Episode 92 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.

I don't think there's anyone to beat you, on quizzing, Eggs?

-After the last result?!

-That's true, that is true, CJ.

There's been a bit of a problem, as I'm about to explain.

Taking on our quiz champions today are the Highbury Crew.

Now, four of this team grew up together

in the Highbury area of London and to compete the quintet,

they have recruited their university friend, Adam.

So let's meet them.

Hi, I'm Simon, and I'm a product manager.

Hi, I'm Adam, and I'm a maths teacher.

Hi, I'm Alice, and I'm a management consultant.

Hi, I'm Archie, and I'm a production assistant.

Hi, I'm Oliver, and I'm an adjudicator in financial regulation.

-So, Simon and team, welcome, good to see you.

-Hello.

-Hello.

-So, friends, roughly speaking, in North London, is that right?

-Yes.

We all knew each other from school except Adam, who was a uni friend.

How did you meet them, Adam?

Through a friend of a friend, who I went to university with.

-But you have met before today, right?

-Yes.

OK! Are you here for the maths,

-was your university course maths?

-It was indeed, yeah.

I'm also a maths teacher at the moment.

So... I think I've been recruited for sport more than anything.

-All right, sport or science. And do you quiz together?

-Yes, we do.

So we do some pub quizzes in London

-and we have done for quite a while.

-OK, good luck.

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.

And Highbury Crew, this lot were on a bit of a roll

and it just got stopped. They hit a brick wall in the last game.

So they lost and that means £1,000 is on the table now

to say you can't beat them.

-Would you like to give it a go?

-Absolutely.

All right, the first head-to-head battle is on the subject of History.

So who would like History?

-Guys?

-You feeling lucky, Simon? You or me?

-I'm happy either way.

-You go for it.

-OK, I'll take History.

OK, the team captain, Simon, against which Egghead?

You can have any one of the five there.

-I know it's not much of a choice.

-Who do we think?

-Um...

-CJ or Judith?

-CJ or Judith?

-Go for CJ?

-CJ, we'll go against CJ, please.

-Right, so, early start for you, CJ.

Nice, get it out of the way.

Simon from Highbury Crew is going to play

CJ from the Eggheads on History

and just to ensure there's no confirming,

would you please go to our Question Room?

So, History, Simon, would you like to go first or second?

I would like to go first, please.

And here we go with your first question, good luck.

Which British military figure was born in 1758?

Lord Nelson.

Oh! THEY LAUGH

Not even a moment! Not even a second.

That's the world record fastest answer on Eggheads.

Thankfully, it is right, well done. Lord Nelson.

OK.

CJ, the saying "England is a nation of shopkeepers"

is often attributed to which historical figure?

I think that's attributed to Napoleon Bonaparte.

It is indeed Napoleon, well done. One each. Back to you, Simon.

Which of these became an independent country in 1947?

Pakistan.

LAUGHTER

-He doesn't mince his words.

-No, he's very direct.

-What do you do for a living, Simon?

-I'm a product manager.

OK, so you'll just say a product suddenly and it will appear.

We tend to work quite quickly. No!

I think I just know that, it's...

Around the time of partition, I can't remember the exact date,

whether it was '47, it may be '49 but I think it's '47.

Yes, it is Pakistan, well done. CJ, back to you.

Which historical figure, who lived in the 5th century AD,

was known as Flagellum Dei, the Scourge of God?

Alexander's much earlier, Ivan's much later

-but Scourge of God was Attila the Hun.

-And why did they call him that?

Because he pretty much murdered everyone he came into contact with.

OK. He did a lot of scourging.

Jeremy, one of my favourite nicknames for Margaret Thatcher

was Attila the Hen.

JEREMY LAUGHS Wonderful.

OK. We go back to you, Simon.

Take your time!

The so-called gin craze that saw escalating crime

and social problems ascribed to excessive gin consumption

took place in which century?

Um, so, that was associated with the late 18th century.

Hogarth was obviously quite a bit documenter of that sort of stuff

and that was very much his period.

18th century is absolutely right.

You're right about Hogarth as well, yeah.

The common line was, drunk for a penny, dead drunk for tuppence.

-Clean straw for nothing.

-That was an advertising slogan, was it?

OK, CJ.

You get this wrong, you're out.

Which philosopher claimed to have been born prematurely

when his mother panicked on hearing news of the Spanish Armada?

This one I haven't heard of. Hobbes is later, surely.

Unfortunately, I don't know the dates of Locke.

I thought Bacon was earlier than that,

I mean, the Spanish Armada is 1588.

Oh, dear, I thought Bacon was slightly earlier

but I do not know Locke's dates.

Really don't know this

but I hope Francis Bacon was earlier than that so I'll try John Locke.

The answer is Thomas Hobbes, CJ, you got it wrong. Well done, Simon.

Very direct. That's... What do you call that in football, route one?

Yeah, that's pretty much what it was.

You're in the final round, Simon, well done.

Please come back to us, both of you and we'll play on.

Well, a very good start for Highbury Crew.

I hardly dare ask if you're Arsenal fans, are you? You are.

I think without exception, bar maybe Adam.

-Yeah, I'm not, I'm afraid I'm a Wolves fan.

-OK, OK.

So, anyway, you've scored, basically, Simon has scored in front of goal

and you've knocked out CJ and it's just starting, this contest.

Let's see what happens now. It's Music for you.

Who would like Music?

-Me or you.

-Oliver?

-Oliver, surely.

-OK, yeah. I'll take it.

-Go for it.

-Oliver, against which Egghead? Obviously can't be CJ.

-Maybe Barry?

Who shall we go for? I'm thinking... Let's go for Chris.

-Let's mix it up a bit, go for Chris.

-You sure?

-OK. Yeah, go for it.

-Chris on Music.

-Yeah, OK.

-All right?

-Yeah.

Oliver from Highbury Crew versus Chris from the Eggheads, on Music.

Please take your positions.

So you play any instruments yourself, Oliver?

Yes, I play bass and guitar.

I suppose bass is my main instrument

and then guitar followed on naturally from that.

So if you play bass, you must be in a band, I'm thinking.

Not any more, no.

I suppose real life got in the way

so I probably play more guitar

because it's easier to play on your own, more fun. So mainly that now.

What sort of band were you in?

-You could call it a power trio, like a rock power trio.

-Power trio?

Yeah, well, I suppose, you know, if you've got three members,

-bass, guitar, drums in that same Cream kind of set-up.

-The Jam, yeah.

-You ever been in a band, Chris?

-No.

You've heard me on karaoke though, Jeremy, often enough.

I have, and I know which songs you like to sing.

And as for an instrument, I do occasionally get a yen

to go and buy a banjo and learn how to play it but...

Hey-hey! Turned out nice again!

THEY LAUGH

-Was that George Formby?

-George Formby, yeah.

OK, so Music, Oliver. Before we all go mad.

Would you like to go first or second?

I think I'll definitely go first, Jeremy, please.

Here we go, Oliver, good luck.

Hank Marvin found fame as a guitarist for which brand?

I... Hmm. I do know this and...

I'll go for The Shadows, Jeremy.

That's right, Cliff Richard's backing band

who then came out of the shadows, didn't they?

And became really successful in their own right. The Shadows is right.

Chris, your question. "But come ye back

"when summer's in the meadow

"Or when the valley's hushed and white with snow"

are lines from which traditional song?

Well, the proper title of the tune is The Londonderry Air,

-but it's Danny Boy.

-It is Danny Boy. OK, Oliver.

In the lyrics to Don McLean's song

American Pie, them good old boys were drinking what?

I do love this song.

I have it on CD and vinyl.

And I recall seeing the old recording of him crying,

singing it on Top Of The Pops.

And then being butchered by Madonna at a later date

-so the answer is whiskey and rye, Jeremy.

-Good for you!

Yeah, you're right, and that's before your time, for sure.

-It's a great song, isn't it?

-It is, brilliant song.

And Don McLean was asked,

"What is American Pie actually about?"

And he says, "It's about me never having to work again."

THEY LAUGH

Chris, the British rock duo

Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher found fame as which group?

HE SIGHS

Well, the only one that I've heard of there is the Bombay Bicycle Club.

-Well, you're wrong. Oliver, you'll know.

-That will be Royal Blood.

Yeah, Royal Blood, because they're really new

-and really good, aren't they?

-Er...

-You don't like them!

-I don't.

To be honest, Bombay Bicycle Club, I really, really, really like.

Royal Blood, not so much.

Royal Blood remind me a bit of White Stripes.

There's just two people in them and they make an enormous sound.

So, anyway, Chris, you got it wrong, you've fallen behind.

If Oliver gets this right, he will join Simon,

the straight-talking Simon in the final round. Here's your question.

Turiddu, who's just returned from army service,

and the peasant girl Santuzza

are central characters in which one-act opera?

It's not going to be Pagliacci because that is about the clown,

I believe.

I'm plumping for one of the other two.

It has to be Cavalleria Rusticana, I think.

Cavalleria Rusticana is quite right, well done. Three out of three.

-You'd been bounced out as well there, Chris.

-Mm.

We had that before, a few games ago,

you and CJ looking a bit uncomfortable in the sin bin.

Don't think we're getting together.

LAUGHTER

I think we knew that! I think we knew that.

-Although I noticed the odd lingering glance.

-Eh?

-OK.

Oliver and Chris, please come back, rejoin your teams.

Well, Highbury Crew are playing really, really well.

They've lost no brains from the final round,

the Eggheads have lost two brains, look at that!

Chris and CJ in the sin bin.

I don't know if we can fit anyone else in there!

The next subject is Sport,

so who would like this? Sport.

-I think this is straight to Adam.

-Adam!

-I think that's me.

-Adam, our maths teacher, against which Egghead?

-Who shall we go with?

-Judith?

-I think so. Sorry.

-Judith, I think.

-Thank you, Judith!

But you have played well on Sport. You've won some rounds.

I have, actually.

So Adam from Highbury Crew versus a slightly reluctant Judith.

Please, both of you, go to our Question Room.

-So, Adam, you're the maths teacher doing Sport.

-I am, yeah.

Play a lot of sport myself,

so I'm hoping it's going to be a good round for me.

-And what sports do you play?

-My main sport is... I play Aussie Rules.

And so I play Aussie Rules for Great Britain as well,

-I played last year in the World Cup.

-Right!

Bit of a strange sport

that not a lot of people have heard of in this country.

And you played it in Australia or here?

-I played it in Australia last summer, in Melbourne.

-Fantastic!

And you've got to tell us what happened.

Well, we didn't do as well as we wanted to, we came ninth,

unfortunately. Out of about 20 teams, so not too bad.

But it wasn't what we hoped for, we hoped to do a lot better than that.

-So, I'm just checking, your surname is Coxsell, right?

-It is, yeah.

Just in case, because you could easily be a question in this round.

So, Judith, don't get it wrong

-if Adam's Aussie Rules team question comes up.

-I'm awestruck, I must say.

Well, it's the first time we've had an answer playing against us.

-Exactly.

-I'd be very impressed if I came up as an answer!

I tell you what, if you did, Kevin would get it right. OK, so, Adam.

Sport. Would you like to go first or second?

I think I'll go first, please, Jeremy.

Here we go. Which Sri Lanka cricketer became the first man

to take 800 test match wickets in July 2010?

I do know the answer to this one, I do follow cricket quite a lot.

Let's see if I can get my pronunciation right.

That would be Muttiah Muralitharan.

Muttiah Muralitharan is the right answer, well done. Well done, Adam.

Over to you, Judith.

Which of these people has been a leading figure

in the world of Formula 1 since the 1970s?

Well, I think that might be Bernie Ecclestone.

I think it might be, you're right.

Warren is boxing, is Barry Hearn boxing as well?

He's everything, he's boxing, darts,

he's also the head of world snooker.

OK, so not Hearn, not Warren but Bernie Ecclestone,

you're quite right, Judith. One each. Back to you, Adam.

In football, what name is often given to a match between two teams

in a similar position in the table?

Um... So I think that one is going to be a six-pointer.

Six-pointer is correct, because the difference between extreme results,

end of the results would be a six-point difference.

Judith,

Mauro Bergamasco won his 100th cap for Italy in 2014

in which sport?

Um, I don't know why, but I'm tending towards rugby union.

-And hoping for the best.

-Going down the left now?

-Yeah.

-We've done the right too often?

-Well, doesn't always work, does it?

No, it didn't work last time.

Rugby union is correct, well done.

Don't overreact. Third question can be crucial, Adam, here we go.

Tim Henman never reached the semifinals of the men's singles

competition at which of tennis's four Grand Slam tournaments?

Hmm. Not 100% sure on this one.

I know he definitely made the semifinals of Wimbledon.

I think, I think I'm going to go for the French Open.

Because it's played on clay, I don't think he was very good on clay.

CJ will know this because he loves his tennis, is this right?

It isn't, in 2004 he reached the semis of all of them

apart from the Australian where he never got past the fourth round.

Australian Open, Adam. You've got two out of three.

Judith has a chance to take the round on sport. Here we go.

A very big moment.

We'll have a little plaque put up on the wall if it happens.

What was the nickname of the world champion boxer Evander Holyfield?

He was the ear biter, wasn't he?

Well, he's not The Italian Stallion because he's not Italian, is he?

He's not The Louisville Lip because that was somebody else

whose name I can't remember, so it must be The Real Deal.

Yeah, poor old Evander has his ear bitten off and you accuse him

-of biting someone else's ear.

-Oh, he was bitten, rather than the biter?

-I think Tyson bit him.

-Tyson bit him, that's right.

The Real Deal is right, Judith, well done,

three out of three. Sorry, Adam.

She does that thing, in boxing it's called rope-a-dope

when they lean back against the ropes and pretend to be semi-unconscious

and then just knock you out.

She's just done it, just boxing like Ali there.

Well done, Judith, you're in the final round.

And if you come back to us, we'll play the last round before the final.

So a little bit of a fightback by Judith there.

-Brilliant, people won't be choosing you on Sport again.

-I do hope not!

Highbury Crew have lost a brain now, Eggheads have lost two, of course.

What will happen next? It's Arts And Books.

-So who would like this?

-OK.

-OK.

-Decisions.

-Can you take it?

-I'll take it? OK. I'll take it.

So Alice being saved for the final. SHE LAUGHS

-Saved! Yeah. Maybe.

-I won't ask why you're laughing.

Archie, on Arts And Books, who do you want to take on?

-You can have either Barry or Pat.

-Pat's been very quiet today.

-Go for Pat then.

-Just bring him into the game.

-Bring him in, yeah.

-We'll go with Pat.

-Pat, The Silent One, as he's known.

So Archie from Highbury Crew versus Pat from the Eggheads.

To ensure there's no conferring,

please take your positions in our Question Room.

-So, Pat, you've got your glasses on.

-I have, Jeremy.

But I noticed as I looked carefully that you only have one lens in them.

I lost a lens recently

and haven't got round to going to an optician to get a new pair.

Is that why you're always choosing answers down the left-hand side?

Because they're the only ones you can see?

No, I would like to fall back on that excuse but I'm afraid I can't.

There was a piece a couple of years ago by David Aaronovich,

The Times columnist, who had exactly your situation but his glasses

were Reactolite ones, so when the summer came he was walking along

and only one dark lens,

and he said he realised he'd officially gone to seed.

-But you're not that far gone yet, are you?

-No, no.

And with a bit of luck, I will secure the services of an optician

-and the problem will go away.

-OK.

Archie, would you like to go first or second?

I would like to, like my team, go first, please, Jeremy.

So here we go.

In which year was Kenneth Grahame's book

The Wind In The Willows first published?

Er...1708 and 1808 are both far too early.

I'm going to say...1908.

1908 is correct, well done.

Pat, your question.

Which of these quotations

is usually attributed to the writer Alexander Pope?

I think "I wandered lonely" is by Wordsworth, from Daffodils.

"Water, water everywhere" is from

The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner by Coleridge.

So it's, "To err is human; to forgive, divine,"

that comes from Pope.

"To err is human; to forgive, divine," is correct, well done,

that is Pope. OK, your question, Archie.

Slaughterhouse-Five is a work by which author?

Well, Jeremy, I do know this, it's one of my favourite books.

That is written by Kurt Vonnegut.

Kurt Vonnegut, quite right, well done.

Pat, your question.

Which singer made her West End acting debut in 2002,

playing an art dealer in the play Up For Grabs?

Hmm, Oh, dear. This doesn't ring any immediate bell.

I don't think it's the sort of thing Madonna would have done.

Streisand has been a big star for a very long time.

Um... I don't know.

She could have on a whim

decided to have an outing on London, on the other hand,

she has a slightly lower profile that she used to have,

and she did a lot of acting in the '70s.

Cher, an art dealer, Madonna.

No, no inspiration coming at all from anywhere.

They're all entirely capable of doing it...

Madonna, to be fair, did live in London

with her husband of the time, Guy Ritchie.

So that gives her at least convenience.

On that very slender theory that it was handy for her English house,

I'll go for Madonna.

Yes, you got it right, and you crossed her out and came back to her.

So well done. Madonna it is.

Archie, your question.

The Ustinov Studio is part of the Theatre Royal arts complex

in which English city?

I don't know this off the top of my head, Jeremy.

I'm going to have to take a guess.

The Ustinov...

I think Liverpool has the Royal Theatre arts complex?

So I'm going to say Liverpool, please, Jeremy.

-Liverpool, do your team-mates know, is it Liverpool?

-Not sure.

I'd have said Bath.

I think I would have gone for the same, for Liverpool. I did.

-Alice says Bath.

-Yeah.

Alice is right, Bath it is.

So Pat has the chance to take the round

and get himself to the final.

Who is the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play,

Driving Miss Daisy?

I think Tony Kushner is most celebrated for Wings Over America,

or Wings On America.

Sam Shepard is a playwright and a very accomplished actor.

But my feeling is, of those three,

I think Driving Miss Daisy might be Alfred Uhry.

Eggheads, is he right?

-I think so.

-Alfred Uhry is the right answer, Pat. Well done.

Sorry, Archie, you just got pipped there by Pat.

Does the contest turn on this? We'll see.

Come back to us, Pat and Archie, and we will play the final round.

This is what we have been playing towards.

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

I'm afraid those of you lost your head-to-heads

aren't allowed to take part in this round.

So Highbury Crew started very, very strongly,

then the Eggheads pulled back.

Adam and Archie from the Challengers, and also Chris and CJ,

you've been knocked out.

Please leave the studio.

Right, Simon, Alice and Oliver, this is the big moment now.

You're playing to win Highbury Crew £1,000.

Judith, Barry and Pat, you're playing for something that money can't buy,

which is the Eggheads' reputation. How battered has it been?

-Only a slight dent.

-They live in their own world, you know!

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

This time, the questions are all General Knowledge. You can confer.

So, Highbury Crew, the question is,

are your three brains able to defeat the Eggheads' three over here?

You've set yourself up in a beautiful spot, see if you can win.

-Simon, Alice and Oliver, do you want to go first or second?

-First, please.

Good luck, guys.

Which of these television presenters is an accomplished poker player,

winning the first prize of £500,000

in the European Poker Championships in 2006?

-So, I think that's Victoria Coren Mitchell.

-Yeah.

-I think so.

-Yeah, yeah, yeah.

-Fairly certain.

-Victoria Coren Mitchell.

Straight there, you're right. Eggheads.

What is the name of the self-defence system

developed by Emrich Lichtenfeld

and originally used by the Israeli army?

-I know this. It's Krav Maga.

-OK.

It is definitely Krav Maga.

Krav Maga is right, well done. Not Jiu Jitsu?

Definitely not Jiu Jitsu.

OK, onto you.

In Greek mythology,

which animal did Heracles capture in the last of his 12 labours, the last?

-I think we'll have to leave this to Alice.

-Um...

So, I'm wavering between the lion and the hydra.

-Do you guys have an opinion?

-Think it through. Work it through.

Didn't he kill the hydra?

Yeah, I feel like he killed the hydra and I...

Did he capture Cerberus, bring him back from the underworld?

I can't imagine you'd want to capture a hydra.

No, he killed the hydra.

Cerberus, I don't know.

I'd be inclined to say lion but I don't know why say that.

-Over Cerberus.

-Yeah?

-Generally just gut instinct.

-OK, Nemean lion?

Shall we ask the Eggheads, are they right?

No, the Nemean lion was the first of his labours.

But the 12th was going down into Hades

to capture the three-headed dog, Cerberus.

Cerberus is the answer.

I'm going to get flak for that.

You ruled out hydra on the basis that you wouldn't capture a hydra,

and I thought that was very good logic.

Why will you get flak, is Greek mythology your thing?

-I did classics at uni.

-OK!

-Oh, dear!

-OK. All right.

Eggheads, in early 2015,

which American singer announced her engagement

to the actor and model Taylor Kinney?

-The Hello! magazine question.

-I think it's Lady Gaga.

Is it Lady... Oh, yes, she has got engaged.

Because the thing that sprang into my mind was,

would she wear a meat wedding dress?

HE LAUGHS

-Let's see, Katy Perry was married.

-It is Lady Gaga.

Katy Perry was married and hasn't been married again.

-I think that experience must have put her off.

-I'm not sure

-Taylor Swift is married. I think it's Lady Gaga.

-I would agree.

I think, I'm sure Lady Gaga announced her engagement.

So we're going for Lady Gaga.

Lady Gaga is the right answer.

So here's the position. They've got two, you got one.

You're lagging behind.

You need to get this one right or the contest is over.

Which is these standard paper sizes has an area of one square metre?

-So, how long is a metre?

-100 cm!

-Do it like that.

-So, A2 is...

I don't think A2 is...

OK, so you've got A2, A3 is...

A2 is twice A3.

So, how big is A2 going to be?

A2 is two A3s, which is

probably still not going to be a metre wide.

The side of an A3 is not a metre,

so therefore two of them is not going to be.

-So we're going to go A0?

-It'll have to be.

-OK.

-It makes sense.

-You happy about that?

-Yeah. I think.

-OK, A0?

A0, I like Simon's very telling intervention there.

Very succinct again, Simon.

What was it, the size of A3 is not half a metre therefore

it cannot be A2. And you were quite right, it's A0, well done.

Nicely done.

Like it. Just absolutely in there.

So you're equal but they have a question in hand.

If they get this right, the contest is over,

otherwise we go to Sudden Death.

Let's hope for a trip.

Tipu Sultan, who led a campaign against the British

in 18th-century India,

was nicknamed the Tiger of which Indian kingdom?

-He was the Tiger of Mysore.

-Was he? Well done.

-Happy with that?

-Let's double-check.

Yeah, I think it's Mysore.

He was a famously very, very anti-British sultan indeed.

And in fact, he had constructed a Tiger which was devouring

a British soldier, which I do believe

is one of the museums in London.

-And he was known as the Tiger of Mysore.

-You sound so certain, Barry.

I think they've got it right, don't you think?

The Tiger of Mysore is the answer.

We say congratulations, Eggheads, you have won.

Oh, Cerberus.

-Yeah, I'm sorry.

-Commiserations, Highbury Crew.

The Eggheads have done what comes naturally them,

they reign supreme over Quiz Land once again. Just!

I'm afraid you won't be going home with the £1,000,

so the money rolls over to our next show.

You've got to start building up a big jackpot again, Eggheads,

after it was ripped away in the last game. Eggheads, very well done.

I wonder if you will be beaten again soon?

-Cheers, Challengers, thanks for playing.

-Thank you.

Join us next time to see if a new team of challengers

have the brains to defeat them.

£2,000 says they don't. Till then, goodbye.