Episode 86 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 the Eggheads today are...

This team of friends are all avid rugby league fans

and support teams of Halifax and the Bradford Bulls.

How you get from The Bulls to Fat Dogs is anyone's guess,

but I'm sure they'll enlighten us. Let's meet them.

I'm Scott. I'm 25 and I'm a test analyst.

I'm Lisa. I'm 43 and I'm a teacher.

I'm Danny. I'm 30 and I'm a retail manager.

I'm Lindsey. I'm 45 and I'm a school business manager.

I'm Julie. I'm 27 and I'm a trainee teacher.

-Scott and team, welcome.

-Thank you.

So the Bradford Bulls, and at the end we've got Julie who's Halifax.

-Yes.

-That's rugby league.

-Yes, so basically we're all fans of rugby league.

And we met through Twitter, supporting the team.

We come from different parts of the country so we came together through that.

And we've been friends ever since.

For those who don't use it, you're on your phones and you put some kind of code in and all meet up?

We put a hache tag and Bradford Bulls

and anybody that's using the same codes can see each other.

So we decided to meet up at a couple of games and there we go.

Where does the name Fat Dogs come from? That's one thing I don't understand!

Basically, last year, our team was in a bit of bother with finances

and a group of us decided to get together and bring back the good times

by having a sing-song on the terraces to get the atmosphere back a bit.

Some of us were going down to London to an away game

and there were three very large gentlemen in the back of the car.

It slowed it down, so it came from there.

-So the three gentlemen were the Fat Dogs?

-They're our Founding Fathers!

They're three of our friends, Rick, Gareth and John,

and Martin decided to call them the Fat Dogs.

So although you play under the name of the Fat Dogs, they may be watching!

-The real Fat Dogs.

-Indeed.

-Yes.

-I hope so!

OK. Well, here we go with the contest.

Every day there is £1,000 of cash up for grabs for our challengers.

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

So, Fat Dogs, the Eggheads have won the last 36 games

so that's pretty good if you're looking at the jackpot!

Wow!

Might get the Bradford Bulls back on track with that!

The first head-to-head is on Music. Who'd like this?

-Music. Not me.

-Um...

-It's your round. You said that...

-OK. I'm going to go for Music, then.

And I would like to take on... I'll take on Dave. "Tremendous Knowledge" Dave!

So the skipper Scott from the Fat Dogs against Tremendous Knowledge Dave from the Eggheads on Music.

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

Scott, you went for Music pretty swiftly.

Yeah. We decided beforehand what our categories would be.

Music is not particularly one of my strengths

but nobody else in the team's either.

The fact I have about you is that you're absolutely terrified of chickens.

-Yeah.

-I didn't know if that's related to music in some way!

Not quite! Basically, I went to a beer garden when I was a child, about three or four.

I was playing with the chickens, time to leave.

I started running away, fell over, and all the chickens jumped on me

and started pecking me to death!

So that's left me emotionally wounded!

I'm scared of chickens after that story!

That ever happened to you, Dave?

No, not at all. I've had some scary chicken dishes,

in certain restaurants that I won't name!

-Yes, it's safer that way.

-Absolutely.

OK, Music. Scott. Would you like to go first or second?

First, please, Jeremy.

Good luck. I hope you don't get attacked by a chicken during this round!

What was the title of Lisa Stansfield's 1989 number one single?

I think I know this one.

My brother was born in this year.

I remember as a kid singing it a lot when I was dancing around him.

I think that's All Around the World.

All Around the World is the right answer. Good memory.

Dancing around your brother singing a song. A lovely memory to have.

OK, Dave, your question.

Which X Factor winner had the first new UK number one single of 2010?

First one of 2010?

I don't think it's Steve Brookstein.

That's too far away. Will Young too far away. It's Joe McElderry.

Joe McElderry is the right answer. One each.

Scott, over to you.

According to the song Joy to the World, made famous by the US band Three Dog Night,

what type of creature was Jeremiah?

Not too sure. Not my field of expertise.

Joy to the World.

I will have a plump for Brown Bear.

-Anyone on the team?

-Bullfrog.

-It was a bullfrog.

How do you know that? It's an old song.

It's on a film. They sing it a lot on a Sandra Bullock film.

She sings in it "Jeremiah was a bullfrog."

Help me with it. Do a little bit of it. Come on.

# Jeremiah was a bullfrog

# He was a good friend of mine. #

Got it. I want to say good play by the Fat Dogs,

but Scott, unfortunately, you got the answer wrong.

Your team-mates knew the answer was bullfrog.

Dave, your question to take the lead.

Which of these terms refers to a short, light piece of music

typically composed for solo piano.

I'll go villa... Villanella.

If I can pronounce it!

-Villanella.

-Villanella is not right. Anyone in Eggheads know?

-ALL: Bagatelle.

-Bagatelle.

You got it wrong. Bagatelle was the answer.

So one each after two.

Here's your third question, Scott.

The letters AAM, an abbreviation of the name of an ensemble

founded by Christopher Hogwood in 1973,

stand for the Academy of what?

1973.

Um, OK. So not much of a clue.

AAM.

I don't think it's Avant-garde music.

I think, based on the time, I'm going to go for Acoustic Music.

It's the Academy of Ancient Music.

Let's see if Dave can take the round with his third question. Dave,

which European composer served as director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York

during the 1890s.

Not Liszt.

I'm going to go with Dvorak.

Dvorak is the right answer, Dave.

Well done. You've taken the round two points to one.

Sorry, Scott, you've been knocked out

but it doesn't mean your team can't win.

Come back to us and we'll play on.

So, as it stands, the Fat Dogs have lost one brain, Scott, from the final round.

Don't worry. You can still power through.

And there's a big jackpot here of 37,000.

So keep the confidence up. The next subject is Science.

-Who's it going to be?

-That will be me.

I'm a science teacher!

You're the science teacher. OK.

Julie against which Egghead? Can't be Dave.

-Who do you think?

-I'm thinking either Pat or Barry.

-Pat or Barry. Pat?

-Pat.

-Yeah?

-I'll follow my team and I'll take Pat.

OK. Julie from the Fat Dogs against Pat from the Eggheads.

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

Julie, you are a science teacher?

I am, yes. I'm currently training. I'm on my final placement

and I should be a qualified science teacher in June.

So I'm still training at the moment.

But it's a lot of fun.

I'm really glad you say that. You've got a degree in Medical Biology, right?

I have, yes. While I was doing my degree at university

I was actually chair of the Bio-Science Society.

That's good. I gather you got your degree from somebody with a Star Trek connection.

I did, yes. I was given my degree by Sir Patrick Stewart.

He's the Vice Chancellor of the University of Huddersfield where I studied.

Good luck in your career and good luck with the imminent issue of deposing Pat

in this round on Science.

Julie, do you want to go first or second?

I'll go first, please.

Science ranges far and wide. I hope we get the right territory for you. Here's your first question.

What is commonly cited as normal human body temperature

in degrees Fahrenheit?

OK. The general rule of thumb that I was told

was you double your Centigrade and add 30.

So doubling your Centigrade

would take you to around about 65, 68.

Add 30, that would take you to 95, 98.

So I'll go with 98.6, please.

Very logical and very correct. Well done.

98.6 it is.

Pat, your question.

The eggs of the common starling are typically what colour?

I know quite a few of those birds tend to have pale blue eggs.

I'm not certain a starling does.

A black egg would be quite surprising.

And a red egg sounds a bit drastic!

I'll have to go with blue egg.

Blue is the right colour and the right answer.

Julie, to what phylum of animals do sea anemones belong?

Wow. This is taking me back.

It's been a long time since I did phylum.

I'm almost 100% sure it's not Cnidaria.

And between Arthropoda and Brassica,

I think I'm going to go with Brassica.

Brassica. OK. Let's ask the Eggs here.

-Any Eggs who know?

-No, it's Cnidaria.

-Brassica is cabbage.

-Brassica is cabbage, apparently.

-Cnidaria is the right one.

-Oh, no!

So, Cnidaria is the answer.

Pat, there's a chance to go ahead. Your question.

Due to its slow rotation coupled with its fast orbit speed,

which planet has a solar day that lasts twice as long as its year?

Fast orbit speed. The closer you go to the sun, the faster you'll go.

Because otherwise you'd be pulled into the solar mass itself.

So I'm going to go for Mercury.

Mercury is correct.

Take us through this. It's rotating slowly

so dawn to dusk is six months, is that right?

Is that what we mean here?

-Barry, you love this stuff.

-Mercury rotates round the sun in about 88 days.

-OK.

-So its day is obviously much longer than 88 days.

OK. I'll pretend I understand and move on!

Julie, your question.

Widely used across a number of different industries,

Sodium tetraborate decahydrate is better known by what name?

I'm using my process of elimination here.

The fact that it's got borate in it and it's got "dec", which means ten,

which is the Roman numeral X,

I would go with borax.

I'm pretty sure it's not lye. I've heard of that as something else.

And white spirit, I don't think anything with borate in it

would be that commonly found in shops.

So I'll go with borax.

Borax is right. Brilliantly done.

Borax is correct, Julie. Well done. Two out of three.

Let's see if Pat knocks you out now.

If he gets this wrong, we go to sudden death.

Which of these items of medical examination equipment

was invented by the German scientist Hermann von Helmholtz?

An endoscope is a camera on the end of a flexible device,

on a flexible lead.

That's pretty high-tech, really.

I think Von Helmholtz was active in the 19th century, around there,

so I think an endoscope might be a bit too complex.

An otoscope I think is just a gizmo

that you look into somebody's ear.

I've a notion it's opthalmoscope.

Opthalmoscope is the right answer. Sorry, Julie, he's knocked you out,

by just getting one more over three.

So Pat will be in the final round and Julie has gone from the contest.

Please, both of you, rejoin your teams.

Julie, commiserations on that.

If it's any consolation, it often happens to the person with a specialist knowledge.

-Yes.

-Because the rounds are actually quite general.

Yes. The questions didn't fall into my specialist area of science.

Yes. A little while ago, Judith, who wouldn't say that science is her strongest subject,

knocked out a rocket scientist!

That was one of our all-time great moments, actually!

As it stands, the Fat Dogs have lost two brains from the final round.

The Eggheads have not lost a brain yet.

Will the next round change that?

It's Geography.

Who would like this?

That would have been me.

-But I can't do it, can I?

-I'm rubbish at Geography.

-I'll go.

-Are you sure?

Yeah, I'll take Geography.

Lisa against...Barry, Chris or Daphne. The three in the middle.

-What about Chris?

-Yeah?

I wouldn't go with Daphne.

-Barry.

-Barry.

OK. I'll take Barry, please.

It's Lisa from the Fat Dogs versus Barry from the Eggheads.

Please go to the question room.

-All right, Lisa. Good luck here.

-Thank you.

We were just looking at some of the stats for the Eggheads.

-The biggest jackpot ever won was 75,000.

-Wow!

-The second biggest jackpot ever won was 37,000, which is exactly where you are now.

-Absolutely.

That jackpot was won by a team called - ready for this? - The Wise Owls.

-Wow. OK.

-So now we're the Fat Dogs and we're on 37!

So, is there an omen there? I don't know.

Right. Geography. First or second set of questions, Lisa?

I'd like to go first, please, Jeremy.

Good luck. Here we go.

In winter, the western European countries that are on Central European Time

are how many hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time?

OK. Well, I'm pretty certain that when we adjust our clocks,

that the rest of Europe does that as well.

So I'm pretty sure it's one.

One is right. Well done.

It would be easy to slip up on that one.

OK. Barry, your question.

The towns of Ashford and Tenterden are in which English county?

Ashford and Tenterden.

Ashford's drawing me to Kent,

and Tenterden is drawing me to Oxfordshire

which isn't a great help.

It's Tenterden. T-E-N-T-E-R-D-E-N.

Doesn't really help much.

Oh, dear. Ashford.

I really don't know.

Kent.

-Kent is the answer. You knew it was Kent, didn't you?

-Yes.

Barry, Barry, Barry. Where are you today?

Blimey, if you had that trouble at the first question, it could be interesting times!

This is your question, Lisa.

Which of these English cities is situated on the River Lune? L-U-N-E.

OK.

It's not my specialist subject, UK rivers.

I travel up and down the country a little bit in the car.

I think I would have come across the River Lune

around the Derby area, so I'm going to rule that out.

For no particular reason, I'm going to say Plymouth.

I'm sensing your team-mates don't know. Is she right, Eggheads?

-No.

-Lancaster.

Lancaster it is, Lisa.

Barry, your question.

What type of feature is the Weltzeituhr

in Berlin's Alexanderplatz?

Goodness me. Could you spell that, please?

W-E-L-T-Z-E-I-T-U-H-R.

Doesn't sound like a fountain?

Or a clock. I'm going to go for an ice rink.

OK. I guess my German A level is coming back to me.

Welt-zeit-uhr. World-time-hour.

It's a clock.

-Of course!

-I'm thinking that someone has taken the Eggheads' Barry

and replaced him with an imposter today!

-Oh, dear me!

-That's good for you, Lisa. Well done.

You're now neck and neck. He's let you back in. Good stuff.

Try and get this one right.

Mount Damavand is one of the highest peaks in which country?

Mount Damavand. Mount and then D-A-M-A-V-A-N-D.

I think it's got a bit of a Scandinavian sound to it.

So for that reason, I'm going to say Finland.

I would agree with you, but you're wrong.

Unfortunately it's Iran.

If Barry gets this right, he's in the final round.

Barry, the Great Mosque of Kairouan,

one of the largest Islamic monuments in North Africa,

is situated in which country?

-Tunisia.

-Straight in. OK.

So Kent is a struggle, but Tunisia you're fine with!

It would appear so!

Absolutely right, Barry. You're in the final round.

Lisa, sorry,

he has knocked you out. The Eggheads are playing well.

Well, I won't go that far!

They're playing with confidence at times.

You've been knocked out. Please return to your teams.

It's always entertaining, respectfully I point this out,

when you guys blow a little fuse.

Is that what happened there, Barry?

I think it was a big fuse I blew.

Reminds me of Judith when she was asked "What song begins with the line,

'Start spreading the news, I'm leaving today'?"

And she chose Barcelona! We were trying to work out how that would go together!

Anyway, as it stands, the Fat Dogs have lost three brains from the final round.

So the Eggheads are still winning here. They've not lost a brain.

Got to try and change that before the final.

Good luck. Film & Television is the subject.

Is that good?

-I think I'll take this one.

-OK. Danny against which Egghead?

-Chris or Daphne?

-I'd like to play Chris, please.

-OK.

So Danny from the Fat Dogs against Chris from the Eggheads.

Last chance to knock out an Egghead before the final. Good luck. Please go to the question room now.

This is definitely your subject, Danny?

All being well, Jeremy, yes. I've been building up for this for the last few weeks.

Hopefully, I won't let my team down too badly.

You would like to work in film, wouldn't you?

I studied Film and Media Studies at Central Lancashire University

back in 2001 through to 2004.

Ultimately, I fancy myself as a bit of a screenwriter.

I do write the odd screenplay in my spare time, but as yet, nothing major.

We had the strange fear of Scott, which was being attacked by chickens.

You've also got a strange fear?

I have almost a phobia of flat-handled metal cutlery.

When I'm holding it, it gives me the sensation of nails on a chalk board.

So I do have my own set of cutlery that I've been known to take out with me to use.

How interesting. This team has a series of phobias.

-Anything to do with supporting the Bradford Bulls?

-No!

We all see ourselves as professional sportsmen, really, so we all have us own pre-match rituals!

Good luck, Danny. I'm glad we've got you on your subject,

although as Julie discovered, it's often even harder as a result.

-Would you like the first or second set?

-I'd like to go first, please, Jeremy.

Who plays the airline pilot Whip Whittaker in the film Flight,

released in the UK in February 2013?

I have seen the trailer for this film, Jeremy.

So I'm extremely confident that the answer is Denzel Washington.

And you're 100% right. Well done.

I saw it and I really enjoyed it.

Thought it was good.

Chris, your question.

Jules Holland's Hootenanny is regularly broadcast on which day of the year?

That's regularly on New Year's Eve, Jeremy.

New Year's Eve is the correct answer.

Danny, back to you.

In 2011, which channel picked up the TV series Big Brother

after Channel 4 decided to axe it?

Again, I'm quite a big fan of this show.

I've watched it from its early days when it was on Channel 4.

The answer to this, Jeremy, is Channel 5.

Yes, it is. Channel 5 is the answer. Well done.

Chris, what was the title

of the 1992 Batman film that featured Danny de Vito as The Penguin?

I know the film. I know Danny de Vito as The Penguin.

But which one was it? Not Batman & Robin.

That's the extremely camp one.

I think it was Batman Returns.

-Is he right, Danny?

-Yeah, he's right. I'm a big Batman fan as well!

Yes, you have a big Marvel comics thing, don't you?

I've got a lot of time for both Marvel and DC comics.

Batman is my favourite comic book hero.

Chris, you're right. Batman Returns it is.

OK. Third question, Danny. Good idea to get this one right.

You can put a bit of pressure on him, hopefully knock him out.

Which actor starred as architect David Vincent

in the 1960s TV science fiction series The Invaders?

Bit of a tough one, this, as it's a bit before my time.

So I'm going to have to try and knock some answers out logically.

I've never heard of any of them, so that doesn't help me!

So I think I will do the tried and tested technique

of going down the middle and going for Barry Newman.

Chris is shaking his head.

Roy Thinnes.

Roy Thinnes is the right... What's the hand gesture, Chris?

That's how you tell an alien.

-Go on.

-With the crooked finger.

Roy Thinnes it is, Danny. Sorry.

Chris, your question.

The Autons are artificial life-forms

that appeared several times in which TV series?

Are these those shop window dummies that came to life

and started killing people in London?

In which case, it's Doctor Who.

-Was that a question, or your answer?

-It's an answer.

It's the right answer. Doctor Who is correct.

Sorry, Danny, he's knocked you out. They're playing a strong game here, these Eggheads.

They've won every single round. So if you come back to us, we'll play that final.

This is what we've been playing towards.

It's 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, Scott, Lisa, Danny and Julie from the Fat Dogs,

would you please leave the studio.

So, Lindsey, you are playing to win the Fat Dogs £37,000.

Unfortunately, you're playing alone!

Dave, Daphne, Chris, Barry and Pat,

you're playing for something that 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 and you are allowed to confer.

I know you're on your own. It doesn't help you!

Lindsey, the question is, is your one brain better than the Eggheads' five?

-Would you like to go first or second?

-I'll go first, please.

Here we go. Good luck. What is a soothsayer said to do?

Thankfully, I do know the answer.

Certainly not turn lead to gold.

A soothsayer was a fortune teller, so the answer must be foretell the future.

Foretell the future is quite right. Well done.

Most famously, I suppose, was with Julius Caesar, wasn't it?

The Ides of March and all that. I wonder if this is your Ides of March, Eggheads?

Is this the moment the trophy falls? Let's see. Your first question.

The NBA basketball team The Golden State Warriors

is based in which US state?

ALL: California.

-California.

-Straight there.

-Yes.

-The Golden State.

-I see, that's the clue, is it?

OK. California is the answer. Well done.

Right. Your question, Lindsey.

The Tippeligaen is which country's premier league for men's football?

I'll spell it for you.

T-I-P-P-E-L-I-G-A-E-N.

-Tippeligaen.

-Crikey.

Football is definitely not my thing.

There's really nothing that stands out at me

that I could even use any knowledge on, really.

It's going to have to be a complete guess.

And I'm just going to say...

Turkey.

Tippeligaen. Any Eggheads know?

I don't know. It sounds like it would be Norway.

-Yes.

-It's Norwegian.

It's Norway. Tippeligaen.

OK, Eggheads,

your question.

Which nickname was commonly given to the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve?

ALL: Wavy Navy.

Yes, they were called the Wavy Navy

because of the stripes they wore.

You don't think they were the Hors d'oeuvres Reserves?

-No.

-No, no, no.

Wavy Navy is the right answer. That was the nickname.

So, Lindsey, £37,000 you're playing for here.

No pressures!

The most we've ever given out on the show was 75,000,

but 37 is the second biggest amount. We're equal with that.

If you don't get this right, the game is over.

Your third question.

In which area of the creative arts is Ken Garland a renowned figure?

Ken Garland.

Again, I don't know the answer.

I'm going to have to have another stab in the dark, I'm afraid.

I will go for...

choreography.

The answer is graphic design.

-Oh! Never mind!

-I'm sorry, we have to say, "Congratulations, Eggheads,

"you have won."

-Lindsey, commiserations.

-Thank you.

Playing for the 37,000 jackpot. Thank you for taking part.

-It's only easy if you know the answers!

-So true.

The Eggheads are very, very good, even when they're not good. That's the trouble.

They've done what comes naturally to them. Their winning streak continues.

It does mean the Fat Dogs won't be going home with the £37,000.

I'm sorry. So the money rolls over to our next show.

Eggheads, congratulations. Who will beat you?

Let's see, next time, if a new team of challengers have the brains to defeat them.

£38,000 says they don't.

Until then, goodbye!

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