Episode 66 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 the might of our quiz Goliaths today

are the Cambridge Dons.

Now, this team of friends and colleagues

are all connected through the construction industry,

and although they enjoy the odd pub quiz, they do claim to be better at pubbing than quizzing.

Let's meet them.

Hi, I'm Don, I'm 67, and I'm a part-time triathlon coach.

Hi, I'm Don, I'm 61, I'm a water resources engineer.

Hi, I'm Don, I'm 56, and I'm a capital projects manager.

Hi, I'm Don, I'm 57, and I'm a structural engineer.

Hi, I'm also Don, I'm 61 years of age

and I'm a chartered town planner.

Well, welcome to Don and team. I was going to say Don and Dons.

And you're all properly Dons? You're not Steve, Pete, Geoff...?

We're all properly Dons and we're all from Cambridge.

And you're not academic dons, you're construction dons?

-Correct.

-So all parts construction?

OK. Are you going to take this lot apart?

-We hope so.

-Good luck.

-We've achieved our first goal

which was to eliminate Kevin.

Yes, you're right, actually. Very good!

OK, let's see how the Dons do. Let's see how we do with so many Dons.

Every day there is £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, Cambridge Dons, the Eggheads have won the last 16 games,

which means £17,000 says you can't beat them.

-Are you ready to try?

-Yes!

-Yeah.

The first head-to-head battle will be on the subject of Sport.

Which Don would like this?

Tricky. I think that's going to be skipper Don H, isn't it?

-Am I going to take that?

-I think so.

-Don H at this end.

-I'll take that.

OK. Against which Egghead? They all have different names this team,

fortunately, so less confusing.

-Daphne.

-No, I don't think so. No, I think we should go for Judith on this one.

-Judith.

-Go for Judith.

Chris will be relieved, but we're going for Judith.

OK, so it is Don H, the skipper of the Cambridge Dons, on Sport against Judith.

-You haven't had Sport for a while.

-I haven't, no, not for very long.

To ensure there's no conferring, would you please take your positions in the Question Room?

-Well, good luck in the Sports round, Don.

-Thank you.

-You can go first or second.

-I'll go first, please, Jeremy.

Here we go, good luck.

Which footballer achieved his 100th England cap

in a friendly against Sweden in November 2012?

I'm pretty sure Jermain Defoe's not got there yet.

I think that Steven Gerrard has possibly gone past the 100.

So I'm going to say Ashley Cole.

I would have used the same logic and I would have been wrong as well!

Steven Gerrard is the right answer, Don.

So, not-Don, here's your question.

In golf, Judith, what is the official name for items

such as leaves and branches found on the course?

I've never heard that! Good Lord!

Free hindrances doesn't sound particularly sort of grammatical

or logical. Neither does optional obstructions.

Loose impediments seems to make sense.

So that's what I'll go for.

Loose impediments is the right answer, Judith. Well done.

You're doing well. OK, Don, your second question.

Which French driver notched up the only victory of his Formula 1 career

when he won the 1996 Monaco Grand Prix,

despite starting 14th on the grid?

I'm going to eliminate Olivier Panis.

I think Alesi won more than one Grand Prix.

So I'm going to go for Romain Grosjean.

OK, Grosjean is your answer. Any Eggheads know the answer to this?

-I thought it was Alesi.

-You all thought it was Alesi?

Funnily enough, everyone so far has been wrong. It is Panis. Panis.

Well, look at this, Judith. If you get this one right,

you're in the final on Sport. And maybe that long run of problems we've had with Sport

-is finally at an end.

-We don't like talking about this.

I think it's lasted for five years.

It's lasted for ten!

Here is your question, Judith. The Adelaide Strikers

and the Hobart Hurricanes are Australian teams in which sport?

Well, the logical answer would be cricket.

Because it's Down Under and that's what they're strong in.

I think there's a tournament,

of kind of local teams...

I think I'm going to risk cricket.

Because it just seems logical.

Cricket is correct. You've got both your questions right.

There's no way back for our Cambridge Dons.

Sorry, first Don, you've been knocked out,

but there are more Dons to come. Judith, you are in the final.

-You can register surprise.

-I'm amazed!

-I'm...speechless.

-You're never speechless!

Do come back and rejoin your teams.

-Bad luck, Don. What can we say?

-Not a lot!

You didn't get the rub of the green there. But there's plenty of time

still. The Cambridge Dons have lost a Don from the final round,

the Eggheads have not lost any. Judith is going to be in the final.

The next subject is Arts & Books.

Now which of you Cambridge Dons would like this?

I think this is the one we didn't want.

-This is the one we hoped wouldn't come up.

-Yeah.

-So I'm afraid...

-It's me, is it?

-You were the volunteer, weren't you?

-Well done.

-OK, Don T, choose an Egghead.

-Mmm...probably Chris.

I would think, Chris the scientist.

Yeah, Chris is a scientist and engineer.

-I'm good with Chris.

-Chris, what are you reading at the moment?

Bradshaw's 1910 Railway Guide.

-You've been on that since 1910!

-It's a reprint I've got hold of.

So Don T from the Cambridge Dons

versus Chris from the Eggheads on Arts & Books.

And to ensure there's no conferring, please take your positions.

The comeback starts here, Don, all right?

-Sport's been and gone. Let's see how you do on Arts & Books.

-Right.

Chris is obviously limited to knowledge about railway books.

-Would you like to go first or second?

-I'll go first, please.

Here we go, good luck. In which decade was the novel

Captain Corelli's Mandolin first published?

Right...OK... Well, I know the film was fairly recent,

but I'm guessing the book was a bit older. I think...

..probably the '50s would be too early.

For some reason I'm drawn to the 1970s.

I think I'll go for 1970s, please.

No, it's the 1990s.

Much more recent.

Chris, your question.

In Christopher Marlowe's play Dr Faustus of whom does Faustus say,

"Was this the face that launched a thousand ships?"

Well, it's a reference to the Greek fleet at the time of the Trojan War,

so it's Helen of Troy.

Helen of Troy is the right answer.

Well done. It was the face that launched a thousand ships.

-OK, Don, let's launch the Dons here.

-Right.

-In Jan van Eyck's

famous painting, commonly known as the Arnolfini portrait,

what can be seen on the wall at the back of the room?

Right, well, I'm not familiar with that.

So I'm afraid it's going to have to come down to a guess.

I'm going to guess at the convex mirror, please.

-Brilliant! You're away!

-Yahoo!

-You've got a point. Well done!

OK, Chris, your question to take the lead.

Tara Road and Evening Class are novels by which Irish writer?

They don't sound raunchy enough for Edna O'Brien.

Never heard of Josephine Hart, so I'll have to go for Maeve Binchy.

-It's a good application of logic. Barry, is he right?

-Absolutely.

Absolutely you're right. Maeve Binchy it is.

So that means, Don, Don T,

-got to get this one right or you will not be in the final round.

-OK.

The French writer Frederic Mistral

won the 1904 Nobel Prize in Literature

for his work in which language?

I don't know, but I think...

Now, Breton is a French language, Flemish is more...

..obviously it's Belgian.

Occitan...

I think I'm going to say Breton.

-Breton, anyone?

-Occitan.

Occitan say all the Eggheads and they're right, I'm afraid, Don.

It is Occitan, so you are knocked out.

Chris is in the final round! Let's see what happens next.

Please, both of you, come back and rejoin your teams.

So, as it stands, the Cambridge Dons

have lost two brains now from the final round.

-Any change of approach now?

-Just panic.

-Try and win.

-Just panic? Organised panic.

-Answer the questions.

Answer the questions! The next subject for you is History.

Which Don would like to play and against which Egghead?

-Against who?

-Do you want to do it?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-I think we'll go for...

-Is this Don K now?

-No, it's not, it's going to be Don P.

-Don P at the end, OK.

-Against who?

-I think...probably Barry.

Barry?

-Yeah, OK.

-Against Barry, I think, please.

So, Don P from the Cambridge Dons against Barry from the Eggheads.

To ensure there's no conferring,

would you please take your positions in the Question Room?

This is History. And Barry is a bit of a wonder on History.

I won't go on about, but you had a sticky time recently.

-Let's say no more than that.

-Thank you.

Don P, would you like to go first or second?

I think I'll go first, please.

Good luck. Who was the father of Edward VI,

King of England from 1547 to 1553?

Oh, dear!

I think William II is probably much earlier.

Richard III might be earlier.

I'm nervous, but I think I'll go for Henry.

Henry VIII is the right answer.

OK, Barry, your question.

What relation was George V to Elizabeth II?

George V to Elizabeth II...?

George V's son was George VI who was Elizabeth's father,

so he was her grandfather.

He was her grandfather, you're quite right. One point each.

Back to you, Don. Which part of the modern United Kingdom

was ruled by the House of Dunkeld

from around 1034 to 1290?

I think I better get this one right, given where we are.

It has to be...it has to be Scotland.

Scotland is the right answer.

OK. Barry, your question.

In which country was the Spanish explorer

Francisco Pizarro killed in 1541?

Pizarro was the chap who destroyed the Inca Empire,

and the Inca Empire was founded in Peru.

So it must be Peru.

Peru is the right answer. Going great guns, both of you.

Two points each.

Third question to you, Don P.

The signing of the Armistice that brought World War I to an end

took place where on the morning of 11 November 1918?

Er...

I don't think it was in a tent.

It's between battleship and railway carriage.

Deep breath... I think I'll go, Jeremy, for the railway carriage.

Three out of three, Don!

OK, Barry, your question. The Kalmar Union formed in 1397

united which three kingdoms under a single monarch?

That was the famous union between Norway, Denmark and Sweden.

Right to it. Well done, you got it right, Barry.

Norway, Denmark and Sweden is correct.

Three points each, a very tight History round

now the Dons have found their range.

-We go to Sudden Death though, Don P, OK?

-OK.

It gets a bit harder, I don't give you alternative answers.

The America First Committee set up in 1940 to lobby against

the American entry into World War II closed down the following year

in response to which event on 7th December 1941?

Well, I think it was the sinking of a ship in the Atlantic...

I'm going out on a limb here... was it the Lusitania?

-That's a guess, Lusitania.

-Lusitania is your answer.

No, it wasn't. It was Pearl Harbor. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Pearl Harbor is the answer we were looking for there, Don.

Which means that Barry can take this round if he gets

this answer correct. Barry, on 14th December 1911,

man first set foot on what point on the earth's surface?

Right, it's either the North Pole or the South Pole.

Let me think... One was 1909 and one was 1911.

I think the North Pole was reached first in 1909,

so I think it was the South Pole.

Very good, Barry, you got it right.

Back on track, you've taken the round. Sorry, Don.

He's beaten you on History on Sudden Death,

you were beaten by an Egghead, you won't be in the final round

and Barry will. Please, both of you, come back to us here.

So, as it stands, the Cambridge Dons have now lost another brain.

Three gone from the final round while the Eggheads haven't lost any.

But we're not at the final yet. We've got another subject round for you and it is Music.

So we can have Don or Don for this. Is it going to be Don?

-I'm not brilliant, but it's me, I think, isn't it?

-I think it's you rather than me.

-If I hum a tune, that would be fine.

-Give it a try.

-Don B.

-Don B.

Against which Egghead?

-I think it might have to be Pat.

-Pat? Pat for Music.

-I think so.

OK, Pat, please.

So it's Don B from the Cambridge Dons against Pat from the Eggheads.

And please go to the Question Room.

Good luck to you in this round, Don B.

Good luck to you, Pat, as well. It's Music.

Don, you can choose if you go first or second.

Well, I think it's time for a change of tactics possibly.

I don't know whether it's going to work, but I'll go second. Thank you.

Here we go, Pat. Your first question. Which stage musical

features the song Chiquitita?

I think I can hear the song in my head.

I think it's one of Abba's big hits

and that would mean it's Mamma Mia!

It is Mamma Mia. Pat, well done.

Mamma Mia! is correct.

Don, over to you. Which of these is the title of a 2012

number one single for Robbie Williams?

I quite like Robbie Williams' music,

but I don't think it would be called Nougat.

Somehow Candy sounds like a possibility.

I'm going to go for Candy.

Candy is correct.

Pat, here's your question. Which song from the 1920s contains

the lines "So if you chance to meet him while walking round the town,

"Shake him by his fat old hand and give him half a crown"?

Of those three songs I think I've heard Mack The Knife in its...

I've heard the whole song.

And I'm not sure that lyric rings a bell.

The Laughing Policeman and The Sheik Of Araby...

I really don't know. It's going to be a bit of a punt.

Bit of a punt. I'm not sure why you'd give a policeman money.

That sounds improper.

I'll go for The Sheik Of Araby.

OK... I don't dare sing this... Anyone...?

# So if you chance to meet him while going round the town... #

-Oh, dear!

-# Shake him by his fat old hand and give him half a crown. #

-And then it goes, "Ha-ha-ha-ha..." The Laughing Policeman.

-Dear me!

So your chance to go ahead, Don.

This could be a historic moment for your team. What is the musical term

for a short melodic phrase that is repeated throughout a composition?

Ah...oh!

I would have thought contralto is to do with the pitch it's sung at.

Rubato sounds... I'm not sure.

Mmm...

Of those three, I think ostinato sounds the most likely,

but I've not heard of it, so I'll go for ostinato.

Excellent work, you're correct. Ostinato's right.

This is working going second, isn't it?

You've taken the lead now.

If Pat gets this one wrong, he's out and you're in the final, Don.

Pat, who duetted with Barbra Streisand on the 1979 hit single

No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)?

I have heard the song. It's a well-known song.

But who is it? They're all plausible.

Well, Barbra Streisand is sort of musical royalty,

so I'll for the most diva-like person there, Diana Ross.

No, Chris says no.

And if Chris says no, he means no!

-Who is it, Chris?

-Donna Summer.

-It's Donna Summer, Pat.

Unlikely to see you so out of sorts. One of our strongest players,

but you've been knocked out, Pat.

-You're not going to be in the final. Well done, Don!

-Thank you very much.

So things are turning for the Cambridge Dons.

If you come back to us, we will play that final round.

So this is what we've been playing towards. 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

won't be allowed to take part in this round.

So, Don H, Don T and Don P

from the Cambridge Dons, and also Pat from the Eggheads,

would you please now leave the studio?

Don B and Don K, you're playing to win the Cambridge Dons £17,000.

Daphne, Chris, Barry and Judith,

you are playing for something that money just can't buy,

which is the Eggheads' precious reputation.

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

This time, the questions are all General Knowledge,

and you are allowed to confer.

So, Cambridge Dons, the question is

are your two brains able to overwhelm the Eggheads' four?

And would you like to go first or second?

Going first didn't work too well for us,

so I think we'll stick with going second, please, Jeremy.

All the best, guys. Good luck.

First question to the Eggheads. Here we go. The chef and TV presenter

John Torode was born in which country, Eggheads?

Australia.

-I don't know.

-I can't remember...

-I think it's Australia.

Yeah, it's Australia.

He certainly sounds Australian.

-OK.

-Yeah.

That's Australia.

Australia is the right answer. Well done.

Over to you, Dons.

The term intelligentsia,

meaning people with cultural and political initiative,

derives specifically from which language and culture?

-Intelligentsia.

-Intelligentsia?

-I mean, there's the intelligence

that the Russians used quite a lot of.

I'm just trying to think of any...

Well, French words don't end in "-ia."

And neither do Danish, do they?

So, on those grounds, on those two bits of intelligence...

-Shall we go Russian?

-Maybe go for Russian.

-Not a lot to go on, is it?

-Shall we go for that?

-I think so.

Jeremy, we'd like to go for Russian with no great confidence at all.

You're right. Russian is correct.

-You can have confidence.

-Thank you.

Doesn't matter what's gone before.

These Eggheads can sputter and fuse.

The Kyoto Protocol that came into effect in 2005

mandates governments to limit what?

-Greenhouse gas emissions.

-Greenhouse gas emissions, Daphne.

Greenhouse gas emissions.

Greenhouse gas emissions is the right answer.

Well done. OK, back to you, Dons.

The Church of San Lorenzo in Florence contains a chapel

housing monuments to members of which family?

I've been to Florence,

and the name that came up to me before the options came up

was Medici. I think I remember a chapel dedicated to the Medici.

-They're famous for all sorts...

-Medici?

-Yeah. I think so, Medici.

With a little bit more confidence than the last time,

we're going to go for Medici.

You're playing well. Medici is correct. Good stuff.

Two out of two. I can tell you, your colleagues are quite excited!

OK, the money gets closer, but will the Eggheads stop you?

Here is your question, you four Eggheads.

In military uniform, what is the shako?

-It's a cap.

-It's that tall cylindrical cap, yeah.

Austrians wear it.

It's a cap.

You're correct. It's a cap.

Three out of three. They're never easy to beat.

Never, never, never, but they can be beaten. But you've got to get

this one right, otherwise the contest is over.

Your third question, Dons.

Kharg Island is a major oil terminal in which body of water?

"Kharg" is spelt K-H-A-R-G, OK?

I'm pretty sure...when he said it, I was pretty sure

it was somewhere in Arabia

so it's either the Red Sea or the Persian Gulf.

And the spelling would fit that, wouldn't it? KH.

I've never heard of it, so I don't know.

But I would agree with your logic. It doesn't sound China...

-Where are the Straits of Magellan?

-In the South Atlantic.

-Bottom of South America.

-Well, it did sound possibly Scottish.

No, I think it's Persian Gulf.

-OK.

-Yeah.

-Go with that.

-Happy?

-Yeah.

Jeremy, we're going to go for the Persian Gulf.

If you've got this right, the contest continues.

If you've got it wrong, the contest is over and the Eggheads have won.

Let's ask the Eggheads. Do you know what it is?

-It is the Persian Gulf.

-Persian Gulf is correct. Well done.

So three out of three for you both.

Oh, this is an exciting and very tight contest.

-But we go to Sudden Death now. So it gets a bit harder.

-Yeah.

I don't give you alternatives and the Eggheads have the first question.

Which Australian State is bordered by New South Wales to its north

and South Australia to its west?

-New South Wales to its north.

-Victoria.

-Of course, it must be Victoria.

-Yeah.

-Yes.

-Victoria.

-Victoria.

Victoria is correct.

OK, well...this is the problem with going second, isn't it?

They put the pressure on you.

Try and get this one right. You've got to get it right.

Chou-fleur is the French name for which vegetable?

I'll spell it for you, guys. C-H-O-U-hyphen-F-L-E-U-R.

I think I know this, but I want you to say it as well.

It sounds to me... I don't know...

-Fleur is flower.

-Yeah, OK.

I'm thinking... I'm thinking cauliflower.

-Well, that sounds good.

-Maybe broccoli.

-But chou-fleur...

-I should follow your logic.

-Chou-fleur sounds...

-I can't think of anything else.

-Flower, fleur.

-I should know what cauliflower is in French,

but I can't think of any other word.

-Shall we go for it?

-Yeah.

We're going to plump for cauliflower, please, Jeremy.

OK, cauliflower is your answer.

Let's go to our French speaker for this. Judith?

-Yes, right.

-Yes, you're right! Well done.

-Well done.

Right, so you're absolutely level pegging.

£17,000 on the table. This is an exciting contest. And who knows

if the Eggheads might suddenly explode or do whatever it is you do?

Here's your question, Eggheads.

The stars of which TV series had a Christmas hit in 1983

with the song What Are We Going To Get 'Er Indoors?

It must be Minder. Minder's the only one that has 'Er Indoors.

-'Er Indoors, Arthur Dailey.

-Yeah. Minder.

Yes, you're correct. Minder it is. George Cole, Dennis Waterman.

'Er Indoors. Your question. A dreidel is a type of spinning top

that traditionally has how many sides bearing Hebrew letters?

-I'll spell it for you.

-Please.

-D-R-E-I-D-E-L.

-That makes all the difference that spelling!

-Yeah. that's useful.

Number of sides. Do you think it's to do with some kind of

-lucky number?

-Hebrew...

-A lucky seven or something?

Six-pointed star, Star of David. There can't be many.

Six would be if it was like a dice, like a die, you know?

Do you think if it is Israeli or whatever,

you've got a triangle or two triangles?

But that would have six points, wouldn't it?

Can you think of any other numbers that are Hewbrew-ish?

-Six sounds good to me.

-Yeah?

-Let's go for six.

-OK.

With about as much confidence

as some of the earlier questions, we're going to go for six.

But you're playing well. You've played well so far.

The Hebrew letters are nun, gimmel, hey and shin.

It's four, I'm afraid. It's four, but, you know, the logic of six,

Star of David and all that...

that was tricky and I'm really sorry but that's the end of the contest.

And we have to say congratulations, Eggheads. You have won!

-Sorry, guys, but have you had a good time?

-Very much so.

-Thank you.

I think they were the best-named team we've ever had,

the five Dons from Cambridge. And you're all called Don.

-You really were Dons.

-Yeah.

Commiserations to our Cambridge Dons. The Eggheads have done

what comes naturally to them, and they're putting up

a good winning streak now with all these games

that they are triumphing in.

It does mean you won't be going home with the £17,000.

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. £18,000 says they don't.

Until then, goodbye.