Episode 16 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.

-Are you ready to work?

-We certainly are.

-We certainly are.

All right. They like getting down to it here.

Taking on our quiz champions today are the Seascaliens from Cumbria.

Now, this team, with the brilliant name,

all met through attending their local golf-club quiz.

-Let's meet them.

-Hi, I'm Mitch, and I'm a police sergeant.

Hi, I'm Peter, and I run a railway museum.

Hello, I'm Steve, and I'm an electrical engineer.

Hello, I'm John, I'm a commercial manager.

Hello, my name's Matt and I'm an engineering consultant.

So, Mitch and team, hello.

-Hello.

-Great to have you with us.

And just tell us, the word Seascaliens - I love the name,

-Mitch, explain it.

-Well, we all attend - some of us live -

but we all attend the Seascale Golf Club quiz,

yet none of us were born in Seascale.

I see, so aliens to Seascale?

We are aliens to Seascale - all except Matt at the end,

who IS from Seascale but no longer lives there.

Oh, fantastic.

This gets ever more exciting and complicated.

I seem to remember a long time ago Seascale was known as

-the cleverest town in Britain.

-Yes, it was.

In the '50s it was the atomic weapons research centre

at Windscale, which is now Sellafield, of course,

and most of the people that were bussed in were scientists,

and at one point in the school,

every child who did the 11-plus passed.

So their parents were all nuclear specialists, basically.

Nuclear scientists, physicists, engineers, etc.

How interesting. You've got a lot to live up to here.

We're here to debunk that myth, yes.

-Are you quizzers?

-We quiz against each other,

we've never actually quizzed as a team.

Well, listen, good luck, Challengers. Every day

there is £1,000 worth of cash up for grabs for our Challengers.

If they fail to defeat the Eggheads we just roll that prize money

over to the next show. Seascaliens,

the Eggheads had a bit of a bashing a couple of games ago,

they won the games since then, so there's £2,000 for you to win today.

Would you like to crack on?

-Yes.

-I thought so.

The first head-to-head battle is on the subject of History.

One of you needs to go against either

Beth, Chris, Pat, Steve or Lisa.

-That will be you, Peter.

-I guess that's going to be me, yes.

OK, Peter. And which Egghead, Peter?

Choose any one you like.

They all look absolutely fabulous.

I'm going to choose Chris.

-And we know why, don't we?

-What is the reason why?

Our good friend here runs the railway museum at Ravenglass.

Ah. So there's a little bit of railway in common.

-Oh, yeah.

-Wonderful. Well, Chris will be in his element.

Peter from Seascaliens taking on another railway man,

Chris from the Eggheads.

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

So, tell us about the railway museum, Peter,

-cos it sounds wonderful.

-It's absolutely fabulous.

Since I retired, it took me 18 months to set it up

and I've had it open now since June of last year.

It's open one week a month.

We get people in all the time, local people,

travelling people, and it's just a joy to run.

And it's showing, not model railway stuff, but serious real-life stuff?

Yeah. It's all to do with what's known as Railwayana.

So old-time signs, posters, tickets, clocks,

anything I've collected from the old railways of West Cumbria.

I can see Chris getting physically excited there.

Well, steady on there, but...

yeah, I can see where we're coming from.

I mean, there is just so much stuff out there,

cos the railway, it was the whole world, if you see what I mean.

-It was a whole world on its own.

-Yeah, and what sort of things...

I'm assuming you haven't been into Peter's museum?

-No, I haven't been there yet, no.

-You'll have to book in to see it,

but what sort of things would you like looking at, Chris?

I like looking at old signs, old posters...

..locomotive building plates,

that sort of thing, you know, station signs.

-There we are. A man after your own heart, Peter.

-Absolutely,

and I've got all of those things, and seeing it's Chris,

if he comes down it'll be free entry for him.

-Oh, righty-ho.

-There we go. So, History, Peter.

Would you like to go first or second?

I'll go first, please.

Here's your question.

Henry Pu Yi was the last Emperor of which country?

Can you just spell his surname, please?

Yes, it's Henry, as you'd expect,

and then P-U and then new word, Y-I.

OK.

Pretty sure it won't be France, without a Louis in his name,

so I'm going to go for China.

China is correct. Well done.

Chris, over to you.

Which historical figure was assassinated by Gavrilo Princip?

Whoa.

Now, if I had a time machine I would love to go back to 1914,

Sarajevo, and knock the gun out the hand of Gavrilo Princip,

before he could assassinate Archduke Franz Ferdinand

and trigger World War I.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand is the right answer.

We go back to you. Peter,

which wife of Henry VIII had a sister called Mary

who was also a mistress of Henry?

Now, I think I remember seeing this on the telly recently,

and I'm going to go Catherine Howard.

Interesting answer. Chris, do you know?

Well, I think Anne Boleyn had a sister.

Anne Boleyn is the answer here.

We go over to you, Chris.

Which of these Elizabeths was appointed Dean

of the London School Of Medicine For Women in 1883?

Well, that was the... I think she was the first woman to actually

qualify as a doctor in this... medical doctor in this country,

and that was Elizabeth Garrett Anderson.

Elizabeth Garrett Anderson is the right answer.

Oh, these Eggheads!

I thought Chris was going to go astray there.

So you need to get this one right, Peter,

otherwise you are going to have to bar Chris from your museum.

Which Pope was the father of the infamous figure

Lucrezia Borgia?

Hm. Um...

Not too hot on Popes, I'm afraid.

Recognising the question, I will plump for Innocent VII.

I'm sorry, it's Alexander VI.

So the round goes to Chris cos there's no way back for you, Peter,

beaten by our Egghead. Early days, though.

Return to your teams, please, gentlemen. We'll play on.

So, as it stands, the Seascaliens have lost one brain

from the final round. The Eggheads haven't lost any -

so far. The next subject for you is Music.

Who would like Music?

-With me, is it?

-It's with you, Steve, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-Steve.

-I'll take the Music, yeah.

-Against which Egghead?

-I'll go for the fragrant Beth.

-OK.

-I don't smell that bad, do I?

-In a good way.

-In a good way.

Steve from Seascaliens to take on Beth from the Eggheads.

To ensure there is no conferring, please take your positions.

Well, you're a massive music fan, Steve, aren't you?

-I am, yes.

-And you've got how many albums?

-About 3,000 on vinyl.

-On vinyl? Wonderful.

-So you never threw the record player away?

-Never.

So where does your collection concentrate on?

-What sort of music?

-Sort of the '70s, anything to do with the '70s,

that's where I grew up, really.

Glam rock, punk rock, prog rock, heavy rock.

Yeah, what, King Crimson and Bowie and all that?

Iron Butterfly And Mountain. People have never heard of them now.

Fantastic. Well, the prog-rock thing looks like a bit of an aberration

now, but some of that music was amazing, wasn't it?

Yeah, it's had a bit of a resurgence lately, as well.

Yeah. So Music, Steve, would you like to go first or second?

I'll go first, please, Jeremy.

And here we go. Who sang the lead vocals on the UK hit singles

Common People and Disco 2000?

Well, I know this one because

Damon Albarn is the lead singer of Blur,

and Richard Ashcroft was the lead singer of...

I can't think of that one.

Jarvis Cocker was the lead singer with Pulp,

so the answer's Jarvis Cocker.

Jarvis Cocker is correct.

-Ashcroft was the Verve.

-Verve. That's right.

Over to you, Beth. Which girl's name

is the title of a song from a musical that includes the lines

"Say it loud, and there's music playing,

"say it soft and it's almost like praying"?

Hmm.

Can I have it again, please, Jeremy?

Which girl's name is the title

of a song from a musical that includes the lines,

"Say it loud, and there's music playing,

"say it soft and it's almost like praying"?

Oh, the praying might be a little clue there.

And...I think...

It's not one I immediately know, but I think it's Maria.

The answer is Maria.

That's right. OK, Steve.

The violinist and conductor Andre Rieu was born in which country?

This is one of my dad's favourites, this one.

And I believe he's from Switzerland.

No, he's Netherlands.

I'm sorry. You can blame your dad for that.

Yeah. I'll have words with him.

That's his fault.

Beth, in which city did Sir Charles Halle

set up a Royal College Of Music in 1893?

Well, the Halle Orchestra is...

associated with Manchester,

so I assume that's where he set his school up - Manchester.

Yes, you're right on every count.

Manchester is right. Well done.

OK, Steve, back to you.

Boy In Da Corner was the debut album

of which British recording artist and producer?

I think Boy In Da Corner was Dizzee Rascal's first album.

Dizzee Rascal is the correct answer.

Well done.

OK, Beth.

Your question,

you can take it with this.

The 2016 album Together is a collaboration between

Michael Ball and which other singer?

Lovely complementary voices,

and I saw them on several programmes promoting this album,

and it's Alfie Boe.

Yes, it's Michael Ball and Alfie Boe.

Quite right, Beth. Well done. You're in the final. Three out of three.

Sorry, difficult to play against these Eggheads when they don't get

-any wrong, Steve, isn't it?

-Yeah.

Please return to us, and we'll play round three.

So, as it stands, the Seascaliens have lost two brains

from the final round. The Eggheads are now playing well,

they haven't lost any, and the next subject for you is Arts & Books.

Silence.

-Who wants this, captain?

-Matt?

-Yeah, I think I've drawn the short straw on this one.

-OK.

Matt, our engineering consultant.

Which Egghead? It can't be Chris or Beth.

THEY CONFER

-Steve?

-Steve?

-Steve?

-Yeah. We'll go with Steve.

Matt from Seascaliens to play Steve from the Eggheads on Arts & Books.

Please, go to the Question Room now.

Do you enjoy a quiz, Matt?

I do, yes.

Why were you chosen for Arts & Books?

Nobody else wanted it.

THEY LAUGH

Arts & Books, Matt. First or second?

I like to go first, please, Jeremy.

The book Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them

appears in Harry Potter stories as a textbook by which writer?

Now, I know nothing about Harry Potter,

so bit of a difficult question for me.

Albert Runcorn doesn't sound terribly convincing.

Um...

Newt Scamander Sounds like something out of James Bond,

so I'll have to go for Bathilda Bagshot.

-Lisa, you'll know this.

-It's Newt Scamander, I'm afraid.

Newt Scamander is the answer, Matt.

Steve, Veruca Salt is a character in which Roald Dahl book?

That's Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Jeremy.

Charlie And The Chocolate Factory is quite right.

Matt, which British artist was

the best man at the wedding of fashion designer Ossie Clark

and Celia Birtwell?

Those fashion designer names don't ring any bells.

I think Jack Vettriano was a Scottish artist,

so I would guess David Hockney would be

more sociable than Lucien Freud, so David Hockney.

David Hockney. Now, my memory - I'll check this with the Eggs -

is that he did actually do a painting of Ossie Clark

with a cat in it. David Hockney is the right answer.

Is that the connection, Eggheads? Help us here. Was there a cat?

-Mr and Mrs Clark with Percy.

-Mr and Mrs Clark with Percy.

How brilliant you are, Pat.

You know the name of the cat.

What about that?

Well, now, we're learning all the time, Matt, aren't we?

Steve, your question. In the Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe

by CS Lewis, what is the first name of the brother

of Peter, Susan and Lucy?

-It's Edmund, Jeremy.

-Oh, straight there!

I've read them.

-You don't even hang about.

-Well, like I say, I've read them,

and I don't think there's an Eric in them, I don't think there's

a Eustace, so I know there's an Edmund, so Edmund's my answer.

Edmund is the right answer. Well done.

He has two, you have one.

You need to get this one right, here, Matt.

Which British painter, born in 1775,

spent a lot of time at Petworth House in West Sussex

which is now home to a collection of his works?

Now, I think this was the subject of a recent film

with, I think, Timothy Spall.

And I think that was JMW Turner.

Brilliant. JMW Turner, it is.

So, two out of three. Is it enough?

Steve, we go to you.

Small Great Things is a 2016 novel by which writer?

I don't know that one.

I've not heard of the book.

I've read some Zoe Heller stuff, so I might like to think

if it was one of hers I might have heard of it, but...

again, I really don't know.

Jodie Picoult is quite prolific,

it could well be her.

I really don't know, so it's a one-in-three guess,

and I'm going to get Victoria Hislop.

Eggheads?

We're not entirely sure, but my inkling was Jodie Picoult.

No, they're not sure.

-I'd guess Picoult, as well, but no confidence.

-Yeah.

They're all guessing Jodie Picoult, and that is the right answer, Steve,

so it's not Victoria Hislop. You got it wrong.

After three questions each the scores are level.

You hung on in successfully there. We go to Sudden Death.

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

The name of which small mammal appears in the title

of a Shakespeare play?

That would be the shrew in The Taming Of The Shrew.

The shrew is right.

Steve, Abigail's Party is a play

written in the 1970s by which man?

Mike Leigh.

Mike Leigh is right.

Matt, the first Charlie and Lola book by Lauren Child,

was called I Will Not Ever, Never Eat A... what?

I've never heard of that so I'm going to have to guess at a snail.

No. More obvious.

Tomato.

Steve, you can take the round with this.

Which female novelist was nominated for a Booker prize in 1969

for The Nice And The Good,

and in 1970 for Bruno's Dream?

I really don't know.

I'd guess at...

Iris Murdoch.

Do you know, I just knew you were going to get that.

Iris Murdoch is right, Steve, well done.

On Sudden Death you've beaten Matt.

Sorry, Matt, he's very good.

Please come back and rejoin your teams.

One more round to play.

All right, we're going to do some really top-level quizzing now, Eggs, OK?

The painting we referred to by Hockney had a cat in it.

-The title of the painting said the cat's name was Percy.

-Yeah.

That was actually the name of one of their other cats.

Hockney liked the name better than the actual name

of the cat in the painting. Eggheads, what was it?

If you give me three choices I might know.

Was it Boris, was it Barry,...

-No!

-Or was it Blanche?

-Blanche.

-That was too easy, wasn't it?

As it stands, the Seascaliens have lost three brains

from the final round, the Eggheads have not lost any.

The next subject is Sport.

So who wants this?

I'm going to have to do it, to leave you in the final.

It's up to you. Either way.

I don't... You stand more chance in the final, I think.

-Are you sure?

-Yeah.

-OK.

-So, you never know.

-You never know.

-John, is it you?

-Yeah, it's going to be me.

-OK, John on Sport.

You can have, let's see, Pat or Lisa are the only two left.

-Lisa?

-Yeah.

-I think we'll pick Lisa, thank you, Jeremy.

OK. Good stuff.

John from the Seascaliens will play Lisa from the Eggheads on Sport.

And so, for the last time, please go to our Question Room.

Good luck on Sport, John.

How you feeling about it?

It's probably not my best subject

-but I'll give it my best go.

-All right.

You're up against Lisa. She is a doughty player on Sport.

Would you like to go first or second?

I think I better go first, please.

Your first question.

At the 2002 and 2006 Commonwealth Games

cyclist Chris Hoy won gold medals for which country?

Luckily, this is one sport I know a little bit about,

and I believe that Chris Hoy is Scottish.

So I would say Scotland.

-Scotland is correct.

-Well done.

Lisa, the model Elin Nordegren

divorced which sports star in 2010?

She was Mrs Tiger Woods.

Tiger Woods is the right answer.

John, the football team Juventus

is based in which Italian city?

This is possibly tricky,

although, I once was on a bus trip that went through Turin,

and there is some kind of shred

of recognition that Juventus are a Turin football team.

And Turin is right. Nice work.

And I know Sport is not especially your thing -

-is that right?

-That's correct, yes.

OK, well, you're playing like it is, so well done.

Lisa, in which year did Niki Lauda

win his first Formula 1 championship?

OK. Um...

'79 was Scheckter.

'71...

Why have I got Mass in my head? He wasn't a world champion.

Anyway, it's not as early as that. It's 1975.

Yeah, you're brilliant.

1975 is right.

Two each. This round is kind of steaming along here.

He's playing well, your team-mate.

Come on, John, get this right.

The tennis player Brian Teacher won one Grand Slam Singles title

in 1980, when he was successful at which tournament?

This is going to have to be a kind of

a little bit of deduction, if that was possible.

I've got a feeling that the US Open is probably the most publicised

Grand Slam tournament outside of Wimbledon

and I haven't heard that name,

so I'm tempted not to pick the US Open.

I don't think any of the Eggheads have a go down the left option,

so I'll pick a go down the left and I'll say Australia.

Australian Open is the right answer.

Three out of three, playing like a champion here, John.

Lisa, to stay in...

in 2011, the Australian rugby union player

Matt Giteau joined which rugby team?

See, I mean, I think John did a brilliant logic job on the last one,

in that it was unlikely to be the French Open

and the US Open didn't ring any bells either.

I haven't even got that much to go on.

It's a straight one-in-three.

Yeah, well deserved, John.

I'll go for Toulon.

Toulon is the right answer.

-Whoa! Look at that.

-JEREMY CHUCKLES

I suppose we can forgive her for that, John.

Well done. Well done.

All right.

Sudden Death.

So you've got none wrong so far.

It gets a bit harder - I don't give you alternatives.

John, here's your first.

The former England cricketer Ian Botham was born in which decade?

I think it's got to be the '60s or '70s.

I would pick the '60s.

Ian Botham born in the '60s.

He's actually the '50s. 1955.

Your question, Lisa, for the round.

Which tennis player won the Ladies Singles title at Wimbledon

in 1988, '89, '91, '92, '93, '95 and '96?

One more time for me, Jeremy, please.

Which tennis player won the Ladies Singles title at Wimbledon

in 1988, '89, '91, '92, '93, '95 and '96?

-There are...seven.

-Seven!

Yeah, OK. So '94's missing cos that was Conchita Martinez,

and then, yeah, then '7 you get to Hingis,

so it must be Steffi Graf.

If you've got this right you're in the final.

Steffi Graf is the right answer, Lisa, well done.

It was that beastly Toulon answer that she guessed at, John,

that did it for you there. You've been knocked out as well.

Looking difficult but not impossible for our Challengers.

Return to us, please. We'll play the final.

So this is what we have been playing towards -

it is 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, Peter, Steve, John and Matt from the Seascaliens,

I'm afraid I need to ask you to leave the studio.

OK, Mitch. Here we go.

You're playing to win the Seascaliens £2,000.

-Wish you all the best.

-Thank you.

Lisa, Steve, Pat, Chris and Beth, well, what can I say?

You're playing for the Eggheads' reputation,

which was bashed about a bit but you're now back on the road.

Look at you, all five of you here.

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

They're all going to be General Knowledge, Mitch,

and you can confer. Sorry, that doesn't help you there.

The question is, can your one brain take down these five?

All the best. Would you like to go first or second?

I'll go first, Jeremy.

And here we go.

Which of the Queen's grandchildren was born on 23rd March, 1990?

1990, um...

I'm not 100% certain but I'll go with Harry.

-When was Harry born?

-84, I think.

84.

Quite a bit earlier. It's Eugenie.

OK. Eggheads, to take the lead.

What type of food is the Italian zampone?

I think it's a sort of sausage made from pig's trotters.

I thought it was ham or something.

-Sausage made from...?

-Pig's trotters.

They used to collect it together and turned into some sort of

-sausage-like thing.

-OK.

-OK.

-Any possibility of...

-I know to give that a miss in the deli.

-Cheers, Pat.

-Well, the rule is it's always cheese,

-but I don't think it is in this case.

-No.

-Zampone.

-If you've got an inkling for sausage, it's a sausage.

I've not heard of it as a cheese,

and if you've got a thing for sausage I'm very happy to back you.

-Yeah, I've not heard of it.

-I think it's pig's trotters.

I'm happy with that if you are.

I think it's... We think it's a sort of sausage.

Sausage. Made, did you say, with pig's trotters?

-Yes.

-Right.

Chris said the rule is always go cheese,

-but you're right, sausage is correct.

-Well done, Pat.

OK, Mitch, your question.

The American actress and model Barbara Bach played

Anya Amasova in which James Bond film?

My first thought was it's definitely not Diamonds Are Forever,

cos she was an actress in the mid-to-late '70s.

And my first thought was For Your Eyes Only,

but then you brought The Spy Who Loved Me up.

They always say you should go with your first thoughts,

and my first thought was For Your Eyes Only.

I'm going to change my mind,

I'm going to go for The Spy Who Loved Me.

I'm so glad you did. It's right.

Well done. The Spy Who Loved Me.

Brings you level with the Eggs.

What is the capital, Eggheads, of the African country of Chad?

-N'Djamena.

-Yeah.

Yeah?

Maputo is Mozambique, and Yamoussoukro is...

Ivory Coast, yep.

It's N'Djamena, Jeremy.

N'Djamena is your answer.

N'Djamena Is the correct answer.

Now, they have two and you have one, Mitch.

There's no easy way to say this, you have to get this right or it's over.

Take your time. In Guernsey,

lawyers are known as Advocates of the Royal Court,

and wear what on their heads instead of a wig?

Wow. Um...

Cornette would be a tricoloured item that you wear on the head.

A galero sounds a bit too Spanish

and Latin, so I'm going to discount that.

I don't know what a toque is.

I'm going to go with toque.

Toque is your answer.

Let's see with the Eggheads. Do you know?

-What is a toque anyway?

-Toque is the hat that a chef wears.

-Oh, I see, like a chef's hat.

-Oh!

OK. It may be a chef's hat but it's the right answer,

well done. Toque it is, Mitch, well done.

Eggheads, if you get this right you've taken it.

Who designed the statue of Nelson that stands

on top of Nelson's column in Trafalgar Square?

-Baily.

-It's Baily, isn't it? Railton did the actual column

-and Baily did the statue.

-Yeah, that's it.

They're the two men, aren't they? Railton and Baily.

-If you gentlemen are happy, I'm happy.

-I'm happy.

-Definitely.

Baily. We think that's EH Baily.

You did sound very certain.

When was this built, this statue?

1830s, 1840s.

If you're right the contest is over.

You do say it with conviction...

and you're right, too. The answer is EH Baily.

We say congratulations, Eggheads, you have won.

Commiserations, Mitch. And I know you're

much better quizzers than the early rounds might have borne out

by seeing them all back there, so well done.

-Difficult to be on your own in the final round.

-Yeah, but good fun.

I am glad you enjoyed it. I'm really glad you enjoyed it.

-Great day.

-Thank you very much for coming. Commiserations to the Seascaliens.

Our own otherworldly people over here have done what comes

naturally to them, and they reign supreme over Quizland still.

It does mean you're not going home with the £2,000,

so we take the money, we roll it over to our next show.

Eggheads, building up a bit of a sequence here.

I won't say a run just yet, but it's looking promising.

I wonder who'll beat you. Join us next time to see if a new team

of Challengers can do it. There is £3,000 waiting for them.

Until we quiz again, goodbye.