Episode 20 Make Me an Egghead

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, do you have the brains to join them?

Hello and welcome to Make Me An Egghead.

We have launched a nationwide search

to find the greatest quiz brains in Britain.

By the end of the series, two people will emerge as champions

and win the ultimate prize for quizzing enthusiasts -

a place with the most fearsome quizzers in history.

Yes, the Eggheads.

Let's meet today's contestants,

both hoping they've got what it takes to become an Egghead.

I'm Steph O'Donoghue.

I'm a charity chief executive and I'm from Suffolk.

I'm Julia Hobbs.

I'm a question writer from Berkshire.

Steph and Julia, welcome. Great to see you.

Now you have met on something called The People's Quiz.

We have, yes. Tell us about that.

It was 2007, it was a nationwide quiz that was run.

It was kind of like the X Factor of quizzing. Yes.

And Steph and I both made it through to the final.

So you both got to the final?

Yes, we did, yes, and I was lucky enough to win. OK.

And you won something like a quarter of a million quid or something?

It was very strange. It was ?200,700.

As in 2007. As in 2007. Yes.

And Julia, I notice you are a question writer,

so you are setting quizzes all the time. Yes, yeah.

Does that help? Cos I never know whether asking the questions

means you know stuff. It does help, yeah.

I'm looking at questions all day long.

If I'm not writing them, I'm sort of looking at other people's questions

and doing little tweaks and edits.

So yeah, it's amazing how much stuff goes in while you're just doing that

as a day-to-day job, really.

And I love doing it. Right, well, good luck, both of you.

Contestants, this is where you need to prove that

you could be an Egghead. Just like on Eggheads,

both of you will compete over a series of different rounds

where your knowledge will be tested on the regular Eggheads categories.

So the first head-to-head battle is on the subject of science.

I'm going to ask each of you three multiple-choice questions

on science in turn.

Whoever answers the most questions correctly wins the round.

The prize for winning a round on Make Me An Egghead

is that you gain one of these Eggs over here, so they will help you,

essentially, in the final round when you need them.

Before the show, we tossed a coin and, as a result of that,

Julia, you can decide whether you go first or second now.

I would like to go first, please.

So good luck, Julia.

What name is given to the discolouration of coral reefs

from exposure to warmer than average waters?

Is it...

Wow.

This is not a term I'm familiar with.

It could feasibly be any one of those options.

Fading and bleaching seem fairly obvious.

But I don't really have anything to pin it on.

So I'm going to steer away from the ones I think might be a bit

more obvious, and I'm actually going to go for dimming, I think.

Eggs, you know this?

Bleaching. Bleaching.

Bleaching is the answer.

Your question, Steph.

Which planet in our solar system experiences a year almost

twice as long as Earth's, at approximately 687 days?

I'm now trying to think of the film The Martian.

I will go...

I will go with Mars.

Mars is the right answer.

Well done.

Julia, which astronomical phenomenon is theoretically surrounded

by the structure of gas and dust called a torus?

I don't think it's a solar eclipse...

..cos I'm aware of a corona being connected to a solar eclipse.

I've not heard torus in connection with that at all.

So it's a toss-up between comet and black hole.

And with torus being a kind of a doughnut shape,

I think it could feasibly go round the outside of either of those.

I'm going to say comet.

Now let me check with Barry, cos Barry will know.

You're right about a torus being a doughnut, but it's

the accretion of material that spins round the black hole

that gives the doughnut shape.

Black hole is the answer.

So if you get this one right, Steph, you've taken the round.

Native to the US and Mexico,

the plant Yucca aloifolia is also known by what name?

OK. That threw me, because as soon as I heard the aloensis,

I started thinking aloe,

but then that's Aloe barbadensis or something like that.

So I'm now looking and thinking which of those rings a bell

as being a plant name?

For some reason, I'm being drawn towards Spanish bayonet.

So I will say Spanish bayonet as my answer.

Spanish bayonet is the right answer. Oh, goodness.

So after two questions, you are uncatchable, Steph,

and we say well done. You've won the first head-to-head.

So I can't guarantee other rounds are going to be as straightforward.

Which Egghead would you like to help you in the final?

You can have any one.

It's a very tough decision, because they're all incredibly good,

but I will plump for Kevin, please.

OK, so as it stands, Steph has one Egghead

to help her in the final, Kevin.

Julia has none so far.

The next category is Film and TV, and Steph, cos you won the last one,

you can choose whether you go first or second.

I would like to go first, please.

And here we go.

In which of these television series did Derek Jacobi play a monk?

Thankfully, after the last one, this is one that I know.

It's based on the series of books by Ellis Peters and it's Cadfael.

Cadfael is right.

OK, your question, Julia.

In which 2014 children's film do Hugh Bonneville and Sally Hawkins

play Mr and Mrs Brown?

Is it...

Happily, I do know this one.

I don't actually watch children's movies, but Paddington was out,

I think they were probably all out in 2014

but Paddington Bear lives with Mr and Mrs Brown,

so Paddington is my answer.

Paddington is quite right. Well done.

Back to you, Steph. In which part of the United Kingdom

is the television crime drama series Hinterland set?

Right. Hinterland. Hinterland.

I have to confess, not one I've heard of.

I think, because The Fall is set in Northern Ireland,

I don't recall another series being set there,

so I think I'll exclude Northern Ireland.

Wales or Scotland?

I will have a stab in the dark

and say Scotland.

Do you know this one, Julia?

I wouldn't have thought it was Scotland.

I think it might be Wales.

It is Wales. Yeah.

Back to you, Julia. So now you can take advantage here,

Julia, and you must.

Which actor played Richard Nixon in the acclaimed 2013 film The Butler?

Oh, goodness me.

Another film I haven't seen.

I don't think it was Alan Rickman.

My instinct is telling me it was Liev Schreiber.

I can't imagine John Cusack playing Richard Nixon.

I'm going to say Liev Schreiber...

with very little confidence!

Do you know, Steph? I thought it was John Cusack.

It is John Cusack. Oh!

OK, so, one each.

And your third question, Steph.

Prior to Cilla Black taking over as host,

who presented the pilot episode of the show

that became the long-running TV series Blind Date?

Was it...

Good grief. Well, Cilla Black is so, just

connected in everybody's consciousness with it,

I wasn't even aware there had been someone else in the pilot.

My temptation is maybe to say Dustin Gee,

because maybe the fact that he died

would be the reason that he didn't...carry on

and do the series.

Although equally it could have been one of the other two

and they just...weren't right.

Russ Abbot's the biggest name there, but can I imagine him doing it?

Duncan Norvelle would have been a very...unique host.

I am going to plump for Dustin Gee on the very flimsy basis that

I think his untimely death might have been why he didn't carry on.

So Dustin Gee.

No, it's Duncan Norvelle. Oh...

Did you know? No. That's a great fact.

OK. So, Julia, you've got a chance to take the round here.

What is the title of the sitcom,

a spoof of US police procedurals,

starring Rashida Jones,

that was first broadcast in 2016?

Is it...

I've actually watched every single one of them.

It's very funny and she's great in it.

It's Angie Tribeca.

Angie Tribeca is quite right. We say congratulations, Julia.

You've won the head-to-head.

So, Steph has got Kevin but the other four,

Pat and Barry and David and Judith, are there for you if you want them.

I would like to choose Pat, if I may, please. You may indeed.

So, as it stands, Julia has one Egghead, Pat,

to help in the final, and Steph has got Kevin.

The next category for you is Geography.

So, Julia, as the winner in the second round,

you can choose whether you go first or second.

I will go second this time, please.

OK, so Geography, and your first question, Steph, is this.

The Gosport ferry operates between Gosport and which city?

I've never been on it, I've never been to Gosport

and I've never been to any of these places, so...

..once again I'm going to do the eliminate one

because I think it's unlikely,

which may come back to bite me when it turns out to be the answer.

But I don't think it's Exeter.

You would imagine Gosport might mean something like

the port on the river... No.

I'm starting to ramble now

so I think I'd better just cut my losses...

..and say...

..take a deep breath and say Southampton. Southampton.

Now, I think that's Kevin's neck of the woods. Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

The ferry actually crosses

Portsmouth harbour to,

unsurprisingly, Portsmouth.

It's just a few minutes across, basically.

It's not a... But it saves a big road trip, does it?

Yeah, because Portsmouth Harbour

extends back quite a way so

if you were to do it any other way,

you'd have to go all the way up

and round so even though

it's only a few minutes' journey,

it really does make a difference.

Portsmouth is the answer.

So, Julia, are things turning in your direction? Let's see.

Which avenue in New York City was built in the 1830s between

Park Avenue and Fifth Avenue?

Is it...

Now, I went to New York in 2008 and

we stayed on Avenue of the Americas.

But I'm trying to...work out in my mind where exactly it is

in relation to everything else.

I think it might be Avenue of the Americas.

Cos it's also known as Sixth Avenue, Avenue of the Americas,

so I'm connecting it to Fifth Avenue.

That's probably the most logical answer I can come up with. OK.

Avenue of the Americas. Is it known as Sixth? I think so. Yeah.

So, a beautiful bit of logic there.

It's the wrong answer, though. It's Madison Avenue. Oh!

That's cruel, cos it's... To get that little fact,

ought to be more helpful than that.

So nothing so far. Steph, back to you.

What is the name of the desert in Peru into which huge line drawings,

often of animals, were carved roughly 2,000 years ago?

Is it...

They are known as the Nazca Lines so it's the Nazca Desert.

Nazca Desert is quite right so you have a point there.

So we go back to Julia. You've got to keep up now.

Which of these is the name of a river in Dorset?

Someone had fun writing that question.

I have been past this, the signs for these places down that way

a number of times,

and there is a place down that way called Piddle.

So your answer is Piddle. My answer is Piddle.

Piddle is correct.

OK, one each. Steph, your question.

In its World Heritage Site description,

the French city of Bordeaux is known as the port of the what?

That's interesting. I've never heard it described as any of these.

It is in the west of France so it could be that.

Port of the Sky.

Doesn't make a huge amount of sense, really.

I mean, it would have been boats.

Port of the Sky, I suppose it could be that it's looking out

across the Atlantic, huge expanses of sky.

Port of the Moon.

I can't think of any reason why it would have anything to do with that.

I'm going to go with the prosaic answer and say West.

It's Port of the Moon. Of course.

So, Julia, here we go. This is interesting.

If you get this right,

you've then got two Eggheads in the final to Steph's one.

If not, we go to Sudden Death. Your third question.

Which British motorway has no junctions 1-3.

Is that...

I'm not a driver so this is not good for me.

M3 is down south,

Hampshire way, I think.

It feels like it could be the M62, but I'm not...

I'm not really 100% on any of those and I can't imagine why it

wouldn't have a junction... have junctions 1-3,

unless they're elsewhere on another connecting road.

I don't know.

I don't have very much to hang this on so I'm just going to say the M62.

M62 is the correct answer. Oh, gosh.

So you pulled ahead of Steph there and we say congratulations, Julia.

You've won the final head-to-head.

This is a really intriguing contest.

Now, let's see - you can choose Barry or Dave or Judith.

I think I will choose Barry, please.

OK, he'll be very pleased about that.

So, Julia, you've got Pat and Barry. And, Steph, you've got Kevin.

Shall we now play the final round?

So, this is what we have been playing towards,

it is time to find out who is one step closer

to becoming an Egghead, and who will be eliminated from our search.

Steph and Julia, I'll ask each of you three questions in turn.

This time the questions are all General Knowledge.

And in this final round,

you do of course have the backing of the Eggheads you've won.

So, Steph, you've got Kevin, and behind you, Julia,

are Pat and Barry.

And you can call them in only once, that's the key thing.

But you could, if you wanted to, Julia,

use them both for one question.

Once they're done, they're done, so use them wisely.

Julia, as you won the last round,

you get to choose whether you want to play first or second now.

This time I'm going to go first, please.

And here is your first question.

On which children's programme

did Alberto Frog and his Amazing Animal Band

sometimes appear?

Oh, this is an absolute gem from my childhood, I remember it so well.

And I loved Alberto and his Amazing Animal Band

and how he got to choose a milkshake at the end because he'd done

a good deed, and choose what flavour he wanted.

And all of that was part of Bod.

Bod is correct. Brilliant.

Your first question now, Steph.

In which town did Gordon Brown have his ill-fated encounter with

Gillian Duffy during the 2010 general election campaign?

Marvellous, because I was thinking, "Oh, well, it was in Lancashire,

"I think."

Oh, the dilemma now of whether to...

Do I use Kevin up on something like this

and hope that I know the other ones?

Goodness, I'll kick myself if I ask Kevin

and then it is the one that I think it is.

But just to bring me back onto, hopefully, equal terms,

I will ask Kevin his opinion, please. All right.

So, we haven't heard from you what yours is yet,

probably best not to say.

Kevin, in which town did Gordon Brown have his ill-fated

encounter with Gillian Duffy during the 2010 general election campaign?

Same problem as you, Steph, I'm afraid.

I was thinking it was Lancashire. If I've got...

..an inclination, it's for Rochdale.

If it was me, I would go, and I would have to make a choice,

it was my own question, I would probably wind up going for

Rochdale, but it could, it could also be...

I don't really think it's Preston, but it could be Burnley.

So I don't know if that helps at all

in terms of what your inclination was.

Pretty much identical to the way I was thinking,

I was leaning towards Rochdale, thinking probably not Preston,

but it might be Burnley, so...

On that basis, let's say Rochdale.

Rochdale is the answer, well done. Got it right.

OK. One each.

Is it going to carry on as tense as this?

And Steph has used her Egghead and you haven't used yours,

so you've got a good situation now, Julia.

Which Spanish island is home to a former studio of the painter

Joan Miro, now a foundation bearing his name?

Oh. This is not something I've heard of.

I've been to Mallorca a few times

and it doesn't sound familiar with me.

But I have no...

..certainty whatsoever,

so I think I might ask Pat what he thinks of this.

Pat, which Spanish island is home to a former studio

of the painter Joan Miro, now a foundation bearing his name?

I don't know the know the answer to this. I would suggest...

I think Miro was Catalan.

Tenerife is in the Canaries,

and Mallorca and Formentera are in the Balearics,

which are geographically close to Catalonia

and perhaps culturally, so I would prefer,

if I had to take a go, have a go at this,

I would prefer to go one of the Balearics.

Taking your contribution into account,

perhaps it's Formentera,

but once again, I don't have any solid answer to this.

I think I'm just going to have to plump, then, for Formentera,

just on the basis that it's not something I'm familiar with.

And I feel like I would know it if it were Mallorca.

It is Mallorca. Oh, dear.

So, although you don't have any Eggheads left, Steph,

if you get this right, you are definitely in control.

In 1971, the national tabloid newspaper the Daily Sketch

was closed and merged with which other paper?

Well, this was the year I was born, so I wasn't reading any of them.

I just have a vague feeling somehow

that the offices of the Scottish Mail

may also mention the Daily Sketch,

I don't know why I think that, I may have seen that at some point.

It's a very random reason for doing it,

but I will say the Daily Mail.

What do you think, Kevin? My initial thought was the Mirror.

Then I started to think, "Oh, actually, is it the Mail?"

So...what would I have gone for in the end? Um...

I think I... You know, obviously I hope Steph is right,

I think I might have gone for the Mirror in the end. Interesting.

In a way it's good you weren't helping,

because it is the Daily Mail.

The Mail is the answer. So, Steph is in the lead here.

Your third question, Julia, and you need to get this right.

You have still got Barry, known as the Brain.

Which part of the world was once divided up into three kingdoms

known as Baekje, Silla and Goguryeo?

I'm torn between two,

I don't really want to say too much because I feel like this is

something Barry would know, so I'm going to ask him, please.

OK, Barry, this is your big moment. You need to keep Julia in it.

Julia, you will be relieved to know that I'm 100% certain of

my answer on this one, and it's Korea.

Absolutely. Thank goodness.

That's the one I wouldn't have thought it would be.

So I will take Barry's advice, thank you, and say Korea.

Good work, Barry,

because we came unstuck a bit with Wee Willie Winkie the other day.

You know the history of Korea...

I can manage dynasties,

but nursery rhymes are completely beyond me.

Exactly. Wee Willie Winkie's the problem.

All right, Korea is correct.

Good old Barry came through powerfully there as an Egghead,

as he is expected to do.

So it's two points each, but with your third question, Steph,

you can take it.

In which year was the Australian flag carrier airline Qantas founded?

OK. SHE LAUGHS

Well, before I heard the answers, I was thinking, "Oh, 1950s",

so evidently not.

1940, Australia is part of the Empire then,

would have been at war.

So...is it less likely that would...

..have been founded then?

1920 is a bit early for an airline to be founded.

I'm going to go down the middle and go 1930.

1930 is your answer.

But it is the wrong answer. It's 1920. Oh.

So, really, as you say, early in the history of air travel.

I guess the patriotic thing, they wanted to get cracking.

So, two points each after three questions,

we go to Sudden Death, scores level.

Back to you, Julia, gets a bit harder,

I don't give you alternatives. All Eggheads have been used.

Which of the British Armed Forces has a major base at Brize Norton?

I had an answer straight away,

but I'm just going to have a little think about it.

And it is the RAF.

It is the RAF, Royal Air Force, yes.

Sudden Death, Steph, you need this.

Lisburn in Northern Ireland is situated on which river?

Oh, good grief.

For some reason I don't know.

Again, my geography of Northern Ireland is appallingly bad.

I had in my head that Lisburn was fairly close to the border.

I'm trying to think...

..when, many years ago, when I visited

some of the Neolithic sites on the River Boyne.

If that went up, and if that went in and through...

Or the other voice in my head is saying, "What's...?"

Again, I've gone blank,

I'm trying to think what's the river in Belfast,

and it has all just gone completely blank.

No. Nothing is coming to me, so I will have to say...

Oh...I'll have to say the Boyne.

The River Lagan.

Lagan, that's the one that goes through Belfast.

So, we say congratulations, Julia, you have won.

Commiserations, Steph. Thank you. Well done, Julia.

You've proved that winning comes as naturally to you as it does

to our Eggheads, and you're one step closer to joining our quiz Goliaths.

Your work for today is not quite done, though.

We give you three points for each round

you've won today, so you've got six points.

You'll now get the chance to add to those points by

answering quick fire questions for two minutes.

We give you a point for each correct answer,

and we see where your final score puts you on the leaderboard.

The top four places at the end of the heats will make it through

to the semifinals. And we're very close to that moment,

so yours will be the last name on the leaderboard.

But hopefully not in tenth place.

If we have a look at it now,

you need to get,

well, 21 or above, basically,

to get into the green area

and be in the semifinals

and play again.

So, all to play for. Julia, are you ready? Yes, I am.

OK, all the best to you.

Your time starts now.

In the honours abbreviations OBE and MBE,

for what does the letter E stand?

Empire.

In which body of water does the Isle of Man lie?

The North Sea.

No, Irish Sea.

In which European country did Mozart set his Opera Don Giovanni?

Italy.

No, Spain. In which novel by Charles Dickens

is Madame Defarge a bloodthirsty character?

Tale Of Two Cities.

In the TV comedy series Father Ted, what is the surname of Father Ted?

Crilly.

In 2005, which group had their first UK number one single with

I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor?

The Arctic Monkeys.

What was the first name of the first Duke of Wellington,

known as "The Iron Duke"?

Arthur.

Which major Russian city is located at the head of the Gulf of Finland?

Pass.

St Petersburg. Which 1973 film was the first Bond film

to star Roger Moore as 007?

Um...pass.

Live And Let Die.

In the Shakespeare play Romeo And Juliet,

what is Juliet's family surname?

Capulet.

In which country were the 1972 and 1998 Winter Olympics held?

Japan.

In which US soap did Priscilla Presley play Jenna Wade?

Dallas.

The UK hit single It Must Have Been Love by Roxette

featured on the soundtrack to which...?

Pretty Woman.

What is the capital of Vietnam?

Lau... Vientiane. No...

No, Hanoi. The Battle of Agincourt took place during which century?

15th.

What is the last letter of the Greek alphabet?

Omega.

The Kruger National Park is the largest national park

in which African country?

South Africa.

For which football club did Geoff Hurst play

in over 400 league games?

Pass.

West Ham. Which disease takes its name

from the Italian for "bad air"...

Malaria. ..owing to early ideas on the causes of the disease?

Malaria, correct. In 1968, which duo had their first UK number one album

with Bookends?

Simon and Garfunkel.

In Arthurian legend, the father of King Arthur is Uther who?

Pendragon.

Which 1995 film epic features the line, "They may take our lives,

"but they'll never take our freedom"?

Braveheart.

You just got in with Braveheart. God!

Well done. Whoa!

You got some tricky ones right there.

West Ham. You're obviously not a football...

No, I'm not a football person, but if I'd let myself think

about that for a second, I probably would have got that.

Sure. And Hanoi for Vietnam. Yeah. That just escaped me as well.

I think another capital city came into my head.

You've scored...

16 points.

Take a breath now. God! That's really good.

Because you had six points, that's a grand total of 22 points.

And let's put you on the leaderboard.

So, up you go to third place,

I'm delighted to say you will be in our semifinals. Thank you.

So, let's have a look.

Marianne has been displaced there into fifth place.

In, as you can see, the first four places,

we've got Nicki Cockburn, 25, Frankie Fanko, 24,

Julia here on 22, and Beth Webster on 21,

so you're well in the green there.

Join us next time for the first of our semifinals. What a game today.

Until then, goodbye.

Hit it! Over on CBeebies,

our mission is discovering more about the world.

ALL: Wow!