Episode 10 Mastermind

First in the spotlight tonight is Richard Holness, an IT specialist from Swindon.

His specialist subject is Asterix.

Next, Pete Collin, a social worker from Herefordshire,

answering questions on the American Civil War General, Robert E Lee.

Daniel Adler, an IT consultant from Farnham, will answer questions on the Life and Works of Puccini.

And Betty McAlister from Belfast, her subject, King George IV.

APPLAUSE

Hello and welcome to Mastermind with me, John Humphrys.

Tonight, four courageous contenders will take the first step

towards the grand final

where one of them could win the famous glass bowl

and, far more importantly, become the nation's Mastermind.

The rules are simple - two minutes of questions on their specialist subject,

then two and a half minutes on general knowledge, so let's ask our first contender to join us, please.

And your name is...?

In the first book, Asterix The Gaul, what is the name of the Roman legionary

who has to spy on the Gauls after he loses a game of musical chairs?

Caligula Minus. When Obelix's faithful dog Dogmatix first appears in Asterix And The Banquet,

he is sitting outside a pork butcher's shop in which city?

Rouen. No, Lutetia.

In Asterix And Caesar's Gift, what is the name of the daughter of Orthopaedix and Angina

to whom Obelix takes a fancy?

Arabella. No, Influenza.

On which colour chariot team does Asterix unsuccessfully bet in Asterix And The Cauldron,

having been told by the tipster Confidenstrix that it was certain to win?

Blue. Asterix and Obelix want to be sold as slaves

in Asterix And The Laurel Wreath to get inside Julius Caesar's palace.

Name the luxury slave merchant in Rome who sells them.

House of Typhus. In Asterix In Britain, what does Asterix's British cousin Anticlimax describe

as "smaller than the garden of my uncle, but larger than the pen of my aunt"?

His house. His boat. Who reveals herself to be the mother of the baby apparently abandoned

on the doorstep of Asterix's house in Asterix And Son?

Cleopatra. Name the merchant and master salesman

who ferries Asterix and Obelix to Rome in Asterix The Gladiator.

Ekonomikrisis. What implement does the druid Getafix use to cut mistletoe,

an important ingredient in his magic potion to make the villagers invincible?

A sickle. Who are the Sumerians at war with in Asterix And The Black Gold?

They mistake Asterix and Obelix for their enemy.

Assyrians. Akkadians. Getafix is awarded a golden menhir for being Druid of the Year

in Asterix And The Goths. What is he awarded in Asterix And the Soothsayer?

Golden cauldron. According to one of the songs of Cacofonix the bard in Asterix And The Magic Carpet,

"the rain in Gaul falls mainly down" what?

The waterfall. The wall.

What is the name of chief Vitalstatistix's teenage nephew from Lutetia

who features heavily in Asterix And The Normans?

BEEP He drives a sports chariot and is a big fan of The Rolling Menhirs.

Justforkix. Justforkix is exactly right.

Richard, you have no passes. You've scored eight points.

APPLAUSE

And our next contender, please.

And your name is...?

General Robert E Lee.

He was born in which American state on 19th January, 1807

at the family home in Stratford, Westmoreland County?

Virginia. What rank in the US Army did Lee hold when he turned down Abraham Lincoln's request

to lead the Federal forces? Instead, he joined the Confederate forces in 1861.

Colonel. After graduating from West Point in 1829,

Lee began serving his first commission in which army corps?

Engineers. On 17th October, 1859, Lee was sent to a town to lead troops against John Brown

and a small group of abolitionists who had seized an armoury and a number of hostages. Name the town.

Harpers Ferry. During which war in 1846 did Lee first experience active combat service?

One of its major battles was at the fortified port city of Veracruz.

The Mexican-American War.

After serving at Fort Monroe, Lee was transferred to Washington in 1834

as assistant to which General and Chief Engineer?

Pass. Lee assumed command of the Army of Northern Virginia

after General Joseph Johnston was wounded at which battle on 1st June, 1862?

Seven Pines. Which Union General, who had succeeded Hooker

as the commander of the Army of the Potomac, defeated Lee's forces at the Battle of Gettysburg?

Meade. What was the nickname of Lee's father Henry, a cavalry commander in the Revolutionary War?

Light Horse Harry. In 1862, when Lee reorganised his forces,

he gave command of the two wings of the Army of Northern Virginia

to Thomas Stonewall Jackson and which other Confederate soldier?

Longstreet. What is the alternative name of the Battle of Sharpsburg fought on 17th September, 1862?

It is believed to be the bloodiest day of the Civil War.

Antietam. Which Union General of the newly formed Army of Virginia opposed Lee, Longstreet and Jackson

at the Second Battle of Bull Run in August 1862?

Pope. After a series of battles from June 1864 to '65,

Lee's eventual decision to evacuate a city led to its capture by General Grant...

BEEP ..and hastened the end of the Civil War. Which city?

Richmond. No, it was Petersburg.

You had just one pass.

Lee was transferred to Washington as assistant to General Charles Gratiot.

Pete, you have 11 points.

APPLAUSE

And our next contender, please.

And your name is...?

Two minutes. Giacomo Puccini's first opera was performed in Milan's Teatro dal Verme

in May 1884. What was its title?

Le Villi. Puccini's last opera Turandot contains an aria in which The Unknown Prince, Calaf, claims

that his true name will not be revealed before morning. Name the aria.

Nessun Dorma. In Madame Butterfly, name Butterfly's uncle

who denounces her for abandoning her gods to marry Pinkerton.

Bonze. In Tosca, Cavaradossi sings an aria comparing the appearance of the blonde Mary Magdalene

that he is painting to the dark beauty of Tosca. What is the aria called?

Recondita Amore. Recondita Armonia.

Which work by Verdi was the first opera that the young Puccini saw with some friends at Pisa?

Aida. Who was the librettist for Le Villi, written for a competition called the Sonzogno Prize?

It didn't even make the shortlist.

Fontana. By what name is the aria from Act Two of La Boheme, "Quando me'n vo' soletta per la via",

or "As I walk alone through the street", sometimes known?

Musetta's Waltz. In The Girl Of The Golden West, what is the name

of the saloon run by Minnie in a mining camp?

Polka. What was the first name of the married woman with whom Puccini fell in love?

Their first child Antonio was born in 1886.

Elvira. What is the title of Puccini's setting of a poem by Renato Fucini finished in 1896?

He sent it to the Marchese Ginori Lisci to whom he dedicated La Boheme.

Sole E Amore. Avanti Urania.

Which soprano created the role of Magda in La Rondine,

then sang two roles in Il Trittico and did much to popularise Puccini's music?

Gilda dalla Rizza. In which village did Puccini settle in 1891

and remain until he moved to Viareggio after World War One?

Chiatri. Torre del Lago.

In her aria from La Boheme, "Si, mi chiamano Mimi," what does Mimi say her real name is?

Ethel. Lucia. Puccini revised Madame Butterfly after its premiere in Milan.

What is the title of the short aria he added for Pinkerton to expand his role in the final act of the opera?

I Walk Alone. BEEP

Addio, Fiorito Asil

or Farewell, Flowery Refuge.

No passes, Daniel. You have nine points.

APPLAUSE

And our last contender, please.

And your name is...?

Two minutes. George became King in 1820.

Which residence on the south coast of England was built in 1787 as a retreat when he was Prince of Wales?

It was later extended by the designer John Nash.

Brighton Pavilion. Yes, the Royal Pavilion. George married his long-time companion in secret

on 15th December, 1785. What was her name?

Mrs Fitzherbert. As Prince of Wales, George abandoned his support of which cause

in case it provoked a return of his father's madness? He gave his formal consent to the issue in 1829.

The Catholic cause. Catholic emancipation, yes.

When George became Prince Regent in February 1811,

he accepted that which Prime Minister should remain in office?

Pass.

In 1779, George became infatuated with the actress Mary Robinson after seeing her perform in which play?

Perdita, The Winter's Tale. Who wrote of George when he was a young man that he was "inclined to be too fat,

"but the gracefulness of his manner and his height certainly make him a pleasing figure"? Pass.

George urged the government to buy the art collection of John Julius Angerstein for ?57,000.

It led directly to the founding of which institution?

The...

Pass. At a ball attended by George and Lord Alvanley,

which of his former cronies offended George by asking, "Alvanley, who is your fat friend?"

Brummell. Yes, Beau Brummell.

In 1812, Leigh Hunt was jailed for two years for calling George "a libertine, in debt and disgrace,

"a despiser of domestic ties." Of which newspaper was Hunt the editor?

The Examiner. What was the name of Prince George's cousin whom he married in 1795?

Caroline of Brunswick. Which large house in Pall Mall was George given after his 21st birthday in 1783,

becoming his independent residence?

Carlton House. The government introduced a bill in 1820

to dissolve his marriage to Caroline of Brunswick on the grounds of her adultery. What was the bill called?

Pains and Penalties. The architect Sir Jeffry Wyattville was given responsibility by George...

BEEP ..for improvements to which royal residence between 1824 and '28?

Windsor Lodge. No, Windsor Castle. Three passes, Betty.

The building that was founded on the basis of that art collection was the National Gallery.

It was the Duchess of Devonshire, Georgiana, who wrote that George was fat, but graceful and all the rest.

And when he became Prince Regent, he accepted that Spencer Perceval should remain Prime Minister.

So, Betty, you've scored another nine points.

APPLAUSE

So that is the end of a very close first round. Let's have a look at all the scores.

In fourth place, Richard Holness.

Joint second place, Daniel Adler and Betty McAlister.

In the lead, Pete Collin.

APPLAUSE

The general knowledge round now. If there's a tie at the end of it,

the number of passes is taken into account and the person with the fewer passes is the winner.

If they're tied on passes as well, then we have to have a tie-break.

So let's ask Richard to join us again if he would, please.

And you begin this round with eight points with your knowledge of Asterix.

And you get two and a half minutes now for your general knowledge. Here we go.

In music, what name is given to a work written for two performers?

Duet. The Curse Of The Black Pearl is the subtitle of the first of which series of films?

Pirates Of The Caribbean. In which town is the Riverside Ground

that became England's first new Test cricket venue since 1902

when it hosted the Second Test against Zimbabwe in 2003?

Chester-le-Street. In astronomy, what did Edwin Hubble categorise as elliptical, spiral or irregular?

Galaxies. Which indie rock band fronted by Tim Burgess

released the 1997 chart-topping album Tellin' Stories?

Pass. Which French seaport is at the mouth of the Divette River

on the Cotentin Peninsula facing the English Channel?

Le Havre. Cherbourg. The barrel-like shape of which tree, native to the African savannahs, inspired a belief

that it had been pulled from the earth by the devil and re-inserted upside down?

Monkey puzzle tree. Baobab. The memoirs Known And Unknown were written by a Defence Secretary

who served for six years under George W Bush. What's his name?

Donald Rumsfeld. In the 1560s, who founded the Royal Exchange in London as a meeting place for bankers?

Lloyd's. Gresham. Who is the young man who is kidnapped in the RL Stevenson novel of that name?

David Balfour. Which city's nickname, Auld Reekie, refers to the blanket of smoke that once hung over it?

Edinburgh. Which painter, born in Massachusetts in 1834,

settled in England, where some of his most celebrated works were done?

Pass. What name is given to the sequence of 14 images or pictures portraying events

in the Passion of Christ to his crucifixion and burial?

Stations of the Cross. Which pan-fried flaky Indian flatbread

has a name that means layers of cooked dough? Naan.

No, paratha. The actors Matthew Macfadyen and Keeley Hawes, who married in 2004,

met on which television drama?

Spooks. From 1951 to 1993, King Baudoiun was head of state of which European country?

Luxembourg. Belgium. In which 1951 film did Humphrey Bogart play the skipper of a river boat?

The African Queen. Who are the parliamentary business managers

responsible for maintaining party discipline and turnout for votes?

The whips. Which small Caribbean island, birthplace of poet Derek Walcott,

claims to have produced the most Nobel Laureates per capita?

St Lucia. Vaughan Williams' Seventh Symphony is usually known... BEEP

..by what title, because it was based on his score for a 1948 film about Captain Scott?

The Antarctic Symphony? Yes, or Sinfonia Antartica.

You have two passes. James McNeill Whistler was born in Massachusetts.

And the indie rock band was The Charlatans.

Your score has now gone up to 21.

And now Daniel again, please.

You begin with nine points on Puccini. 2? minutes for your general knowledge.

The score to beat is 21. Here we go.

Professor Abraham van Helsing is a central character in which novel by Bram Stoker of 1897?

Dracula. Which American championship golf course has all its holes named after shrubs, trees or flowers?

Augusta. What Chinese phrase meaning "work together"

has passed into everyday use to describe a reckless, over-zealous attitude? Pass.

Which seabird, from the auk family, takes its name from its sharp, heavy beak?

Spoonbill. Razorbill. Which Portuguese city, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996,

lies on the banks of the River Douro near the Atlantic Ocean?

Porto. What title, held by the Prime Minister of Ireland, is Gaelic for chieftain or leader?

Taoiseach. In which 2003 animated film does the clown fish Marlin search for his only son

who has ended up in a fish tank?

Finding Nemo. Which highly-contagious disease, characterised by a grey membrane across the throat,

has a name from the Greek for leather? Meningitis?

Diphtheria. Which writer chose the words, "A soldier of the Great War known unto God" to be inscribed

on the headstones of unknown soldiers?

Kipling. Which inlet of the Irish Sea separates the Cumbrian coastline

from that of Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland?

Mull of Kintyre. Solway Firth. Morcilla, which resembles black pudding, and butifarra,

are Spanish varieties of what?

Blood sausage. Yes. What sub-sect of the Mennonite religion,

whose member are known for their plain dress and simple lifestyle,

takes its name from Jakob Ammann, born in 1644? Sufis?

Amish. The works of which French Impressionist include Cotton Market At New Orleans and Absinthe Drinker?

Er...Manet. Degas. The twins Craig and Charlie Reid have had hits with I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)

and Letter From America. How are they known?

The Proclaimers. Which Shropshire town takes its name from the historic structure

at the foundry at Coalbrookdale?

Ironbridge. Which actress has played Boudica and Moll Flanders on TV and River Song in Dr Who?

Alex Kingston. In 2012, India's Viswanathan Anand, known as the Lightning Kid,

beat Boris Gelfand of Israel to retain his world title in what game?

Bowls. Chess. The Dance of the Blessed Spirits comes from which opera by Gluck?

Orfeo ed Euridice. Yes. In which... BEEP

..1992 film does Tom Hanks play the coach of a women's baseball team whose players include Madonna?

A League Of Their Own. Correct.

One pass. That Chinese phrase meaning "work together" is gung ho.

You have, Daniel, also 21 points.

Staying very close, isn't it? Betty McAllister now again, please.

And, Betty, as you know you also have nine points with your knowledge of King George IV.

The score to beat is still 21. Let's see if you can do it.

Here we go. 2? minutes. The Richter Scale measures which phenomenon?

Pass. Which writer, born in South Shields in June, 1906, set many of her novels in the north-east?

Catherine Cookson. Which voice artist, who died in 1989,

provided the voices of Tweety Pie, Bugs Bunny and the Road Runner?

Pass. Which city was founded by the Dutch East India Company as a supply base at Table Bay in 1652?

Pass. Which song, a hit for Bobby Darin and Ella Fitzgerald,

is a reworking of Moritat from Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht's 1928 Threepenny Opera?

Mack the Knife? Yes. Who founded the Women's Social and Political Union with a group of friends in 1903?

Emmeline Pankhurst. Which Irish dramatist wrote of Shakespeare,

"It would positively be a relief to me to dig him up and throw stones at him"?

Sheridan? No, Shaw. What word for a sunshade comes from the Italian for "prepare for the sun"?

Sombrero? Parasol. Which cable and satellite TV news channel,

that originally broadcast only in Arabic, was founded in 1996 with support from the Emir of Qatar?

Al-Jazeera. Which British tennis champion took American citizenship in 1938 and served

in the American Air Force in WWII?

Pass. What period of geological time was named by French geologist Alexandre Brongniart

after a mountain range on the French-Swiss border? Pass.

The pollack is a member of which fish family?

Cod? Yes. In which village on the River Alde in Suffolk

is a barley store or maltings the main venue of a music festival?

Aldeburgh? Snape. At the end of Oscar Wilde's 1895 play,

Jack Worthing's real name is revealed to be what?

Ernest. The bird known as Albert that visited northern Scotland many times from the 1970s to the '90s

struggled to find a mate because his natural breeding ground was the South Atlantic. What species was he?

Pass! With which painter did Paul Gauguin live briefly in the southern French city of Arles in 1888?

Pass. Which sword, developed from the duelling sword, is the heaviest weapon used in competitive fencing?

Epee? Yes. Which country's union with Sweden was officially dissolved in June, 1905?

BEEP Denmark? No, it was Norway, but always worth a guess.

You had seven passes. Van Gogh lived with Gauguin,

the albatross was the bird known as Albert, the Jurassic Period was named by the French geologist,

Fred Perry was the British tennis champion, Cape Town was founded by the Dutch East India Company,

the name of that voice artist was Mel Blanc

and - you'll kick yourself for this - the Richter Scale measures earthquakes. As you knew.

Seven passes, Betty, you have 16 points.

And, finally, Pete Collin again, please.

And you start out with 11 points with your knowledge of General Robert E Lee.

And 21 is still the score to beat. So here we go.

2? minutes. By what name is the singer Stuart Goddard more commonly known?

He had two chart-topping singles - Stand and Deliver and Prince Charming.

Adam Ant. Who was the last Democrat to be American President prior to Barack Obama?

Pass. Which European capital city did Ernest Hemingway describe as "a moveable feast"?

The title was given to a memoir published after his death.

Madrid? No, Paris. What American sitcom starred Danny De Vito and Christopher Lloyd

as employees of New York City's Sunshine Cab Company?

Taxi? Yes. The Drum Roll, the Surprise and the Military are symphonies by which composer?

Haydn. Which university city was spared bombing during WWII

because Hitler intended using it as his capital when he conquered Britain? Cambridge?

Oxford. What is a colobus, as mentioned in Gerald Durrell's 1972 memoir Catch Me A Colobus?

Pass. The Temple of the Emerald Buddha is in the grounds of the Grand Palace in which country?

Thailand? Yes. Which nut resembles the walnut, but is longer and thinner?

In America it is used to make a praline candy and traditional Thanksgiving dessert.

Pass. Which British architect designed the European Court of Human Rights building in Strasbourg?

Rogers? Yes. Which Roman writer's 37-volume work Natural History

was a major source of scientific knowledge until the Middle Ages?

Juvenal? Pliny the Elder. Who received an Oscar nomination for the title role in Lawrence of Arabia?

Peter O'Toole. Which magazine, which lists the world's richest people,

was founded in 1917 by a business columnist working at the time for William Randolph Hearst? Pass.

Who explained his 1926 world heavyweight title defeat by Gene Tunney to his wife with,

"Honey, I forgot to duck"?

Er, pass. Jeanette Winterson's novel The Daylight Gate is inspired by the 17th-century trials of people

from Pendle Forest and Samlesbury. What was their crime?

Witchcraft. What are removed from organs such as the bladder in the surgical procedure, a lithotomy?

Stones. In which city was St Paul born as Saul in about 4BC?

Pass. Which programme, that took its title from a Buddy Holly hit,

was the UK's first all-music television show for teenagers? It made a star of Cliff Richard.

No, pass. What term for a countryman or clumsy person is derived from a large, heavy shoe or boot?

BEEP

Clog? No, it was clod-hopper.

Close. Very close.

Seven passes. The programme from the Buddy Holly hit was Oh, Boy!

St Paul or Saul of Tarsus,

Jack Dempsey said, "Honey, I forgot to duck", Forbes Magazine lists the world's richest people,

that nut that's similar to a walnut is the pecan, a colobus is an old world monkey

and the last Democrat before Obama was Bill Clinton. Yes, of course, you knew it.

You didn't make it, Pete. You have a total of 19 points. Thank you.

Well, that really was a very close contest. You'll see why when we look at all the scores.

In fourth place, Betty McAllister.

Third place, 19 points, Peter Collin.

In second place,

21 points and two passes, Richard Holness.

In first place, 21 points and one pass, Daniel Adler.

The old rule about not passing if you can possibly avoid it.

It means Daniel Adler is tonight's winner and he goes through to the semi-finals. Congratulations.

If you would like to be a contender on the next series, do go to our website.

Or you can follow us on Twitter.

And do join us again next time, please, for more Masterminds.

Thanks for watching. Goodbye.

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