, you're not happy.

You did say you were a sacrificial lamb.

OK, I'm going to have to sacrifice myself here, then, yeah. OK.

Andrew, who do you want to take on? It's Pat or Barry from the Eggheads.

I wouldn't mind losing to Barry, so let's go with him.

All right. Barry wouldn't mind losing to you.

Let's go...

So that's a perfect match. Let's have Barry and Andrew into the question room, please.

Andrew, I know you like running.

I believe you were once beaten by a man dressed as a cheese. I did, to my eternal shame.

In the Great North Run, I chased him and chased him

but he beat me over the line by quite a margin, in fairness.

But, hey, that's life. A man dressed as a cheese.

Well, you don't want to get beaten by a man dressed as a tablecloth in this head to head.

So, do you want to go first or second?

Erm, I'll go first.

And it's a lovely shirt, by the way, Barry. I take that back.

OK, first question then, Andrew. Serious stuff now.

Maggotts Corner and Farm Curve are features

on which Formula 1 grand prix circuit?

Right. Erm...

I've never heard of those two referenced at Monaco.

Erm... I don't think it's Monaco.

I've heard races at Silverstone and it's never really cropped up,

so I'm going to go for the Hockenheimring.

Right. Hockenheimring for Maggots Corner and Farm Curve.

What do you think, Offcomers? Silverstone. Silverstone.

Your mates all think it's Silverstone, which is the answer we were looking for.

It might have been too obvious, I think.

So, Barry, in cricket, the dilscoop,

named after the Sri Lankan player Tillakaratne Dilshan,

is a manoeuvre usually made by a player in which position?

Well, the only player who would normally scoop up a ball is a wicket-keeper,

so that's my answer.

A useless set of answers from you two so far, if you'll excuse me saying so.

Batsman! It's a batsman. Oh!

Oh, that sort of scoop. A dilscoop. Well, well, well.

OK, let's start again, shall we?

Wipe those from the record. Let's just have it over two questions.

And your first question... No, it's your second question

but it is all square.

The American athlete, Aries Merritt, won a gold medal

in which men's track event at the London 2012 Olympics?

Right, OK. You'll begin to tell sport's really my strength, here.

Erm... I'm going to go for, for the fact that I haven't heard the name,

potentially it would be steeplechase.

OK, steeplechase.

It's not. Do you know, Barry? He's a 400m runner.

No. 110m hurdles.

This could be a long game.

I'm wondering about the qualifications of either of you to play this.

OK, first one to get a question right.

No, that's not fair.

Barry, at the 1900 Paris Olympic games,

there were two aquatic events that have never been repeated as Olympic events -

an obstacle race - we kid you not - and what other?

Now, I know at the Paris Olympics a lot of the aquatic events

were actually held in the Seine.

It's hard to believe now but they were.

But I believe one of the events was to see how far you could swim underwater on a single breath,

so I think it's underwater swimming.

This is done public baths up and down the country every day.

Very likely. Everyone tries that.

It is the right answer, yes. Underwater swimming.

I'm more interested in the one we gave you - the obstacle race.

Did they leap out of the water like seals?

I think they had to negotiate round various things in the water.

Like a slalom, something like that. Yes. OK.

But it also means you have a narrow lead

and it means you need to get this, Andrew.

Jimmy Armfield played over 500 matches for which football club

between 1954 and 1971?

OK, so they're all from the area that I come from

but that doesn't really help.

Erm... So...

I'm going to go Bolton Wanderers.

OK, Bolton Wanderers to stay in the game.

It's all over, Andrew. Hey!

They think it's all over. It certainly is now.

It's Blackpool. Blackpool for Jimmy Armfield.

He went on to manage your lot. He managed Leeds, certainly, for a while.

Erm... But there we are.

Just took the one question to do it.

It was a fun round. Thanks for being part of it, Andrew,

but you won't be in the final round.

Would you both please come back and join your teams?

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

But I'm afraid those of you who lost your head to heads can't take part.

So, Steve and Andrew from the Offcomers

and Chris and Judith from the Eggheads,

would you leave the studio, please?

So, Bill, Bob and Basil, you're playing to win the Offcomers £10,000.

Daphne, Barry and Pat, you're playing for something which money can't buy -

the Eggheads' reputation.

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

The questions are all General Knowledge and you may confer.

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

And Bill, Bob and Basil, would you like to go first or second?

What do you think, guys? Do you want to go first?

Yeah? Yeah, we'll go first, Dermot.

It's got a ring to it, hasn't it? Bill, Bob and Basil.

The Offcomers.

OK, your first question then and here it is.

Which German Formula 1 driver announced his retirement from the sport in October 2012?

Which German Formula 1 driver announced his retirement from the sport in October 2012?

Yeah. Well, we're fairly unanimous on that one, Dermot.

We think it's Michael Schumacher.

Michael Schumacher retiring - again - is the right answer.

Yes, well done.

And, Eggheads, in an iconic photograph taken by Arthur Sasse

in 1951, Albert Einstein is pictured doing what?

In an iconic photograph taken by Arthur Sasse in 1951,

Albert Einstein is pictured doing what?

Sticking out his tongue. He's sticking out his tongue.

Something I have to restrain myself from doing on a daily basis

to you lot. It is the right answer, yes.

OK, Offcomers, second question.

In the modern lyrics of the nursery rhyme Aiken Drum,

where is the title character said to have lived?

Aiken Drum? I don't know. I don't know.

Under the sea? What is it? A nursery rhyme.

What nursery rhymes are they on the mountain?

Hmm... Aiken Drum.

I'm not familiar with the rhyme at all. No, no.

Could it be...? You've got an inkling it might be...?

I can only think it might be the man in the moon

because I can't think of any rhymes for under the sea or on the mountain.

Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

But it's entirely up to... Well, I've got no idea. I don't know.

No, no. It's not one I know. It's doesn't run off the tongue.

So what do we think? Go with the moon.

We've got nothing else, have we? So in the moon? Yeah.

OK, we'll take a shot at in the moon, Dermot.

OK. In the moon for Aiken Drum.

It's the right answer. Yes, well done. Oh! Good lad.

Eggheads, your second question. You are behind, obviously.

Which historical figure did Kenneth Branagh portray

in the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games?

Brunel. Yeah. Brunel.

I think he exported the famous stovepipe hat

and portrayed Brunel.

It's the right answer, yes. Isambard Kingdom Brunel.

All square. Third question, Offcomers.

In the German editions of the series of children's books

known as Where's Wally? by what name is Wally known?

In the German editions.

These are the ones where Wally's a little picture

in a mass of... Are you familiar with this, Bill?

Well... I'm slightly familiar with the Where's Wally? drawings.

You've got a tiny little Wally to find in a huge great mass of stuff.

The only thing I can think is that it rings true

that it might be Willi. Yeah.

Where's Wally? Is Where's Willi? Yeah.

It might be the expanded form of Wally, I don't know.

Well, it was the one I was drawn to, I must admit. Walter. Walter.

Where's Wally?

Wolf? That doesn't sound like Where's Wally? No, no. No.

When I saw it, it was between Willi and Walter.

So why were you drawn to Walter?

Well, just - Wally, Walter. Wally - it just sounded, you know...

Walter. Willi, Walter.

Willi. Right, we're going to have to make a decision, aren't we? Yeah.

Have we got a consensus? No.

I mean, I don't know.

Well, the only thing is, in terms of the way the synchronisation of it

is Where's Wally, Where's Willi? Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah? We'll go with that one? We'll go with that one.

All right. Right.

Obviously, not sure at all, Dermot,

but we'll take a go at Willi.

OK. Willi.

Wo Ist Willi? or something like that.

It's Walter. Oh!

The other one you were thinking of. Simple as that.

Wally becomes Walter.

Right, well, it's not over. Eggheads...

"See me in me heels and ting Dem check sey we hip and ting"

are the first lines of the 1978 UK number one single Uptown Top Ranking by which act?

Althia and Donna. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah? OK. Definitely. Yeah.

Althia and Donna.

Could you actually sing it for me?

No. Save me the embarrassment. No!

Althia and Donna is the right answer.

Eggheads, you've won.

Bad luck, guys. That was a very close game, as you well know.

Even stevens in those head to heads and just the one question in it

and you were so close to going for Walter -

after that, we would have been into sudden death.

But hopefully, you will go back with your heads held high to Ulverston

and they'll finally say, "You're no longer offcomers,"

because you gave the Eggheads a good run for their money.

The Eggheads have done what comes naturally to them.

You won't be going home with the £10,000,

which means it rolls over to the next show.

Eggheads, congratulations. Who will beat you?

Join us next time to see if a new team of challengers have the brains to defeat the Eggheads.

£11,000 says they don't. Until then, goodbye.

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