Episode 77 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 quiz Goliaths today

are the Monkey Puzzlers.

This team of old school and university friends

are regular quizzers at the Wise Monkey pub in Glasgow. Let's meet them.

Hi, I'm Stephen, I'm 24 and I'm an English teacher.

Hi, I'm Sean, I'm 27. I'm a quantity surveyor.

Hi, I'm Scott, I'm 24 and I'm a sales representative.

Hi, I'm Jamie, I'm 24 and I'm a warehouse operative.

Hi, I'm Chris, I'm 24 and I work in learner development.

-Stephen and team, welcome.

-Hi.

-We record in Glasgow and you're from round the corner.

Yeah, we're local, from the east end of Glasgow.

-You quiz together?

-We do.

-Tell us about that. They're obsessed with how people quiz.

-They're not mere mortals.

-We've quizzed at a lot of pubs in Glasgow over the last few years.

Our main one just now is the Wise Monkey in the West End.

And we do not bad.

What sort of atmosphere is there in the pub when you're quizzing? Is it quite tense?

It's really good fun. It does get a bit serious as the prize money goes up, but generally, it's good fun.

-If I was Sherlock Holmes, I would deduce that you play rugby?

-I do.

-We'll get a close-up of your fingers there.

-I was stamped on.

It's broken two fingers.

OK, if you get knocked out, you can say the rugby injury stopped you from playing to your full strength.

-A valid excuse.

-Good luck, Monkey Puzzlers. Every day, £1,000 is up for grabs for our challengers.

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

Monkey Puzzlers, the Eggheads are on quite a streak. They've won the last 27 games.

So you'll know that £28,000 is there for you if you win today.

-Would you like to get cracking?

-Yes.

-I thought you would.

The first head-to-head battle is on History.

Which of you would like this?

-Stephen's our History man.

-I don't fancy it now.

I think you should go for it.

-Yeah, I'll take the fall on that.

-OK, Stephen.

-Against which Egghead? You can choose one, any of them.

-Not Kevin. Definitely not Kevin.

-Chris or Judith?

-Whatever you feel. You're doing it.

-Judith.

Stephen from the Monkey Puzzlers against Judith on History. That's one of your favourites.

Yes, but I lost the last one if you remember.

-That was because I said things I shouldn't have said.

-Exactly, so this time...

-No praising.

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

-Stephen, you're an English teacher?

-I am, yes.

-And your passions?

-I love the works of F Scott Fitzgerald and Oscar Wilde.

-They're my main literary passions.

-We're criss-crossing a bit with History?

We are. I did a couple of years at university on History, so hopefully, some of it stuck.

-Judith, I know what I'm not allowed to say.

-Yes.

-I won't say it.

-Good.

For anyone confused by that reference, it's just any praising of your historical knowledge

-seems to cause trouble.

-We've got to be realistic about it.

-We just mustn't mention how good you are.

-Thank you for not mentioning it(!)

-So, Stephen, History, your choice. Would you like to go first or second?

-Second, please.

OK, Judith. Here we go. Good luck.

In 1951, the aircraft carrier Campania sailed round the UK

as an exhibition ship in support of what event?

Well, the Olympic Games was '48

and the Coronation was '53

and the Festival of Britain was '51.

It must be the Festival of Britain.

Yes. A tricky question, but you've got it.

Stephen, your question.

What term was coined to refer to the dominant nations

at the Paris Peace Conference just after World War One?

The Enormous Eight sounds too many.

And the Statesmanlike Six just does not sound right to me,

although I'm probably wrong. I'll go for the Big Four.

No, you're right. Big Four is correct. Well done.

Judith, your second question.

In 1940, Syria fell under the control of which regime?

That was Vichy France.

You're right. It was Vichy France. Stephen, here is your next question.

In February 1950, the previously undistinguished Senator Joseph R McCarthy made headlines

when he claimed how many Communists had infiltrated the US State Department?

I am familiar with McCarthyism,

but I'm not familiar with the quote, so I'm struggling a wee bit on this.

I think...I will plump for 65.

It's the obvious one to go down the middle.

Actually, it's more than that. It is 205

which explains why he made such a splash with it. 205 is the answer.

Judith, your question now.

The poorly timed detonation of a bridge over the River Elster signalled the end

of which disastrous 1813 battle for Napoleon?

I think it's Leipzig.

What makes you think that?

-It's the magic right. No...

-No, more than that.

-It rings a bell.

So it was a disastrous battle for Napoleon, was it?

I hope so.

In more ways than one, I hope so.

You're right. Leipzig is correct. Sorry, Stephen.

She's got three in a row and there's no way back for you

because you got one wrong, so we have to say goodbye. You won't be in the final round.

Judith, you're in the final. Please come back and rejoin your team-mates.

-Stephen, bad luck.

-Yeah, I should have known the McCarthy one, but hey-ho...

-And, of course, the fingers didn't help.

-No. I'll pull that in as an excuse.

So the Monkey Puzzlers have lost a brain from the final round,

the skipper's brain, while the Eggheads haven't lost any. The next subject is Arts & Books.

Who would like this?

-Initially, I was going to go for that one.

-Christopher, how do you feel about that?

Who do we want to keep to the end?

How do you feel? I'm useless at Arts & Books.

-It's Christopher or Sean.

-I would prefer General Knowledge to Arts & Books.

-Do you want to go for it, Chris?

-Yes, I'll take it then.

-OK, Chris.

Choose an Egghead. It can't be Judith.

-I'll make it a Chris head-to-head.

-Chris and Chris?

-Yes.

The two Chrises, one from the Monkey Puzzlers, one from the Eggheads, on Arts & Books,

please go to the question room.

-Chris, Arts & Books...

-Yeah, fair enough, Jeremy.

I was talking to the other Chris, but it's going to happen, isn't it?

-Chris from Monkey Puzzlers, Arts & Books?

-It was the secondary subject, but it had to be done.

-We'll see what happens.

-Your favourite book?

-Lanark by Alasdair Gray.

-We discovered about your Scottish heritage, other Chris.

-Yeah.

-Have you read that book?

-No.

-Tempted to?

Yeah, Lanark... Is it a novel or is it a history of Lanark?

-It's a novel.

-Perhaps not as interesting as the history of Lanark would be, but there we go.

That's a very interesting insight into the mind of Eggheads' Chris. OK, Arts & Books.

-Chris from Monkey Puzzlers, do you want to go first or second?

-First, please.

Good luck to you. Here we go. How is jealousy described in the Shakespeare play Othello?

My knowledge of Shakespeare isn't great,

but with a bit of deduction, I can rule out the blue-hearted monster

and the yellow-livered monster, so I'll go for the green-eyed monster.

The green-eyed monster is absolutely right. Well done.

OK, Egghead Chris, your question.

Which gallery is the traditional home of Constable's famous painting, The Hay Wain?

That's in the National Gallery in London, Jeremy.

You're right. National Gallery of London.

-Are you suffering with a cold?

-I've got a beauty.

-Commiserations.

-Yeah.

Chris from Monkey Puzzlers,

which British sculptor, who died in 1986,

made a famous series of drawings of people sheltering in the London Underground during World War Two?

Oh, my knowledge of sculpture and sculptors isn't good.

I think I'll go for Henry Moore.

Just a stab in the dark this time.

-Chris, you'll know this.

-It was Henry Moore.

Well done, Chris from the Monkey Puzzlers.

Chris, on to you.

"In my craft or sullen art" is the first line of a poem by which writer?

Oh...

It doesn't sound like TS Eliot.

It doesn't sound like WH Auden.

It sounds like the strange-working mind of Dylan Thomas

from Cwmdonkin Terrace, Swansea, so I'll say Dylan Thomas.

Yeah, you've got it, Chris. Well done. Dylan Thomas, it is.

So, two each.

Both Chrises are playing well. Let's see if you can get the third question right.

Harvey Boy Dougdale, the lover of Lady Montdore,

is a central character in which novel by Nancy Mitford?

This again, unfortunately, will have to be a total stab in the dark.

I think I might rule out Don't Tell Alfred

because of the language in the title of the book,

as opposed to the names of the characters,

so I think I'll go for The Pursuit Of Love, please.

It's the most famous title there which is Love In A Cold Climate

by Nancy Mitford. Love In A Cold Climate.

So we go over to our Egghead with a cold. Chris, for the round...

Undertones Of War, published in 1928,

is which author's account of their time on the Western Front during World War One?

Well, Erich Maria Remarque wrote All Quiet On The Western Front,

or Im Westen Nichts Neues.

I've never heard of Frederic Manning,

but the name Edmund Blunden rings vague bells, so I'll go with him.

Excellently played, Chris from the Eggheads. You've taken the round.

Sorry, other Chris, you've been knocked out.

He's played very well, old Chris. You won't be in the final, Chris from the Monkey Puzzlers.

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

-Chris, bad luck.

-I can't have quite the excuse Stephen does. I just have a nasty paper cut on my thumb.

-What, you haven't got bandaged fingers?

-Just a plaster.

The Monkey Puzzlers have lost two brains from the final round.

The Eggheads have still not lost a brain.

The next subject is Sport.

-Which of you would like this?

-I'll take this.

-Jamie?

-Will I take Daphne on it?

-Dave's really good at Sport.

I'll play Daphne as she's the only female left and, hopefully, she doesn't like Sport.

-You're risking something with that. Wait and see what she's made of.

-I said "hopefully".

-He's not with us.

Jamie from the Monkey Puzzlers thinks Daphne will be rolled over on Sport. I'm not so sure.

Let's find out. Do both go to the question room.

-You do quite a lot of sports, Jamie?

-I play a bit of rugby, same team as Stephen.

-An jujitsu as well?

-I used to. A couple of years ago, I did it for a while.

-With the spinning and the throwing?

-No, it's grappling on the mat.

-You don't twist and spin?

-No, I think that's judo.

-Football as well? You support which football club?

-I support Glasgow Rangers.

-So you live a sport-obsessed life?

-I would say so.

-Daphne, what do you follow?

-What do I follow? Rugby.

We've got a lot of sport there. Let's see what comes up.

-Jamie, you choose whether you go first or second.

-I'll be a gentleman and I'll let Daphne go first.

Daphne, in cricket, what name is given to a player

who scores 100 or more runs in a single innings?

Well...

He scores a century, so he must be a centurion.

Centurion is the right answer.

Over to you, Jamie. Good luck.

How many players are there on a baseball team?

Baseball is not one of my favourite sports,

but if I was guessing, I would say there's 13.

-That would be my guess.

-13...

-Let's see if Daphne knows this. Daphne?

-It's nine.

Nine is the answer.

Over to you, Daphne.

In which position did Peter Bonetti make several hundred appearances for Chelsea Football Club?

Well, my son-in-law and grandson would never forgive me

if I get this wrong because they're big Chelsea supporters

and he was a goalie.

-Do you know what his nickname was?

-The Cat?

It was. A goalkeeper is correct. Well done.

Jamie, over to you.

On what type of tennis court is the annual Hopman Cup tournament in Australia played?

Seeing as the Australian Open is played there, I would say "hard".

You're absolutely right, Jamie. Hard is correct. You've got a point.

Because Jamie got one wrong,

if you get this right, you're in the final round.

In China, the term "wushu" refers to what?

That's W-U-S-H-U.

I think it's a combination of martial arts.

-Let's ask Jamie. Is she right, Jamie?

-I think so.

Yeah, you're right, Daphne. Martial arts, it is. Three out of three.

-Sorry, Jamie. She does sometimes explode on to the pitch like that.

-A very good player.

Yeah, she's in the final and I'm afraid you've been knocked out.

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

The Monkey Puzzlers have lost three brains from the final round while the Eggheads have not lost any.

The next subject is Film & TV.

Which of you would like this?

-I'll take that one.

-Scott.

-Scott?

-Against which Egghead? Kevin or Dave.

-What do you think?

-Either way...

-Either way, we'll get them in the final.

-I'll take Tremendous Knowledge Dave.

So it is Scott from the Monkey Puzzlers versus Tremendous Knowledge Dave from the Eggheads.

Please go to the question room.

-Dave, Film & TV, are you ready for this one?

-Yes, I am, yeah, looking forward to it.

Any excitements on TV for you or...?

-What, currently?

-Yeah.

No, I'm more a person who just watches the sports, to be honest, when I get the chance.

-Do you like boxing?

-I love it.

-We've got a great connection with Scott here, I thought you'd enjoy this,

-which is that you once had lunch with Sugar Ray Leonard.

-I did, yes.

-Legend.

-Tell us about it. What was that great fight? Marvin Hagler?

Yeah, the Hagler-Leonard fight and also the Duran and Leonard fight.

So how did that happen, Scott?

Sugar Ray Leonard was doing a promotional tour around the UK, just doing dinner speaking.

My father happens to know the person who's promoting these dinners.

One afternoon he just said, "Would you like to go for lunch with Sugar Ray Leonard?"

I'm a massive boxing fan and he is one of my heroes, so it was a fantastic experience to do it.

Yeah, he was an absolutely beautiful boxer, I must say.

-Film & TV. Scott, would you like to go first or second?

-I would like to go first, please.

Here we go with your question. Jules Tavernier was a regular character in the 1990s in which TV soap?

I'm not a big soap-watcher.

I'm going to opt for Coronation Street.

I'm afraid you're wrong. EastEnders, it is.

Who's our EastEnders... Isn't it you, Judith?

Yes. It must have been before I started watching.

-Dave, do you know?

-Yeah, the Taverniers were...

There was Clyde and Hattie.

If you can recall the singer Michelle Gayle? She was in there.

And Clyde, ironically, was a boxer.

And Jules was like the patriarch of the family, the older one.

There we go, Scott. Sorry about that. Your question, Dave.

In which decade was the TV detective series Hawaii Five-0, starring Jack Lord, first broadcast?

In which decade was the TV detective series Hawaii Five-0,

starring Jack Lord, first broadcast?

It's a bad one for me. It's not the '80s.

It could be late '60s.

No, I'm going to go with the 1970s, but with no certainty at all.

-It could be the late '60s. I could have got this wrong.

-You have.

You just missed it. 1960s.

Scott, over to you.

You got one wrong, Dave got one wrong. Neck and neck.

Who plays the female lead opposite Cary Grant in Alfred Hitchcock's North By Northwest?

A bit before my time, this one.

I'm not a huge Alfred Hitchcock film watcher. It will have to be a guess.

For some reason, I'm drawn to Grace Kelly. I'll go for Grace Kelly.

It could have been, but wasn't. It was Eva Marie Saint.

In Family Guy, what is the maiden name of Lois, wife of Peter Griffin?

Isn't it brilliant?

Chris will know this because he watches it religiously.

I don't watch this at all.

I've got no idea.

The one name that's sticking out to me,

but again the country will be shouting at me... Quagmire.

-It's not Quagmire.

-Pewterschmidt.

-It is Pewterschmidt, yeah.

-Yeah.

-Chris, you like it?

-I do. Joe Swanson's the cop in a wheelchair.

Glenn Quagmire... Giggity-giggity-goo!

-LAUGHTER

-Pewterschmidt is Lois's maiden name

and Carter Pewterschmidt, her father, a sort of moneybags type

who's down on Peter and enjoys humiliating him...

Yeah, it's good. Mind you, don't let your kids watch it. It's very rude.

OK, we'll bear that in mind.

It's just family life in a slightly crazy family?

Yeah, a pretty skewed view of American suburban life.

And there's Stewie, of course,

the homicidal baby intent on world domination.

I just didn't know this was a passion of Chris's.

-Anyone else here passionate about Family Guy?

-We're all big fans.

People either love it or they're just not there.

No-one has got a question right in this round yet. Can I say that the tension is incredible here?

Zero-zero. Alan Napier, Scott, who played Alfred the butler in the 1960s Batman TV series,

was a cousin of which Prime Minister?

Alan Napier, who played Alfred the butler

in the 1960s Batman TV series,

was a cousin of which Prime Minister?

Based on the fact I think that was kind of '50s and '60s...

..I'm actually going to go for Winston Churchill.

No, it wasn't Winston Churchill.

I can picture this guy. He was quite tall. He looked like Anthony Eden.

-He was tall and distinguished.

-Yeah.

-Neville Chamberlain is the answer.

OK, we don't often get zeroes all round, do we?

Dave, if you get this one right, you're in the final.

What is the title of the 1989 sequel to the 1985 Chevy Chase film comedy, Fletch?

The one that's looking out at me, so I'll just go for it - Fletch Lives.

Ya-ay!

Dave lives.

Dave lives and will be in the final. Fletch Lives is correct. Well done.

Sorry, Scott.

That was kind of a crazy round, but the Egghead has just pipped you.

If you come back to us and rejoin your teams, we will play that final round.

This is what we have been playing towards, the final round, which, as always, is General Knowledge.

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

can't take part in this round,

so, Stephen, Scott, Jamie and Chris, unfortunately, all from this side, the Monkey Puzzlers,

I have to ask you to leave the studio, please.

Is this the plan, Sean, for you to have been left or did it just happen?

It always was... General Knowledge was always something I was stronger on. I've not really got a speciality.

-OK.

-General Knowledge was always going to be there.

So you're playing to win the Monkey Puzzlers £28,000.

Judith, Kevin, Dave, Daphne, Chris with the cold, you are playing for something that money can't buy

which is the Eggheads' reputation.

I will ask each team three questions in turn. This time, they are all General Knowledge.

You are allowed to confer. So, Sean, the question is -

is your one brain able to overwhelm the Eggheads' five?

-Do you want to go first or second?

-I'll go first, please.

Here we go. Good luck. An electric guitar is often referred to by which slang term?

I'm a big fan of heavy metal music

and they're always mentioning axemen.

They're lead guitarists, so on that basis, I would go with "axe".

Axe is the right answer. Well done. Good start.

Eggheads, all five of you,

which town hosts an annual international musical Eisteddfod?

-Llangollen.

-Llangollen.

-I think it's the Welsh one.

-Yeah.

Eisteddfod is obviously particularly associated with Wales,

so we'll go for Llangollen.

Llangollen is right.

Had you said one of the other two,

-no-one in Wales would ever watch us again.

-No.

-It would've been a diplomatic disaster.

-A lot riding on that.

OK, your question now, Sean.

Which unincorporated territory of the United States

has the song La Borinquena as its anthem?

I'll spell it for you. It's "La", L-A, then B-O-R-I-N-Q-U-E-N-A.

The N has one of those little accents on.

On the basis of the spelling

and the mark you've just described on the N,

it leads me towards Puerto Rico

because it's Spanish-speaking,

so I think I would go for Puerto Rico.

I'm glad I described the little wobbly accent on the N.

Puerto Rico is the right answer. Two out of two.

Playing well. This is interesting with £28,000 to win.

The Eggheads, you never know, if the five of them get a bit cocky, get a bit of a swagger,

they get one wrong, bang, you've got them! So, here we go.

What was the name of William Walton's Prelude and Fugue,

adapted from his score for the 1942 film, The First Of The Few?

-Spitfire.

-Spitfire?

-Spitfire Prelude?

-Yeah.

That's the Spitfire...Prelude.

It is the Spitfire Prelude. You've got it right.

They are playing a close game here, but you're confident.

Here's your third question. Get this right and if they get theirs wrong, you've won the money.

Simple as that. £28,000 - big jackpot.

Sean, what type of creature is the venomous rinkhals?

I'll spell "rinkhals" for you.

It's R-I-N-K-H-A-L-S.

Rinkhals, one word.

I'm not too familiar with that one,

but if I had to guess...

..purely for...

Obviously, all the answers are venomous.

But just playing it a bit leftfield, I would go with scorpion.

OK, scorpion is your answer. Leftfield because...?

When you hear "venom", you just go for snake and spider.

I think I know more snake and spider species than I do scorpion.

I've not heard of this one, so I would go with scorpion.

-Scorpion is wrong. The answer is snake.

-OK.

I'm sorry to say. It's a ring-necked spitting cobra.

Eggheads, if you get this right, the contest is over.

The Paris Metro features a station named after which US President?

-FDR.

-FDR?

-Yeah.

This one, some of us have actually been to. It's Franklin D Roosevelt.

Franklin D Roosevelt is your answer and it is correct.

Congratulations, Eggheads. You have won.

-Sean, commiserations.

-Hoping against hope, I think.

-You were very sure-footed.

Snake, scorpion, I see the logic of what took you away from snake.

-We think we know most snakes, but this one was a stinker.

-Yeah.

-The rinkhals.

As for you, Eggheads, what is the Clement Attlee quote? "A period of silence from you would be welcome."

You've won too many games. Someone will beat you at some stage.

Commiserations to the Monkey Puzzlers. The Eggheads have done what comes naturally to them.

Their winning streak continues. I know that's infuriating.

You won't be going home with £28,000 which rolls over to the next show.

Eggheads, very well done. Who is going to beat you?

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

£29,000 says they don't. Until then, goodbye.

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